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And you just know that some GIs won't be able to resist modifying it so that they can make it swoop... Or wingload it at 2.5 after 20 jumps... Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

yea, if they get her off with the drugged out plea. Im smoking up and aiming for ppl i dislike! LOL This is in Texas guys, you ever hear of a druggie beating a rap in Texas. I don't think they're seeking the death penalty though, not according to what I've read. My initial gut feeling is guilty as hell, lock her up and throw away the key. But I've served on a few juries and been a foreman once and I know that what the jury will hear and the crap that goes out on the wire are two different things. The woman IS innocent until proved guilty and her trial cannot be permitted to be a foregone conclusion. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

If your mom's French, tell her the French invented parachutes and skydiving, which is basically the truth. That way it becomes a matter of national pride and duty. Play a recording of The Marsallaise (sp ? - you know, the French nat'l anthem). Play it really loud. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Thanks Bro'. I was getting bored and enjoyed the nice refreshing puke. I'm a new man. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

I've got a distant in-law relative (wife's cousin's cousin) who's quadraplegic, with very limited use of his hands. He broke his neck cliff diving in Hawaii right after graduting from high school. In 1981 he made a static line jump and would've actually gone into the record books as the first quad to jump, but the jump wasn't exactly "legal". That and it also turned out he broke a leg. I absolutely consider him to be a skydiver heart and soul, the closest thing I could think of to capare with would be static lining with my hans and feet shackled - scary. He's older, married and has three kids now, as well as a successful practice as a family counselor. And he loves and holds onto his one gutsy SKYDIVE. I think I might talk to him about possibly making a tandem one of these days, it's no longer unusual for a quad to make a tandem jump. People with disabilites who make even one jump, by whatever means they're able to have my deepest respect, because they're trying and won't let shit get in their way. But ordinary able bodied citizens are tourists. It's great that they can get that one jump they always wanted to make, and hopefully some of them will stick around and become real skideevers. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

You fool, you fool.... Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Jumping off a plane as a tandem,makes you an passenger... Tandem is for tourists. Unless there's a physical disability involved that makes tandem the only way to go. It's an INTRO to the sport. If you like enough not to pee your pants, then you should do something about becoming a real skydiver. Tandem tourists are the same people who would take over our sport, if, God forbid, it ever became completely safe. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

The f**king Wizard of Oz. First saw it when I was six. Don't know why, but Miss Gulch on her bicycle terrified me (aren't kids strange that way ?). From there things went straight downhill; the Witch, the monkeys (oh my god, those flying monkeys...), and the "yo-ree-oh" guys marching around the gate of the castle. I didn't want to watch it. But my lovely mother MADE me watch it because it was a "children's" movie. Now of course the whole thing's a laugh (except Miss Gulch still gives me the willies). By the way, check out watching the Wizard with the sound turned off. Put on Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon". Wait for the MGM lion to roar, and on the third roar (OK, so now turn the sound off), start up the Pink Floyd. It really works, they synched that album to the film. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

That's exactly it Bill. All government is inherently evil from the get go, because human nature includes the urge for the powerful to control everything. At least in a democracy there's a chance for the governed to dig in their heels and try to do something about it. It's not the perfect rosey picture they painted for us as children, but it does try to provide institutions and mechanisms for people to fight for their freedoms (courts, the Congress, voting, etc). But nobody gets handed their freedom - not even in a democracy. You only get the chance to stand up and claim it. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

One downside I could see would be the types of people who'd start getting into it. Personally, I think the threat of danger keeps many people away that we want to stay away. Just my $.02 I don't believe that we have a "death wish" or anything like that. I don't. It's not a macho thing eithher and I wish there were more women in the sport because skychicks are the coolest. But really, what kind of dolts would come out of the woodwork if our sport were totally guaranteed safe ? So many of the people who've written in say they like the people the best, but what kind of people is it that they like so much ? People who are willing to take intelligent risks for an incredibly beautiful reward. If it were completely safe, we'd get a bunch of slovenly couch potatoes, and believe you me, they'd take over and try to tell us what to do. I'd rather play with matches at a refinery. Over and over I tell my friends that skydiving's not for everyone, that nobody should ever feel they have to jump to please somebody else, that if you're not doing it for yourself, don't do it. I also tell them that if just anyone could do it, probably 90% of us would quit and move on. It's not a macho thing, but there is a life and death drama that makes it so damn powerful. I can't even make a hop & pop withhout feeling like I've accomplished something. On the other hand, if it were that safe, we wouldn't have to buy gear, we'd all just land on our feet... Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

You must feel like a kid waking up the day after Christmas. I'm trying to hold it to one or two chapters a day, just got through Ch 4 so far. Just from the little I've read, it's head and shoulders above the rest and well worth a 3 year wait. So how many teams will there be this year with names like Dementors, Gryffindor, Hogwarts, Aurors, etc. ? Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Aw crap, I just put the very first jump on a brand spanking new Spectre demo model at Perris yesterday and didn't even think to lookit the S/N. (That thing was sure a bitch to pack.) Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Eww. The dishsoap I use (nothing special, Palmolive, Dawn, etc..) tends to stick to everything and eventually seems to etch glass. I'm in the habit now of washing (really just rinsing) my beer glasses by hand after use, same with the bottles. I used to notice the smell/flavor of soap in my glasses, I'm sure it's there in the bottles too. - Jim No, no, no, not with diswhashing detergent ! Just run the cycle, with the hot water (more rinsing) and let the heater coil do its thing. I would never use the detergent, sorry if I gave you that impression. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Thanks Dave, for bringing up the Bible. It really is a good read, there's also the Gospels, Psalms, and so many more. The Bible gets a bad rap too quickly because of the power hungry types who use it to justify their nasty little schemes. But it is a very worthwhile read for anyone . Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

NICE PICTURE ! That must be the So. African guy with the Da Vinci parachute. The thing worked beautifully too, though he cutaway from it at 3 grand and landed under his normal rig. The cameramen who jumped with him had to float in their brakes to not go below, and it was rock solid stable. He said it was just a beautiful ride. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Yeah, but bowling balls don't ever get to line stretch. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

The Dalai Lama's "Ethics For the New Millenium". What's cool about Buddhism, at least the way he teaches it, is you can approach it as a religion, or as a psychological system that understands human needs and wants, like your need to be happy and how everything you want isn't necessarily good for you. C.S. Lewis wrote some really good books about Christianity for the general public from a rational Anglican point of view. "Mere Christianity" is a good one, made up from radio talks he used to do. Also "The Great Divorce" is a trip. It's about a bunch of souls from Hell, taking a British style bus tour of Heaven. They're free to get off the bus and stay anytime they want, but for each of their own reasons they won't. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

She's probably in bad shape, out of money, and with long term problems from the accident. Somebody probably told her to get a lawyer and start suing somebody. The question I have is whether or not she's blown the statute of limitations. I don't know what the law in Illinois says, but in a lot of states you have to sue for personal injury within a year of the event. Anyone know if she ever signed skydive chicago"s waiver ? I know at Perris I can't sue if I slip on a banana peel, fall in the pool and drown. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

The hard part is proving any of it is theirs. It all says "Made in the USA" on it. We gave it to them back in the eighties, so they could use it on Iran. That's when Reagan sent his personal envoy DONALD RUMSFELD to meet with Saddam. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

It gets complicated and I'm not a lawyer either. The cops will do whatever you can't stop them from doing, so the question boils down to what the lawyers and courts will make of it later. They can certainly come to your door to talk to you about a complaint. As for taking a look-see through your backyard, I'm guessing they can't unless you tell them it's OK. But they're gonna do it anyway and if you try and stop them they'll beat you about the head & shoulders. The important thing is to NEVER give them permission for anything and if they start searching your car/property/home, at least make an objection, hopefully in front of witnesses. Then, later, after everybody gets out on bail, the lawyers can take over and get the search thrown out. Unless Attny Genl Ashcroft decides to classify you as an enemy comabatant, in which case you're hosed and headed for sunny Cuba. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

Bleach sucks. Ask the guy at your LHBS for a bottle of Iodophor. It's a quick, no rinse solution to all your sanitizing needs. I've used it for almost a year now and I'll never go back. [/reply Haven't heard of Iodophor, will have to check it out. As for bleach, you only need a very tiny amount, like a tsp or two in 5 gal. of water, just a longer soak. Much easier to rinse away the bleachy odor with hot water. Finally, just before you bottle, take your sanitized bottles, rack 'em up in your dishwasher and run 'em through with the heat dry cycle turned on. When that's done, your bottles be CLEAN. They're also conveniently racked, upside down for you to reach out and grab as you work, assuming that you bottle in your kitchen. "Don't worry, have another home brew...". Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

The one when Harry finally gets laid will be "Harry Potter and the Delta of Venus". Maybe next year, there's only two more books to go, unless Jo Rowling wants to write #8, "Harry Potter Gets a Job"... Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

We wuz out to the bash at Barnes & Noble last night. The place was full of sugar charged hyper kids dressed like witches, screaming and knocking books off the shelves. Everyone was issued a number at the door and at midnight they started calling groups of ten up to the cash registers for their books. It was mostly a lot of fun and we got a copy for under $20, which surpised the heck out of me. Also bagged the "Frida" DVD, which also just came out & is a great movie. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

By the way, tomorrow's the Soltice parade in Seattle's Fremont district. Naked bicyclists, be there or be square. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

guys, when taking a piss...ARCH!! reply] Maybe we'll just have to sign guys off when they're qualified, until then they have to suit in the stalls like the ladies.... By the way, why does this remind me of Jack Nicholson in "About Schmidt" ? Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !