Inside FLORIDA TODAY: Why I'm thinking of Indiana Jones

When I was 10, Raiders of the Lost Ark premiered.

For reasons that I still don’t fully understand, my mother took me out of school to see it. I can’t even begin to describe what an unusual thing that was for her to have done.

It immediately became my favorite movie, and I decided I wanted to be an archeologist. Because my understanding of archeology didn’t extend beyond the film, I bought a hat and whip like Indiana Jones and dug out of a neighbor’s garbage pile an old, smelly leather bomber jacket (a jacket that my Dad, much to my frustration, made me return to the garbage when he discovered me wearing it).

All the kids in my Rochester, N.Y. neighborhood were enchanted by Indiana Jones, and since we didn’t really know what we could dig up, we, instead, wrote our own Indian Jones-adventure movies and filmed them. Our parents even agreed to dress up in suits and trek over to an abandoned 19th-century cemetery and act in a funeral scene. Don’t worry, we didn’t dig anything up in that cemetery. We only filmed.

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It wasn’t until I was in college that I got a real taste of archeology when I spent a few weeks one summer on a historical archeological dig organized by our local museum at a park near our house. It wasn’t nearly as dramatic or exciting as Indiana Jones made it look but I learned a lot, mainly that I didn’t want to be an archeologist.

I opted for journalism where for a decade while I worked overseas, I didn’t have the hat and whip but with a notebook and pen, I definitely found myself in some pretty extreme places and sometimes felt a little like Indiana Jones.

All that said, I was most fascinated this week by Space Reporter Rick Neale’s story on the archeological excavation of the Bumper 8 launch site. Bumper 8 was the first American rocket to successfully launch from the Cape. The excavation project is being undertaken by University of Central Florida students. What got me was the course description: "Field conditions can be harsh including heat, cold, insects, snakes, alligators, and dense vegetation." Students must be able to lift 50 pounds, walk long distances across wetlands, and dig with shovels. Security clearances are also required, and no foreign nationals can participate.

You better believe I would have signed up for that course.

Rick’s story is a great read that I hope you don’t miss. Another important piece in Sunday’s FLORIDA TODAY includes a deeper look at an unusual amendment on hunting and fishing on the November ballot. Environment reporter Jim Waymer dives into what its passage might mean in what is just the beginning of our pledge to bring you detailed election coverage.

Other good stories not to miss include Engagement Editor John A. Torres' latest column on Crosley Green and that miscarriage of justice, Trending Reporter Michelle Spitzer's piece on what to know as we enter lovebug season, a heartwarming story about cooking classes for children, an informative article on Passover and why it's so late this year and not one but two photos of the week.

Finally, for those of you wondering, I did it. I completed my first triathlon last Sunday. It was exhilarating and terrifying, and now I genuinely feel like I could do anything. Maybe for 50-something me, this is my Indiana Jones fix.

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Executive Editor Mara Bellaby can be reached at mbellaby@floridatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Archeology and rockets: a mix Indiana Jones would have liked