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So you want to be a scuba diver? Marcy Barham makes it possible for anyone – 11Aug01

By JACKIE HOERMANN
The Kansas City Star
Marcy Barham has a sickness most would envy.
“I call it the scuba-diving sickness,” Barham said. “You get it, and you can’t turn back.”
Barham is a dive master and interactive teacher at the Dive Shop in Merriam. She left behind a job in pharmaceutical sales to pursue teaching, and 12 years in, she’s more passionate about the sport than ever.
How does an inlander get addicted to scuba diving?
I grew up as a fish; I swam all the time. When I was in college, a friend of mine asked me to be a guest on his boat. He said, “Get certified, get a ticket and come spend a week on this sailboat.” I called the Dive Shop, got signed up for classes and made my way down to the Bahamas. It grew from there.
Where have you dived?
Most of my dives have been in the Bahamas, but I’ve also dived in Roatan, Honduras; Cayman Brac; Cayman Islands and Chuuk, Micronesia. In Micronesia, we swam around the islands where Japanese ships from World War II had sunk.
How deep can you dive?
I’m certified for 130 feet, but when I was in Micronesia I was dying to see the sunken army tanks. So I went about 160 feet.
Do you collect anything from reefs or shipwrecks?
Just memories and pictures. I’m a firm believer of not touching and not taking. A lot of underwater national parks say you can’t take a grain of sand or a shell. The less we touch, the longer it lasts.
So what’s it like down there in the deep blue?
It’s euphoria. You can go down and tune everything out and just hear yourself breathe. I’ve had a few students with ADD, and they’ve told me that when they scuba, they relax. It’s their opportunity to mellow out and take it easy. For them to be able to do that underwater is neat.
Sounds like you love teaching.
Yeah. It’s hard to make a living, especially in the Midwest, but it fulfills a passion. And I understand what those kids mean. It’s sort of my underwater yoga world, too.
It seems like kicking and swimming would be physically demanding, not yoga-esque …
Most of the time, no. It’s a Sunday-drive kind of sport. You just relax, kick and glide.
Is your equipment heavy?
Under or above water?
Both.
A tank, BCD (buoyancy compensator device) and regulator weigh about 30 pounds. The lead weights add another 10 pounds or so, but once you’re in the water, all that weight only feels like 5 to 10 pounds, almost weightless.
What kind of certification do you have?
I got my open-water certification in 1999 and followed with my advanced scuba diving certification in 2002 and rescue diver certification in 2002-2003. Completed my dive master certification in 2004, and now I’m starting my assistant instructor program.
Any trips planned?
I always have a revolving list of dream destinations. My next trip will be back to the Bahamas at the end of this month.
What a great excuse to travel.
When you have the time and money.
I do have reservations. Most of them are shark-related.
I’ve never had my life threatened, and I’ve been on many shark dives with blacktip reef sharks, silvertip reef sharks, nurse sharks and Caribbean reef sharks.
Yikes.
Unfortunately, due to some movies in the ’70s, they get a bad rep. But on average, there are more dog bites each year than shark bites.
I’ve heard your lungs can pop.
The No. 1 rule is never hold your breath. That causes lung expansion. We cover how to deal with all that. If you do what you’re trained to do, you’ll be fine. And nervousness is normal. One of the divers here has extreme claustrophobia, but she can now dive and teach because she allowed herself to work through it.
Is there a good beginner class for someone like me, with zero experience?
At 10 a.m. on Saturday mornings we have “Discover Lessons” for ages 10 and up, and for $15 you can get the lesson and equipment. Just schedule with us a week or two in advance ( www.kcdiveshop.com).
Well, maybe I’ll bring the boyfriend along.

Source: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/06/19/2960992/so-you-want-to-be-a-scuba-diver.html

Small and medium businesses in Clark Philippines have a lot of interesting and unique products and services to offer but very few outside of Clark Freeport including potential customers in nearby Pampanga Angeles City, Subic, San Fernando and Manila ever hear about them. Market obscurity has led to slow growth in businesses inside Clark Freeport Zone and this is not being rectified as a new public service web site has been created to allow Clark locators to promote their services and products without any charge. Clark Pampanga is a fast growing city and businesses in Manila are making their move to either expand into or relocate to Clark Philippines.

The ClarkPhilippines.com web site is a community service web site dedicated to helping small businesses operating in Clark Freeport, Angeles City and vicinities like Subic and other cities in Pampanga or Tarlac even, to promote their products and services through internet visibility. There is no charge to these services.

Aside from products and services, news releases and product announcements can also be posted free of charge on ClarkPhilippines.com web site.

Where to go in Clark? Hotel Clark Philippines is a De Luxe Hotel in Clark and Subic, a risk free place to stay, cozy and nice ambience, a nice function place for special occasion

You might want to check also the Yats Restaurant is the best restaurant for special dinner, best restaurant for dinner with friends near Manila, also the best place to celebrate special events.

Famous Restaurant in Pampanga, a place to dine with friends in Clark, cozy restaurant with a nice ambience, a nice function place for special occassions

This web site contains articles and information that will be helpful to visitors, residents and tourists traveling out of town from Manila on a short getaway to Subic, Angeles City, Pampanga and Clark Philippines. There are several web sites that contain information that might also be pertinent to what is happening in North Luzon, Subic, Tarlac, Pampanga, Clark Freeport Philippines.

Wedding couples looking for wedding reception venues and beach wedding venues can log on to this Philippines Wedding Venue web site for free information and assistance:

For assistance with lodgings, accommodations, hotels and resorts near Manila in Subic, Pampanga, Angels City and Clark Philippines log on to http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

While in Clark, one might as well add to the itinerary a visit to the famous Clark Wine Center, the largest wine shop in Philippines which offers over 2000 selections of fine vintage wine from all wine regions, vintages spanning over 50 years covering all price ranges.

http://www.ClarkWineCenter.com

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