My
wife got a friend, Craig Eason, and myself a fishing trip a 20 miles out in the
Atlantic Ocean for my birthday. I
have gone fishing several times in the Gulf of Mexico but never in the Atlantic
Ocean. Craig and I boarded the
boat after eating a big breakfast (mistake #1) ready for a big day of catching
trophy fish! After two hours
riding out to sea to reach our fishing destination, I quickly realized that the
north/south winds and east/west currents were rocking the boat in ways that
caused my stomach to experience feelings it had never experienced before. We had only been stopped for about five
minutes when the first person got sick (and he was a LOUD yacker as well). Many people followed suit, including
Craig and me. I have never been
motion sick in my life but I guess there is a first for everything. The next 4 hours saw both us hanging
over the side of the boat. It was
a horrifying experience. I was
waiting for my organs to come out of my mouth. On top of this, a little stocky fisherman from Oklahoma
(probably about 11 years old) kept walking by us with plates of bacon and
Ketchup. Did I mention it was 90 degrees?
It seemed like every time we got sick the fish would appear. This young fisherman recognized this
and asked my friend if he would “puke on his bait”. Craig responded, “Son, this isn’t on demand!”
The
nightmare ended with Craig catching one fish and I caught NOTHING. Not even a guppy! I tipped one of the
salty boat workers because he had to clean off my side of the boat. I honestly swore at one point that I
would never fish, eat fish, swim, or touch a fish stick again in my life!
After
a LONG ride back to shore and a 2-hour car ride home, there was only one thing
left to do in regard to dealing with this trip. Laugh. It’s
amazing how many times some of the worst experiences in our lives can become
endearing if we are willing to laugh at ourselves. This will definitely be something that Craig and I will
laugh at for years to come.
Hopefully, our next trip will involve far more fish and far less
spewing!
