At the office

It’s been a long time since I wrote my last blog post.   We have been so busy here at SeaVentures these past few months.  But I must continue writing about my adventures.

As you can see I had some fun getting accustomed to my new surroundings.

Next came my chance to scuba dive!

I enrolled in the PADI Open Water Scuba Course, which is their name for the Beginner Class.  I learned PADI (Professional Association of Dive Instructors) is the certifying agency.

Wayne, a SeaVentures Master Scuba Diver Trainer, explained to me that there are 3 simple steps to becoming certified.  The first step is Home Study.  He gave me an “Open Water Crew Pak” and told me about each of the items inside.  The main tools are the PADI Open Water Book and DVD.

I was a little worried since I had not read a text book since… well…  it’s been a while.  But I learned that the book is written in such a way that it can be understood by a 10-year-old.  And the DVD helps to reinforce the book material for those of us who prefer to learn by watching a video.

I must confess that I procrastinated about getting my reading done before my classroom sessions.  Let my mistake serve as a warning to others.  Don’t add stress to a fun experience by procrastinating with the Home Study portion.  Read the book, complete the Knowledge Reviews at the end of each chapter, and watch the DVD before you come to class.  Don’t let that 10-year-old student in your scuba class show you up!

I honestly couldn’t wait to get in the water.  But book knowledge is important so that we begin with a solid foundation.

Then, the fun part begins…

To be continued…

I must admit that after a few days my confidence began to fade a bit.  But then the phone rang.  I knew it was SeaVentures because it was now programmed on my phone.

I had recently been dumped by my girlfriend via text message.  So I figured it must be good news since they were making the effort to call me.  However, I held my breath in anticipation (which you should never do as a scuba diver, but we will get into that later).

Should I answer on the first ring?  Will that seem too anxious?  Oh, who cares!

I answered.  It was Beverly.  She said they had narrowed it down to two candidates and I was one of them!  She invited me to a second interview.

In many ways, preparing for a job interview is like trying to prepare for an appearance as a Jeopardy! contestant.  You never know exactly what you will be asked and you can’t cram for it in one night.  You just kinda have to be confident enough to go into it with what you have learned over a lifetime.  So I went into the second interview with little preparation, but a lot of passion for online marketing and scuba.

After I left, I felt good about the second interview.  But I had learned from experience that sometimes you just don’t get picked.  And most of the time you never know exactly why you didn’t get picked.

There was phone silence for the next two days.  Uh oh.

Then I checked my email and saw a message from Beverly.  Uh oh, again.  No one had ever sent me an email to say,”you’re hired!”.

Have you ever been afraid to open an email?

I closed my eyes and opened the email.  Then I squinted to scan the words.  I was preparing myself to see “we decided to go in another direction”, but that wasn’t the case.  They offered me the job!  And just as importantly, they also offered to train me as a scuba diver!  It didn’t take long for me to reply back to ask,”when do I start?!”.

Somewhere in the interview process, the idea of a Divers Blog came up.  I would write about my journey to become a scuba diver.  I had no idea what I had gotten myself into.  To be continued…

I don’t answer the phone when I don’t recognize the number on caller ID.  I have found that it’s usually somebody that wants money from me.  But I quickly check the voicemail just in case it’s Publisher’s Clearing House calling to tell me I am the ten million dollar winner.

I do find unknown calls a little more exciting when a long distance number pops up.  It momentarily renews my hope that Zooey Deschanel could be phoning me.  That hope is quickly dashed every time.

Anyway, on one particular day in January 2012, I got a call from an unfamiliar number.  I automatically sent it straight to voicemail.  As soon as the alert chimed, I listened to it.   It was Beverly Foster from a place called  SeaVentures.  Apparently I had responded to a their classified ad for a Web and Social Media Manager.

I honestly didn’t remember the ad specifically.  I don’t even think it mentioned scuba at all.  I didn’t know what SeaVentures was, but I knew I should call her back immediately.  We set up a time for an interview.  I wasn’t sure what to expect.

SeaVentures is located in the same center as the Studio Movie Grill on Holcomb Bridge Road in Alpharetta.  I had actually been to Studio Movie Grill a few months earlier, but I didn’t recall seeing a SeaVentures.  This time it was hard to imagine how I missed it.  They have a huge 8,000 square foot facility with an indoor pool, classrooms, gear service shop, and a retail store.  I had never been in any place like it.

The first person I met was Marvin, an experienced  scuba diving  instructor from Honduras.  He was very friendly with a big smile and long dreads.  We talked for a few minutes.  He was from the islands.  I was from Buford.  He had dreadlocks.  I am follically challenged.  He spoke two languages.  I only knew one.  He had traveled the world.  I had never left the country.  I kinda wondered if I would fit in here or in the scuba community at all.

Soon, Beverly called me to the board room for my interview.  She told me about SeaVentures’ 22 year history.  Her adrenaline-filled husband, Wyatt, popped in and out of the interview.  I was impressed with them and their business.  Not only do they run a great scuba program, they also provide a variety of swim programs for kids of all ages.

We talked about online marketing and the other things you talk about in an job interview.  I told them of my unfulfilled passion to scuba dive.  They encouraged me that I was definitely not a hopeless case as a diver.  I had to keep reminding myself that I was there to interview for a Web and Social Media Management job, not to become a scuba diver.

They thanked me and told me they had a few more interviews to conduct.  They said they would call me in a couple of days to let me know if I made it to the second interview.

By the time I left that interview I had decided that not only could I fit in there, I would fit in there.  To be continued…

Oceanquest, 1985

”Wanted: A Year of Your Life for the Adventure of Your Life’

It all started in 1985.   NBC aired a 5 part series named Oceanquest.   Al Giddings, a seasoned diver and underwater photographer,  said he wanted to make a film in which he would express his own passion for diving by training someone with no dive experience.   He supposedly posted a classified ad that read,”Wanted: A Year of Your Life for the Adventure of Your Life”.

I was intrigued by this show.   I’m not sure what captured my attention the most.  It might have been the adventure, the scuba diving, the travel, or the sharks.   Or maybe it was the student, Shawn Weatherly, a.k.a. Miss Universe 1980.  But I think it was all of the above.   I watched all the highs and lows of their yearlong quest.

It was then that I started to dream of being a scuba diver.

In the years to come I also dreamed of being a movie star, a race car driver, a stuntman, the U.S. President, and third baseman for the Braves.  I’m pretty sure that I never dreamed of dropping out of college and spending 9 years of my life in a corporate office cubicle.  But that is what happened somehow.

Along the way I never knew anyone who was a scuba diver.  And I certainly didn’t think there were any opportunities in Atlanta, Ga to become a scuba diver.  However, my interest remained even though the closest I came to fulfilling it was by watching the Discovery Channel.

In 2008, I took a major dive, a metaphorical one.  I left the “safety and security” of my corporate job.  I started my own online marketing business.  I built websites and began experimenting with social media.  I worked with dozens of clients.  But none of them had a business that really interested me.  I decided I wanted to find a webmaster job that I was passionate about.

Then, after months of searching, I came across a classified ad.  It didn’t say,”Wanted: A Year of Your Life for the Adventure of Your Life”.  But I knew it was my chance.  To be continued…