T he Allen house hosted a visitor last week: My wife Patti’s mom Audrey was in town, temporarily trading the frigid February weather of her native Toronto area for the wonderfully balmy conditions we enjoy in Southwest Florida. I doubt there are many husbands who sit around thinking, “I really wish the mother-in-law would come stay with us for a while,” but as mothers-in-law go, Audrey is really a pretty good one. I’d like to point out that my reason for saying this is not entirely that the online version of WaterLine is available anywhere on the planet (even in Canada) and she might read this column.

Audrey wanted to go fishing while she was in Punta Gorda and, probably since I am the only fishing guide who’s married to her daughter (as far as I know), I was selected to put her on some Charlotte Harbor fish. That’s how we found ourselves loping southbound at 25 knots from Punta Gorda aboard my skiff on a sunny, calm morning with 100 unsuspecting shrimp lolling in the livewell.