My Fishing Days

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My grandfather taught me an unusual way to catch fish. I tried it out one night I went with mom who is a musician. During the day, she gives well off kids, music lessons, piano, guitar, and so on. Mom is versatile in the music realm, not only instrumental, but composes and sings. At night she plays in a hula dance troupe known as an Halau (hah-LAU). They perform at hotels for the tourist, one was Ross Martin from 'Wild, Wild, West', TV series of the 60's, who met personally with the halau, backstage--and an 8 year old me. I did what was told me by grandpa. I brought from the house a few bread in its plastic bag. Where mom plays at night, there's a hotel bar, the hotel sits on the bayfront of Hilo. Outside the lounge sits stacks of discarded hard liquor bottles that's not always completely empty. I would pour whatever liquor into the plastic bag of bread, as it sops it up really fast. I would break up the soaked liquor bread and toss into the bay that's a few feet away from the hotel. I would have dad's big net with the long handle and wait a short while. Soon, fish will float up on their sides, stiff and not dead. I would scoop them up and put them in our Hinode Rice cloth bag. As they are a variety of fish that would float up, I scooped only one that I like. The rest would revive and swim away, whilst the caught ones would be slammed onto the ground until the bag stopped moving--better than a prolonged suffocation and or fried alive, which is the method since they are too small of a bother to chop. We call them, Manini (MAH-knee-knee) which means small in Hawaiian. They are really good eating fish, very oil enriched--great frying fish. Silvery body with sparse black stripes going down their flat sides. Night trips with mom produces a catch between 12 to 18 manini's. We also have spaghetti, beef stew, curry stew, and I am not listing any Hawaiian food as they are too great a variety. Date: 06/15/2019

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Vijay Pandit

Date: 6/16/2019 7:52:00 AM

You are quite a story teller, William..very innovative way of catching fish..enjoyed your story.

Hilo Poet
Date: 6/16/2019 10:30:00 AM

Glad that you enjoyed Vijay and for the kind words ~ William

Connie Marcum Wong

Date: 6/15/2019 7:42:00 PM

This was very interesting to read William. I met the other half star of the T.V. series Wild, Wild West on one of my flights. He is known as Robert Conrad. He put his boots up high on the carpeted bulk head (wall) and acted as if he owned the airplane. A very good looking guy, but I was unimpressed because of his actions. I enjoyed reading about your family. : )

Hilo Poet
Date: 6/15/2019 7:49:00 PM

I liked Ross of the two, in later TV columns, I would read up on Robert's heavy-handedness and was considered to have been arrogant--bears true I guess, Aloha Connie ~ William