Just a little rewrite of Leonard's monstrosity.
To John Werner, captain of the barge “Union Canal No. 231”, going down the Schuylkill canal was akin to treading backwards in time. They had just left Reading, and it would take them about four days to get to Philadelphia. He was at the tiller while his bowman, Jimmy O’Kelly, was keeping a close eye on the towline, making sure it was nice and tight. Jimmy, at 23, was younger than the captain by thirty-three years. He had had two children of his own, Phil and Jessica. Like Jimmy, they just went out into the world. They had their own places, their own jobs, their own lives. John was still a part of them, but now, they were far from the little ones that called him “Daddy”. In a way, Jimmy took up Phil’s role while he was off, but it couldn’t ease the longing. He missed Phil and Jessica, as well as his wife Mary.
“Earth to Cap,” Jimmy said. He pointed at the shaft mule, prompting John to turn towards it in the winter air. Willy Thomas, one of the three mule drives, was riding it.
“Goddamn it, Willy, this isn’t your personal speedboat,” John shouted. Stepping closer to where Willy was, he noticed needle was at six, rather than four. “You want the lock keeper to bust our balls? Slow down.”