We went for a swim the other day. More of a jump through the waves, really, since the beach we chose had monsters perfect for boogie boarding. That’s what most people were doing, with various degrees of success. We didn’t rent boards, rather we just waded out and tried to more-or-less body-surf.
It was fun, despite my fear of the water. I was too afraid to go out past the waves, hence I ended up getting the worst of their power because I was always in the wrong spot. Rookie mistake, I guess. Despite living in California, I don’t get into the ocean much. It’s too cold where I live. So my lifetime ocean adventures probably total around 20.
I’m a wimp, yes. If you saw my Facebook post about snorkeling, you know I don’t like to put my face in the water. The snorkeling mask makes that worse, because you have to breathe through your mouth. So it’s either use the snorkel or die.
We also brought along our normal goggles that we use in the pool to keep the chlorine out of our eyes. We wanted to use them in the ocean, even though nobody else does that. But we couldn’t find them. You know how it is when you travel – you have a couple of suitcases and that’s all. If you packed something, it’s got to be in there, somewhere, right?
Despite several rummages through the bags, we couldn’t find the goggles. So we went without. You know what’s coming, don’t you?
I got sand in my eyes. And despite several thorough attempts to rinse eyes, I could still feel something in there. I waited 24 hours and finally decided I should have it looked at. Either there was still a grain of sand caught in there, or I’d scratched the cornea.
Phooey.
So last night involved a trip to the ER. Fortunately, this is Kauai, where the living is easy. The ER was not horribly busy like the ones where we live. The nice doctor, who looked like he lived on a surf board when not wearing scrubs, numbed my eye, invited my husband to hold the eye open, and dug around (gently) with a Q-tip until he extracted the stubborn grain lodged just below my pupil.
Such fun.
Anyway, I’m better this morning. Almost no pain at all, beyond residual soreness from all the manhandling. It’s all okay, though, because I have a theory that as along as we obtain injuries while having adventures, we’re doing good. We’re here in Paradise, running around and doing things we’d never do just sitting at home. A few bumbs are worth it.
The goggles? They turned up, of course, after we got back from swimming. Next time, I’m wearing them, even if I do look like a doofus.
Marlene Dotterer 