NP: very non-pynchon, my weekend

[Glenn Scheper]

I had a GLORIOUS weekend!

I'm sorry (NOT!) to revel so.

I know many of you are facing snow.

But I am so brimfull of glee from the past 5 days!

On Christmas day, there was dangerous high surf at
Topanga beach, but I tried to go snorkeling anyway.

I could not even fight my way through the incoming waves,
and within a few minutes, the ocean stole one of my fins.

I was standing on the sand, looking like a fool,
all dressed in wetsuit, with one fin in my hand.

But I did not give up! I perched the other fin up on the
sand and went in without them, just swimming with my arms.

The southbound current was so strong, it rapidly carried me
towards the rocks in front of the Charthouse restaraunt
at the south, no, it's really the eastern end of the beach.

Here, I google-map for Topanga beach, and you can see it:

Topanga Beach, California
Link: <http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=topanga+beach&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=31.095668,48.779297&ie=UTF8&ll=34.038382,-118.580439&spn=0.008215,0.012896&t=h&z=16>

The Charthouse is on the promontory at the right of that picture.
The bigger promontory at the left of the picture has a lifeguard
building, and many surfers ride in the high surf in front of it.

The lifeguard had driven over to where I park on the street (PCH)
to warn me of the high surf, and the strong current. Hey, maybe on
my next five days off (Thu-Sun), you can zoom in to see a red toyota
parked just a few score feet east of where Topanga Canyon meets PCH.
That'll be me. Check out my sexy blue speedo. Skimmy for December.

Anyway, about three times, I walked back up the beach, and swam
west, but was carried east, across it, 'till tired and happy.

Friday morning, I bought another pair of fins, scary big price,
and gloves I had promised myself, and asked at the dive shop,
"What's next". Well, they had a dive boat going out on Sunday,
and were one short of a minimum load. So I joined up!

I gave the ocean a rest on Saturday, and could hardly sleep that
night, showed up at 6 AM for the 7 AM cruise, and went out with
five scuba divers to the Channel Islands. The tiny boat had seats
for 24 divers, and I learned its protocol, learned how to just
step off the end, and I'm in! The dive master pointed me over to
a kelp bed near the cliff, and I went that way. I was at first
spooked by kelp (like everything else) at the beach, but by now,
I was quite at home with it, and moreso after this first hour dive.

The second hour was better yet, and the third hour was magnificent!

I saw a harbour seal, and he twisted around a bit to check me out.
The water was still, and clear, 60 foot visibility, so you could
see the bottom from the boat. I touched that bottom twice, which
the crew said was about 25 feet. When I boarded, the DiveMaster
said it looked like I had fun, and I latter congratulated him for
the observation, to confirm what I may not have realized! He said
it was my big smile upon returning that told him so.

I was so tired and satisfied for the cruise home.
I was ready to head home.

BTW, the water temp was 53 degrees. Brrr! I mean, Yumm!

Karioke is next on my bucket list.

Yours truly,
Glenn Scheper
http://home.earthlink.net/~glenn_scheper/
glenn_scheper + at + earthlink.net
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