Out of Towner

My vacation has finally come and at this moment I am in L.A. visiting my friend Ami. I drove down on Sunday and it only took me 5 1/2 hours, so being early I drove into Malibu to check out the surf. It was incredibly small, but there were only about 10 people in the water, so suited up and paddled out. I was surprised that the cobblestone bottom, which sucked to walk on. I was glad I brought the P.Cruiser out instead of the Orange Dreamciscle, because that bottom gave my board a beating! I had a fun session, catching ankle bitters. On my last wave I got a 5 in, which was a little goal of mine, since it was so small and mushy. On my way down the PCH, I missed the Topanga Canyon turn and to flip a bitch... caught some sunshine:


I got to Ami's and we went out to dinner. The next day we had breakfast then drove down to Santa Monica and checked out the pier, then went to the Promenade to do some window shopping.


It's been fun visiting with Ami and catching up. Since my arrival, her cat Q-bert has been my little stalker... following me everywhere and waits for me when I am in the bathroom. Sometimes he just can't wait and lets me know he's still there by putting his cat arms under the door:


This is borderline horror movie. Anyway, I am so glad I got to drive down and get away from Santa Cruz and Silicon Valley for a few days. I'll be heading back home tomorrow, early enough that I can get a surf session in!

8 = Hate

But what does love equal?



Love equals love... gender is irrelevant. The fight against California's Prop 8 is still going on strong. This past weekend there were rallies all over the nation, and that of course included Santa Cruz. I went down to film and support the cause. The rally started at the courthouse and they were going to march to the clock town and head back. I waited along side one of the bridges to capture the the beginning of the march. The thing that surprised me is that being an observer of such an event you have such an overall perspective of what is really happening. I think that if I had been in the march, I wouldn't have had the realization of the actual scale of this matter. As I was filming, I saw masses of people coming over with their signs and chants... it was overwhelming and I got real teary-eyed. Below is just glimpse of what this looked like. People were lining all sides of the street in mobs.


As the crowd returned to the courthouse, there only 3 people in opposition to the rally, who were in favor of 8. Sad... compared to numbers who showed up to fight for gay rights. I got a lot of video as to which I will share as soon as I can get it together.

I'm not into politics, but this is personal. I can't say that even if I were straight, that I would get married. But this isn't about marriage really, it's about equal rights. It's about letting people go about their business and letting them pursue their happiness. I can't and won't let that be taken away from myself or anyone else. This is one cause I fully support and am involved in.

Westside Story

I can't believe it's the middle of November already! It's been quite an exciting week... my friend Laura had her second child. I watched her 2 year old while her and her partner Fritz were in the hospital. The next day I went to see her and her new son. He was less than 24 hours old, and I believe that is the newest baby I've ever held.

Also, this week, I am in Santa Maria and San Luis Obispo for work. I believe this is my last trip down here as I am passing off my duties to some to cover locally. It's been windy, so I haven't made it out to Pismo to see what the surf is doing. Plus with the sun setting at around 5pm, it's impossible to enjoy an afternoon, well, because there isn't one.

Before I left Santa Cruz, I was able to get in some really fun surf sessions. It was going off all weekend and when I return home tomorrow, there should be a new swell in with super low tides = tons of fun!

Below is a video of what it was like on the Westside this past weekend ... waves from left to right.

I Like Surf and I Vote

It's now November and there is a ton of stuff going on. It's election day today... I already voted on Sunday, so that's taken care of. Just waiting to see the results of California's Prop 8 - I voted NO on this horrid idea to take rights away from people. From this point forward, I will no longer talk about politics, because that's all they are... politics. They really have no place in my life.

Let me now talk about the important things in my life... the people who are in it day to day. My friend Laura is scheduled tonight to be induced for labor. I am so excited! She is actually due on the 15th, but the doctors wanted the baby out earlier than later. So tomorrow night, I'm going to watch her two year old, while her and her partner, Fritz, deliver their son. It really amazes me to think in 48 hours there will be a new baby around! It really trips me out!

Meg and Brian are in Scorpion Bay again... I wish I went with them. Perhaps in April, when the funds are more available after taxes. Right now I am dog/house sitting for them, so it's been sort of a mini-vacation. The week of Thanksgiving, I will be going to down to Southern California for a visit with my friend Ami. I can't wait to just take some time off of work and get out of Santa Cruz and the Bay Area for a little bit. It's been a year since I've taken full on vacation. There's been a lot of things that have happened since (my teeth being pulled, moving, the passing of my aunt, opening up the coffee shop, and other highly emotional ordeals). I am going to enjoy this long awaited reprieve.

It's been raining here the last couple of days. I got out to surf on Sunday and had a blast. I took out the Wee 7' Board. I didn't expect much, but I think that's when you have the best time. Basically, I just went out to practice popping up on that shorter board, but ended getting in a good session! Love that!

Leigh out!