Did you miss me?

I sort of forgot to mention that I was planning a mini vacation sans Sam. And it's minimally documented because when I got there my camera wasn't working.

Fade in…it all started with an uneventful 6 am flight from Burlington to Dulles. But it can’t stay uneventful now can it? United (yes, I am naming names) cancelled my 8:40 flight from Dulles to Savannah at the last minute even though they knew hours earlier that they had an equipment problem but I guess since our flight was fairly empty they thought we’d all be happy to sit around all day. They waitlisted people on the noon flight but none of us actually were able to get on the plane. I finally had a confirmed seat at 5:30 pm so my vacation started with 8 hours enjoying Dulles hospitality. Luckily there were a couple of people on the flight in the same situation so we decided to grab some lunch and a beer to while away the time. The man was in the travel industry so he was pretty familiar with the games airlines play but he was in going to Savannah to buy a condo and leave the DC area forever. The woman that was with us was a psychiatrist and going to Savannah to visit her parents. Both single but apparently not interested in each other although the old dude was flirting with me for all the good it was going to do. There is a weird intimacy to stranded travelers because in many ways they're the perfect listeners since you're not going to see them again. At any rate, it was as fun as waiting around in Dulles when you don't want to be there can be.

My friends picked me up at the airport and we headed off to Tybee where Alisa owns a house. She bought it last year and is now lamenting the changes that have happened since she bought the place. Development, tourists, etc. Wait! We’re the tourists!

There was a full house so we were able to split up and do things or in my case, that’s more accurately NOT do things. Oh the joy of being able to sit on the shaded front porch on a nice day and read a book without interruption! The simple things I miss from my pre-Sam life. I probably wasn’t exactly a barrel of laughs for them because I didn't want to go out to smoky bars, I didn't join their card game (they started at about 11 at night and I couldn't keep my eyes open), and I generally just wanted to enjoy NOT being bothered every few minutes.

The beach there is beautiful and we did the stereotypical tourist walks. Nice clean sand, long beach, medium sized waves. It was a seemingly perfect beach scene. We were out in the water and I asked, "I wonder if there are jellyfish here?" Moments later Sandy and Dave got stung. They yelled and swore and generally let us know that it was highly unpleasant and I was somewhat sympathetic but not horribly since, well, it wasn’t me. They got their revenge when a bit later when the “Jaws” of jellyfish found me. Cue the music. I must have hit a school of the little bastards or maybe just one the size of the Empire State Building but I didn’t see it coming, not at all. They tell me I screamed “fuck!” but I should make up something more interesting since that’s a really tedious thing to scream. Definitely didn’t take me very long to get out of the water. I surveyed the damage. It (they?) got me on both legs. There were marks that were about 3” wide most of the way around my left leg with lots of visible tentacle marks. The other leg had multiple stings. Sandy took some pictures with her cell phone more than 24 hours later and some of the marks are still visible although it lacks the initial drama.


My leg started to swell where I’d be stung and despite all the advice to have someone pee on it, the old timers in the know suggested vinegar, which helped a little, but not enough. The internet (source of all good and accurate information of course!) said that I should have put shaving cream on it and shaved off the, er, I can't remember but the toxin is in little capsules that keep bursting so the pain keeps going and going and going. You're supposed to shave them off but it was too late since by the time I read about it I was already feeling better. That was about eight hours after the sting. I can say that ice doesn’t help, putting your feet up doesn’t help, sitting doesn’t help, standing doesn’t help, but Benedryl seems to help a little and time is the cure all. The pain was gone by the next morning but the marks still linger four days later.

The other people who were stung? Small spots that stuck around for about an hour. I got the award for the most visible response to a jellyfish sting. Later we read in the local unedited rag (the author of one article went on a cruise and had two twin births in her stateroom, one on top of the other) said it was jellyfish season but there was no further information about how long it lasts, how to avoid them, and what to do when you were stung.

I didn't go swimming again - once stung twice shy.

When we heard about Steve Irwin the next day it did put the whole experience in perspective. Strangely, we were forced to play twenty questions to find out how he died since only one person had heard the news. The first question asked was "Is his death ironic?" After we finally guessed we debated that question further. The group was split. I said no as I would have expected him to go out doing something with dangerous animals. In my mind it would have been ironic had he died peacefully in his sleep. Others disagreed since the stingray is so much less dangerous than his trademark crocodiles.

Part of the group went to a bar called Stingrays in his honor that night but didn't have the guts to request the song "Shot Through the Heart" from the dude who was playing there. Or was it “Shock to the Heart”? I’m really not sure and I’m too lazy to look it up. Either title will work in this situation.

Other than that we ate a lot, lazed a lot and didn’t do much else. There are lots of good if seedy-looking places to eat in the area. The island isn’t full of chain restaurants and that’s a nice change from most of the US. We went to a place called the Crab Shack, an open-air restaurant that just serves fresh local seafood. It’s a garbage-hole-in-the-center-of-the table type of place accessorized with stray cats. Oh, and there was a pit with live alligators up front and a room of exotic birds. We drove by it today in the daylight and I recommend night visits.

We wandered in Savannah, a very beautiful place. The original planner of the place set up these beautiful squares that are basically garden area surrounded by historic and beautiful buildings. Alisa told me that the founder of the city proclaimed there would be no alcohol, lawyers, or religion in town although based on the number of beautiful old churches, I’m not sure that is accurate. Many of the old houses are being renovated and Alisa tried to talk one of the painters into letting us tour one of them but no, he wouldn’t however we did get a glimpse of the 12+ foot ceilings and hardwood floors. I’d like to go back and explore Savannah a bit more slowly as we were just there for a few hours.

Oh, and I had my first Krispy Kreme donut while I was in GA and I have to say it’s a very good thing they don’t have them here. I'm not sure I could resist.

When I got home I tried to explain the jellyfish sting to Sam but I don’t think I was overly successful. Despite all the time we spent looking at pictures of jellyfish I think he’s going to tell me that he’s scared of jellyfish the next time he takes a bath.