Today the kids were stung by a jellyfish.  First the R girl started jumping about in the water and yelping, then two seconds later her brother hollered and tried to jump out of the waves.  Somehow I managed to miss it, which I personally have no problem with, though the kids thought it sad I couldn’t brag of being stung by a jellyfish.

Of course, that was later, after the lifeguard had squirted their welts with a vinegar and salt water mix.  Turns out our jellyfish was a sea nettle, like the one below.

We didn’t get to see the one that stung the kids, but the pics online look pretty cool.  Mostly we’re just glad it wasn’t a man ‘o war.  The lifeguard said they had a tiny man ‘o war wash up on the beach last week.  Our brush with the nettle will still impress the kids’ friends and their welts are fading fast.

Before the jellyfish incident we walked down to a tidal pool near the mouth of an inlet and met a clan of fiddler crabs.  I can’t tell if this guy is ready to run or warning me off.

Perhaps he’s just grumpy at all the beach goers who are disturbing his peace and quiet.

In other news my flash fiction story The Immortal Horse has been accepted by Every Day Fiction and will be published on August 25th.  It’s a kinda silly piece, but one I especially enjoyed writing because I got to blend magic with molten glass, and how can that not be fun?

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