oh dear. I'm a bass.

ok. so I am not doing so well at this NaBloPoMo thing. that's two days I have missed in 9. oops.

I am not going to beat myself up about it, but will continue as best I can with truths.

Day 10 truth: I am a bass.

I fish. You know that. I fish for trout mostly, and bass later in the summer when the trout slow down. First a few words about their personalities.

Trout are persnickety fish. Temperamental. Fussy. Uncooperative.

For example, if the water temperature is too cold, they won't bite. If the water is too warm, they won't bite.

If the water level is high from a rain, they won't bite. If the water is low from lack of rain, they won't bite.

If they want a fly and you offer a worm, they won't bite. If they want a worm and you offer one, but don't put it in exactly the right place and make it move in precisely the right way, they won't bite.

If the moon is full, they won't bite. If they are within a few miles of the coast and the tides are astronomically high, they won't bite. Even safely in their freshwater lakes.

Pain in the ass fish, trout.

Bass.

Bass are larger, bulkier fish. They have hard scales unlike the silky tiny things on a trout's skin. Bass are territorial, staking out a place they like and defending it from intruders. They will eat when there is food available, even if they are not hungry.

You throw something out there that makes a splash, sparkles, wiggles a little bit and maybe makes a little noise, and that bass is going to hit it.

every.

damned.

time.

Which is why, when someone wants me do do something, to volunteer for this or that, they'll have the pretty woman with the flirty charms call and cajole me into it. Because they know I'll strike at it. Every. damned. time.

This weekend, I shared this philosophy with some friends. Most of the guys sided with me on the bass end of the scale. Most of the women agreed that we were bass. And most of them appeared to be trout. Even the ones that sparkle and wiggle just right.

Sigh.

It's not easy being a bass.

yeah, that feels better!

This is what spring looks like:

We caught those little beauties last night not a half-mile from our home and less than a quarter-mile from where the creek meets the ocean. L caught the biggest one, I caught the other two.

These could be anadrymous trout, meaning that they spend part of their time in salt water and part of their time in the fresh water of the creek, but we could not tell. When anadrymous trout first return from salt to fresh water, their skin is very silvery and the color of their flesh is sort of pinkish, almost like salmon, but lighter. The color fades after a few weeks in the fresh water and they look like regular trout. These girls (all three were female) were all the characteristic greenish with bright spots and blunt tail and pale whitish flesh that mark the native Maine brook trout.

They were delicious. I ate them for breakfast today. Dredged in an egg wash with milk and then dusted vigorously with flour and a little cornmeal. I fried them in just the littlest bit of olive oil (we were out of regular oil) and splashed a little lemon juice on them at the table. Utterly divine!

No fishing today - too much to do - but maybe tomorrow. It's supposed to be a nice day!