missing sunday surf.

a wee note about florida surf: it comes comes seldom and often when you least expect it. we get weird surf here all the time, but delicious, glassy, peeling swells come maybe once a year. sunday it snuck up on everyone, and no one i know caught it. c'est la vie.

if you operate on a macintosh, you may need to download flip4mac to access the video, which opens windows media files in quicktime. if you operate on a pc, then for once you're ahead of the game. the video is a nice look at our beaches, and at nearly never-seen waves on the gulf coast.

big lagoon, little friends.

on friday night i went camping with my good friend britt and his two amazing boys, baylen (4) and collin (3). it was their first full-on camping experience, and they absolutely loved it. by full-on i mean staying in a tent all night and sleeping on the ground. we didn't hike or primitive camp or anything, but still, it was a big deal.

we gathered firewood, cooked meat over a fire, roasted marshmallows, played cards and went exploring. the boys were happy for their new wool hats from uncle ben, and sported them enthusiastically. my favorite moment of the trip was when collin (younger and blonder) randomly began singing "i got soul, but i'm not a soldier..." while walking by himself. he sang it over and over again, and i almost couldn't contain my delight. i got video of it, but, very sadly, no audio came through with it. other highlights included collin trying in vain to remove an artificial, affixed robin from a bench, and continually referring to it as a 'turkey bird,' baylen writing the names of all his family members in the sand, and hearing both kids say, time and again, "daddy, you know what? i love you."

got me every time.

the trip was also meaningful because britt, his lovely wife marie, and his three beautiful children (baby brooklyn is almost one) are moving after the new year.

they will be greatly missed.

bunches of really terrific photos from the trip can be found here: PHOTOS!

my winter lungs.

1. "Fake Empire" - The National
2. "Extraordinary Machine" - Fiona Apple
3. "Keep the Car Running" - Arcade Fire
4. "Hard Life" - Bonnie 'Prince' Billy
5. "Reckoner" - Radiohead
6. "When a Man Loves a Woman" - Percy Sledge
7. "Green Onions" - Booker T. & The MG's
8. "Tall Trees in Georgia" - Eva Cassidy
9. "OK As Long As You Don't Squeak or Bark or Make Other Animal Noises" - Linford Detweiler
10. "Shelter From the Storm" - Bob Dylan
11. "Travelin' Thru" - Dolly Parton
12. "I Started a Joke" - Kathryn Williams
13. "The Good Hand" - Woven Hand
14. "The Man Comes Around" - Johnny Cash
15. "Amy" - Takagi Masakatsu
16. "Is There a Ghost" - Band of Horses
17. "The Lakes of Canada" - The Innocence Mission

the first noel: dicristina nut brown ale

about six weeks ago i began discovering how fun it was to brew my own beer. i've been anxiously awaiting popping the caps off since then, hoping desperately to avoid skunking and non-carbonation. although there was a trial run with the fam last weekend, tonight was the official uncorking, and the critics agree: my beer is delicious.

i chose the name 'the first noel' in honor of Christmastime and of noel, my Christmassy middle name. also because this was my first brewing. i wish i could tell you all to enjoy, but first you'll have to visit.

czechvar: the new budvar!

there is a beer that i used to enjoy with my good friend olu robbin-coker which is called budvar. i didn't know, until yesterday, that this (the original budweiser) pilsner is sold stateside as czechvar. after years of searching, today i found it in minutes, and i'm enjoying one now. memories of a creole-speaking sierra leonean are dancing in my head.

olu, here's to you, your lovely wife, your beautiful progeny, and of course, to limit x. malibongwe, my friend.

dancing ladies, tired eyes.

sometimes i break down and buy an orchid that is already blooming. i guess i feel that there's less merit in buying a blooming orchid as opposed to cultivating one myself. on the other hand, if it is the flowers that are to be enjoyed, and not only the cultivating process, there's certainly no less merit in the former.
i love both.

this is an oncidium sweet sugar 'yellow king.' these orchids are commonly called 'dancing lady' orchids because of the flowers' resemblance of skirted ladies dancing. it seems this particular dance would include a lot of spinning.

this is a song i've been listening to a lot lately. it's one of my favorites:

Sisters and brothers,
We have surely lost our way.
In strip malls full of cancer,
And a pathetic rain.
And lover, sweet lover
Please don't discipline your hands.
Just kiss me in the morning,
In your dirtiest pants.

We will find our way.

We will find our way.

There is beauty in this land,
But i don't often see it.
There is beauty in this land,
But i don't often feel it.

Pimples are flowers,
Musicians are cowards!
Let's argue in the kitchen,
For hours and hours.
Tomorrow is a travesty,
Tomorrow should be ours.

The soldiers with their specialists
And the pigs with their guns cannot stop,
The lost ones and
the desparate ones and
the driven ones.

The soldiers with their cigarettes
And the pigs with their guns cannot stop,
The lonesome ones and
the desparate ones and
the smart ones.

So come on friends,
To the barricades again.

So come on friends,
To the barricades again.

So come on friends,
To the barricades again.

So come on friends,
To the barricades again.

We will find our way.

We will find our way.


"When we finally cross the barricades
With the angels on our side
When we finally deny all the popular laws
When we finally let doubt and worry die

How will it feel?"

- excerpt from "The Triumph of Our Tired Eyes," by A Silver Mt. Zion

thanksgiving in florida.

so it's about that time to wrap up a fantastic thanksgiving weekend with the family. mark and monica (brother and new sister) were down for the holiday, and we all stayed at the 'rents house for optimal hang time. we played dominos, drank beer, ate food, talked about and watched werner herzog, and prayed together.

in denying my own tradition of never posting more than one photo on any one blog, i offer you these pictures: