5 minute freewrite 2994 prompt undertake

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This is my post for #freewriters 2994 prompt undertake hosted by @mariannewest

I talked with my sister about what my husband said. He told me she did not want to fish with me because I yelled at her. She told me that was not true, she does not like to be yelled at, but she understood I was doing it for her own safety. She was more than happy to undertake fishing with me.

Today was the only day she could go, and the weather is going to be bad for the next ten days. It was not pleasant today. The wind picked up around nine this morning, and we were on the east shore, and it was blowing out of the southwest.

We skipped a pompano and anchored. In twenty minutes, we caught 4 huge stingrays and nothing else. We were both hurting from trying to get them to the boat. The first one, I told her I would try to handle, but I had to give the rod to her and let her fight it.

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After taking all the rough water we could stand, we came to the west shore, where it was not as rough. My sister said the cloud on the left looked like stairs. I told her it was a stairway to Heaven.

I cut across the shallow water on the northeast side of Judah's Island, and we skipped a pompano. I knew it was going to be bad anchoring in 2 feet of water, but since we had been everywhere else and saw nothing, I anchored. With the wind blowing and the channel not being far from us, the big yacht's wake made it miserable. We sat there for 30 minutes, and I told her I could not take it anymore, so we moved to deeper water where it was not as rough. We only caught catfish.

We had had enough of the wind, so we went up the creek to troll for jacks. I guess all the other boats wanted to get out of the wind, too. I could troll in a straight line, but could not circle. Two boats were sitting where we caught our jacks the last time we were up there. I hooked a ladyfish, but it got off.

We were both discouraged, and both wanted to go home. There was a boat tied to the dock at the ramp and we waited quite a while for the guy to pull his trailer down the ramp, finally he came down the dock and said his truck would not start, he said it has been one of those days, he had motor trouble with the boat and barely made it to the ramp, and now his truck wont start. I told him I have a jumper box if he wanted to use it. He said it was not the battery, and a friend was coming to pull his boat out for him. I told him I hate days like that, and he said, it was life, you have good days, and then there are days like this. All he can do is not stress over it. I told him my favorite saying, "This too shall pass".

We were home by 1:30. In the top photo, the little island on the calm side does not have much land, it has oysters around it. I think the birds had taken up every inch of land on it, they must have been tired of the wind, too.
photos are mine



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(Edited)

I'm making a rough guess, but this looks like West-coast Florida.

I used to kayak in the canals between all the isles near Naples, and remember also fighting the wake from the bigger boats as they went across. Back then I was into sailing and kayaking, but somehow fishing never crossed my mind.

I did find some horseshoe crabs, I know they are edible too (but I never tried eating one)... What do you do with your catch? do you cook it, or sell it? I'd love to see a photo of the stingrays you caught.

Anyway, sorry for all the misadventures you had, but I'm glad to read that you finally went fishing with your sis. Better luck next time!

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I am on the east coast, straight across from Tampa. I was born here, so was my Dad. I never knew horseshoe crabs were edible. I know I would never try to eat one. My husband and I are commercial fishermen, we fish our own boats. I am a third generations fisherman in this same town.

I did not take any pics of the stingrays we caught yesterday, but here is one I took in the past. I do not put them in the boat with me, I use a dehooker and unhook them beside the boat.

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Aww poor fella...

That's incredible though, a family legacy of commercial fishing. Do your kids also work in the field?

Regarding the crabs, I also learned just recently that horseshoe crabs are edible from my brother who lives in Thailand, and apparently it's quite the popular seafood there. But horseshoe crabs are fascinating! Their blue blood (laterally blue) is vital for the pharmaceutical industry.

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My,that's such a tiny little island! Looks like a good place for birds to rest, and not much good for anything else.

I agree, that cloud looks like a stairway. Clouds are so interesting.

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I see lots of things when looking at a cloud.

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