July 31, 2007

LAST NIGHT I ALMOST FELL IN LOVE WITH A TIGER SHARK NAMED DELORIS


















The rows of teeth. The menacing eyes. The small but very real chance I have of being hunted, maimed and/or killed while frolicking innocently in the ocean. The Discovery Channels 20th Anniversary must-see, Shark Week, started Sunday and it doesn't disappoint.
Sunday night I learned the ten most dangerous sharks {great white is no. 2 and the bull shark is no. 1 because it can swim in rivers as well as the ocean}.
Last night I watched, "Deadly Stripes: Tiger Sharks" which was fascinating. South African Mark Addison free dives {that means he isn't using oxygen, just a snorkel. p.s. he can dive for up to six minutes on one breath at a depth of 150 feet} with tiger sharks; trying to dispel the myth that they are man-hunters. It was mesmerizing as he interacted with one tiger shark he called Deloris. He petted her, held on to her dorsal fin like a sea world performer, and scariest of all, he fed her by hand.



Just when I was buying the idea that the shark could be friendly and beautiful, I saw the beginning of Top Five Eaten Alive reliving one girl's shark attack which resulted in her losing the bottom half of her leg. I had to turn it off because I knew I was going to have shark dreams for the next year {I TiVo'd it for watching in digestible segments throughout the week}.

If you love to hate sharks like me, you must tune in for what they are saying is the best year yet.

3 comments:

brandi (and tim) said...

Wow, we watched the exact same shows...and also had to turn it off when it started getting a little too close to bedtime (my dreams are crazy enough as it is). However, you seemed to absorb many more interesting facts from it than I did. It's just good to know that if we all had to spend a weekend hanging out with only one tv in the house (i.e., our house) we'd be okay with each others programming selections.

~b

jordan said...

Live every week like it is shark week.

-Arrested Development

ali said...

Nate had better watch out.

I'm afraid to watch because I'm scared I'll turn into a sissy and never feel safe in the ocean. But it looks like crushable Deloris might have appeased by fears.