<h1>Fishing - a form of loafing around</h1>

We went deep sea fishing today and to quote George Costanza, "the sea was angry that day, my friend". The fishing boat bounced around like a cork in a whirlpool. One poor fellow paid his $50 and was sick before we left the harbour. He only came out on the deck once, to cast his stomach contents into the ocean. There are cheaper and more liquid ways of achieving the same result. No fish for him.

I had one on the hook but it got away. It must have been a "big one" as the reel screeched and started running out to sea. Frankly, I am glad I lost it. It would have required standing to land it. For a PwP, that would be the equivalent of standing on a mechanical bucking bull, difficult? Nay, impossible and probably embarrassing. My wife caught two, a tuna and a kingfish, both nice sizes. That was fun to watch. It is amazing how limiting PD can be. Simple things you never gave a second thought to in your "real life" now present obstacles. Still, I can live vicariously through her.

So, my deep sea adventure did not live up to my expectations. I was off balance, cool and a little wet. But, look on the bright side, I was better off than my bait.

This little rant is not really about fishing, it is about sun burn. Just another warning. We all know what sunburn looks like. I consider myself an expert on the subject, having suffered several severe burns in my youth. If I had known what I know now, well, you know.

"SUNBURN describes red, sometimes swollen and painful skin, caused by overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun. Sunburn can vary from mild to severe. The extent depends on skin type and amount of exposure to the sun. Sunburn is a serious risk factor for skin cancer and for sun damage.

In a more in depth definition, sunburn is a reaction of the body to the direct DNA damage which can result from the excitation of DNA by UV-B light. The damage is recognized by the body, which then triggers several defense mechanisms, including DNA repair to revert the damage and increased melanin production to prevent future damage.

Melanin transforms UV-photons quickly into harmless amounts of heat without generating free radicals, and is therefore an excellent photoprotectant against direct and indirect DNA damage. "

Read more here.

Scary stuff, isn't it? Skin cells are damaged which triggers an immune system response from the body. White blood cells, our defense experts, recognize the sun damage as a danger to our well-being and launch an offensive to remove the dead and dying skin cells, causing the skin to peel. We all have enjoyed seeing who could peel off the largest piece of dead skin. I often won but, if I knew then what I know now, well, you know.

And persons with parkinson's have a four fold greater chance of developing malignant melanoma as a result of serious sunburns. Isn't that just the "cat's meow!"

What has this got to do with deep sea fishing? Not much except the sky was fully clouded, the temperature was lower than expected and yet, because of my skin doctor's warning that "UV rays can penetrate clouds and cause sun damage" I wore SPF 50 sunblock and while being tossed around on that fishing trip I wondered, have I closed the barn door after the horses have escaped?

POSTSCRIPT: Again from Gale: I got THE worst sunburn in my life laying on the beach at… South Beach. It was a cloudy day, I thought I was safe, but my burn was so bad my face, arms, and legs were 3 times their normal size and I had seeping blisters all over my face, arms, and legs. It was in this condition, a couple of days later, that I sought respite from the outdoors in a bookstore in Boca Raton where I ran into Delta Burke (of Designing Women) fame who simply took one look at me and said “Oh, dear.” Then she directed me to an aloe vera product that gave me some relief. I still have the bottle, although it has long since expired as an unnecessary reminder to stay out of the sun. And I have to this day. If I must go outdoors, I am accompanied by 10 umbrella bearing sherpas. Normally I stick with agoraphobia, though.