JUMPIN' JELLYFISH!

We went to Florida over the weekend. (about 3 hours from here) We went scuba diving on Saturday, and we spent most of our time dodging the jellyfish! I had heard about them before, but had never seen one. (the water in CA is too cold for jellyfish, but the water of the Gulf of Mexico is so warm that it is a perfect breeding ground for them!) They are beautiful to look at, but I was freaked out about getting stung.

I was so careful and dodged them sucessfully for the whole dive, but when we were coming up I wasn't looking, and one got me on the hand. Ouch! It left white bumps all over my hand, and it was red and itchy and tingly all over! Luckily, it only lasted about an hour, so it wasn't too bad.
The jellyfish are interesting because they seem to just float along in the current. I mean, they obviously don't have eyes to see where they are going, and they didn't try to get out of our way (like the fish do) they just float along till they bump into something. I was intrigued by them. Jack touched one with his finger (only the tentacles at the bottom will sting you) and he said it was really firm. (Like jello? I asked.) Firmer than jello, but still rubbery. That suprised me because they look so thin and transparent, like a piece of Saran Wrap floating in the water. Hm.

They told us that the boat we were on was in the movie Jaws. And why would they bring up such a thing while we're out in the water???? Yikes. We also went to the beach, where the water was a bright green (They do call it the Emerald coast) and the sand was pure white- like sugar. Again- a total change from the beaches I'm used to in California. (where the water is dark and the sand is brown) And the water was so warm, it was really nice!