skysmurf2

Hi I jump at UAQ - best thing is to join the forum (uaeskydiving@yahoogroups.com ) and ask.... you will need to be a member of some licensed organisation - but am guessing you can join USPA when you get there... speak to one of the instructors.

I doubt Harry's scar is a horcrux - although it'd be pretty evil genius if Voldemort did choose Harry as a horcrux. As for Snape... every part of the Harry Potter fan in me, wants Snape to be good so that Dumbledore wasn't wrong, but I think Rowling will make him evil in the end anyways - after all Dumbledore being smarter than most is prone to making greater mistakes. The books are no longer really meant for children.... shes said all along the earlier books are for children and then you grow into the later books... and that she prefers writing the later books because they can be dark. As a fan it would be really disappointing for Snape to be evil and for Harry to be a horcrux, as a reader - it would be more satisfying if Snape was evil and I think it would be very clever for Harry to have been the last horcrux instead of nagini, and having Harry have to kill himself in order to kill Voldemort would end any possibility of Harry Potter, life after Voldemort (the 8th book). Maybe Harry has to kill himself and Neville has to kill Voldemort, as the last bit of Voldemort to die needs to be his physical self....??? And yes I CAN'T wait for the 21st to roll around!!!

Things change and so do people... thats why people here who have been in the sport along time say that not everyone lasts... they don't. I'd make the assumption that everyone who starts skydiving and sticks with it for a few jumps (few being relative)... loooooveeessss... skydiving... but then a few years happen, life happens, shit happens.... and maybe you once loooovvveeed it... now... not so much. But hey I've only been doing this 2.5 years and shit has happened, so has life, I'm still doing it, although no where near as much as I would like to, and its still amazing. I just don't prioritize skydiving over everything else either, and as such am definitely not one of the experienced people.

An incredible idiot, whose parents totally messed her up. Shame because before she become a coked-out brain-addled ho(han) she was actually very cute and reasonably talented. Will always love mean girls though!

Anyone, and if the pack went wrong - its my own damn fault for not packing for myself.

Not experienced but ALWAYS love skydiving but sometimes other stuff is distracting and if I'm distracted I don't jump. Sometimes that just means I miss out on a load sometimes that means I stop for 3 months. Things on the ground or things that happen in the air can and have really messed with my head at times. Doesn't mean I don't love the sport just meant at times it wasn't worth it as I couldn't focus and wasn't enjoying it 100%.

Thanks.. I kind of doubted the guys advice which is why I wanted to check with an instructor (still will be asking an instructor about how to practice my tracking) but thanks for the tips... will start practicing exiting into a track and pulling from a track position. Or at least focussing more on what I do at the beginning and end of a track.

Having read the F.A.Q. what kind of tracking is best to practice? I've got a fair few jumps to go before I can wingsuit but as that is an ultimate goal in the sport... I do practice my track as much as possible. However... I mainly practice a very flat track. Have recently been told I should be aiming to track with an angle by flexing my shoulders back and placing my arms very straight behind my back for increased speed. Am not sure of the experience of the person who told me that, so have plans to ask an instructor (both about that kind of track and about what sort of tracking I should work on) but does anyone here have any advice? Would be greatly appreciated.

nah.. UAE is quite liberal... but still not much of a street walker! too hot!

LOL.... nope sorry no pics of me walking the streets of Dubai/UAE in heels but probably a good reason for that!

one look at her profile page would have explained that...

you made me almost spit out my wine...

I think the problem isn't so much $475 an hour (as thats fairly reasonable for senior lawyers in large practices). As a first year intern the law firm I worked at billed my hours as GBP 110 an hour (roughly USD 200 an hour at today's conversation rate) Thats as a first year law student The problem from that particular bill is that she charged him for incredibly expensive dinners and other rather ridiculous claims. Perfectly within a client's right to refuse to pay for a $1000 meal (especially if the client is not present!) However, have left law world post LLB and LLM to join finance so not sure about present practices!

I have a tendency to put my foot in my mouth on occasion.... After my friend's funeral everyone went back to his parent's home. His Dad was thanking us for all the photos we had sent saying he and Mark's mom + stepdad really appreciated the funny and silly photos we'd shared with them. I then (and I was 21 and am a girl) responded to his father... "you should see the ones from my bedroom." Followed by "uuhmm... I...I...I meant taken in my... oh nevermind." Luckily his Dad just thought that was hilarious and understood what I had meant as well.

I'm in a very similar place to you except having just moved countries/continents for my job. 3.5 months so far... I don't have anybody. Everyone in my office is much older than me and I work the kind of hours that make socializing very difficult. I don't even get a lunch hour. I would happily moan and rant in sympathy with you but instead I'm just going to keep thinking that it will get better - its only a job and if I stick it out and do well then it will lead to better things. That doesn't stop me from really despising the environment(s) i'm in BUT it is just a job if it doesn't get better then I can always quit and find something I enjoy more. So could you?! Remember if nothing else jobs do pay for jumping

1. my family and all their support. my mom and dad hate my skydiving (I'm 22 - and just moved countries for my first job). i just told my mom my first holiday this year will be for skydiving - my second will be to them. she actually understood.

figure out how much you want to save per month/week and budget backwards from there. Decide an amount you want to spend per a week - and stick to it!! withdraw that amount at the beginning of the week and then put your debit card away. credit card only for emergencies. write down everything you spend (incl. $2 for a newspaper or gum or whatever small money expenditures we all make without thinking.)

My non-skydiver friends are for the most part my closest friends. Skydiving is a part of me and its a pretty big part - which is great and I share that with other skydivers. But my non-skydiver friends knew me before I started skydiving and they know me now. My seeing them isn't based on a common interest/passion or the weather... hee! its based on waaayyy more that one single thing. And I love them all the more for that... its even better because while they don't necessarily understand my skydiving they respect and support it and listen to me go on about it with a fresh and non cynical/experienced ear. (and they've had 2 years of it - i'd say i have pretty good friends!) Basically I wouldn't trade the mates I've made skydiving for anything BUT i wouldn't lose my non-skydiver friends for skydiving either. Am definitely still in touch with them and happy to make the effort to ensure it stays that way!

Went to Uni in the UK - so beer tradition very much alive!!! I wouldn't risk 'formalising' any rules that could get your club in trouble. But, in our club, in spite of being poor students Beer was called for almost any first or major stupidity or really anything we thought particularly 'special.' However, being poor students, is also probably why "BEER" was called far more often than it was bought

Have been lucky enough to travel loands and have lived in 8 countries. travelling is great and meeting new people experiencing new cultures/ different histories is wonderful. I currently live in the UAE (Dubai) and this is my second time in the middle east. The middle east is a great place to travel to loads of culture and history - a teensy bit dodgy in certain places but really amazing. Egypt, Turkey and Oman are beautiful. Dubai is unique! A fun place to visit rather than a historical one but it is an interesting combination of East and West. happy travels!

http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/uaeskydiving/ is the link for the UAE skydiver's group/forum - good place to get in touch with UAQ jumpers. definitely get current and retrained before heading out here as its not the biggest DZ and a bit of a tandem factory but still a fun place! look forward to seeing you in the air!

Hi - I jump at Umm Al Quwain - and have a BPA A license - its not a problem - depending on currency they might want to do a check out dive but thats about it. When are you heading over?

1) "chav" actually means 'underclass' but its used to describe the big hoop wearing, tracksuit loving, and sideways cap wearing members of Brit. society 2) a barrister and a solicitor are both lawyers but certified by different boards. Barristers are your versions of advocates and have rights to appear (and argue) before all the courts in the land. Solicitors are more like legal consulatants and are denied the right to appear before certain courts. To put it another way solicitors research all the case material and then barristers create the argument. 3. No. 4. depends on where you get your pint.

If your bank is willing to approve your business plan, they most likely would be willing to grant you a business loan. How did you submit a business plan without detailed financing options? The advice of take a loan is best - obviously it'd be nice if you could self-finance at least part of the amount - but if not get some collateral or as stated by an above poster see if you can leverage off some of the assets of the target. p.s. pls. don't include I wasn't born into a wealthy family as a reason for a loan BUT you could also try and compete for an entrepreneurial grant (either local, national, or education - if still in school). You could also try to gain the interest of a wealthy partner... in which case network your butt off unfortunately there prob. aren't too many skydivers with extra cash around

1. Thats fine they're pretty and I like sparkly things! The first noted diamond engagement ring was given in the 1400s - an Austrian prince to his future wife... I already said rings (with stones) have been given since at least the 1200s. Indians for over 2500 years have used diamonds in their iconography - diamonds have associations with divinty for some. However, I did agree with you that DeBeers did some serious marketing in the early 20th century. 2. DeBeers has lost 60% of its market share in the last decade or so... however, I agree they are still monopolistic 3. Buy a good quality unset stone (have it certified) resale value is almost unaffected (you may even make a profit) - its the setting of the stone that ruins its resale value. To do so you may purchase unset stones all over the world - world favourites include: Antwerp, Israel and India. Though why would I want to sell my diamonds? Its quite easy to purchase and sell unset stones even if you are not a dealer yourself. I also agreed that in the last 100 years or so an engagement ring preferably with diamond has become the norm - however, the size/quality/and expense of said ring is up to future husband and wife. Some people save the money and give heirlooms - which is a lovely gesture. A ring is essentially a present from husband to wife that says I want to be with you for the rest of my life. You can do so with anything... rig, house, etc. Just up to individual choice.