Beat down

Flipping through a magazine at the dentist's office, I saw pictures of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck trying (and seemingly failing) to learn to surf in whatever vacation spot it was that they were in. Only, I'm not sure what it was they were trying to learn to surf. A ripple? It was a tiny, barely discernible swell in the water. Whatever it was, it wasn't a wave. A wave is a wall of water that comes at you at 15-40 mph. Waves are what we have here in NorCal.

Going out today, at first the waves looked all right and not too menacing. Trying to get outside, though, I found that the shorebreak was nothing to sneeze at. The waves weren't big, but they were breaking with a surprising amount of force.

Part of the problem was that I was just afraid (albeit without good reason today), and you can't surf scared. When you're scared, you'll pull back just as you should be pushing forward and miss the wave. Or you won't be paddling hard enough to get out before the wave crushes you. Or you'll stand in the worst possible position, letting the shorebreak hit you again and again, wondering if today is the day you're going to get concussed again.

In round 2053 of ocean vs. me, the ocean wins, yet again.