A long time in the making... (and catfishing)

A long time indeed. Seven years is how long I've worked for the Daily World and now here I am writing my first ever column. Seven years in production and finally I have my big break, a forum in which to share my experiences and views with the public. Oh the possibilities.

About myself, my name is Jon Swaby and as stated before, I have worked in the Daily World pressroom for the past seven years. Now I have been given an opportunity to contribute some of my time to the newsroom. Prior to my time at the Daily World I worked for the Bloomfield Evening World. Now I'm really showing my age. I'm married with four children and have lived outside of Worthington all my life.

Being a country boy, it will come as no surprise that many of my passions and hobbies are tied closely to the outdoors. Hunting, fishing, gardening, hiking and woodwork are among my favorite pastimes. As such, the focus of my column will largely involve those pursuits.

So with that in mind, I would like to kick this column off with some seasonally relevant material, catfishing. Greene County is blessed with a myriad of opportunities for fishermen but whenever the attention turns to catfish, nowhere calls as loudly as the two rivers that bisect our area, the West Fork of the White River and the Eel River. Nothing describes catfishing better than late nights, countless insects, sweat and sand. Sounds like a good time doesn't it? But as the author John Buchan once said, "The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope," and that's it in a nutshell, elusive but attainable. All of the work, all of the sweat, all of the insect bites are forgotten with that first fish.

With a rush of adrenaline and excitement, the hook is set and the fight is on. Man versus beast. It's primal, it's intense and it's real. All the stresses of work are a thing of the past. All the worries and headaches of life are in the rearview mirror even if only for a fleeting moment. That is the joy of catfishing and if you are fortunate, you will be able to share the experience with close friends and family.

Recently I was able to witness two people land the biggest fish of their lives, one being my youngest son Ayrton, the other my friend "JB." In the case of Ayrton (who is nine), his catfish was a flathead that we estimated to weigh 10 pounds. As a father, it was one of those all too rare moments when you see your child as if there were a gleaming light from the heavens shining down on him. His excitement and pride with that fish was equalled by my own excitement and pride for him. He was certain the fishing rod would be torn from his hands as the fish would lunge and dive to escape the unknown threat. Then, just as abruptly as it began, the fight was over. The fish gave himself up and Ayrton stood with his prize. A few pictures and congratulations later and it was back to the serious business of fishing.

"JB" on the other hand became a catfisherman in a more dramatic fashion. We had fished an eddy current in the river for five hours that night with nothing to show for our efforts and, as is often the case, a fish was finally hooked in the closing moments of our night. I could tell from the start that he had a "good one." Every time the fish would get close to the surface it would lunge back to the bottom, which in this case was a 25 foot deep pool. This scenario played out four or five times before the catfish was subdued. This time it was a 21 pound flathead. As before, a few pictures were taken and congratulations were made, then the leviathan of the deep was returned to its watery sanctuary.

Catfishing is an enjoyable summer endeavor as are many of the other outdoor activities that Greene County has to offer. I plan to cover many of the pursuits I enjoy in the space I am given here and encourage readers to share their stories and photos with us. As time and space allow, I hope to showcase some of what is shared with fellow readers. Until next time, I wish you tight lines and true shots.

Jon is a staff writer for the Greene County Daily World. He can be reached by telephone at (812) 847-4487, ext. 21. He can also be reached via email at jonpswaby@gmail.com.