Good news

I just heard from the doctor and Angus came through the surgery well. I'll pick him up this afternoon.

Angus

On a non-scuba related topic, many of you know that my "son" is a 175 lb. Great Dane named Angus. As I write this my baby is having surgery. He has benign prostatic hyperplasia; which is a benign tumor in his prostate.
If left "untreated" the tumor most likely would turn cancerous.

To treat this, his "manhood" is being removed. Over time the lack of testosterone in his system will dissipate the tumor. This is good news. So, at five and half years of age, my champion bloodline Dane is being fixed.

He also has gingivitis hyperplasia. In layman's terms, his gums are growing over his teeth. If left "untreated" his teeth will rot and generate an entirely new list of problems. So, his gums are being cut away.

The doctor shares that these are relatively common procedures. But as you can imagine, I'm a bit concerned.

I appreciate any and all prayers for Angus and the surgeon. I'll post an update with any news.

Diving withdrawals

I didn't understand it early this summer when Lee told me I'd have a hard time dealing with the "off-season" of diving. Now that I'm in the midst of this suffocating time where we cannot dive the ocean blue, I know exactly what he meant.

I've been going through extreme withdrawal. Every night since my last dive in October, I dream about diving. Don't misunderstand, I dream about other things, too. But I can count on jumping off the back of a boat every night into the deep.

It's almost like my dives are playing on a continual loop reel in my mind. I keep exploring the reefs off the coast of Charleston, the ship wrecks off of North Myrtle and the sites off Jupiter, Florida. I'm even creating dreams about the places I've been reading about in my diving magazines; places I long to go visit and dive.

The dreams are so real, I almost expect to wake up in my wet suit covered in the sticky wetness of saltwater. Until the season starts, I guess I'll just continue jonesing for my next dive...

Volunteer Diving

Yesterday Lee and I visited the South Carolina Aquarium in downtown Charleston. In addition to enjoying all the sites and scenes of the aquarium, we checked out the volunteer program. We learned that the next volunteer training class is Jan. 31. After we complete the initial class and pass some tests, we'll be able to be volunteer divers. Duties include preparing food for dives; helping to feed the animals and maintain exhibit tanks; helping maintain backup areas and equipment; interacting with visitors to educate them about the animals and their ecosystems; and general help as needed.

When I saw the volunteer divers in the tank feeding the fish and answering questions of guests through a full-face dive communication mask, I literally became enraptured by the possibilities. What a great opportunity for me to combine my love of teaching, diving and writing. I'm certain there will be many stories I can write about from my time as a volunteer diver at the aquarium. I can't wait!

Underwater "self-portrait"

I haven't been on a dive for several weeks now and I'm "jonesing" to go down deep, get wet and practice taking photos of fish. So, I thought I'd post a photo I took underwater when we were diving off Jupiter to remind myself of diving. (It's me at about 80 feet underwater.) :-)

Unless you're a diver with a passion for exploring the underwater world, you probably don't understand the drive to dive. Scuba diving is one of the most invigorating and amazing sports I've ever known. I don't know when or where it will be - - but I can't wait until my next dive...

Underwater Photography Woes

The photos in the previous post are great. Lee took them with his new underwater 35mm camera and strobe. While my photos, taken with a digital and no strobe, well... let's just say they are a work in progress. Once I get more practice and a strobe (someday) I'm sure they will have more definition and clarity like his photos. Here take a look...

Drift Diving in Jupiter

This weekend, Lee and I went to Jupiter, Florida to do some drift diving. These dives were amazing and superseded my expectations by far. I must admit that at first I was skeptical about jumping into the ocean without a line to descend and ascend by. I was pleasantly surprised by what I found after I jumped in behind the leader who held the buoy. I looked down into the blue, tranquil water and could see clearly to the 80 foot bottom. The boat followed the leader's buoy as we traveled approximately four miles or more along the Gulf stream. The current gently floated us along the bottom as we were, in essence, sight-seeing in an open water aquarium. The beauty that surrounded us was full of life. There were abundant schools of brightly colored fish swimming in and around brilliant varieties of sea vegetation.

During this dive, Lee saw his first Goliath Grouper which we estimated weighed in around 900 pounds. (I'd seen one before on a previous dive, but not quite this large.) And I saw my first shark; a nine-foot nurse shark which was cruising in and around the reef and ledge. We also encountered a very curious sea turtle that was about two-and-a-half feet big. He swam up and hung with us while we were doing our deco safety stop at about 15-20 feet deep.

The dives were incredible and fun. And I met one of my online scuba buddies, Sandy, who lives in the Jupiter area. While we were drift diving, she and her dive buddy, Michelle, were hunting lobster.