Things I Could Do All Day Long

This blog post was prompted by two things I was doing the other day when I happened to think about each of them, “I could do this all day long and never tire of it.”  So I set pen to paper (err, fingers to keyboard) and started to write about it.  What were those two things that were so special as to inspire a blog post?  Well, let me set the scene for you . . . 

It was an early evening on the island.  The sun was performing a beautiful slow dance toward the horizon, and the sea sparkled her farewell to the day.  My beau had departed a few hours earlier – off with “the guys” to an island 40 miles away to hunt goats to supply food for a friend’s upcoming wedding feast.  (And, by the way, I’m pretty sure I’ve never described that scenario ever before in my life!)  I was blissed out, having the house to myself.  I mean, I looooove spending time with my beau, and I miss him when he is away.  But I was glad he had the chance to engage in one of his favorite activities (hunting for food, not sport).  Plus, a guys’ hunting weekend that entails guns and game and sleeping with the guys on a boat on a deserted island engenders far more favor with me than, say, a wild bachelor party in Las Vegas or New Orleans.

So there I was, sprawled out on the couch with my laptop, Angel snoring on the floor beside me.  I’d been surfing the internet for hours, Tweeting more than usual, researching various blogging how-to, reading other blogs and generally feeling inspired to write – albeit in a prone-on-the-pillows, in-my-mind-only kind of way.  It was at that point that my battery indicator went off.  Time to plug in and recharge the laptop.

I walked to the bar at the kitchen counter – my usual writing spot – and plugged in.  Angel, awakened by my movements, was prancing around the kitchen to remind me that it was 6:00 p.m. – her DINNER TIME!  As I do almost anytime I cook or clean or putter in the kitchen, I pressed play on my ipod.  The speakers started to blast ABBA’s Gold album, which I’d already listened to a couple of times earlier in the day.  I sang along anyway, thinking “I could listen to ABBA all day long.”  (FINALLY, I’m getting to the point here.  I’m apparently extra chatty with my beau gone, too!)

After feeding Angel (and my beau’s potcake, Milo, who was stretched out on the front porch), I realized I should probably eat, too.  

Milo is having a leisurely evening, too.

Although I enjoy cooking for my beau or guests or family, I don’t usually enjoy it just for myself, and I was relishing my “night off” anyway.  So I grabbed an avocado and a lime from the refrigerator and quickly turned it into guacamole.  Yummmm.  

Back when I was a working stiff, my evening meal after arriving home late was very frequently just a bowl of hastily-made guacamole, bag of restaurant-style tortilla chips and a glass of white wine – all consumed in my big, fluffy bathrobe on the couch in front of recorded episodes of West Wing, Modern Family, Glee, True Blood, Mad Men, Rachel Ray, Ellen or Oprah.  (By the way, I don’t have a DVR on the island, and I don’t get network channels or HBO, so my tv-viewing these days is limited to occasional news or weather, and tv movies with my beau.  I never watch regular programming, and I don’t miss it one bit!  Go figure.)

Oops, I devoured the bowl of guacamole before I thought to take its picture!

At some point during the ravishing of the guacamole, I thought, “I could eat guacamole all day long.”  (Ahhh, finally back on point again.)

I started to wonder what else I could do all day long without getting tired of it.  Here’s what I came up with:

• Listen to ABBA’s Gold album (or Carrie Underwood, Jimmy Buffett, The Eagles, Jim Brickman, Jackson 5, Rascal Flatts, the Mamas & the Papas, Kelly Clarkson, Bob Marley, Rebecca Lynn Howard, Zac Brown Band, Dixie Chicks and certain other go-to’s).

• Eat freshly made guacamole (or brownies, fettucine alfredo, gnocchi in pesto sauce, fresh Bahamian lobster, macaroni –n-cheese, cornbread, a good cheeseburger, strawberries, quesadillas, conch fritters or any kind of cheese). 

• Enjoy the playful antics or sweet snuggling of beloved dog, Angel.

• Read a good book.

• Simply look at my beau - sappy, but true.

• Gaze at the sea, or be on or in or near the water in almost any fashion.

• Hang freshly washed clothes on the line to dry (so long as no mosquitoes are around).

• Subject myself to a foot rub or massage.

• Talk to a best girlfriend.

• Sing.

• Dance (well, until my body gave up anyway).

• Write.  I might have to mix up WHAT I was writing over the course of an entire day (e.g., blog posts, professional writing, journal, poetry, song lyrics, etc.), but I could write all day and not get tired of it.

• Receive sincere compliments or a genuine hug.  (Okay, neither of those could go on all day without it getting weird, but you know what I mean.)

• Smile. 

Much to smile about!

What things could YOU do all day long?  (PG-rated, of course!)

Post-Script re Goats.  The hunting trip was a happy success.  My beau got six goats.  He prides himself on clean shots to the head, which I also like because it kills them instantly, without needless suffering.  The other guys got a few, too.  They cleaned them all well and put them on ice - the makings of souse, stew, grill and other wedding entrees, along with plenty of fresh fish and conch!

Weekend Unplugged

Dear Readers, I hope you've been having a wonderful, Better-Life kind of week!  I definitely have.  I've been relishing being back home:  nesting, organizing closets, cooking, laundry, catching up on my "lists," seeing friends, eating fish and lobster (lobster season is now closed but people keep some frozen to have on hand), boat rides, fishing (nothing caught, but still fun), snuggle time with Angel, planning some summer activities with the local kids, working on freelance writing project proposals, enjoying the night's bright sky as the moon nears full, going for walks and so much more good island living!

The morning seems abuzz with extra excitement today - boats racing back and forth among the islands carrying people to work, golf carts and trucks rumbling along the roads.  After today's work day, the holiday commences.  Most people will be off-work tomorrow and Monday for the Easter holiday.  Everyone seems to be looking forward to a long weekend.

That includes me!  I plan to celebrate by . . . unplugging from the computer!  I know I've mentioned here before that I try to keep some boundaries with the computer - primarily on evenings and weekends - to preserve the simple island life and not get overly sucked into the internet at all hours.  I haven't been as disciplined lately because I'm having so much fun blogging with you and connecting with interesting folks on Facebook and Twitter about the Better Life.  But, for this weekend, it's back to basics!

So, as of this afternoon, I'm going to sign off until early next week.  I encourage you to do (somewhat of) the same and enjoy the simple pleasures of your lives - time with significant others, children, family; reading a good book; going for a walk; getting together with friends you may not have had time for lately; spending some time celebrating the holiday in church/synagogue or in quiet meditation by yourself in a peaceful setting.  Happy Easter, have a good Passover, enjoy your long weekend and keep Choosing the Better Life every day for yourself!

Happy holiday weekend!

Fish-Cleaning Video

Good morning, Better Lifers!  I have a special treat for you today . . . a video!

Some of the guys went out diving (e.g., free-diving and spear-fishing) on Sunday afternoon.  They brought back boatloads - literally - of fish.  I enjoyed hanging out at the fish-cleaning bench with all the action.  I happily snapped away to take tons of pictures for you and will post those soon.  Meanwhile, enjoy this video preview!

Here's a quick description of what you're about to see . . .

One of the guys skillfully cleans a large grouper.  He holds the fish by its mouth, and you can see the large gills open.  He uses a super-sharp knife to slice off the scales.  (Later - off camera - he cuts into the fish to separate the head, pare off the fillets, and prepare the rest of the fish for soups/stews/other.)  You'll hear me ask him how large this grouper is - 25 pounds!  

Then the camera pans down to another man squatting over a pile of fish and separating the lobster tails into a bucket of seawater.  

If you notice, the fish bench is right on the edge of the clear blue water.  Sorry for the extra noise, but that's the wind into my camera mic on this gusty day.

And perhaps my favorite part . . . I doubt most of you will be able to follow too closely, but you'll hear the banter and chatter that accompanies fish-cleaning in all its Bahamian glory!

Enjoy!

Bringing Home the Bacon (Spear-Fishing)

One of my favorite things to do - and it's great for my food supply as well - is to go out diving with the guys. (For the record, my use of "the guys" is not a gender-biased oversight!  Here, it refers to a group of male buddies.  Also, while there are notable exceptions, women aren't typically the divers in this community.) 

Around here, "diving" usually means free-diving and spear-fishing, rather than scuba-diving (although visitors do that, too).  I am not a diver since I haven't mastered actually staying submerged under the water, clearing my ears well or shooting a spear!  Nonetheless, I love to go along for the ride.  During the summer, I often swim along in the comfortable 79-82 degree water to watch the action through my snorkel mask.  In the winter, however, when the water is a chilly 73 degrees (yes, chilly, it's all relative!), I prefer to stay on the boat.

So, what's a typical dive day like?  We leave early in the morning and cruise along in a motorboat until we find a "good spot."  This is determined by decades of familiarity with the area and by peering over the bow of the boat, looking through the clear water to find a good “head” or other area where fish and lobster hang out.

Directing the captain toward a good spot.

The guys don masks, snorkels and flippers, grab their long spears and rubber slings and slide overboard.  Two people usually stay back on the boat - one to drive the boat and one to “catch” the fish that the divers pass up to the boat, although some drivers will do both jobs.  When I'm along, I help catch.  I enjoy catching, plus my driver-in-training skills would hardly instill confidence in the divers swimming near the boat.  I also help spot and watch the divers as they spread out in the water.

Free-diving and spear-fishing are arts unto themselves.  The guys dive down 20-40 feet (although I’ve seen some go 50-80 feet at times) and swim along the bottom, tracking fish or tickling a lobster out of a hole.  Pulling back the rubber sling, the diver launches the spear, usually for a clean head shot that quickly kills the prey.  As the diver swims back up and breaks the surface of the water, the boat sees he has a fish or lobster on his spear, and the boat drives to him. 

This is an important part because we do not like to let divers linger in the water with a bleeding fish – blood draws sharks.  The best dive spots are on the edge of the deep, deep ocean, so everyone must remain alert for the big creatures of the sea.  (More about that in a post next week.) 

Diver emerging with a fish on the spear

As the boat approaches, the diver passes his spear up, and the catcher slides the fish or lobster (or any conch the diver picked up while down there!) into the well of ice in the floor of the boat, or into a cooler, depending on the boat.  Quickly passing the spear back to the diver, down he goes again.  

Keep in mind, this is all done in the midst of strong currents and rolling swells many days.  The experienced divers swim in these conditions for hours, but it is exhausting physical work.  The divers climb in and out of the boat as we move around to different spots to check them out.

Once the wells are nearly overflowing with fish, the divers climb back in and we head home.  Tired, but satisfied with the catch and the fun of the day, the group laughs and tells fish stories.  Crossing back into turquoise waters near our island, we pull up to the marina’s dock.  

Now the next phase ensues – cleaning all of the fish that was caught!  First, we pile the lobster from the boat into a cart. 

 We roll the cart over to the fish bench area and dump it out.   

 We repeat the process with the fish and admire the big haul!

Tourists and locals congregate to admire the catch, ask questions about the day, and laugh while the guys trade stories with their friends and sharpen their knives.

Fish cleaning can be a dirty, blood-spattering, fish-smelling experience.  One of the guys is renowned for his garbage-bag apron, others wear old shirts, and others just don’t worry about it.   

They settle comfortably into a routine they’ve practiced for decades.  A person or two separates the lobster tails from the body with a sharp knife.  Then, poking a stick into the tail, they pull out the guts, toss the clean tail into a bucket of sea water and pitch the head into a separate pile.

Heads & legs, with tails removed

At the end of the day, the tails are divided amongst the divers, to be devoured in the commonly-known form of lobster tails. They usually give away the lobster heads to friends and family.  That meat is equally tasty, but more labor-intensive.  Some people break off the legs and extract the meat.  Others boil the whole head, which gives the broth flavor, and add other things to the soup.

Meanwhile, the rest of the guys work on the fish, slicing off the scales/skin with the sharp knives, cutting open the fish, removing the guts, then dropping the cleaned fish into a bucket of seawater.  

When it's all done, the divers divide the fish amongst themselves to take home to friends and family.  Some fillet the pieces, others leave them whole.  Regardless, every part of the fish is kept and used.  Even if the fillets are removed, the heads and other meat is kept to boil, stew or otherwise cook up for a tasty meal.

By the time this is all completed, the guys have usually put in at least a ten-hour day.  The sun has performed another beautiful sunset over the water, and it's time to go home for a shower.  

Leaving the dock, I take ziplocked bags of fish and lobster home to freeze, keeping some out for dinner that night.  It doesn’t get any fresher or any tastier than that!