"Jonathan Cook" wrote

Does your son fish? I couldn't think of anything better than
fishing all summer with my Dad before heading to college...



cool idea, Jon, but

yes he has been fly fishing with me, but, no, he's not really that
interested

he went with me one summer for a little over a month, several summers back,
caught a Silver Creek trout on his first cast ( his dadguide placed him
carefully :-), caught fish in the Big Wood, the Missouri, etc etc .... but
mainly he read ... my biggest single expense for the trip was books. I now
know where every bookstore in Twin Falls, Ketchum, Idaho Falls, Butte,
Helena, Great Falls, Pocatella, and several other towns is located.

Unlike his dad, the kid is very bright, very academic in inclination, and
pretty much an INdoors kinda guy. But, I'm very proud of him, his name is
in today's paper ( again ) for his academic accomplishments ( last week he
captained a team that placed 3rd for the entire state ( out of hundreds, of
teams ) at a nerd contest, and was the team's best performer. He has been
accepted at a good school in a program ( International Studies ) with a very
limited number of openings, plans on a double major ( he really wanted to
try 3, but we talked him down to two ), music the second one ( he plays
Bassoon ), and has earned enough in the way of scholarships, that his
parents might, maybe, we hope, be able to afford his higher education
without endangering our own last years.

It's easy to get carried away, bragging on one's kid g .... I was a late
starter ( every one always assumes I'm his granddad ) that rather resisted
parenthood, but it has proved to be a great ride so far, one I highly
recommend. His mother, btw, is THE best mom and wife, on the planet and
deserves ALL credit for the kid's upbringing and genetic quality.