Fun Stuff
Life outside the trees — my stories, my music, and whatever I felt like sharing
The Dream
When I was about 5 or 6 years old, I had a near debilitating fear of death. One night I had a dream. The dream showed that death was nothing to fear. On the contrary, it will be a fun time and all my loved ones will be there. After that, my fear of death was gone.
I think my dream gave me the ability to approach life with a high tolerance for risk. Living on the edge can be stressful, but much less so when you believe the afterlife is glorious. I still remember that dream like it was yesterday.
Save the Last Dance
A fun memory from the Evergreen Senior Center.
The Jew Boy Blues
When I was about 10 years old they sent me to Hebrew school to teach me how to be a Jew. They put a tie around my neck — it felt like a choke collar to me. The teachers were nasty. I knew instinctually that they knew nothing of God and Love. As a result, I grew up hating the Jewish religion.
Now that I'm older, I realize the Jewish religion is no worse than any other religion. All religion is based on stories told by mortal men and passed down through history. They have no validity. If there is a God, I think it would want me to be as good as I can be by spreading the message of Love. That's the meaning of life, and that's what this song is about. Hope you enjoy it.
Crazy Man
This song is about my friend Anthony, who died recently. Anthony always called me crazy man. I tried to explain to him that I wasn't crazy, that I was actually methodical and well thought out. Anthony insisted there was definitely an element of crazy in there, and that I should own it.
Now that he's gone, I realize the wisdom of his words. RIP Anthony.
Freeline WingSkating
Being a professional Tree Surgeon is one of the most dangerous things you can do for a living. Doing it as a freelancer makes it more dangerous still, for a lot of reasons. To stay in shape, I was always looking to learn new skills that challenged me mentally and physically. Learning to fly the wing while riding Free-Line Skates was quite the challenge. Learning survival skills is always the most important part of any dangerous challenge — this video ends with a lesson on what to do when things don't go according to plan.
Vmax
Flying Supine
1986, Mt Equinox, Vermont — elevation 3,800 ft. I had an altitude gain of 600 ft over the top, and the flight lasted about 45 minutes. I flew a supine harness (sitting or reclined), with the glider modified to accommodate that style. Most hang-glider pilots consider supine hang-gliding radical and dangerous. I took my lumps for that, but I wouldn't have changed a thing.
The Dream (my wife's)
When I met my wife, she told me she had always dreamt of flying like a bird. I told her I could make that happen. Three years later, I arranged a tandem flight with a certified pilot. I helped them launch and watched her dream come true.
Unicycle
Information on the internet told me it takes about 40 hours to learn how to ride a unicycle. Naturally, I thought I could do it in half that time. It actually took me about 60 hours to get to the level you'd see in the video. I guess I neglected to calculate the "senior citizen" factor. No worries — I loved the challenge. Sometimes the journey is more valuable than actually achieving the goal. My next goal was riding without holding onto something.
Aruba 2001
Windsurfing is an amazing sport. You can ride for hours at a time using just the power of the wind. The adrenaline rush is as good as anything I've experienced. Combine that with crystal clear water and a beautiful tropical environment — it doesn't get any better than that.
Big Slush Bumps, Hunter Mountain
Bumps, or moguls, are formed by skiers turning around them. As the weather warms in spring, the bumps form more easily and grow larger. The larger moguls and slushy snow add to the challenge. Warm weather is like icing on the cake — these conditions are as good as it gets for mogul skiers.
Hanging Upside-Down
I love to hang upside down. It's a great way to decompress the spine and get the blood flowing. On crane days I sometimes got to hang upside down at work. Loved that job.
Jingle Bell Rock with Steampunk Santa
My friend Marty hired my wife (fashionsbyjackie.com) to create a Steampunk Santa costume for him, and we had some fun making this video. Marty is available for hire at (973) 519-6416 or at SteampunkSantaClaus@gmail.com.
Shanty
I was lucky enough to get some harmonica lessons with internationally acclaimed Rob Paparozzi. Rob taught me this song, "Shanty," by Jonathan Edwards. Hope you like it.
Snowskate
The snowskate is great for teaching balance. There are no bindings, so the only thing keeping you on the board is balance. Don't be afraid to be a beginner again — move slowly, be patient. The balance you're learning pays huge dividends when you go back to your snowboard.
Brookdale Park, Montclair NJ
Freeline skates take the ripstick to the next level. By eliminating the bar in the middle, you allow a much larger range of motion. Although freeline skates are more difficult to ride, the increased control makes it worth the effort. Some people have commented that I looked close to disaster in this video. Actually, I was in control and never felt threatened.
Advanced Freeline Skates
I'm riding a little faster these days. After countless miles on the skates, I'm finally learning better control over acceleration and deceleration. Fine-tuning those skills is the key to increasing speed with control.
Mountain Creek, 2011
Keep the board flat and straight for maximum speed. Keep the back knee bent to put more weight on the back of the board when you enter the water — that keeps the front of the board above the water. Try to tune the crowd out and enjoy the ride.
Mountain Creek Pond Skim, 2017
This was the longest pond skim to date at Mountain Creek — about 93 feet. My nephew Mike and I went to a party store to find a costume and found a blow-up monkey. Mike said, "just strap that to your ass, you'll be the old man with a monkey on his back!"
Kiteboarding — Outer Banks, NC
Took an RV trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. My brother-in-law Marcus and I took kiteboarding lessons. I finally got up and rode on the third day — this ride took me a few miles into the bay, with the instructor and Marcus giving chase on a wave runner.
Save the Last Dance For Me
My great childhood friend, the late Kevin Kohler, introduced me to his friend Mark Sganga. Mark and I became best buds, and he agreed to record this song with me. Mark Sganga is an International Fingerstyle Guitar Champion — check him out at marksganga.com. His partner, Alexandria of kreativejuicehouse.com, did an awesome job filming and editing. Hope you like it.
Flowrider, Allure of the Seas
Riding a FlowRider for 30 minutes can be equivalent to a full day of skiing or snowboarding. If you calculate how much time is actually spent riding or skiing on a typical day, it's probably less than 30 minutes for most people — the rest being spent in line or on the lift. This FlowRider is on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas. Highly recommend it.