Friday, August 11, 2006

Barracuda

I'm not a novice at reef snorkeling, but I've also never had a five-foot barracuda follow me just off my fins for ten minutes. It would turn and follow every direction I turned. That was freaky. Damn thing just kept staring with that torpedo-shaped underbite fang-face, and following, ever following.

They say, however, that barracudas are simply curious and a bit territorial. They will hardly ever bite at a human unless seriously provoked.

Why was the car named "Barracuda"? Is it because it follows other cars down the street? Is that a selling point? Were they, perhaps, freaky?

Why was the Heart song called "Barracuda"? [Wasn't that Heart? -- "ooh, barracuda... dum dida dum dida dum...."]. Was that a song about a guy who had a serious underbite? [Or have I made up a soundtrack to go with my barracuda experience?].

4 comments:

MT said...

I was seriously freaked the one time I discovered only that I was being watched by a barracuda. I think I'd swallow water and drown if I found one tailing me and couldn't shake it. I think you have no idea how big they are until you find yourself in the water with one. Or how fast. Golly how I miss that toothy grin and that precious icy stare. Get a photo of yourself with an arm around one next chance you get so you can post it, 'Kay?

helmut said...

The book just missed the damselfish too. If the book had fallen open towards the other end of the alphabet, we might have had the Plymouth Puffer, or the Zebra, the Tang, or the Rockfish.

That's it for the water, MT. I had a camera with me at the time but curiously never thought of using it.

Anonymous said...

Sometimes a barracuda is just a barracuda.

helmut said...

And sometimes a barracuda is NOT just a barracuda, but a godless man-eating zombie terrorist.