The Beach

I spent the last two days at the beach, Jacob Riis National Park, out in Queens. Day one was spectacular: no people, hot lifeguards, warm water. Day two: a little less so. Last night my friend told me a story of a horrifying encounter with a small armada of jellyfish during his youth, which left him injured at the time and traumatized forever. So wouldn't you know it, the minute I stepped in the water I encountered a fairly large jellyfish which made me turn tail and run. The rest of the day was spent baking on the beach and cursing the evolutionary path that created these gargoyles of the deep. My friend Heidi than spotted several more during her foray into the water. Even at my most suposedly-relaxing moments, fear and consternation rule. Life is, indeed, a beach.