FALLING BLACK DOTS AND OTHER THINGS

POST #37



As I looked up into the air, the tiny image of the Piper Navajo aircraft came into view from the east. It was at a height of 12,500 feet. Only about a half hour before, I had been having a chat with the pilot of the aircraft and now he was passing right overhead here at Pitt Meadows airport. From that height, the Navajo looks pretty tiny, but it was nothing in comparison to what was to come. With eyes straining, the first black dot exited the aircraft, followed by 5 more dots in fairly rapid succession. Each one of these specks were falling rapidly towards the ground at a rate of 176 feet per second. And one of those black dots falling in the morning sky was my niece Laura. She and a group of friends had come to Vancouver for the long weekend from Calgary and one of the things, on their list of things to do was to go skydiving.

The first part of the skydive was in freefall which was the reason for the rapid descent. Watching this from the ground, it is rather amazing at just how fast this appears to happen. After about a 5000 foot freefall, the chute pops out and the jumpers all gradually descend to the target field below. Being first time jumpers, they were all strapped to a skydiving instructor which allows people who have never jumped before, to experience a freefall on their very first jump.

When they returned to the airport hanger they were all "pumped up" which was to be expected after what they had just experienced. While we waited on the ground for their various photos and videos to be produced I had an opportunity to ask them all what they thought was the best part. Most agreed that the moment they exited the door of the aircraft was the most memorable part of the whole event. Once you jump out that door, there is no going back, and then you are left to depend on the skill of the instructor as well as the skill of the person who packed your parachute. I'm guessing that for those first 5000 feet of freefall, there might on occasion be just a hint of doubt as to whether or not the chute is going to deploy properly, and I imagine that all the virgin jumpers as they had called themselves prior to heading up into the air, experienced a sigh of releif once the chute finally did open. Or maybe the experience was so intense that their minds were just focused on the present moment as the ground rushed towards them. Whatever the case, they all were very pleased that they had traded a small amount of cash for what was probably a once in a lifetime experience for some of them. I was happy to have had the opportunity to experience this with them, even though it was only from the ground looking up.

Back here on the housesitting front I am now in week number four with Jackson and Peach, a bonus week, as the owners normally only go away for three weeks at this time of year. So lucky me, I get some extra time with these two little baby boneheads as I like to call them. The more I get to know them, the cuter they become. Peach injured her leg a while back but it seems to be getting better although from time to time she does limp. Maybe she is showing some empathy towards the housesitter's limp. The vet didn't seem to think it was anything too serious, but to keep an eye on it, and aside from that she is as energetic as can be.

Come this Saturday, my housesit here will be finished and prior to about a week ago, it was looking like I would have two weeks to fill without any housesit commitment. But then out of the blue, I found a week in Nanoose Bay and about a half of a week here in Vancouver, so most of the holes in my calendar are now filled up. What to do with the few days I have free, I haven't decided on yet, however I am contemplating a visit to one of the Gulf islands with my bike and tent in order to get out of the city, but we'll see what happens in the next few days.

And the one other thing to note is that depending on how the first part of next week goes, I may or may not be near a computer on the 14th so there is the potential for a missed blog on that day. If I am in the city I will be able to get to the library, but if I'm out camping I won't. In any event, by the 21st I will be housesitting again and with internet access, so the writing will continue then for sure.

The journey continues.

Bye for now,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer