It was a perfect weekend for fleeing the dirty heat that radiates from New York City when the temperature rises above 80 degrees. We prefer weather that encourages rather than discourages baking. And with the weekend weather predictions being what they were we knew there was no way that any cakes were going to be cooked. So when a friend invited us to venture to a not so faraway shore to witness his fishing prowess firsthand we could not resist. We heard that the red striped bass were begging to be snatched from the shallow waters. So while we hit the waves, John worked his fisherman magic, shore-casting with clam bait.

We only managed to body surf a couple of waves before we noticed his fishline becoming taut. After a struggle, John had hauled in dinner. With the slaughtering board and fillet knife awaiting we dashed back to our cottage and prepared the first fresh fish of the season.