Sense of Smell

In light of how busy I've been at work and working on another project to be announced soon, I've been neglecting (sorry) this blog a bit. Some of you may have read this post on my pre-fatherhood blog, but I thought it was worthy content for DDD. Enjoy!

My senior year in high school I had a job at Holiday Inn working in the banquet service. I'd be there from right after school until sometimes three to four in the morning, watching drunk people do the macarena at weddings, corporate Christmas parties etc. I remember when I first started I was excited at the prospect of free food (loved food, still do!) from the surprisingly good kitchen. I commented on it my first day, and I've never forgotten what my supervisor said. Apparently, when you've worked in food service for a while, you actually get to the point where just the smell will satisfy you. Of course you still have to eat, but the additional temptation to eat more than needed just goes away after a short time. I found this to be true, and even there I didn't last long at that job, that always stuck with me for some reason.


Being a new father, moving, and working a sales job in the current economy, time to get out in the water has been more than scarce for the last several months. I was on the road to work early one morning this last week and decided to take the scenic route up PCH from Newport to Huntington Beach, for the sole purpose of seeing if the smell of the ocean would help me through this long dry spell. I have to preface this with the fact that I didn't spend much time actually looking at the surf, not so much because I was driving, but that when I'm out of the water for a long period of time I just get frustrated seeing waves I can't ride.

Back to the experiment. I drove, windows down, several miles up, PCH, breathing in the fresh ocean air. For a moment I thought it would actually help, and really in a way it did. Part of the meditative benefit of surfing I believe is the the smell and sense off the ocean, and I got that. The only problem is that it still made me want more. Some surfers want more than just their local break, which has driven surf travel and exploration for decades. Part of being a "surfer" was the search for the next great wave, almost a constant limbo of being satisfied yet still yearning for more, knowing there was something more out there to experience. That's how I felt only in a sad, almost pathetic lesser degree. I am actually at the point where just being able to see the ocean, sense it and breathe in its aroma, makes me feel like I've reached that much more of a connection. I'm far from content with being out of the water for so long, but that's the thing about surfing, no other past-time (I don't' like to call it a sport) is so holistic in its experience. Maybe I'll write on that later.

Photo by Ryan Tatar

Walkabout

Not exactly a hike, but just getting out for a walk around the neighborhood with Levi feels good, like I'm doing something right to get him outside. Just throw him in the carrier and go. He seems to like it as no matter how cold it is he is quiet and just soaks everything around him up the entire time. Ehow.com has this list for the question "How to Get Kids Outside?"...

Step1

Set up a swing set or play equipment for younger children.

Step2

Put up a basketball goal, volleyball net or skate ramp for older children. Kids will be more likely to go outside if they can engage in an activity they enjoy.

Step3

Take family bicycle rides or walks together. Encourage outdoor activities by setting a good example.

Step4

Plan a scavenger hunt for your children and their friends. Send them around the neighborhood looking for various outdoor things.

Step5

Sign your kids up for a camp where they can explore the outdoors and participate in outside activities. This introduction may foster an appreciation for being outside.

Step6

Limit the amount of time they are allowed to spend watching television or playing video games. Without these distractions, they will want to get outside to play.

I've decided to simplify it for people like me with short attention spans. Here's my list...

Step1. Turn off the TV and go outside.

That's it. Not, send the kids outside, go outside yourself. I'm going to be making a conscious effort to habitually be outside. Working in the yard, playing walking anything, just being a family that gets out of the house and having children outside from an early age will make a world of difference 5, 10, and 20 years from now.

180 Degrees South -Trailer

I can't even put into words how much I'm looking forward to this film. Judging from the trailer, and previous Woodshed Films productions, this is going to be a huge hit with me and everyone that experiences it. Shelter was and is my favorite surf movie, and 180 South really seems to capture the spirit that makes me tick. I may not have had these levels of adventures, but its something I aspire to experience and to help my son experience as well. I'll be sure to put up a full review after I'm able to see the entire film.

Foto Friday 2/6/09

photo-maassen

Foto Friday 2/13/09

Foto Friday 1/30/09

Fatherhood

One thing I'm realizing about fatherhood, and desiring to raise your children with a love for the outdoors. The issue that we run into after the fact is not just raising them outside, but getting outside ourselves.

Between family and baby and mortgages and car payments, its really hard to get time to get out to the water or up to the mountains. What we once took for granted now feels like to slipping away. I got a comment from a new father that he had an 18 week-old baby boy and was totally stoked, but hadn't been in the water in weeks and was about to go insane! I know exactly how you feel. Surfing is different than many other outdoor activities in that its more of a spiritual and emotional pursuit than other sports for most participants so being high and dry for long periods of time (days for some people, weeks for others) really has a negative effect on our psyche.

On the flip side. We're dads now. Being a dad is the second most important job I'll ever have on this earth, #1 being a husband. Family comes first in everything. I've read in my any surf magazines, articles, etc speaking on the effect and power of surfing in someones life, and read something along the lines of "marriages have failed because of the powerful pull of the ocean..." or some such nonsense. When I sit back and look at the big picture, one day a week in the water when the waves aren't even good, with a happy, close, and loving family is a lot more important than catching it every time the swell comes up.

Now that contentment with my new lot is setting in, my biggest concern really is what I'm going to be able to do when my son is old enough to join me. Will I even be in good enough paddling shape to show him how to duck dive a 10ft wave? Will he be able to look up to me and see something he wants to be athletically? I was watching On Surfari a few episodes back and Shayne (the father) was surfing a longboard while holding Banyan, his son. Am I going to be confident enough in my abilities to do that with my boy? I was a while ago, not so much now.

When I sit back and look at the big picture, its easy to know what the right decision and attitude is for the moment, but there's always that nagging in the back of your head when you look at the surf report and know its going to be good, yet know you're not going to be in the water for it. I'm sure its the same for many other activities as well. When its a lifestyle, not a hobby, its difficult to let it go at all, but that's what fatherhood brings you, a dramatic shift in priorities, that are more than worth any sacrifice.