Chapter 1
I left my wife and kid that horrific day. I had an idea as to what i was
going to do. My idea had started with an everything pizza at Pizza
Mans. It was a rainstorm outside, had felt like the tropics and was sad
to lose your wife and kid to a divorce and was not proud of it. Where i
am getting at , is one of those years that you do not get back.
I was getting a ride to the docks with a buddy of mine named Tom. A five
dollar bill had covered his gas. In all, it was the least i could do,
was just five bucks.
The horn had blew to The Queen Lattifa, tom and i could here it with the
truck windows up. we got out of our seats and onto the wooden dock,
faced and walked towards the rig. Tom did not want to get on board, i
did though.
I could see that the deck had needed some work. Everywhere i had looked
was a muddy boot print. I felt back for the person with the muddy boots.
I knew they will be scrubbing it up. I was trying to check my own boots
too to see if i was not tracking the deck up too. Down and about
scrubbing, swishing and a-swaying the deck. The captain is me. I had
explained to Tom. He could not believe what i had said.
Scrubbing with soap and bubbles, i noticed my bucket and it was filled
to the rim with them. Tom, he had proposed i use water. a big deal it
is, the difference between cleaning with water than with soap and water.
He had left so fast he had almost forgot his truck keys. I knew he
would of been back if he did. A horrible dog had came at me. He did not
get the chance to bite me though. He ran to my ship with his owner
yelling no at him. He had finally of listened and had turned back.
The time had changed, my heart was beating fairly quickly. It is not
easy cleaning the ship deck and almost getting bit by a writ wilier in
the process, specifically if that dog knew how i had felt about it. I
had been out at sea only once before when i was a little boy with my dad
and plenty of times since then. The ship is ready to go, i thought. My
thinking and excitement had a lot to do with it, but the open sea is
dangerous. The dog was gone.
At holding the steer, i looked back at the docks. The writ wilier was
still upset. He had barked at me the whole way out to sea. I knew he had
wanted some of my fresh meat. In a birds tune, i had started talking to
them. Here bird, here, i said. It is OK. I will not hurt you.Come here.
The high waves had caught my brown eyes. I had looked over the rig edge
to see if they were normal, six inch waves had been crashing the boat
sides. I kept watching. On one wave splash was nine inches, it had came
to me that they might get bigger.
I almost panicked at what i had seen. My pant legs were dirty and soapy.
My gut had growled over the seagulls. The bulging scene of my shoulders
and arms had stood out a good inch or two from my rain resistant yellow
jacket. I could see i was getting hungry. I could not take it all in, i
did not belong at home with my ex wife and kid . I was far away from
anything on this boat, The Lattifa, the rig and would not be returning
for a while. I had belonged at sea. I was a deep sea fisherman. I was
raised on a boat out at sea. There is the story. The deck was scrubbed
nearly raw. I seen i had did a nice job and no doubt that i could not
feed myself. Around my head was a fisherman hat. At closer range, i seen
it was a blue jean make and model. Four holes were put in the top for
breathing purposes. As i had turned the steer with my hands, something
else had appeared. There, scurrying in the water, it was a swordfish. I
supposed he would not be there long, wavy letters in the water it had
wrote.
It is weird how a fish can swim underwater for a really long time. Yet they need air to keep breathing,just something that had come to my mind or something i had thought of, or the memories coming back of the divorce.
What i seen the swordfish do had spelled out my ex wife's name. To say the least, i started my fishing line to eat it for it. come on bite, i said, i am going to eat you. He had caught on that i was not his friend . he had left the boat edge. I took a bath with the fish hose on the deck and washed all of the stress from my body. I drank some warm whisky i had had in the cabin and ate some old shrimp legs i had left over from the last catch. I hurried down to the lower deck fridge and got more. I ate shrimp leg until i could not eat any more.
I had slept all night until five in the morning. Early in the afternoon i had gotten bored. I understood and soon it was late afternoon, i could be fishing a while. I knew i would catch some more swordfish as soon as i had navigated in the right spot.
The next morning, just after sun up, i had pulled in a swordfish. I had anticipated the catch, i reeled it in and had put it below deck with the others. I had thanked the heavens for the food. With a straight face, i said, more the better in heaven. And, you can all stay as long as you all would like. I almost had laughed out loud.
I was contemplating where there would be more swordfish. With one more prayer i had set more hooks and had headed west. I could not help but to notice more movements in the water. I had noticed the way the fish were headed, never going east just west,yet with the currents.
The swordfish had swam by the boat and was by the numbers, the time was kept for each swordfish and was one minute per. Yes , plenty of swordfish, was the perfect sign of wealth. Where the ocean was seen from the front of the deck, i had looked out into it and had went back to the steer of the rig. My hands had steered the steer. As i had watched the sun rise get brighter, i had thought these words, good morning,sunshine. Good day and great fishing!
I did not have to say good morning. I could of said good night, but to not steer toward the fish would be a foolish move on my part. It would run me broke. The money would of slowly of went delinquent.
I had no idea where the seagulls had went. Perhaps it was far away or maybe was closer than i had thought. I had tried to believe they were closer. It was not possible that they had went far. I thought something more would have happened in my life, was it very unusual of me to just take off out to sea alone. Perhaps i had too much of life or maybe i just needed a way to make money. Whatever it was that had led me out to sea, i was trying to sort it all out.
I am going to the north pole and with the help of god and the heavens, i will catch a lot more swordfish.
To me it had made a big difference where i was headed or where i had fished. My new black sweat shirt would keep me warm, time and again, place to place. There would be a no i am not working. When my hands had started to hurt at the steer, i would breathe hot air into them and break for some seconds. Water from the waves were blasting up the sides of the rig and had soaked the deck, had almost froze it before running back into the sea. It was food that was fished occasionally along the way. Through the ice burgs, the snow or the sleet rain i would fish, not turning back.
Some afternoons i would nap in the cabin den on a hammock. The long journey i knew had just begun. There would be a lot of hook bating and some close injury;s. My warm filled belly was full now and again. All was fed. Once more fish would fill the lower deck fridge . I will be completely happy. After the north pole had been reached there was only one way of knowing it, i had thought and it was by the amount of ice burgs that were seen on the way. Memories of when i was a kid, an old boat named The Queen Stacey and two other of my dads ship mates,were fishing like my dad Nicholas. Memories of the northern fishing tournament,UN believable first place medals and fallowed with my fathers death and his funeral. He died of a stroke at the age of fifty. As i turned the steer gauge to auto pilot i had started to remember how i had barely survived the Queen Stacey wreck and then i had thanked the heavens once again. No, maybe i will manually drive this rig. I might crash. I was about three quarters of the way to the fishing spot where i knew all the tuna was. It had an estimated catch price of three hundred thousand dollars. I stopped in the cabin and had another warm whisky. I did not leave any hooks UN bated. The dead of the day was a perfect chance to make some dough. I wore some fisher mans gloves that i had had in the cabins storage box. As i waited patiently, the gloves had kept my hands warm. The middle of the afternoon sunlight was out for a second.
I threw all the hooks in the water. As i did two swordfish were already caught in them. I had cranked them both onto the deck and rolled them into the lower fridge door. I held one fish up to get a better look. There they were, a good nine on the sword scale. One was large and long. Upright swords that were as long as my arm. The high smooth surface of there skin was slimy. The other one the hook was lashed from its rough no bite catch. It was a clean snare though and i am sure would make a great penny. I had them all down in the fridge. There was a new story to tell my son James. As i lowered them i had covered them in ice, my mind had remembered back through the years,back to my childhood days. How great full i was to have a lot of swordfish on board. Swordfish after swordfish the money was there.
It is weird how a fish can swim underwater for a really long time. Yet they need air to keep breathing,just something that had come to my mind or something i had thought of, or the memories coming back of the divorce.
What i seen the swordfish do had spelled out my ex wife's name. To say the least, i started my fishing line to eat it for it. come on bite, i said, i am going to eat you. He had caught on that i was not his friend . he had left the boat edge. I took a bath with the fish hose on the deck and washed all of the stress from my body. I drank some warm whisky i had had in the cabin and ate some old shrimp legs i had left over from the last catch. I hurried down to the lower deck fridge and got more. I ate shrimp leg until i could not eat any more.
I had slept all night until five in the morning. Early in the afternoon i had gotten bored. I understood and soon it was late afternoon, i could be fishing a while. I knew i would catch some more swordfish as soon as i had navigated in the right spot.
The next morning, just after sun up, i had pulled in a swordfish. I had anticipated the catch, i reeled it in and had put it below deck with the others. I had thanked the heavens for the food. With a straight face, i said, more the better in heaven. And, you can all stay as long as you all would like. I almost had laughed out loud.
I was contemplating where there would be more swordfish. With one more prayer i had set more hooks and had headed west. I could not help but to notice more movements in the water. I had noticed the way the fish were headed, never going east just west,yet with the currents.
The swordfish had swam by the boat and was by the numbers, the time was kept for each swordfish and was one minute per. Yes , plenty of swordfish, was the perfect sign of wealth. Where the ocean was seen from the front of the deck, i had looked out into it and had went back to the steer of the rig. My hands had steered the steer. As i had watched the sun rise get brighter, i had thought these words, good morning,sunshine. Good day and great fishing!
I did not have to say good morning. I could of said good night, but to not steer toward the fish would be a foolish move on my part. It would run me broke. The money would of slowly of went delinquent.
I had no idea where the seagulls had went. Perhaps it was far away or maybe was closer than i had thought. I had tried to believe they were closer. It was not possible that they had went far. I thought something more would have happened in my life, was it very unusual of me to just take off out to sea alone. Perhaps i had too much of life or maybe i just needed a way to make money. Whatever it was that had led me out to sea, i was trying to sort it all out.
I am going to the north pole and with the help of god and the heavens, i will catch a lot more swordfish.
To me it had made a big difference where i was headed or where i had fished. My new black sweat shirt would keep me warm, time and again, place to place. There would be a no i am not working. When my hands had started to hurt at the steer, i would breathe hot air into them and break for some seconds. Water from the waves were blasting up the sides of the rig and had soaked the deck, had almost froze it before running back into the sea. It was food that was fished occasionally along the way. Through the ice burgs, the snow or the sleet rain i would fish, not turning back.
Some afternoons i would nap in the cabin den on a hammock. The long journey i knew had just begun. There would be a lot of hook bating and some close injury;s. My warm filled belly was full now and again. All was fed. Once more fish would fill the lower deck fridge . I will be completely happy. After the north pole had been reached there was only one way of knowing it, i had thought and it was by the amount of ice burgs that were seen on the way. Memories of when i was a kid, an old boat named The Queen Stacey and two other of my dads ship mates,were fishing like my dad Nicholas. Memories of the northern fishing tournament,UN believable first place medals and fallowed with my fathers death and his funeral. He died of a stroke at the age of fifty. As i turned the steer gauge to auto pilot i had started to remember how i had barely survived the Queen Stacey wreck and then i had thanked the heavens once again. No, maybe i will manually drive this rig. I might crash. I was about three quarters of the way to the fishing spot where i knew all the tuna was. It had an estimated catch price of three hundred thousand dollars. I stopped in the cabin and had another warm whisky. I did not leave any hooks UN bated. The dead of the day was a perfect chance to make some dough. I wore some fisher mans gloves that i had had in the cabins storage box. As i waited patiently, the gloves had kept my hands warm. The middle of the afternoon sunlight was out for a second.
I threw all the hooks in the water. As i did two swordfish were already caught in them. I had cranked them both onto the deck and rolled them into the lower fridge door. I held one fish up to get a better look. There they were, a good nine on the sword scale. One was large and long. Upright swords that were as long as my arm. The high smooth surface of there skin was slimy. The other one the hook was lashed from its rough no bite catch. It was a clean snare though and i am sure would make a great penny. I had them all down in the fridge. There was a new story to tell my son James. As i lowered them i had covered them in ice, my mind had remembered back through the years,back to my childhood days. How great full i was to have a lot of swordfish on board. Swordfish after swordfish the money was there.
No comments:
Post a Comment