THE DARK TOWER: A Stephen King Story For Non-Stephen King Fans

So you don’t read much Stephen King because horror is not a genre that interests you. That’s fine. I haven’t read much of that stuff, either. Well, guess what? THE DARK TOWER is not horror, but it is one fantastic series. If you’ve never read King before but you do like fantasy, then I would recommend this seven-volume series.

It’s hard to describe. It’s part Spaghetti Western, part Lord of the Rings and part meta-fiction, blurring the lines between fictional worlds and our real world. What if I told you this series had Cowboys living in castles in a world where “Hey Jude” may be heard on the piano. In this world is a murderous passenger train that loves riddle contests. The heroes are drawn from the timestream from different points in our own history and in their quest to do nothing less than save all Existence, they encounter creatures or situations that recall everything from The Wizard of Oz to Marvel Comics. And what if I said the entire saga weaves in and around all of King’s previous work, revealing that all of his stories are actually connected, but without requiring you to be familiar with his previous work?

And then I told you that despite how disparate and surreal all that sounds, that it actually works. Would you be interested? You should be. I’m only about three-quarters of the way through the fifth book of the series, but I can already recommend this because of the extremely unique nature of the story.

King plays with the very nature of reality and often sends the reader on a head-trip as he examines a universe that contains our world and many others. These worlds connect in many ways and show that nothing is ever a coincidence. It’s a world where something as simple as a flower growing in a vacant lot could be a sure sign the Universe is about to die.

I’m not finished with the series yet, but everyone I know who has read it says that the ending is awesome. They payoff at the end of the last book is completely worth it. From what I’m able to decipher from the first five books is that King is giving us an examination of the importance of Storytelling. By that, I mean the shared knowledge all members of a culture have due to Stories told and passed down.

Stephen King has a word in the Dark Tower series to describe this abstract idea of common, unspoken, shared knowledge amongst a group of people. The word is khef. You’ll need to read the books to fully understand khef, but it seems clear to me that it is a concept King really believes. This theme of the Power of Storytelling allows him to bring in elements from stories we already know (such as The Wizard of Oz), and the connection to his previous novels expands this theme both internally (within the story told) and externally (providing a Real World example for his readers by the very nature of having this series published).

It’s really just amazing and unlike anything else I’ve ever read. If you don’t like horror, but you do like fantasy then you are missing out if you skip this series. The first book in the series is The Gunslinger. Get yourself a copy and enjoy the ride.

Birmingham kisses US Soccer Good-Bye

I don't understand what they are thinking. I live in Birmingham, Alabama and for the last few years I've been extremely excited as a fan of US Soccer. After firmly establishing itself as the first-choice Southern venue for National Team home games, Birmingham is now purposely making a move that will keep US Soccer away.

I was in living in Columbus, GA when Birmingham hosted Olympic soccer games in 1996. I had no idea at that point that I would one day soon be living in Birmingham, but I was excited at a chance to see some well known US players in action. My dad and I made the trip that summer to see the United States defeat Tunisia. The experience was awesome.

Fast forward to March of 2000. I'm now living in Birmingham and the city is now hosting its first ever National Team home game. It's a friendly against, again, Tunisia. Two years later, the team returns to Birmingham for a World Cup warm-up match against Ecuador. The attendance, and the vocal support for the home team earned Birmingham a favored spot on the National Team's list of preferred home venues.

If there was a game to played in the south, Birmingham would now get that game. Being centrally located in the South, we could draw from several states. Here I am, a HUGE fan of international soccer and of the US team in particular. And I live in a city they love to come play games. You can imagine my excitement.

This new-found status with US Soccer culminated in March of 2005 with Birmingham hosting a World Cup Qualifier against Guatemala. Again, a huge crowd. This time even on a Wednesday night. US Soccer was pleased with the turnout and Bruce Arena, the coach, even went out of his way to praise the high quality of the playing field.

...and that's where the trouble lies. All these games have been played at Legion Field, a dinosaur of a football stadium. It was falling apart so bad that the upper deck had been condemned for a couple of years and after the Guatemala match it actually came down. The University of Alabama no longer plays their games there, so the place is hardly used.

Well, now the city, in all its wisdom has decided it would be a good idea to spend a whole bunch of money replacing the grass with artificial turf! The decision has been made to do this before April 11th: a date that we had our next US Soccer game scheduled.

But now US Soccer won't play on artificial turf, it is against FIFA standards. So by putting in turf, we can't host any more games. The county commissioner here said "Let's wait and host the April 11th game and then put in the turf." But apparently that's not going to happen. Contracts have already been signed and all that.

So: Good-Bye US Soccer. It was fun while it lasted. I'm glad that you liked Birmingham. There is a huge community of soccer fans that would have loved to have you back every couple of years. I'm sorry the leadership in the city didn't see fit to keep the grass in place, considering a game is estimated to bring in about $5 Million to the local economy.

I guess I'll just catch the rest of the games on TV.

It's a Boy!

January 15th-22nd, 2006

Our son, Charles Jackson Wright, finally arrived on January 15th under pretty dramatic circumstances. Jackson weighed 8lbs 12oz at birth and was 21" long. Getting him into this world was one of the most intense experiences I've ever had.

Kim and I had decided we wanted an all-natural, at-home delivery using a midwife. Since midwifery is not allowed in Alabama, we had to go to a place in Tennessee for the delivery. Kim's water broke and she began her labor at about 9:15am on Friday the 13th!

After a quick stop to the OB in Birmingham for an ultrasound (that revealed the baby was in a posterior position), we hit the road for Tennessee.

Kim endured an all-natural labor for a total of about 18 hours. By 3am, she had been through hours of agony with very little dilation to show for it.

At 3am on Saturday the 14th, we take her to Athens-Limestone Hospital in Athens, Alabama. She's admitted right away to the maternity ward where's she's quickly given painkillers.

By 6am she had an epidural and was on pitossin to help push her progression along. She progressed right on schedule at 1cm per hour for the next six hours. But then she stalled out at around 8cm. It took her from about noon to well into the night, but she finally did dilate all the way. But then... they still couldn't get the baby through because she had a cervical lip that wouldn't budge.

At 1am on Sunday, the doctor let her rest for one hour. Then at two o'clock, they started their last hour of hard pushing. But no success. At around 3, the decision was made to take the baby via C-section.

I was with Kim in the OR for the surgery. They had to work hard to get the baby out because he was so far down into the birth canal. Jackson finally arrived at 3:48. We didn't know if we were having a boy or girl until the surgeon announced it and when she said "It's a Boy!" Kim and I hooped and hollared. We were both wanting a boy so bad. The first time we saw him was moments later after they had taken him across the room to wash him.

I immediately went to him and was soon holding my son for the first time. After a brief family hug with his mother, I had to take Jackson out while the closed Kim up. Jackson wasn't out of the woods yet.

Since he had been in the womb for 44 hours, all with the water broken, he was classified as High Risk at birth. They put him under observation in the Special Care unit and, sure enough, his oxygen levels soon began dropping.

He was placed under an oxyhood to help him breath and a precautionary antibiotic IV was attached to his temple. They took blood samples to run a bunch of tests, looking to rule out any and all infections.

Finally, at about 6am on Sunday, with my son on oxygen and under close observation, I finally went to sleep, after being up for 48 straight hours. When I woke up a few hours later in the room with Kim, she still hadn't seen him and he was still on oxygen.

By about 3pm, though, he had breathed well enough on his own for a whole hour so he was finally taken to see his mother. We all got to hold him at last. We stayed at the hospital until Tuesday the 17th. Jackson checked out completely healthy, the long labor had not resulted in any infections! The IV was removed Tuesday and by that evening we were all headed back home to Birmingham.

The drama was not quite over for Kim. Her bladder had been distressed during labor and it ended up swollen. After being home for about five days, she started showing signs of infection. On Sunday the 22nd, she was taken by ambulance to the ER in Birmingham where she was shortly admitted.

She ended up staying there until the following Friday as they fought multiple infections. At long last, all of us were healthy and at home. We certainly have our hands full being new parents. Everything's a learning experience. But we have a beautiful, healthy boy and could not be more thrilled. Be sure to visit www.defdave.com for plenty of pictures of him.

Six Months!

September 12, 2005

Another entry from Kim:
6 months this week! The 2nd trimester continues to be great, despite pulling my back, leg cramps, heartburn, nausea and other problems I won't mention. I sound like a drug commercial, listing possible side effects, ha ha. I am taking coral calcium for the leg cramps (miracle mineral!), and papaya for the heartburn (also amazing). I am also taking Nettle and Red Rasberry to help make my uterus "stronger", supposedly, for labor. Fun, fun! Pregnancy massages are helping alot too. Add to all that the stress of selling our home, shopping for another one, work stress, etc. Shall we say it's been a slightly stressful month or what? I'm ready for a break.

Next month we are getting a small one, as we are visiting Ray and Tanya for a long weekend in Mexico. It will be great to see them again. I can't wait to see Tanya and have one of our marathon conversations about everything under the sun! She is always so much fun to be around, and Ray is so precious. The baby continues to be pretty active, and David can feel it move now. We have gotten a lot more newborn clothes (thanks Grams and Pop!), and also are getting a co-sleeper for the baby (thanks again Grams and Pop)

Too bad we are moving now and I have to re-do the nursery, but we'll get it done in time. Or David will, while I sleep, ha ha. Just kiddin'. Happy B'day to Grams and Tanya this month!

Four and a Half Months!

July 28, 2005

Another entry from Kim:
Well, here we are at 4.5 months, and I literally just popped out today…finally! It’s amazing how it can happen in one day, or seem to anyway. It’s wonderful. The baby is very active late at night and last night I felt hiccups for the first time. It’s also wonderful being a newlywed and being pregnant! David has been a lot of help around the house lately since I have been sick and in bed a lot the last few months. I have been pretty much useless around the house until recently. I went from cooking dinner most nights to not cooking for 3 months straight. David would come home from work and I would be in bed asleep! Things are normalizing now, finally. We are off to the beach this weekend to visit Dawn & Jerry, so look for new pics next week!

We're Having a Baby!

July 10, 2005

A guest DefBlog entry from Kim: In late April, David and I were thrilled to learn we were expecting. We weren't really expecting a positive so soon after only 1 month of trying, but God blessed us immediately! We are now in the 15th week, and other than still feeling nauseous, things are great. Last week we starting feeling the little baby butterflies, and as of my last ultrasound on June 26th, the baby measured 12cm. Our due date is December 29th.
We have decided not to find out the sex of the baby, for several reasons. We want to be surprised at the delivery of course, and as far as "stuff" and "planning" goes, neutral is great because you can definitely re-use it. Once the baby is here we will get more gender-specific clothes, etc. We may get the doctor to write down the sex and put it in an envelope, and then maybe on our anniversary or on Christmas, if he can't stand it, David may open it. But if he does, he won't tell. I'm going to try to get him to be surprised with me though! That's a moment I would like to share, but we'll see what happens.

Thanks for the support and constant prayers of my best friend Dawn, who I am constantly on the phone with. My sister Wendy, who gives great advise and has given me TONS of toys, clothes, blankets, and you name it. A very special thanks to my great friend Tracy Brown, who rented the doppler for us, (the best gift ever for a worried mom) and has also given me tons of advise and clothes. And of course, thanks to Mom and Lynn for all the baby gear they have given us from their professional yard-sale skills!

We are truly blessed to have such a wonderful support system. Look for new, updated pictures on the home page later this week!

My Trip to Canada

December 2nd-7th, 2004

Once again, Ignatius Productions, the company that sent me to Africa, hired me to help with another documentary. This time, the job took me to Winnipeg, Manitoba to help put together a biographical piece on a martyr of the Catholic Church by the name of The Blessed Vasyl Velychkovski.

Tim and I got on a plane in Atlanta early on Thursday morning and after a stop in Minneapolis arrived in Winnipeg around 1pm. We were initially denied entry into Canada. The first guy we dealt with in the Immigration office wasn’t going to let us in because he couldn’t understand why a Canadian crew wasn’t hired. After sitting for two hours in that office, a senior officer was convinced by our clients that we were uniquely qualified for that specific job so we were finally given special permission to enter.

There was snow on the ground, the temperature was around 3 degrees Fahrenheit with a wind child of about –10. Our client, Father John, took us to the monastery at St. Joseph’s Ukrainian Catholic Church where we would stay for the next few days. While we were in Winnipeg, we shot several interviews, poured over hundreds of photographs and old recordings, and shot a prayer service as we learned all we could about The Blessed Vasyl.

His story is a very dramatic one. He lived from 1903 to 1973 and spent much of that time either hiding from the Communist regime in Ukraine or suffering extreme conditions in Soviet prison camps. In a time when the Catholic Church was banned by the Communist government, Vasyl Velychkovski dared to profess his faith and minister to others. For such crimes as preaching the Word of God or observing communion, he was sentenced to prison. He was released from his second imprisonment in 1972 when they thought he was about to die. At this point, only Canada would take him and so he ended up joining the Ukrainian community in Winnipeg for the final year of his life.

In 2002, Velychkovski was beatified by the Catholic Church. In honor of this, Father John of St. Joseph’s had Blessed Vasyl’s body moved to a shrine at the church. There are currently efforts underway to bestow Blessed Vasyl with sainthood.

It appears likely that I may also end up editing this documentary together. The intention is for the piece to be finished by June and hopefully nationally on EWTN sometime in the summer of 2005. We’ll see how it goes.

Our Honeymoon!

November 7th-11th, 2004

The day after the wedding, Kim and I went to the Birmingham airport and got on a plane to Cozumel, Mexico. After switching planes in Houston, we arrived at our destination around 2 in the afternoon. Cozumel is an island in the Gulf of Mexico just off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. We were there for a four-night all-inclusive stay at the Reef Club resort on the channel side of the island. Our room was on the bottom level sitting directly on the beach.
On Monday, we spent some time in the pool and did a little snorkeling. The highlight of the day, though, happened when we went to the nearby national park. There, we swam with dolphins. We got into the water with them and they would do different stunts with us.'

On Tuesday, I went scuba diving for the first time. It was amazing. I had never been diving before, but we went down to a depth of about 40 feet and stayed there for just under an hour. While I was diving, I saw starfish scatted about the ocean floor. I also saw angelfish and the beautiful bluestriped grunt. The coolest thing I saw was a stringray moving across the floor, as well as a spiney lobster trying to hide under a piece of coral. I can easily see how people can fall in love with diving, I hope to do it again someday soon.

Wednesday, the big thing was parasailing. Unlike Kim, I had never been before. So at her suggestion, we went parasailing. We went up as a tandem and I guess we went up higher than she was prepared for. She got a little scared. I guess it was a good thing she wasn’t up there alone, but I don’t think I was successful in calming her down any. We were certainly up higher than the Dumbo Ride at Disney World. Also, on this day Kim and I went snorkeling. We saw a camouflaged scorpion fish hiding on a piece of coral and a few barracuda sneaking around the water.

Thursday it was time to come back home, but our flight wasn’t until the afternoon. So Kim took advantage of the time that morning for an hour-long massage under a cabana on the beach. Soon, we were on our way back to the airport for the long trip back home. After another stop in Houston, we got to Birmingham that night around 9.

Our Wedding!

November 6th, 2004

Today, the past four months of preparation culminated at 2 o'clock in the afternoon. Kim and I were married at our church, Christian Life, by our close friend, Ray McDaniel. Although there was some drama before the appointed hour, all went well once things got started and everyone said it was just beautiful.

The bridesmaids were Dawn Emerick (Matron of Honor), Wendy Johnson (Kim’s sister), Melanie Smith (Kim’s childhood friend) and my good friend, Tanya McDaniel. The groomsmen were my father, Charlie Wright (Best Man), Nathan Wright (brother), Stephen Hickman (my oldest friend) and my college roommates, Tom Brantley and Aaron Crawford.

There was drama before the ceremony when a traffic jam kept Kim, two bridesmaids and the photographer away from the church. Added to this was the fact that Kim left her engagement ring back at the house and one of my groomsmen had the wrong color tie!

Thanks to Bill and Bryan Hickman for making an 11th hour dash to the house, Kim got her ring just as the ceremony was starting. Aaron played the flute for us as people began to be seated. The ceremony itself seem to go by extremely quickly for both Kim and me, we wished we could have slowed down time just a little bit to savor the moment.

The wedding ceremony was conducted by the newly ordained Reverend Ray McDaniel. Ray is a very dear friend of ours and it was an honor to have him preside. Christian Life Church Senior Pastor Danny DuVall contributed to the ceremony by giving the prayer.

After pictures, it was off to the Vestavia Civic Center for the reception where we had a chance to see everybody. Then walking out under plastic lightsabers and a shower of rose petals, we were gone on our way to the honeymoon.

We’d like to thank everyone that helped contribute to our wedding: My parents, Pam Gilstrap, Saunders Richey, Mary Braswell Hickman, Mary Margaret Hickman, David Hunsinger, Lee Lampkin, Ricky Harmon, Paul Podraza, and Russ Gann.

Be sure to check the Pictures section of defdave.com for plenty of images from the Big Day.

Brian Wilson Concert

October 16th, 2004

Brian Wilson ConcertToday a friend of mine, Lee Lampkin, and I met in Atlanta to catch Brian Wilson in concert at Chastain Park Ampitheatre. Wilson, of course, is the creative force behind The Beach Boys, having written and produced all of their hits. In 1966, The Beach Boys earned critical acclaim with their album PET SOUNDS. This was Brian Wilson's masterpiece and is still highly regarded today. However, this left Wilson at the time with tremendous pressure to top himself. 1967 was supposed to see the release of SMILE, an album that had aspirations no less than being a "teenage symphony to God". Sadly, due to mounting pressure, strained relationships with his bandmates, and his ongoing mental instability, Wilson had a breakdown and walked away from the project entirely. Thus began The Beach Boys decline from the top of the music scene and the SMILE album grew into a legend as The Greatest Rock Album Never Finished.

This all changed in 2003. Brian Wilson, with the encouragement and help of his current band, re-united with his original SMILE collaborator, Van Dyke Parks, and finished the album. Nearly 40 years late, SMILE was finally released in 2004, marking a remarkable triumph for Brian Wilson. As my luck would have it, his tour came through Atlanta and Lee and I did not miss it.
The show opened up with an acoustic set where you could really hear all the voices harmonize. Then they got to the heart of the show and played full versions of a nice mixture of Beach Boys hits and obscurities as well as some more recent Wilson solo songs. Then they after an intermission, they came back on stage and performed SMILE in its entirety, complete with a string and horn section. It was magical night to be a Brian Wilson fan, to hear him perform this music that was lost for so long. It was special for me to witness this remarkable new chapter in the Brian Wilson story, since I am too young to have been around for the height of The Beach Boys creative output and success.

After SMILE, the band left the stage again just to be introduced individually as the came back on. Then the show closed out with the sure-fire Beach Boys crowdpleasers that everyone wanted to hear: I Get Around, Barbara Ann, Help Me Rhonda, Surfin' USA. The show was fantastic, the band sounded incredible and maybe, just maybe, I turned Lee into a Wilson fan.

My CAB Award

June 8, 2004

From March to May of 2003, Cherri Ellis and I headed up the commercial production for a Johnny Rockets TV spot. The entire production was racked with drama and frustrations as you can read about in the DefVideo section of this site. By virtue of having the honor of winning Charter Media's award for top :30 spot in the Gulf Coast Region, the spot was automatically submitted to the Cable Television Advertising Bureau (CAB) for consideration in their national awards.

The highly coveted CAB award is the top award in this country in the cable advertising industry. Awards are given in market size categories. I received word in mid-May that the Johnny Rockets spot was a national finalist in the category of markets with 200,000 to 500,000 subscribers. This alone was already a huge victory not only for Cherri and me, but also for my department and the entire company. The other finalists in my category hailed from Saginaw, MI; Albuquerque, NM; St. Paul, MN; and Wichita, KS. The awards banquet was to be held in Chicago on June 8th and the company was flying me up for the evening.

Well, Cherri had flown up a couple of days earlier and I arrived on the morning of the 8th. They put me up in the Chicago Hilton (overlooking Michigan Avenue near Lake Michigan and Soldier Field) for the night, with a morning flight back to Birmingham. All the major cable networks and various vendors catering to the advertising industry were represented in the expo. I picked up a few knick-knacks with network logos on it. Patrick Duffy was there at the ESPN booth promoting SoapNet and I saw a Discovery Channel-themed motorcycle made by the crew from AMERICAN CHOPPER. That evening I joined Cherri, our regional chief Farrel Ryder, and our regional marketing executive Steve Burbank for the awards ceremony.

And guess what? We WON!!! It was a great moment. The ballroom was filled with all the industry leaders. Every President, VP, CEO, etc. of every cable company was there as well as the chief Sales and Marketing executives from every cable network. Ed Helms from The Daily Show on Comedy Central was the MC. When he called my name it took me a couple of moments for it to hit me. My spot was then screened on the big projector for everyone to see and only when it started and Cherri started running for the stage did it hit me that I needed to go up there.

The spots were judged by a committee of Marketing executives from a handful of cable nets (MTV, Court TV, Food Network and some others). Mine was selected from a pool of a little over 800. All of the highest level suits from my company were there and they are thrilled for the win just in terms of image for the company. The statue is kind of small, but very heavy. It's golden-colored and is in the shape of a TV set (with a cable box) sitting on top of this, like, classical Roman pillar. "Cable Advertising Awards" is engraved into the TV screen. It's all on a pedestal with our info on it. You can take a look at it here.

I come back to work today and I find out that management here is going to put a huge marketing push behind the whole thing. They are writing up a press release and sending it out to all the ad agencies in the state, as well as business journals and trade magazines. And, also, the newspaper here in Birmingham. I don't know if the paper will pick it up but some of the trades might and I've been told that I may get a few interview requests within the next week. Today, the office is holding a little celebration at 4:00 so that everyone in all the departments here know how big a deal it is. I'm excited and a little embarrassed. It's a nice spot and all but it doesn't cure cancer or anything. But more important than the spot (and much more important than me) is the fact that the company can blow its horn, strut around a little bit and maybe attract a couple of big clients that it hasn't been able to get before. (If that happens, I'm asking for a bonus!) Woo-HOO!

The award is a victory for everyone in the department and in no way do I see this as an individual award. I did the storyboards, directed the shoot and edited the piece together. But Cherri handled all the (very frustrating) client meetings, hired all the talent, arranged for the cars, did all the scheduling, costumes, and props. The other people in my department all helped with the location shoot and James Carr did a lot of the color effects and rotoscoping for us.
It is a team victory all the way and it is something that Charter Media is very proud of. I'm just happy to be a part of it.

My Trip to Africa

April 3rd – 13th, 2004

EWTN, the Eternal Word Television Network, is the global Catholic cable network that happens to be based out of Birmingham. One of the priests employed by the network is Father Mitch Pacwa. Father Mitch has his own production company, Ignatius Productions. Ignatius hired me to help shoot a documentary in Africa that will eventually air on EWTN.

The documentary will be about the story of Bishop Markham Max Gassis and the plight of the people in his diocese. Gasssis is one of the bishops in the African country of Sudan. Sudan has been in a state of civil war since 1983. In 1990, Gassis testified before the US Congress about the human rights atrocities perpetrated by the Sudanese government upon its people. Gassis was never allowed back into his home country since then. He found himself exiled by the Sudanese government.

Since then Gassis has risked his freedom and his life by continuing to make trips to his diocese in central Sudan, while basing his work out of Nairobi, Kenya. But he only dares visit those areas of his diocese that are under rebel control. He maintains a mission in the Nuba Mountains of central Sudan with the blessing and protection of the People’s Liberation Army.

For ten days, I lived at the mission in the Nuba Mountains with Bishop Gassis and others while I helped document the lives and existence of the natives and the impact the mission has had on their lives. I was accompanied by my fellow cameraman, Sam McDavid; as well as three medical doctors from America that are funding the documentary.

Sam and I left Birmingham on Saturday the 3rd and it took us two days to fly to Atlanta, Amsterdam and finally Nairobi where we were met by the bishop’s people. We spent all of Monday in Nairobi resting and game-planning our shoot. That night we went to a very nice restaurant where I ate gazelle, ostrich, crocodile, and zebra meat.

Tuesday, we five Americans, the bishop and a nun drove out to the Nairobi airport where we boarded a cargo plane and strapped into jump seats. It was an Antonov, a Russian-made model capable of carrying up to seven tons. We flew for two hours before touching down in Lokichoggio, Kenya very close to the Sudan border. Here we refueled and paid exit fees. This was also the site of a United Nations World Food Program distribution center. I do not trust the UN and I felt uncomfortable surrounded by lots of UN planes and rows of large UN tents. I was keeping my feelings to myself until the others in my party shared their distrust of the UN. (I would later find out that the bishop and all the nuns at the mission did not like UN at all for an entire litany of reasons). I was not allowed to take any video of the airstrip. I was not told why.
Soon we were back in the air for another two hours in the cargo plane, until we finally touched down in a dirt airstrip in the middle of the Nuba Mountains. (The first thing we saw was a wrecked model of the same plane we were flying!) This would be my home for the rest of the week. It was an arid wasteland. Very hot and very dusty. I’m tempted to call it a desert, but that wouldn’t be accurate. The rainy season in this area lasts six months. But this was the dry season and the heat and dust were almost unbearable.

After a half hour bumpy ride in the back of a land rover, we were at the mission. Sam and I were given very nice accommodations: a round hut made of rock-and-mud walls with a thatch roof and dirt floor. We would share this 15-foot diameter space with a host of lizards, scorpions and termites for the week.

Wednesday, the 7th, we all loaded up on land rovers and drove 44km over very rough terrain (including driving through a former landmine field) to the village of Lumon. Bishop Gassis hadn’t been to Lumon in about eight years and they were very honored by his presence. Gassis had started a school there, as he had in other villages, and all the kids were in their uniforms lining the street when we arrived. The school uniforms of khaki shorts and plaid oxford shirts seemed out of place in a land populated by people that were either naked or dressed in traditional African garb.

Understand we were in one of the poorest areas of Africa. This place looks like the typical image from TV commercials of the poor and starving. The mission has done a lot to help these people by providing clean water (thanks to over 80 wells that have been dug in the last four years), health care, schools, and Catholic teachings.

Going to back to our arrival at Lumon: not only were the people lining the streets singing, but the village sacrificed a goat in our honor. Two men drug the goat out into the street in front of the bishop and slit its throat. For the people of Lumon, this is a huge gesture of respect and gratitude. Protocol required that we accept this gift by running up to the dying goat and jumping over its body. To do otherwise would be an extreme insult. Not to worry, the goat was eaten that night.

After the unique experience of having a goat sacrificed in my honor as a village sung my praises, we entered the village proper where the school children presented the bishop with handmade gifts.

Thursday brought a similar experience (without the animal sacrifice). We stayed around the mission and visited the school that is there. The students again presented gifts, including performing a couple of traditional tribal dances. We also got footage of the facilities nearby that are used to make grain, meal, sesame oil and adobe bricks.

Now would be a good time to note that we were working in 120-degree weather everyday with only warm well water to drink. Also, the People's Liberation Army deployed a soldier to the mission every day, so were always in the company of least one rebel soldier with an AK-47 hanging from his shoulder. We were very much in extreme conditions and I ended up losing about nine pounds on the trip. Also, every night a mass was conducted. The best part of these for me was the traditional African singing that was worked into each service.

Friday we traveled to the village of Kauda. Kauda was the site of a tragic and horrible bombing that took place in February of 2000. It was a school day. The teachers were conducting classes outdoors under the shades of large trees as always, when suddenly government forces came flying in low over the mountains. The planes began dropping bombs, sending terrified teachers and children running for their lives. In one instance, a teacher gathered her class around the other side of tree when they found themselves at nearly ground zero. An anti-personnel bomb landed within 30 feet of them, killing the teacher and 19 children. Further away, 20 more were injured. I was able to shoot some footage of some of the children that survived with amputations.

The American doctors that traveled with us were at Kauda a couple of weeks after the bombing and it is why they are paying to have this documentary made. They want to raise awareness about the people of Nuba living through this war and about the heroic efforts of Bishop Gassis.
Saturday the market was open and I got footage of that. It was much like flea markets here in America. Sunday was Easter. It was quite an experience being at my first Easter mass in the middle of the Nuba Mountains surrounded by Africans as the entire service is conducted in Arabic. People from Lumon, Kauda and other villages all arrived at the mission on Easter Sunday. It was very cool. The people of Lumon had begun walking on Friday in order to be there for Easter.

Our last night there, Sunday, Sam and I stayed up late playing cards with a couple of new friends, Kenyans who work for the mission. We had a lot of fun. One of these Kenyans was named Jimmy and when he saw my "Jimmy Jib" T-shirt he wanted it. I wanted a soccer jersey, so we traded.

Monday and Tuesday were spent flying back home. This included the cargo plane back to Lokichoggio, an East African airline flight to Nairobi, 8 hours to Amsterdam, a five-hour layover there and 9 hours to Atlanta… all to discover that my flight to Birmingham was canceled and I’d have to wait a little while.

Finally, I was back at home. Very grateful the trip was over but already missing it. The trip was a brutal one: every day was a physical challenge. But it was very rewarding to meet that challenge and witness what life is like for some people in this world. The bishop is going to be a studio guest on EWTN sometime this July, the documentary should be done in time to air during his visit. I won’t have anything more to do with the production, I simply hand over the seven hours of footage Sam and I shot over to the network. It is my sincere hope that some real, measurable good will come from this documentary.

Five Days in Costa Rica

January 27th, 2004 Pura Vida!

Kim and I just got back from a five day trip to Costa Rica to visit my friends, Ray and Tanya. They are the missionaries in Mexico that are spending six months in CR for language school. We had quite an adventure, saw lots of wildlife and were treated to the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen.

We got up at four a.m. on Thursday (my birthday) with the temperature at 22 degrees and drove to Atlanta for a 10:30 ET flight. We got into San Jose, Costa Rica around 1:30 CT. It was in the mid-80s and very humid. Bright and sunny, this part of the tropical country is currently in its dry season. The dry season only last about two months, the other 10 it rains about 14 hours out of every single day.

Ray met us at the airport in a rickety old Land Rover that hardly had any breaks, and flat out didn't have any air conditioner, suspension or seat belts. Tanya was waiting for us at the house and after we napped, we all visited and headed into town for dinner at an Oriental place (Ray says the Costa Rican food is so bad that there's no point in trying it, the "foreign food" is much better). After bumping around in the Land Rover and a couple of near-misses downtown thanks to the lack of reliable breaks, I insisted that we would be renting a quality vehicle for our weekend excursion.

Friday morning, we rented a small SUV and headed to the pacific coast resort town Manuel Antonio for a two night stay at the luxurious four-star La Mariposa hotel. On our way we drove through mountains (and were treated to breathtaking views of the lush landscape), rain forests, banana farms and palm tree farms. We get to the Mariposa and it is amazing, it sits on the crest of a hill in the rainforest and the area around the pool overlooks a huge bay. I've never seen the ocean and mountains in the same view before. It was amazing, by far the nicest place I've ever stayed in. One of the mornings there, we found an iguana warming itself on the balcony.
I should mention that because of it's proximity to the equator, Costa Rica has twelve hours of daylight almost every single day of the year, with a maximum variation of about 15 minutes. The sun rises at 5:30am and sets at 5:30pm, all year long. It's weird to wake up with the sun high in the sky and think you have overslept, only to discover that it's just 7 o'clock in the morning!

We had a steak and seafood dinner Friday night there at the hotel following our viewing of the sunset over the pacific from our perch at the swimming pool.

Saturday morning, we decided we would take a tour of the nearby national park that is located on the tip of a crescent-shaped peninsula. On our way there, we knew we were passing through an area inhabited by howler monkeys and we saw some people stopped on the side of the road staring into the trees with cameras. We decided to stop because we thought we'd see some howlers. Well, they weren't howlers, but they were monkeys! Wild monkeys! These were White-faced Capuchins (think RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK). There were at least eight of them and we watched them climb all over the place and jump from tree to tree. It was so cool! Next thing we know a coconut falls to the ground from behind us. Most of the monkeys were putting on a show to distract us while another snuck around behind us to a coconut tree, where he launched his surprise attack! The monkeys had tricked us!! Then came another coconut! We were under attack by wild monkeys!! How cool is that?!? After snapping several pictures, we were finally on our way... but not before I picked up some actual monkey fur from off the ground.

We finally made it to the park where we hired a local guide who had a telescope with him. We would walk along the trail and we'd be talking with him and suddenly he'd stop and set up the scope and we'd see this huge lizard 20 feet off the trail that was perfectly camouflaged and perfectly still. The guide pulled tricks like this the whole time. We saw a couple of tyranno lizards, a Jesus Christ lizard (named for it's ability to run across water on its two hind legs), an iguana, a yellow-crowned heron, a pack of squirrel monkeys, a sloth and lots of other birds, spiders, etc. Again, it's very cool to see a pack of monkeys hanging around in trees, totally wild. And I loved the sloth, he was very cool. He didn't do a whole bunch, though.

We made it back to the hotel in what we thought was just in time to take the shuttle down to the bay, but the shuttle had come and gone early. So Kim and I took a taxi and left Ray and Tanya behind. We got to the bay in time to get on the yacht for the sunset cruise we had signed up for. It was about a 120-foot yacht full of American tourists. The captain was a Cuban from Florida and there was a local singing Spanish songs on his guitar. We began sailing around 1:30 in the afternoon and traveled along the coast. Soon we had dolphins racing our boat and playing along side us. That was a treat. Finally, after sailing around the point of the bay, we anchored and broke out the snorkeling gear. I had never been snorkeling before but I can't wait to do it again. I put on the mask, snorkel and flippers, jumped into the Pacific and swam about 100 yards to a coral reef. There, the captain threw out some food and we watched tons and tons of different tropical fish swim all among us. It was awesome.

After about a half hour of that, we all got back on board and the sun was getting a little low. More songs and sailing as the crew prepared dinner below decks. Soon, we could smell fresh fish being fried. They were filleting and frying Mahi Mahi that they had caught that morning. It was delicious. Not long after dinner, it was a little after five and we were ready for the show. We dropped anchor with our port side to the sun and out there on the open water were treated to the best sunset ever. As soon as the sun was down, we came back in and we were back at the hotel within the hour.

The next day, Sunday, it was time to make our way back to San Jose. We determined we couldn't make either Arenal or Poaz that day (each of them being active volcanoes), so we decided to improvise. We were on the road back to San Jose when we came to a pathetic looking hand painted sign that boasted a crocodile tour. It looked very amateurish and we may have dismissed it but Kim wanted to look into it. Across the highway from this entrance was an entrance to a botanical garden and waterfall. Ray had heard it was good. Well, we looked in the croc tour and discovered it didn't start for three hours. So we went and did the garden first. It was fantastic. It featured lots of exotic flowers as well as the most amazing view you will ever see. We could look out over a lush, rainforest valley, to the bay coast way below us. The coast disappeared off to our right into haze, but in the far distance across the water we could make more mountains, they towered over the water and had clouds clung to its peaks. The best part of the garden though was the two parrots and the toucan. The parrots cold talk, but we couldn't understand them because they were speaking Spanish! We all posed with them sitting on our shoulders. Kim loved the parrots. Then there was this toucan hopping around. He was hilarious looking. All nose. I fed him pieces of papaya right out of my hand.

Finally, it was time for the crocodile tour. We got on this little barge that held about 30 people and the captain took us out into the marshy river area that eventually led to the ocean. We saw all sorts of birds like herons and pelicans and other more exotic species. I have the little guide book that I circled as we spotted them. The coolest ones were the osprey, the peregrine falcon, and the yellow-headed caracara hawk. There was the chance of seeing a scarlet macaw but we didn't. And on this croc tour, we saw about seven wild crocodiles at different times near our boat. At one point, our captain grabbed a skinned chicken and got into the water and began slapping the chicken on the surface to imitate a large fish. Next thing you know, here comes this croc creeping up to him, just six feet or so from our boat. The croc keeps approaching, just the top half of head and back visible. We kept expecting it to quickly snap at the chicken in the captain's hand, but instead never changes his pace. When he gets to the chicken, the captain holds it up and forces the croc to come way out of the water, vertically, to grab it. We watch it snap the chicken out of the captain's hands and splash back down and chew it up and within seconds it's gone. Wow. It was impressive and scary. (I thought it was funny that during this time was when the caracara hawk showed up... he must have also thought he heard a big fish)
After the croc tour, the sun was setting and we were several hours from San Jose so we got moving and got in around 10 that night. Monday morning, Ray and Tanya had to go to class. So Kim and I hailed a taxi, gave directions in Spanish thanks to written instructions from Tanya, and headed downtown to buy our souvenirs. Among other things, I got a replica of the Costa Rican national soccer team jersey. We spent an hour or so shopping then took another taxi back to the Casa, where Ray was waiting for us to take us to the airport.

We made it back to Atlanta around 8:30 CT, and after a detour to Waffle House, finally got back home around 11pm or so.

Great trip. Great friends, luxury hotels, sloths, dolphins, toucans, crocodiles, Spanish-speaking parrots, soccer jerseys and coconut-throwing wild monkeys. I recommend it to all.

PURA VIDA!!

Our Vacation to Virginia

August 17, 2003

This afternoon I returned from a 10-day vacation to Virginia and West Virginia. The Def Girl, Kim, and I had an absolute blast. In one week we enjoyed mountain biking, beautiful Virginia scenery, historic Lexington and whitewater rafting.

For the first two nights we stayed in Abingdon, VA (near theTennessee line). While there, we traveled to nearby Damascus and took a shuttle ride to the top of a mountain (Whitetop) and proceeded to ride rented bicycles 17 miles down a trail back into town, criss-crossing the Appalachian Trail several times.

On Monday, we spent the whole day traveling to Lexington, doing our best to stay off the interstate and enjoy the astounding scenery the small, rural back rounds had to offer. This has to be some of the most beautiful scenery in the country.

We spent two days in Lexington and had a blast there. While there we toured the only home Stonewall Jackson ever owned, as well as his final resting place. There's a statue in his honor (as well as the original family plot that he bought) in the town's cemetery (that happens to be one of the oldest in the country). Buried in this same cemetery are over a hundred confederates and some veterans of theRevolutionary War.

Also in Lexington hosts the campus of Washington & Lee University, featuring the President's House (which Robert E. Lee occupied as the President during the final years of his life. 1865-1870), Lee Chapel(final resting place for Lee, all his family and his horse,Traveller), and the Episcopal Church that Lee founded.

The museum in the basement of Lee Chapel was fascinating. On display were pistols owned by George Washington, as well as photographs of the crowds in Lexington on the day of Lee's funeral).

Kim and I also took a walking tour at night, hosted by a gothic-looking fellow who led our group by lantern-light around town to the various haunted places.

The Virginia Military Institute is also in Lexington, where they have stuffed and on display Little Sorrel, the horse Stonewall rode during the battle. Little Sorrel survived Jackson by 23 years and became the unofficial mascot of the school, hanging out on the parade ground grazing.

Kim and I came away with two gorgeous, matching portraits of Lee andJackson, a group shot of all the Confederate generals and a print of "The Last Meeting", which depicts Lee and Jackson conferring on horseback on the morning prior to Jackson's death at Chancellorsville.

After that, we drove to Fayetteville, West Virginia for some whitewater rafting in the New River Gorge. An all-day trip, featuring over 70 rapids, four of which were Class V. (I had only done as much as Class IV previously)

We were in a raft with a guide and seven passengers, most of which had never rafted before. (I wouldn't start with Class Fives!) Three of the folks were a family (the kid was about 11), there was a young couple (Elliot and Cara, students at Clemson), and Kim and I.

At the end of the day, we approached Greyhound Busstopper, the longest, most intense series of rapids of the day. It started with a Class III, had a Class IV in the middle, then a Class V and finally a Class III again. The Class V was a pretty good little drop by the name of Bonzai. The river was running very high and very strong. I was in the front with Elliot. Kim was behind me on my side, Cara behind Elliot on the other. The family was behind us.

We take Bonzai backwards. What follows exists in my memory as only a series of still images. My side of the boat shoots up. Then...up again. We were vertical on edge. I see Elliot and Cara get swallowed by the water. I hug my edge of the boat. It lands with a flop, right side up (luckily). I look around and... it's just me and the guide! We lost SIX people in the blink of an eye, right in the middle of Greyhound Busstopper. I register the surprise of being the only passenger left in the raft in an instant, in the next I realize my girlfriend is swimming the worst rapid on the river.

I crawl to the back of the raft to where the guide is leaning out stretcthing his paddle to Kim, hoping to pull her in. I join in, sticking my paddle out next to his, while the raft is essentially knocking around the rest of the rapid unmanned.

Kim takes hold of the guide's paddle and he gets her to the side of the boat. I then extend my paddle out to Elliot and Cara (they had managed to stay together, despite a trip to the bottom of the riverbed by Cara). There is no sign of the family of three, having either been shot down river quickly in the heart of the current or possibly caught in the hydraulic of Bonzai and mercilessly pounded by the water.

I pull Cara to the side of the boat (Elliot tagged along). They are both hanging on, still in the chaotic waters. We are in the midst of a Class III rapid, with complete disregard for control as the guide and I focus on the rescue. I'm holding onto Cara by the shoulder holes of the life vest. I register that the guide is having trouble getting Kim in the boat. My first two attempts at bringing in Cara fail. Proper technique is to grab the vest and just fall backwards, using your entire body to bring in the person. But the river was too wild to allow for proper footing and balance.

Things are going very quickly, the river is very loud, and the danger is very real. I'm distracted over concern for Kim and just hold Cara by the vest for a while. Finally, I see Kim brought safely in. I try again to bring Cara in but the guide's cooler that he brought for our lunch is in my way and I can't pull her into the boat. Elliot starts making his way towards the guide.

The guide yells "GET HER IN! GET HER IN NOW!!!!!" I look up and we are rushing broadside towards a gigantic rock. If Elliot and Cara are still hanging onto the side of the boat when we hit, severe injuries are a certainty and death is a possibility.

It's a race against the clock to get them in before we hit. I don't know exactly what I did, I don't know if I moved the cooler, found another space or just tapped into a deeper place for more armstrength but mostly through sheer willpower I pulled Cara into the boat literally two or three seconds before ramming into the rock. On my back, with Cara scrambling off of me, I turn and see the guide with no time left to pull in Elliot. But he manages to swing Elliot around the corner to the rear end of the boast, LITERALLY at the last possible instant. (Think of Indiana Jones reaching for his hat at the stone wall drops)

Finally, we're all in. There are only two paddles in the boat. Elliot and I take them and start looking around for the family of three. They had indeed been shot very swiftly downriver and picked up by another raft. They were safe but scared to death.It scared most folks, but I was left exhilarated. I thought it was awesome. Coolest thing? That rock that presented such a threat? A videographer from another company was perched on top of it and caught a lot of the drama on tape! He didn't get us going over Bonzai and losing everyone, but he got the the rescue on tape. If you'd like to watch it, click here, it is 7MB so you may wish to download it first.