Getting Wet with Water Therapy

Yesterday was my Friday. I’m stoked to get the holidays I didn’t really get when I was a 100% commissioned sales rep. In that job I was 24/7, or so it seemed. Really I had my customers trained pretty well, so I didn’t have to work 24/7, but I was available if they needed me, and also I worked most Monday holidays. The only drop dead days I took off were New Year’s Day, July 4th when it fell on a weekday, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. Those were the only drop dead days we didn’t deliver product, so it was easy to turn the phone off.

Today I’m enjoying the July 4th holiday on Friday July 3rd. Since I had to put 5 days of work into 4, it added a little stress, but thankfully this week was a work week with our District in Ventura/Santa Barbara. You already know about me surfing early Monday, but I had an appointment in Ojai yesterday and was meeting up with the sales rep at 9:30. The surf forecast has been bleak all week, but then it’s also been a little better in actuality than in virtual (forecasting).

I figured if I got down to Ventura Point I would be able to surf for an hour and then do my normal work in a coffee shop I like to work in when I’m in the area. I only brought my Lucky Lucke and when I arrived to look at C Street I was a little disappointed. I knew the tide was going to be quite low, but the waves were nothing like the morning before. Mostly just less consistent.

I drove up to the top of the point to see if it was any better there and it was actually smaller. Literally knee high. I watched for about 10 minutes contemplating an earlier work schedule at the coffee shop than I planned because I knew I had some deadlines on a couple of projects.

I drove just a couple hundred yards south into the “free” parking at the Point and got out to look at it. It’s that spot between the Point and the Bay. Longboarders were already heading out and I was wishing I had one of mine. I didn’t take them because I didn’t want them in the car with me. They fit, but it’s nice that my 5’5″ fits with only one side of the back seat down.

After looking at it another 5 minutes I just told myself I needed to get wet. I had these deadlines looming and stressing me out and if I just surfed until 6:30 I could still get them done. by now it was 5:50 and I wouldn’t have as much time in the water, but I decided to go for it.

I’ve written in the past about getting wet and how there are times when you’re looking at the surf and just not feeling it. However, something inside says, “just get wet”, and we do. And after touching the water on a morning you just didn’t feel it, or whatever time you surf, the water therapy kicks in and you’re reinvigorated.

There were a couple of longboarders looking at the size of my board and wondering if I’d even catch anything, but if one of my shorter boards can ride knee high waves it is my Mini Simmons.

It was so refreshing to be in the water allowing the stresses of the week to wash off. Mind you, I love my job (for this very reason) and the stresses are bearable, but when I caught my first waves yesterday, knee high and all, it didn’t matter anymore because I was riding waves.

It turned out to be better than knee high. A few rolled through that were over waist high and I caught them, too. I probably rode about 10 waves in the 35 minutes I was in the water, but it was enough. I was so stoked to just be out there, not needing a longboard and thanking Jesus for creating a man named Bob Simmons (how the MIni Simmons eventually came to be this Century, though he shaped the board the MS is based on back in the 1950’s).

Because I’ve purposely left my camera’s home this week here’s a vid from a January session on that same board that I haven’t shared in this blog.

When all was done I hit the shower, changed into my work clothes, and headed to that coffee shop to work from my laptop for two hours. By 9 am I had hit my deadlines and was ready to take a 3 day weekend, refreshed and renewed from the world washing off. I still had appointments to meet and a day to work, but getting wet for the water therapy keeps me going and reenergizes me.

It’s my gym and I go early enough to make it work. I hope you get to enjoy those same things that energize your soul. Thank you and God bless.

Surfer Yoda