George Williams getting cozy in the barrel. Photo: Ryan Moore
I was working an 8-5 doing music clearance and licensing in LA. I enjoyed it for four years – I was still able to maintain a surfing lifestyle, thanks to my boss. He didn’t care if I walked in with seaweed tangled in my hair as long as I did my work. He sent me off to Maui as a bonus, he let me hang my wetsuit in the back so it wasn’t stinking up my car. He truly understood my love for surfing and supported me in every way. Some days, he would let me go early to catch a surf before the sun set. Then the time came when the transition to the corporate world was on the horizon. This baby bird was about to spread her wings and realized she didn’t want to fly into corporate territory. I sought a place where I could surround myself with other like-minded individuals who felt the same as I did about surfing and a chance to share my stoke. A year after stalking and eventually running promo on the weekends for surf/skate-inspired company Panda Diplomacy (aka Surf Panda), I received a call asking if wanted to move to the Hamptons for the summer to manage the store and do promotions on the East Coast. Baby bird said yes and traded her wings for some fins.
A month later, with much love and support from my boss, I left with his blessing knowing this is what I needed to be doing. When you love something and it opens you up to be a better person, why not go pursue it? Surfing has done just that. I didn’t know what to expect in New York, but it exceeded all my expectations. The typical Californian’s first reactions were: “A surf company in New York? Shouldn’t you guys be out here?” or “is there even surf in New York?” and “You’re such a Cali girl… I can’t see you living there.”
Challenge accepted.
My passion may exceed my ability, but because of surfing, I’ve found a community everywhere I go and a passion that fits every fiber of my being. There comes a point for anyone who has caught the bug where they know surfing will always be a part of their lives. I can’t imagine my life without it. Ok, I lied. I CAN picture my life without surfing, and it’s filled with a crabby aging woman filling the void with feline companions.
I have been living in East Hampton and working for Surf Panda while discovering and surfing this place they call Long Island. Living in LA for the past 8 years, I felt I found a place that I would never need to leave. This temporary move to the East Coast changed that, and planted a hunger in me that can only be satisfied with new adventures, new waves, and new faces.
When you hear “The Hamptons” you probably don’t think of surfing. You probably think of every Ralph Lauren on the beach, yachts, khakis, lots of beautiful people sipping on Rose, and maybe the movie White Chicks. Yes, the Hamptons can be everything I mentioned, but behind the luxurious veneer of tourists and money are quaint villages that each have their own personality filled with the most laid back locals. As you drive from South Hampton to Amagansett, you can feel the history of the Hamptons. The buildings hold on to what they were, and they hold it proudly. The back roads and villages make me nostalgic for the simpler and slower pace of my old midwest life, yet it gets better. All along Long Island is a coastline that continues to take my breath away. The Atlantic has its own mysterious and inviting beauty to it. Surfing is quite different here, but worth the challenge. I could list off my favorite surf spots out the wazoo, but I won’t – that is for you to discover the old fashioned way. By discovering the spots for yourself, you will uncover some of the most humbling and genuine people. I would never want to spoil that for you.
They have shared their home breaks with me, their personal stories, history of their lives and generations in this area. You feel the connection they have with each other, their community, and surfing. When you travel and visit a place for a week or a weekend you only get a taste of it’s potential. When you get a chance to be a part of it, it’s priceless.
The summer is now over, and from what I hear, this is when it starts to get better. So the City crowds may have gone but the surf continues on into the deep of winter. My time out here has been life changing. Isn’t this what life is about? Learning, growing, living, and sharing the love? In an effort to turn this word vomit of pure joy into something helpful, I will share what I’ve learned thus far. I’m just at the beginning, but I know it’s just the start of something very beautiful.
1. Don’t be afraid to be alone. I have spent times out here in the beginning simmering in a vat of my own loneliness and solitude. I knew no one out here except my boss and his family. The quiet times before the season kicked in, I basked in solitude and challenged myself to find beauty in every single second. When you have nothing to physically, mentally, or emotionally influence you, you’re left with the purest form of yourself. Living in LA, I was constantly stimulated by people, my environment, and a never ending transference of energy bouncing about. For once, I could hear myself think. I got back to the basics of what made me happy before I found surfing: art, music, and writing. Traveling by yourself also gives you the opportunity to do whatever you want.
2. Be open to possibilities and people. Being open to possibilities gives you an abundant amount of results. Some scary, some fun, some exciting, some boring…you never know where a path leads until you take it. As for people, be open with them as well. Being in a new environment not knowing anybody can put you in a place of caution, which is fine. But if you let that caution turn into fear, not only will you cloud your judgement, but also your perception of people around you. I’m not saying to follow overly friendly man to that dark alley next to the blacked out truck because you want to give him a chance, but be open emotionally to allow others to see you so you may be able to see them just as clearly. People are what can make an environment beautiful. They are the many different strokes and colors that add to the landscape around you. Strangers and new friends can show us where we are at on our journey, and by being open I have found a better understanding of myself. I have begun the journey of letting go in its most beautiful way. Which leads to the next valuable lesson learned.
3. Forgive and let go. I’m peeling off the wetsuit to get naked with you for a sec. If you read my last post, “Adopted By The Sea“, you have my background and see adoption is a subject that I’m passionate about. There are things from the past I would surf away, but realized those things only evolve and heal if I’m willing to evolve the way I think, act, and conduct my life on land. I came to the realization I was still holding on to much of my past. A conversation with someone turned into an opportunity that grew into a valuable lesson learned: forgiveness. By forgiving, I was letting go 14 years that I have built to protect myself from abandonment and mistrust. If you were to forgive, what do you have to lose? A lot. A lot of bullshit that you don’t need eating away in the background of your life, relationships, and self. I felt the weight of the world lift off my shoulders and I became a woman on a mission.
4. Get involved. No matter where you plant your feet and rest your head, I guarantee you there’s a way to give back. For example, I met a rad person and surfer George Williams, found out they do beach cleanups every Tuesday through their non-profit organization called World Wide Psychos. George invited me to join them to do beach cleanups in the surrounding area. See, it’s that easy. Talk to people, google it, and do it. The more I looked into World Wide Psychos, the more I wanted to be involved in what they’re doing. Give back to the communities wherever you are in the world.
5. Do what you love. Doing what you love and doing it with all your heart is something worth doing. When you’re moving in the direction you know to be true to you, there’s isn’t a feeling like it. Through my joy and love of surfing, I want to share it in everything that I do. It has opened me up more than I could ever imagine. I hope everyone gets a chance to find that thing that catapults them into such happiness. Don’t be afraid to go after what you want. You won’t be happy until you are either getting what you deserve or working towards it. Raise the bar in your own life for what you want and everything will follow suit. Since following the life of full on surf, the universe has continued to support my path with a community, opportunity, and personal growth. Maybe results will not always show up in ways you anticipated, but it may surprise you. If you keep your goals in sight and never ever give up, you give the universe no other choice. That passion and love you have for the things in life that adds to your happiness… keep it, maintain it, and do anything to work for it. There’s no other way.
So to the surf communities from Southampton to Montauk and East Coast in general: thank you for taking me under your wing and showing me the beauty and fun of your home. Of course thanks to Surf Panda for making my time here memorable and letting me share my stoke through your company and represent the spirit of the brand and surf everywhere I go. Cheers to the Hamptons and hello to the city in the fall.
And one last thing, to all the people who asked me “Is there even surf in New York?!”
My answer to you is “Yes, there certainly fucking is.”
