SkydiveNFlorida

And you don't believe the American public is particularly uncaring of the useless deaths of foreigners? The news stations are not necessarily representative of the feelings of the people. Hell, embarrassed as I am, this is the first time I've heard about it. I heard about the 3000 in NK today on NPR, though. Very sad:( Angela.

Personally, I would not want my DNA taken. I am not a criminal... but maybe I will be one day, hell, i'd like the option! In all seriousness, though, I think that is just too personal and I wouldn't want my fingerprints taken, either, if I could help it (although, not much I can do now, since I have been detained as a juvinille). If you are a known offender of a specific type of crime (rape, assault, murder) than I think that it is a good idea, otherwise not necessary or justified imo. Plus, if it is really thousands of dollars to do these tests, who the hell is paying for it? I think they need to be more selective about who they sample for that amount of money! Not everyone who is detained should be candidates for this, imo. Angela.

That is super cool, Denise! And, congrats to Greg! Angela.

If you only weight 140 then you're probably what, 160 geared up? Loading about .85 : 1 on the 190. Remember that bigger is NOT necessarily safer. You may have an awful time in winds if you upsize from such an already low w/l. Just a thought. Certainly you should speak with those at your dz about it. Angela.

Never jumped at Miami, but my boyfriend didn't like it there, and many other skydivers I know don't like it, either. So, I have no real desire to visit. Besides, I hate Miami traffic. Angela.

The chinstrap on my Gunner seems to come loose rather frequently, even with the little elastic ring around the strap that 's supposed to hold it in place. I check it a couple times before I exit. I'm planning to sew the excess nylon strap in place so that I don't have to bother with it all the time in the plane. Here's an earlier thread about the chinstrap coming loose: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=813171#813171 Otherwise, I love it...quiet, two internal audible pockets. The quick-release buckle is pretty neat. Very comfy.

I miss SoBe, too The people were awesome, the management was cool, and there were many jumps to be had even if you got there late! I don't know what is going on with the plans for this place. I really miss this dz! Clewiston is just not the same for me:( I always arrive late, and they don't seem to have enough people later in the day to get the plane up. At SoBe we would jump 'til sunset, the way it should be!. I have a hard time getting up the will to make the (longer) drive out to Clewiston knowing there will be no sunset load, and it is altogether a slower place. I got like 3 jumps in last time I was there. I used to do 6-8 in a day at SoBe, even after showing up at 12-1pm. Not to mention that 20$ a lift is harsh But, nothing else near me, so that is where I end up once a week... definitely can't find the will to make it both days like I did at SoBe. I think I got 30+ jumps in last month and maybe 10-15 this month. Pity, indeed. I would love to see Clewiston pick up a bit so that they could get loads up late in the day. Angela.

I think it's a good idea, due to the trans-fats in the oil they use to cook those deadly, artery-clogging, cancer-causing rectangles of grease soaked potatoes. I wouldn't feed them to my kids. I wouldn't feed them to my dog. Cooking fries at your family bar-b-q is likely not going to cause the problems that consuming the fast-food fries causes, btw. It is my understanding that the amount of trans-fats contained in foods will be a required field on labels by 2006. I think, after that time, there will be absolutely no grounds for any law suits. Angela.

That is likely true.

I'm not responsible for peoples children forming bad habits. I walk over people gear (of course, w/o stepping on it). It would be like a landmine if I had to walk around everything on a busy day. I am not willing to do that I can set a good example for your kids. Sorry. My opinion varies. I think some children are well behaved and I don't mind them at the dz. Others are hellions and they annoy me. I think that parents know what catagory their kids fall in, and should work to rectify the problem if theirs are in catagory b, else they should find a sitter. jmo. Angela.

Maybe by Jerry Falwell or John Ashcroft. Excuwe me for butting in here, but isn't one of the primary sources of depression for post operative breast cancer survivors the appearance of their breasts? I just assume so since it would seem the majority of patients opt for cosmetic surgery. I think the depiction of breasts in a tasteful manner goes to the heart of the matter, does it not? Many of these women have had their breasts removed. Read what Jan wrote about self esteem issues and such. I think that a better calendar would show that women are strong and THAT makes them beautiful. Regardless of what anyone says, I think that a calendar composed of pictures of women kicking ass in the sky, swooping, etc.. would be awesome! Maybe include pictures of survivors who continue to show their strength and beauty by participating in the extreme sports or whatnot. I think the market for this type of calendar would be larger, too:) Angela.

My info was on this site at one time. I removed it for a reason. Michele and others know that I had info on here at one time and may even understand my reasons for removing it. I don't think that in this case my posts are any less credible. Angela.

Um, ok. I don't think this changes much about my opinion.. it is still widely thought of as a calendar to promote awareness of and action against breast cancer. This whole event IS supposed to be to raise money for breast cancer research, right? I respect your opinion, Michele. We disagree, and that is ok. This is just a place to speak up about it, whatever opinion you have.

I agree with that mentality to an extent. If I can cut my risk of getting breast cancer & alzheimer's by using a different deoderant, hell i'm using a different deoderant! If canola oil may cause cancer, i'll just stick to Olive oil. If I can signifigantly decrease my risk of getting a heart attack by staying away from trans-fats... well, I will eat better food. Funny, took a bit of time, but now i'd actually rather have an all-natural veggie stir fry, or a burger I make at home, than any of that fast food garbage. Instead of worrying about things, I just go ahead and make changes:) Angela.

Personally, if it's gonna be a t&a calendar, I don't think that anyone is really gonna be buying it for the pictures of women skydiving anyhow, so why put them in? It just makes it seem like they are trying to make it less wrong by putting other pictures in. Whatever. I don't have time to go around to corporations all day trying to raise funds for charity. I am not saying it wouldn't be a great cause, it would. I simply don't have any hours left in my day to make that happen. The jftc ladies are doing a great job of putting time and energy into this calendar... all that was said is that if they really want to make a difference, there are better ways to do so. Angela.

The picture I linked can absolutely be considered porn. You all say it like it's a bad thing. I am not "ANTI-PORN", if women want to shoot provocative pictures of themselves, I don't have a problem with it. I just don't think that they should be pushing t&a in support of breast cancer research is all. Angela.

Nope, they owe us, the General public, absolutely nothing. And Lisa explained why skydiving is anathma to corportions...and did it succintly and well. Ciels- Michele But, we are not raising money for skydivers... we are raising money for breast cancer. You can raise money for this cause without skydiving (obviously you recognize this, since your intent is to sell a calendar, not of women skydivers being awesome skydivers, but of women, who happen to skydive, posing provocatively). The way I read his post was that if you really want to make a difference, the $$ is at corporations and big business.. you could maybe rally women to hit up these businesses, and you can make it appealing to them to donate i'm sure (many businesses donate to charity, and it isn't because the president of the company has a child with leukemia, or a relative with Parkinson's disease, it's because it makes them look good!). Just an alternative to raising small $$ by selling a t&a calendar which has no place in funding breast cancer research. That was my interpretation of what Kaerock wrote, anyhow. Angela.

LMAO!! Elected, haha. That's a good one! Angela.

Thanks. I am not sure if i'll keep using it or not, but it is good to have read that:) I am still a bit hesitant to believe that it is cancer-causing, and hesitant to believe that it isn't. There are so many sites which place it in a bad light, and many others which place it in a good one. I don't use much oil, anyhow, maybe I should just stick to olive oil unless i'm baking. Angela.

http://www.breathing.com/articles/canola-oil.htm http://www.mercola.com/2003/sep/3/antiperspirants.htm I started using Canola oil in replacement of Vegetable oil about 2 years ago. Read/heard somewhere that it was better for you... better fats or whatever. Am I a victim of payoffs? I have read and heard now from a few sources that we were paid well to market Canada's Canola (rapeseed) oil. Does our country care that little for our health? I'm tossing this shit and going back to Vegetable oil when I can't use olive oil. And, aluminum causes alzheimer's? Nice to just find out now after 10 years of using anti-perspirant daily. I'm in search of something natural now, i'll let you all know if I find anything that works well. Ugh. Angela.

I understand that you want to raise money for this cause, and I completely respect that. I just happen to think it may not be the right way to go about it. Does this mean I need to start my own fundraising group in order to voice an opinion? I don't think it does. I respect the point you make, but I just think that I can feel that this is not right and make that known without feeling obligated to start my own calendar. I think that you most certainly have the opportunity to clear up any misconceptions. I just thought that that particular picture, meant to be representative of what you all are doing, seemed inappropriate. I think it's great that you're working to earn money for a good cause. I just don't think that creating a calendar containing sexually explicit pictures of women athletes is the best way to go about it. You have to weight the good/bad here. I understand that it is a good cause. But, I don't think that pictures such as that portray women athletes respectfully. . . which I think we should be. I am not stopping you. I am just voicing how things are seen from my point of view is all. I certainly wish you the best and hope that in the end it is a tasteful calendar AND raises money for breast cancer research. I think ultimately, it can be both. Angela.

I think that is sad. It is sad that people won't support a good cause by buying a calendar which shows the strength of women in our sport. My narrow definition of pornographic photography is pictures that are meant to be oogled at in a sexual manner. I think that a picture of a women with half of her breasts showing, and her hand moving her shirt to reveal more is absolutely sexual. I have no idea what response you expect me to give you here. Angela.

:) Of course they are. And, you're welcome. I am not involved in any fundraisers, as you're probably aware. Maybe i'm reading this wrong, but it seems you're attempting to make it seem ok to mock my opinion by pointing this out. I hope that is not the case. I think that a fundraising calendar is a lovely idea. I just think it would be more appropriate if it were a calendar of the many beautiful women in our sport jumping, swooping, hanging at the dz,... showing what they're made of rather than what they're MADE of, if you know what I mean. I think it would be just as successful, maybe even more successful, and it would make for a dignified effort to raise funds for a what we all feel is a very worthy cause. Just stating my opinion of course, I am not in any way trying to insult you, Michele. :) Angela.

After seeing this picture http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=25113; which is supposed to be representative of what the calendar will be like, I do agree that it does seem inappropriate. Especially to raise money for a cause such as breast cancer. Many of these women have lost their breasts due to cancer, and probably have self esteem issues due to that. I have to question the morality of selling a calendar composed of pictures of women's cleavage and other sexy photos, especially to raise money for this cause. Additionally, just because a picture is a black and white does not mean it is not pornography. I think that this photo can absolutely be considered porn. I seem to recall reading that skydiving pictures will be also be a part of the calendar. Just because you throw in a few pictures of women skydiving next to the pornography, does not make the pornography any more appropriate here. When this topic was first presented a while back, I thought I might like to participate. After really thinking about it, though, I don't feel this is right. I think it would be lovely to create and sell a calendar that promoted the idea of women being all they can be in the sports arena... but I don't think that a goodies calendar is appropriate to raise funds for something like breast cancer. I have no problem with women showing their bodies. Women are beautiful. I just don't think that a fundraising calendar for breast cancer is the place for it. jmo. Angela.

I am not saying the child shouldn't have been punished... i'm saying that cuffing her and bringing her in, then questioning in the manner done was probably not the best form of punishment at THIS point. And, neither of your solutions to the dog problem are good ones. Look into obedience training for your dog before shoving it's nose in shit and screaming at it. There are better ways. And, just so you know, my dogs were angels. Litter box trained, too. Angela.