Friday, March 30, 2012

Low Tide

Nobody's home yet in these birdhouses along the Scarborough Marsh Audubon Center. I must say, the appreciation of the aroma of low tide is one you must truly acquire. I lived at the foot of Back Bay, along Baxter Boulevard throughout my high school years, and learned to get used to the sometimes stomach-turning smells coming at low tide. At other times, as the afternoon fog rolled in your nostrils were treated to the sensation of riding a glass-like seascape. It was quite a change from living inland, away from the water. For the most part you took it for granted, unless you were visited by pals from western New York State, who had never seen the ocean. Then most reactions coming up the front steps were, "Phew, what is that?" For me, you got used to it. Life at low tide... gotta love it!

11 comments:

  1. I'll have to take your word for it. One of those experiences I never knew but would like to try, once.
    Growing up next to Lake Michigan, I only smelled the lake on those rare days when the water and beach were mysteriously full of dead fish.

    ReplyDelete
  2. nothin' like the stank of fishy, ripe water and algae...

    ReplyDelete
  3. I live near the sea and the mouth of a tidal river. I know it smells bad sometimes, but it hardly gets mentioned.

    ReplyDelete
  4. If I could live permanently next to a large body of water there would be no complaints from me. As a child I lived on a tall cliff above Lake Michigan and it has left an indelible mark on my psyche. Love the sounds and the smells, both good and bad.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Life may have originated at some pool at low tide.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Got the same thing in Florida. You oughta smell our mangrove swamps. But, like you say, you get used to it. Of course, if you're with a bunch of stinkers, you can hardly notice the smell! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Growing up in the desert southwest I never experienced the smells of low tide. I was treated to the wonderful crisp mountain air and low humidity...

    ReplyDelete
  8. It's an interesting report. I think I'm more of an inland man, though... :)
    God bless you!
    Cezar

    ReplyDelete
  9. we all develop different definitions for good and bad smells, good and bad tastes, what is pretty, what is not...how much is nature, how much experience? love this post and what it drags up from the depths.

    ReplyDelete