Cooperation....New Adventures

My Judy and I will celebrate 23 years of marriage in a few weeks, We have been through a lot together, some of it good and some of it not so good, however through it all we have gotten closer and stronger. Back about 24 years ago while we were dating we agreed to try new experiences together. So, I agreed to do something with her I had never done before, like go to a live musical presentation of Evita, and she agreed to do something with me, that she had never done before like, float the river and fish.
I went to Evita first.....It was a great presentation of the story of Argentina's First Lady during the second world war. I enjoyed some of it, and when I was caught not enjoying it a gentle nudge was all it took to stop the snoring. We had a great evening out, and I was exposed to some class that prior to that evening I had never endured. The next week was my turn, I arranged a 6 mile float on the upper Meramec River in Crawford county near the town of Leasberg. I decided that it would be a much nicer float if we rented a paddle jon type boat. This flat bottomed craft is tapered at both ends to make it easier to paddle and steer. I made it better by attaching a trolling motor to the stern and that way my darling new girlfriend could just sit in the front of the boat, catch some rays, relax and look beautiful. We arrived at the outfitter at the appointed time. Loaded our fishing gear and coolers into the back of a pickup truck that was new when Harry Truman took office, sat on the seat filled with old burlap bags so the springs would not pinch so hard and had to hold or feet up because the gravel road was visible through the spot where the floor should have been. We got to the put in point, wrestled the paddle jon from its rack, I mounted the trolling motor to the boat, carried the battery and made sure all was in working order. I placed the cooler and tackle in the boat and placed the cushion for my fair maiden in the bow. With a slight nudge from our friendly truck driver we were off, The day was one of those rare summer days when the temperature was not too hot and there was no humidity. The river was running with plenty of water and the fishing report was excellent.
The dust had not settled from our outfitter leaving us when the small brown water snake swam towards the front of the boat. It was at that precise moment I learned the first thing,it became apparent that my Venus was deathly afraid of the possibility there might be a snake in the immediate 25 mile radius, much less right in front of the boat. It was at this same moment in time that I witnessed sure terror for the first time. I know what it looks like. Furthermore it is very easy to recognise. Its a full grown woman running full speed toward you in a 12 foot paddle jon. I immediately reacted to this situation, my suburb training in handling emergencies came into play. I assessed the situation, took in all of the information and deduced that A: If said attractive lady continued to run un-check through the paddle jon that there was a very good possibility that I would end up in the water. B: The snake was in the water. ( I myself are not terribly fond of the critters) C:Stop the woman! So I did the only thing that made sense to me by yelling at the very top pf my voice, so I could be heard over the screeching noise that sounded something like S....N...A....K....E! SIT DOWN!!!
It was at this time that I learned the second thing about my future bride, she did not like to be yelled at for any reason.
Dear readers, it usually takes 7-8 hours to properly float and fish this 6 mile stretch of the river. I'd done it numerous times so I knew. On that day we almost beat the outfitter back to the parking lot. That day the trolling motor never came off high and the only sound heard from the time of my unfortunate thought process, was the splashing of the water and its accompanying noise as we walked the paddle jon through riffles in the river.
She has never floated with me again........