Shark Week

My favorite week of television kicks off on July 29 - the Discovery Channel's Shark week!

Sharks scare the stuffing out of me. I can watch them on TV with no fear, but in the salt water - yikes! The thought of sharks munching me for dinner is just a scary thought, one that I'd never considered until I saw JAWS back in the 70's. Speilberg's classic movie scared me so bad, I didn't even want to swim in a pool.

But in spite of my shark phobia, I am plain interested in the creatures. They are amazingly diverse, and I have a great time learning about them - and watching footage of them eating something other than me.

Back when I was new scuba diver, I went diving with some buddies. About 15 minutes into it, sharks swam by. I mean, real close. While I focused on bladder control, my buddies (all more experienced in diving) took it all in. After we surfaced, they whooped and hollered about how awesome the experience was. One had been diving for 15 years and never had seen a shark during his dives. Me, I could dive forever, not see a shark, and be happy. When those two sharks, both bigger than my car, passed by at spitting distance, well, those were among the most spiritual moments in my life. I can't recall many times when praying harder.

Anyways, Shark Week always has great programming. I can't wait for the end of the month!