Tag: surfer

Step 10

Yes there’s more.  More steps and more work to be done. We have dug into our lives; ripped out the weeds by the roots and had a change of heart. But you’re not off the hook now, nor will you ever be. Life is a  process of change and growth.

Take it easy~don’t be alarmed. It’s all do-able. Think about slowing down. When I chose this way of life, I envisioned myself like a turtle. I carry my house on my back. I move slow, but I can speed up when necessary. When things look dangerous, I can make a quick retreat. I am patient and persistent.

Before I go to sleep at night, I reflect on the day. Do I owe any apologies? Is there something I can do to change for the better?

When I wake up in the morning, first I thank God for another day. Then I ask that my day be void of selfishness and self-seeking.

Step Ten

Step 6

By the time we get to Step Six, we know that IT IS NOT THEM. We are armed with information about ourselves. We have a list of our glaring defects. We admit to ourselves that we cannot change everyone else, only ourselves. This is considered to be a turning point step.

Step Six

Step 3

Habits

I have habits

good and bad

I want to talk.

You must use the phone.

That is what they told me.

 So I did.

 I talked in the morning,

on the phone.

I talked in the evenings.

I talked on black phones,

blue phones,

square phones,

big car phones,

small car phones,

and cell phones.

 I talked in the mall, on the toilet, quietly.

 I talked to friends, neighbors, teachers, family, community, CPA’s, lawyers and my husband.

 Now there is no one to talk to,

but God.

It’s a good thing,

I’ve got that habit.

Hands praying

Step Three

Lil Sista’

I went to the beach yesterday, with my camera. The waves had died down and there was a chill in the air. Not my favorite conditions. But I was glad I was there to capture this image.

This little one was spending the day at the beach with Mom, Dad and her brother and sister. What a life.

It’s a Better World

It’s a better world when I surf. I paddled out yesterday for the first time here in Florida.  Fernandina Beach, FL is my primary home. This morning, I was reminded of the day that came every year, when my mother would drive us out of the woods, on the Westside of Jacksonville, for our long stay at the beach. It was an annual trip, following winter. We were never allowed to get into the water before May. I was a little kid.

I still have little kid ways. And I’m glad. Those memories and the feeling that I get surfing are free. There’s no debt and no interest to pay. And it’s great owning cherished memories of my mother. Surfing is the best, and really if it hadn’t been for my mother and her love of the ocean, I’m sure I would never have become a surfer.

By the way, my mother only had one traffic ticket in her life; a speeding ticket when when she was about sixty. She wasn’t even going that fast. She did not drive over the speed limit. It always took us a LONG time to get to the beach, but they were good road trips.

When riding on A1A we look up to the flag for our most important weather report. If it looks like this it’s a west wind. And further inspection is required. 

West winds make the waves clean, but unfortunately it can make them smaller, little by little. However, we have a bit of a ground swell going on, so I waited for low tide and the waves to push in. I had so much fun surfing, small chest high waves. They were breaking left, off of the sandbar built up by the local pier. It was a tough crowd to be in, because it was kids, but that’s OK, everyone starts somewhere.

The twins were out.

They obviously love to surf too. They charged some good waves.

Then it was back to my surf-mobile and a ride, back to the woods. At least these days, I don’t have to go back to the Westside.

Yes, it’s a better world today.

We’re expecting good waves Saturday and Sunday. Historically, we always have good waves on Easter. Thank you, Jesus.

P.S. One day maybe, I won’t write in my short choppy sentences, telling my story before I run out the door. Maybe one day, I will give descriptions of the water and how it really feels to be in the water and catch waves. And my words will make you feel like you’re right there with me.

P.S.S. One day maybe.

The Business of Blogging

It seems I have given myself yet another job, where I work for FREE.

My unpaid jobs pay me in a way that money cannot provide.

I enjoy writing my blog. I think it’s because it is socializing. I connect with people I will never see and never know, except through their writing and their pictures.

I read other people’s blogs and yes, we are all stories. There are three that have affected me recently; The Skeptical Teenager, The Beauty Within and another one that I can’t find again. I thought for sure I liked one of her posts, but it’s not on file. She was a woman whose grammar didn’t exist. She wrote in the vernacular and her blog was the story of her life. She only had four posts and I couldn’t believe it~she had 78 followers.

Writing is powerful.

It is art.

It is informative.

It can take you apart and it can put you back together.

Over 55

I’m sitting on a porch in Bradenton, in an over 55 community. It’s sunny and peaceful. It’s just too darn cold on the island, right now. I know! I know! It’s whatever degree up North, but I personally could care less how cold it is up north. Everything is relative and I’m a southerner and when it comes to certain things, like the weather, it’s about ME. OK?

I guess it’s the same for age too. When you’re younger, it might be difficult to recognize the intricacies of this trailer park. It’s been here for about fifty years and the trailers are OLD. But they are all kept up and added on too. It’s colorful and artistic. I wish some folks up in NE Florida would take the hint.

Resting on the porch this morning, I have had a chance to upload surf pictures to my Facebook page. I really enjoyed it.

Here are some of the pics:

Looking at these pics, I am impressed. This spot is tricky. The waves jack up and break over shallow water. I wouldn’t want to surf it. People who don’t surf, don’t really understand the difference of beach breaks, point breaks, ground swells and wind swells, wind direction, cold fronts, low pressures, reefs, where the waves originate, what it takes for them to break, peaks, short boards and long boards. And who is Kelly Slater? According to Lance Armstrong, he’s the world’s greatest athlete. I don’t really have the time to explain all of this important information. I don’t really know all that much anyway.

You only have so much time in life to learn what you want to know.  And the more you know, the more you know that you don’t know.

None of us have a crystal ball to tell the future, but it’s predictable that if you don’t die, you will get older. And you don’t know what older really is til you get there. So no matter where you are on the continuum of life, be in the now.

Don’t worry and be happy.

Dumb Ass Gringo

When I arrived in Playa Negra/Los Pargos, Costa Rica, to set down stakes, back in 2001, I had “DUMBA*S GRINGA” written on my forehead. I was soaked in it. 

After two years, I was beached. My motor was rusted and my hull was dark. I had gone beyond my limit.

Now mind you, I had surfed and surfed and surfed.

There’s a silver lining to every cloud. The downside of being here, experiencing what is called “the learning curve”; like somehow calling it that, makes everything OK: I chalk up as part of the adventure.

We’re not called “gringos” for nothing.

They say what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger.

       

Exercise and Discipline

The day started out with a six o’clock dawn patrol. 

That means, I had to wake up at four, pick up my friend at five, pick up another friend at five-fifteen and arrive at the beach at six. That requires discipline.

Then my friends and I hiked a half mile to the River Mouth, my favorite wave; where I picked off four nice ones. That involves exercise.

I have to work to keep my spot in the line-up, I have to paddle to catch the wave, I have to jump to my feet, turn the board for a cutback, then I turn back into the wave, dropping in again to finish the wave. And then, I paddle back out and do it again.

To be able to do that, I have to exercise regularly. I need plenty of strength and lots of oxygen. Today the waves were small, head high, and not much of a challenge. But still, you have to be ready!

But that’s not the discipline and exercise that I had in mind, when I chose the posts’ title.

I was thinking more in terms of writing my blog. Once you start keeping a public journal, people actually start reading it. That’s how I got in to this. I really enjoy reading other people’s blogs.

I’m a beginner, so I have to work, to learn the WordPress software. They do make it easy for someone like me. However, it still requires time and effort.

I often add pictures to my posts. I think without them, it would be boring and not near as much fun to create. Taking pictures, downloading and editing them can become a job. Not to mention actually learning to use my camera. After years of  taking portraits, documenting parties, holidays, and my adventures; I bought myself a good camera. Some of my pictures, in this, blog are taken on a Canon A495 and some are on a Canon 7d.

Today, my goal was to create a link. Just now, when I saw the word discipline change color, I felt that feeling of accomplishment. In Wikipedia, they mention discipline as often being associated with punishment.

Today I find both discipline and exercise to be a source for reward.

Another example; I will go to my yoga class at four this afternoon. It will be my ninth class and I can tell a difference in both my posture and my breath.

And I’m going to need my breath tomorrow morning, when I get up and do it all again.