With Money The Monkey Dances

By Phil Thompson

In 4 titillating tales of the tropics one man battles big tarpon....problem is he's smashed on LSD.

Two island boys decide to build an ark and send grandma's cats to Cat Island.

A stoned Key West dive shop operator counsels a young delivery man on catching a world record shark and....

A group of adventurous America anglers trudge into the mountains of Cuba looking for a black market pig.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phil Thompson
• Release date: May 13, 2013
• ISBN: 9781311184283

Phil Thompson

Phil Thompson is a fourth generation Floridian, the great grandson of homesteaders. Raised on the Alafia River and Tampa Bay fishing was more requirement than family tradition. Spreading a cast-net, a rite of passage for a young man A diver at 14, ocean racer at 22, Phil combined his two loves sailing throughout the Florida Keys, Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, Finally settling in Key West. Phil ran fish and dive boats on expeditions to the pristine waters of the Marquesas and Dry Tortugas. Residing in Key West provided the opportunity to cross the Straits of Florida and explore Cuba. Phil participated numerous Hemingway Marlin Tournaments and traveled the island extensively, looking for the finest salt, fresh, and brackish water fishing holes and seldom explored dive sites. Bitten by the fly bug, Phil turned flats guide. Bonefish, permit and tarpon were the sought after trophies, fining sharks, lazy turtles and beautiful sunrises just perks. In 2008 Phil traded the push-pole for the a pen. Finding seclusion on San Salvador, Bahamas, Phil wrote a first book and waded for bonefish. “97 Miles South” Phil's debut novel is scheduled for release in early spring of 2012. His fishing reports, articles and short histories appear in Florida Sportsman, Coastal Angler and Gaff magazines. Phil currently writes a monthly column for Coastal Angler Magazine and divides time between Ruskin and Key West, Florida and Cuba. Phil's second book, “With Money the Monkey Dances” is scheduled for release in the fall of 2012.

Book preview

With Money, The Monkey Dances

Phil Thompson

www.captphilthompson.com

Copyright Notice

© Copyright 2014 Phillip D Thompson

All rights reserved

Disclaimer

These stories are works of fiction.

Names, characters and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. The places mentioned are entirely real and have been used with great respect. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the core of friends and family who offer constant support.

A special thanks to Vinny Argero - Best storyteller I know.

And, to my sister Donna Cotton.

Cover Design: Bonnie Koonberries and Dave Dlugitch.

About the Book

Four island tales that won’t change your life, just make you feel better.

Introduction

Tarpon Trails: A young Key West guide deals with the challenges of tarpon fishing, plus one additional problem…he’s blasted on LSD.

Cat Island Cruise: Two Bahamian boys, believing they have found cat heaven, build an island version of Noah's ark and launch an old woman's cats on an ocean voyage to Eden.

Rondine and the Rooster: A financially strapped, stoned Key West dive shop owner advises a young Cajun man attempting to capture a world record Tiger shark.

The Great Pig Set: Adventurous Americans lead a rum powered expedition into the scenic mountains of Cuba, searching for a black market pig.

About the Author

Excerpt from A Smuggler’s Blues ... Marijuana Mania

Introduction

This collection of stories is a work of pure fiction. That being said, it should be noted that these tales either took place somewhere........ Or if not, should have.

There is no deep, hidden meaning, no political agenda, nothing that may be credited to or blamed on genius of the author.

Like good Jimmy Buffet songs, they won't move you to tears or change your life, but, they will put a smile on your face while you walk the beaches wearing the palm frond hats like those of us who for reasons - cosmic or common circumstance - live their lives in the tropics, where events take a little more time to unfold and, under the warm sun, seem less life altering.

The Great Pig Set is a prime example. The original version of what has become the most popular chapter of the novel, 97 Miles South this tale was told to me by probably the best storyteller I've ever met. Part of me knows there's some truth to it, but considering the source, there's no estimating the amount.

As a very wise man once said......never let the truth stand in the way of a good story.

Meanwhile, enjoy your time in the islands. The real thing is out there waiting, come south and join us.

Phil Thompson

Tarpon Trails

In 1970, Doc Ellis pitched a no hitter. Years later, he disclosed he had hurled the best game of his career ... under the influence of L.S.D.

Key West is a rock floating in the ocean. It’s surrounded by water and populated with businessman, bankers, barkers, lawyers and thieves, fisherman, fondlers, fornicators - not far away is an island of monkeys- vendors, vixens, villains, the vanquished and a small deeply disturbed group of lost souls who fled south, only to run out of road.

Key West has provided a backdrop for writers, poets, producers, and pimps. It’s the end of the road for many, the beginning for some...... the middle for none.

It’s the capital of an island chain separating two oceans, surrounded by a world-class fishery. During the spring Tarpon run, a busy hive of fishing dreams where the skilled, the unskilled and, the curious flee colder climes in pursuit of these magnificent silver kings.

Tarpon fishing tales are many and varied and predate the road and the writer. But never, since man first pursued this air breathing, silver sided monster, has a set of Columbia clad anglers been guided thru a fishing adventure as happened on one calm spring day in March.

Joe Benson, at 26, is a Charter Captain or more specifically a Flats Guide. Although the two titles require an identical license - issued and overseen by the U.S Coast Guard - to group them under the same occupational umbrella or regard them as members of the same profession, would be akin to presenting Van Halen and Pavarotti on the same stage. They differ immensely in style and attitude.

Whereas the charter boat Captain - for purpose of our comparison - is predominantly a meat fisherman whose customer’s desire not only bent rods, but also require a bag of filets at the end of the day. The flats guide’s charges are content with catch and release and oft time further handicap their efforts with tricky fly rods and barb less hooks. Their thrill lies in the chase rather than the capture, the hunt and the stalk, with success or failure balancing ultimately on the right cast or the perfect presentation.

The one on one ratio with a flats guide creates an intimate relationship. Trust is established quickly or not at all. No cabin or fly bridge offers refuge or escape from unwelcome conversation, bad breath, or differing opinions. Seventeen or eighteen feet of shallow draft skiff becomes a self-contained habitat, the world for a day, for better or for worse.

Shortly after sunset and before full dark, William (Bill) Fogarty and Jake Stevens strolled back from the Mallory square sunset celebration when Bill spied the picture of a leaping tarpon. Somewhat faded, the shot was tacked to the back wall of a Duval street-booking booth, where adventures are hawked and sold.

Snorkel trips, parasail rides and trips to the distant Fort Jefferson may all be purchased with traveler’s checks, Master card or Visa, and unlike current airline policy, cash is preferred.

You can arrange to see Key West riding a natural gas fueled trolley or train, pedal through the streets on a guided bicycle tour or stroll under the supervision of a black clad, lantern toting ghost guide, seeking the spirits of long dead wreckers, writers and an ax murderer or two.

The booth also offers fishing trips, both inshore and off. Top of the line are the private charters, designed for you and up to five of your friends aboard an air-conditioned sport fishing yacht, trolling the indigo waters of the Gulf Stream. The opposite end of the financial fishing spectrum is a crowded party or head boat. Charging a few dollars for passage, they make the real profit selling or renting everything from bait and tackle to seasick remedies. A variety of fishing excursions and eco tours hang in the middle price range, waiting to be verbally squeezed, weighed, thumped and finally chosen like melons from the corner market.

I want to catch a Tarpon, Bill said to his friend.

I saw a guy on ESPN catch one and I want to do it.

Man, that’s gotta cost. Jake replied.

We didn’t budget that in the trip.

I know, but we don’t have fish like that in Michigan. I may never get another chance.

Jake and Bill were down from Saginaw on a discounted three-day package, located on Expedia. Com. Bill is in recovery from a nasty divorce battle with his wife of fifteen years and between alimony and child support, calculates his next vacation will coincide with the republicans regaining the white house. Jake