Could it have been that last rum drink?

Don’t you hate those moments when you wake up with what feels like a cracking hangover and yet you really don’t recall having drunk that much the night before? I can attest that I do. I woke up at 6:30 a.m. I’ve only just dragged my arse down to Café del Sol. I feel as rough as the ass-end of a pink-bummed baboon with the poops. I think I maybe had about 5 beers all night. Mind you, there is still the cold lurking around in there, but I decided that the best way to fight such things is to go at it Heather-style and continue to drink through the pain.

Maybe this approach isn’t the best. Tonight I think I will take the wuss approach instead and just take it easy.

I have a fairly easy day as it is today. I am going on two fun dives this afternoon with James, Celia and Diogo. Diogo is the new DMT at Sunshine, a likeable 18-year old Portuguese kid who currently lives in London for school. Likeable until he has to do the swimming and stamina tests. Little bugger. He takes great delight in the fact that he has done all of the stamina tests faster than I have. Apparently his dad is a large fellow, however, so I am taking consolation in the fact that one day, that 18 year old little fuzzball of energy will turn into a ball of lard. Ha, I should keep in touch with him and then get him to do the stamina tests again when he is days shy of 35.

Me, competitive? No, why do you ask? All I know is I scored 18 out of a possible 20 on my stamina skills and damn near killed myself in doing so. I never said I was a strong swimmer, so I’ll stop being defensive now and simply accept that for this sad sack of bones, I did just fine.

So, yar, anyway, Celia, James, Diogo and Chris on a deep dive and then a mellow shallow dive. We’re going to “help” Diogo on his mapping exercise (kudos to the kid…he is trying to complete his DM in two weeks and he is currently bang on target). On the second dive, James, Celia and I have decided that we need to start practicing our skills for the forthcoming IDC (instructor development course). This dive I think we have agreed to work on buoyancy (i.e. hover and fin pivots) and then rescue assessment at the surface. Work, but play at the same time. As I mentioned previously, it is so much more relaxing diving with others who are of a similar skill level. I don’t mean to sound like a condescending prick (although as most of you know, that is one of my middle names), but it relieves so much of the constant attention needed when diving with noobs. Having said that, there are some fun divers that are an absolute pleasure to dive with.

Then there are divers that I would dive with no matter what, even if they are completely inattentive divers simply because they are “my people” and I wouldn’t want them diving with someone else who simply doesn’t give a shit.

Super good news this morning (by the way I am now feeling immensely better after polishing off the mushroom omelette….the extra hour and a half of sleep I dozed off into under the fan also helped …. I needed the omelette, I was going to just have Alpen this morning with my remaining bananas, but after three days of living on top of my fridge, the last few bananas had all gone soft…..and most disgustingly had little white maggots crawling around under the skin…I know, I know, I should have eaten the protein, but hey, even I occasionally have standards….few and far between, sure, but they’re still there), the missus got everything sorted out and is on the plane as I type. Of course, the good old Canadian winter is doing everything it can to prevent an easy road travelled. Apparently there was a bit of a snowstorm in Toronto, which is causing a bit of a mess (especially when she went to drop off my little pup at Uberdog – a very very spoilt dog paradise an hour and a half north of Toronto – basically each dog gets their own “room” with a blanket, a toy and a bowl of water, then they can also share a lounge with the rest of the pack with couches and tellies and they get two two-or-so-hour nature walks a day…..she always comes back pooped, but appears to love it….problem was because of the snow it took the missus almost four hours instead of the little over two that it should have), as well as a storm in Vancouver (where she is headed first). The travel time already means that the missus leaves on Saturday night in Toronto and doesn’t get to Koh Tao until the afternoon of the 23rd. Shit that is a long trip, so let’s hope the weather doesn’t drastically increase it!!

I am deciding to be brave today in my diving. You have been advised of the multiple scrapes and wounds that I have incurred over the last week or so. Well, they aren’t healing over, because they have been under bandaids (plasters to the Brits) to prevent infection. I decided to take off the bandaids this morning to let them dry out. This could be an incredibly bad decision. Saltwater under neoprene on soggy sores? Hmmmmm, but if I don’t they’ll never get better.

Noé and Celia and I were also talking of maybe doing the night dive tonight. I should check in with them to see if that is still on. That’ll make this a slightly longer day, but as long as Noé can stop himself from trying to drown me, it is a somewhat relaxing dive for me these days. The dark calmness that cocoons me within its folds. Occasionally ruptured by a massive barracuda darting out of the liquid black. But still, I love the serenity of a night dive. Hmmmmm, maybe I should convince them if they are wavering on the idea.

The waters have been feeling a bit chilly though in the last couple of days….my computer even logged a temp of 23 degrees two days ago. Brrrrrrr. So, I turned namby-pamby. I have purchased a full-sleeve rash guard to go under my 5mm full-exposure suit. It may seem ridiculous, but at least I don’t come out of the water with chattering teeth and blue lips like some of the guys wearing boardies and a t-shirt or a very worn-down 3mm shortie. I likes my comfort. I almost always have a hoodie on now after a dive. I have turned into a diving princess. C’est la vie.

It being the 21st, I have now made a conscious decision to wear my santa claus hat for any remaining dives I do before Christmas. Yes, I may look like a nob, but at least I will be a festive nob.

Oh, now that I am feeling more human, I can look at this hangovery-state and realize that there is something I am quite concerned about. I still have to do my snorkel-test for completing the DM course. I had hoped it would be before the missus got here. She has had to deal with my drunken arse on too many occasions as it is. It seems that the gods and possibly my fellow diving professionals have conspired against me and that my snorkel test will instead occur while my darling girl is here to witness the depravity.

Oooooooh, nostalgic moment!! Thinking of that for some reason made me think of my last couple of days in Toronto, before I left for this three month hiatus. Tear in my eye thinking of everybody that came out to say goodbye to me at Heather’s. Big heart and big shout to all you gorgeous people. I love you guys. Sigh, friends……good to have…..ok, off to get wet. Be good people, ‘cos Santa still carries coal (fucking neanderthal, doesn’t he know fossil fuels are killing the environment??? Prick…but not so much a prick you don’t bring me my Christmas pressies, k?)