I wasn’t too shy to introduce myself and explained I was learning. Some younger guys acted a bit like jerks, but for the most part, everyone just wanted to enjoy themselves.
I did have one misadventure. I’d tried to keep to the smaller waves and somehow misjudged a bigger one. You can pick up a lot of speed on a bigger wave. When you crash, you can get rolled. The wave’s curling action pushes you towards the bottom, and it’s like you’re in the spin cycle of a front-loading washing machine. I later found out Rita bought her house in this location because there weren’t any rocks. This was important because as you’re spinning, if you hit the bottom, it’s much better to be pounded into the sand than rocks. I learned that little lesson the hard way.
The scary thing about being rolled is that it’s hard to figure out which way is up. When I finally surfaced, my lungs were burning. I was grateful when one of the young bucks slid his board to me so I could catch my breath.
“You didn’t happen to see where my board went?” I asked.
“It shot towards shore.”
“Good. I think I’m done for today.”
“You okay? That was a bad one,” he said.
“I’m good.”
“Will I see you again?” he asked.
“Yeah, this is fun.”
“Later,” he said and paddled back out to go again.
When I got to shore, I found my board. It was broken, and I would have to replace it. I decided that while I was at it, I’d get one of my own. I held the damaged board up so the paparazzi could get the shot and then walked back to the house. After a quick shower on the porch, I stripped off my salty suit and wrapped my waist with a towel.
I looked towards the surf and realized I’d just shown my butt to a group of paparazzi. It seemed today would be a learning experience all day long. I should have wrapped the towel around me before the suit came off. This wasn’t the first time my butt had been on display, though. I sent Frank a text to warn him and went inside to change.
◊◊◊
The hot tub felt great. I now understood why the girls had worn spring suits. The high was only in the low 70s, and most of the other surfers had worn something similar.While I soaked, Rosy was on the roof with me, making dinner. I watched as she shucked fresh scallops and cleaned prawns.
When everyone came back, I climbed out of the hot tub and changed into jeans and a sweatshirt. I’d found where Halle had hidden my jeans. Fritz started a fire, and we all sat down and enjoyed a wonderful seafood feast. I fell in love with seared tuna.
After dinner, we sat around the fireplace and watched as the sun set. I was content to watch the riot of oranges and reds flashing through the waves as the sun sank into the Pacific Ocean. I couldn’t imagine a better way to end a day.
◊◊◊
After the sun set, we all went inside. I called my mom and dad and another handful of friends. When I called Cassidy, she handed the phone to her dad. He wanted to congratulate me on the awards I’d garnered. I also called John Phillips at the University of Kentucky. He had good news: he’d been cleared for full participation in football activities. The rehab of his Achilles injury had been long and hard, but he would compete to start at quarterback in spring ball.
Rita had plans to go to a friend’s house, so that left Halle and me alone. I had no idea what we could do. It was a good thing she was there, or it would never have occurred to me we should get naked. Once she had my clothes off, I was all for what she planned. It was much more fun than watching a movie or playing a board game.
◊◊◊ Saturday December 5
I talked Fritz into taking me to a local surf shop so I could replace the broken board. When we entered, there was an older guy and a woman in her early twenties there. I think Fritz was surprised when I stepped up to the older guy. When I say older, I would guess he was my parents’ age. I picked him because he just looked like he’d surfed all his life.
“You need a replacement?” he asked when he saw my broken board.
“Yeah, I borrowed a friend’s to learn on and tried to kill myself.”
He looked it over.
“I still have this model in either lime green or pink.”
Neither sounded good to me, so I turned and looked at Fritz, and he just shrugged.
“Can we see them?” I asked.
“Sure, come to the back.”
We made our way to the back room, and there had to be a thousand boards there. At the rear, there was a work area where a young man was making a board. He looked like the man who was helping us. I would guess father and son. He found the two boards and pulled them out.
“At least you wouldn’t lose them,” Fritz said.
“Would Rita like either of these?”
“No,” Fritz finally answered.
“I have something similar, but it’s custom and will cost a little more.”
It was orange-reddish and had been given a weathered appearance, so it looked like a vintage board. In the center was a stylized blazing sun. It looked more like a piece of art than a surfboard. It was the same size and shape. I knew Rita would like it.
“Do you want to get a beginner board for yourself? This one’s too small for you.”
The guy working on shaping a board stopped and looked up.
“You’re an actor,” he said. “I saw some pictures of you surfing. I’ve got a board that’d fit you better, and I’d be willing to give you a deal if you mentioned my dad’s and my shop.”
“What kind of deal?” I asked.
The guy thought about it for a moment.
“How about I give you a board?” he offered.
It turned out that I needed at least a nine-and-a-half-foot board. The rule of thumb was it should be at least three feet longer than you were tall. The guy gave me a ten-footer. This one was white with a burnt orange octopus with orange and yellow tentacles and bright green suction cups. While I was there, I also bought a wetsuit vest. I’d found that if my lower back got cold, I was cold all over. I also bought a pair of surf shoes.
While I paid, Fritz ran next door and bought a couple of breakfast sandwiches. Nearly three grand later, we were on our way to the beach house. I about choked when I saw the price on Rita’s new board, but I bit my tongue because the guy’d given me my board.
We found Rita and Halle sitting on the patio, enjoying another perfect California morning.
“I got this to replace the one I broke,” I said, showing it to Rita.
“Mine!” Halle called.
“This is a much more expensive board than the one you broke,” Rita said.
“They only had it in pink or lime green. I thought this one looked better,” I said.
“This one should be hanging on our wall, not taken surfing,” Rita said.
I showed them the one I’d been given, and Rita’s eyebrows shot up.
“You say he gave you this board?” Rita asked.
“Yeah, he custom makes them in the back of his dad’s shop,” I said. “He just asked that if anyone asked, I tell them where I got it.”
He’d given me a stack of business cards, so I gave one to Rita.
“So, do I get this board?” Halle asked.
“No, you have a perfectly good board. This is too nice for you to be surfing on it,” Rita said.
“MO-om.”
“Don’t ‘Mom’ me. What happened to your last three boards?”
I could guess by Halle’s expression that they’d all been damaged in some way. I’d bet that Halle would have a new board for Christmas because Rita tucked the card away.
We all decided to go surfing again. The young guys loved my new board and wanted to know where I got it. I showed it to the paparazzi when we came out of the water and told them. This time when I changed out of my suit, I put a towel in place. Maybe I was capable of learning.