The Puddle

The next story needs a bit of an introduction. 

The restaurant occupied our lives. It was do or die for us, and dying looked imminent. We had assumed the restaurant as a 24 hour operation by the previous owner. We lost much of the help, and Mel and I, (alone much of the time) tried to keep the doors open round the clock. We worked 60 hours non-stop, relieving each other for occasional brief naps. After 60 consecutive hours, Mel announced that he was not able to continue—I admitted I was in the same shape. We locked the door, and went home for some much needed rest. After the brains started functioning, again, we concluded that a 24 hour schedule would not work. We reworked a schedule to accommodate 2 shifts, and reopened. But, we could not afford to go even a day without income, so worked 7 days per week, 365 for nearly 3 years before we ever took a day off! To prevent total burn-out, we took "micro-mini" vacations, where we'd get off at approximately  14:00, drive about 50 miles, spend the night in a motel, get up at 03:00 and reopen at 06:00! We finally got ahead sufficiently that we started closing one day per week. What a luxury that was! 

Tuesdays were sacred, and to leave "work" off of our minds for a whole day was life saving. We made the most of this precious day by occupying it with our favorite pastime—fishing. We leased a small lake in the next county, and for years, Tuesday was "our" day. The lease ("The Puddle" we called it) was over-stocked, and though most of the fish were small, they were plentiful, and we learned where and when to find them most of the time. I personally was intrigued by the skittish carp, and determined that I was going to catch one. The photo above shows my first triumph! Eventually, we bought a cheap flat-bottom boat which Mel fixed up. And, all of our family and friends bonded with The Puddle. I've got a large album filled with pictures and endless stories.

More soon....     Hugs!