About Last Night

Thought I would post this video in honor of last night's surf.

Had a fun session last night at a usually empty break, but because it is the middle of summer, there ended up being eight other guys in the water, falling into the usual categories, with a few exceptions. #1 were the old guys on longboards. There were two of them and they didn't do much but float atop their Stewart tri-fins and when a wave did come their way, they were kind of hesistant to take off. They did a lot of sitting and looking around at the crowd, too busy thinking about the conference call they had to make with the boss after they got out of the water. Of course, they were dressed great from head to toe. #2 were the Kayakers. One guy looked like George "The Animal Steel" and he and his wife would position themselves to take waves, paddle and then fade off at the very end with a disappointed look. Also, the gentleman had no idea where to line up, so he just followed everyone around. With kayakers, its just best to act like they are not going to make their wave and just go. That rule definitely worked last night. #3 were the college bros. They definitely looked the part, but you could see the insecurity on their faces. Perfect tans and riding a wide range of boards, you could tell they thought they owned the place, when in reality, they were mediocre. Talking loudly about waves so everyone could hear them, pointing out to each other the finer points of their waves, basically making sure people all around them new what shredders they were, I just shut up and kept snagging waves. I kept waiting for them to high five one another, but it never happened. Whatever. There were two guys shortboarding that were really fun to watch, though. Solid turns and could position themselves so they didn't have to constantly pump the board down the line and seemed like pretty nice guys too. I wished I could ride a shortboard like they could.

I actually enjoyed watching everybody do their thing in between snagging a couple thigh to waist high waves. I can't even imagine what the North End was like, seeing as that's crowded all the time. Interestingly enough, the spot I was at was lining up really nicely, which is kind of rare. It reminded me of a great time I had there two years ago, only last night was a little smaller.

One dude was a dead ringer for Paul Newman too.

Bloodshed Rain

My street where I grew up is a magical place where some of the strangest things happen. There are a lot of hilarious stories from growing up on our block, but I miss out on many of them living elsewhere. For over a year, I have heard my dad tell me about our neighbor across the street who likes to wash her car in the rain, never really fully believing it. Apparently, anytime a little rain is in the forecast, goes outside, armed with a bucket and a sponge to harness the rain in the attempt to clean her Ford Taurus. Thinking how about how ridiculous this tale was, I was highly skeptical about its validity, until it began to rain yesterday afternoon.

Dressed in a clear poncho, out comes our neighbor with the exact equipment described in the story. She proceeded to collect water from the gutter (no rocks or dirt in there!) and scrub down her car for a good fifteen minutes in the rain. Honestly, it was probably one of the funniest neighborhood events I have witnessed in a long time. I didn't have a good camera or anything, but I felt the story needed some documentation to legitimize it.

Pose Hard

Had to run into the local surf shop yesterday to pick up a birthday gift and being that the height of the summer season is upon us, I knew that it would be an interesting trip. The shoppers did not let me down. Upon walking in and looking around, I see some kid who I have never seen before in my life checking out the racks of clothes and giving me a weird look. I guess I didn't have on any expensive surf clothing or something, because he was looking at me like I was out of place or I must be some kook. About eighteen years old, the look was perfectly manicured: Brand new pair of boardshorts on that looked like they had never been in the water, a popular surf brand t-shirt and the ever important flat-brim barely on his head and cocked to the side. Text book, I wanna look like a surfer look, because as we know, it is all about the look. I'm sorry my fashion sense disappointed him. He checked out the clothes, proud to make the transition from Hollister and Pac Sun to a real surf shop.

Second scene was even better. As I am paying for said birthday gift, Joe Blow walks in with lobster red skin and a matching OCBP tank top (must have been off duty) and, of course, no shoes (it really lets everyone know how hardcore you are). Joe wants to rent a surfboard for his son, which up until this point is totally cool in my book. But Joe can't leave well enough alone. Despite coming just short of walking in with a giant sign on his shirt saying "I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT", he starts talking to the girl working there about the board on the wall, that clearly had the shop's name as the lam. It is a beautifully shaped wooden fish and very unique, earning its spot on the wall rather than the racks.

Joe: Say did ___________ shape that thing?

Girl: No.

Joe: Really are you sure? ____________ makes insane boards. I know him. He's right down the street. I am really pretty sure that he shaped that.

Girl: I don't think so.

At this point, the girl turns to one of the shop owners ands asks her if her dad shaped that board. Of course, since the name is right on it, she says yes and he only ever made three. A relative of the shaper confirms. Joe's plan is foiled for the moment but he can't leave well enough alone.

Joe: Oh. Well, ____________ makes those too and they are insane. Really, you guys should check them out. He is right down the street.

I am in disbelief. There is some genetic code deeply buried inside the body that triggers the brain to say the dumbest things when entering the local shop. People feel like they need to prove that they know more than the surf shop employees or at the very least, make it sound like they know what they are talking about. What they don't realize is that it usually comes off as horribly transparent and they end up sounding like a complete jackass. Just shut up and stop trying to prove how much you don't know. I'm all for people asking questions and having a conversation, but too many times it turns into "let me show everyone that I'm not the kook they think I am."

Couple that with the fact that as I am at a red light, who pulls up next to me but flat brim. Of course, he is from Pennsylvania and has the absolute most hardcore, soulful sticker that a surfer can put on your car to let everyone know that you are a ripper. Yep, that's right, a Ron Jon surf shop sticker. Image is everything.

Return of the Fly-er

A well designed flyer from the nineties. I just wish I didn't cut off the bottom when I scanned my original.

Pose Hard

This picture is the result of showing up to beach and finding a giant ceramic wave model sitting on the sand and someone charging five bucks for a Polaroid of you on it. What young kid who loves the water wouldn't jump at that chance? My 11-year old self trying to look natural, even with my front foot waaay out of position around 1990. Only in Ocean City Maryland.

On My Mind

Like any good piece of art, this one makes you think. Mainly I'm thinking, "what is going on inside this student's head?", but it's thinking nonetheless. I really like these drawings.

We Sang Along and Lost Our Voice

A late 90's flyer for the once popular and short-lived Sunday Hardcore matinee at Scarlett O'Haras. I've been listening to a lot of the Atari discography lately and wishing they would play out again. There had been some talk over the summer of them playing a few shows in the UK, but, unfortunately, nothing came of that as far as I know.

Like the old saying goes, "Scarlett O'Hara's is the place to go for all the real hardcore shows".