Port City Community Church wasn’t nearly as crowded as it was last week, but that was to be expected since there was so much buzz about the new building and we probably had people come to just check it out, or people who weren’t consistent members. Amanda and I got up and went to the 8:30 service at church. We got there a little early so she grabbed some coffee and, seeing that they had some green tea, I got some of that. We talked to Don and Laurel for a bit then went to sit down. We saw Anna and Barry so we sat behind them. They usually go to the 10:30 service, but Terry, Anna’s cousin, was coming for a visit today.
You know, I don’t think I ever told Anna “Happy birthday” today.
The message this week and last was about cultivating change, and after the regular set the band played John Mayer’s Waiting on the World to Change. It was cool in that you could feel a bit of a lightness in the auditorium as people started to realize what song they were starting to play.
After the service Amanda and I talked to Nick and Amy for a bit. I waited around a little and talked to Mike Ashcraft, our rock star preacher. We chatted a bit about surfing and he told me to give him a call if there was anything good out there this week while I was out.
Amanda and I were planning on grabbing something small to eat on the way out to the beach, but the Frazelles had invited us to have some bagels with them, so we ate there. Barry had gone to Barnes & Noble, but Anna made us egg and cheese bagels. Terry showed up just as I was finally getting in touch to tell my mom that one of my clients was on The Dog Whisperer (which she watches) last night.
Michael arrived and we all sat around on the porch for a while then, just as we were about to go out, the Boscaljons and the Hauensteins arrived, although they had to park in a metered spot because all of the Frazelle driveway was spoken for today. Justin hadn’t surfed before, but he decided to give it a try since the rest of us were going out for it too I guess. He actually did really well- he caught two waves that I counted and even stood up.
The waves were a bit inconsistent so we all eventually got out, though most of us went back in for some more later. Even Kaitlyn and Lisa gave it a try, but I don’t know how they did since I was inside getting a sandwich at that point. Amanda’s mom, Karen Mercer, showed up so we had a nice big crowd of people taking up a swatch of beach. Justin, Lisa, Mike and Kaitlyn all took off eventually. I still ended up spending most of my time out in the water. Barry came back out after a while, but there really was very little to catch at that point- the water was so choppy and the rip current kept pulling me down the shore.
I had a good time though. The waves I did catch were kind of slow and easy, so I had time to think about what I was doing on the board, like putting some weight forward to try to gain speed or try to turn the board a little, although the blue NSP board is practically a boat so it wasn’t easy to maneuver. I also did a little hop with both feet to try to move forward on the board. Yes, I’m acrobatic like that.
Amanda and I came home and watched a show on National Geographic- Locked Up Abroad or something. The first episode, which I only saw a little of, was about a couple who were kidnapped by Philippine rebels. The second was about a girl who got caught up trying to smuggle drugs out of Bangladesh, got caught and was sentenced to life in prison. Eventually Senatory Bill Richardson petitioned the government to pardon her and she was let out after five years.
I dozed off and on after that, mainly waking up to try to kill a spider that was on the TV, although I had to try to get it off the TV first as I didn’t want guts spattered on the plasma TV. I didn’t get it, but harvey found it after it fell on the floor.
Amanda had a hard time getting me to move upstairs.
Zach Dotsey
.