Day 20: "How did you miss the question about the ears?"

I could put it off no longer, it was time to take the Physiology of Diving exam. Although Lois and I were scheduled to take the test at 8 AM, in a move that proved her worth as a study buddy and roommate, she convinced Emma to let us take the test in the afternoon. I knew there was a reason I keep her around.

Leaving Lois to her cram session, I joined Carl in the back classroom to do a last bit of reading and review for myself. Carl was busy answering emails all morning, but managed to find time to answer questions I had and make jokes about my ear. I must admit, he's getting quite clever at relating just about anything to a ruptured eardrum. Even an untied shoelace is related to the tympanic membrane these days. It's all in good fun, but one of these days Alice...

All of this reading about the human body and diving has given me cabin fever. It's now been nearly two weeks of being landlocked for me and I get more restless by the day. Carl says that once my ear is healed, he'll teach me how to freedive. Essentially, frediving is the same as scuba diving, except for the lack of a tank of air on your back. You take a single breath before swimming as far down as you can get. Carl can make it to 30m/100ft, and the world record is in the neighborhood of 250m/820ft. Hopefully I can get down at least as deep as Carl by the time I'm forced to go back to the States.

By 2PM, Lois and I were ready to face the music. We received the tests and separated. I didn't find it to be terribly difficult, only guessing on three or four questions. When we had both finished, we were graded and much to our surprise, we each missed two questions. Carl was particularly amused that one of the questions I missed was on the subject of ear injury. In my wildest dreams, I hope to one day live down my reputation as "The Ear Guy."

Before heading for home, Carl and Emma met with each of the divemaster candidates (Lois, myself and Michael), to discuss our schedules and the course. Nothing terribly special, but it's nice to know that they're keeping track of everything so we get the most out of our time here. Peter offered me a job washing gear for this weekend, so I can earn a bit of money until I find a job that won't interfere with my coursework.

Monday is a public holiday in celebration of the Queen's birthday, so there's going to be all kinds of stuff going on this weekend. With that in mind, Lois and I decided to have a calm night, and hung out with Sam rather than going out. I went to bed early in preparation for the day of work I had ahead.

Yours in Bed Early on a Friday Night,
Robert