Crowdin' the line-up

So I took the boyfriend out in the water this weekend. I'm not doing this to make my life easier, because he'd just be waking up around the time I get out of the water anyway. Someone accused us single people of crowding the line-up when we started dating people, but I'm not overly invested in having the boyfriend catch the surfing bug. Instead, I'm doing this in the hopes of introducing him to some physical activity in the hopes of keeping him healthy and alive longer, so I don't have to worry about the difference in male and female lifespans. I know. Morbid, but sweet.

Heck, surfing's the only real physical activity I have besides doing a vigorous fine chop on garlic for the evening meal. If I didn't surf, I'd be 200 pounds with a life expectancy of 60 years.

So, the boyfriend had a great belly ride on a board through the whitewash and it was small enough this weekend that he paddled out to the line-up to practice sitting on the board. It always amazes me how awkward sitting up is for newbies. I have a theory that it's easier for women to adjust to the motion because they're used to having looser hips whereas men don't really shake their thang on a normal walking type basis. Anyway, he started getting the hang of it. Now, I'm very good at teaching people how to be safe in the water and how to safely wipe-out because I am a student of the Wipe-out School of Surfing.

I'm not, however, very expert at teaching people how to catch waves. I think this is partly because I'm a good Asian and believe you should do all the basics before you move on to the next level -- like Mr. Miyagi making Daniel-san wax on and wax off for days and days before they started sparring. Also, I learned how to surf by going out and taking every single friggin' wave that came my way. I learned by wiping out and missing waves. It started registering which waves were bad and which waves were good. I'm not very good at teaching instinct.

(I also don't believe that someone should teach a person they're dating how to surf if he or she wants to continue dating that person!)

So, he's getting a lesson with Frank this weekend. He's given me a billion great surfing tips over the years and he's a great presence to have in the water. Of all the teachers I've paddled near in the water, Frank is the one who I trust the most in terms of surfing safety, knowledge, and philosophy. Hell, I'm entrusting the care of my boyfriend to him!

Some of my best friends are Doodahs

I didn't Doodah, but some of my friends did. Vote for either "Tippi Hedren and the Birds" or "Marge Simpson" (or both!) at the Doodah site.

My brush with fame

I surfed at the pier this morning for the first time in a long time. Little Miss N is in town and she likes the spot, so we go there. Lo and behold I meet the famous Uncle Grant in the water and pointed out Santa Monica surf reporter Matt on the Pier. Matt took these shots and posted them on today's report:



Uncle Grant. Nice wave.

He had the wave of the day and came flying down the line past me as I pulled back from paddling.

Me.

I'm going to take this opportunity to wonder about my right hand. I've seen other pictures of myself and that friggin' hand just hangs there in the air, hovering around my ear. I'm not really sure what I'm doing with that hand. Sometimes I notice it when I'm actually surfing, but more often than not, I am only reminded when I see pictures.