Billy doesn’t have a last name. He is just Billy. If he needs to be identified further it is done by saying, “Billy”, as you point to the 22’ O’Day he sleeps aboard anchored in the bay.

Billy is a polite man, but not so polite to “those people”.
We met in the bay. I was rowing in for a beer. He was rowing just to row. As I went by him he didn’t acknowledge me except to state, “Blade’s too deep.”

I just ignored him and continued in to O’Leary’s. This Captain and The Kid ordered a pitcher and sat at one of the picnic tables overlooking the water. The live band was trying to imitate the Coral Reefers, the weather was great, the beer was cold and the conversation was good. As we talked and drank I caught sight of Billy rowing in to the shore, tie up with the other dinghys and walk toward us.

“Blade was too deep.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Rowing. Your stroke. You’re dipping the oar blade too deep in the water. It’s easier than you make it if don’t dip it so deep. I thought you’d wanna know. I didn’t figure you for one of those people.” He nodded his head toward the condos across U.S 41 and then in an encompassing nodding motion finished toward the Tiki bar.

“Who’s those people?” I asked.

“The one’s stealin’ the water.”

“The water?”

“Yeah. The Bay. The Gulf. The @#%%@# ocean!”

We invited him to have a beer with us.

Billy ran his pinky finger around the rim of the glass of beer; licked his finger and then took a sip of beer. His face was evenly tanned. His eyes were locked in a permanent squint. It was difficult to imagine how he could stretch out his tall but slight frame comfortably in his little boat. We watched as he quietly finished his beer. He pierced his lips, wagged his head and appeared to say something but he could not be heard over the band. I tried to get him to speak louder but he just looked over his shoulder to check on his dinghy. A man and woman had wandered to where Billy had tied up. The man appeared to be boasting about his adventures in boating. The woman appeared to be bored by the man and when she turned toward the Tiki bar to feign a gagging disapproval of the man to her friends, she spilled her frozen mixed drink onto Billy’s dinghy. The slushy ice mix ran off the side and into the shells on the beach. The woman turned and headed back to her friends. The man chased after her fumbling for his wallet.

Billy turned back to me, bowed his head and growled, “Those people!”
I poured him another beer. And asked him what he meant by, “those people stealing the water”.

Next time Billy's interesting answer.

The Captain and The Kid