Advice On Living From The Strangest Of Places

“He that is taught only by himself has a fool for a master.” Hunter S. Thompson

I wouldn’t say I spent the last two Tuesday nights crying – I was engaged more in the shedding of a few tears type of drama. See, Tuesday nights is when Deadliest Catch is on. For those not in the know (and shame on you!) it chronicles the adventures of Alaska’s crab fishing fleet as they battle the Bearing Sea, ice and each other in heroic efforts to catch king and opelio crab.

I was hooked (so to speak) since its start in 1995. Initially, I chalked the whole season up to viewing hour after hour of a shit I would never do. I loved to watch guys almost routinely get swept to their deaths by twenty foot waves while they fetched massive crab pots from the sea floor, all the while being berated by gnarly, salted captains because they refused to give it their all after eighteen straight hours.

Well, this season saw the demise via stroke of Captain Phil Harris of the boat Cornelia Marie…not long after one of his two sons on the boat admits his drug addiction problem. (Oddly, his sons are named Jake and Josh, similar to the Disney show Drake and Josh. My advice? Pick Jake and Josh to win by TKO.) The decline of the Captain has been played out vividly the last few weeks. This week is the week he will pull that last proverbial crab pot.

On last week’s episode, the older son, Josh, is pondering the future of the ship, its crew and the legacy his dad had built. In the wheel house with Josh is a maniacal Samoan, Freddy. While Jake is feeling the pressure of the family business, Freddy offers some of the most sound, reasonable and caring advice that resonated (that word again loyal readers) not only across the wheel house, but all the way to Cranberry Township, PA. It was crystal clear, spot on introspection about the things that are actually important, not the things that seem important. Freddie’s insight on loss and the importance of family was a home run.

There are a million things that can go wrong in our world; some big and some small. We are all sinners who have made bad choices and regrettable decisions. None of it means there is not a chance for redemption. Eddie Vedder sang, “I’m a lucky man, to count on both hands, the one’s I love.” The people you love and the people who love you…never forget how much that counts.

If you have three minutes, check out this clip of that interaction (you have to sit through a brief commercial). My opinion…some powerful stuff.

(In the photo, Phil is out front, his two sons are on the right, and  Freddie is in the back.)