09.15.24 Nice weekend down in Cape May...

 

     It's funny this place in Cape May. Love to have it but hate paying for it. With yearly "dues" around $9,000 it's not cheap but having a place to escape to for six months out of the year is just great. People argue that if you were to rent a place, like a house, for a week in Cape May or Wildwood Crest it would set you back $5 - $6,000. And while we think about selling it from time to time it only takes a great weekend, even a short one, to make us reconsider. And from real estate moves in the past, the Poconos and the Adirondacks, once they're sold and gone that's pretty much it. So we have a three year Hilton Head and Cape May plan, God willing. 

     And nothing says fall weekend in Cape May without hitting the yard sales. But we have remained laser focused to reduce our crap and not buy anything else. even finding a South Carolina flag for five bucks couldn't veer us of our path of decluttering. 

     But the same couldn't be said for the French fry holder we found for $3. what an invention. No more McDonald's, better than Burger King, fries falling between the seats. This fits in the cup holder and has 

a vent holder for your sauces or for ketchup if you prefer to choke them down that way. Of course at some pint I had to field test this piece of geniusness and it worked as designed. 

    After dinner at Lucky Bones, where I had the best mussels in a long time, along with a few Guinness', we did the Washington Street walk. We dropped a $20 for the Mercedes Benz offered for raffle by Our Lady of the Sea Church and had some very expensive, isn't everything these days, at a newer ice cream shop. While walking on Bank Street I stopped at Andrea 

Trattoria Italiana where they offered up a striped bass entree for $36. We don't have a commercial fishery for striped bass here in New Jersey and it can't be sold at local markets or offered for sale, at least I guess wild striped bass. I think they should, for $36, let you know that it's farmed striped bass 

you'd be getting. Seems a tad steep for that. Now in states that do have commercial fishing they can offer them up for sale at a restaurant, just not in Jersey. 

     During one of our walks we stopped at the marina and I watched a guy, well several guys, load up some really nice boats onto some really nice trailers pulled by some really nice trucks. I wouldn't say I'm jealous but maybe a tad envious. Tis' the season for the boat angler as the 

blues, albies, bonito, and striped bass are starting their fall invasions and migrations. But that's okay, I'm sitting good, I have my eye on the Hilton Head prize. This week I decided that in order to really get to 

use and enjoy Jims, well my, boat I'll have to deconstruct it to move forward. I asked Paul Eidman who's done the gas tank replacement, deck redo, and repowering for some advice. We talked about the value of the 2002 175 HPDI and the cost of getting a new engine. So I decided to list it on Marketplace before heading south on Friday. 

     My plan is to sell the engine and move forward with the tank and deck replacement. To say the deck is spongy is an understatement. Now the decision is to reach out to Donnie Jones or Matt Marjorie down at Jones to see what they would recommend. 

    The ride home was easy and pretty. Fall is here and some of the foliage is starting to turn. We made a quick left off 206 at Mt. Holly where I met a guy who listed some Weather Tech front mats for the 

Silverado. At 22 years old I'm not buying anything new for her. After a quick hit with the pressure washer these are just perfect. That left some time back at home to meet up with a guy who came over to look at the engine. His plan, and he knows less than me about boat stuff, was to take this off and put it on a 18 foot Lund boat for the Delaware River. He had cash in hand, and was ready....but I couldn't. I did my best to talk him out of it. He would be getting into something he didn't need to be getting into. And then there was the Jets game and some schoolwork I had to put together for the week. 

     At some point there was some lax breaking news about a foiled assassination attempt on President Trump yet again. even with a slow news Sunday the coverage was less than appropriate, but that's the way things are these days. The Washington Post had it up on their site, describing it as an "episode". Like a seizure, or a re-run of All in the Family, or these days a Presidential assignation attempt. God get me out of this world and quick. 

09.13.24 First fall outing on Friday the 13th...

      

     With my body now getting used to early mornings it was no surprise I woke at 4 am on my day off. "What to do?". I could get some schoolwork done, or, I could go fishing. A quick check of the tides had me thinking positive. It's just about mullet time, I could catch first light, and it would be a few hours into the outgoing. 

     I started in the before sunup with a dark Hollow fly that swam like a mullet but had no takers. When light arrived I switched over to a Schoolie Fleye and swam that near and far off the beach with again no takers. I didn't see any bait or activity off in the distance. There was a smell in the air but it wasn't bunker, it was more like a warm smell, if you get that, and I could feel the warm air coming off the water and on my fly line as I retrieved. I was thinking with temps up I might find a fluke or two but that didn't happen. 

     After a bagel and coffee stop I went down to the inlet to see if anything, maybe albies or bonito, might be invading the outgoing water. Besides the head boats making their way out to sea and a few guys on each of the jetties it was dead. 

     We're a little past mid-moon, a waxing crescent, and I'm thinking on the next big moon, which will be full on the 17th, things might start to get going if the water temps drop a bit. It'll be the Harvest moon which is always a good time to fish, at least it has been in past years, like a decade ago. Thirteen years ago, on September 17th, 87 year old Al caught a nice keeper (below) when the mullet met up with the bass. On his rod is his favorite "Creek Chub" lure, which I got from his family after he passed away. I really do miss that guy. 

09.11.24 Yes, it's been 23 years....

    "Never Forget" is something you hear or see when it comes to the events that happened on 09/11/2001. And today people from all over the world will stop and pause and remember what happened 23 years ago. 23 years. How many people in the country weren't born yet or were too young to remember what happened. It was the largest attack that has ever occurred on American soil. Besides the over 3,000 people that died directly due to the highjacked planes crashing at the World Trade Center, Shanksville, Pennsylvania, 

and the Pentagon, thousands have died from 9/11 injury and illness since then. Thousands of survivors still suffer from the mental and physical injuries suffered while they tried to escape the attacks and then ran in to try and rescue and recover the victims. 

    I took the top picture I believe on Day 3 while at the WTC. Back in the day digital SLR-type cameras were in its infancy and cell phone technology had just evolved. Some, but not all, of the flip phones had a camera built in that allowed for low resolution image capture. But during my time on the fire 

department I would keep a supply of disposable cameras in my locker at work with usually one wrapped in a plastic bag in my turnout coat. When I responded to Ground Zero on the 12th, after a day working with evacuees at UMDNJ on 9/11, I had one of those cameras in my pocket. Between shuttles back and forth to Newark to work in the firehouse on the nights of the 11th and 12th I would leave a camera, which had 36 exposures, and put a few more in my pocket for the next day. If you know me then you know I'm a photojournalist at heart, and nothing is off the table when it comes to shooting. 

     When I think of that top photo I wonder how many men and women have died due directly related to their exposure. Obviously, if you were there when the towers fell, you were exposed to a cloud of dust and debris like no others. And if you were in a panic while running for your life it would be hard to

control your heart rate and breathing so whatever was in the air got planted deep inside your lungs and body. I remember the next few days after the towers fell. The weather was beautiful, and with that, the smoke and dust clouds remained suspended in the air. It wasn't until Friday I think when a welcomed drenching rain came and sat those particulates down on the ground, making breathing easier. 

     Every now and then, but usually around 9/11, I drag out the old photo album to see and remember. The images unlock a safe of sights, smells, and images from deep in some corner 

                                    

of my brain. Couple that with other peoples recollections and tributes and I can be transported back and vividly remember those five days like it was last month, which is interesting because I have a hard time remembering what I did last week. 

     Early on several organizations put together treatment centers for those who were at the Trade Center on the day or the days after. My first stop in 2003 was Fulton Street in Lower Manhattan where I joined other cops and firemen at a Scientology-run program to "detoxify" the toxins that were trapped in our bodies. Tom Cruise had a hand in it as he was one of the more popular spokesman for the religion, or cult. We would drink large amounts of niacin, then run on a treadmill, and then sit in a steam room, with other guys and gals, for four hours. The idea was the cancerous toxins would be excreted from the body through sweat. My wife at the time would sit in the waiting room as I was inside for "treatment". With the commute into NYC, and the length of the day, and some skepticism on my part, I only lasted two sessions. But I was thankful that early on someone was trying to help. 

     And around that time, in 2003, Mt. Sinai started The World Trade Center Worker and Volunteer Medical Screening Program. It was open to people who worked at Ground Zero and the Staten Island Landfill where all the debris was trucked from Lower Manhattan to be searched again for any human remains.

     I joined that program in it's infancy in 2004 knowing really that it was happening for two reasons. First, to help people and monitor and treat them, and second, to track the illnesses and deaths due to exposure. I can't tell you how many conversations we had down at Ground Zero about how we were all surely going to die one day from being there. 

    In 2010 The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 was passed ensuring funding would continue to provide screening and treatment for the survivors and workers. Zadroga was a NYPD cop and one of the first to die from 9/11 related illness. The program increased in participant numbers and the amount of services offered. Today, the now named World Trade Center Health Program, monitors and treats 80,000 people. Over the years several clusters and diagnosis's have been directly related to exposure at Ground Zero. In 2013 I underwent sinus surgery, and will probably be returning to the table within the next year for a re-do. 

     But what is sad is that this morning at the coffee pot people will most likely be talking about the Presidential debate that occurred last night rather than 9/11. To me, it was poor timing, and almost, now I'm no conspiracy theorist, well, things happen for a reason sometimes. If you were alive you remember how together we were as a country after 9/11. We have went to shit over the last few decades but there was always that pause on the anniversary days of 9/11 and for just a moment a fleeting glimpse of togetherness and patriotism would shine through. The "powers" that be like division. It's easier to divide and conquer that way.  

     And to the debate. I hate politics. I don't have a side. I'm an independent voter. But I couldn't wait to watch it as I felt it was my duty to do so. Now, without knowing all the truths and less than truths on both sides I will say this after watching the "performances" by both. Harris was the clear winner. The momentum started the moment she crossed the line and went over to shake Trump's hand. 

     Sometimes it's not the content that is verbalized as much as it is how it's delivered. Harris was well prepared and stepped away from her previous word salad and cackling that we have seen before. She was well prepared and on-point, her point that is. Trump, well, spit the bit, as they say in horse racing. She was the aggressor, she was the hunter, baiting him, and he just couldn't help himself as he drove his points into a brick wall. He had his moments but overall he faltered.

     There's ways to make a point. "People eating pets", C'mon man. Even if it's true isn't there a way to make your point that appears that you have some insight and polish? Couldn't he have made the claim, "There are challenges in cities like Smithfield, Ohio where illegal immigrants have risen the population there from 45,000 to 60,000 which puts a strain on housing, local services and healthcare"?. And if he did need to go to the animal eating, " It's hard for an influx of that amount of people in a short time to have access to food, and I have heard reports where people are catching and eating local wildlife, and even pets, to survive". I'm not trying to say that's happening, or he should have said it, but he's just not talking to his base out here. 

     And then there's the media bias....C'mon man. I hope both sides can call it like it was. The moderators clearly treated each debatee differently. So it was no surprise that post-debate the Harris team was all in looking for an another debate before the election. Like sharks in the water smelling blood that are looking for the knock-out Trump punch. She has his goat. And again I'm not talking about points made or not made by both sides. It was more so how they appeared and performed. 

     The debate should have been last week or next. There was no mention of 9/11 during the debate, which I think would have been appropriate. Touching on national security and safety would have been timely and showed that either of the candidates, or the moderators, were in touch with thousands, or even millions of people, who spend today in some pain, emotional or physical, remembering what happened to all of us 23 years ago. 

09.10.24 "Luke, I am your father"

      You know getting old just sucks. Not only does life change, and your body as well, but it changes for everyone around you as well. Now we know were all going to die, and it can happen at any age, but one thing that raises my awareness of mortality is when I see the icons, the legends, start to die off. I can't even remember all the people who piqued my interest over my life that have moved on. Sports people, more fly fishermen that anything (Jose, Lefty), musicians (Gerry Garcia), actors (Robin Williams), and so many who were at the top of their game sometime during my adult life and entertained or moved me in some way.

     Yesterday we lost James Earl Jones. Yes, he was born in 1931, and had a good run, but his is one voice that could wake you out of a coma. Some people just own certain things. while he acted in many memorable parts, "Field of Dreams", "Coming to America, and the voice of Mufasa in "The Lion King", I'll always remember him as Darth Vader in the "Star Wars" series. 

     Getting old does suck. And with each year we lose more people. Not only do we lose the people but when we do we realize we have lost that period during better times. What I wouldn't give to go back to the late 1970's and 1980's. Yes, everything was better back then. It was before technology hit. No ATM's, no cell phones, no computers, no cable TV, no streaming, no Sirius, no CGI movies, no AI....  Things were just raw. I like raw. 

09.08.24 Was going to go but I just couldn't...

     I was all jazzed up on Friday to pull an all nighter into Saturday morning. It's early fall so my thoughts of finding some bass on the outgoing tide at one of my favorite "Out Back" spots seemed like a good idea. High tide was at 1030 ish some not too bad. But if I really wanted good moving water and the ability to walk and wade I'd have to stay till after 1 am. By 8 o'clock I started to lose my mo-jo. 

     It's the same old risk vs gain conversation I had in my head. And it really didn't have anything to do with catching as I'm more into the hunt than anything else. But let's say I went, got home before 5 am, then my Saturday is shot. And as you get older that "shot" really lasts a few days. Would it pay to piss off the Mrs. this early in the season. Would it be worth throwing off my sleep-wake cycle for a what-if"? I must be getting soft in my old age. 

    

     I settled for a good nights sleep but did wake up early and hit the Delaware for a half-hearted effort. It was the start of the outgoing and the river was running 4850 cfs, which is low, and at 68 degrees, which is good. Starting with my first cast every time I'd cast I'd pick up some kind of cabbage during the retrieve. Outside of a few leaping sturgeon there was nothing to see and after about an hour the drain plug was pulled and the water was lost. 

     On the boat bass front it looks like some bigger fish are starting to show themselves for the start of the fall run. They've been in the channels and deeper water all summer but with temps dropping, bait 

moving, and the migratory pull starting to warm up, the fish are starting to eat, and move. Last year the first big showing of fish were the jumbos that happened mid-October. I was lucky enough to catch it one a few days. I caught it, but not them. But half of the fun is just being there early before the crowds show up. That's still a month or so away so hopefully there will be a trickle of fish showing as the bait migrates in the meantime. 

     The other reason I didn't want to be a mess by fishing all night is working on the pickup project. In true me fashion this all started in June shortly after I got back from Martha's Vineyard. While it may look okay in the pic above the bed was dented and scratched and starting to rust. At 265,000 miles what could I do to this truck that would decrease it's market value. So I went over to the scrap yard and we 

tipped it over exposing all the damage from 20 + years of Northeast weather and road brine and salt. If you ever want to know how your old-ass ride is really holding up just take a peek underneath. I got out 

some power tools and started to get rid of the flakes and bring them down and put on a fresh coat of POR 15. This rust encapsulating paint goes for $75 a quart but allegedly really extends a metals life. My brother did some metal work and we reinforced a few areas on the frame where the rust had called home. I used old OSHA scaffolding plank my family used for bridge construction for the bed and sideband had them cut to a close length before building a new bed and sides earlier this week. 

      That brought me to this weekend. I had to tackle the lights switching from OEM taillights to finding a place and installing flush LED's. I'm no mechanic, or electrician, so what may have taken someone with a brain 2 hours only took me six. So as I always do I could complete yet another project about 85% and then let the ADHD

kick in and go find another one to start. But I'm almost done. Besides the rear bumper, which will be made out of a 10 inch channel, it's just finishing up the wiring and a few tie-downs. The last step

last step will be the bumper installation which calls for some cutting, bolting and welding. I'm hoping to get that done before the leaves start to fall and the fishing picks up. It would be nice to have a project 100% done for once in my life. 

09.06.24 Back to the grind...

     And we're off. One thing I am adjusting to being in education is getting used to the schedule. I don't know if there's another career out there that has summers off followed by shot gun start and being back to work full time. During the summer you know the first day is coming and then before you know it it's here, ready or not. What's funny is I look back at those three months and wonder if I really got anything meaning fun done. 

     This year is going to be a doozy. We've increased the first semester class size from 40 students to 110. That's a lot of bodies, a lot of stuffing, and a lot of contact with the students many of which have all kinds of trauma and drama going on in their outside lives. This aren't your traditional send them away to college students. And with all of that we have one of the highest NCLEX pass rates around, especially for an urban based community college. 

     Basically my new schedule is broken down in this way. Two 12-hour days for clinical (7a-7p) on Mondays and Thursdays and two 3-hour labs on Tuesday. But then there's the work that has to be done in and around those hours. Throw in some office hours and there you go. What kills me is the commute, 78 miles from home to the college in Newark. The gas and tolls really become a cost of doing business on the negative side. 

     For my first presentation I included a picture of my graduating class from 1996. That's me in the way back with the big fat white head. It's hard to comprehend that I started at Essex County College in 1993. 

      I do love teaching though and helping people help themselves. I realize I've been teaching in one way or another for my entire life. From mentoring fireman as a Captain in the fire department, being a charge nurse on the unit, being a healthcare provider offering therapy and medication management, and now standing up in front of a white board rambling on about all things the body and nursing. 

        And now early fall is here. It was always a season that I looked forward to. Fall is my favorite time of year and one of the best as far as the big-old-house is concerned. It's not too hot and not yet too cold. It's also the time when, at least it used to be, when fishing would start back up. In September the summer crowds have left, the water temps drop, and the baits start to move. It's a time when some of the visiting summer fish are still around and the bass start to move into the beaches and start moving down south. While it seems it used to kick off in September and heat up into November we now see things 

getting going later with late November into December being the best fishing times. And that is still 2-3 months away. My fall schedule leaves a few days during the week to sneak down to the salt and give it a go. My next go at it will probably be a night shift at one of my favorite fall river and bay spots. While the late season blitzes are fun to get caught up with I prefer fishing alone and being a tad more technical when it comes to fishing. And there's always the "Fish when you can" thing which can bee good for the soul and mental health but maybe not for the numbers of fish caught.