We spent some time together in Kona Hawaii many years ago. At dinner one night Tim couldn’t stop talking about wilderness survival. (You know how it was whenever Tim got interested in something. He would fixate on it and soon know more about it than any expert.) No matter where the conversation went, Tim kept bringing it back to wilderness survival, and specifically could you really make fire without matches or lighter.
The next day we went down to the pool to hang out in the sun, swim a little and relax. Tim came down in jeans and a white dress shirt to hang by the pool. His choice of attire completely mystifying to me, but classic Tim. I got into the pool for a swim, and a few minutes later I noticed that Tim was gone. He left his stuff there in his chair, so I assumed he’d be back soon. I finished my swim, and was reading a book by the pool for an hour or more. Gorgeous sunny day in Hawaii. Still no Tim. I asked one of the attendants if they had seen my friend. He laughed, “Yeah, he’s over there behind the hotel.” I went over to find him, and he was squatting down, drenched in sweat, rubbing two sticks together trying to build a fire. “What the hell are you doing? Aren’t you hot? Don’t you want to take a dip?” He said, “I got a wisp of smoke about 20 minutes ago, but I think I need to make a bow to get more friction.” Hilarious. Enjoying Hawaii as much as anyone, in his own unique way.
Eric Mead
Aspen, Colorado