After posting this video the other day, it occurred to me I never mentioned the interesting (to me) thing that happened during some work travel about a month ago.
Look, this is going to sound a bit… well, whatever…, but I was transported cross-country on the company’s dime to Santa Monica to meet with a vendor (and stay at a beachfront hotel) back in the end of June. You know the place in California with the famous pier and real estate that is out of this world?
Flew out on Tuesday, had a vendor meeting on Wednesday, and flew back on Thursday. And believe me, with views like this from my hotel room, it was definitely a tough place to be… poor me.
Anyway, in that hotel room, tucked away on a bookshelf was Leaper, a book that’s subtitled “The Greatest Writing on Atlantic Salmon.” I’m not sure what made me peruse the mostly decorative books, but when I discovered a fly fishing book about Atlantic Salmon in a beachfront hotel on the Pacific, I just thought that was too funny.
Now, about Leaper; the book itself is a compilation of stories, photos, and art all about Atlantic Salmon. It’s also absolutely beautiful. I didn’t have time to read more than the first few pages, but I want one. (A copy of the book, not a salmon… although it’d be fun for fish for one following.)
Heck, I was tempted to “have it come home with me” at no cost and see if the hotel would notice, but I was raised better than that.
I can hear my mother now, “Michael, if you ever get arrested and go to jail, just know I’m not going to bail you out…” Tough love for sure, but her telling me that when I was a ten-year-old prospective juvenile delinquent stuck with me for almost 40 years.
Back to the book, I’m probably going to try and hunt down a used copy. There are a few available online, but I might try searching a few bookstores or thrift stores down here in Florida first. The odds aren’t great that I’ll find one in the greater Jacksonville area, but neither were the odds I’d discover one in a hotel room in California.
Post Script: I also popped in the Patagonia store while I was in Santa Monica. Found this book I rarely see in the wild. Made me happy.
As does Hot Dog on a Stick…
