Joined
·
4,061 Posts
Howdy all!
I’ve been a member of ifish for about 6 mos. and have been sitting on the sidelines and reading posts regularly. Occasionally I’ll ask my pal mgm to post a question for me because I’ve not been able to decide which fishing story I want to post as a newbie. Well the time has come, but first a little background…
I grew up an Army brat and lived up and down the east coast for most of my life. I picked up the fishing disease from my older brother in about the 7th grade. We lived in West Point, NY when he got the fever (bad case) and I just tagged along. I guess large mouth were the target, but we’d fish for anything. Our family moved to Tennessee and my brother went to college. I had no one to tag along with and found other interests. Fast forward 10 years and I met my buddy Dale. Thanks to Dale, the fever was rekindled.
In 1993, I split Tennessee to get as far away as I could from my parents (God bless ‘em). Ended up in San Francisco with a buddy who set me up with a job. After 6 mos. of pulling my hair out in Bay area traffic, I got a chance to work in our Portland office. That’s all she wrote. Never politicked so hard in my life to get my way. (O.K.- I’ve already passed up 3 of my favorite fishin’ stories)……
Moved to Portland in ’94 and would go home to Tennessee at least once a year. My grandmother (God bless her) died last year. 5 years prior to her death, she lived with my parents. She had too much pride to wear a hearing aide, which she desperately needed. By the time anyone could talk her into it, she’d been so used to not hearing anything that wearing one bombarded her with so much NOISE that it made her a nervous wreck. Then her sight started to go. In her silent world, it was very sad to see her lose her greatest joy, which was reading. Over the past 5 years, whenever I came to visit, when it was time to leave my grandmother would always pull me aside and say, “Why is it you have to live all the way out in Colorado?” Every time I would say, “GRANDMOTHER IT’S OREGON!” “ Oh, yes, that’s right…..” One year I came home to care for her while my parents were on vacation. As I was packing to leave, she said to me for what seemed to be the 100th time, “Why is it you have to live all the way out in Colorado?” I didn’t even try to correct her. I went and grabbed a picture of a me holding the first salmon I’d ever caught, a 25# springer on the N. fork of the Lewis in ’95 with a guide. It was a polaroid my mother had blown up to a 8"x10”. I can’t think of a picture of myself with a bigger, more genuine, some might say sh*t-eating grin.
I gave it to grandmother and said, “ THIS IS WHY I HAVE TO LIVE ALL THE WAY OUT IN COLORADO!”
She held up the picture and said, “ I see…… What’s her name? She sure is pretty!”
I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I think I did both. She was right. She sure was pretty!
Just want to say how much I appreciate ifish. Even here in Portland (actually I just made the move to the ‘Couv) I’ve not met many people that share the same passion I do for fishing. I’ve never been able to explain it, but I’m never more at peace, feel like time has been better well spent, and things were “right” than when I’ve been fishing. It’s nice to be in good company.
Thanks,
Jpat
Whew! Now I can start posting ****e!
I’ve been a member of ifish for about 6 mos. and have been sitting on the sidelines and reading posts regularly. Occasionally I’ll ask my pal mgm to post a question for me because I’ve not been able to decide which fishing story I want to post as a newbie. Well the time has come, but first a little background…
I grew up an Army brat and lived up and down the east coast for most of my life. I picked up the fishing disease from my older brother in about the 7th grade. We lived in West Point, NY when he got the fever (bad case) and I just tagged along. I guess large mouth were the target, but we’d fish for anything. Our family moved to Tennessee and my brother went to college. I had no one to tag along with and found other interests. Fast forward 10 years and I met my buddy Dale. Thanks to Dale, the fever was rekindled.
In 1993, I split Tennessee to get as far away as I could from my parents (God bless ‘em). Ended up in San Francisco with a buddy who set me up with a job. After 6 mos. of pulling my hair out in Bay area traffic, I got a chance to work in our Portland office. That’s all she wrote. Never politicked so hard in my life to get my way. (O.K.- I’ve already passed up 3 of my favorite fishin’ stories)……
Moved to Portland in ’94 and would go home to Tennessee at least once a year. My grandmother (God bless her) died last year. 5 years prior to her death, she lived with my parents. She had too much pride to wear a hearing aide, which she desperately needed. By the time anyone could talk her into it, she’d been so used to not hearing anything that wearing one bombarded her with so much NOISE that it made her a nervous wreck. Then her sight started to go. In her silent world, it was very sad to see her lose her greatest joy, which was reading. Over the past 5 years, whenever I came to visit, when it was time to leave my grandmother would always pull me aside and say, “Why is it you have to live all the way out in Colorado?” Every time I would say, “GRANDMOTHER IT’S OREGON!” “ Oh, yes, that’s right…..” One year I came home to care for her while my parents were on vacation. As I was packing to leave, she said to me for what seemed to be the 100th time, “Why is it you have to live all the way out in Colorado?” I didn’t even try to correct her. I went and grabbed a picture of a me holding the first salmon I’d ever caught, a 25# springer on the N. fork of the Lewis in ’95 with a guide. It was a polaroid my mother had blown up to a 8"x10”. I can’t think of a picture of myself with a bigger, more genuine, some might say sh*t-eating grin.
I gave it to grandmother and said, “ THIS IS WHY I HAVE TO LIVE ALL THE WAY OUT IN COLORADO!”
She held up the picture and said, “ I see…… What’s her name? She sure is pretty!”
I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I think I did both. She was right. She sure was pretty!
Just want to say how much I appreciate ifish. Even here in Portland (actually I just made the move to the ‘Couv) I’ve not met many people that share the same passion I do for fishing. I’ve never been able to explain it, but I’m never more at peace, feel like time has been better well spent, and things were “right” than when I’ve been fishing. It’s nice to be in good company.
Thanks,
Jpat
Whew! Now I can start posting ****e!
