Merry Christmas

Baby (The Nativity), Paul Gauguin, 1896.

"The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighbourhood."

Peace and joy to you all this Christmas...and light offshores as well.

addition and subtraction

So much give and take in this life.

Surf Art Show

The theatres have been sold out in town for the past couple of days as the surfing community eats up the 2nd annual Canadian Surf Film Festival. There is a whole lot of cinema stoke floating around, mixed with the anticipation of a potentially solid incoming swell.

Meanwhile, the annual Surf Art Show is having its opening weekend at Laughleton Gallery, my good friends John and Judith Brannen's somewhat hidden gem. It is my favourite annual event in our little surf community. Surfers making art. Artists, who may have never ridden a wave in their lives, making sea and surf oriented art. It is a humble and beautiful celebration of creativity and life by and in the sea. So many of the pieces are stunning this year. There is a lot of whimsy as well, which the surf world could often use a bit more of. The show is hosted in Judith's gallery, where she spends her days creating beautiful and meditatively representative pieces of Eastern Shore art. As always, Propeller John has supplied a couple of kegs of hoppy goodness.

The beer is only there for this weekend, but the show runs until the end of October. Go see what some of your mates can create when not wrapped in neoprene.

OURS!!!

A few days ago I was out for an evening surf at the most populous break in these parts, on a not-so-heavily populated night. Beautiful chest high waves. Light offshores. Sun shining. I was paddling back out as a guy paddles into a nice walled up one. Someone, who looked as though they were in the early days of their surfing journey, did a five point turn about 100 feet down the line, and then started to splash and kick in an attempt to catch the same wave as the one already being ridden.

Already-standing-up guy proceeded to angrily yell, "MINE! MINE!"

I sat on the corner of the point for a while, where I was happily picking off the ones swinging wide, perfect for logging. I sat there laughing at how absurd it seems to ride a wave while yelling "MINE!" at someone else.

A couple of minutes later one of those wide ones swung through. I faded and then hooked into the pocket. As I began a stroll to the nose a fellow surfer looked me in the eye, turned, and dropped into the wave. I gave an "Accgghhh! Acggghhhh!" Granted, I was proudly perched with 5 toes (never 10 for me, only 5) over and a beautiful 50 foot section laid out before me, but my "accgghhh!" wasn't much different than a loud "Mine!". The dropper-inner did a couple of turns and kicked out.

I slowly paddled my log back out while trying to extract another log from my eye.

what are you looking at?

kicking for points with no one around

I spent a good 10 years of my life playing the sport of rugby, chasing an odd shaped ball around a finely manicured lawn wearing short shorts, a collared shirt, socks pulled smartly up to my knees. I loved to play that sport, and I still love to watch the game. I played fly half for most of my playing days, and one of the responsibilities that often falls to the #10 position is kicking.

The house I grew up in was really close to my team's home field. On days when I didn't have practice or a game, I would often ride my bike to the park with 2 or 3 balls in my backpack. And then I would kick. Sometimes for a couple of hours. Alone. Place the ball in the tee. Line up. 3 steps back. One step to the left. Breath deep. Kick. Multiplied 2 or 3 times. Then run to retrieve the balls. Repeat. For a couple of hours...and I never became a great points kicker. I was good at kicking for touch. In fact, I was good at most facets of the game. But the part of the game that I practiced the most, kicking for points, was always the weakest part of my game. It wasn't even that I was just OK. I just wasn't that good.

It is said that practice makes perfect. Another bullshit saying in an attempt to get kids to practice piano even though they would rather be playing the drums. Well, practice doesn't always make perfect. I know this for sure, because there are some things in life that I have practiced a lot and have only become slightly competent in. But as the Rugby World Cup has been starting up the past couple of days I have found myself thinking more about those late afternoons in the park than the tries I scored. I have found myself thinking about lacing up my rugby boots on the baseball bleachers. Doing a couple of warm-up laps while tossing a ball in the air. The stillness of setting up for a kick. The long shadows of the cedar trees. The slow jog to pick up the balls settled in the grass. The being alone with this awareness, in my teenage mind, that my practice wasn't really making me that much better at what I was practicing. While not a lot came of that time spent in the park with regard to my rugby skills, I now think that they were some of my most important times as a teenager. I realize now, that there in the park - alone, kicking wide or short more than through the uprights - I learned to be alone with my limitations, to admit that there were some things that I just wasn't going to be good at...and this is OK.

Another thing that is said - you can't be good at everything. I think this one is true. But there may still be some good in practicing those things anyways that we aren't ever going to be all that good at.

Today

Today my wife made little peach custard pies. She was beautiful while she did so. I love my wife. Today my 21 month old daughter was pushed shoreward a few times by waves while sitting on a surfboard. She was beautiful while she did so. She later chose not to nap, so I put her in the bike trailer and we went for a ride. She soon fell asleep and her head flopped all over the place. She was beautiful while she did so. I love my little girl.

The other day our house nearly flooded. My neighbours have water pumps and hoses. I loved them before they allowed me to use said pumps and hoses. I love them more so now.

Today and the other day and many days before that carpenter ants have been eating our house. They are so shiny and black. They seem to be getting bigger, which makes me uncomfortable as I imagine them eating the studs that hold our house up. I don't really like ants.

Life is full of ants that eat our houses and beauty and good food and daughters that fall asleep in bike trailers after playing at the beach and floods and neighbours with water pumps.

yes

This is from the Surly blog. I agree.

Some answers to just about any bike forum post I’ve ever read

If you think your bike looks good, it does.

If you like the way your bike rides, it’s an awesome bike.

You don’t need to spend a million dollars to have a great bike, but if you do spend a million dollars and know what you want you’ll probably also have a great bike.

Yes, you can tour on your bike – whatever it is.

Yes, you can race on your bike – whatever it is.

Yes, you can commute on your bike – whatever it is.

26” wheels or 29” or 650b or 700c or 24” or 20” or whatever – yes, that wheel size is rad and you’ll probably get where you’re going.

Disc brakes, cantis, v-brakes, and road calipers all do a great job of stopping a bike when they’re working and adjusted.

No paint job makes everyone happy.

Yes, you can put a rack on that. Get some p-clamps if there are no mounts.

Steel is a great material for making bike frames - so is aluminum, carbon fiber, and titanium.

You can have your saddle at whatever angle makes you happy.

Your handlebars can be lower than your saddle, even with your saddle, or higher than your saddle. Whichever way you like it is right.

Being shuttled up a downhill run does not make you a weak person, nor does choosing not to fly off of a 10 foot drop.

Bike frames made overseas can be super cool. Bike frames made in the USA can be super cool.

Hey, tattooed and pierced long shorts wearin flat brim hat red bull drinkin white Oakley sportin rad person on your full suspension big hit bike – nice work out there.

Hey, little round glasses pocket protector collared shirt skid lid rear view mirror sandal wearing schwalbe marathon running pletscher two-leg kickstand tourist – good job.

Hey, shaved leg skinny as hell super duper tan line hear rate monitor checking power tap train in the basement all winter super loud lycra kit million dollar wheels racer – keep it up.

The more you ride your bike, the less your ass will hurt.

The following short answers are good answers, but not the only ones for the question asked – 29”, Brooks, lugged, disc brake, steel, Campagnolo, helmet, custom, Rohloff, NJS, carbon, 31.8, clipless, porteur.

No bike does everything perfectly. In fact, no bike does anything until someone gets on it to ride.

Sometimes, recumbent bikes are ok.

Your bikeshop is not trying to screw you. They’re trying to stay open.

Buying things off of the internet is great, except when it sucks.

Some people know more about bikes than you do. Other people know less.

Maybe the person you waved at while you were out riding didn’t see you wave at them.

It sucks to be harassed by assholes in cars while you’re on a bike. It also sucks to drive behind assholes on bikes.

Did you build that yourself? Awesome. Did you buy that? Cool.

Wheelies are the best trick ever invented. That’s just a fact.

Which is better, riding long miles, or hanging out under a bridge doing tricks? Yes.

Yes, you can break your collar bone riding a bike like that.

Stopping at stop signs is probably a good idea.

Driving with your bikes on top of your car to get to a dirt trail isn’t ideal, but for most people it’s necessary.

If your bike has couplers, or if you have a spendy bike case, or if you pay a shop to pack your bike, or if you have a folding bike, shipping a bike is still a pain in the ass for everyone involved.

That dent in your frame is probably ok, but maybe it’s not. You should get it looked at.

Touch up paint always looks like shit. Often it looks worse than the scratch.

A pristine bike free of dirt, scratches, and wear marks makes me sort of sad.

A bike that’s been chained to the same tree for three years caked with rust and missing parts makes me sad too.

Bikes purchased at Wal-mart, Target, Costco, or K-mart are generally not the best bang for your buck.

Toe overlap is not the end of the world, unless you crash and die – then it is.

Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.

Yes, you can buy a bike without riding it first. It would be nice to ride it first, but it’s not a deal breaker not to.

Ownership of a truing stand does not a wheel builder make.

32 spokes, 48 spokes, 24 spokes, three spokes? Sure.

Single speed bikes are rad. Bikes with derailleurs and cassettes are sexy. Belt drive internal gear bikes work great too.

Columbus, TruTemper, Reynolds, Ishiwata, or no brand? I’d ride it.

Tubeless tires are pretty cool. So are tubes.

The moral of RAGBRAI is that families and drunken boobs can have fun on the same route, just maybe at different times of day.

Riding by yourself kicks ass. You might also try riding with a group.

Really fast people are frustrating, but they make you faster. When you get faster, you might frustrate someone else.

Stopping can be as much fun as riding.

Lots of people worked their asses off to build whatever you’re riding on. You should thank them.

story

"When you can state the theme of a story, when you can separate it from the story itself, then you can be sure the story is not a very good one. The meaning of a story has to be embodied in it...A story that is any good can't be reduced, it can only be expanded. A story is good when you continue to see more and more in it, and when it continues to escape you." - Flannery O'Connor, Mystery and Manners.

in my head

I don't know how it works for others, but music and surfing can't be separated for me. There is a constant, and usually repetitive, soundtrack playing in my head while in the water. There are also certain artists and songs that when heard on dry land make my mind wander to places in the sea that I can feel. Admittedly, as little ACE slides into toddler-hood, some of those songs in my head while in the sea have changed to repetitive songs about the moon and dinosaurs and baby belugas, but the core remains the same.

I often wonder how the music that one associates with surfing, or listens to on the way to the beach, influences the way one surfs...or at least the way one desires to surf. A constant for me while in the water is "Look At What The Light Did Now" by Little Wings. It seems to pop up at some point in every surf. Yesterday morning as I rode my log near home that song was constant, the sun chasing a dark band of clouds up from the horizon and across the sky. At home, or in the car, any time I listen to Sam Prekop I feel a need to be in the ocean. I can't put my finger on what it is about his music, but I hear it and all I want to do is surf.

Mysterious song and sea.