wasted youth

I recently attended a benefit "punk" show headlined by a band that actually tours the world and has a small, but loyal, global following. This is like a 6th generation punk band - the members were not even born when I was first going to gigs. Hearing their music made me think this genre is rather played out (the band sounds a bit like old Green Day, a 3rd or 4th generation punk band themselves). Then I remembered that it wasn't always the music that kept the kids stoked - it was the message, and these guys were saying a lot. An example from my teenage days was the LA band Wasted Youth. Certainly not one of the more talented punk bands from that era, but the lyric "Reagan's In, We're Gone for Good" was nonetheless a revelation for me at the time - an early political awakening of sorts (this in spite of the fact that most of their lyrics were ludicrous). All that said, I'd rather see kids groove on this kind of music than most of today's popular music.

grace

Photo copyright 1999 Gazelle

1. Seemingly effortless beauty or charm of movement, form, or proportion.
2. A characteristic or quality pleasing for its charm or refinement.
3. A disposition to be generous or helpful; goodwill

The Balinese people possess these qualities in truckloads. We could all learn a lot from their example. Photo taken on eve of village festival, central Bali highlands.

rare bird

Photo by KJ

On this bright winter day in 1999, Rincon was double overhead and packed. 10 miles west this little point known for being flat about 360 days a year was shoulder high, reeling, and populated with about 4 surfers. A good time was had by all.

south swell

Photo of BB by Quiggly

Water in the low 70's, glassy and sunny all day, multiple sessions between snacking and snoozing, shoulder high + barrels. South side, Aliso Pier, circa 1982.

east meets west

Photos copyright 2000 Gazelle

Istanbul - for a long time there has been a lot of talk about how this city is a place where the western and eastern worlds meet. I've visited twice and found that there's much truth to the talk. On the surface, the city is comparable to San Francisco in that it is hilly, surrounded by water, and full of distinctive architecture. But of course it is not much like San Francisco otherwise. Istanbul is full of ancient mystery and Turkish and Islamic ambiance, and yet it is simultaneously a modern city with a European feel.

On my last visit in 2000, I chatted with a merchant in the Grand Bazaar. When he learned that I had visited Istanbul in 1990, he eagerly asked what, if any, changes had I noticed. I told him that I felt like it had become a more crowded, busy, and intense place. He nodded affirmatively but was obviously saddened by the thought (generally, you'd think a merchant would be pleased with this development). He told me the population had increased significantly during the past ten years and that the streets were more than ever full of hurrying people. I think that the three photographs above capture the bustle of the city at that time. I can only imagine that the pace of life in Istanbul is even more frantic now as the city hurries to catch up with the western pace of economic productivity.

high energy

This is simply one of my all-time favorite rock and roll photographs, from the band with the High Energy Plan, Nine Nine Nine, circa 1981.

custom board

For a surfer, there's nothing quite like the ritual, anticipation and excitement of ordering a brand new custom board. There are few sports with a comparable aspect - a hand-built from scratch instrument to realize your goals. And it's always a different experience, depending in large part on the shaper and your expectations. Plus, you never really know what the board will perform like until you hop up on a nice wave, which of course just adds to the excitement of it all.

The above photo documents me with my 3rd surfboard, and my first custom shape: A 6'2" Herbie Fletcher rounded pintail with twin concave wings. The red rails and blue Fletcher logo were my choices and man, was I stoked. This board was ordered about 2 years prior to the thruster coming on the scene. It probably would have been more of a revelation for my surfing if I'd ordered this board as a twin fin (and I almost did, inspired by the surfing of MR and Bertlemann). But the Herbie performed well for a couple years at my home break, and even on a sojourn to Hawaii, before I jumped on the early 80's thruster bandwagon.

Photo by Poppa Loppa, aka Grandpa Rosie