45. TEXAS ya'll...wait, what?!

woodburyroland
Jul 10, 2018
5 min read

BIG smile as I write this, 4 months into the Texas adventure. I then start laughing thinking how crazy it is I ended up here- the serendipity, luck and strong will to it all. It was once again, jumping off a cliff totally blind folded praying to land in an oasis instead of rocks. It was going with that gut feeling that told me something good was here and to fight hard for it. If I had any idea of how amazing this place is, the adventure here would been so much easier- but it makes a way better life story that I had no idea what I was headed towards.

Back in January when I was deciding between the Skydive Perris and Flight-1 Marketing Manager positions, I had talked with a friend of a friend, Jay, who was connected at Skydive Spaceland, a company that owns 4 world-famous drop zones. We talked about me coming there as a full-time AFF instructor but to be honest I was too scared then. Later, when FL was everything I didn't want, I called him and he immediately helped, connecting me to the hiring manager at Spaceland Dallas, Ben. I talked with Ben on the phone, who then hired me. He generously added that if I stopped at Houston, the main location, liked it better, then to stay there. Jay was conincidently driving from FL to TX that week so said to meet him in Zephyrhills. I'll forever thank Jay and Ben for this opportunity.

I praise my mom and sister, dealing with all of that going on, loving me through it, driving me 4 hours to meet Jay at Zephyrhills, seeing me again pack life into 1 suitcase, get into the car with a stranger and take off to a foreign place where everything was unknown. As my nerves were so high on that drive to Zhills, Carly read to me from her life book. I truly could not have done that day and life chapter without her.

As we waited for Jay- Mom, Carly and I drank wine at the restaurant that had been my one oasis during that awful Zephyrhills chapter. As he and his pitbull Bella drove up, I immediately felt calm and felt better- it was like ripping the bandaid off to the next adventure. My world was spinning but it felt like everything would be okay. We drove 10 hours that night, arriving at 4 am to stay with his family in Louisiana. That morning he made breakfast, we ran with Bella and then his sister welcomed us into her deep-south bar before we got on the road. (I enjoyed, he drove;) That evening we arrived to Houston, a place where I immediately felt at home. Terrified of dogs, especially pitbulls, somehow Bella quickly became my best friend.

The original plan was to go to Houston for a few days, meet with the Marketing woman, do a few jumps and take a bus to Spaceland Dallas. That period was taking it one day at a time, sometimes a moment at a time, trying to put puzzle pieces together. Morning runs with Bella, Carly's book and gems, and Jay's cooking kept me centered. Jay gave me my own room where he was renting from my future friends, DJ & Val. His roommate Devon and his dog Echo also became good friends.

After a very hard 4 months of not skydiving, day 2 of Houston we headed to the dropzone. I immediately felt at home as soon as we parked. I first ran into my friend Tim who I knew from Chicagoland. When I walked into Manifest, Tanya exclaimed "Welcome to Spaceland!!!" Needing an altimeter, the gear store owner was excited to lend me his. I was going to do a solo jump since it had been 4 months. On the plane, I randomly sat next to my friend Sergie who I knew from a life-changing Washington boogie. He left his friends to jump together- this meant the world to me. When I landed I saw my friend Francisco who I knew from the Puerto Rico boogie. I thought I knew no one at Spaceland and running into those old friends gave such comfort. Oh and that feeling of being back in the air after not jumping those 4 months- UNREAL!!!

Days later, I met with the Marketing Director at the dz. She didn't need help but this was a blessing in disguise, allowing me to focus all my energy on my skydiving. Steph, a welcoming girl on the ground crew exclaimed, "You should just stay here, not Dallas!" I thank her for putting that thought in my head. On a Louisiana road trip the next day, Jay encouraged me to email Stephen, the Houston manager, asking to stay there. It was challenging to have such a good opportunity in Dallas but to go with my gut feeling that Houston was better for me- also an option that Dallas had offered. Stephen immediately emailed back, very friendly, saying he'd of course love to meet with me the next day.

The next morning Stephen met with me at the dropzone, he welcomed me like an old friend, saying he'd love me to be part of the team. And like that, I was staying in Houston. He did say I'd have to try out to teach AFF and shoot video because the Spaceland standards are so high. Immediately I felt relief (and shock)- for a job to follow my dream at such a world class dropzone. In addition to everyone being so welcoming, their airplanes, facilities and equipment were in perfect condition.

As I rode along while the guys played golf, I looked on Airbnb for a place to live. The dropzone is 30 minutes south of Houston, not giving a lot of housing options, especially without a car. After such a recent awful experience living at a dropzone, I felt I needed something different. A miracle, I found an Airbnb 3 miles from the dropzone. I went to go see it and it was heaven- a 5 acre pristine ranch, my own 3 bedroom guesthouse with a full kitchen, 200 year-old oak trees, gardens, yoga building, for just $580 a month. Jay gave me a bike- perfect! HAHA more on the future biking in another post.

After two weeks of living in Pearland, I did a huge food shopping and Jay/Bella dropped me off at the Airbnb. The owner made me dinner that night as I settled in. After 15 months of traveling, having my own space truly felt amazing- especially as I faced an intense week with my test jumps and starting a whole new chapter. In just 3 weeks, I had left Florida, arrived in Texas, aimed for Dallas and ended up in Houston on a Texas ranch. I'm proud of myself saying F it, I'll go into the crazy unknown with the hope of following this dream. It's all crazy looking back at that- I am extremely grateful- continued extreme Spaceland gratitude in future posts. BIG smile!