Douva

When there's a five week period where you can't go to any retail store without fighting an insane crowd or drive past any retail district without fighting insane traffic, it's hard to ignore. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

i have to modify this: I have this theory that if all the malls in insert your country here collapsed the day after insert date , we wouldn't really loose anybody we need. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Amen, sister! Sing it! Christmas shopping is a disease!!! [flamebait] I have this theory that if all the malls in America collapsed the day after Thanksgiving, we wouldn't really loose anybody we need. [/flamebait] I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

I gave the wrong address for that second escrow service--It's www.squaretrade.com. Sorry. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Online scammers use highjacked eBay accounts to sell their items because the highjacked accounts already have high feedback ratings. 'Tis the season to get ripped off. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Ah, man, if I'd known it was something edgy, I'd of watched it. I fliped by it, thought it was another sappy Christmas special, and kept right on cruising. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Ten things you should know, but might not, about buying and selling online: 1. NEVER, under any circumstances, pay for anything you buy online via Western Union. This is not what Western Union is designed for, and payments made through Western Union are virtually untraceable. 2. NEVER use an escrow service you are unfamiliar with. NEVER let the other party insist on using their escrow service. There are ten bogus escrow websites for every real escrow website. If you want to see how convincing these bogus escrow websites can be, check out www.escrow-sc.com. It's a scam. It'll be gone from that domain in a few days or weeks and show up at a new domain. If you want a real escrow service, go with the old standbys--www.escrow.com and www.squaredeal.com. 3. If a seller recommends an escrow service that turns out to be a fake, BREAK OFF ALL COMMUNICATION WITH THIS SELLER! Don't believe them when they apologize for the mistake and suggest another service--THEY ARE IN ON THE SCAM! 4. Escrow services, online auction sites, online vendors, etc., will NEVER ask you to complete any transactions via email. If you get an email from one of these sources, be skeptical. Does the email address you by your name, or does it address you by a vague pronoun, such as "sir," "madam," or "customer?" Most companies will address you by name, but being addressed by name doesn't necessarily mean the email is legit. If possible, go directly to the company's website by entering the address in your browser's address bar. Don't simply follow a link from the email. 5. NEVER give your personal bank account information to anyone. If they want to pay by wire transfer, use an escrow service. 6. Cashier's checks, bank drafts, and money orders can bounce, just like checks. They are NOT as good as cash, and contrary to popular belief, they do not clear in 24-48 hours (though hopefully they'll clear faster when nationwide instant check clearing takes effect). Even though the deposited funds may be available in 24-48 hours, the check or money order may not actually clear for up to two weeks. If it turns out to be a forgery or if it is has been declared lost or stolen by the purchaser, your bank will debit your account the amount of the deposit. If you've already spent the money, you will find yourself with a negative balance. Even worse, your bank may assume you deliberately deposited a bad check and report you to the authorities. 7. NEVER accept a cashier's check, bank draft, or money order made out for more than the amount of the purchase. The "just mail the difference back to me" scam is an old one, and you'll be the one footing the bill when the deposit bounces. 8. Beware of eBay and Amazon.com sellers who try to get you to complete purchases outside of the official eBay and Amazon.com systems. When you go outside the system, you give up all protection. 9. If you get taken, you have very little chance of getting your money back, and you may next become the victim of identity theft. 10. If it looks too good to be true, IT PROBABLY IS!!! The one factor that allows most people to be taken is not stupidity; it's greed. Everyone wants a "deal," but if you see a video camera or a plasma TV for sale at 15-20% of retail, you'd better take a long, hard look at the seller. If that friendly dealer wants to sell you an $80,000 BMW for $55,000, you'd better ask yourself "Why?" Despite what many of us would like to believe, people seldom sell expensive items ridiculously cheap simply because the item was a gift from an ex-spouse or they're moving to Europe or they got an employee discount or it fell off a truck or whatever BS story the con artist gives you. The rest of the world is just as greedy as you, and if someone got a super deal, you can bet they are going to take the profit rather than pass the savings on to you. Merry Christmas. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

"I said to him, 'Perhaps you have a pair of shoes you do not need?'" I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Over the years, my family has managed to narrow down the source of my frequent lapses of oratory judgment--I have no filter. After most people form a thought, the thought travels to another portion of the brain (the filter) where it is carefully scrutinized for sensitivity, appropriateness to the given crowd, etc., before making its way to the mouth. After I form a thought, on the other hand, the thought immediately exits through the giant cargo door in the front of my face. There is no quality control department between my brain and my mouth. My proclivity to stick my foot in my mouth goes so far back that I wouldn't even know where to start if I wanted to give examples. Along with ensuring that no girl would ever maintain interest in me for more than a day or two, throughout adolescence, this personal handicap had numerous side effects. I was never allowed in the same room with anyone who was going through a divorce or had recently suffered any kind of personal tragedy, I always had a hand clamped tightly around my clavicle while at church, and I never left a family function without having everyone in attendance angry at me. Whether informing the cute girl at the party that her hair looked like the result of a Weed Wacker accident, mocking the recently departed, or simply crossing that proverbial line, which I've never had much luck seeing, I was never without an opportunity to thoroughly shock and humiliate someone in my life. So whatever you've said or done, I've done worse; I just can't share any examples because all of those memories are repressed. Blue skies, Douva I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

I certainly hope you'll be brining the new addition to the family down to San Marcos next time you come. It can get mighty lonely shooting up the landing area on rainy days all by myself. --Douva I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

You may take our pilot, but you'll never take OUR FREEDOM!!!! I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

So when will these 16 flights happen? Can we manifest? I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

DON'T KNOCK SPANDEX!!! I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Is there anything in the Gun Facts 4.0 pdf that addresses this disparity or phenomenon? I'm not normally one to give props to Michael Moore, but I was actually intrigued by the way he approached this subject in Bowling for Columbine. He noted that even other countries with high numbers of guns still have considerably lower murder rates. He attributed it to a "culture of fear" in the United States. I don't know if that's necessarily true or not, but it's an interesting take. I think there are definitely some cultural differences between the good ol' U.S. of A. and the other countries mentioned. For instance, I think America is more of a cultural melting pot. Cultural differences often equal conflict. Also, U.S. social services are less effective at taking care of our poor because our economy is less socialized than the other countries mentioned. Poverty often equals conflict. And finally, yes, the abundance of guns in the U.S. does make a difference because the United States of America is still a free country. As I said in my previous post, we cannot value life above all else and expect to move forward. --Douva I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Whenever I hear those types of irrational arguments, I'm reminded of a conversation I once had in my barbershop. (I've mentioned this before.) My barber asked if I'd been jumping lately, and the guy in the next chair immediately took an interest and started asking me about skydiving. The conversation eventually got around to aircraft recovery parachutes. This man wanted to know why the airlines couldn't put large recovery chutes in commercial airliners so that nobody would ever have to die in another plane crash. I explained that the chute would be so big that it would fill up most of the fuselage. His reply was, "Who cares, as long as it saves one life?" I then explained that this would mean that the airlines would have to increase fares to make up for the lost passengers. His reply was, "Who cares, as long as it saves one life?" I went on to explain that this would eventually make it impossible for all but the lavishly wealthy to fly. His reply was, "Who cares, as long as it saves one life?" I continued by explaining that with such a small percentage of the population able to fly, the airlines would eventually go out of business. His reply, once again, was, "Who cares, as long as it saves one life." Contrary to what many in this world would like to believe, we cannot value life before all else and expect to move forward. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

I think it's cold weather and too much holiday BS. I just can't get motivated to do anything, either. It's kind of getting to me. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Nobody is attacking you; we're simply questioning you. We can't give you any advice without the full story. Your story, as it stands, doesn't make any sense. Why are you so concerned about this instructor, anyway? You're not still on AFF, with twenty jumps, are you? If you're not going to be doing instructional jumps with this instructor, I suggest you leave the worrying to the DZ management and people with more experience. It's okay to be concerned for the safety of others, but you obviously don't have a complete grasp of what happened because you can't even describe it in enough detail for the rest of us to understand. Video may or may not show a malfunction, depending on what the malfunction is (something else we need to know before reaching a conclusion). If you really want to know more, ask the instructor why he opened higher than the student and what his malfunction was. Then ask the student why he/she couldn't make it back, where he/she landed, and if he/she had sight of the drop zone before landing. If he/she landed within a mile of the drop zone, as you stated in your original post, and wasn't injured, stuck in a tree, or lost in a heavily wooded area, he/she should have made it back to the drop zone on foot, without any real problem. What level AFF jump was this? You should find out whether or not the student had a radio and whether or not it was utilized after he/she landed. Your question is pretty futile without more information. Finally, as the old bumper sticker says, "#&@$ happens." The instructor may have simply messed up. I've certainly done it. It doesn't necessarily mean he's a bad instructor. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

You should never berate somebody for asking a question, but in answering this type of question, you should make sure the student understands why his idea is so horrifically bad. He should walk away pondering, "What the hell was I thinking?" without feeling afraid to ask further questions. Sometimes a little twinge of embarrassment goes a long way toward snapping somebody back into reality. That student needs to realize that he is obviously not taking this sport seriously enough. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

I seem to recall being told they were actually trying to get that shot with the Southwest jet in the background. Any of the Texas oldtimers remember the actual story? I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

Strangely enough, I kind of like Christmas music. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

In the AFF instructor course, we got to see a great clip of a 757 passing about 2000' under a Cattegory A or B. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

YAY!!! OTHER SKYDIVERS WHO HATE THE HOLIDAYS!!!! I hate having to endure holiday traffic jams because my route happens to pass a mall. I hate not being able to run to some random store and buy something because I'll be trapped for an hour behinds hundreds of irrationally frantic holiday shoppers. I hate the heard mentality that actually makes someone think doing Christmas shopping the day after Thanksgiving is a good idea. I hate the pressure to spend time with annoying family members who don't give a %@#& what I'm doing the rest of the year. I hate presents from grandmothers who can't figure out I don't still wear the same size I did my freshman year in high school. I hate the expectation to give presents to anyone I even remotely care about. I hate having to endure HORDES of kids at the movie theaters. I hate having ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do on the days that all businesses are closed, the weather is bad, and everyone I know is doing the obligatory "relative work." Most of all, I hate the idea that we can neglect the needy, ignore our families, and basically be self centered assholes the rest of the year and then make up for it during the holidays. I'm not entirely sure most people's obsession with the holidays doesn't stem from a deep-seated guilt over their normal day-to-day lives. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

I really think every DZ should keep a few of these behind the manifest counter. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

It doesn't seem like you have all the details. Why was the instructor open higher than the student? The only time an instructor should be open above a student (outside of a premature or other gear malfunction) is if the student doesn't pull and the instructor can't reach him by 2,000.' This shouldn't happen. Did the student pull low, and did this contribute to him or her landing off? What did the instructor say was his malfunction? If a spot is very long or very short, giving an instructor reason to believe his student may not make it back to the drop zone, the instructor should land in a suitable alternate landing area where the student will be able to follow him. As someone else has already said, a mile is not a very far off landing. Did the student not have the drop zone in sight before he or she landed? Did the student land somewhere like a heavily wooded area that was very disorienting? Did the instructor see the student land? If not, why did he say he was unable to see the landing? Basically, the story you are conveying doesn't make much sense without added details. I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.

You mean this one? Congrats again Jan. No, post the night vision pictures, where you can see her bra through her shirt (SEXY!). --Douva I don't have an M.D. or a law degree. I have bachelor's in kicking ass and taking names.