It’s SHARK… I mean SHAM WEEK!!!
It’s Shark Week!!!
For those of you who don’t know what that is, you are in for a real treat! Prepare to have your life changed… Forever.
The Discovery Channel’s Shark Week first aired in 1987 and it is as the name states. An entire week dedicated to the most incredible animal to roam an ocean… Or river near you! It was originally created to show people sharks are amazing creatures and not all of them want to eat your face off… In all seriousness, none of them do! They are incredible animals that I respect, fear and love at the same time. Tune in and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Cheers, Dez
**This was my original post set to publish today… After the Sunday night Megalodon Mockumentary I needed to amend my original celebratory thoughts.
I’m going to absolutely put myself in the line of fire and admit I fell for the Megalodon spoof. Totally, utterly, embraced and believed it. Laugh if you want, I bought into and soaked up every detail as if it were the truth. I really seriously thought Megalodon was still be out there. You might be a lot cooler than me and were able to tell it was fake… Congratulations. You win. Maybe I believed it was true because I never in 2 million years thought Discovery Channel would want to deliver anything but incredible, fascinating facts about one of the greatest species to ever inhabit the planet. Maybe it was because I live in a world where anything is possible… Even if it transcends common sense and worldly understanding. Maybe it is because I am just incredibly naive. Whatever the reason, I believed it and I don’t for one second wish I didn’t. For those two hours I sat in awe. I turned into the 8-year-old version of myself and all was right in the world.
To say I was upset or disappointed by the Megalodon Mockumentary is an understatement. I think I was more upset now than when I found out Santa was a sham. I have watched Discovery’s Shark Week since I was a kid. I would decorate the living room in cut out sharks and eat gold fish crackers to celebrate the most amazing fish in the sea. Growing up, I wouldn’t swim in our pool alone because I was sure a Great White was going to bust through the cement wall and bite my arm off. (In my defense, our pool was huge and my older siblings friends swore to me it could happen.) I remember the first time I saw the video of my late Uncle Ron scuba diving with sharks. I watched it and thought he was the coolest guy I knew… And I definitely needed to do that! I remember (not too many years ago) making my big brother lay on the floor and measure out how long the said shark they were talking about really was.
It was reported that over 5 million people tuned in to watch “Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives”, Shark Week’s largest audience to date. I hope the ratings from one night were more of a pay-off than what it cost on the long-term. Loyal fans, upset, disappointed and boycotting a week that for so many years was celebrated. I don’t know if I am going to boycott Shark Week but I do know that I didn’t watch it last night… For the first time since I can remember. I don’t plan on watching it tonight. For me, Sunday night’s premiere took something away and right now, I’ve got the taste of salty sea water in my mouth.
Thanks, Discovery Channel. You basically ruined something that was equivalent to Christmas Morning.
Cheers, Dez