Its that time of year again when the Mississippi thaws and sends giant chunks of ice spinning down to New Orleans or to their eventually return to fluid. Its also that time of year again when we paddlers tend to venture out to the retail outlets and send large chunks of change to the bottom lines of cash hunger business owners. This year, Ive found myself longing for an unusual long list of items, and expect my top line to become intimately involved with my bottom line. On a recent visit to a local retailer to help check items off of the list, I found myself gawking over the wide…