16 x 20
Oil on Linen
Commissioned Painting
This thirty-one foot Bertram (B31) was purchased in 1973 by Mr. John C Williams of Raleigh, NC. After his family, employees, and close friends were all taken care of, Mr. John C would then take care of his one splurge, The Sawdust. Always tightening a screw or adding a gadget here and there, he would unwind from his many duties as a father, businessman, board member and friend. to just piddle around on his beloved toy that waited patiently in a slip for his return every weekend to Atlantic Beach.
As a high school and college kid I spent many weekends at the Williams Cottage with Mr. John C's and his wife Margaret's kids, Joel and Owen. No item, object or event went to waste for Mr. John C to use as an opportunity to fire off a life lesson either to his kids or his kids' friends. One Saturday morning as all of us young folk were slow to get up in the basement bedroom moaning and groaning from a long night before, Mr. John C opened the inside staircase door from the kitchen above, and yelled "What'cha doing down there, Fen Rascoe, coughing up Budweiser Caps?!"
An eruption of laughter came from the others who hadn't been so graciously singled out, but everyone knew how to decipher the real meaning of the code that had just been humorously yet sincerely sent - "Get your sorry behinds up and get moving. This ain't no frat house. Its a beautiful day outside and you ain't gonna waste it lounging around in my basement."
Moments later, Mr. John C announced that we were all going Spanish Mackerel fishing on the Sawdust but not until everyone sat down in the garage with steel wool and sanded the rust off of the Clark Spoons that would be used to troll for the fish. This was another opportunity for a lesson as Mr. John C lurked in the shadows of the basement just waiting for some unwitting soul to suggest that it would be much easier to just stop by the bait shop and buy some new spoons rather than slaving away cleaning up the old rusty ones.
Having already been caught in the crossfire earlier that morning and being a seasoned combat veteran of the Clark Spoon exercise, I kept my mouth shut. Sure enough as the tedium got too much, someone belted out the much awaited comment and like a curled snake, Mr. John C came striking out from the back room, "those things cost money boy! Take care of your mess, and you won't have to waste your money always buying something new all the time."
So goes that lesson with the Sawdust. Well taken care of and not replaced with another new boat for forty years now, she still patiently sits in a slip in Atlantic Beach waiting for one of Mr. John C's kids to fire her up and pass along another lesson or two to the next crop.
The Sawdust
September 2013
