Fire coral

"Bradburn Fentress" <pleased@n't.spam> wrote in message
news:DivSd.366$1B1.1403@news.uswest.net...
>
> "chilly" <slarson@shaw.canada> wrote in message
> news:3auSd.459153$Xk.303613@pd7tw3no...
>
> > While one can unexpectedly come into contact with jellyfish and/or their
> > tentacles, contact with a coneshell would virtually have to be
deliberate
> > and therefore, one deserves what one gets.
>
> I was night diving Tobias, in the Red Sea, a few years ago and my buddy
and
> I came across a Spanish Dancer traveling along on the rocks. I knelt down
in
> the sand and took my shots of the rascal while he waited behind me. When I
> was through he moved in and was taking his shots, while I waited and
watched
> from behind him. At some point during his shoot the sea stirred a bit and
> the surge pushed him to his left....instinctively he put his left hand
down
> (we were in sand and rock) but there was a spiny anemone that got him
before
> his hand reached the rock, in natural reaction he pulled away from the
> sting, at almost the precise moment the surge receded and pushed him to
his
> right to his right. Again by instinct he put his right hand down and
> suffered a sting from a Lionfish (which most of us know love to hunt by
our
> dive lights). Before we made it to the surface he had passed out and I
> brought him the rest of the way to the surface and started trying to
> resuscitate him.
>
> My point is that things like this can happen within a few seconds (as it
did
> that night) and I don't know if I would say he got what he deserved. It
> could have been a coneshell, or a stonefish, or any other variety of
> stationary dangerous animal. Sometimes despite the best intention you
> git-bit anyway :^)

That's quite the story. If it weren't for bad luck, he'd have no luck at
all.

Did you hear the one about the photog in Mabul that was standing on the
coral and leaning with one elbow against a coral head, to steady himself for
a shot of the manadarins? He was run over by a flying scuba diver.

"chilly" <slarson@shaw.canada> wrote in message
news:1SySd.464672$6l.374605@pd7tw2no...

> Did you hear the one about the photog in Mabul that was standing on the
> coral and leaning with one elbow against a coral head, to steady himself
> for
> a shot of the manadarins? He was run over by a flying scuba diver.

I hadn't heard that one, though have heard of similar. In fact I saw one in
Palau in the late 80's. Some chick was screwing with something and this big
Palauan guide came roaring across the reef, snatched her up (pun not
intended :^) and kind of road-raged her underwater. She was scared shitless,
yet I don't know if his point ever got made. I found out later he was quite
famous for his stringent defense of the reef and it's animals.

Photogs get a bad rap though. On the average I don't find them any worse or
better than sightseeing divers. When you start looking at the best of both
groups though, photogs are probably better, at least in terms of buoyancy,
control etc. Sometimes just having to understand the environment certain
animals live in, and the behaviors they exhibit and the inter-dependencies
of flora and fauna makes one a better citizen of the reef by default. By and
large sightseers don't really have to have knowledge to that specific.

On the whole though, scuba divers as a group are real shitheads. We've all
seen it :^)

"chilly" <slarson@shaw.canada> wrote in message
news:NxJSd.473223$6l.148156@pd7tw2no...

> That then only leaves the issue of what many photogs perceive to be
> "entitlement" but that's another subject and has been discussed here
> before.

I think that is a Red Herring. The issue of "entitlement" isn't one of
photographers but one of all divers. Everyone diving has their purpose and
everyone at some time or another has to decide what how their desire or
intent measures up against that of others, or of the environment in which
they dive.

Like I said before, I think I on the whole divers as a group are real
shitheads. There is essentially a small portion of the diving public,
regardless of why they dive, that are really good visitors to the sea.
Everyone else is so busy taking every other diver's inventory, that they are
blind to their own faults.

"Bradburn Fentress" <pleased@n't.spam> wrote in message
news:M7KSd.19$z01.711@news.uswest.net...
>
> "chilly" <slarson@shaw.canada> wrote in message
> news:NxJSd.473223$6l.148156@pd7tw2no...
>
> > That then only leaves the issue of what many photogs perceive to be
> > "entitlement" but that's another subject and has been discussed here
> > before.
>
> I think that is a Red Herring. The issue of "entitlement" isn't one of
> photographers but one of all divers. Everyone diving has their purpose and
> everyone at some time or another has to decide what how their desire or
> intent measures up against that of others, or of the environment in which
> they dive.
>
> Like I said before, I think I on the whole divers as a group are real
> shitheads. There is essentially a small portion of the diving public,
> regardless of why they dive, that are really good visitors to the sea.
> Everyone else is so busy taking every other diver's inventory, that they
are
> blind to their own faults.

LOL.

For those of you who were willing to share their own experiences and make
useful suggestions, thanks. For those of you who flamed me, well, all I can
do is laugh since I expected that.

I've been applying a topical antibotic and it is improving. I think the
increased sensitivity I experienced was because it was beginning to dry out
and itch more than anything.

I care very much about coral and try to avoid touching the bottom, and use
moorings as opposed to anchoring whenever possible. I am fairly experienced
and have good buoyancy control, but it is certainly worth emphasizing the
importance of it. However, know that it can happen to even very experienced
divers (it happened very quickly and was not the result of repeated dragging
along the bottom).

When I got back onboard the diveboat my guide recommended any kind of
citrus, and I used oranges. It stopped the stinging fairly quickly.

Thanks for the help.

Brien


"Brien Alkire" <brien@rand.org> wrote in message
news:cvbm7d$738$1@sm-news1.rand.org...
> I recently returned from a sailing/diving trip to British Virgin Islands.
I
> hit my arm hard against fire coral while diving at Blonde Rock (was trying
> to get a photo of a lobster).
>
> The scar appears to be getting more red and swollen, and it now itches.
The
> accident was two weeks ago.
>
> Does anyone have suggestions on how to treat it?
>
> Will the scaring be permanent? It's a V-shaped scar on my forearm. Each
> leg of the V is around 3 or 4 inches long.
>
> -Brien
>
>
>

"Brien Alkire" <brien@rand.org> wrote in message
news:cvfts9$rf2$1@sm-news1.rand.org...

>I think the
> increased sensitivity I experienced was because it was beginning to dry
> out
> and itch more than anything.

This is what you said on Sunday: "The scar appears to be getting more red
and swollen, and it now itches. The accident was two weeks ago."

Which is it......dry and itchy, or becoming more red and more swollen after
two weeks? Because one symptom is relatively meaningless and the other,
cause for concern.

"Bradburn Fentress" wrote

> Photogs get a bad rap though. On the average I don't find them any worse
> or better than sightseeing divers. When you start looking at the best of
> both groups though, photogs are probably better, at least in terms of
> buoyancy, control etc. Sometimes just having to understand the environment
> certain animals live in, and the behaviors they exhibit and the
> inter-dependencies of flora and fauna makes one a better citizen of the
> reef by default. By and large sightseers don't really have to have
> knowledge to that specific.

We/they deserve their reputation. While you're right that many
photographers have better than average buoyancy control, that's not the
problem. Anybody can stay off the bottom if they pay attention.
Photographers are notorious for not paying attention.

Lee

"Lee Bell" <leebell@ix.remove.netcom.com> pounded away at his keyboard
resulting in:
:We/they deserve their reputation. While you're right that many
hotographers have better than average buoyancy control, that's not the
roblem. Anybody can stay off the bottom if they pay attention.
:Photographers are notorious for not paying attention.

Sometimes we do it on purpose. Blue backgrounds are better than sand
backgrounds.

Dan Bracuk
If we don't succeed, we run the risk of failure.

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Right now I would say it is dry and itchy. Also, I miscalculated. It
happened on 18 February, much less than two weeks. Sorry about the
confusion. The antibiotic seems to be helping and I am less concerned than
I was on Sunday.


"Bradburn Fentress" <pleased@n't.spam> wrote in message
news:xNMSd.35$z01.1019@news.uswest.net...
>
> "Brien Alkire" <brien@rand.org> wrote in message
> news:cvfts9$rf2$1@sm-news1.rand.org...
>
> >I think the
> > increased sensitivity I experienced was because it was beginning to dry
> > out
> > and itch more than anything.
>
> This is what you said on Sunday: "The scar appears to be getting more red
> and swollen, and it now itches. The accident was two weeks ago."
>
> Which is it......dry and itchy, or becoming more red and more swollen
after
> two weeks? Because one symptom is relatively meaningless and the other,
> cause for concern.
>
>
>
>

"Lee Bell" <leebell@ix.remove.netcom.com> wrote in message
news:5HPSd.8987$x53.3320@newsread3.news.atl.earthl ink.net...

> We/they deserve their reputation. While you're right that many
> photographers have better than average buoyancy control,

I don't deserve that reputation. Not in the least. Nor do any of the photogs
I dive with. That in and of itself renders any claim to the contrary little
more than a bitch. Crass generalizations serve no idea well.

>While you're right that many photographers have better than average
>buoyancy control,

And I didn't say buoyancy control...I said "buoyancy, control etc.". It's a
small but great difference. I don't find buoyancy control the determining
factor in whether a diver is in control or not. And I think the overwhelming
infatuation with buoyancy control severely limits what most divers (photogs,
sightseers and hunters alike), aspire too.

> that's not the problem. Anybody can stay off the bottom if they pay
> attention.

As if my point was that photogs are good divers because they stay off the
bottom? That's a bit of an inane implication.....even for a Usenet.

> Photographers are notorious for not paying attention.

In the context that most divers are shitheads with attentions spans in the
milliseconds, I don't argue that. What I was speaking to was the suggestion
that photographers are worse divers than the general diving public.