Re-ordering the HSH

I was at Cox Bay again tonight. I didn't bother checking the surf... but I saw the right cars in the parking lot, so I suited up and went... besides which, I really didn't feel like driving all the way out to Long Beach to get harrassed by sea lions.

It was shoulder high and glassy... or at least it felt shoulder high and glassy. Basically, at this point, if I don't get the crap beaten out of me and manage to catch a few good rides, I'm having a super awesome time. I had a super awesome time... caught some excellent lefts (why don't I catch rights?)... and then effortlessly paddled back out to do it over and over again.

The surf has been good to me.

And now... July is over. I can't really believe it... but it really is... pretty soon, August 5th will roll around... and it will have been one full year since I officially stopped being an intelligence analyst. I guess if I were so inclined, I can now offer my services as a consultant.

In September, I'll become a grad student... and in November, I'll turn 30. Jesus. Time's wingèd chariot is about to run me right over. I have one more month of coasting before I start living like there just might be a chance I'll turn 60 one day. One more month of following the HSH... though I'm moving surf from fourth on the list to first.... because the first two are just for survival, and what is there to survive for if you're just getting by? I didn't think I'd feel this way... but the phrase "live to surf" has been making a whole lot of sense lately.

D and the Bluepath

I went to get a coffee from Breaker's this morning. I've stopped making and drinking coffee at work, because the water from the pipes in that old school house contains visible chunkies unless we let the water run for minutes... and with the water conservation efforts, there is no way I'm letting any water run. As I walked up to the till, the dude behind the counter began the following exchange:

dude- hey! I know you!
me- oh?
dude- you're the girl that rides the big blue board!
me- oh! yeah... I do.
dude- I see you out there all the time!
me- hm... cool. what do you ride?
dude- I'm the guy with the white board. In a wetsuit...
me- oh! the guy in a wetsuit!
dude- yeah, that guy! with the white board... just like all the other guys.
me- ah... is your board pointy?
dude- yeah!
me- oh... well then I know exactly who you are...

So it's me and the Bluepath... I get recognised in regular clothes and with glasses. Huh!

And wouldn't you know it, the first guy I paddle by out there this evening is this very dude in a wetsuit with a pointy white board... this time I recognised him as the guy from Breakers. We are all making progress here.

Tonight was lovely. Glassy and clean... and I caught two of what felt like the longest rides in maybe forever-- lefts that took me from in front of the lodge to all the way into the corner... green and peeling and beautiful. I actually felt like I had enough control to ensure that I got long rides... hard to explain as I don't have the vocabulary for it... but I can say that it felt super awesome... and dispelled any fears that I had had my surfing abilities beaten out of me during the last few days.

As I was out in the surf tonight, one profound and troubling realization came to mind-- that sometimes, those to whom one matters a whole lot may matter not at all to oneself. This is profoundly unfortunate and saddens me. More unfortunately, its truth is such that I could not sustain that moment of caring... so perhaps the best course of action to take (may it assuage one's guilt for failing to care) is to be aware of the existence of the universal balance-- one matters not at all to those who matter a whole lot to oneself.

Let it go. We are all subject to suffering. We may try to do as little harm as possible... but sometimes, others will find our sharpest quill and impale themselves upon it, much as we do with those of certain others. Forget it... just go and catch a wave... and you'll be sittin' on top of the world.

Frosted

Wow. I didn't realize it when I took that picture... but the Bluepath looks totally frosted in that shot. I assure you, it's the angle-- while I'm often guilty of over-waxing, we're looking at only one application of wax on top of a basecoat. The wax was flaking off in a big way yesterday, probably due to the insufferable heat in my car for the past two days... so since I wasn't in desperate need of a nap after work today, I stripped it and rewaxed it. It's an interesting experience... the deck has many, many pressure dings in it. I wondered which ones were from my feet and knees and which were from my skull. While stripping the board, I also accidentally scraped off part of the sticker. Since this sort of thing is likely to happen again, I considered not putting a sticker on the deck, and maybe have it on the rails or elsewhere... but I decided that I wanted it exactly where it was before... and I still had 5 more stickers for replacement before I have to re-order, so I stuck another one in the exact same place.

It was already around 8:30 when everyone was checked-in and I was ready to go. So despite reports saying that Cox Bay was crowded and messy, I decided to go there anyway. I didn't have time to mess around with surf checks... and I didn't even really have time to get to Long Beach even if I did commit myself (besides which, with the current sea lion situation, I'm not comfortable surfing alone there anymore... and the likelihood of being alone at that time of night was considerable). When I got to the parking lot, I realized that I was still wearing my glasses. Oops. I wasn't about to lose more light by going home to put on contacts, so I went out blind.

Blind. Seriously. Either my vision has deteriorated in the past couple of years or it was just really difficult to see tonight. I saw nothing. I paddled at suggestions of waves and caught some good rides, which I rode by feel, because I couldn't see where I was on the wave or what it was about to do. I wouldn't do it again, but it was quite the experience. At one point, as I was paddling for a wave, someone yelled "Go Dorothy!!!"... after not catching the wave, I looked over and apologized for having no idea who she is, because I was almost completely blind... it turned out to be Kate.

There was also some guy in the surf who yelled out my name to get my attention, presumably to say hello, but I looked around and could not identify any particular figure as the origin of the call, and didn't feel like randomly yelling at no one in particular to inform everyone that I cannot see. I must have seemed pretty unsocial tonight.

First time he's ridden naked in my car...

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Waiting for Orion

Every time I look up at the stars, I think of Orion... either because it is the first thing I see in the sky, or because its absence from the summer sky is so apparent. And, how could I ever forget Orion? The recollection of one amazing kiss is enough to cancel out all that silliness with gypsies and palestinians...

I know that eventually, it would have all gone to shit anyway... but I just wish it had gone to shit a little later. Neither before nor since have I come so close to actually caring. But, not close enough, apparently.

Surf Injury

Cox Bay was nasty yesterday. It looked messy and not very big from shore... but you could see people catching good rides out there. So I went.

I have never been beaten up this badly before... I was getting totally maytagged... came super close to being hit in the head many times, narrowly escaped losing teeth, got whacked by the fin a few times... and sustained a super nasty surf injury. I was tumbled so much and so hard that at one point, I had to actually *swim* up to the surface from however far down I'd been slammed. Once, while under water, my hair somehow got wrapped around the leash which got wrapped around my hair... and when the board shot off away from me, it tore out a chunk of hair. I heard the tearing of each caught hair. I'm pretty sure my scalp was bleeding. I thought that the hair would have disappeared, and I would never know how much hair was ripped out... but as it turns out, there was a chunk of hair that's wrapped around my leash so many times that I couldn't yank it off. It's still there now.

Karen is out this weekend... and she is going to take a picture of the hair. She was a little horrified when she saw it. We surfed long beach tonight... it wasn't the best surf ever... but I caught a few good rides. I am still entirely happy. Early breakfast tomorrow... and I'm slightly wasted right now... signing off,

d.

When, if not now?

Cox Bay was super crowded yesterday. I had to park at the old parking lot (which I'm now starting to like again, after having had to park there for two nights in a row now... so I guess I could say that Cox Bay was super crowded today, too... but I guess seeing as I got there late, it wasn't excruciatingly bad)...

Yes... so I got to Cox Bay really late today, and wasn't in the water till 9PM... I still got quite a few good rides, so it was all good. I am, however, super tired. I could say that work is very low in entertainment value... but a more accurate way of interpreting the situation is that I am now having trouble seeing the humour in what a friend has termed "an inverted insanity sandwich"... actually... it's more of an insanity vise, if you could imagine such a contraption... think medieval torture chambers, if that helps. In any case, I am stuck in it... however, people do adapt, and I suspect that if this trend continues, I will naturally start producing some extremely low pH fluid as a coping mechanism, which will have the effect of wearing away or at least in some way attacking the advancing insanity... but let's get back to more important matters...

SO I was on this wave... which was peeling left and was one of those super long rides... when I was about 3/4 of the way on my riding of this wave, GIWTHAMO (heretofore to be rechristened SAIS(wsp)) paddles for it and comes right... woh. Dude. I'm not done with my ride. I keep going, and he keeps going, I go down and he goes up, and we miss each other by no more than two feet... he paddles away immediately and doesn't even acknowledge me. This didn't seem to be one of those friendly encounters... it had an air of F-you about it. WTF? When I think about it now, I don't know what made me believe that he wouldn't have run right into me... sure he knows what he's doing... but what if he's just being nasty and happened to be on a board he didn't much like anyway? What if he's just that agressive? Blargh... whatever. Shortboarders.

Anyway... I'm super tired and must sleep. (Some Ftard called and woke me up in the middle of my nap to ask me the dumbest question of the week.)... overworked... but when, if not now, as Cs used to say.

Another First

Work was busy in a non-interesting way today... at some point, watching things fall apart loses its entertainment value... and if one isn't actively making things better, it's not quite so uplifting anymore... besides which, I was probably over tired. I was going to get 4.5 hours of sleep last night, but ended up getting more like 2.5 hours... but I had a good time... so there's nothing to complain about.

I got home from work and proceeded to immediately take a two hour nap. Then I woke up, ate, and went for a surf. Cox Bay was super crowded, but the surf was mushy and bad... I was there for half an hour tops, and then left for Long Beach. Long Beach was super flat... but the few waves that were there were clean... and there were only about five people out. I had resigned myself to the impossibility of a great surf this evening... but then caught a few worthwhile rides. Things were picking up as it was getting dark... and I then I caught this clean, peeling right... and as I rode it, I saw this gigantic school of fish going in the same direction. I was surfing directly on top of hundreds of dark, shimmering fish. I have no idea what they are... but I've never seen that many fish in the surf... and have certainly never surfed with them. So that was a first.

And now the blueberry coffee cake is ten or fifteen minutes from being done... the table is set... and I might be able to get almost of 5.5 hours of sleep tonight! Yay!

Time's winged chariot hurrying near...

Today, being a Saturday, was my "day off"... and while I did manage to fit in all that is essential to happiness... it was not so much a "day off"...

I got up late this morning, at 6AM instead of 5:40AM... which I guess is a bit of a break. I went and opened the Cox Bay washrooms (which is an interesting exercise in the practice of compassion... I'm moving from focusing my goodwill on a friend (Karen, who seems always to need the Cox Bay washrooms, but lives in Vancouver and is rarely here) to focusing my goodwill on a neutral person (anyone of those surfers out there, or even the surf kayaker)... and eventually, I will work on opening that washroom for my enemies... (first I might have to cultivate some... which, I think, would defeat the purpose of this goodwill thing)...

Then I came home and made breakfast... which is getting a little out of hand. I suspect it's a vanity thing... this insisting on baking everything fresh from scratch... and then baking multiple things each day from scratch. I run a B&B, not a bakery... what am I doing? Damn pride....

Then it was cleaning... and then running around getting supplies. I had to fit a nap in there somewhere... managed to sleep between 4:30PM and 6:30PM, after seeing ULTE1. Got up... got food... then went for a surf.

I checked Cox Bay... but it was onshore and looked like it would be a lot of work to paddle out... so I went to Long Beach... which didn't look great... but I saw this longboarder catch an awesome ride, so I decided to go out. While in the parking lot, I notice BNs's car... and as I was walking out in the surf, I happened to be at exactly the place where I was in the way of his ride. Ooops. So we said hello, and I was paddling out and not standing around talking (talking is for outside the break, as far as I'm concerned)... and this time, I guess he wanted to talk to me as much as I wanted to talk to him... and no one missed any waves for a conversation. Pretty soon after, I lost track of him. It's all good and drama-free, if a little mildly but weirdly passive aggressive.

There were some good rides, I think (I'm pretty sure, because people I do no know tell me so)... but nothing spectacular that I would remember. Tonight, there was no superlatives or premiers. One thing I find a little different is that people now recognise me and my board and talk to me as if they know me... I have no idea who these people are... but many of them seem to be carrying on a previous conversation that I don't quite exactly recall having had.

When I went to close the Cox Bay washroom, a figure backlit by the washroom lights said hello to me... I was afraid it would be another one of these non-recognisable people who know me... but as it turns out, it's someone I know... he had a friend with him who was visiting from Vancouver... they invited me to join them at the Legion for a concert. Not having a ticket and not having ever been to the Legion... I had to pass... but now it looks like I might be going to a metal concert on Friday night?

But who has the time? After I closed the washrooms and came back and showered, it was already quarter to 11... and I had yet to prepare for breakfast preparations. Now, I am half way done preparing to prepare... I'm going to set the table and go to bed... looks like I might be able to squeez in almost six hours of sleep tonight... which, if added to my nap, gives me totally adequate sleep...

YAY!!!!!

The surf is back!!!

The forecast said that it would be 3ft this evening... but it turned out to be way more than that and it was SUPER AWESOME. The parking lot at 1431 was almost full when I got there just before 8:30PM, which is an excellent sign.

Got a lot of time on the green... and I was holding my own out there... so many super awesome rides that I really can't keep track anymore... by 9:45PM, there were only two others that I could see, and they caught a closeout in and were gone. I refused to leave without catching that one last excellent ride (this rarely ever works out, usually because by the time I'm thinking about going in, the surf is either super crappy, or I'm really, really, really tired... or super pressed for time... but I still insist)... it was 10PM and quite dark by the time I caught this SUPER AWESOME left, that brought me all the way from the outside to knee-deep water right in front of Long Beach Lodge... and the whole ride "in the pocket," whatever that means... so, the new thing from this evening's session is "best exit ever"...

I walked towards my sandals by 1431, and this other dude was walking towards his flip flops which were right next to mine... "I thought I was the last one out," he said... well... pretty close... after 5 days of flat surf, I was not about to leave until I absolutely couldn't see anymore... and neither was he. Apparently, he had been so stoked to get out that he left his keys to his Vespa in the ignition. It was, of course, still there when we got to the parking lot... and not just because it was almost hidden next to the Aerostar, but because Tofino is super awesome.

Worse than Central Canadian Surf...

Day five of no surf.

Forecast shows that I will have day six of no surf to which to look forward.

Existential angst is keenly felt.

A little bit of Hopkins, then:

MY own heart let me more have pity on; let
Me live to my sad self hereafter kind,
Charitable; not live this tormented mind
With this tormented mind tormenting yet.
I cast for comfort I can no more get
By groping round my comfortless, than blind
Eyes in their dark can day or thirst can find
Thirst ’s all-in-all in all a world of wet.

Soul, self; come, poor Jackself, I do advise
You, jaded, let be; call off thoughts awhile
Elsewhere; leave comfort root-room; let joy size
At God knows when to God knows what; whose smile
’s not wrung, see you; unforeseen times rather—as skies
Betweenpie mountains—lights a lovely mile.

Becoming...

A key lime pie, coconut macaroons, naan.
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A Big Thank You to Sean Owens and Central Canadian "Surf"...

The surf has been really bad for the last few days... it's so small that it isn't really there at all. ULTE1 told me this morning that today is even smaller than yesterday. I went to Cox Bay at 8:30PM. I wasn't planning on surfing, but I had spent all day doing B&B stuff at home that I wanted to be outside... even if it is cold and grey. Besides which, I had to go to Cox at some point to close the washrooms for 10PM... so I brought my camera with the gigantic zoom lens out to maybe walk around and take some pictures. When I got near the beach, I saw a perfect peeling right... and then seconds later, I realised it was a perfect peeling right in knee deep water.

There were very few people out... but I saw one guy catch a 5 second ride. Remembering the photos I saw today of a friend and his buddies trying to surf these weird little wind choppy things on some lake in Ontario, I decided that if there were 5 second rides to be had out there, I was going for it... if not for myself, then for those poor surf stoked people in Ontario!

By the time I got to the beach, everyone was leaving... including the guy who rented the 11' NSP from Long Beach Surf Shop. By the time I got into the water (9:05PM), I was the only one in the water. It was super flat and the light was super flat. I saw almost nothing at all coming in... but I paddled for the first tiny little wave I thought I saw, and I caught a super long ride on this green that's not even quite knee-high. It was the most amazing little wave ever. I paddled back out... and caught another small but long ride... and then another one... and then another one... I was doing laps in this super small surf... which I had all to myself. It was super awesome. I had Cox Bay all to myself... and I got a WHOLE lot of time on the green. After 15 to 20 minutes of catching one wave after another, it got even flatter... and then it was about time to go... so I got out of the water, locked up the washrooms, and came home.

I thought I would have nothing super awesome to report for a long while... but today was a super awesome day of tiny surf... on a day when I wouldn't have gone out... especially if I was with anyone else. It was madness to try and surf something this small... but madness has its rewards. SU-PER AWE-SOME.

And when I got home, I realized that it was my next door neighbour who was out with the rental 11' NSP... which 1.) proves that those out there weren't tourists who were forced to go out in bad surf, and 2.) suggests that super long boards are gaining in popularity.

WTF??

"A brown-eyed stranger will be instrumental in your success."

Blargh.
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It's a bit of a love triangle...

Being in love with a surfboard presents a bit of a problem... that is, as much in love as one is, the need for good surf remains. It is like the Leonard Cohen thing about how a relationship always has that third "other"...

Well... these are trying times... day two of super small surf. Of course, being in love, I went out anyway. I did get a few rides on the green, and had it not been for the super spectacular rides I've been having recently, I would probably have been ecstatic about these rides on the green... one in particular had potential to be inspirational, it was a long little ride that went from in front of 1431 into the corner... and given that it was a really really small day... it was, or should be, very satisfying.

But perhaps rides on the green is a little bit like heroine... you just always want more...

Of course... there was also one other thing that might have tainted the session a little. On the trail out to the beach, I spotted Board's Namesake's (BNs) car. He told me he would be here this weekend... but somehow it hadn't registered. The beach is big enough for us all, I'd thought. Well, I didn't see him surfing out there... but then at one point, I almost took off straight into him and his (I'm guessing) niece, who was being taught how to surf. Jesus. So I paddled out right away and away from the area (let's not interrupt this private family moment)... and somehow, after a while, ended up right outside of them AGAIN. I had never turned around so quickly.

It might seem a little weird to you... because, after all I had said about him... you'd figure I'd really want to see him and say hello or something... but there were two reasons why I couldn't. #1, he was with a child, and I'm afraid of children... and #2, I just got the sticker on there two days ago... I am NOT ready to have to do any explaining if he saw it. On the other hand... he'd likely not notice the big one, which is all covered in wax anyway... but then on the third non-existent hand, I am of the opinion that my logo is done so beautifully that anyone who knows the sugar logo would immediately assume that that's what it was... and on the off chance that he's a) from central Canada, or b) actually part of that Quebecker-Scot family... I wasn't prepared for a "hey, let's check out this new board of yours" moment.

The real reason, however... is that I fear the interruption of reality. This is the price we pay for insisting on living in and ruling our tiny, skull-sized kingdoms.

Redefinition of "Taking a Break"

It had to happen... a day without surf.

After cooking and eating dinner (Coconut chicken), I went to check the surf at Cox Bay. Not good.

So I went to Long Beach. Not good either... but... it didn't look super horrible, so I decided to go out anyway. I parked at parking lot #1 at Long Beach, which has a trail that opens out directly to Lovekin Rock. I went straight out and into the "surf"... after a few attempts, I decided that it wasn't worth continuing trying to catch more of nothing, so I decided to take a break today... no more trying to catch waves.

Instead, I paddled from Lovekin Rock down past Incinerator Rock and back. I was going to paddle all the way down to Esowista... but it was getting a little bit late, and I didn't know how tired I would be by the end of it.

It was a fun, super long paddle.

One thing is for certain... I love this board.

Failure to Process

Something happened out there in the surf today that I cannot quite comprehend.

I know it happened... but I can't put it together.

Here's what I know... I caught this wave... and I was on the green and I was going right... except at some point, I realize that it's not a right anymore... it was closing out... so then the next thing I know... I'm going left! And I kept going left for a while.

So... what I suspect happened is that at some point while I was riding that wave... I made a u-turn and went the other way.

But how is this possible?

I remember being super impressed when I saw someone else do this. In fact, I remember telling the story about this dude doing exactly that to a friend, who was also duly impressed.

Today though, I seem to have done just that. Woh.

If only that was the end of the story.

You see, as I was going left (and this is still that same aforementioned wave)... there was a dude coming right, because it was breaking right behind him... and it was breaking left behind me. He was going right, I was going left... and the wave was closing out. Was this the appropriate time to panic? Or to think "holy shit, what am I going to do?!?!?!!"? It might have been... but instead, we both stayed on the wave... until we got really close... and I went down and he went up, and no one even raised an eyebrow... we both paddled back out... and continued as if that sort of thing happens all the time.

Of course, it probably does. Just not for me, thus far.

The stickers, I am happy to report, are on the board. The large sticker on the nose has been waxed (and is only as visible as the Gordon & Smith logo under the wax).... but the small sticker on the tail has no wax on it... and it looks like that is the exactly place where it should be. I will take a picture tomorrow... today, I was too surf stoked to take a picture before I went out, and it was too dark by the time I came back in.

I do not know what is going on anymore. Something is happening... and I don't

The Unveiling...

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Stripped and sticker ready!!!

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Вам не понять моей радости (It is not for you to understand my joy.)

The surf was so super awesome today that the phrase super awesome has lost all meaning.

And what's more... I was doing really well. I caught two head high waves today and rode them all the way to the end... they were probably the biggest waves I've caught and ridden comfortably. And then later, on another wave, I actually (seriously, no kidding) made turns up and down the face of the wave, as oppose to ride straight down the line.

Seriously. No kidding. Probably my best session ever. I also caught a wave really close to someone who was paddling out, whereas before I probably would have not caught it, being not sufficiently confident that I had full control of where I was going so that I could be sure to not hit the dude.

By the end of the session, I was so tired I couldn't even throw myself in front of the white water to get back to the beach.

Seriously. No kidding.

SU-PER--AWE-SOME.

Seriously. No kidding.

Is the Oracle trying its hand at irony?

I haven't been to Gary's in so long that they thought I had moved away. And after such a length of absence, this is the oracle I get.

"A companion is an added strength."

Thanks, Oracle.
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Mass Shaunodus

Yesterday, I had dinner with S. who is moving back to the mainland. I wasn't really prepared for the drama... and luckily managed to avoid it all. The drama came today via SMS... but I suppose it was all my fault, because really, I could have just not said anything and stayed perfectly quiet... which, retrospectively, is clearly what I should have done-- keep ones opinions to oneself.

And ULTE2 packed up his stuff and moved out again. I think this is the 3rd time, although I must admit that I'm having a little bit of difficulty keeping track. The process itself was drama-free, but that which necessarily led up to it was drama-filled. I do not like to raise my voice. I almost always prefer to walk away. (see, most of the time, I'm perfectly capable of keeping my opinions to myself) But what does one do when one is getting yelled at for no reason? This "You're too depressed, it's impossible to be around you" and "You're too happy, it's impossible to be around you" oscillation is reminiscent of the "office too cold" versus "office too hot" debate... only this seems to come from one person as opposed to two distinct parties who, I would imagine, experience temperatures differently. If this had begun as an experiment to see whether I could live with someone, it is a failed experiment. I think it is entirely possible for me to live with someone... just not ULTE2, who is looking for an excuse to move on anyway.

The thing with BNs is pretty much done. I am entirely happy with the conclusion, because it brought me to the Bluepath, which is a huge milestone in my life. I also received just enough additional information to understand the whole insistence on delusion-- it is all done in the name of assuaging one's conscience (not mine, my conscience is fine-- there's a lot to be said for consistent honesty and openness).

I'm still waiting for those stickers to arrive... and am becoming increasingly impatient. The hot weather has repeatedly melted the wax just enough that it's starting to flake off. I need to strip the board soon (yesterday)... but I want to strip it, put the sticker on, and *then* wax it. I don't want to have the stickers arrive and then have to wait for the next time I strip the board.

Surfrider. It's going to happen. We're going to make it happen. I ran into one of the people at Thursday's meeting while picking up stuff at the Co-op, and we chatted for a bit about how we're going to get things going (as far as I'm concerned, nothing ever goes quickly enough or efficiently enough). It turns out that this guy's girlfriend is the woman I've spoken with many times on the phone at my work and at my business-- and I'd always wondered whether or not she knew that she was referring business to the same person she was asking questions to at my office... and as it turns out, she appreciated my help so much that her boyfriend has heard about me... but none of all of this was connected until this evening.

And if you think this makes me feel like my world is shrinking, Simon's wife turns out to be the wedding coordinator that's been assigning weddings to ULTE2.

There are probably more connections... but I will avoid thinking about them. Otherwise I'd have "It's a small world afterall" playing on a loop inside my head... and if you think the song is annoying in English, you should hear it in Cantonese, which is the version my brain always defaults to. It hurts so much that I wish I had had a cyanide cap put on my teeth.

This whole exercise of opening and closing the Cox Bay washrooms is starting to make itself felt. I have to put on my hoodie and drive out to Cox Bay right now... instead of preparing for preparing breakfast... or sleeping... which seems like an excellent, if abstract concept from where I sit.

Surf wax is not for note taking

And should you happen to take notes on a bar of surf wax, try to remember to not leave it on the dashboard.
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What was Aristotle on about?

I remember reading, years ago, some sort of a treatise on sleep and wakefulness by some super dead classical philosopher. I haven't read any classical philosophy in so long that I can't remember who wrote it or what exactly the point was... but there was definitely something about the importance of sleep.

But who has time for sleeping in the summer?

I got up at 5:30AM and drove out to Cox Bay to do my volunteer surfrider duty. I got home at 6:15AM or so and started to prepare an early breakfast for a couple of guests I was very happy to have had. I really like the French... so much so that I'm going to order a set of coffee bowls to minimize confusion during breakfast. Once I served the 7AM breakfast, I checked in with ULTE2 to make sure he was going to serve the 8AM breakfast after I went to work. Then all hell broke loose, and he's moving out tomorrow. Owell. I guess it just isn't going to work. I don't have much sleep left to lose over it.

The day at work was, as always, interesting. Since I have recently been assigned a host of different duties, I decided to clean my desk on Tuesday. During one of the busiest days of the year, I managed to completely organize my desk. By the afternoon today, however, it had pretty much reverted back to what looks like utter chaos. I'm thinking it may be the desk. It's a third the size of that which was in my cushy cubicle with the herman miller chair. (okay, I admit it, I miss my old chair... but really, that's about the only thing I miss about that whole life left behind)

I registered for my courses today... so I'm now seriously a grad student. The somewhat amusing part was that for the last little bit, I had forgotten all about this whole business of the master's degree. Oops. Registration started almost two weeks ago. I never used to be quite this blasé.

Couched in the very centre of today (and yes, there is a centre) was a perfect surf. I was driving out with ULTE2 when I got a call from a friend who wants to borrow a big board. I drove back and got it, and met him at Long Beach. It was pretty crowded there... but it was crowded with all the right people. There was a community of surfers all having a good time. Right now, I am recalling a beautiful ride on the green... but I cannot recall whether this ride was today or yesterdays. When surf sesssions are as beautiful as what they have lately been, the magic blends the hours and days into colours and textures... and it becomes impossible to tally or record.

I love my board. The stickers still have not arrived. My board's namesake shall remain my board's namesake. I need the stickers to arrive so that I have one more reason to strip the wax.

I think I might get almost 5 hours of sleep tonight.

No Stickers.

Instead, a voice from the dead... a moment of silence.
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network

Happy Canada Day! Bonne Fête du Canada!

Cox Bay washroom, now open for business!
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network