So, I realized that you may all be wondering...what is Jacob doing these days? My bad for not filling you in...I tend to get a little caught up in my own life and forget to fill you in! Believe it or not, Jacob has been in Florida for a little over 3 weeks. So far he is doing really well. The first 3 weeks were the toughest because they had to wake up by 5am and had class and workouts and mandatory night study until 8pm! Talk about a long day! Luckily for Jacob, it paid off. On his first test, dive physics, he got 100%. And then he took a dive medicine test and got 82%. On the physical end of things, he is dominating in the pool. Also, they do 1000 yard bay swims (across the bay) and he has passed every time, normally with the first 2 or 3 guys in his class.
Last week, he hit a road block when they went into the compression chamber. The compression chamber is kind of like a tiny room where they seal the door and increase the pressure to simulate water pressure on your body during a dive. Jacob had trouble clearing his ears, leading to a middle ear squeeze. That means that the pressure on his ears was a little too great. Luckily, it didn't escalate to the point where his inner ear was blowing up! Since then, he hasn't had much of problem. A squeeze can be caused by a few things, like having a cold while diving, or wearing a mask too tightly around your ears.
This week, Jacob started practice dives in the pool at the training center. They've been practicing using different types of masks (and hard helmets!) and air regulation before they go out in the ocean to try it out.
Jacob likes Florida a LOT more than Chicago. He loves living on the beach and the warm weather. Also, his room is way nicer in Florida, he even gets a TV! Now that mandatory night study is over he is way less stressed and is finally enjoying his "real training." Only 3 and a half months until he graduates! I'll try harder to keep everyone updated with diving school from now on~
