We got talking about what specialty Ben wishes to pursue; right now he’s aiming at shipboard enforcement operations.  We also got to talk about what his concerns are; on the top of the list — the flight there, as Ben is decidedly not a fan of aircraft.  Next on the list was the “in your face” instruction associated with military basic training.  I told him generations had endured this tradition, and he could, too.

It was great to hear a young man express his dissatisfaction with drifting from odd job to odd job and now to be honed in on a purpose and be enthusiastic about pursuing his goal.

Fishing-wise, we had a tough day.  Winds were up over 20 mph for the last half of the trip, and the bite just wasn’t on too well in the first half.  Long story short, we ended up with 4 white bass and 1 largemouth bass, all on crankbaits, although we tried bladebaits up shallow early on, some deep water jigging, and some deep water downrigging.

Semper Paratus!  Always Ready!  Do well, Ben!