rock fishing

"squid is the best bait for a jew fish," neil explains, "but its also very good to eat...so you have to decide if you want to eat it or hope that it will tempt a jew fish."
neil has been fishing for ten years. and his goal is to catch a jew fish.
"once he catches one, he will die a happy man." says his wife lou. lou hates fish.
michelle and i. we will help neil catch a jew fish. i have never really had a desire to fish...it always seemed like a pretty boring 'hobby.' but this is not that type of fishing. we watched videos of people catching great white sharks. tiger sharks. people falling off the rocks. in fact, their friends' dad had gone fishing on these rocks we were about to go to...and never. came. back.
this was not the the safe, boring kind of fishing.
we were equipped with buckets of hooks and bait. headlamps and shoes with grip. two poles and a large shark hook thing.
i was excited. anything that involves shark hooks and shoes with grip means adventure.
we went out at night. about 10pm. the cliffs are less than a five minute drive from neils' house. it was a full moon and we were the only ones out there. i loved it. you stand out on these rocks and watch the waves crashing around you. little crabs crawling next to your feet. waiting. any minute there could be a tug on your line in which you have to run over to this shallow area and reel in the fish with all your might. i starting imagining michelle slipping off the rocks and into the ocean. simultaneously a shark swims by and of course i jump in to save my friends' life but as i get out the shark BITES my calf! he bites and then lets me go. i have to get 45 stitches at the sydney hospital. and a shark bite scar to show everyone..."kate, KATE!"
oh, sorry, yep?
"we have to go. the currant is too angry. i reckon we wont catch anything tonight and its too dangerous."
what? we are just gonna give up??? fishing takes patience and dedication. and we HAVE to catch a jew fish!
"yeah, not tonight," says neil in his thick aussie accent.
And as we packed up, i started re-planning my life...around my new life goal. catching a jew fish.