Gimme A Break

… when I think of the time I was on the Sydney Harbor cruise in Australia. What started out as a warm sunny day turned cool suddenly. Of course, I hadn’t thought to bring a sweater or anything.The sea breeze was pretty chilling but I tried to focus on taking photos of the mansions perched along the harbor front.

It started to get cooler as we chugged along so I went to grab a cup of hot coffee. Just as I was settling in on one of the benches to sip it, the boat started to tilt to the side. Thinking this was just a one-off, I put the cup to my lips again.

Barely had I had a sip when the boat began tilting to the other side. Pretty soon, it was quite apparent that there was something wrong. The wind was getting stronger and I could feel a light sea spray on my face.

Glancing around, I notice we were right smack at the mouth of the bay where it meets the ocean. No wonder the currents were so strong here.

Hold that thought ‘cos then I felt the warmth of my coffee on my hand. Our boat was being tossed from side to side. One minute we were riding high, the next we were plummeting down. I grabbed onto one of those metal bars, trying to still myself and my beating heart.

But the rocking wouldn’t stop. Everything and everyone went blur before me. All kinds of thoughts raced through my mind, coffee and cold notwithstanding.

I tried to block out thoughts of “we’re going down, this is it, the boat’s going to sink, we’re all going to … no no no, don’t say it, I still haven’t finished my coffee.. that’s better…” and focus on steadying myself.

I honestly couldn’t tell you how long this went on for. Once we were past the passage to the open sea, a sudden stillness descended and the boat continued its monotonous chugging as if none of this had ever happened. The wind had subsided, the sea spray had vanished and it was a sunny but somewhat chilly day again.

• caffeine withdrawal
• wild vacation (2)
• wierd weather phenomenon
• not your regular coffee
• thoughts of hibernation

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