California Fun Times... aka Week 6

Proof that God loves surfing too.

Bad blogger, baaaad blogger. I know, it's been a while since my last post, but as you'll be able to see from this video I have been soooooo busy.

I taught some of the campstore kids all about anti-commercialism art with our new price tag graffiti helmets. I think it says to the world "youth is not for sale", but the kids just put their birthdates on the tags and go crazy on their helmets. To each his own. Someday they'll get it, or maybe I will, either way...

I've met a LOT of cute puppies this week. A whole pack of coyote mixes were prancing around my place terrorizing Dungee and trying to nurse off her. She just kind of put her ears back and ran into the house. You can take the dog out of the city, but you can't make her play with half coyote puppies.

I keep meeting cool travelers that come through the campstore. Such was Babba, a hitchhiker from Indiana who collects gems, creates jewelry, sells it, camps and moves on. I got a great necklace made out of seaglass and Greg convinced Babba to take out a foamy and try surfing for the first time. Ah the joys of a beginning surfer. Babba was HOOKED. He came in every day for the foamy, went out by himself and came back dripping in his jeanshorts grinning from ear to ear. It's beautiful to watch someone fall in love with surfing.

Jorma and I took our first wave hunting excursion this week, packing up the truck and driving up the coast a bit to check out where to catch a nice session. We chose a sunset surf at Grandview where the dolphins were frolicking in the metallic ocean waves as I caught a few small rides and Jorma demonstrated the Rooster for all the "normal" people on the cliff who were watching him.

We sat outside Pipes one morning with a big map of California and traced out a west coast wave hunting mission for later this summer. Stops all up and down the coast where we'll surf the best waves we can, camp in the truck and drive the coast highway. I can't WAIT to hit the road again! I think Dungee is pretty psyched too.

Bull taco began preparations for selling salsas, branding our cooler and working on our gear. Jorma joined the shave ice empire and I started my Rice Krispie treat empire. I wrote my own tag line for my POS display "Homemade Rice Krispie Treats. Yummy and gooey just like mom used to let you make." Business is slamming. I sold 4 just while I was out surfing one day!

The week flew by in a spray of waves, sunsets, chips, salsa, burritos, conversations on the cliff and laughing with the campers.
Next post will feature my visit with Danielle (Mathews) Foreman and Bonnie (Ferguson) Tavolazzi. PLUS! You'll finally get to see some of my awesome surfing.

The other day at Turtles I actually had a fan section for my wipeouts. People were CHEERING. For ME! Totally Rad. I am livin' the dream people. Livin' the DREAM.

Enjoy the video and more to come soon!
Love,
Amanda

Cali Week 5

I've officially been here a calendar month! Woooooo-hoooo!
I don't know how long I'll keep chalking up time in weeks since I got here, but for now I'll keep with the week system and this is my interpretation of Week 5.

Bull Taco (our empire on the sea) has been in a sort of holding pattern until we get the official go-ahead for our sprinkler system from the fire chief/people/person/approval guy. So, in the meantime, I've been working with Jorma on the branding, style and design. We do this thing called a "rad contest" where we sit next to each other on our computers, show each other what we think is cool and then we send it off to Greg and he either writes us back or calls us saying "That is so rad." Ahhh business in California is juuuust my style.

Finding ourselves with a June Gloom day of clouds and sprinkly rain, Jorma and I headed to the thrift store and wal-mart, created stencils and started spray painting our first official Bull Taco gear. Turns out the guy can do more than surf, go figure. We're workin' on this apocalyptic and anarchist image and spend our days laughing at Scarface boxer shorts, 3D tanks and grenades in a taco and researching whether or not people order salsa as their last meal before they get executed. We think we're on to something.

The surf has been all over the MAP this week. I had days I couldn't go out, days I went by myself and days I paddled out with Jorma, or Jorma and Greg. The day I went by myself I totally spooked myself out. I crashed, I got tossed and I smashed my leg as I went barreling over myself in a close-out session. I dragged my board out of the ocean and was pretty freaked out about it. I took a day off to recover and then decided a nice 5 mile run would do me good the next day. But yesterday, the sun was out, the waves were bitchin' and Jorma, Greg and I headed out to 85's. The swarm was crowding us out so we moved down to Turtles where I proceeded to catch the raddest and most epic wave of my life. First, when I pulled up into it I noticed that Jorma was riding it with me, which rocked. Next, I noticed that I was TURNING! TURNING! WOAH! and the other thing? Well, I don't really want to talk about exactly what I felt on that wave, but holy sh*t, I did something so amazing and cool and it felt like I was coming home. I mean, man. I was so damn happy after that wave. It was almost 4 years ago I started dreaming I could surf and yesterday I got a little glimpse of the dream coming to life. This is what I moved here for.

With extra time on my hands I spent a lot of time chillin in my backyard, laughing in my bedroom and peeking out the back of a truck sleepin' on a street near the beach. I am totally addicted to truck camping. I love it.

This week I also got my first taste of homesickness and loneliness. I kept realizing just how many people I loved are so very far away. I got through it with some fish n' chips at Capt'n Keno's with Amberbock and plenty of laughs with Jorma. I also did my first official ladies' night out, which is so very important to the soul (not to mention I got some good tips on a good wax).

I went to a street festival, saw some reggae, witnessed my first sting ray injury, packaged our first Bull Taco Salsa, saw low tide in the morning and came upon some beautiful dewy flowers...

Life is beginning to settle in here and I no longer look at the palm trees like they are aliens. I can't wait for summer to kick into full gear and I am looking forward to some great friends visiting next week. It will be nice to see some faces from the past.

Oh, yeah, and Dungee got a wee bit addicted to Coors Light. I know it's kinda red neck to take video of your dog drinking beer, but seriously, she was loving life.

This is week 5 in California. Enjoy and welcome to the Rad Contest.

California: Week 4

This week flew by in a seaspray of crashing waves, sunsets, sandy flip-flop prints and dog licks.

First, I'd like to say that my new place rocks so hard core. The house, the yard, the fountain, the fire pit, the PEOPLE. Oh man, did I luck out! I've got the COOLEST roommates and housemates ever created. They are fun, silly, friendly and just generally fantastic. Each day they crack me up. Last night I walked around and finally took pictures of our Melrose-esque compound, so all the Moms back home can rest easy, you'll see where we live!
We also had a potluck dinner last night, with mahi-mahi, asparagus risotto, spinach salad, fresh fruit, roasted potatoes and some cooool Pacifico. The dogs fetched in the yard together as we chatted, laughed and fired up the fire pit. Ann convinced us all to start up her band "Hot Carl" again, so we grabbed some instruments (pots, pans, glasses, windchimes, a maraca and some cellophane) and we rocked it out by the pit. We tried to stay clear of the burning flower tree, as rumor has it it's highly hallucinogenic. Ahhh California...

It seemed this was a big learning and growing week here in Cali for me. I actually put down my camera for quite a few days and just kinda lived for a while without the sound of a shutter chalking up the memories. Instead, I just let me heart and mind absorb the memories for a while.
And what do I remember of last week?
Well, my surf mentor Jorma is a big part of week 4, having taken me out surfing, out camping and out to numerous beautiful sunsets. And if you are thinking there may be a little more to this mentorship, you are right. Let me give you a little back-story...
Jorma and I had met when I came out to interview in March. He was working on his computer in the campstore and I immediately started chatting him up. That night I invited him to Jodi's (where I was staying) and we talked until way after dark by the campfire. I knew that night he'd be a great friend when I moved here. I went back to New York and he took a job in Denver. For the next 2 months we kept in touch via gchat, talking about his job in Denver and about my plans and dreams of coming out to California. Late at night on the 3rd floor at the Goddy house I'd find myself chatting with him about my life and wondering why I was sharing all these things with an almost complete stranger. The longer I talked to him, the more I got to know him.
When I moved here I found I wanted to talk with him more! Seeing as he was born and raised in Cardiff where I now live, I found Jorma could relate so well to my every experience and my personal surf odyssey. Soon, he was on his way back from Denver, having brilliantly executed a plan to work from here on the project.
And when Jorma came back and we finally got to sit down face to face and start talking? I found I couldn't stop laughing, I couldn't stop smiling and I was pretty much giggling and skipping everywhere I went. We've had a marvelous week filled with discoveries of personalities, pasts, present and future.
We've caught a lot of good sunsets.
Jorma is still helping me surf and showed me how to find the perfect place to sit and catch a wave, as well as how to watch the waves at night. He taught me all about north swells, south swells, beach breaks, reef breaks and when you do and don't want wind. Jorma also got me off the big red foamy and riding my own board!
He sets me in the right place, he encourages me in the perfect voice to "paddle, paddle, paddle" and he smiles as I turn around and paddle back out after catching a wave I never in a million years thought I could catch. But that's just the surfing part.
Jorma makes me feel like I am the most beautiful person in the world and I think he is.
So, this week, I got a new title here in Cardiff that I makes me grin from ear to ear: Jorma's girlfriend. I don't know how I could possibly be so lucky.
You know this blog is about picking up, moving and following your dreams and man, am I glad I started this whole magnificent journey. I've learned so much about what it takes to be happy and how the world rewards those that try. If I can provide any of you with any inspiration that life and happiness in life are achievable, then it's all worth it.

From sunny and happy California...
love,
amanda