Another year in New York is about to come to an end
my 13th time since I came to US
Morgan, Lee, Debbie... our old faces cuddle up in our old place, with 7 dishes cooking for 9 people! Happy New Year, I pass out well before midnight, exhausted from joy of cooking.
Erika sews her Christmas gift for her brother and sister
take a break!
by the lake
where Captain Keith teachs Toshiro how to sail
wrapping the gifts can get very creative
Bowman sisters sing Christmas Carol
'I'm distracted.' says Christin, putting her headphones on
next morning the family gather around the tree
Erika watches the sun set in the misty clouds of Shenandoar
Toshiro has slept little
drifted down from New Orleans on the day before Thanksgiving, to the lush green of Zephyrhills, Florida
my micro tent has just enough for me to sleep next to my guitar and the suitcase
any given moment the sky is full of colorful canopies, above the landing area so big that you can hardly land off
2 Japanese girls Kayoko and Yukari practice their 34 way
'we didn't make it!' laughs Yukari
November 24th, I'm a proudly A-licensed skydiver. Now the sky is the limit!
(L-R) Chris gets ready for loading as Marius talks through the dive flow with a new AFF student Steve
3-way exit with Chris and Brian, hang on tight!
shoot I lost them, let's catch up!
okay, time to pull...
the last tent standing! after everyone left to go back to their post-thanksgiving American life
a flock swoops above the pond
flying lead and sinking paper... I manage to fly in the same fall rate with Rob, a dense jumper from Pennsilvania. thank you for all the coaching and fun jumps
Chuck Blue, the world's top class wing suit flyer has become such a sincere and generous big brother to me, at last in the night before I am to leave Zephyrhills
the last night at Z-hills goes wild and late. Chuck and Melanie invite me to their pimped up RV
Matt teaches me how to pack a parachute in Skydive N'awlins, Slidell, LA
Anita, the packer girl sits on Daddy Santa's laps
Santa loads onto Cessna 182
Toshiro finishes his jump #19
Stephen drives our rock-star Altima across the Mississippi, by mistake.
dinner night!
music for dessert
chilling out on the acoustic set in living room
look how this guy leans so far out to feed the alligators
and the turtles older than we all could ever know
gwarrrr!!
cruising the bayou through setting sun
'another one gets hooked.' I introduce Betsy to skydiving, an exciting and expensive sport
Toshiro gets training
Let's go, jump #21
Thank you Matt, for coaching with me, flying with me and showing me how to pack
busted down on Bourbon street
while my comic book princess Betsy lies sound asleep in the passenger seat, Toshiro pulls up on the side of a country road to take a pee. pitch dark night in the bayou land somewhere between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Toshiro makes one step too far off the shoulder and dives knee deep into an alligator populated muddy swamp
