Today dawned bright and sunny, just like yesterday. We’ll have temperatures around 80 and we have deemed this 3rd day of November a good day for the beach.
The river was just as calm as could be.
I was ready for the beach before Bob as he had a few things he wanted to do around the house first. I gathered my chair, my book, my iced tea and of course the camera. Just as I was ready to take the first of those steps towards our beach, Bob came to the door to ask me something and before I continued on I told him to take the camera as I decided I wanted to concentrate on my book and my tan and didn’t want to be distracted by picture taking. Oh what a mistake that turned out to be!
This group, no, not a group, what is a bunch of dolphins called? Not a herd of dolphins, not a pack of dolphins. Darn, I know this and the word won’t come to me. A gaggle of geese, a herd of buffalo, a litter of pups, a pack of wolves, a school of fish. Ok, only one way to do this. A… B… C…, , , G…H…, , L…M…, , ,P…Q…, , ,T…, , W…. Well, that usually works for me but not today. I know this! I guess its time to go to Google. What is a group of dolphins called POD! A pod of dolphins! I knew I knew that! I wonder if I should be worried that words I know just don’t come as quickly sometimes as I think they should.
Anyway, I’m sitting back in my chair, totally into my James Patterson book, not even taking my eyes away from it as I reach for my tea but instead just feeling around for it where I set it on the bench. My attention was caught by the sound of splashing. Thinking at first it was just another pelican diving for dinner I paid no mind to it. But it kept getting louder and closer sounding. I finally put the book down to find this pod of about 10 or 12 dolphins no more than 15 feet away from me. Two babies and the rest adult dolphins and they were playing. They weren’t just swimming by and feeding as they go, they were actually playing. Two would swim side by side very fast and then jump full out of water and do it all over again. Though the babies didn’t stray far from their mothers they too played together. I sat in my chair in wide eyed wonderment as I watched this amazing display of dolphin play. They leaped from the water and seemed to just hang there in mid-air for what seemed the longest time as if they were telling me,,,,TAKE MY PICTURE! I snapped out of my dolphin watching stupor and reached for my camera never taking my eyes off these aquatic mammals at play. I nearly knocked my glass of tea over as my hand reached far and wide over the bench in search of my normally ever present camera. Then I remembered. I didn’t bring it. My mental ass kicking started immediately. Do I dare get up and go get the camera? Will I startle them and they’ll take off leaving me with calm water to photograph? I finally just decided to sit and enjoy it for as long as it would last. I was able to enjoy perhaps another three or four minutes and then they were on their merry dolphin way. Oh what a show they gave me, a memory I’ll have in my minds eye forever.
Bob soon arrived but didn’t have any luck with the fish today. Maybe all the activity sent the smaller fish down river to calmer waters.
After about two hours I was really starting to see a pinkish, reddish tint to my skin and thought I’d better get out of the sun for the day. Besides I needed to run to the commissary for a few things for dinner.
We walked back down to the beach just at sunset to enjoy the beauty of it.
It looks like the blue heron is sitting on the bench doesn’t it?
I think it is really getting used to me. Maybe not so much me as maybe humans in general because I got pretty close without him/her taking flight.
They are such gangly birds yet so graceful in flight.
The pelicans amaze me that they can just barely skim the water, mere inches above it.
Life is good!
2 comments:
You're so good, very good, at describing your days. I feel like I'm on the adventure with you and Bob. The pictures are great!
Are ya'll heading to your park model at all this winter? ann
Ditto. Who needs a camera when you are doing the describing of playing dolphins. We learned on a boat tour of the gulf off S. Padre Island, that it takes a whole pod to raise a baby dolphin because the mama wears out staying up with her baby so she will tag a "baby sitter" while she rests.
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