JimmyC: Thanks. I appreciate your sincerity. I hoped you had only misunderstood my intent, and in that case I certainly understand your reaction and appreciate your feelings on it.
I know that some of the tongue in cheek sarcasm of my post may not have been apparent. I didn't want anyone to take the outrageous story of my initial dive training as bragging. I wanted everyone to see it through the eyes of a complete newbie. I only speak of it now and tell that story because I can still remember what it was like to be brand new with no diving knowledge at all. I have enough experience now to understand how bad it was. I did some scary stuff. At the time, it didn't seem scary, I thought it was normal, but when I look back I am shocked that I didn't get hurt. God help us if others could be taking my same path.
I've since taken OW again, with instructors closer to home. Some fine folks let me do it over with them, mixed in with a group that I was involved with. Long story, but I got to repeat OW again, and with a new agency and instructors. That was a great experience.
I'm a different diver than I was 4 years ago when all this happened.
I keep my original C-Card and use it whenever a C-Card is needed. I'm a little ashamed of it, but do it as a reminder to myself not to be complacent. Even though I'll do my 100th dive next week, I won't update my card that says "5 or more logged dives" in hopes that someone will see that and warn me about some possible danger a new diver might not be aware of. It hasn't happened yet, just like "Check ID" rarely works when written on the back of my credit cards, but I'm hopeful.
I think seasoned divers should speak up and not be afraid to see a dive or dive conditions through the eyes of a newbie (at least when in the presence of a newbie). A platrom, 30ft down in dark cold quarry water is scary to a newbie....to a veteran it's the wonderful warm area above the thermocline and it is welcome relief after a long dive.
I have learned that a C-Card isn't a license to dive. It lets me get my tanks filled and get weights at my favorite resort, but doesn't mean I am explicitly qualified to go on any dive I want. I would like other new divers to know that too. It took a couple close calls for me to realize that. It's easy to get in trouble when you don't know what you can't do. That's what happened to me.
I have a wreck card. It has my picture and says I'm a wreck diver. I have a reel, and two lights. The DVD said "Wreck diving is fun and rewarding. yada yada yada" If I was younger and bulletproof, I may think that card was a license to go wreck diving. I can legitimately say "I passed the test and I have the equipment....I'm a certified wreck diver". I'm smart enough to know the bus at lake rawlings is not a "real" wreck, but as a newly minted diver I might think they're all that easy. That's how people sign up for dives they aren't ready for.
The things that almost got me hurt were NOT knowing my limits and believing whatever I was told. If I were an instructor, I would tell students just what you said: Take small steps. Explore your limits, don't push them. I would also caution against taking the advice of a dive professional who doesn't know you or your skills. I let myself be talked into dives because the DM was going to be "my buddy". That didn't make them safe.
In the interest of staying on topic: My intent was to say that my training prepared me for the test but not for diving with a buddy at my same experience level. I know not to fault new divers for getting themselves into trouble because it happend to me, and I had no intent of inviting trouble. Training can be done quickly and human interaction can be minimized with the use of online training and DVDs. That bothers me because a few more hours of time with an instructor and a few more scary war stories from experienced divers would have made me a safer newbie.
Al