SPRINGFEST
The winter was grueling. The year ‘round water business had picked up, requiring bi-weekly runs to Richmond and weekly runs to Fort Meade for Mountain Valley. We managed to have a winter session of tai-chi ch’uan in the Berlin Town Hall that doubled as a dance studio without mirrors. With skill, cunning and daring and a volunteer carpenter, a wall of mirrors was donated to the town of Berlin and a wall of mirrors was donated to Professor for teaching the class. Everyone takes for granted how things /merchandise appear in America as though it is our birthright for easy access of plenty: “Charley says, love that Good and Plenty”—An American Value. Somewhere somehow there is work involved and sometimes the workers even get paid a livable wage or something even. My money was pouring out the back of the truck as though I drove around with the door open. My priorities had definitely shifted. I borrowed 1500 from Professor and signed a note to keep from going down the tubes when the business was doing better than it ever had. I even had an accountant that was handling the water and the tai chi but it all went on the same bill– mine.
I finally negotiated with Mr. J to take the Eastern Shore off my hands. I just wanted to leave. He hired a 21 year old kid, a relative, and offered him more money than I had ever made in a year just to deliver. He rented small warehouse space and I trained the kid. All of the water would be delivered to the kid. My accountant said I didn’t need a lawyer for the deal and I took his word. I also took Mr. J’s word that I would get all of my money. I had basically cut new ground for a product that did no advertising. I called Full Sail Center for The Recording Arts and a student loan was approved after a nice cash down payment. I drove to Orlando for a weekend to look at “the campus”. I had faith.
The weekend was a marketing “FLY IN” when the FOOL SALE plane trucked in groups of parents and kids for a weekend of heavy duty marketing and smiling and nothing but positive energy with a touch of Christ being the founder of the school who got to tell his story and his dream and the hope for all of the worthless offspring that couldn’t make it in the university structure of four years or even two. The FOOL SALE offered an Associates degree in 13 months and job placement and small class sizes and fajitas and nothing but smiles. “Learn the Rules of the Jungle” was their jingle, all for 18,000 dollars at the time.
In early May Ocean City had initiated SPRING FEST featuring Beer and music and art and food and beer in an attempt to kick off the season early and promote the town as a family resort. It was my last May. I learned that skydivers would be landing on the beach, flying out of Ocean City Airport. I contracted for a tandem jump from 10,000 feet. I was strapped to the largest jumper and our combined weight was that of a small tank. I wore shorts. We went out of the plane and went into a spin and the fool pulled the cord almost immediately. The straps for the tandem cut into my leg and cut off circulation. We floated over the Atlantic Ocean—the pain was excruciating. I called up to the skydiver that things weren’t going well and he let me stand on his feet to take some pressure off the cutting straps—tough to do dangling fron a parachute at 8,000 feet. Everyone else from the jump had landed on the beach in the heart of Springfest. There was a DJ from a local radio station announcing the landings on the beach.
“Here comes the Waterguy,” he said. “What took you so long? She really wanted it. And you’re jumping out of airplanes you big dummy.”