Luc plunging, Ocean Beach

When my grandson Luc e-mailed an "opportunity" to help him raise funds for the Special Olympics, I had scant trouble saying "yes"—especially when I learned what he was going to have to do to "earn" the money: jump in the ocean with a team of similarly crazy people. The most well-known of these "freezin' for a reason" events take place on New Year's Day, when, perhaps as a cure for hang-overs, folks take the "penguin" or "polar" plunge to raise money for a sponsoring charity. This early March plunge was a new one to me, but it attracted more than a hundred people who, on a sunny but chilly day, raced into the 41 degree F. water for a good cause. My granddaughter Stasia and I watched Luc and the others hit the frigid surf, shriek, and head back up the beach. Stasia, who decided she wouldn't join the festivities, was curious that there were no signs of ice-bound behinds in the sand. "I thought you said they'd freeze their butts off," she remarked. Guess it's time to talk about metaphors.