a thought...from jamie...

"When I was five years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down, 'happy'. They told me I didn't understand the assignment, and I told them they didn't understand life."

-John Lennon

Boards, Boards and Boards

Island Beast

Participated in 'The Island Beast'. I ran, wakeboarded, biked and skateboarded my share of the 70 mile round trip journey around Pablo Island. We completed it in less than twelve hours as a team.

The Same Water

The edges of my board whisper to me, "Remember style, stay loose, and keep control." I listen and lean into my first few turns. Big carves, a light slide, and feeling the snow beneath my feet. I carry into a drift moving down a steep hill, the first commitment. I start to pick up speed, my edges are smooth and my body is relaxed. I stand tall and hug the tree line, the closer the better. Getting lost in the woods is where my soul finds its home. The same light snow that dusted my car earlier appears to have covered this mountain too. Another big drop, I let loose, trust my board and myself. I break into some powder and it happens, I feel weightless. Just for a second. I know it’s special, the kind of feeling that only nature provides. Pure bliss.

It's early, but not to early. 7:30am to be exact. I look out the window from bed and see a very still sky with stagnant clouds with the kind of blue a quiet morning brings. A choice has to be made. Stay in bed or get up and head to the mountains where I'm not exactly sure of what conditions to expect. I am a snowboarder, well a surfer from Florida, but a snowboarder here in Pennsylvania. It hasn't snowed in a week, but the conditions have been perfect for making snow.

I make the effort to get up and make my way downstairs, the dogs stir and follow. I ready my gear and hope I have time for some breakfast. The mountains are calling and tell me to hurry up. I step outside and get my first breathe of air, it’s cold, refreshing and unwarranted at the same time. My car has a light dusting of powder from a recent snowfall. That has to be a good sign. I shuffle into the car, make my way down the freeway, through the winding roads, mountains, and fast drivers.

I pick up a morning pass and the lady at the counter gives me an extra hour for free, kindness. I've been to this mountain a few years in a row and like it over others. It's close, quiet and reasonable. As I make my way up the lift I bundle up for shelter from the 15 degree temperatures. The sun is breaking through, not too cloudy, almost like a fog surrounding a bank on the river back home. I make a few runs down some packed powder slopes. Not too hard, but not soft and fast.

Out of the corner of my eye I spot a little run in between the two main lifts, slightly off the beaten path. I take little pictures in my head on the way up. Creating a blue print of how I want to descend. There is one person on the slope hand grooming the ramps. I make my way over to say hello and ask if it’s ready. He gives me the okay and tells me to enjoy.

I look around and find myself alone. The morning air is still hanging around, like a close comfortable friend. I review the run I planned on the lift, decide if it’s right and start my descent. No wrong can be done and worry doesn’t exist. Just a surfer from Florida left searching for a moment.

Great words...

Pimco's Bill Gross:

"This phrase of a “level playing field” opens up endless possibilities. If, in fact, the solution to how we can reclaim the vision of Ronald Reagan’s “shining hill” and the Allentown of decades past is to “level the playing field”, there are obviously a number of ways to do it. The constructive way is to stop making paper and start making things. Replace subprimes, and yes, Treasury bonds with American cars, steel, iPads, airplanes, corn – whatever the world wants that we can make better and/or cheaper. Learn how to compete again. Investments in infrastructure and 21st century education and research, as opposed to 20th century education are mandatory, as is a withdrawal from resource-draining foreign wars. It will be a tough way back, but it can be done with sacrifice and appropriate public policies that encourage innovation, education and national reconstruction, as opposed to Wall Street finance and Main Street consumption."

Intracoastal - Take One

Alright, I'm being lazy. Here is a no edit clip of Jamie and I last Saturday. Hope you enjoy.

Always Buttery

We have officially put over 75 hours on the boat this Summer/Fall. Going out every chance we get. Boat is finally running well and can move on to other projects. Still a lot to be done, but thats a constant. Here's a few pictures from a recent session. Hope to get a new website started.