This is my post for #freewriters 2665 prompt my last job hosted by @mariannewest
The other day a man called the house and wanted to talk to me and my husband about being fishermen here and how things have changed. I forget his name but he said they are making a documentary about our river. I told him how we tried fishing offshore after the net ban but as we all knew, the fish are inshore, we tried longlining sharks but they took our permits and gave them to the big boats, so we started growing clams and was doing well with growing them.
He asked me if the river dying affected us in any way. I told him about how we lost everything when it crashed. How we were raising clams, and they all died, and we lost 50k then I had to go back to my last job which was fishing.
I learned to throw a cast net and how to splatterpole trout. He wanted to know what kind of fish I caught back then.
I could have named all the fish that swim in our river but I told him sheepshead, trout, spots, pogies and jacks, it depended on the season as to which we caught.
The man laughed when I answered his question on how we met. He asked if we grew up fishing around each other. I told him no, we grew up across the river from each other but never met until I started babysitting for him and two years after he split from his wife, we started dating.
Then he asked if I still fished and I told him how I have not fished in over a year because I lost the cartilage in my hand. My husband is still fishing with rod and reel but can no longer throw a cast net because of hernias.
He asked to now talk to my husband and when I tried to give him the phone we had this silent yes take it and he saying I don't want to talk to him, without saying a word to each other, then I gave him the look and he took the phone.
I wish I would have asked the guy about when his documentary was coming out or the name of it, but I didn't so maybe we will hear about it.
photos are mine