In Search of . . . Pointy Fishies

Going out again for a little marlin tournament... KHMC in Avalon.

“Marlin fishing is hours of boredom punctuated with moments of sheer panic!

So we may as well have a hell of a lot of fun out there in the wilderness of the wild blue ocean.

Looking for a little blessing from the Fish Wish source. May we please have a flat sea and that luck to Hook Up on a big marlin or 2 or 3.

That would be fun.

Keith L. --<"><

Inside Sportfishing - Black Marlin Boulevard - Preview

We got a Marlin this last weekend. Here is a sample... ol'time original 16mm color films, provided by the IGFA. Without question this is one of fishing's most historical moments. Baseball great, Ted Williams introduces us to the Cabo Blanco Fishing Club, before heading off the beach, making bait and doing battle with a marlin... circa, 1954

Fish Wish for the family camping trip

My fish wish is for a happy and safe family trip.

Keeping it simple. Long drive up to Lake McClure and then some tent camping and boating with friends. Hoping the kids keep their cool and that Mom and Dad do the same.

I will spend my time with a cold Frosty while Trish goes out to Water Ski.

The boys are finished with the Sailing Camp in Marina Del Rey and next week start a new Adventure Camp. Boy they have it good.

Well back to work. Trish has been working extra hard to get the stuff ready for the trip. Bless her heart.

Keith -<"><

4th of July in Cat Harbor was fun

Hang out with family on the mooring.

Eat often. Drink plenty. Play with kids. Let kids play and explore. Visit and just have a good time. We visited with Kenny and Jeffrey on our boat. Side tied to Unreal and Big Dog we got to know the Fines and the Godfreys.

Did try to do a little fishing. But the fish were not cooperating very much so I went back to playing and kayaking and swimming and Jet Ski and even a little Kite flying and baseball on shore.

Ryan had a good time with friends at the isthmus. Thomas made some new friends and played on that sail boat that had the two 9 year olds. Trish and I had much time to devote to our own ideas of fun. Trish rode her bike. Ryan and Thomas shared Ryan's Dinghy. (very nice)

In the end... Fireworks on the beach on the 3rd. Then return on the 4th to the fireworks at home. We were the best kind of tuckered out.

Fish Wish Granted. We had fun.

PS Special Thank you to Carl for letting us use his bigger boat for the weekend.

Last day of School for the Kids

Thomas and I did a little fishing trip on the ocean on Thursday evening. With the club and there was a bunch of us. Nearly 40 of us on the Marina Del Rey sportboat the New Del Mar. Had a good evening catching sand bass and calico bass. Nice. It was also Thomas' last day of school. He brought a school friend along. The friend, Chris, did very well landing 4 fish. Better than Thomas and I combined.

No longer a 3^rd grader. T Man is going into 4^th grade.

Ryan will be a 8^th grader next year. He bailed out of the fishing trip and I had worked to position the trip for him and a friend of his, Adam. Adam was all set to go. Ryan and Adam are going to be paired in the FJ’s for sailing this season. Just a few days away. So the excuse for Ryan to make trouble to be excused from going fishing was that he went to the skate place down in Venice where there was an entertainment event going on. He and Adam had a good time I think.

And the Fishing trip did not include a grumpy teen. So I was able to have fun with Thomas and Chris. Better for all involved. Mom had the house to herself and she liked that too.

Not bad for a Thursday. Better than many Friday nights.

BTW – Ryan had taken a fall recently and his hip is hurting him. He did not even skate on National skate day. (Wds) But he did elect to not go to school. Ha Ha Ha. Like that?

Time with my son

On Sat and Sunday I got to spend some quality time with Thomas.

Sat. we used the big tractor up at the NVLL field that was mowing it for parking on Sunday when the big end of the season picnic was held. Thomas did a good job helping me to drive. We spent a lot of time there.

afterwards we sat around home some and just had some good father son time in the garage. He set the train to run some. I just watched some. VERY good quality Dad time. Fathers Day came early I guess.

And Ryan has a new place to skate and I went and watched him for a little. Also good. He is talented and wants to get better. He dropped into a big half pipe when it was his turn and ran a few good moves but not the high flying stuff yet. Still a little ways to go to get the speed needed to do long grinds etc.

Nice to be there for him. He has a new passion for War-Hammer stuff. I have helped them make a playing field on a part of plywood that was the old tabletop skate ramp. A road and bridge over a river. A hill that Thomas and I made from paper with flower and water. Basic crafting. We even used basic water color paints. But it worked. They play the game on the board with the other kids on the street. Glad to help them have a good time.

Now back to work for me. The kids are ok. And school lets out for the summer soon.

Struggle is good

clip of story... about Struggle _ We need it to stay strong and healthy

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appreared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appreared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.

So to help the butterfly, he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened. In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.

It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. Sometime struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly! Remember... what we struggle with makes us strong!

Not going Memorial Day

Dropped the trip on Memorial Day to Cat Harbor from the calendar. Darn it.
It would have been a nice trip to go on but ... Family is not on board with it.
Tents on the shore under a light and lack of faith in good weather and the boat.

Need a better boat if family trips are to happen I guess. And more revenues to justify the fuel bills as well! That was the clincher. Dooh. Or is that Dough!

Doooh

Work, Work, Work and a little bit of Baseball with Thomas.
Made a little time to help him and a pal build a toy 50cal for playing army in the yard with friends. Now have to go off to a meeting with the neighborhood group.

Looking forward to time at Catalina for Memorial Day.

New Fish Wish - Memorial Day weekend

My new fish wish is for good weather and water conditions for the planned Memorial Day weekend trip to Cat Harbor with the club.

We will be staying in tents on shore. So the little boat will be a pack mule on the way to and from but should be free to fish while at the island.

I want to play with Thomas. Give Ryan some freedom to roam at two harbors. Trish will ride her bike and tour the byways. Sounds good to me. Fingers Crossed.

Keith <"><