First day of class

Well, it turns out this is going to be a NAUI class, and my instructor
claims he's taught everything, but likes NAUI because it gives him the
freedom to go over and above what's in the book and what's expected of him.

Right now I know more about the bends than I care to, but learned a lot
about buoyancy and pressure that was not in any of the NAUI or PADI books
I've got.

Tomorrow: In the pool. I'll keep you posted in this thread as to how it
goes.

His name is Terry Danko, and he teaches mostly at the University of
Colorado. Said if any of us have problems just show up at his next class
wherever it is to finish up -- no charge. Same with refresher courses.

If all goes well I'll be in the Blue Hole at the end of the month. Terry
said there are a lot of other places to dive and get your OW certification,
but the Blue Hole is more like "really" diving and that's the experience he
wants the class to have.

One of his theories is that when you need your buddy they won't be around to
help, so you really need to be self sufficient and be able to solve your own
problems. He also said don't expect him to come and help you immediately
when you are having problems. A lot of scuba is solving problems, and you
are going to need to work some of these things out on your own.

Sounds good. Stay tuned.

Sheldon

Second day: in the pool

Holy crap. He threw so many things at us at the same time my head is
spinning. Passed the swim test, but he had us going to the bottom over and
over, clearing masks, taking our mask off and back on. One time I wasn't
looking up and came up underneath somebody and couldn't reach the surface.
Keep in mind we had no tanks, so I just reach up and started pushing things
out of the way.

Anyway, you guys were right. NAUI testing is a hell of a lot more taxing
than PADI testing. All things considered, I'm not that tired and looking
forward to breathing underwater for the first time. Otherwise, I feel like
I've been through the wash and spin cycle in my washing machine.

Sheldon