It was a little chilly in Florida today, but a beautiful sunny day. I wanted to go for a bike ride; Tim wanted to hunt for shark teeth. We compromised and biked to the beach at Fort Clinch State Park which has the reputation as being a shark tooth haven.
We had not been on the beach for one minute when I heard, “I got one”. I mustered a smile and said “great”. A minute or two later I heard, “I got another”, quickly followed by “Bingo”. I stopped looking up. Not only I am pretty competitive, I’m also a poor loser. Or is it sore loser? I’m probably both.
I had employed every trick that seasoned and successful shark tooth hunters have told me about.
Low tide…Check
Search at water’s edge…Check
Walk so that my shadow is behind me…Check
Wear expensive new sunglasses…Check
Search without sunglasses…Check
Look for matte triangles of darkness; not glossy ones…Check
Dig a little bit into the sand as shark teeth are heavier than shells…Check
Still no teeth for me. As Tim yelled, “bingo” yet again, I told him he had to use a different exclamation the next time he found one.
Discouraged, I wandered off by myself and sat amongst a pile of washed up shells. I was thinking about giving up searching for shark teeth and decided I’d start looking for John Grisham instead. He has a home here right next to a beach access, so he shouldn’t be too hard to spot, right? And it’s much warmer here than in Charlottesville where he also has a home, so maybe he’s in town. I had it all planned.
Tim walked up to me, and seeing my long face, asked if I was ready to go. I said yes and as I was getting ready to tell him about my exciting new plan to search for John Grisham instead of shark teeth, I swiped my hand across the top layer of shells to my side. Wait! What did I spy? A curved sliver of fossilized darkness…could it be…wait…it was! A tooth! My biggest shark tooth find to date! WooHoo; this is fun! Who said anything about leaving?
We ended up being on the beach for about an hour. I found one more tooth along the water’s edge; Tim found a total of eight (with one eureka and three more bingos). We talked to a lady who usually finds 100 a day. No wonder I have such a hard time. If others weren’t so greedy…
Tim declared the tooth I found is the largest one any of us has ever found. I decided to change the rules of the family competition. Instead of He With The Most Teeth wins, I think it should be She With The Largest Tooth is the winner.
Sorry Johnny G., you’ll have to wait til another day to meet me. And if you’re lucky, I’ll have my big tooth with me.
Can you spot my big tooth?
See Tim’s picture sitting on the beach, I can almost feel the warmth of the Florida sun. Glad you were sharks tooth collection keeps growing. Linda in Charlottesville where we still have piles of snow.
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feeling a little “long in the tooth” today ehh? 😉
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Lower left! Beautiful post, as usual! Thanks.
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Looking at that great photo, your whale tooth search must be like looking for a needle in a hay stack. It takes a lot of patience. Congrats on prize for the biggest tooth! Great story.
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I could see your tooth quite well. I want to have a go!!! Can I come and shark tooth hunt too????
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Oh Lyndsay, please do! That would be so much fun!!
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