On trying to catch a catfish with your bare hands:

Sticking your hand into the hole is the worst part. Your brain is thoroughly against the idea. People who stick their hands into holes don’t get them back in your brain’s darkest corners, but noodling goes a step further. It asks you to stay completely calm after being bitten, and not do what you desperately want to do–run screaming away from the thing that just bit you. Instead, you are supposed to get closer, and then put more of your hand into the fish’s mouth and gills. If it’s a monster, you might have to put your whole arm in and link your hands, the fish equivalent of someone putting one hand up your nose, another down your throat, and pulling you along by the entire facial apparatus.