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2 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories New Southern Oregon University board votes to bump tuition nearly 5 percent in the fall Police Reports Schneider Art Museum installation re-imagines Rivera UPDATED: Two lanes open after I-5 truck crash near Siskiyou Summit 10 things to know for Friday Education New Southern Oregon University board votes to bump tuition nearly 5 percent in the fall Why OLLI matters: A personal perspective Southern Oregon University names director of marketing Dianne Williamson: College admissions mania ill-advised Rotary Club of Ashland names Riley O'Sullivan as Student of the Month Environment Mt. Ashland Ski Area to host party March 28 Mt. Ashland hopes coming storm will reopen ski area Wild Side: Selfish and other reasons for saving endangered species Mt. Ashland Ski Area: Low snow closes 'bunny hill' chairlift for beginning skiers With pre-season conditions worst in 25 years, catastrophic wildfires expected in region this summer Business Ride & Drive: 2015 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Snow hopes dashed, Mt. Ashland Ski Area hosts season-ending party Saturday Iconic Ashland bookstore to celebrate 35th anniversary on April 19 Test Drive: 2015 Honda Accord Cars We Remember: The original Candymatic Ramchargers Politics and elections Jackson County Commissioners plan no tax on marijuana for first year Grassroots group campaigns for Plaza paver do-over Arthur I. Cyr: Iran – a crisis without end Short-term rental restrictions kept in some areas, loosened in others Arthur I. Cyr: South Korea represents long-term triumph – for them and for US State News Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Nation - World Leonard Nimoy, famous as Mr. Spock on 'Star Trek,' dies Obituaries Death Notices Alicia Applegate Hardy Death Notices Rosalind Dee Death Notices Shareable Sports Latest Stories Grizz baseball team caps Arizona trip with another win Ashland Rowing Club hires highly touted coach and national-award winning team director to lead expansion Antionette Kerr: Tourney fever gets superstitious Blazers fight back, edge Jazz Grizzlies rally past Colorado school for Greenway Festival victory High school Grizz baseball team caps Arizona trip with another win Grizzlies rally past Colorado school for Greenway Festival victory Ashland softball team splits pair in second day of Bend tournament Grizzlies rally past GP, to 2-0 start Ashland boys capture another Sato Cup snowboard title at Mt. Bachelor Southern Oregon University Grizz baseball team caps Arizona trip with another win Grizzlies rally past Colorado school for Greenway Festival victory Ashland softball team splits pair in second day of Bend tournament Ducks enjoy the challenge Oregon bows out Voices Latest Stories Philip Maddocks: GOP plan offers hope for poor once they become rich Matthew T. Mangino: A clearer picture of police shootings begins to emerge Letters to the Editor, March 27 Jeffrey Gillespie: Pax Americana? At what price? Arthur I. Cyr: The legacy of Singapore’s leader Lee Kwan Yew Editorial Our View: Build it; they will play Our View: How it should work Our View: Ashland High principal is the head of her class Our View: Tuition trauma Our View: SOU's economic clout Letters Letters to the Editor, March 27 Letters to the Editor, March 25 Letters to the Editor, March 23 Letters to the Editor, March 20 Letters to the Editor, March 19 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Hannah Thomas-Garner's father thanks the Ashland community Guest Opinion: Ashland is asking for trouble with new room rental rules Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose Jordan Cove Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Guest Opinion: Ashland schools failed to protect my son from bullying Columns Philip Maddocks: GOP plan offers hope for poor once they become rich Matthew T. Mangino: A clearer picture of police shootings begins to emerge Jeffrey Gillespie: Pax Americana? At what price? Arthur I. Cyr: The legacy of Singapore’s leader Lee Kwan Yew The rest of the story Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Top 5 things to do this week Laurie Lewis and Kathy Kallick pay tribute to Arkansas bluegrass duo Vern Williams and Ray Park The Oregon Shakespeare Festival presents Eugene O'Neill's autobiographical 'Long Day's Journey into Night' Community blog: Words, wine and Craig Wright 4 Things To Do This Week Theater Ticket availability Ticket Availability Ashland Contemporary Theatre seeks new artistic director Ticket Availability The Oregon Shakespeare Festival presents Eugene O'Neill's autobiographical 'Long Day's Journey into Night' Music Futureshock: Kendrick Lamar release points to road ahead Laurie Lewis and Kathy Kallick pay tribute to Arkansas bluegrass duo Vern Williams and Ray Park Album reviews: Recent and recommended for March The Farr Side: New format for ‘American Idol’ as show continues a strong run Improv rock and folk band hosts a dance party at the Ashland Community Center Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Movies Movie review: In ‘Danny Collins,’ Pacino helps us imagine a Lennon story Noah Baumbach talks Ben Stiller, adult comedies and more In 'Timbuktu,' lust for power disturbs peace Movie review: ‘The Gunman’ misses the target Movie listings: March 20-26 Food and Drink Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Ride & Drive: 2015 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque App Finder: Best barbecue apps Health Watch: It’s OK to have a cheat day Inner Peace: The good, the bad and the spiritual Antionette Kerr: Tourney fever gets superstitious Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW New Southern Oregon University board votes to bump tuition nearly 5 percent in the fall ... Ticket availability ... UPDATED: Two lanes open after I-5 truck crash near Siskiyou Summit ... New Southern Oregon University board votes to bump tuition nearly 5 percent in the fall ... Ticket availability ... UPDATED: Two lanes open after I-5 truck crash near Siskiyou Summit ... David Murdock: ZOOOOOOOOOM! Life is like a roller coaster Comment By David Murdock More Content Now DailyTidings.com By David Murdock More Content Now Posted Mar. 26, 2015 at 9:19 AM By David Murdock More Content Now Posted Mar. 26, 2015 at 9:19 AM » Social News I woke up this morning thinking about something I haven’t really thought about in years — the Great American Scream Machine at Six Flags Over Georgia. I haven’t ridden that roller coaster in probably 30 years, but I know exactly why it popped into my head before coffee this morning. When I was a teenager, the Scream Machine was a presence in my life. Even though I have been to Six Flags only about six times or so (and all during my teenage years), that park was a sort of cultural touchstone for teenagers in the 1980s. Going to Six Flags was a real treat, and we talked about it quite a bit — riding the Scream Machine was simply one of those intermittent topics of teen conversation. Remembering the attention we gave it, it was almost a mythical quest. My friends rhapsodized about the ride on the Scream Machine. If you’d been recently, you talked about how great it was, and you talked about how great it was going to be if you were going soon. We had discussions of the minutiae of the best way to stand in line, the least-crowded time of day to try, and so on. We even seriously discussed what holding your hands up over your head meant, exactly. It was like some sort of teenage think tank. It’s a thing of beauty — there’s that long, slow, agonizing ascent up to the first drop. Couple that with the hour-long wait before being strapped in the train, and the inherent genius of amusement park engineers becomes obvious. Even though our rational minds tell us that it’s safe, the ascent — not too slow and not too fast — is perfectly timed to increase anticipation and “fear.” Those last few feet are the worst as the train seems to hang there for a second so the riders can see the vista and then … ZOOOOOOOOOM! The rest of the ride goes by so fast that I could never quite take it all in. Not being able to take it all in, I wanted to ride it again, and I have exited the ride and immediately gotten back in line. There was never any real fear in riding the Scream Machine when I was younger. I think Six Flags used to give out some sort of promotional sticker for riding it — one of those “I survived the Scream Machine” things or something like that. There are a small number of deaths and injuries at amusement parks across the nation each year, but the number is infinitesimal compared to the number of traffic fatalities, so I never thought about not surviving the ride. The only time I’ve ever been actually afraid on a roller coaster was not at Six Flags at all; it was on the old Starliner at Miracle Strip Amusement Park in Panama City, Florida. Both the original park and the roller coaster are gone now, but I had a fateful ride back there in the late 1970s. A big group of my friends and I had gone down to Panama City on vacation. We got on the Starliner one night at the park, and the train ground to a halt just about 10 feet before the crest of the first drop. We were stuck up there quite a while before the roller-coaster crew came up to get us down. They unstrapped us, and we walked down the narrow access strip alongside the track. Now, the whole thing was maybe 70 feet high or so, but that’s a long way when you’re walking down on a 1-foot-wide strip. There are two absolutely memorable elements to that walk down — the terror of it and the wonder of seeing one of my friends walking down it with his arms stretched out to the side like THAT WALK was the ride. He loved it, but, to this day, I am edgy with heights without a visually solid framework. Why did I think about roller coasters this morning? A few days ago, I offhandedly remarked to someone in conversation, “Life is like a roller coaster.” It is. There’s a lot of waiting around, a lot of anticipating and a lot of thrilling rides. Every once in a while, though, there are moments of sheer terror. As the novelist Kate Chopin put it, life is “that monster made up of beauty and brutality.” Too often — far too often — we become so caught up with the brutality of what we witness that we’re paralyzed. I will say this thing about my walk down from top of the roller coaster — I steeled myself, watched my footing, held on to the rail, walked right down, and got right back on that roller coaster. It took 10 minutes to fix; we were cresting the first drop in 11 minutes. I wish I’d considered the beauty of it all while walking down. After all, beauty kills the beast. Gadsden (Ala.) Times columnist David Murdock is an English instructor at Gadsden State Community College. By David Murdock More Content Now DailyTidings.com By David Murdock More Content Now Posted Mar. 26, 2015 at 9:19 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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