Categories
Joie de Vivre

Lilypad

Lily started playing cello late last fall and she had her first performance on Friday. We are very proud of her.

We had some good father-daughter time this weekend, including the first skates of the year.

 

Categories
Skate & Create

New Road

The state highway administration spent the past week scraping our decrepit road away, and they woke me up bright and early on this Saturday at 6:00am with more racket. When I looked, it was like Christmas.

It’s so smooth.

Categories
Skate & Create

Skateboarding is not a crime

At least at Landsdowne. It was a beautiful day today, so Chloe and I went for a father-daughter outing at the skate park. Surprisingly, we had the place to ourselves.

Jim

Coco shredding

Coco

Here’s a video from my board.

I pulled over to take the shot below, which I swear that I did not do. Even if I think it’s brilliant and a good idea and something that maybe I wish I’d done.

Skull post

Happy skating Sunday.

Categories
Skate & Create

Concrete Wonderland

I visited the Lansdowne skate park in Baltimore for the first time with some Kung Fu buddies this afternoon – completely awesome.   Today was a perfect fall day – bright, crisp, cool. I can’t wait to go back.

Landsdowne Skate Park

Landsdowne Skate Park

Landsdowne Skate Park

Landsdowne Skate Park

Landsdowne Skate Park

Categories
Skate & Create

Powell Ripper Eisenhower Jacket

ike

ike back with ripper

Categories
Skate & Create

SK8 to work day

No Ka Oi from Surf OneThis morning was fabulous! I’m a car down, so I rode my longboard, shown at the right, to the train station (the bike lockers are still obstructed). It’s about 3.74 miles away. I walked down the steeper hills because I was confined to the sidewalk and I have yet to find a graceful way to stop myself on this thing. And, even so, I had a few Mr. Bean moments for the other commuters.

It’s strangely warm for October, and I was good and soaked when I finally boarded my train. But, I know now that I can do this safely and in relatively decent time and…it was TOTALLY fun. Completely worth it. I’ve wanted to do this for months and months.

When I was in high school, I used to accidentally oversleep on purpose. Since Mom worked a hour away in the opposite direction of my school, she had no choice but to write a note for me with an excuse. I would then spend a leisurely morning skating to school, where I’d arrive in time for the last two periods (music and art classes). The frequency with which I “overslept” increased considerably the spring I was accepted into college. I thought a lot about the routes I used to take, and how much fun in was to cruise the sidewalks – it was relatively flat, and the main sidewalks were wide and in good shape.

Gordon and Smith Proline 500

The second board shown here is the one I rode back then – a G&S “Proline 500.” It’s a really solid deck, and thankfully I still have it. I was thinking about how my friends used to pull me behind their cars with a rope. Lucky for me, I never had a bad mishap. I have a lime green tail bone to match the side rails – just need to reattach it.

I am looking forward to cooler days, just ahead. I also figured out that I’ll make better time on a smaller board because I’ll be able to take the steeper hills with more confidence.

I hope you had a great morning, too.

[Additional Note: 10.12.2007] – I rode my Flip Crest deck to work today. As predicted, the hills were more manageable and I made great time. It looks like the bike lockers are ready for action once again, too. Life is good.