First South

The nexus of the spring equinox and first south swell of the season. The weather was beautiful and the water was clear. The tide kept the kelp thin and wind provided a light texture; and Tiburones was showing its south swell face. I surfed a good rotation with Rach. That's it. After a while, Esteban and Anthony joined in the fun, and just before I got out of the water, the Mayor showed up to keep in touch with his constituents. Really small rotation for the first south of the year.

Word from Gerry - our summer visitor from H-land - is that the south shore is going off - double overhead. Gerry surfed Threes, and given the exclamations in his email - must have been good. We should see the swell in a few days - served up by Cyclone Tomas.

Final Word
Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace. -Dwight D. Eisenhower, U.S. general and 34th president (1890-1969)  ¶ 11:06 PM 0 comments

 

Windy

Spring-like wind swell has been a staple for 10 days, but things started to change today as a west-northwest groundswell showed. Surfed low-tide Second Bowl during the wind swell and ventured out at Sharks for the groundswell that showed today. Had fun with no adverse effects. As the swell momentum picks up – the mass count should rise – so be it. The kelp is definitely doing its part.

I’ve been watching maps that show a potential swell coming from the southwest. Apparently, the cyclone generating the swell is hammering Fiji – that is Cyclone Tomas - packing winds of up to 130 mph (205 kph) at its center and gusts of up to 175 mph (280 kph). Anyway, swell models suggest the associated swell may hit our coast with the first south of the year.

My latest photo upload shows the Zealand boyz having summer fun. The story that goes with the pics – James, a mate that stayed at the house for a few months, and the rest of the boyz decided they wanted to catch a shark while shore casting. Unfortunately, they could not cast beyond the ledge that allowed access to deep water, and sharks. So, James, being a problem solver, volunteered to swim the bait out beyond the deep-water ledge and drop hook, line and sinker. As he was swimming back, the boyz hooked-on. Yes, our hero dangled the bait beyond the ledge so his mates could have a good time – what are friends for?

Health care in the USA is money – shareholders – growth. With these come fundamental problems that clash with the government’s constitutional responsibility to “insure domestic tranquility, promote the general welfare.” Enough said. But the back and forth between supporters and detractors is revealing – it opens a window into the real government. Check the statement from the Whitewash – referring to the “public option” – “there isn’t enough political support in a majority to get this (public option) through.” Now consider the poll data:

“Creating a government-administered public health insurance option to compete with private plans" - 2/17-18/10 – 50% favor, 42% against, 8% undecided.

“Creating a public health insurance option administered by the federal government that would compete with plans offered by private companies" - 2/12-15/10 – 51% favor, 48% against, 1% undecided.

Seems there is a gap between the “political support” and the majority of voters – Let me postulate that the gap is corporate influence. In other words, voters don’t weigh in as much as corporations.

Last Word - I really think the discussion in this country needs to consider the words of a former president -

Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough. -Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd US President (1882-1945)  ¶ 1:36 AM 0 comments