scuba tip number 1: Don't Panic

I had yet another scuba diving class today. I had to take my mask off under water, put it back on, and get the water out (while still under water). We've been doing that for weeks now, but I still haven't managed it without getting water up my nose. That'll be brilliant when it's Long Island Sound seawater.

I also had to take off my buoyancy compensator (vest that holds the oxygen tank, and can fill with air to help me float) and replace it; share my regulator (the mouthpiece that I breath through) with a buddy; and ascend (slowly, at two feet a second) as if my air had run out (breathing out the whole time). Harder than you would think.

But still it's a lot of fun--and that's just at the bottom of a indoor pool. The most interesting things you find there are the occasional nickel or hair band. I can't wait until we can go diving in Zanzibar on the coral reefs, in water that's actually over 80 degrees. Just wading in the the low tide there, I've seen sea snakes, brilliantly red and blue star fish, manta rays, sea cucumbers, coral, sea urchins, crabs, flounder--all sorts of stuff.