Revitalized: Retirement, surfing and so much more

During the past few years, I didn't have any extra time or, perhaps I should say, extra writing energy to contribute to this blog. I definitely didn't have much time to surf. At the end of August, I retired from a job I had been blessed to have for 21 years. It had been a job I loved for many years, but earlier this year I realized that it had been sucking the life energy from me. I am not saying I did not still enjoy a large portion of what I did for my living, but I had reached a point in my career where I felt like there was more I wanted to do. And, I decided early this year that it was time for me to find my passion again. While I look for it, I am planning to have some fun.

Because of pure mental exhaustion, I did not surf much early this year. In fact, I do not think I even paddled out once this year in my wetsuit. It was well into spring before I made it out. Since retiring in August, I have probably surfed more than I had up until this point in 2020. Last week, I made it out three days in pretty waves formed by an early fall cold front that changed the wind direction. Because they were a little weak, I had the opportunity to practice my paddling and timing, which is practice I always need. Quite a few wonderful waves came through, but I caught about four waves for every 60, but the ones I caught made it all worthwhile. I rode some pretty little lines and established that I need to paddle earlier when the wave isn't quite defined. I noticed that some of the other surfers were catching quite a few and that the shortboarders were actually paddling a little later. Basically, I've been studying the waves for over 10 years now and Galveston waves are difficult to read AND understand. I plan to keep practicing so that I can catch even more when another northeast wind blows through. 

On another note, I bought a new surfboard. It is a sweet little 7'11" Rockin' Fig fun board I am calling Adele. I am still pretty much a longboarder, and will likely always be a longboarder, but the lure for a shorter board was too much. I found it in a Facebook group and couldn't resist the price. I have had two other funboards in the past that I have ultimately sold to others hoping to transition to a shorter board. Now that I have a little more time on my hand maybe I can make the leap this time. A surfing friend of mine suggested I make it wall art. It is certainly pretty enough, but I think I'll keep Adele with the rest of the quiver for a little while longer in case some more strong waves present themselves.