Jaws 2 or Benjamin Meets a REAL Shark!

As you saw in the previous post, my home is now patrolled by the tiny dorsal fin that is Benjamin's mohawk. However, we recently got the chance to see the real thing... a real, live SHARK! Dum-dum-DUM!!

No we didn't get lost at sea, and no, we weren't watching the Discovery Channel. We went to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach with neighbors Holly, Isabel, Julie, and Nolan. Much to our delight, the Aquarium was fairly empty, save for some schoolkids on field trips. As the kids ran shrieking through the main atrium, I thought to myself, "Someone should tell those kids to stop running and quit making that ruckus!" My next though was, "God, I'm getting old." Thankfully, there were only a few school tours that day, and we were able to enter the first exhibit without further ado.

Within moments, Benjamin was trying his darndest to scale the glass, but unfortunately, he wasn't gaining much ground. As they say, the spirit is willing, but the legs are short.

I gave my little boy a boost so that he could press his nose up against the glass. To his delight, several sharks swam right by him. I swear they were trying to size up Benjamin's dorsal fin.

We took a break from the dark aquarium to go outside to the touch tanks where Benjamin tried to grab a starfish. As I held back his chubby hands, I noticed that there were other kids standing there who were showing no such restraint. Again, the old fogey thoughts came. "Are they here with teachers? Where are their parents? Oh, my goodness, is that girl wearing a thong?! Ugh... kids these days!" I didn't have much time to indulge my old fogey-ness because the tots were anxious to get to the next activity: the water park.

Isabel and Nolan happily soaked themselves in one of the water jets, while Benjamin took the helm of the ship. I hid my old fogey self in the shade of a tree, fastidiously reapplying sunscreen and wondering when I had turned into such an old fart.

As we were walking through the final exhibit, I spotted something that put me back in touch with my inner juvenile:

You could say that these placards are a litmus test of maturity. People who are able to read them and move on without comment are mature adults. The ones who stop and giggle like Beavis and Butthead aren't. Guess which category I fall into?

Huh-huh... Huh-huh...