The good thing about a hard place is that it’s always there, like the rock bank that has become sort of my living room on Inisheer.
I don’t even fear to find it taken, ‘cause without a triple doubled up shaggy XXXL bath towel it sits like a throne of thorns. Whether it’s the universe providing or the supreme adaptability of my human condition, my soft spot has all the comforts of a makeshift pied-à-terre.
Like there is a generous cavity beside my seat that perfectly holds my rucksack. My monofin bag tucked in all round not only shelters my stuff from the unlikely event of rain, but also shines a red&yellow beacon easily checkable from the sea. Beyond that are the flats upon which I drape my moistly towels in the sun. Then there’s a sunk-in tray in which I park the more vulnerable utensils like my cameras, mask, snorkel and sometimes my music to dance myself warm again. On my other side there is plenty room for my monofin and waterwing. On the far end of the rock before me there is a smooth seat for a visitor. I like a chat, as long as it does not distract me from getting my gear together and make it in time for the 16.45 boat back to Doolin.
My feet rest ergonomically on bottom level and there’s even a puddle to rinse my feet from tenacious grains of sand. Moreover, if I choose to work on my tan I only need to sit down one level, lean my back against the rock face and drift into leisure.
Of course Dusty knows my whereabouts and at times I see her passing by in periscope mode, lifting her head slightly out of the water in a series of spy-hops.
Last year I was so fortunate as to get a free monofin on recommendation of Freediver and Facebook friend Eric Van Riet Paap, from the Greek ‘Trygons’. It’s a fantastic extension of my dolphin alter ego, when I have it on. And that is the problem. I have tried shoe horns and shampoo to lube my feet in, but that takes a lot of effort and it feels a bit embarrassing to always have half an hour’s wrestle like a dolphin out of water in the wash upon the slipway. So now I’m working on another way to get my feet in. In the water. First my left foot, by kicking the trailing edge against the side of the slipway. Then the right foot, kicking the trailing edge into the sand bottom. It’s still a bit of trial and error, but once the mono is on it’s like a part of my body, so tight and secure. And do I have Dusty’s attention!!
Meanwhile I’m trying out a new method. I looped a string through both the undersides of the foot pieces of the blade so I can give the fin a good yank. Worked within 10 minutes yesterday and with practice I’ll even do better. Now my only concern is that the loop doesn’t get caught on something under water…
Chain Rub (click for the video)
There’s nothing nicer than a good scratch where it itches. And all her friends know Dusty likes the occasional belly rub. But if you can’t tell where exactly the itch is, you’ll have to rub it yourself. And what better effect than the serial intermittence of dangling chain links. I bet it beats the artificial hand on a stick. You could even draw a body map of her favorite spots.
The blue flipper (video)
Dusty likes to find things and then show them off. Now she’s found a blue Cressi flipper. She brought it to me time and again, but she wants it back too. Jane told me she took off one of her own flippers and tried to put the blue one on, but that Dusty wouldn’t let her. With me too she got increasingly possessive and even showed me her teeth. And later, when I only thought of taking it ashore, as if she knew, showed her teeth again. It’s bad cherry eating, as we say in Holland, with an angry dolphin.