Hook Line & Sink Her






Hook Line & Sink Her

 

What was Ricky’s last name? That’s what we ponder once a year over clams and beer at The Whale. Martha should have married him. And well, as things go – he still could be out there. If only we could remember his last name.

 

One rainy evening every fall is dedicated to this mystery and reminiscence of all stories beach. Like the time Martha got a fishhook caught in her toe and my brother carried her up the beach and drove her to the emergency room. Always said that was his best catch. He should have married her. Have another beer. We know he is not here.

 

Our fathers made the best clams casino. No smoke detectors to go off in those days when the bacon caught on fire. Whose mother laughed and whose grabbed the fire extinguisher?  They were friends for 40 years. They drank Old Fashions. Nobody wanted the blue & green square glasses when I sold my parents things. We’ll stick with beer, and let the bartender pour.

 

Our parents brought pets to the beach. How the dogs loved to run in the surf before the lifeguards came out. (How we loved to eye the lifeguards.) Dogs and girls walked by moonlight looking for phosphorescent sand in the surf. Making initials in hearts erased by the tides. The sad tale of Pepper the cat trying unsuccessfully to dig a pee hole in the shifting sand makes for a mournful round of ‘meows.’ We think we are funny. The bartender smiles.

 

Collecting bottles for cash. That financed ice cream and miniature golf. Nights when we could have family bonfires on the beach. Dreaming of whose brother would marry whose sister so we could be sisters. I’ll have s’more.

 

Until those working summers when we found places to work that fed us: waitress, deli, bakery, grocery, drugstore clerks Good life skills for a nurse/PHD therapist and a storyteller/accountant. We’ve been friends for 60 years.  Lots of names and tales to remember. Pour another round and bring a pot of steamers.

 

  

Kathryn Weidener

 

Kathryn Weidener has been telling tales all her life. Joining the profession of Storytellers has been an opportunity to read and retell great tales with a little embellishment of props and audience participation. Writing down some of the stories is a new life challenge, with encouragement from her two adult sons, who have to approve if their names are mentioned. She has published in local newspapers and a family gardening tale in the magazine Hobby Farms. Recently Kathryn has performed at The Moth in LA and NYC. She didn't win, but did fair to middlin' and wants to keep at it.

 

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