We all hate the after dive cleanup. It can be a lot of work. I had gone on a 2 day trip
on the Peace to San Nic for some lobsters the week after the infamous 'Kelp Flys Trip'
when the F&G had been on the boat undercover. (The got reprimanded for not following
procedures as it turns out). The diving was great. We did the Bad Lands. At one point
I was going down a small crack that looked really promising when I came to a small hole.
Bad luck. There were some legs and an antennae. I knew to go elsewhere. I heard that the
guy got 4 six pound bugs from the hole. I think that this was also the trip when a guy
came onto the boat and Bill Magee asked if he had grabbed a big bug and missed. The diver
replied that he had. It was hanging onto his regulator still, behind his head.
Anyway, I got home after 9 PM and had lobster and other game to clean. We used to come back
late from some of those trips. I already suspected I had another chore before the night was
over. My pet, smiley, had found a way under the house the last week. I didn't see him in
the back yard and he didn't come when I whistled though I figured he was gonna be hungry
after two days. My light didn't show his eyes anywhere in the back yard. I suspected I
would have to do another under house recovery tonight.
It was just before midnight when the game was all taken care of and I headed under the
house. I brought some newspaper because last time I had just grabbed him by the tail
and pulled him on to the newspaper and then drug him out. He hadn't argued much... that
time.
This time he was much farther in. I had to crawl all the way to under the kitchen at the
far side of the house. He was in some pipes and I could only barely get to him. I grabbed
his tail, but he was cold and pissed off. He wasn't gonna come peacefully. He taught me a
new trick. I found out that he could spin so that his head was right where his tail had
been. He was hissing like a steam kettle and acting generally very objectionable. Luckily
he came out after me instead of going further in. It was a bit of a stalemate with him
having something of an advantage, just hissing and waving his teeth at me. About this
time I asked myself what I was doing crawling under a house at midnight afer him. You
gotta be meaner than the wife ya marry, the game you hunt and the pets ya own. (Rules I
have violated). I was annoyed and well, my grabbing bugs had been good so I just grabbed
him by the head. He thrashed around a lot, but I wasn't gonna let him go. I peeled my
crawling jacket off so that the sleeve went over his head.
I wrapped him up and dragged him out. He calmed down when I threw him in his warm tank.
He was happy to take some chicken liver. It was time to sleep after a long weekend of
diving.
Do your pets miss you when you're gone?
Enjoy the diving, seahunt
My pet, Smiley Newt. He was usually a nice little lizard.
