Jumpline magazine Q1 2023 - Flipbook - Page 24
24
Frank “Catfish” Spadaro, Ret.
Fish On!
Someone once told me that life progresses in
cycles of 7 year intervals associated with the
twelve calendar months of the year. Birth to
7 years = January; ages 7 -14 = February;
ages 14 – 21 = March; etc.. You get the picture.
Well, I’m amazed that I have made it to October! 71
trips around the sun for a firefighter is a pretty good run. Many
of my contemporaries have not been so lucky. It has been
16 years since I walked out of a firehouse for the last time.
I certainly do miss being a firefighter though. There was an
undeniable feeling of purpose being a firefighter. Every shift
held the hope that you could enter someone’s worst nightmare and give it a happy ending. All things, however, must
pass so now I lead a life of quiet introspection. 32 years of
exposure to the stuff we tried to make right does not fade from
memory quickly. It took a year or so to not wake up terrified
that I was late for work. For some reason I still wake up between 5:30am and 6:00 am every morning. I guess old habits
die hard.
My second passion is fishing. I remember giving a presentation to the top staff of the department, a plan to reorganize our EMS system. After I finished with the presentation the
director asked me one question, “Do you own a
boat”? I thought it was odd at the time and certainly not
germane to the topic. I guess he thought I couldn’t be serious
if I went fishing. Anyway, I digress. My wife and I are lucky to
live by the sea. I push a button and my boat lowers into the
water and off I go. I fish the back waters of the Nature Coast
between Bayport and Crystal River. Mostly redfish, trout, and
snook. During the summer we dive for scallops. I once saw
my wife slap a stone crab that was trying to eat her scallop.
She has become the “Forrest Gump” of scallops; fries them,
bakes them, and roasts them.
So, what does a retired firefighter in the ‘October’ of his years
do? I get up, hit the on button on the coffee pot, brush my
teeth, etc. I get a cup of coffee and sit on my back porch in
the dark and meditate, not always, but often my mind drifts
back to some of the stuff I saw and did on the fire department. During these sessions I make peace with the demons
that every firefighter will inevitably carry with them for life. If I
was only a little faster or stronger or smarter. I have forgiven
myself for my shortcomings knowing that I did my best, even
if it wasn’t enough. Then as the sun comes up, I plan my day.
I have three passions that I enjoyed even when I was still on
the job; old cars, fishing and travel. Now however; my passions are unencumbered by having to go to work. I have my
My third passion is travel. We have seen most of the places
that interest us, but we still have a lot to see. Travel these
days is sort of iffy so that’s on hold for now. I hope I have
enough time left to get back to it. We make plans, but we
know that life is what happens while you’re making plans. We
remain hopeful that we’ll get it all done before the elevator
stops at our floor. So far so good.
Jay Leno starter set of three cars that always need something. As of this writing, I have rescued a 1938 chevy truck
from its date with the crusher. I still have my 1968 AMX which
I seemingly only drive to the barber shop. It still needs attention from time to time. Shortly before leaving the fire department, I bought a 1981 Corvette from Steve Belkin. I never
liked that car, so I took the body off of it and engineered a
1951 Studebaker starlight coupe on the vet drive train. It will
be finished this winter.
So now you know what I’m doing. Many of my contemporaries are leading very fulfilling lives. Many volunteer at hospitals and food kitchens. It’s funny that at our age that word
has less of a negative connotation. In conclusion, I wish to
thank the younger generation of firefighters who are still in
the spring and summer of their life. You are the guardians
of a proud legacy. A legacy steeped in tradition, fraught with
danger and admired by all who witness your work. My hope is
that all of you make it to October and beyond. I hope you too
can reach the realization that you did your best and that you
deserve all the good that comes to you.
Catfish.
February 2023 | JUMPLINE Magazine