Lake Fork and Lace

A fishing story with a morral: always dress at home.

 

Three part-time jobs, one-week’s worth of vacation and a case of hot links were required for that trip. Corporal Palmer and Captain Turely were ranning away from home. No phones, no pagers, no wives; now that’s a great trio. The boat was loaded down with equipment, the gas tank  topped off and luggage stored away.

Five a.m. rolled around early for the pair of night dwellers who had worked the midnight shift for the last three years. They had been looking forward to this fishing trip for months. The drive went by fast; the men had plenty to talk about; home, work, kids, wives and years of friendship.

The two laughed about the suspect they had called the day before. They were certain he had stolen a 64 GTO Judge. They drove by his address and if he had the car it was stashed in his garage.  The Captain looked through some notes, then he dialed the suspect as he whispered, "Cops are on their way grab the car and run." Then he hung up. Five seconds later the chase was on. They laughed to high heaven and relived war stories all the way there. 

 

Once they arrived at the camp ground, they ate their pre-packed ham sandwiches, then went to work hooking up the camper. Everything was set just so, it was time to kick back. Matt dug out a bottle of Crown and a box of 'Ashtons' so they could unwind before sleep. Matt laughed, to Greg about the ‘Wish You Were Here’ post card, he had found inside the cigar box, He placed the card on top of the cigars. He settled back into the built in chair and pulled out his lighter.  He used the butt of the cigar to stir his drink, and enjoyed the feel of the golden wrapper, as the smooth draw of the mild peppery smoke mingled with the Crown. He smiled as he glanced down at the post card, his wife had filled out, signed Matt’s name and placed a stamp on it. Having a great time, only thing that could make it better is you. Love Matt. Now, if he could only remember to mail, said card. (He didn’t, but that’s another story) Great way to bring the day to a close: a toddy and a smoke.

The alarm got the two up and awake, the cold got them dressed in a flash. March in Texas was normally nice weather, but record lows were set that week, and thermal shirts were a necessity for that fishing trip. So the pair headed to breakfast, with thermals in tow, too warm  to wear while dinning. The diner was wall to wall fishermen, telling stories of fishing their guts out and freezing their nuts off, with little reward. Breakfast would be the only hot meal of the day for the lot of them, if you can call four a.m. day.

The room was loud with plans being made, and secret fishing spots divulged, it was over flowing with laughter. Little did Matt know he was about to be the center of attention. Matt and Greg took a seat by the heating vent. Breakfast was ordered and consumed in a hurry. After all the fish were calling. Matt grabbed his gray thermal shirt, which his wife had carefully packed, and shoved his left hand down the sleeve. As he did escaping out of the sleeve was a little black lace teddy trimmed in fringe and tied with ribbons, scented with Poison Perfume. The scent wafted across the room over the smell of breakfast. The garment caught air from the vent and parachuted onto Greg’s side of the table. For a brief second the entire room fell silent. Once the teddy landed, boisterous laughter shook the building. Matt flushed red, then he too busted out with laughter, stuffed said garment in his pants pocket and dreamed of returning home.

Author's Note

any comments are welcome

Reviews

[M.E.Lyle]

Ha Cherrie, now you're writing about my part of the country. Living in a small town of Wills Point, Lake Fork ain't too far. You're right about March in Texas, that goes for February too...very unpredictable.
Loved your story and the teddy. The title says it all.
Wonderful story telling.

[Cherrie Palmer]

wish I dreamed it up but I just laid it to paper

[Neville]

You sure can tell em, but then ya know that.. I've told you before.. here we have another tale guaranteed to make any reader smile.... write on friend...

[Cherrie Palmer]

Sometimes real life events are the hardest to set to paper. I'm glad you enjoyed this story.

[Neville]

true enough :)

[SR Urie]

Hiya Cherrie,
Good story, very vivid imagery and entertaining descriptives. I love a boat trip where fishing is the idea but the operation is mainly RnR. The Teddy was a good comic relief to everyone involved. Too bad my wife never had your good humor or imagination. (Needs a tiny bit of editting, I won't tell anyone.) Great write! Keep it up, my friend! BZ