Monday, January 19, 2009
Surf washes away troubles
Ray Stubblefield
Recent columns
- Do something for her in 2009
- Sharing the rigors of the trail
- Animals just happen
- Proud again to be an American
From the RoundTable blog
I hate to admit it, but I have the midwinter blues. And as you'll shortly see, I'm pretty grumpy. It's the result of a combination of things. The holidays are over, so there's nothing to look forward to until next year. The news is abysmal as the world economy goes into a tail spin. And it won't snow.
To make matters worse, it was "Armageddon Week" on the History Channel, so my spirits were lifted even further as I pondered the inevitable end of the world by 2012. As some of my students would say, "Life sucks."
Last week at our house it was 33 degrees and heavy rain. Thirty-three and rain! What does it have to do to snow around here? 1996 was our last decent snow, 15 inches, and we had 9 inches a few years ago in March. Since then, we get excited if there is ice in the forecast, and it won't even do that.
The weather that I hate most is the typical winter day in Virginia: overcast, maybe a spotty drizzle, and temps in the low 40s. The landscape is so dismal. With no direct sun, everything is two dimensional, gray and brown. Ugh. I would rather have 20 degrees, blue skies and a foot of the white stuff any day. There was a time we had winters like that.
I spend too much time watching TV, and even that drives me crazy. Too many commercials! I don't want to buy a "ShamWow" for only $19.95 plus shipping and handling. I don't want to try a "Total Gym" risk free for two months, or see how much money I can save on my car insurance.
I just want to watch my program in peace, without the constant barrage of inane ads. It's intellectual rape, and those guys on Madison Avenue should be doing prison time.
My only recourse is to channel surf, hit the mute button or "Tivo" it and fast forward through the commercials as I watch my program at a later time. But more often than not, I retreat to TCM or IFC. There are no commercials during the movies they air.
So last Sunday I had an unexpected treat. There was a documentary/travelogue about surfing on IFC called "Step Into Liquid." I don't surf, but after watching this film, I'm convinced everyone on the planet should try it at least once.
"Step Into Liquid" takes us to the most exotic places on the planet, showing surfing enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels in pursuit of that perfect wave. It also attempts to dispel the image of the dedicated surfer as being a stoner and slacker.
The film shows world-class surfers riding 60-foot waves in Oahu, and good ol' boys surfing the wakes of supertankers off the coast of Texas. But the part I liked most was when three Americans, the Malloy brothers, returned to their ancestral roots in Ireland to surf and to teach the children of Northern Ireland to do the same.
Of course the water was freezing and everyone had wet suits on, but there they were, Protestant and Catholic children learning to surf together and having the time of their lives. In fact, all through the movie, it didn't matter how old the person was or his skill level, everyone, but everyone was happy and at peace. All the cares of the world had been left at the water's edge.
It got me thinking: If surfing can bring Protestant and Catholic children together in Northern Ireland, why couldn't it bring people from all over the world together?
The attacks on Gaza by Israel have gotten way out of hand, so let's start with the leaders of Israel and the Palestinians. We could have détente in Hawaii, and Obama would be the perfect man to lead it. After all, it's his home state.
Remember Jimmy Carter and the Camp David Accords? Let's get these guys out on the beaches of Hawaii for a week and teach them to surf together. I guarantee, within the first day, we would have peace in the Middle East.
Stubblefield, who teaches earth science at Franklin County High School, is a Roanoke Times columnist.
