A duo..

Notable. After a few sessions with more accomplished MatMen, namely Kendog and TRedondo, I'm gaining a bit more confidence on the towel. Saturday last, Jtweet and I enjoy some prone beauties. Long lefts in glassy conditions. Lesson one: too much air, no good. I played with inflation a bit to come back to the same conclusion. I like it about 90 degrees. There's a magic point of diminishing returns that a sensible mat rider cannot pass for fear of losing the flattened-out low-friction flutter of the mat. Lesson two: Don't leave your squid lid on top of the car and drive away. It's been a cold, flat winter. Now it will be just that much colder. And I am undeniably wimpy when it comes to cold.

Notable. The wind shifts on Sunday. "Dude, everywhere is, like, victory at sea". Nope. find a little sheltered beachbreak to enjoy with Mcheats. just the two of us and fast peaks disappearing onto the sand. Stoked. When I surf really fast waves with a really good surfer I am reminded that I am an average surfer with an above average level of surf stoke. It's a good life, this surfing life.

To touch time...

Yes, a stick on leash plug. Bizarre.

Let her fly...

Leash like a noose.

A prodigal returns. Northern Cal B. Arevee calls to show me a board. PB, my original surfing fountainhead birthed this yellow bud in the mid seventies. Bird says so. It is mine for the fair price of... But I ride my collection. This one would be done in months. Death by dings. Some wall will be well hung. Rather, to see and feel and be able to appreciate a piece of someone's surfing journey through a surfboard of defined lineage is a pleasure. My solemn wish: it rides once again before being sent to the surfboard taxidermist.

Pardon the leash. It would've been rude to ask to remove it. Besides, perhaps it means that the board will be ridden again.

Di-caught-omy...

Surfers' weekend. No swell showed on Saturday. Only marginal waves. Ridiculous crowds. Beautiful conditions. Got a few lined up sliders.

Sunday it begins. I drive from priceless pier to holiness haven. Lots of spots with some waves. Lots of lulls between waves. Lots of people complaining about the lots of people. A little county knowledge leads to many beautiful waves with a more manageable crowd. The longest lefts I've surfed in years. 100 yards if they were an inch. About head high, perfect glass.

Monday it continues. No looking around, just surfing. Same spot, same result. I dared an hour p.m. session at Civil Rights. A few beautiful waves come through. I catch six. I am dropped in on three times. Twice by don't-know-betters, once by "ASmith is too deep" guy. I wasn't too deep.

I am not complaining. I scored.

Yet...

I had two really grunmply moments. A SUP guy paddles out and wobbles in the impact zome losing his boat towards me and others repeatedly. I snap a little and embarassingly refer to him as "bobblehead" and "Kooky". "ASmith is too deep guy" gets a tirade about looking behind him and so on. Embarassing.

Don't be me. Don't become angry crowd surfer guy. I probably rode twenty waves of high quality over two days and countless more average waves. All of this in beautiful Socal conditions. Yet I found a way to be episodically grumpy. This is my penance, my public flaggelation. I apologize.

I give thanks.

Surf is where you find it...

snowmobile surf mission on Lake Superior.

Re-solutions...

Resolutions work for me. I make them about goals for personal growth. I make them about the mundane and the really quite important. They work. Last year I made a few with good results.
I can now touch my toes. I give a wave away every session. I listen more thoughtfully. I always double check my car doors when leaving a board inside during a session. Alas, with my wife going back to work, I was unable to surf more.

With little fanfare. Here are this years' batch of resolutions.

1. Create more, consume less. Purposefully broad in scope and hopefully in application. I taught someone to surf on January first. I officially created more stoke and, I suppose, a more crowded lineup. Sorry.
2. Surf more. I'm two for two so far in 2009!
3. Give thanks. Thanks.



"You're #11 on the list." Mrs. Lis, regarding a certain beachbreak fishy I'm anticipating.

A little gem for you...

Lis shaping. Ching in outer island paradise waxing historical. Rasta shredding a fishy. Crucial.
Video found via some world wide web spelunking.