Shark!!!! Tips on Avoiding Sharks!!!

I am petrified of sharks. Not to the point where I scream if I see one, or I start vomiting like them crazy loonies on the Maury show. I fear them enough though, and the reason is simple. Those son of a guns is out to get me!

I usually avoid the ocean, and the few times I have been there I have witnessed them slip by the waves as the lifeguards didn't even notice. They were too busy checking out the half naked hoochies that roam the beaches.

My real fear began when I was 7 though, when a ride on the kayak became a day I will never forget.

My dad was paddling along, my brother sat in the second seat, and I the brave and mighty one sat at the back tail dangling my feet into water. Suddenly my dad said he saw a fin.

My dad though was known to play jokes on us kids, so I looked around, and when I saw nothing continued to dangle my feet into the water. Suddenly I watched as a large fin swam around right where your truly was dangling her feet. I nearly fell over board in horror. This thing would eat me, I was sure of it. Why else was it so close to shore, in a bay? It was either one; hurt, or two; hungry. I watched the fin go back into the blue, and scampered to squeeze into the seat with my brother.

My dad, began to paddle like a bat outta hell. Suddenly there was a huge crash that came from the bottom of the kayak. The frigging thing was following us, and crashing into the kayak! The shake was not to the point where we were in fear of getting tipped. A few more strong strokes of the paddle and we were nearly on shore.

We hopped out, and watched as the shark began to circle the area looking for us, and finally disappearing into the water.

That was my first encounter with a shark.

I stood out of the bay/ocean for the rest of the summer, and stuck to swimming in lakes, until I learned that Bull Sharks are known to pass through bodies of fresh water. My swimming days hit a halt when I learned that fact.

My next encounter occurred about 2 years later when my cousin and I were left at the ocean all day. Waiting for hours and hours with no ride home we figured we'd enjoy the sun and walk back home when the sun was not so intense.