We had the old man down for the weekend. The kid still likes fishing, so it seemed like a good family activity. We went to buy some worms from the local Cabella’s for this endeavor, and in the process ran into my neighbor (the village elder), who works there. Naturally, we got to talking, and he suggested we try one of the local parks: Delco park. Ordinarily, we venture out to a state park, but we had never tried fishing at the municipal parks here. Seeing as it had been raining all week, the fishing wouldn’t be good anyway, so rather than drive all the way out to Glen Helen area, we might as well try something closer. Declo it would be.
We were not alone. The perimeter was dotted with casual anglers. Following my neighbor’s very specific instructions, we chose the far wall, near the drainage. Unfortunately, the fish were very experienced. They were masters of de-worming a hook without biting the hook itself. Eventually, dad left his pole unattended and wandered off with the kid. In that moment, the bobber went under. I managed to grab the pole in time and hook the fish, which didn’t even fight, but rather resigned itself to its fate. It was an un-epic battle, but even if it was only a single fish, the fishing venture is considered successful.
I thought it might be a rock bass, and dad considered it to be a mutt of some sort. Ultimately though, the conclusion was that it was a crappie–a rather unfair name for nice little fish. Back in the lake he went, off to warn his friends of the danger. The adventure was concluded with burgers and bourbon.
–Simon