The Good Old Days

Fishing is such a relaxing family pastime.  The water flows along, interrupted only by an occasional boater or a duck. Once when we went, one of our kids beckoned the ducks with quacking sounds and then exclaimed, “I am the Duck Whisperer!”  I spent the time relaxing in the gentle breeze, swatting away flying critters, and cringing at  comments about the nightcrawlers’ “blue veins” and their “gooey, white hearts” as the poor worms were ripped apart, speared, and hooked for bait. Yuk! It was a worm’s worst nightmare.

I’m guessing few people associate relaxing lake fishing with violence. Once you combine worm gore and fish blood, you have a really messy event so I bring plenty of hand sanitizer. I doled out some sanitizer after the worm tearing and more after tossing back the catch. I won’t bore you with the measurements of the four fish we caught, but let’s just say several spanned the width of a hand. We’ll skip the tales about the “big ones that got away.” When you catch the really big ones, you better get proof and here’s a guy who does:

                                     http://youtu.be/lcJovDMSp1A    

Jeremy Wade catches the scary fish, the ones you don’t want to know exist, especially if you‘re vacationing in an exotic place because that’s where they seem to lurk. The various kinds of fish  in our waters rivals the types of cereals on our supermarket shelves. Why so many?  In your opinion, why are there so many interesting types of fish, of people?

Renamed and edited from a prior post

Who’s A Believer?

Maybe Sharknado wasn’t so far-fetched. No, actually it was. Each of the sequels rated higher on the outrageous scale, and a situation like the one in Mexico might have initiated the whole thing. This week, townspeople in Tamaulipas reported how it rained fish. Scientists backed up their story, admitting that this phenomenon has happened in the past. A waterspout catches fish up in the air, blows onshore, and shocks everyone by depositing fish onto roadways in town. Compare this story to Sharknado:       

                                         https://youtu.be/JSHYNfb5Ppw

As unbelievable as Sharknado looked, raining fish is a real thing. Given the amount of fake news flying around, it’s difficult to tell what’s true and what’s not. Sometimes we rely on experts or scientist to convince us of the truth, other times it’s friends and Facebook. How do we decide what’s true? What’s the most incredible, true story you’ve heard lately?      

Unsteady But Still Standing

After hearing my complaints about how the face of my watch twisted and how my cell phone flips to weather forecasts for places I’ve visited instead of where I am, someone suggested that I might be an alien. I’m not convinced that’s the reason for what’s happening because topsy-turvy things are happening elsewhere, too. Take a look:

                                         https://youtu.be/Zv4CUzIX5yY

In one study, published in Nature World News, scientists discovered that the disappearance of "informed elder" fish disrupted the group’s regular migration route. Their absence left the group unschooled. A surprising finding, and yet, not really. Traditionally, we’ve looked to our knowledgeable elders to do the mentoring, but what happens when they don’t or can’t? Sometimes, it feels like we’re poised at a crossroad. Despite terrorism, Brexit, and social unrest, what assures you that all’s well?    

Fish Out Of Water

Nothing gets a double-take like the sight of a big, burly bear lounging on top of a child’s playground set in your neighbor’s backyard. Bears, bears, everywhere! It’s like they’re abandoning the woods (what’s left of them) for backyards and housing developments. Check outside, there may be one at your door. They’re getting too comfortable prowling our streets and foraging through trashcans for leftovers. We’ll always pause to stare at a fish out of water. Look at this one:        

                                             http://youtu.be/4VBBjm0Iayo  

This fish actually leaves the water to walk to nearby bodies of water. But wait, there’s more. Not only has it popped up in Canada, the Snakehead fish is alive and well in New York City’s Central Park. Change is inevitable once the natural order of life gets twisted. Have you been feeling like a fish out of water? Perhaps you’re in a transitional situation, waiting to make the next step. What’s the better situation that you want to move toward?