skyjunior

Steve it was good to see you last nite. I have not been there in a while and what a relief to see you with out the breathing machine and feeding tube along with all the other IV's and stuff. You have a strong spirit and a thoughtful mind and a positive outlook. I do not really know if the skydiving community knows how for you have come and how traumatic your injuries were, are and will be for the rest of your life. So, in that case I will say that T-4 is about nipple high, no feeling, no movement, nada, nothing from the nipples on down. If I understand correctly Steve had rods surgically implanted along his spine to take the place of no stomach muscles and give him some support. Steve has just recently, through physical therepy and hard work learned how to roll over in bed and do some wheel chair action. Like I said, Steve has come a long way and has a long way to go. PLEASE REMEMB

Well fellow jumpers I am back in the air again. I broke my back Jan. 5, 2004. I was cleared to jump Jan. 2005, but waited until I could start jumping on a regular basis again. So today I did 2 nice jumps, a nice easy bellyfly with video and then a great sitfly. It felt wonderful to smell the fuel, hear the engines, experience freefall again. No problems with canopy control or altitude awareness. Landing was smooth. I look forword to jumping again. PLEASE REMEMB

I broke my back on Jan 4. Sixty percent crush of L1 and 20 percent core compression. Talked to the Doc about when I could start wrestling again and he said 1 year from the injury, I then asked him about skydiving and got the same answer. So I will probably make my comeback in March sometime. I do plenty of specific and general exercises for my back. come Jan. I am going to start jumping off low stairs to see how the back feels and then try to progress to three feet over time. I would like to think that I have not made my last skydive, but if I do not feel confident and physically ready it will be a no go. PLEASE REMEMB

I have a glock 36 and probably average a 100 rounds a week. More than some, less than others. I have never had a malfunction with this weapon. As for as accuracy goes, I can put all rounds in a four inch circle just as fast as I can pull the trigger at 7 and 10 yards. At 25 yards the pistol is more accurate than I am. This glock is my carry weapon and if I did not think I could stake my life on it, I would be carrying something else. Not to discount any other manufacturer, but I am quite satisfied with my glock. PLEASE REMEMB

Well the series is two to one how is it going to go now? PLEASE REMEMB

I wonder if that school has scissors for the kiddee's in arts and craft's class ? What about the circle making tool, the compass ? Does this school have baseball or softball bats for gym class ? This incident let's everyone know how little commen sense "some" of our school admistrators have. PLEASE REMEMB

Go Redbirds, Cardinals all the way! PLEASE REMEMB

My wife and I named that position "lazy love". PLEASE REMEMB

Hackworth is the head of the website. If I am not mistaken, during his military career he recieved 5 purple hearts for wounds during combat. PLEASE REMEMB

Thanks for the link. PLEASE REMEMB

Sorry I do not know how to link to this website. For all of you active, retired, interested,curious military types this a very interesting website. www.sftt.org PLEASE REMEMB

I broke my back on Jan. 5th. I crushed L1 with a 20 percent compression. I am supposed to start rehab in early June. About 2 months ago I asked my doc when I could start to wrestle again, as that can be a pretty high impact sport. He said in one year, so then I asked him when I could skydive and again he said one year so..... early 05 I am back in the air. PLEASE REMEMB

A big congradulations to you Jack, you worked hard. I look forword to seeing you around the DZ and for sure look forword to jumping with you next year. PLEASE REMEMB

Where I work I am not an exception to the rule. Of course the bell shaped curve still exists and the bottom 10 percent are worthless and of course they do not work to much. Likewise there is a bell shaped curve for owners and management also, and they don't make it either. As for as making it difficult to fire someone, I believe that should be the case. I may be an outstanding electrician...timely, productive, team player and knowledgeable. But I don't always make everyone happy. I dont think I should be fired because an owner, engineer, or customer to asks me to do an unsafe or shoddy installation. Long after the price of the install is forgotten the quality will stay. If I can not do a quality job in a timely manner I will not be working for to long. I don't think I should be fired because the boss dosen't like my political views or because I skydive { it's to dangerous} or I ride motorcycles. I don't think I should lose my job because the boss had a tough nite and comes in with a hangover or has troube with their marriage and wants to take it out on me, and I won't take it. I should be fired if I am not qualifed, productive, a slacker or a troublemaker. I have seen many young or new engineers or project managers with their bigtime college degree's come on the job and try and be the bigshots because they think they can. By the way no slam on college degree's as I have an undergraduate degree in industrial management and a Master's in business. I do not think a person should be fired in heat of an argument or discussion. I think if one wants to take a persons job that it should be thought out and methodical, that there should be documetation and maybe some consultation. In my business I can build a case in less than a day or it may take a few weeks, but in the end if you are screwing up your gone. I have worked for forman I just could not get a long with and have had tradesman work for me I could not get along with. But transfer that individual or have been transfered to another job and everything is roses. Now I will tell you a story that happened to me. I was sent to a job on January 5th this year. After looking the job over I knew that it really required two workers.But I also knew that if I called for another worker it would create a rukas at the office because they thought it was an easy job and just required one man. Well long story short, I fell and broke my back. I am out of work for six month's or longer. If I would have trusted my experience and instincts this would not have happened. I should have refused the job and let my Business Agent fight for me, but I did not. My fault. But I get a check from my local every week. About one tenth of what I normally make. But with workers comp, the local check and donations from my fellow union brothers and sisters, I will make it and not lose my house or car. Again, I am proud to be a union member and I would be an outstanding employee no matter if I was in a union or not, but thankfully I am. PLEASE REMEMB

I have been a union electrician for 27 years. I have been a forman for about 20 of those 27 years. I work my balls off. I work in the rain, the cold, the heat, the dirt and whatever else it takes to get the job done. I am proud of the training that I have and the additional schooling that has been afforded me to be a top electrician who can hold his on with anyone else, union or non-union. It seens to me that my union contract allows me to bargin with our contractors for a fair wage and benefits. United we bargin and diveded we beg. It seems that doctors contract with hospital for their services. CEO's. CFO's and board of dirctors contract for their service's. On and on and on. Well our local has a group of tradesman who have banded together to contract for our service's. Their is strength in unity. In our area the non-union contractors charge the customer the same rate as union contractors do or maybe a little less. But they pay their employees less than half what we get paid. As a union we have barginned for some of that profit. I have been around non-union construction sites where the workers are treated like crap, like so much disposable junk. Are all union workers perfect employees, hell no. But if they are not working out fire them. It can be done, I have done it about 10 times over the years. Is it hard to do, hell yes, and it should be. Taking a persons job from them should not be easy. I have had to have my ducks in a row and all of my teminations have stuck. I know I am thankful for my union. We have a contract that stipulates our working hours and what we are required to do. No where in that contract does it say to work slow or only do so much work. We have to be competitve and productive are we wont have jobs. I tell all my contractors that I work for that I want to make them as much money as I can, because if I make them money I will stay working. I have never been laid off and never been fired. every contractor I have worked for has said they would hire me again and I am welcome back. And I am a union man. PLEASE REMEMB