Corn dogs and carneys are typically the first things to come to mind when the word “carnival” pops up. But is there some alternate universe in which the subversive, divergent existence of carnival culture is rooted in something slightly… sexier?

As Perlmutter snapped photos, I swam, aimlessly and nakedly, feeling every current and swirl lick the skin on my forearms, belly, thighs. I swam in circles, I swam north to south and back again; I tried to touch the bottom, but I didn't stay down long. When I would surface, my face would break through probing tongues of wetness, and for a split second even the warm air seemed cool. I was unaware, carefree, weightless.