Java with Jamie: Scuba-diving with Kerry Nakayama
In this week's Java with Jamie, we're diving right in -- to the pool! By day, Kerry Nakayama does analytics and data science. But in her spare time she is a certified dive instructor at Eco Dive Shop in Culver City. We met up with her at Hotel Figueroa in downtown Los Angeles.
You didn't order coffee.
"I ordered a chai latte," said Nakayama. "I am allergic to coffee beans."
What Kerry Nakayama is not allergic to is a little adventure.
"Every weekend I'm out at Catalina or on a boat," said Nakayama.
How did you become a scuba-diving instructor?
"It was actually something that my office that I work at, somebody had a heart attack, and I wanted to get rescue-certified, and once I got rescue-certified I was within Eco, and I followed through the program, going all the way through, and they are a full dive shop, so I was able to get the instructor license," said Nakayama.
Nakayama has been diving for the past 12 years, and she's traveled the world.
"Australia, New Zealand, I've been all over the world," said Nakayama. "I was a travel diver at first. It's such a fun experience to be able to travel and dive at the same time."
Did you have a favorite?
"Definitely Australia, the night diving there is amazing," said Nakayama.
One of her other favorite spots is in our own back yard: Catalina Island.
"There's so many fish out there, there's giant black sea bass that you'll see, they're the size of a car, and then you see a ton of the state fish of California, garibaldi, as well as kelp fish and sea lions, which are super playful, they'll play with you while you're in the water," said Nakayama. "They're just like dogs."
And now she's helping others discover scuba (SCUBA stands for Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) at the Hotel Figueroa pool, which was built in the 1920s before depth restrictions.
Are people fearful sometimes when they get into the water?
"You'd be surprised, yes, that's like actually the biggest thing is people are afraid to breathe underwater, because the number one rule of scuba-diving is that you don't hold your breath," said Nakayama. "And so that's the first thing, that from a really young age, people immediately assume when they jump in the water, they hold the breath, and they hold their nose."
What types of students do you get? I've always wanted to do it, for like 25 years, but I still haven't done it yet. Do you get a lot of people like me?
"For sure. We get a lot of people, it's like a bucket-list item, that they're like 'I'm just going to do it.' All ages, everywhere from the age of 10 all the way up through 80 that we'll see come in to dive. It's amazing. Everybody can do it."
And with that, I decided it was time to finally dive in. First, there's instruction on land. Then we hopped in the water, where we see how the equipment gets used. And then we dive for real, channeling our inner mermaid, and otter.
What has diving taught you about yourself?
"Patience," said Nakayama. "Everybody does everything at their own time, but the thing is, anybody can do it. You just have to take the time and listen to what they want to do, and you can move through it. It's really exciting to see the joy on somebody's face the second they get the skill, and they're like 'I've got it!'"
What have the people you've taught learned about themselves through diving?
"Perseverance. Keep going and you can do it."
Eco Dive Shop classes are held on Tuesday nights at the hotel through the end of September.