Monthly Archives: June 2009
We Miss You Already. You’ve Got It!
The Sweetest and Best-Looking Crew in Southeast Alaska (Brett, George, Dad, Bryan, Johnny)
The Boat is Ready to Go Seining
A Final Wave Goodbye
Surely Jesus Loves Fishermen
Last spring, I attended the funeral of a lifelong fisherman and dear family friend, Joe Little. Joe’s funeral was attended by many local commercial fishing captains, crew, and industry people, along with other family and friends. The program celebrating Joe’s life included the wonderful poem “Surely Jesus Loves Fishermen”, which I’d never read before.
Surely Jesus Loves Fishermen
Surely Jesus loves fishermen
for He chose them for His own,
To be with Him and learn from Him
and someday share His home.
It must have been their trust in God
and patience He found rare,
That keeps them very near His heart
and ever in His care.
-
Anne Kujawa
Good luck to Dad, George, Bryan, Brett, Johnny, and to everyone else as you begin the next commercial fishing season. We will miss you and we love you!
Cheers!
Happy Father’s Day!
I keep waiting for a moment of quiet and opportunity to write a new post, but it’s become clear that with very active almost-two-and-three-year olds in the house, that isn’t about to happen anytime soon. So, I just have to jump in here and say:
Happy Father’s Day
and
Happy First Day of Summer!
For the first time ever, I was actually able to buy George gifts for Father’s Day from my own little savings account (from teaching Jazzercise and bits of writing/editing). I wiped out half of the account on a new stainless steel dishwasher for the household, as well as his-and-her iPhones for the two of us.
Our previous dishwasher, while only three years old, turned out to be a lemon. It would half-fall out of the cabinet whenever someone pulled out the bottom rack, and the top rack (which didn’t come out at all) could barely stay on its track even just sitting in place. I put up with that thing all through longline season but decided there was no way I was going through the salmon season with it!
As for the iPhones, it was just time to get current. It occurred to me recently that I never talk on my cell phone, and the minutes were getting wasted every month. However, I do a lot with the Internet (blogs, Twitter, Facebook) and thought I should transition into the type of phone that would allow me to do those things. Then, George surprised me by suggesting one day that he was thinking of upgrading to the iPhone, so it all worked out just in time for Father’s Day.
Over the weekend, I ran into another commercial fisherman who was shopping with his small children. He told me he was getting ready to take his boat South on Monday, while our boat plans to head out next Sunday. We’ve all had a great time off, but it’s definitely that time of year when all the fishermen-Daddies go back to work.
In the meantime, Happy Father’s Day, and here’s to a great start of summer for everyone!
Favorites of the Week
Here is the second installment of Jen’s Favorites of the Week (an idea borrowed from the blog of my friend, Kim):
My Favorites:
- The Facebook group Commercial Fishing Feeds the World! that I joined last week;
- Being asked to review the first 50 pages of a writer friend’s manuscript, which has already garnered the interest of agents and editors;
- Ryan Fest ’09 (aka the 33rd birthday party of my brother-in-law, Ryan);
- Spending a sunny Sunday afternoon with fishing industry families at a beautiful bayfront home;
- Finding a swimsuit that a mom can actually chase a 2-and 3-year-old around in all summer long while Dad is seining in SE Alaska.
As Usual…Never a Dull Moment!
As I left my parents’ house last Sunday after an afternoon of discussing and processing the previous night’s events, I waved to my dad and called out, “I wouldn’t trade my life for anything in the world!” Now, I wasn’t implying that my house, husband, kids, or choices are all wonderful and perfect. No, no.
I was actually referring to the fact that there never seems to be a dull moment around here. I have the most entertaining assortment of family, friends, and associates around. They combine to form a group that provides plenty of joy and surprise and keeps things very interesting on a regular basis.
“It’s pretty bizarre, alright,” my dad called in response, shaking his head as I backed out of the driveway.
When one considers the competitive and sometimes hostile world of Jazzercise instructors and centers, to fisheries and fishing-related friends and associates…things can get very interesting indeed. Especially in a small town. I’ve been around the block a time or two, and I’m not caught off guard very often. Last weekend, however, I must say that I was…along with a few others…rather surprised by certain events. And that’s all I can write!
In other exciting news, I decided to sign up for the Elite Jazzercise Instructor Conference next Spring in New Orleans. I think at this point, we’ve got five local instructors flying out for the four-day adventure. I’m nervous and I don’t know if I will actually go through with it, but my conference spot has been reserved and my plane ticket has been purchased.
Now, my kids and I are attached at the hip (as is what happens when you are the parent most often around) and I hate flying. I also get homesick easily and have a high level of anxiety. Once I reserved my place on the trip and listened to George’s first comment (“Oh, that’s great! Five Jazzercise instructors traveling together to New Orleans! I can just imagine!”), I was calmed by his later point that in fact, I have a whole year to get used to the idea of going.
Speaking of flying across the country, George flew out early this morning to Florida to visit his dad. I hope he enjoys his trip as he deserves a nice break, but I can’t wait until he comes home.
In the meantime, here’s to our beloved family, friends, crew, and Jazzercise ladies for always keeping things so interesting and fun.
