Spence -
Hey! Weren't you heading somewhere on a fishing trip? No war stories?
Reminds me of a story a good friend from a Maine sporting camp told me. He was getting ready to launch his new boat when he noticed a guide pull into the dock with a couple of sports. Now old George (the name has been changed to protect the innocent) was all ready to go but decided to have a little conversation with the guide first to pick up some pointers. Walking up, the guide never took notice of him as he continued to stow his gear bent over and looking away. Apparently the guide maintained this posture throughout. Now this perturbed old George to no end. The conversation went something like this,
How's the fishing?...Good for some... Should I use flies?... Some do... Any recommendations?... Whatever you got...
After that futile exchange, poor George shrugged his shoulders and walked back to his boat muttering unmentionables about humanity in general and one guide in particular. He must have been distracted by his frustration because he didn't go through his checklist and study the instructions for his new outfit. He untied his boat and as it started to drift away from the dock, he pulled out the choke, gave a jerk to the cord and - nothing... Ten, twenty pulls later he decided to put the choke in. Again more pulls, nothing... Finally after the umpteenth pull, a spark of life! On the next pull he decided to really give it the gas at the merest sign of combustion. That he did. Of course with the motor being in gear and all, twenty horses propelled the boat like a rocket. Having been nearly been thrown out of the boat, he had a fraction of a second to collect himself and grab the handle. This caused the boat to swerve violently before he could back off on the throttle.
The next thing he knew he was sitting on the stern seat looking forward with his hand on the tiller as if posed for a Winslow Homer. The only problem was his bow was up on the dock and below him was the guide's classic Maine Laker. All 20 ft. of its wood sparred canvass (now broken in half) was rapidly sinking in ten feet of water. Nobody said a word for what seemed like an eternity and all was silent. George noticed that for the first time that day, the guide was actually looking at him...
I don't know where the lesson is here, other than I'm more leery of guys in boats that ask me questions about the fishing.:)
Regards,
Kurt