Anything you can do...

Copper can do better, apparently.

I pet a shark today. By myself. Took my gloves off (coral burn protection) and was able to pet a great black-tipped Reef Shark who was resting in a cave outcropping at about 85 feet down in Molokini Crater.

Because I have always encountered sharks in tandem with Copper on dives, this was a novel experience. I was alone with the shark, as Copper was exploring the reef about ten feet above me. I was thrilled with the experience, stroking him from just above his gills to his dorsal fin and then his tail. It is such a rare and fascinating experience to pet a shark. His skin felt like a cross between soft rubber and smooth vinyl. The mercifully patient shark allowed me to touch him for a minute or so, and then flicked his head around to let me know he was quite done with being the main attraction in my one-man petting zoo. I removed my hand (lest I join the ranks of Tyler as a recipient of the shark~bite~blunders award), and he gently eased himself past me, out of the cave, and into the deep.

Explosively jubilant about this incredible encounter, I was eager to talk about it with Copper. When we surfaced, I ecstaticly asked, "Did you see? Did you see that black-tipped in the cave? He let me pet him! That was so cool! He was beautiful! I got a great photo. What an amazing dive. Did you see him?"

Copper, who was evidently given a one-day promotion to Captain of the Joy Deflation Committee, said, "Yeah. Cool. But while you were busy with your little shark, did you see the really huge Grey Shark cruising the reef below you? He had to be at least twelve feet long. Your little guy was what ~ four feet? Too bad you missed the BIG shark. He was awesome."

As the expression on my face blended bemused disgust, disbelief, and amused resignation, I muttered something about Copper being astoundingly impossible to impress. It was ridiculous. If I pet a shark, he sees an even bigger shark. If I were to go pet that bigger shark, he'd see a school of even larger sharks. If I swam with the school of the largest sharks in the known universe, you can bet he would lasso one of them and ride it like a scuba cowboy.

I think he heard my grumblings, because he smiled broadly, threw his arms around my shoulders and hugged me before loudly joking that I was the best "baby shark petter" in the world.

My snorkel mask just missed hitting him squarely in the head shortly thereafter. Don't know how that happened - we're looking into it.

We had to laugh. I love him even though he was the King of One-Upsmanship today.

The Shark Count has settled at 22 for this trip. Not bad. Even if one of them was barely worthy to qualify by SOMEONE'S standards. It may have been only four feet long, but I am over the moon with my latest shark petting experience and will wickedly miss communing with the vast underwater world of Maui when we leave for home tomorrow morning.