It was the most intense experience I have ever had. I went to Jumptown in Orange, MA. I wanted to start of the month of August with a rush, and this did the trick!

I have always wanted to go skydiving. With the difficulties I have experienced over the last two years, I knew I was carrying around much negative energy. I believe I have eliminated it now myself. Once I landed, I felt like I had been reborn. It was truly an amazing experience! 

Of course, there was a bit of time before I jumped from the plane. First, I met a nice guy named Cameron King. He was my instructor. He told me what to expect. Basically, he said he was going to deluge me with more information than I needed to know; really only three things were important: 1) Arch your back and kick up your feet when you first leave the plane; 2) After the initial jump, place your arms out at right angles; 3) Keep your legs out in front of you during the landing.

Man! It was an experience! Just thinking about it now, I can hardly believe I did it. I feel awesome. I am proud of myself.
I am going to be smiling for a long time, smiling and laughing.
Cam went through the training with a demo parachute. He showed me how to pull the cord. It had a bright construction-orange knob at the end. He said I could pull it; however, I declined, I felt it was best he take care of everything. I am glad I did! Hahaha!

Cam showed me the second parachute that would open in case the frist failed. He then told me a third parachute opens automatically at a certain elevation if neither of the other two have successfully opened. “This will keep us alive.” he said.
I was, and am, amazed how calm I was in the hangar. People were gearing up. I went to the water fountain and drank heavily. It is funny - I knew I was scared, but I did not feel it. They make you sign almost 10 pages of forms in case something bad happens. LOL!

My hands were a bit unsteady, but as I said, I felt strangely calm. I knew it was something I had to do for myself. My life depended on it.

There would be no going back.

Cam put the gear on me. He told me to hold up the jewels as he secured the straps around my legs. “You don’t want to get caught when the chute opens…” :O

Yes, I was nervous. They anounced the flight was boarding. I paid the extra $100 for the videographer. It was totally worth it! I am so happy I have a DVD of the experience, proof of my accomplishment.
The camera man asked me some questions and made small talk as we boarded the plane. To be honest, I did not even look at the plane. I just followed the crowd. It was weird. The plane was a small propeller plane. I sat in front of Cam. There were two benches running parallel to the fusilage of the plane. The videographer asked me how high I thought we were. “Eight thousand feet,” I said. It was a remarkable guess, because we were excatly at 8000 ft!

I looked down at the altimeter gauge; it was reading ‘8′. I did my best to remain calm as we kept going ever higher.

Cam told me he was from Great Barrington.

“I once knew someone from Great Barrington,” I said. “He was my roommate in college.

His name was Rubin Schmulsky.”

“I know him,” Cam said.

Amazing! Fifteen years later at an altitude of 11,000 feet I meet someone who has actually met my former roommate in college, back in the days at UMass! Oh Wow!

The fact that Cam said Rubin was a carpenter made me sure we were talking about the same person. I last remember Rubin was heading to grad school for wood technology. I beleive he got his PhD degree. Pretty cool. What a coincidence!

I made some small talk with Cam, and then we were ready. He told me to fasten my helmet and put down my goggles. I opted not to wear my glasses, and I am happy with my choice. I am only slightly nearsighted, so I could still see pretty well.

The plastic door slid upwards, moved by some guy at the rear of the plane who nonchalantly raised the screen with his boot.

Some Russian guy next to me gave me the official jump salute. (I am not sure, I call it that because everyone was doing it.) We slapped hands and punched knuckles.

People started moving out the door. I was hardly aware of it. I was too focused on what I was about to do, what I knew I would do. I knew it had to be done! I had to jump!

The videographer stood on a ledge outside the plane in order to get that crucial shot, the one where I take the leap of faith, entrusting my life to a stranger. LOL!

It was an amazing moment to step on the edge of the plane and see down, down, down …down! Good God! What a feeling?

Cam was behind me. “One. Two. Arch!”

And then I was falling. I arched my back correctly, but I think I forgot to tuck my legs up under me. We were falling upside down for a little while. It was terrifying!
 The Jump

Man! I am laughing as I write this! I think I remembered to move my feet, else Cam made some adjustments because soon we were righted and I was falling, falling, falling …

Falling

The sound was deafening. The wind was incredible! I was moving at 120 miles per hour! The wind was so powerful I had trouble breathing. I was a bit panic-stricken at one point. To tell you the truth, my main focus was on survival; however, I tried to pretend I was enjoying it.
Having Fun

The cameraman, PJ, came over to me and shook my hand. He then gave me a “thumbs up” sign (which actually meant death for the fallen gladiator back in ancient Roman times, but that is another story) - I returned the favor and gave him a thumbs up, though it lacked ardour, and I did not feel it was very convincing! LOL!

Being Cool

For some 90 seconds we fell! Then Cam pulled the cord and I felt a massive deceleration. The cameraman disappeared like magic! He kept falling so that he could arrive ahead of us and record my landing.
Once the parachute opened I felt less anxiety. It was still pretty intense though. There was nothing! Nothing around me! Think about it. The closest thing to me was the ground over a mile away! It was awesome!

 Not much around

I saw the Quabbin Reservoir and the Connecticut River. I made some small talk with Cam. We could actually hear each other quite well. I asked him what things were, mostly to keep my mind from the obvious fact that I was very high in the air.
 Reservoir

I did my best not to think of what would happen if the harness broke. I knew it would not, but still I fought hard to banish such feelings.

The remaining descent took about five to six minutes. I was pulling on the harness loops by my shoulders. There was no point to doing this. It was just the only thing to hold to give me a feeling of comfort. After three or four minutes, I was experiencing severe pains in my forearms from holding on so tightly and still I held! LOL!

Occasionally, Cam would steer us. These were the worst moments. Sometimes I closed my eyes and concentrated when it seemed too overwhelming.

The area was beautiful. It certainly allowed for a unique perspective, a unique opportunity … and yet the ground still could not approach fast enough.
 Beautiful (The light blue dots are swimming pools.)
Eventually, I realized we were getting reasonably close. I saw the runway - it looked about the size of a yard-stick, if I were to hold one at arms length.

 Runway

Sky and Clouds

The plane appeared. It was about to land on the runway.

“I hope they don’t hit us!” I said.
We circled around the runway. I saw the patch of green where we were to land. The cameraman was there, a little figure on the ground below.

We came in at an angle and were suddenly parallel to the ground. Cam told me to put out my legs, which I did quite dutifully. I held them out, and suddenly we were brushing the ground.

Approach

He told me to stand. I did.

Touchdown!

It was a perfect landing!

I was so psyched!

I gave a roar of triumph and slapped the cameraman a high-five.

Yeah!

It was an awesome feeling!

Thanks Man!

Victory!

I was reborn!

 The combination of my new job and my poor health leaves me with little energy. Thus, I will not pursue this topic any further. However, feel free to provide any comments you think are appropriate.

It was  interesting to have the procedure done. On my side I could actaully see my heart beating on the ultrasound imager. My father used to make these things. At one point they were state of the art. Now, they are rather routine.

Well, anyway, I just felt like getting back here again. I have not been here in a while, so I just decided to post anything.

I am happy to say I went to the gym. It is one of a few circles I have missed recently. It was nice to see my friends, the guys who work at the gym. We talked about the Patriots vicotry over the Colts - we won despite corrupt officiating. Today, we learned that the Colts pumped in fan noise to prevent Tom Brady from hearing the play calls. It is wonderful to see other teams breaking the rules. LOL

I took it easy with my gym routine, a simple chest workout with a reduced number of sets. Overall, I think my health is improving. Part of my lower left leg is still numb, and I have a few hives; however, I feel that things are improving. It is a bit daunting to be struck by such a bizarre illness. It makes me appreciate the plight of those who have serious health problems. The worst is not having a diagnosis, nothing to quantify. Many soldiers are reporting what is collectively termed as “Gulf War Syndrome”, yet the government has not found any evidence to substantiate the claims. With my own recent history, I am developing an appreciation for what those poor victims must be going through, and I am happy my mysterious illness does not seem as severe in comparison.

It is good to appreciate the liberties we have, the freedom possible with good health.

I went to the gym today. It has been about 8 or 9 weeks since I have had a serious workout. I was a little bit nervous, but I refuse to let something as trivial as chest pains and numbness in my left lower leg keep me from working out.

It was fun. I did biceps and back. I feel great! I just finished writing another story. This one took me 90 minutes. My hand is cramped from writing. I think it went very well. I hope to enter it into another contest.

In addition, I drafted plans for a third story. This one is going to be fun.

Last edited on 30-Sep-2007 20:12:59 by Smokesup

Guys….how do we move on after this…

It’s been about four hours since I read what Kaoskonfetti said, and my eyes are still red from crying…I just don’t know what to do, I’ve never been so completely and thoroughly owned by someone who is so clearly my superior. I’ve read and reread his words, I feel they are burned onto my very soul at this point. I think we all need to take a good hard look at ourselves in the mirror today and ask ourselves if we are happy with who we are. Kaos made so many intelligent points, and every one of them struck a nerve. It’s amazing that someone so young has such a mature and sage outlook on life. He has experienced so little, yet understands so much. I don’t know about you guys, but September 30th, 2007 will always be the day I felt the fires of my own sins. I don’t really have any ideas on what to do at this point, I don’t think anyone really can…maybe we can just continue on, one day at a time, and hope against hope that fortune smiles on us again one day. It will be hard playing PC through teary eyes, but I will try!

Smokesup #23…but I feel like # 0 today

My short story - “The Thing that Fell to Earth” is top-ranked on the website Fanstory.com. Indeed, today I got an email saying that it has been granted the Best of All Time Status. This means it will be searchable on the website database. This honor is given to less than 5% of all entries.

Here is the proof:    Best of All Time Status 

I have 46 reveiws from other authors. They had many nice things to say.

Their comments can be found here: Accolades

Wooo hooo!!!!!!

This weekend I started taking another round of anti-biotic to help with the sinus infection caused by the surgery - it is not uncommon for this to happen. After taking the first pill I got hives in new places within a few hours. I wisely decided to stop taking the medicine. LOL

 Today I saw the ENT doctor again. After some novocaine he sucked out the bad stuff in my sinuses. I think you will thank me for not going into much detail.

Apparently, there is a tiny hole in my septum. It must have been caused after the splints were removes. I do not have as much cartilage there as most people. It is not a problem; it will heal with time. When I breathe I can make a whistling sound like a dog chew-toy. I am sure this will come in handy in the near future.

it is interesting.

 A couple of days ago I saw a hawk perched on the sunroof of a car. I had just pulled into my apartment complex when I noticed it just sitting there calmly. I parked and walked over to it, but it flew to the tree. Then it chased a smaller bird - possible to eat - I am not sure. It had white stripes on its tail. It was pretty cool.

I got a new job!!!

The acid waters slowly dissolving my savings will soon evaporate to be a thing of the past. I am very happy.

Although the time I spend writing will decrease, I will no loner be in the shadow of impending financial ruin. This change will allow me to relax, and I expect my productivity to increase. It is hard to write compelling fiction when compelling facts interfere. Bread on the table is far more important than imagining a supernatural being.

It is a glorious day!!!

Well, it is difficult to tell if I am getting better; the progress is questionable. On one hand (pun intended) the hives on my hands have faded considerably. On the other the infection is on the move. Now it is partying on my upper forearm and chest. It is like one of those marauding armies that conquers and then searches for additional glory. (Stiring up trouble with the local peasantry - in this case the decent white blood cells who so dutifully (and overzealously, I may add) fight to keep this place in order. Well the invaders are in for a surprise, because this battle station is fully-functional, ready to release the awesome power of the …

Oh, I’m afraid the deflector shields will be quite operational when your friends arive…

Oh, what was I saying? The Benadryl is making me sleepy.

Hmmm, I must be getting slightly delirious ; hence, the Star Wars references.

By the way, why would anyone need to speak Bachi?

I mean what possible conversation could you have with a mositure evaporator?

C-3PO: “How are you doing?”

Mositure Evaporator: “Great, I just harvested twenty gallons of water.”

?!!!

Really!