I’ve talked about my mom some but maybe not about my dad.  Actually I’ve had 2 fathers, paternal father and step father.

 

When I was about 7 or 8 years old my parents divorced. A couple years later my mother remarried.  With the remarriage not only did I get a new father but my 2 sisters and I inherited 2 brothers. We all became one big family… and in the process I didn’t see my paternal father until I was 18.

 

I still remember seeing him for the first time after all those years. And then over the years after that we got closer.  He liked camping and had a nice motor home just for that.  So When I’d set up surf camp trips he’d sometimes book a site and spend time camping with me and the family. 

My dad moved up to Sacramento during the time I was living in Hawaii. When we returned to Ventura we never got to visit until last year.

 

Last June was when my mother passed. Now 1 year, 1 month and 3 days later my father has passed away.  Even though I was not around my father during my formative years we were able to reconnect and have good family time, work time and recreation time together since we first said hello again some 47 years ago… and now it’s hard to say good bye.

 

RIP dad, you will be missed.

 

D.R.    

 



 

On a surf outing in summer of '92

Me on the left acting like a clown,  which is why my dad on the right and son in the middle are laughing. 

 

My story post 57

 

I don’t travel much, the traveling I’ve done has mostly been between California and Hawaii.  Usually things go OK but sometimes…. Not.

 

The summer of ’82 my wife and I went to Oahu for a couple weeks. I off course took my surfboard.. a 6’3.  When we got to LAX and the terminal we were to fly out of there was a line at check in a mile long. The line wasn’t moving at all but since we were all the way out by the door we couldn’t tell that the line we were in was for some delayed international flight and our flight to Hawaii was checking passengers at the end of the counter, but because the area was so crowded we couldn't tell.

 

I kept thinking there was no way we could get through this check in line and get to the plane in time.  Then the friend we were meeting and going on the trip with walks up and says “ you’re going to miss the flight, come around this stupid line and get your stuff checked. So we hustle around the crowd, check our stuff and run to the gate.

We’re like the last people to board this 747 on a summer day going to Hawaii. Guess what?  The pickin’ plane is all but full, and because we’re the last 2 people to board there are only single seats available anywhere.  So I get seated next to a couple strangers and my wife is seated about 6 or 7 rows away from me with a couple guys… she doesn’t know either.

 

I’m thinking this isn’t the way to start a fun couple weeks in the tropics. I get up, go to a flight attendant and complain. “what the heck, we get stuck at the airlines chaotic check in counter, because we got stuck at the chaotic check in counter we almost miss our flight. And then when we finally get on the plane you guys seat my wife with a couple strangers?” I say.  “ this is a 5 hours flight,  this ain’t right.”

 

The flight attendant knew of the situation at check in… which is why things seemed a bit chaotic on the plane as well, she said, “hold on a minute, let me see if we can straighten things out.”

 

As the crowded plane started to quiet down and was about ready to pull from the terminal, the Flight attendant came back to me and asked if I’d get my wife and follow her saying.. “I’ve got a place for you.”

 

So my wife and I follow her into first class, then to the stairs that go up to the upper area of the 747, above first class and seat us.  There was another couple on the other side of this cozy little room, windows on both sides, with big wide comfortable seats. We sit down, buckle up and the plane took off.

 

After the plane got in the air the flight attendant came back to check up on us and brought us a bottle of champagne.  What started like a nightmare ended up a sweet dream all the way to Hawaii.

 

D.R.



 



 

My wife Suzi at the Honolulu airport circa 1982

Man I like summer!  The warm days and long days at that.  It’s light at 5:30 am.  If you go down to the beach at the butt crack of dawn you can surf 2 hours and still be at work by 8am if you work close enough to the beach. Or, you can go down to the beach at 5:30 in the evening and surf for 2 hours and be on your way home before it’s even dark.

 

I had my grandson here visiting all last month.  I took him surfing about 3 or 4 times a week, he was getting the surfing bug.  He went home June 28 so the day before he left we went surfing in the morning and the evening.  There was a little south and west combo swell running that day. The morning wasn’t that great but as the day progressed the conditions cleaned up so that evening was really fun.

 

That late afternoon when we were out surfing again I kept asking Merrick if he’d had enough, he’d say no and we’d just keep surfing.  It was sunny and warm but when the sun dipped behind the inland hills it seemed like a good time to call it a day.  When we got back to the Van to dry off I checked my phone for the time.. it was 15 minutes to 8. We went and got hamburgers drove home pulling into the driveway just as it was getting dark. Compare that to winter when dark is 5pm.

 

Yeah, Merrick’s last day was one full summer day, and I was tired that night.  Only to wake up early and take the kid to LAX.

 

D.R.