Beautiful Saturday afternoon. Amazingly, just a few people out. 

And by “beautiful,” I mean a bit of north wind, enough to ripple the water’s surface, but not mess up the waves. I mean the sky contained clouds, but they enhanced the colors rather than graying them down. 

Shoulder-high, some rights, mostly lefts, easy, fun, a bit more speed than in the past few sessions (both me and the waves), thank goodness. Not big enough or hollow enough for some, not near perfect, but a solid B grade in my book.

Sunday was deadline; Monday was exhaustion (and maybe too much north wind?) and aikido; Tuesday I think I missed some good waves, but I did take the poor, neglected dog for a four-mile from my house to Samoa Beach. Today involves getting the kids to school, work, then work again, then ball games. The impending dawn will be my only chance to go. Can I surf and still be back in time to make pancakes, get to Arcata in a timely fashion? 

So many of my thoughts begin like that: “Can I surf and still…?” If I was a real surfer, I wouldn’t ask. I would go surfing, and then things would either work out or not – and I’d have no regrets.