had a great time surfing with Tanaka-san and Ikeda-san today. the waves were super big this morning but they charged! we surfed bowls and it was so empty? couldn’t believe everybody went in all at once and only had us 3 at the peak for an hour. i told them “today is your very lucky day. i never ever surfed bowls this uncrowded before when there is a huge south swell.” we scored!

then us hungry surfers wanted to eat a big lunch. so it was straight to Yajima-ya’s mushroom chicken plate! the boys loved it!

we had a great talk. both of these guys are super young. just finished college and are in the japanese work force. taking surf trips once a year is going to keep these guys forever young. something to look forward too, and something to live for. thanks boys for the wonderful day of big wave surfing! enjoy the rest of your surf trip in hawaii!

unbelievable how great Jennifer Lopez looks! OMG, this is what you call a very “solid” body. how does she do it?

can you believe our class is planning our 50th reunion in Las Vegas? omg, i hope i’m still alive to attend that one! that would be cool!

driving home today and seen a grandpa cruising the streets with his electric wheelchair. so cool!

not too sure if you were brave enough to watch that youtube video i posted earlier. this free diver got attacked by a 13′ tiger shark in very shallow water right off shore on the big island. then he decided to take video of him bleeding to death. my friend Bobby sent me the video while i was eating dinner. and yeah, i almost threw up. when things like this happen, it hits me harder than most people. it could have been me, or it could be me. all us free divers and surfers know we are in the sharks kingdom. we have to respect that and understand that we can be attacked at any given day. it’s the high risks for our high rewards. i hope this brother gets well soon. and i hope he gets back into the ocean which i bet he loves so much. get well soon bro!

and that is the very reason why i am thankful for each day of my life. at the end of the day, it’s just like a celebration for me. just so fortunate to live and breathe for another day. so i went out and ordered a big kirin draft, held it up, and thanked god for giving me another day to live.

WARNING!!!!! PLEASE DON’T WATCH IF YOU DON’T LIKE BLOOD. SHARK ATTACK VICTIM ON BIG ISLAND SHOWS VIDEO. OMG!
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJeaMKpYF4M[/youtube]

another day that seems like years ago. but it was only a few weeks ago? really?

my wonderful morning session with my shonan friends. Saito-san, Eri-chan, and Matsu.

the waves were so perfect this day and i’m super happy to have shared it with my special friend i’ve known for a very long time. paddling out for our morning session watching many unridden waves was exciting!

want to thank Matsuo for always being a super great friend and a super kind local to us.

this is the shonan lifestyle. it brings back so many memories when i use to do this every single summer. surf in the mornings and have parties at nights. i use to love it and i still do!

then the second afternoon session was like a bonus! perfect waves with friends 2 rounds in one day? that’s pretty unheard of. in fact, it was my first time surfing good waves twice in a day in shonan.

been putting together photos for a presentation for the 8th grade kids. going to show them the before and after photos of some of the places we visited. here is kobuchihama a few weeks ago. we were so happy to see this beautiful fishing village back up in full swing. can you believe they built up the height about 6′ for this whole fishing port? yeah, after the tsunami, this port would be underwater on high tide.

i’m guessing it’s anago season?

i’m always impressed by the traditional japanese way of fishing. i would love to work on one of these fishing boats. hopefully when i retire, i can spend a few years up there fishing and drinking hot sake. just the simple life i always am inspired by.