SKYDIVING (3 months later)

So the reason I haven't blogged recently is because I wanted to blog this particular subject before I did anything else. I had some complications with the video, but Michael figured it out for me in a matter of seconds... this makes me feel like an old lady, "What's a URL?"

Anyway... my birthday was back in July and Michael kept saying he had a birthday surprise for me. I kept trying to get hints from him but he is a vault! He told me he would tell me what the surprise was the day before.
The day finally came and he told me the big news... he was taking me skydiving! I could hardly believe it. In fact, I didn't believe it... I think it was such a surprise that it didn't seem real to me. It wasn't until we were driving up to Ogden that I began to realize that this adventure was indeed happening! As we got closer to the area I started to become a little nervous. We got to the hanger, and we were able to watch other divers for about an hour before I jumped. It was actually nice because it calmed my nerves to see everyone have so much fun and arrive safely.

The time came, and I got all suited up (in a sweet Little Mermaid jumpsuit with Flounder on the pantleg). Dude, I was ready to go! I swear, it was another 15 minutes of waiting, so the anticipation made me a bit nervous again.

About 5 other jumpers loaded into a small plane with me and we started our flight up. We basically climbed to our height by taking big circles up to stay over the landing sight. I LOVED the flight up. We were right right above the mountains, and I could see the whole valley. I don't know if it's because of flying with my mom so often, but this was completely peaceful to me which calmed any nerves I had collected.

So in this tiny little plane there was only a plastic door that rolled up and down. Next to the door was a red and green light. My instructor jumping with me (Keegan) told me we were about ready to go, and before I knew it- the light turned green, the plastic door rolled up and people starting falling out of the plane! Before I had time to realize it, we had scooted up to the opening and my toes were over the edge. Keegan did a quick countdown before we jumped! It was crazy!!!! The initial fall was the scariest because I was falling upside down which meant I couldn't see the horizon or ground, leaving me a little disoriented. Once we turned around, it was sa-weeeeeet! We were free falling for about 60 seconds. It was crazy, because I didn't really feel like I was falling, it was just VERY windy! :)

Keegan then pulled the parachute and we coasted to the ground for about 7 minutes. It was one of the most incredible things. The Salt Lake Valley is so beautiful! One of my favorite things we did is when Keegan had me look up to the parachute. He then was able to tilt it so we were at an angle where I could see the Horizon and the top of the parachute at the same time. He pulled these awesome 360s so I could see the entire horizon! This view was beyond anything I can describe. When he would pull out of it, the chute would swing us up, and as we fell back into our harnesses, it gave the most incredible sensation of being weightless! It was by far one of the most fantastic things I have ever experienced!!!

This next part makes me laugh... we were only about 20 seconds away from the ground when Keegan says, "Now we're gonna talk about the landing..." Ummm... isn't this something we should have discussed before I leapt out of a plane? Apparently not, as all I had to do was lift my legs straight out in front of me so I could land on my butt. Once I was on the ground my legs felt like jelly as they were full of adrenaline! Michael said my entire body was shaking when I gave him a hug. I didn't even notice as I was still on a high.

To say the least the entire experience was... AMAZING! It is something I have always wanted to do, and is definitely something I will remember for a lifetime. Thanks Michael for making my 26th birthday so memorable. I love you!

Chelsey Hadley Skydiving in July 2009 from qbd3v14nt on Vimeo.

Swim Lessons

I have never been fond of the idea of swimming. Ever since I was a kid I just didn't quite trust being completely enveloped by water to then emerge alive and breathing.
As you can imagine, I was teased considerably (mostly be my siblings) for never learning how to swim. When I say I don't know how to swim, let me clarify that I dont know how to swim. I can't do the doggy paddle, the floating in water thing or really being submerged at all. It just plain terrifies me. I decided it might be a good idea to conquer a fear and build upon my self-esteem a little bit. After many hours of "shopping around" I signed up for swim lessons. I know... terrifying right?
Today was my first day at 7:45 on a Saturday morning! Now that's dedication! When I first got there, I'll admit I kinda questioned what I was thinking. I was first instructed to put my face under water and blow bubbles. I was pretty pleased with myself until my instructor, Ezra, said, "Let's try to go a little longer, about 10 seconds worth." Is he crazy?! I can't even say how unnatural "breathing" under water is. ::shudder:: Once I kinda got use to that, I was surprised how quickly I was able to progress. During that 1 hour I was able to float on my stomach while blowing bubbles in the water. With the assistance of a kick board I could swim on my belly blowing bubbles once again. At the very end of the lesson I was full on swimming on my back! I swam about 5 laps on my back until the session was over.
Dude, I rock! I am so proud of myself and can hardly believe it. If anyone would have told me a year ago what I would have accomplished today in such a short session I would have laughed... LAUGHED right in thier face.
So I have additional swim lessons over the next few Saturdays and I am very excited about it... although I still hope I don't die. That would be a major bummer.

Lesbians

Lindsey sent me this article from MSN:

Greek islanders seek to reclaim term ‘Lesbian’
Court has been asked to draw line between Lesbos natives and gay women

updated 1 hour, 45 minutes ago

ATHENS, Greece - A Greek court has been asked to draw the line between the natives of the Aegean Sea island of Lesbos and the world's gay women.
Three islanders from Lesbos — home of the ancient poet Sappho, who praised love between women — have taken a gay rights group to court for using the word lesbian in its name.
One of the plaintiffs said Wednesday that the name of the association, Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece, "insults the identity" of the people of Lesbos, who are also known as Lesbians.
"My sister can't say she is a Lesbian," said Dimitris Lambrou. "Our geographical designation has been usurped by certain ladies who have no connection whatsoever with Lesbos," he said.
The three plaintiffs are seeking to have the group barred from using "lesbian" in its name and filed a lawsuit on April 10. The other two plaintiffs are women.
Also called Mytilene, after its capital, Lesbos is famed as the birthplace of Sappho. The island is a favored holiday destination for gay women, particularly the lyric poet's reputed home town of Eressos.
"This is not an aggressive act against gay women," Lambrou said. "Let them visit Lesbos and get married and whatever they like. We just want (the group) to remove the word lesbian from their title."
He said the plaintiffs targeted the group because it is the only officially registered gay group in Greece to use the word lesbian in its name. The case will be heard in an Athens court on June 10.
'Lesbians for thousands of years'Sappho lived from the late 7th to the early 6th century B.C. and is considered one of the greatest poets of antiquity. Many of her poems, written in the first person and intended to be accompanied by music, contain passionate references to love for other women.
Lambrou said the word lesbian has only been linked with gay women in the past few decades. "But we have been Lesbians for thousands of years," said Lambrou, who publishes a small magazine on ancient Greek religion and technology that frequently criticizes the Christian Church.
Very little is known of Sappho's life. According to some ancient accounts, she was an aristocrat who married a rich merchant and had a daughter with him. One tradition says that she killed herself by jumping off a cliff over an unhappy love affair.
Lambrou says Sappho was not gay. "But even if we assume she was, how can 250,000 people of Lesbian descent — including women — be considered homosexual?"
The Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece could not be reached for comment.