Are you concerned whether you'll be on Santa's good list or bad list this year? Here's a little guide that will help you forecast whether you'll get that tender new 3-weight, or a lump of coal:

Excessive streamer fishing, even in clear water... naughty. Dry fly fishing... nice. Nymph fishing only... stupid.

San Juan shuffling. Very naughty. Seining a river, and telling others what you see... nice.

"Yielding" to your buddy a run "where you caught some fish last time," then going to the run where the fish really are, while buddy is parked out of harm's way for an hour or two... pretty naughty. Leaving your marooned friend with a bottle of water and an energy bar... nice.

Guides: putting a loudmouth know-it-all in a run, and asking that person to cast up-wind into a 30 mph breeze with a double weighted nymph rig (humility training 101)... naughty. Putting the Mrs. on all the big fish... nice.

Cigarette butts in the river... very, very naughty (shame on you). Picking up stuff you didn't leave on the bank... nice.

Engaging in a Fly Talk blog conversation... nice. Making said conversation revolve around "corn"... naughty.

Loaning your buddy a pair of waders... nice; knowing that they leak... naughty. Suggesting to your attractive female friend that "wet wading is the way to go" even though the air temp is 56-degrees, and it's runoff... both naughty and nice.

Secret spots, secret flies, and secret tricks... all naughty. Taking a kid flyfishing and sharing all those secrets... very, very nice. So much so, that I think this one trumps all the other naughty things you do over the course of a fishing season, and guarantees your spot on the good list.

At least I'm hoping it does...

Deeter