STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

laken1 · Hermes

Recent shark attacks in FL

theotherjess · Chanel

I live right in this area so there has been a lot of coverage of this in the past few days. Honestly, I don't think this will affect that many people for very long. People know the dangers of going into the ocean and as one reporter brought up, you have to realize that when you are in the ocean, it's the sharks' territory and you have to be aware of your position in the food chain. I don't think a lot of locals will stay away from the water; maybe some of the tourists will, but probably not for long. I think you just have to be careful and know not to swim when the water is murky or when the conditions are right for shark attacks. Surely your chances of being attacked by a shark are less than that of getting in a car crash, but we get in our cars everyday anyways.

luckylily · Gucci

I have a really over the top fear of sharks, partially because I'm so fascinated by them as a species. If I had kids tho, I would certainly take them to the beach and let them swim and play as much as they wanted. I do swim in the ocean myself.

As Jess pointed out, the likelyhood of being in a car accident on the way to the beach is probably far greater than being attacked by a shark. I'm not good w/ cars either tho. I find them scary as hell. I should really move to a less car dependent city.

nunzi182 · Kate Spade

I am so afraid of sharks, but strangely fascinated by them as well. I'm going on vacation in November and have plans to feed sharks which is odd b/c I refuse to swim in the ocean for fear of not only sharks but anything in the ocean. I have actually gone to the beach just to lay there because I'm afraid of sharks (and I live in New Jersey!) But at the same time, I think they are one of the most amazing creatures.

halleybird · Hermes

Personally, I have only been swimming in the ocean like 3 times in my life, and I was terrified the entire time, because sharks scare me like nothing else. It is an irrational fear, though; you are 30 times more likely to be struck by lightning than attacked by a shark.

Still, I guess if you keep yourself out of the water, you are 0% likely to be attacked. LOL. Someone here goes swimming with sharks. Farrah, I think?

theotherjess · Chanel

I heard a commercial on the radio today that reminded me of this thread. It's the "Real Men of Genius" commercials for Budweiser, which IMO are the funniest commercials ever. Here's a clip: http://thefuntimesguide.com/audio/Bud_Light_Real_Men_of_Genius_Mr_Paranoid_of_the_Ocean_Guy.mp3

It's called Mr. Paranoid of the Ocean Guy.

lsubatgirl · Gucci

I just went to Destin in May and I swam in the ocean without any problems or fears. I just make sure that there are lots of people in the area I go in and that the water is ok and I'm not too far out (no more than 50 yards)

I live near Gonzales and this is all they are talking about (the girls death) and the problem seems to be that she was out way to far from shore (past the bouyies (sp?) which are 100 yards out) and in the middle of a school of feeder fish splashing around and got bit by accident. Once there was blood in the water the shark continued to attack because it didn't know the difference between human blood and fish blood. She unfortunately was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Just don't go past the first sandbar and you'll be ok. Also if you are on your period DO NOT go in the WATER!!!

jen · Kate Spade

Sharks don't scare me but both times I've been in the ocean I've been hurt. The first time I stepped on a sea urchin.

And the second time I got stung by a jelly fish on my inner thigh.

ouch.

erin · Chanel

i'm much more afraid of jellyfish than sharks!

lsubatgirl · Gucci

erin wrote:

i'm much more afraid of jellyfish than sharks!

I am afraid of jellyfish also. I think its because I have a hard time spotting them in the water. I can't really say I'm not afraid of anything though because this year I was getting freaked out by 6 inch fish that would randomly swim by.

kenzie · Chanel

I still love the ocean. I look at it this way, out of all the millions of people who get in the water everyday, how many get attacked by a shark? Less than 1%. Same goes for flying. How often to planes crash in respect to how many flights go on without incident? Again, it's a very low percentage. You have a greater chance of getting in your car and dying in a car crash than you do of being attacked by a shark.

sephorablue · Marc Jacobs

sad thing is, actually, people die in the ocean all the time from drowning in rip tides. It seems to happen every couple weeks during summer on the east coast, and it's always totally avoidable and tragic. Same thing, every time--people swimming in the ocean when lifeguards are not on duty get caught in rip tides, and either they die, or someone trying to save them dies. It is a very real danger but for some reason people just don't pay attention to it.

This weekend I was at the beach and I noticed the lifeguards were being really aggressive--they were actually standing on the beach in front of a gaggle of people in the water, all of them lumped together, and anytime someone moved too far to the side they would shout at them until they either moved back or got out of the water. The tides tend to form around those rocky jetties, so swimming anywhere near one is very unsafe, and the lifeguards had everyone herded into the area at the centerpoint between two jetties.

And no one should ever go in the ocean without a lifeguard on duty. Period.