Fruitless fishing

Last Friday was a perfect example of why I love this job. To do a story on a fishing guide, he gladly allowed me to tag along on one of his guided boats, and we went to the Umpqua River, which flows half an hour north of the Bay Area.

It was foggy. It was early. Like, 6 a.m. early. We couldn't see the other side of the river, and we launched almost silently, save for his boat's motor.

Here's Rick and his dog, Molly, who was trying to get the bubbles coming from the motor. She was adorable — couldn't wait to get a fish.

U.S. Highway 101 bridge, behind the fog.

Got to watch the sun rise and burn off the fog — incredible feeling.

And by the end of the morning, it looked like this. I got some sun (mostly on my ears and hands, since they were basically the only parts exposed). What we didn't get was fish. Not a bite. Not a nibble. Nothing.

Rick couldn't believe it. The conditions were right. The bait was nice. He's done this his whole life, so he certainly wasn't mistaken. Sometimes the fish just aren't hungry, I suppose.

His boat caught 10 fish the next day. And he nabbed a 40-pound salmon on Monday. The luck of the outdoors writer — perhaps their fishy friends warned them about all the spawning (and necessary killing) I'd done at the hatcheries. Oh well, it still wasn't a bad way to work for six hours on the clock.

Puppy love

Things don't get much cuter than a full-grown Saint Bernard with a puppy version.

This is Gertie's annoyed face.

So sleepy for once.

Happiness, but something's missing...

We're happy, just him and me. Although having the cats are really great. They make us laugh, and act like they love us when really they're just happy that we feed them. And this small, two-bedroom apartment wouldn't hold much more than just us, and the bathroom could stand to be a little bigger. Mornings are a little tight, and cats weave in and out of our legs to try to trip us.

But overall, just sitting on the couch in silence, just him and me, talking about our day, watching television or anything else, is just enough. And I like not having much to think about after work, because I'm not sure I can actually think after work. I don't want to. I can't. My eyes blur over and my mind blanks out, and just last night I had to pump out two feature articles due this morning while knowing dishes needed to be done and laundry needed to be washed and groceries needed to be purchased. But I couldn't do any of those things.

But I got my articles done by 10 p.m., just in time to shower and go to bed. Can I ask where and when young couples add more stress to their lives, just because they're married and feel the need to buy a house and have 90 pets and birth children exactly nine months after they get married? Why do they do this?

It's ridiculous, truly. I'm enjoying the simple life, although not so simple, but so much simpler than so many people. And I wonder if the added stress is ever truly worth it, when we got married for just each other and nothing else. I prefer to live with a little extra time, because I don't get much, and without an overabundance of possessions that we'll never use. If I could spend all of our extra money on small trips together and dinners out, just to enjoy each other's presence, I would, and I know he would too.

Though a dog would look awful cute running on the sand right about here:

Summertime

Summer isn't my favorite time of year, mostly because I hate humidity and heat and sweating, but the evenings spent in my backyard are so nice and relaxing. Especially when you're goofing around with two giant doggies.