Rebuilding Ocracoke.

Jessie Grove: A Tribute to a Great Lady

Jessie dressed to the nines for the most casual of family gatherings. 

Jessie Grove was born over 103 years ago. On June 22, 2019, Jessie left this world for another. Her life was extraordinary, exemplary, and full of joy, love, kindness, and laughter.

Jessie was known affectionately as "Grandmom" by her three grandchildren, her six great grandchildren, and her sons- and daughters-in-law––myself included. She was raised in Kansas and attended a one-room school house. Details of her childhood are, unfortunately, sparse. Jessie had one daughter––Betty––at a very young age. Times were economically challenging for Jessie. She was fortunate to have the support of a family in Detroit, Michigan, who offered to raise her daughter. Despite the distance, Jessie was devoted to her daughter and traveled extensively to see her. They remained very close for the duration of her life.

Jessie met and married Bob Grove and together they traveled the world. Their stops and journeys were marked with pins and threads on an antiqued plastic globe of the Earth. Bob was an entrepreneur, a military man who traveled in service, and a sheer wizard with tools. Bob and Jessie settled in Fort Meyers, Florida, and enjoyed a life full of work, friends, and fishing. Some time around 1986, Bob and Jessie retired from Florida and moved into a country house surrounded by gardens in White Hall, Virginia. This location suited them well, as they were able to host and partake of regular lunches, dinners, and holidays with their growing family of great grandchildren.

Bob and Jessie Gove in their Fort Meyers heyday!

Jessie and Bob downsized again in a move to University Village, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Bob and Jessie were not deterred by condo living and continued with their outdoor pursuits. They built a water feature complete with plants and goldfish for all the residents to enjoy. They also built a garden below their balcony, fed the hummingbirds, made many many friends. Bob also built –– by hand! –– a fanciful playhouse out in Free Union, VA, for family friends. It stands today as a fine remembrance of his handiwork.

Granddaddy Grove and Grandmom with their second great grandchild, Drew.

Granddaddy Grove and Grandmom with their fourth great grandchild, Dave.

Bob passed away around 20 years ago. Jessie, in her characteristic way, lived on always with a cheerful, positive, and kind manner. She often talked of and joked about Bob as if he were sitting next to her. Her stories flew from her memory with clarity and warmth. Jessie was not one for regret, sorrow, or remorse. Jessie did not have a mean, spiteful, angry, or bitter bone in her body. Jessie was always kind, loving, gentle, sweet, and super funny. She never, ever complained, and she never left the house without lipstick on! Jessie was cheerful to her core and always quick to laugh.

Grandmon at Grandparent's Day with her great grandson, Dave (and me).

Jessie eventually fell and wound up in the hospital. Although she longed to live independently as she alway had, she moved into assisted living without complaint. She continued to share in family dinners and was visited often by her clan of grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Jessie Grove was a fine lady full of grace, charm, warmth, and kindness. She lived a long, prosperous, and full life. Jessie loved well and was well loved in return.

Godspeed, Grandmom!

Jessie's 101 birthday celebration with all her adoring friends and family.

Sh-thole Countries???

Every morning I brace myself for more vitriol, negativity, attacks, destruction, and lies from the alternate reality that this nation's highest office seems to live in. When the news exploded over T-rumps "Sh-thole" comments, I was enraged. But I soon realized I was wasting my energy. Nothing is likely to change in the next three years. The dye is cast and I am better off spending my energy in positive ways.

Thankfully, at least one of my Facebook friends put a cynical (and hysterical) spin on recent events.

I hope this make you laugh as loud as I did.

Enjoy!

__________

"Shithole Countries throughout history that have seen mass immigration to the US:

1619-1865 - Slaves, West Africa. Forced to come to, what would have been to them at the time, a shithole country.

1620 - Puritans, English. Left shithole England because of religious intolerance.

1840’s - Irish. Left shithole Ireland due to massive famine.

1800’s - Germans. Left shithole Germany due to overcrowding and lack of opportunity. (Trumpf is of German descent, Bavaria to be precise. F. Trump left the shithole of Bavaria because he was a Calvanist in a mostly Catholic country). Bavaria was such a shithole it doesn’t exist anymore.

1850’s - Chinese. Left shithole China due to lack of opportunity and in search of riches. Many were ’Shangaied” as indentured slaves.

1870’s - Russia. Russians occupied what is now Alaska looking to escape the shithole Czars and revolution.

1880-1920 - Central, Eastern & Southern Europeans. Italians due to shithole economy and Jews due to shithole pogroms.

1940-1950’s - Germany. Germans left their destroyed shithole country. 

1940-1950’s - Poland. Poles left their destroyed shithole country.

1960’s - Cuba. Cubans leave their shithole country because of Communism.

1990’s - Haiti. Haitians leave Haiti due to an unending procession of storms and Dictators. I’ve left out other shithole countries in South and Central America (too many to count).

We seem to be a nation populated by shithole people from shithole countries."

of Doughballs and YouTube buttons

I've recycled and experimented with all kinds of left-over food as bait: bread, ham, bacon, shrimp, turkey.... "Whatever that guy over there just wasted, may I have it for bait?" Yes, I've actually asked servers to give me left overs so I can go fishing.

Sand fleas? They do NOT need to be fresh to be effective. We've microwaved them and frozen them. Yep, they still catch fish.

Doughballs catch just about any small-mouthed fish I've come across: bass, brim, suckers, shiners, trout, and yes... grunts, snappers, chubs etc. "What are you using?" "Left-over doughballs from my airport sandwich." "No kidding?" "No kidding." Doughballs are even better with a little mayonnaise :)

However, I've never experimented with hardware. Honestly, it never occurred to me. Until now.

This is inspired... and very funny~!

Hurricane Irma... 2 Amazing Views

From the ground:



From SPACE:



(They are one in the same.)

Fish Geeks: a Primer

There's a thing about Fish Geeks: only Fish Geeks really "get" other Fish Geeks. We are a large and diverse tribe of obsessive, compulsive, and driven students, professors, researchers, divers, snorkelers, fishermen, and... artists :)

Our closets are stuffed with T-shirts, Hawaiian shirts, baseball caps, and shorts emblazoned and embroidered with fishes on them. Bumper stickers, drink coasters, keys fobs? Only fish related. Tattoos? Fishes.

Our homes are decorated with fish mounts, fishing memorabilia, fish-related awards, fishing and diving photos, and other fishy decor. If the Geek has it real bad, even his mailbox is in the shape of a fish.

We read and write and blog about fishes. We photograph, film, and illustrate fishes. We attend meetings about fishes. Our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter feeds are fully of fishy news. Who bothers with the New York Times when we've got the Underwater Times?!

We all know the words to the songs "Fish Heads" and the zippy, rappy "Rockfish Barotrauma." We've all seen video "Fish Guys - 48 hour Challenge"––multiple times!

And who can forget the super cute and classic "Barber Lab Quartet - Coral Triangle"?

And we even cover classic songs with lyrics about fishes!

Say Croppie from Donald J Orth on Vimeo.

I think I've made my point.

Want to join the club? New members are always welcome! But be forewarned––it's a life-long addiction. And, there are no Fish Addiction Treatment Centers... yet. ;)

Yep!

I should start saving cartoons... this one hits it.
Happy Friday, visitors!
Go Fishing :)

Octopuses Really ARE Cool ~!

Every once in a while I'm reminded that there are other creatures besides fishes that deserve the 'COOL' label.
Yep, Octopuses are cool.

Ripples into Waves

I received this photo today from Dr. Donald Orth who teaches Ichthyology at Virginia Tech.
Needless to say, it made my day... week... month! It's tremendously rewarding to see my work help others with their work. These terrific students are the future!

It will remind me why I invested 5.5 years into A Field Guide to Coastal Fishes - from Maine to Texas, any why I'm investing another 4 into its Pacific counterpart. It will also serve as big motivation to keep on illustrating, to stay focused, and to remember the big picture:

Conservation, education, preservation.

Virginia Tech Ichthyology

AWESOME~!

I've done this before, but never caught anything... Now that I know it can be done, I'll try it again!