cannonball.

as a kid, in addition to the beach, MANY summer days were spent around a pool (friends/community.)

diving boards, a critical component, delivered hours of entertainment.

among my friends, i became competitive in various dives, including the jack-knife, swan, can-opener, screwy louie (with multiple pumps,) flying watermelon, sailor, frogger, and el triple lindy.

but, the master of only one…the cannonball.

being “big-boned,” my cannonball’s rule.

i say this confidently, because my skills were tested on the 4th of july. a last minute invitation to a neighbor’s pool, ended with me destroying a group of kids (philip/samantha/kirsten) and two adults (lorena/andy) in a cannonball competition.

recap: starting 8 feet out, i ran to the pool’s edge, launched, tucked my knees into my moobs (man-boobs,) and sailed through the hot summer air, independent and free. upon impact, the water became extremely rough, pool toys displaced, and a row of kids wiped-out by a ferocious tidal wave (philip, 8, surfaced in lakeside.)

a winner was declared…

victory.

*special thanks to my sports photographer, andy hayt (nba/padres) for capturing the magic. additionally, andy hopes to bring “the cannonball” to the olympics and be the “bela karolyi” of the sport.