Windows of Opportunity

First, I have to once more engage my lack of escritorial productivity in the past couple of months (apparently escritorial is not a word, but I thought it ought to be). What I mean by that is my lack of published words since I've left the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Not only have I been fighting with a real lack of inspiration stemming from the realization of just how dark the relationships between Big Oil, Big Government and Big Media are, not to mention the complacency of the American public, but I am also constantly stymied by the mountains of unfinished projects and loose ends associated with my time down there. That being said, I think the universal post solstice energy is helping to push me though the mud and into a new era of productivity. And with that, back to the cold, Rhode Island winter:

In my last blog I talked about the windows of opportunity in which we have to go out and ply the Atlantic in search of lobsters and crabs. More often than not, on either end of our trip out we are assailed with strong winds and nasty seas which make it unpleasant to be on a boat. As a surfer though, it means that we are usually back on land when there are waves, which is a high priority for myself and the Captain of the boat, Jamie Risser. Jamie and I have known each other since we were tow headed grommets hanging around the pier and getting into trouble. Jaime and I are tight, in fact it was Jamie's arms which comforted one of my first loves when I went away to college.

Jamie has been fishing since we were kids as well. When most of us were enjoying a more carefree life, Jamie was following his Dad who was a commercial fisherman in Point Judith, and from a young age, Jamie earned respect from the older fishermen of the point. So, even though he's a couple of years younger than me, I can't imagine another captain that I would feel safer with on the ocean, not to mention singing Madonna at 0430 in 10 foot seas with ice on the deck.

So, Jamie and I have surfed nearly all of our lives. He is probably one of the most respected surfers in the Northeast, and it's always exciting to watch him going down the line. Working on the boat is pretty hard, and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't hurt from the sheer physicality of it, but working with such a good friend, someone who sees the world as I do really makes it doable. Not that I have a whole lot of choice right now, though I suppose I could claim bankruptcy, but that's not really all that kosher. Not that spending my tax money on killing brown people to make oil barons richer instead of on education and conservation is kosher, but...

Not only does the elevated sea state give us some enjoyment, but it also makes it difficult for rock dwelling birds like the Purple Sandpiper to forage. On this particular day, Purple Sandpipers were pushed nearly into the parking lots to find anything to eat, as the high tides and big waves combined to cover most of their habitat. I even saw some foraging on the sand, which for Purple Sandpipers is pretty weird.

>Deckhand Chris Wroblewski puts some of the days catch down into the live tank.