Tireside Chats
My New Hook!
 This was the ancient lumberjack hook my uncle Bob gave me, and now belongs to someone else. Finders keepers, losers weepers. |
 And here is my new hook, hand-crafted by Don Mazerolle. It's bigger and more rugged. I can't wait to see how it works. Next sunny day on the Nashwaak! |
« You never know what you have until it's gone. »
I came to appreciate the true meaning of this expression this past fall, when I was getting ready to head out on the river to haul out a tire I had been eyeing for some time. I couldn't find my hook!
I looked in all the usual places, and all the unusual places, until I could no longer deny the truth …. I had lost my hook. I must have left it on the ground as I was untying all the pieces of rope I had borrowed from my Tumblehome Canoe Club buddies, to snag the tire that lay over 35 metres from shore in the Nashwaak.
Yeah, I know, I hear you saying, « Jeez, it was just a hook, get over it already. » But it was an antique, a gripped iron claw that had once been used by a lumberjack lifetimes before, and had been given to me by my uncle Bob. If only I had done what I usually do on a canoe trip, walk the grid and make sure I have everything before leaving a campsite, I wouldn't have left it on the ground.
I went back to the parking lot at the mouth of the Nashwaak, but I knew the spot was used every day by paddlers and fisherfolk, and sure enough, there was no sign of it. I felt like a piece of my own body had been taken from me.
Well, time for the happy ending. I mentioned my loss to my karate instructor, who, among his many talents, is an accomplished machinist and millwright. Within a week, he came to my door, and dropped off a beautiful hand-made iron hook, slightly bigger than the one I lost, and even more rugged.
I thanked him profusely, and promised to dedicate my next tire in his name. I can't wait to get out and test it. You can bet I'll guard it with my life.
Reach out and Remove a Tire!
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