In Mixed Catch, NF Senior Editor Linc Bedrosian spotlights a wide range of commercial fishing-related news items from coast to coast.
Thursday, 06 December 2012
Nathan and the Stone Crabs
By J.B. Crawford
CreateSpace, 2011
Softcover, 216 pp., $12.95
www.amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com
"Stone crabs is the onliest things in the ocean that a man can take out, harvest, return to the water and then come back to harvest again," writes J.B. Crawford in his novel "Nathan and the Stone Crabs." "Stone crabs, they live on. Come back to fight another day."
Crawford, 78, is a Cortez, Fla., native and commercial fisherman who has worked in a variety of fisheries through the years. He also earned a bachelor's degree in English, graduating from the University of Florida with honors. Plus he holds two advanced degrees from Harvard, including a doctorate. And he's served a full career in public education, retiring as a California district superintendent.
Crawford added "author" to his resume last year. He calls "Nathan and the Stone Crabs" a tribute to a "unique and special way of life in a small historical fishing village on Florida's West Coast." It takes place in the fictional fishing town of DeSoto, set near Tampa Bay.
Nathan has come to DeSoto to visit his grandfather. His mom, B.D.'s daughter, grew up there, but prefers the world of fine dining in Los Angeles to what she perceives as a less refined lifestyle in DeSoto. But she sends Nathan to see DeSoto for himself and make up his own mind.
See it Nathan does, with B.D.'s help. He learns plenty about the town, its fishing heritage, and its hardworking people. The teenager goes stone crabbing with B.D. and his first mate, Hands, and learns for himself what it's like.
Nathan's interested in medicine, has taken first aid courses and wants to be a doctor, but he also finds the fishing life to his liking. He'll need to call on all his medical training when Hands becomes seriously injured one trip. Will Nathan be up to the test?
"Nathan and the Stone Crabs," moves quickly and offers plenty of information about life in the Florida fishing villages, their history, the stone crab fishery and the plight of fishermen impacted by the gillnet ban the state implemented in the mid-1990s. It's an easy read and a great way to introduce readers of any age to the commercial fishing life. It demonstrates how just like the stone crabs, commercial fishermen can suffer adversity, but they'll live to fight another day.
Callifornia crabbing: Here's a fun video shot on the decks of the Majestik while catching Dungeness crab off the coast of northern California.
Alaska fisherman and commercial fisheries activist Kevin Adams was elected chairman at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute board of directors meeting on May 9 in Anchorage.
The governor-appointed board consists of seven members: five seafood processors and two industry representatives actively engaged in commercial fishing. Adams was appointed to fill a harvester seat by Gov. Frank Murkowski in 2004.
With 38 years of fishing experience in Bristol Bay, Adams has long been an active member in the Alaska fishing industry, ASMI says. He has worked for both the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation and the Bering Sea Fisherman's Association, and represents Alaska fishermen on numerous boards.
The Northeast Regional Planning Body, a group of state, tribal and federal representatives from New England who are working to implement the National Ocean Policy and address critical New England ocean issues, is holding a series of public meetings in May and June.
The meetings are being held to discuss draft regional ocean planning goals and associated potential actions. The planning body seeks input on these goals and actions. Additional information on the group's progress can be found here.
The meetings will also provide an opportunity to review draft maps and products from initial efforts to gather information on the natural resources and diverse uses of the ocean, including fishing, transportation, energy and infrastructure, aquaculture, and recreation.
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