Saltwater for Breakfast

The alarm rang at 4:30 am, but I was already awake. Meeting Surf Sisters Sherri and Haley at 5:15 for the hour drive up to El Porto in Manhattan Beach for the Queen of the South Bay celebration of surfing, I didn't want to be late. Haley's 8-foot longboard fit neatly inside my upside down 9 on her roof rack. She had purchased new straps for the trip to hold our boards atop Rustica, her dark orange Subaru. Her shortboards were inside the car; Haley was competing in both sides

This whole thing began because I saw a dad teaching his daughter how to surf one day at Blackies soon after we started surfing, and it made me incredibly sad. I remember seeing how tender he was with his little girl, how careful he was with her, how they laughed, how she gave him her rapt attention and tried so hard to do what he was telling her. I paddled closer to them, so I could hear his directions -- maybe get a few tips. I couldn't hear very well over the crashing waves

"You shoulda been here yesterday!" My favorite phrase and bumper sticker. It made me laugh out loud the first time I heard it. There's a joy in it and a nostalgia for the day before, a longing for the brilliant time we had and so deeply want to have again. I hear it all the time, "Yesterday was so fun!" or "Yesterday was great! You shoulda been here." A similar phrase came out of my mouth one day at Blackies. It was a big day: big waves coming fast and frequent, one right beh