The Fish Are In!

It is the subtle statements in the instructions that always seem to create a problem. I remember assembling a stationary bike and getting to a simple instruction to insert bolt B into the crossbar and frame. Sounds simple enough, but in fact, a person would have to have eight arms, hang upside down and be a certified Twister Champion to complete the task. That is sort of how it felt when we went to gather pond water for the coolers to pick up our fish. Seriously, how hard could it be? They really should underline that little statement on the instructions for picking up your fish.

Plan A: We gathered buckets, coolers and rubber boots and headed down to the pond. The water is quite low right now due to a mild winter and dry spring. You would think that that would make it easier to get the water out of the pond. Oh no. It turns out that when you try to walk on the former bed of the pond, it is actually a bog. We immediately sink up to our knees as our boots become encased in mud. Now the fun begins. Who helps who out first?

Plan B: Somebody is going to get wet. I volunteer. This won't be the first pond I have ever swam in. Two steps into the pond, the water is over my boots. Good enough. Nobody said that we had to have water from the middle of the pond. Gene holds one of my arms as I lean in to get "better" water. Gene carries the water to the cooler. Repeat. Somebody should have had a better plan to get OUT of the pond.

Picking up the fish from the fish truck seemed uneventful. After gathering the water, I decided I might need some help in getting the fish back into the pond, so I told my husband, "I need a man." As he deliberated his response (this man has been married to me for nearly 30 years, he knows trouble when he hears it), I explained that there was no way I could walk the coolers down to the pond by myself, and the fish couldn't stay in the warm water all day. It might stress them out. (What about my stress?) So I called a neighbor who agreed to go with me and help me load them into the pond.

The truck is parked in the farm store parking lot and two guys sit and wait for people toting pond water to arrive. With a net, they quickly load your coolers and you are ready to go. They seemed surprised when I whipped out my camera to take their picture.

Getting the fish into the pond went really well. I let Dean do it! He only got stuck twice.

I have been feeding the fish every evening with floating catfish food. It only took two days for them to come when I call them by pounding on the bucket. My fish are smarter than your fish.