posted Dec 21st, 2020 - When it rains it pours - right? It was not only that the happy and entertaining and enjoyable office community between BLUE SKIES MAG and NATIONAL SKYDIVING LEAGUE eventually came to an end, after several years of sharing office life and coffee with each other. BLUE SKIES MAG had personnel change after moving to downtown DeLand, and NSL joined the home office world - before there was something like a corona crisis.

Then she came, sneaking in, no, crushing into our professional and private lives. I remember that my last BSM TURNING POINTS column had something to do with the virus, and here I am again, picking up the pieces half a year later. It's surely not because the world's crisis has come to an end, or has become any better - it's more the opposite. Most of us are still confused and are trying to find ways how to make it through this chaos. I am one of those, as the main components of NSL "business" have almost completely disappeared: events where people connect to each other as close and often as possible.

Life goes on, and I am not a cry-baby, even though it is hard. In fact, I enjoyed an incredible support coming from the skydiving community when Arizona Airspeed launched a fund-raising project for the NSL. I was touched to tears when I realized what people did to help me continue doing what I do. Incredible. Some people are apparently really following the updates of Formation Skydiving competition and training.

Alright, so BSM and NSL both were in journalistic hibernation, at least with my part, the TURNING POINTS column. Kolla is possibly coming back online with a new editor, and I have mentally recovered enough to make some time for my own thoughts. In case you have not noticed this: the NSL News at SKYLEAGUE.COM and all other information there are pretty dry and fact-oriented, with scores, videos and event coverage. This here is really the only place where I am speaking my own mind, at least to a certain extent.

TURNING POINTS – GOOD PEOPLE

Well, not really, as I share my thoughts over beer and coffee with friends, of course, and that as much as time allows. It's my favorite part of life, sharing time with my family and friends. Many of my close friends you can find in the skydiving community, which is really convenient, as most of them like beer and coffee too. And jumping from planes, of course.

Finally I am getting closer to my actual point today. No, it is not that family and good friends are really VERY helpful in time of crises. We all have learned this, or are learning it, thank you, corona crisis (I am sarcastic here, sorry). I had a different recent experience, and I hope that I can cover it with a few lines.

In fact, a real close friend started the whole story with a freak accident. No, I did not get hurt, he neither, it was my computer laptop that got badly injured. Yes, that's the machine that produces SKYLEAGUE.COM with everything that's on there, and it contains my complete NSL life, and everything that I need for event coverage. It broke.

Alright, alright, I know, what's the big deal? Computers break all the time, or they become dysfunctional, for whatever reason. However, this one was different. My dear friend ran over it with his car, over my complete computer bag, with the complete NSL life in it. And my sun glasses. And I was in Arizona.

Yes, it was my first air travel this year, from Florida to Arizona, and I was planning to cover the exciting competition between Arizona Airspeed and SDC Rhythm XP, who had just completed the NSL Cloud Mondial. Now they would follow up with a live competition in Eloy, beginning on Friday.

Airspeed was off on Thursday, while I was still at the DZ to cover other teams and topics. I had a ride waiting for me, from the DZ to the place where I staid, and I got carried away watching and filming an eagle flying around the windtunnel while parachutes were in the air at the same time. Fascinating. I had placed my computer bag right next to the car for the ride, so the driver could not miss it and know that I was there, just carried away nearby.

He arrived at the car, and I walked back too, did not see my computer bag: "Thanks for putting the bag already in the car", I said. "What bag?", he said...

Yup, then we both saw it, a little bit dirty from the AZ road dust, and a little bit out of shape. Nothing was broken, not even my sun glasses, believe it or not. Except for the whole motherboard, as we found out after closer investigation. Laughing or crying now? It was the most bizarre computer injury of the many that I have experienced in my amateurish computer world. This one was really funny. So I did not really know whether laughing or crying. However, it happened 12 hours before Round 1 of the competition. New computer? Without my data, without the programs I am familiar with?

There was a little bit hope, as the computer was not total mash. Broken, but not totally. Maybe the hard drive could have survived? Could not tell, as it did not boot up, no surprise. Alright, Google, of course. Computers in Casa Grande. One computer shop (closed), Office Depot (open until 8 pm). In the car, to the store. Which store? No store, no Office Depot, closed due to corona crisis. I mean closed closed.

Okay, I have to pick up the pace now, sorry for the coming Micky Mouse language. I will not be able to finish this otherwise. Next morning to the computer shop, DOUG'S LAPTOP SHOP, LLC, in Casa Grande. Leave the broken machine with Becky. Doug calls later, while I am on my way to Phoenix and the big computer world. He says that the hard drive is intact, and I have to find a computer that fits to the hard drive, so I can be functional for my NSL job in Eloy. That means trouble in the computer world, as my computer still had a SATA drive, and they sell you only SSD these days.

Doug talks to the Best Buy reps (ten stores in Phoenix) - nobody has what we need. I still have not met Doug in person yet...

Doug surfs the internet and finds a warehouse that sells everything between beer glasses and cars - and they have a brandnew laptop copy of mine. Miracle. Next car race to the warehouse while Doug (I still have not met him yet) tries to get details. Warehouse does not answer. I go there anyway, Doug agrees, and the sales person/owner/manager eventually remembers Doug and the computer. But he accepts only cash and PayPal.

In the meantime, the teams have completed Round 1 in Eloy, and the Belgians are getting mad at me (NSL was the only source for the scores this time).

Doug says he will pay for me (I still have not met him yet), and he PayPals $650 to the warehouse. I am the proud owner of a new laptop computer with a hard drive that I will not need. Back to Casa Grande where Doug is waiting for me, ready to get into repair action. Then I meet him finally, face to face in his very small shop. Nice older guy with a never-fading smile on his face. I give him my debit card and ask him to take off my account whatever he wants. HE DOES NOT WANT ANY MONEY. But he asks me to come back in the morning, and he will have the machine ready for me.

In the meantime, the teams have completed Round 3 in Eloy, and the Belgians are REALLY mad at me now.

Alright, fine then, I borrow a laptop from another friend, race to the DZ and finally post the scores for the HayaBusa fans who want to see what Airspeed and Rhythm have to offer, and Round 1 had a world record sequence. Nothing else though, no stories, no videos, no stories without a functional NSL computer.

Need a few beers for some night sleep, as you may imagine. Back to Doug's place in the morning, and he has it ready to go. $100 he wants, $100!!!!! I have no time to argue, and I would rather like to hug and kiss him. Forget about that with mask and shield and all the other corona stuff. I say "Thank you", and I mean it.

The rest is business as usual. I covered the complete second meet day without any troubles, just as it were my own previous computer, all is perfectly functional. I am writing this at the airport on the Monday after the meet on the new machine - with the old hard drive. Doug says: "Hey, get yourself a new drive when you get home, this one is old."

I say "Thank you" again and leave DOUG'S LAPTOP SHOP, LLC, in Casa Grande. I will go back there every time I visit Eloy in the future, either for a coffee or a beer with Doug. And buy what I need at his place.

There are good people in this world. Thank you, Doug. And after the rain, and when it stops pouring - there will be sun and a rainbow...