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Independence Day was Born on the Fourth of July

Not vice versa. This is why we consider the Declaration of Independence to be the blueprint for Liberty. It covers the underpinnings necessary for the pursuit of happiness. It is the God given and legal architecture of these united States, with which what I term “The Suck” (which applies to those who endeavor to control and suppress independence) battles, in ever more brazen fashion, these recent decades. Below is some beautiful verse written by my friend and colleague, photojournalist and soldier Jon Louis Blackburn. He is a proud Scot in heritage and tone, and a perfect example of what America

Triiibes 2012. What: Is Happiness

This post is being made from the top floor of the Crowne Plaza Hotel. As I post it the broad bay view windows overlook the ocean I swim most days. The Coastline is beautiful, waves meander though and a few pods of surfers sit along the lineup on up to the top of Surfer’s Point. A storm approaches. Much goes on in this retreat. There is a level of emotional connection that has all of us at times finding ourselves tearing up and at others, laughing hilariously. But more that the see saw bridge of emotions, we are building community

Two

This is the second installment in this series on many loves. It is about Surfing. Not many people know exactly why they surf. It just is what they do. Surfing gives a lot to the participant. It often gets to the point of seeming to be a greedy avocation. The more you get, the better you become at it, the more that it drives you. I have surfed all of my life. My Dad tossed me in a pool at 4. I swam. He then taught me to bodysurf. I never looked back. Only forward. It is still that way

Sliding into 2011: Year in Pictures

Golden Reflections This link is to a new piece by Zuri Star called Keep Holding on. It fits the New Year quite well. It seems that all around us this past year there was friction. In fact, I found myself enmeshed in three massive battles, all at the same time. I did not author those. I simply said “no” to three entities I saw as abusive of my fellow man, community and Ocean Environment. friction |ˈfrik sh ən| noun the resistance that one surface or object encounters when moving over another : a lubrication system that reduces friction. • the

No Substitute

My sons are both adept musicians. Josh in fact, is especially gifted. He rang me up one day and asked for some help, possibly shooting a music video. I tentatively agreed, but the short of it was Josh meant, umm…. in three days. I had heard No Substitute before and was really impressed by the lyrics. I had not seen Josh perform more than a few times, as he is pretty much a songwriter-computer nerd-artist who happens to play a lot of instruments. I penned a script, rang Rob Dafoe, we assembled a plan, and three days later, with a

Hawaiianism

idealism |īˈdē(ə)ˌlizəm| noun 1 the practice of forming or pursuing ideals, esp. unrealistically : the idealism of youth. Compare with realism . • (in art or literature) the representation of things in ideal or idealized form. Often contrasted with realism (sense 2). We all judge everything and everybody. We really do. It is in our nature as independent beings which, due to our manifest destiny, were created to be able to function autonomously. My perspective on life is very Ocean Centric. It is in my DNA, in the ancestry from which I descended, and is a part of the heritage

Surfing Is

The motivation for this piece began with the publication of the following story in the WSJ, to which I contributed an image of my girlfriend Donna Von Hoesslin. Read the comment section, post story, and you will see a diversity of opinions (including mine) that are quite revelatory about each person’s point of view regarding surfing. Those statements reveal everything about those people’s depth of involvement with the ocean. The commentary engaged me. I have always been a surfer. At four years of age I knew that goal was what my life would be about. To know the ocean, (and

Fear Anger Hope

Fear, anger, hope. These three things are very inter-related and part of the process of progress. I find myself falling into fear, that entities which we have entrusted, like Government, Industry, and aspects of modern culture, such as certain Environmental PACS, have totally failed the Earth, as evidenced in the recent potential Global killer, that is the Platform Horizon Wellhead Blowout. The fear generated by this realization leads to an intense burning anger. That anger causes a hell of a lot of introspection of myself, what I stand for, and a VERY close look at the things I am able

ID Please

In marketing, one of the principal rules, is to identify the product in the eyes of the market. I am often introduced as a surf photographer. It is not that I eschew the title, which truly makes me die inside at the proffering of that description. Someone inevitably must endeavor to communicate what indeed it is, that one shoots. I do shoot surfing. I love the ocean. Surfing professionally was something that I was proud to have done for a substantial portion of my life, as it kept me IN the sea daily. But that is not what I am.

Elements: Blood to Bone

Water and air. Air and water. Blood to bone. Flesh of one’s own. The uninitiate fascinate over the sea and the creatures in it. But for a surfer, the relationship is one of kindred spirit. “Oh yes, that is”: insert marvelously made marine entity, referred to casually by those in the water tribe, in similar manner to someone whose house you wake up in each day, HERE. Dolphins live a life immersed. Yet linked to air, they have little issue being up and around in it. I see them fly a lot. No doubt exists, in spite of a lack

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