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Lobster Fisherman. The first part of this job isn't actually fishing, and it is easily the dirtier part of the job. You see, to catch lobster, you have to find something that the lobster likes to eat. In this case, it's fish. Dirty, nasty, smelly, rotting fish. And then you have to get a whole lot of them and pack them up into easily moved containers that can be sold to the people who go out onto boats and actually do the catching of the lobsters. This is the job that Mike does first. Only when he has gained sufficient experience packing the bait and helping load it on boats does he actually get to get on a boat and try to bring in some of the little guys that cost $30 per pound in Beverly Hills.

Naturally, a lobster that costs $30 in a Beverly Hills restaurant don't cost anything like that in Maine, fresh off the boat. They cost more like $4.50 per pound. But if you think it's worth it, consider that you'd have to fly there first. So ultimately it's up to you to decide if it is worth the trip or not.

Regardless, Mike's next step is to get on the boat and try to bring in some of the crustaceans, and that he does. His guides for this step of the job are two teenagers - aged 17 and 19 - that own their own boat and at least one more like it. How's that for motivated? There are kids this age in parts of the country that won't work at a burger joint, and these guys get up and go fishing for lobster and own their own boats. Impressive.

Of course, they don't usually have Mike on their crew. That's probably a bit part of it. As is usually the case, Mike shows that physical dexterity is not one of his talents. Eventually he gets the hang of snagging the line with the gaffe, and pulling the cage into the boat, but then he loses the gaffe overboard. Whoops.

Lake Seaweed Harvester. The next stop is at the suggestion of reader mail, in a manner of speaking. They want to know if Mike ever stops and sees someone on the street and just can't believe that they are doing a job, so if he has to film them. In this case, that job is the harvesting of lake seaweed (yes, I really said that - but it's in the episode, I swear) to keep the lake clean.

The problem is that Lake Erie was so dirty, they cleaned it up. But now it is so clean, it's the perfect environment for things to grow, so now they have to clean the seaweed or it will get overgrown. To the tune of hundreds of pounds of this stuff each and every day. It's pretty nasty, too.

Snake Researcher. The final stop in this show is also on Lake Erie, and it is one of the best segments since Catfish Noodler during the Worm Dung Farmer episode. It appears that Mike is afraid of snakes, but to give him credit, he jumps right in and starts grabbing snakes so that they can be measured and tagged.

The best bit is when one of them bites him. This isn't to say that I want Mike to be harmed. According to theislandsnakelady on the Discovery Channel message boards (who appears to be the woman guiding Mike during the episode) the snakes have very small teeth - just 2mm in length. But the snake would not let go, and Mike is rocking back and forth chanting "I hate my job, I hate my job". It is simply priceless.

All the while, Kristin, the lady in question, is sitting back trying to figure out how to help. She suggests letting go with one hand. The snake keeps its hold. She suggests letting go with the other hand. It finally lets up, after what seems to be a couple minutes, but could have been much longer. The best line (from Mike) is "it's not the biting, it's the chewing". One of the classic jobs on the show.