Limbo Page #3

I hate it when they're

stranded out in the air.

Their gills are working, they have

that desperate look on their face.

Well, they're drowning.

In air.

What do you think

it feels like to drown?

I don't know.

Never had the experience.

Blow it out!

Five more!

Four...

...three...

...two...

...one. Both hands!

Here we go!

Keep those knees going!

Eight...

Now reach and pull it down!

Strong arms!

Six!

Well...

...that's all she wrote.

They say the Chinese might buy it.

Pack it all up, ship it over.

They can have it.

Who wants a drink?

This is the Golden Nugget Saloon,

founded back in 1881...

...when Port Henry was the gold-mining

centre of the Northern Territory.

They say nobody eats

canned salmon anymore.

Do you eat it?

Why would I want canned

when I can get fresh?

People in Peoria are saying

the exact same thing.

The only recorded bout

between a domesticated wolf...

He's in that little DeHaviland of his...

...coming in with the wind steady

and the water's like glass...

...doing his usual rap about

the wilderness and the glaciers...

Think you're the only person up here

out of a job?

Trying to impress these two girls.

He's still got his wheels down.

I drop these people off the boat.

He's a bigtime corporate executive.

He's with his second wife and

two kids from the first marriage.

Those wheels dig in.

He flips tail over head.

They got heated tents,

freeze-dried gourmet dinners.

They're wearing about

$4000 worth of Gore-Tex.

The Beaver's lying belly up in the

channel. The two girls are unconscious.

He's hanging upside-down, hooked in by

his belt, water coming from all sides.

Two hours they lasted. And the exec

gets me on the radio, saying...

Head-on into some other bozo in a Piper

Cub whose eyes are also down on water.

It's so cold, your spit's frozen

solid before it even hits the ground.

And the metal has that tinny sound

when you slam the door...

...like the thing's gonna shatter.

There haven't been shootings.

Can't see the front of my plane,

this fog's so thick.

Harvest the resources, my ass.

A man goes out, he makes a set

and he catches fish, goddamn it!

He's not a goddamn farmer!

There's mountain peaks

all around me.

The Russians, the Japanese

scooping up our crab.

But it's been the setting

for many a confrontation.

Long time no see.

Smilin' Jack. What

brings you down this altitude?

Flew some medical supply

salesmen in from Cordova.

There's a thousand of them

at the Convention Centre.

Where are you living these days?

Two steps ahead of the finance company.

I'll see you later.

- Jumpin' Joe Gastineau.

- Friend of yours?

Not exactly.

You gassed her up

You're behind the wheel

With your arm around your sweet one

In your Oldsmobile

Barrelin' down the boulevard

Lookin' for the heart of Saturday night

Got paid on Friday

Your pockets are jinglin'

And then you see the lights

You get all a-tinglin'

'Cause you're cruisin' with a six

Lookin' for the heart of Saturday night

Mind if I sit?

No, please.

Thanks.

So...

You're terrific.

Who do I remind you of?

Remind me of?

Singers.

Most people go, "You remind me of Judy

Collins, but your voice is deeper...

...Emmylou Harris,

but your hair is curlier."

Screamin' Jay Hawkins.

Really?

No, I think he usually wore

a bone in his nose.

So can you make a living doing this?

Sort of.

You make a living working

for the lodge ladies?

Sort of.

It can be nice.

One summer, I did a cruise ship in the

Caribbean. I got to take my daughter.

You take her with you?

Pretty much, yeah.

Her father is...?

Out of the picture.

It was his choice.

So you've sung in a lot of places?

Thirty-six states and the territory

of Puerto Rico.

How about you?

I've been to Seattle a couple of times

and Canada, along the coast.

But you must like it?

I don't think I'd do so well

down south. You know, cities.

How come you're not married?

- Sorry.

- You know...

If you don't wanna say...

Probably the same reason

you're not married.

Because such a high percentage

of men are jerks?

Because women are scarce

and winters are long?

That's true, but...

You're looking for someone

who understands your bullshit...

...but is still crazy about you anyway?

That's a bit much to ask for.

No, it's not.

So have you, like, recorded songs?

I've made demos.

And I'm not exactly up here

to be discovered, or anything.

You know, at my age...

...it doesn't make a whole lot of sense,

my so-called career.

So why do you still do it?

Almost every night...

...it doesn't matter where I am

or what song I'm singing...

...all of a sudden, I'll hook into it.

I'll be feeling whatever it is

the song is about.

And I can hear it.

I can feel it in my voice.

And I know that I'm putting it across.

Moments of grace.

Do you know what I'm saying?

I do.

I put my kid through a lot, though.

Moving all the time.

But when I take a straight job,

bank teller, waitressing, whatever...

...I feel so defeated, I don't

even want her to look at me.

Would you like...

...to do something?

"Something"?

It's real pretty country here.

I could take you...

I gotta warn you.

What's the thing with

the long skinny boats?

Kayaking.

I don't do that one.

Or anything where if the spike comes out

of the cliff, you plunge to your death.

Climbing.

In general, things where you wear

gear instead of clothing, I don't do.

It's good to know.

What do you...?

When you're not working...?

I read a lot.

A lot, yeah.

I go to the gym, punish myself

on the treadmill.

If I'm with a guy, I make pathetic

attempts at ingratiating myself...

...often involving cooking

and cleaning activities.

When my daughter was little,

I would do stuff with her.

You don't anymore?

No.

So...

...if you're willing...

...let's work on this

"doing stuff" idea.

You think of stuff,

and I'll think of something.

But keep trying, really. Okay?

I will.

You know where to find me.

Two shows nightly. Bye.

It was called "Gold Fever."

In 1897, the first wave of fortune

seekers swept through Port Henry...

...on their way to Skagway, the Chilkoot

Pass and the Yukon gold fields.

They were desperate men...

...willing to perish in search of one

big strike every prospector dreamed of.

It could be the entire cruise,

or you may work just one leg...

...lay over at a stop and

switch to a different ship.

How much time would I spend at home?

We like to think of our vessels

as a kind of home.

Not much, huh?

We have this job for you.

It's different.

- We have this ship...

- Boat.

We have this boat.

The Raven.

We had the engine overhauled,

put a new gill net drum on it.

Harmon King's boat.

It's our boat now.

- He gave us his license.

- His entry permit.

Just to make up for some of the money

he still owes us.

We want you to go out.

To go out?

Go out and fish.

I'm not a fisherman.

Well, you used to be, right?

I mean, you know

what you're doing on a boat.

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