Mission control... we have contact

Sunday bright and early – under the complete and total haze of exhaustion – Brian and I went surfing at Riviera in San Clemente. The waves basically looked like Pipeline had come to San Clemente. They were slightly overhead and guys were dropping into gnarly looking close-out barrels. It was one of those epic California surfing days you only see in the magazines. And this day we will actually see in the magazines because there were photographers and filmmakers catching the action from the beach. I had a bunch of great waves. I didn’t die, or split by butt in half this time. All systems still operational.

The nice surprise was the arrival of the dolphins. I had caught a wave and was paddling back out when I saw Brian start to take off on a wave. When the wave walled up there were four dolphins surfing the wave right under and behind Brian! When I finally made it to the lineup, the dolphins were swimming all around us, within two or three feet of us, splashing us with their tails and generally frolicking about. It was pretty special.

They were either:
- stoked to see the waves get so good and enjoying the surf just as we were.
- enjoying a little Sunday breakfast on the fish swimming underneath us.
- or protecting us from the 14 foot great white sharks that are known to live in San Clemente.

That’s a nice thought isn’t it.

Before Saturday night I actually thought we were a little crazy for seeing Dave Matthews Band two nights in a row. But Saturday was so good, both Gwen and I could not wait to see them again on Sunday. And I’m really glad we did. Sunday’s performance was fantastic. Better than Saturday… and Saturday was basically perfect in my book. But Sunday was really rocking.

Here’s the set list:
Pantala Naga Pampa (segue into)
Rapunzel
What Would You Say
One Sweet World
When The World Ends
Stand Up
Lie In Our Graves
American Baby Intro
Dream Girl
Warehouse (with Leon Mobley)
Steady As We Go
Hunger For The Great Light
Ants Marching
Stolen Away On 55th & 3rd
You Might Die Trying
Tripping Billies
All Along The Watchtower (with Leon Mobley and Robert Randolph)
__________________

Old Dirt Hill
What You Are

The only downer was the guy sitting in front of us.

Everyone knows that if you go to a rock concert, it’s to be expected that some person sitting close to you will smoke the weed. And both nights, true to form, as soon as the lights went out the air was filled with the purple haze. But Sunday, the guy in front of us lit up a joint and smoked it as soon as the lights went out. He then proceeded to roll and smoke a joint at least ten more times. This is not an exaggeration. He would smoke one like a cigarette, then sit down, and as quickly as he could, roll another one and light up again, and again, and again, and again. Gwen and I were both nauseous from the fumes by the end of the concert. Add that to my list of reasons why I don’t smoke pot.

Big events on the horizon. I dropped Gwen off at the airport this morning at 5:45am.

I’m not tired… I swear.