Since this is not my first winter float, I know the routine. Black clothing traps the sun's heat under a clear sky, and large wooden paddles keep my hands out of the water.
Photographer was very careful to keep his distance and stay dry while snapping a couple of candid shots. He wasted little time getting back to the house and his warm office chair.
As I carried my tube to the river's edge, I heard a neighbor tell his granddaughter that the water was too cold for her to go wading. She might fall in. She probably wanted to fall in.
Tube in the Frio, me in the tube, away from the neighbor's voice, past the annoying photographer, just me and the kingfishers.
