Deuce

You're just being bitchy because you traded Arizona for Florida, and it's going to be just as cold in Florida, with the added bonus of higher humidity making it even chillier in Florida!

My experience in Sweden was that most of the skydiving is done by clubs, where everybody chips in to the overall success of the operation, which cuts costs. Most DZ's in the US are commercial. How much does the AFF course cost (an 8 jump equivalent?), do you have to joing the local club to learn? The AFF course in the US costs about $1300, depending on where you are.

Not going to be much different in Florida, and there's no alligators to drag you into the swamp if you land out. First and last loads are cold, but the middle part of the day is really pleasant. See everybody there!

If you're at Eloy while I'm there you are always welcome to use my 3. I'll be lucky to get a half-dozen jumps on it the whole time I'm there.

Oh, like hell! Gotta have some white-puffies to wingsuit fly around, and fall "next to"! Empty blue skies get boring! Yeeee-hah! GIT SOME!

Yeah, that's the same mapping database I use in the GPS V. Works great! It's especially fun if you aren't in any hurry and you choose the "shortest distance" over the "fastest time" option when you ask it to take you from address to address. I have found the very best motorcycle roads in California using it. You'll be really happy with it. True story: Last year I loaded my team trailer at Eloy as a waypoint. I gave the GPS to BigBen who delivered it and my truck to my wife at Phoenix when he left and she arrived. By using the "go to" feature on the mapping, she followed the directions right to my trailer! Very cool and stress free.

I have the GPS V, which I love. I would really recommend this one: http://gpsnow.com/gmquest.htm I has enough memory to get you turn-by-turn directions for just about all the western states. My GPS V can only hold about the entire Bay Area, or the LA area, but not both. That new one can hold all the streets in CA and most everywhere you'd want to drive. I like those units better than the bigger car units, cause you can use them for hiking, bicycling, etc. You could also load Europe in it and take it with you on trips. More likely you'll do geek stuff like mapping your own parking space down to the second.

He'll be in good company. I've been doing mostly tandems lately and will likely throw the drogue as soon as I get stable out the door.

Oh. That's just wrong. I know there's a story behind that, I can't seem to remember what it is (I know it's obscene), anyone care to refresh my memory? Let that one be left in the compartmentalized strong denial part of your disassociative disordered mind. Really.

Oh. That's just wrong.

***If someone doesn't remember something, genuinely, they are not in denial. To be in denial they have to be aware of the issue, and then capable of creating some fantasy rationalization for it. *** You missed that bit. That would be dissociative disorder. My dealings with the mentally ill include far more people than I associated with as a result of police work. The person who does not remember something has the more serious issue. The 30 year old man fooling around on his Mrs. was an example Val gave. That guy claiming not to remember is most likely full of shit/rationalization/compartmentalization. True disassociative disorder is very unlikely to be the root cause of catting around. -Should have just done the usual, and written my response to articulate it to myself and then delete it like I more often do. I can debate and get into bloviation contests with you in person. Why bother with this silliness?

I am also very much on the Max Cohn/Royal lens bandwagon. The .3 can be zoomed to about a .6 until you need the extra field of view. Very low profile lens and customer service oriented company. Skydiver owned. JP

He's skeered of all that wind that tends to build up after you fall more than 9.5 seconds.

You're in the house, but not my room, Chopster. Jimmy-san is flying off to the Motor City or somewhere to do fancy things with stage show stuff after the Boogaloo and I'll be robbing liquor stores throughout Arizona, Nevada, and Southern California wearing my Jimmy-mask escaping in the Jimmy-Matrix enroute back to NorCal.

Bah. It's just semantics. If someone doesn't remember something, genuinely, they are not in denial. To be in denial they have to be aware of the issue, and then capable of creating some fantasy rationalization for it. I had one recently. I ran into a guy I worked with in law enforcement and he said "hey, we got those radio repeater upgrades we wanted cause of that fight you got into at Baypoint". I'm like? "what????" He says "Yeah, remember that mental patient guy you 11-99'd on (cop version of calling for an air strike ) and dispatch couldn't hear you and while the guy was trying to take your gun they told you to call in on a landline?" BONNNGGGGG! And I am remembering a guy I nearly shot because he had no pain sensation and fought like a genetic blend of Jason and Freddie on both the clear and the cream. Maybe supressed, but definitely forgotten until then. 30 year old guys who cheat are much more rationalizers than deniers. These fellahs compartmentalize what they regard as sex. Oral sex doesn't count, sex with prostitutes doesn't count, nor does sex with easy women, married women, women on vacation, yada-yada. A lot like how obese people rationalize the food that they eat. Food eaten standing up, food eaten before the promise of exercise. It's all a case of "this doesn't count because of a future promise of action". The action just never occurs. So, people forget things, but like me, they can be remembered if prompted. If however, once reminded they rationalize: " I wasn't really fighting, I was practicing for a TJ Hooker audition, so it doesn't count" then they are in denial/rationalization. And because it's for Val, I'll actually post this little rant.

Lou is currently slightly out of town. I'll lend you my S3 Will, and you can do a comparo. JP

Yeah, the windy windy mountains. Ed, mostly I like 99 from Merced down because there's more to look at. If I'm in a hurry I'll take the 5 down to the Bakersfield cutoff like you said. Getting pulled over is a pain, so I usually don't go much more than 10 over the limit.

I got a cool new 0.2 demo lens from Max Cohn that I'll be using in the Eloy DVD. I got a nice e-note from Rosa, too. And from many of my friends. It's a very fun time of year that way.

I avoid driving through LA like the plague, or plaque for that matter. I take 5 south to Newman and cross over to Merced, 99 South to Bakersfield, then 58 West to I-40 to Needles. Then I-95 South to Blythe and then 10 East all the way through Phoenix and down to Eloy. Takes about 12 hours at speeds that won't get you pulled over. I had a couple people axe me, so that's the way that I go. This years its OAK to PHX and a Jimmy-ride to the Eloy, about 70 short flights without landings and road tripping back.

You get my call about the thingie? "WFFC, where death-defying stunts are perfomed to save pack jobs"

I haven't met him yet, but it's good to know that Stu is up and about. I like the invisible person that Portia is with in that one. I even get to see Mouth this weekend! Jake with the purse is all the convincing I need that he wants to be ready to exit military life at a photos notice.

Quick release

One of your bestest buddies that you have leg-humped on more than one occasion!

There is not enough cheese in Wisconsin to go with all the WHINE! A few months from now it will be all "the goddamned Mullahs are hollering all the time for people to pray, wakes me up at all hours, my freaking Hummer is clapped out, I have sand in my ass-crack, the German guy they assigned me as partner smells of cabbage, they think sheep are for EATING for criminy sake, whaaaaaaaah!" Good golly. I got two jumps yesterday, a tandem and a freefly jump with Chris deBar. Later I did another kind of freefall with a buddy who was there for me. Next jump will be at Skydive Arizona as the official videographer of the 2004 Dropzone.com Holiday Boogie. Am booked to do balloon shoots on the 27th and 28th so if folks are wanting balloon photo and video for slot plus pack job and a guarantee being in the DZ.com Holiday DVD, PM me, I'm getting booked fast. Clay is a wuss.

Here's a close up of one of the feet.