Or, How I Got Crabs at the Aquarium.

I give the GA State Aquarium an official thumbs up. Highlights inlcuded, of course the beluga whales, but also the sea and river otters, African penguins, and some very amorous sea lions. (At least, I'm assuming that all the twining around each other and nipping constituted some kind of pinniped foreplay). We were also quite taken with the sea turtle (e per, se muove!), the leafy sea dragons, and the creepily beautiful sea nettles.

Our favorites among the non-mammals, though, had to be the garden eels. They're little tiny things, like very long, colorful worms--except we never did find out how long, because they burrow tail-first into the sea-bed, and nose around in the water looking for bits of plankton to eat. When something scares them (as two large yellow fish did by swimming down close to the sand), they retreat back into their burrows, then cautiously eel back out to see if the coast is clear.

I'm already greedily anticipating my lighter work schedule, and the fun of taking the train downtown for classes. Yes, I know, only I consider taking the train fun, but for someone who's grown used to the convenience and ubiqity of European public transit, actually finding a good use for our anemic transit system is sort of exciting.

Furthermore, the building where my class is held is at the same stop as the one for the aquarium--I can visit the whales! It's all within a half mile walk--and I get exercise besides.

Also, the scheduling gods are...well, either kind, or in the mood to see me go crazy. Get this: first week of May: exams; 2nd weekend in May: choir concert; 3rd week in May: XPT. I could Do It All. Theoretically.

Except the whales, it seems, save me.

Aaron is on the planning committee for an IEEE conference downtown this week (ironically, it's at the Marriott, one of Dragoncon's homes, but no one's in costume). Last night they hosted a reception in the Oceans Ballroom at the GA Aquarium.

Ooh, my favorite thing: loud music, conversation with strangers, eating while standing and juggling itty bitty plates. I was mainly off the hook for the conversation with strangers part, at least, since talking too much sets off more coughing.

But...Admiral! There be whales here!

One wall of the ballroom looks into the beluga whale tank. There are four of them, graceful, sinuous, majestic, gleaming white with aquamarine highlights as they glided through the water. They were like dancers, like birds, like angels...I was mesmerized. I sat myself down cross-legged where the glass meets the carpet, dabbling my hands in the reflected waves of rainbow light, and found all the soothing calm and peace I've been missing these last few weeks.

I want to get a year's pass to the aquarium, so I can visit the whales whenever I'm stressed. Put something new-agey on the iPod, find a comfortable spot, and drift away with them.

(This would mean finding time to get to the aquarium. I'll work on it.)

There was shopping. There was good food. There was dancing. There was even a housefilk. It's been a helluva weekend. Thanks for coming to visit, celticdragonfly! It's nice to have an excuse to do this many fun things in a weekend.

Friday we had decided to go to the new GA Aquarium. This was built last year and is notoriously busy on weekends, but surely, we thought, if we go on a weekday it won't be so bad. Wrong! Not only was the place mobbed, but there was a sign at the entrance (at 2:30, mind you), explaining that they were now selling tickets for a 4 o'clock entrance.

Bugger that for a game of solders. It's just a bunch of fish, people, get a grip.

When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping in Virginia Highlands. Oh, first they eat pizza. Then they go shopping. Then they eat gelato. Beats all hell out of overcrowded fish, any day of the week.

Then, when we got home, the tough took a nap. Ok, I took a nap. celticdragonfly, who is considerably tougher than I, sat up and websurfed. But I needed the sleep, because later that night she wore me out dancing. Aaron was too tired after work to come along, but we got in three contras and a bunch of waltzes without him. (Points-wise, it turns out if I walk for 90 minutes every day, then dance another 90 minutes on top of that, I can eat all the pizza and gelato I want. If only...)