Summon the Inner Fleischhacker

For me, family history is a hobby; some may argue that it is an obsession. Many family stories are mundane, some are too good to be true.

There is one particular vacation that is quite unique. Who paid for the trip? Why was this vacation chosen? What did the participants do? Did everyone enjoy the experience? How does a cruise show us inherited family traits?

Last month when I traveled to a warm place (away from Minne-snow-ta), I asked my brother-in-law to retell this 1980s story and give me all the details as well as the proper formatting.¹Interview. Thomas Blees and Karrie Blees. Florida. February 24, 2023.

Salmon Season

For many years Tom skippered a commercial salmon fishing operation in Alaska. He owned the permit to fish; another brother owned the boat. During the season, Tom and his 2-person crew worked, ate, slept and literally lived onboard. The other vessels fishing for salmon in Bristol Bay had similar-sized crews and living conditions.

Tom told me that “all the fishing boats had men’s magazines.” Men’s magazines are those marketed primarily for a male audience, some periodicals promote health, some chronicle style and some provide  … titillation.

The Contest

One of the guys on one of the boats had a copy of the Septemeber 1984 Penthouse. This 15th anniversary issue was/is infamous for a couple of reasons. But those do not concern our story. We want to know about the anniversary contest.

The competition consisted of two parts: 1) Find 15 particular words scattered within the text of the articles and 2) In 15 words, describe why you buy Penthouse magazine. (Many purchasers of men’s magazines rationalize their acquisition as “intellectual” stimulation.)

Contest prizes ranged from a set of fountain pens to a sports car. Tom read the articles, found the 15 words and sent in his entry:

I’d be somewhat shy
Except that I buy
It for the art tickles
Of course.

Winning

In time, Tom received a non-descript envelope containing a form letter to notify him that he was a contest winner. The letter did not name a particular prize. No matter, Tom signed the release and awaited confirmation of his possible Maserati.

The follow-up letter specified that he won a one-week trip for 2 aboard a Windjammer Barefoot Cruise in the Bahamas. Wow! What a perfect vacation for Tom and his wife, Nicole.

Except, they had an infant daughter. The company would not allow them to cruise with their child. Neither was Tom allowed to sell the trip. Furthermore, the trip could only be booked a short time in advance, making it especially challenging to plan.

Out of options, Nicole suggested that they offer the trip to Tom’s parents.

Fantome, the flagship of the Windjammer fleet²Fantome. Photo by Ed Blees, March 1986. Digital copy from original slide made March 2023 by Karrie Blees.

Trip of a Lifetime

The cruise was not a formal affair, it was a Windjammer Barefoot Cruise aboard the four-masted schooner, the Fantome.  Tom’s parents (Kitty and Ed) and his aunt and uncle took the trip together. It was a lovely vacation … for some of the travelers.

Ed and his sister were not swimmers. They did not take advantage of the shore trips to the beautiful beaches. Neither did they snorkel in the blue waters. They spent a lot of time on board ship playing cards and being irritated by the rumble of the diesel engines.

Kitty and her brother took in every opportunity. They snorkeled the warm Caribbean waters investigating the beauty of the ocean. On shore, they ate their fill at the beach buffets. At night, they danced.  Every day, they soaked up the sun.

At the conclusion of the trip, Joe asked Kitty if she would like to cruise for another week. Yes, she would, but didn’t think their spouses would agree. When she reminisced, she described it as a “trip of a lifetime.”

Katherine “Kitty” Fleischhacker Blees and Joseph “Joe” Fleischhacker dancing in the Bahamas, March 1986

Ancestral Legacy

Kitty and her brother Joe were eternal optimists. Their ancestors were optimists.

On the Windjammer Cruise, Kitty and Joe chose to see the possibilities instead of the prob­lems, to take advantage of opportunities and overcome obstacles and to disregard the trivial and pursue the truly beautiful. What a fabulous demonstration of this joyful familial trait!

That optimistic temperament flows from the DNA of  the Fleischhacker ancestors to the current generation. Whenever faced with disappointment, difficulty or dilemma, I admonish my children to

Summon the inner Fleischhacker

What to research next:

Was Tom’s winning entry published?
When did Kitty picket/boycott the local Tom Thumb convenience store because it sold pornography?
Does this story ruin Tom’s chances of ever being elected to public office?

SOURCES

• 1
  Interview. Thomas Blees and Karrie Blees. Florida. February 24, 2023.
• 2
  Fantome. Photo by Ed Blees, March 1986. Digital copy from original slide made March 2023 by Karrie Blees.