Okay, here we go...
I was in the bar business for 25 years starting my illustrious career at the Bon Zoo in Pt Judith. That was my alma mater - I pretty much learned everything I needed to know in life there. And at times it could get a little...uhhh...rough when Kenny Lyons and Tombstone were playing and I found myself smack ass in the middle of more than a couple of good barroom brawls.
Which is my way of saying I'm gonna vault the bar and put myself square in the middle of this one. I never was a big guy but absolutely nuts counts for a lot when the sheiser hits the fan. And most people realize it's not smart to #### with a crazy person.
Anyway.....
ILT2F, piemma's had more saltwater in his socks than you've been on in your life. Nobody here denies you your passion for the sport - it's how we all got to where we are today. It's a demanding pursuit, mentally and physically and success comes at a stiff price in terms of time and committments that you will find yourself putting aside. Read #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&'s 'Darkside' post if you haven't already. It says a lot about that aspect of it. Believe me, Piemma has paid the cost on that count from what I know about him.
It's easy to hide behind a screen name and you often find that somebody with a handle like 'Crusty Grizzled Surfcaster' is actually some kid in his late teens or early 20's who has picked up a lot from fishing mags and the Internet and sounds like he knows his stuff. The older guys will pick up on that in a heartbeat and in most cases just let it slide while they shake their heads.
Paul, don't let yourself get trolled - you can't tell anyone a thing if they're not gonna listen to the point behind it. I don't know if you remember what it was like to be young or not
I do, but it's a little vague at this point. Although I never dissed my fishing elders - I wasn't brought up that way and I realized early on there was a helluva lot to be gleaned from them if you gave them their due respect and didn't ask dumbass questions on the 'where or when' aspect. If they saw you were earnest, respectful and flailed away religiously, they might take pity on you and throw you a crumb. That's how it used to work before the Internets, anyway. And that's how the very best today got where they are. The knowledge was passed down by the elders of the sport.
Now it's amazing that those guys are us by virtue of age if nothing else. Pt Jude Joe and I were talking back in the Fall and he said 'Hey remember all those old guys we used to see around the Drive talking in the parking lot? We're
them.'
That point in time Joe talked about was when the name 'sharpie' was used with no hint of irony.
IL2F, this isn't reverse age-ism on my part because of what I suspect is your youth. It still works that way in a sense - regardless of what you'll pick up from the internet, if you befriend one of the senior members here, you stand a chance of getting more insight into the sport than you'll ever see posted here. Believe me, guys that worked that hard for it aren't gonna spill it all into cyberspace. Fishing is perhaps the only sport in which your game actually improves with age.
I'm not saying that there aren't younger guys that I don't have a lot of deep respect for. There's one in particular here on the Island that I admire and in this game he's gonna go far if he so chooses. He's polite, respectful and has worked his butt off for everything he's gotten. He didn't do it the easy way because he realized there wasn't one. He's decked a lot of impressive fish when few others have. And he'd never dream of getting up in somebody's grille. He is a young sharpie - and one day he'll be the guy others will turn to to learn.
That is the way it's supposed to work.
Well, that's good for now - I've got stuff to do.
Looks like we might've broken it up for a while anyway.... not too many smashed barstools around that I can see....
Okay, shake hands, everybody up to the bar - I'll buy
.
, stays closed..
Hybrid Mode
