What Happens When the Surf Goes Flat?

I´m not fully recovered, but enough so I don´t even think about whether I can surf or not, right now there just aren´t waves. So what goes on around here when the surf goes flat? Barbeques, that´s what. Friday started like a normal day, I caught the last remnants of a swell and as I watched it disappear into the night, some friends decided to get a little barbeque going. So it was only three of us, and the chicken and potatoes that we grilled up were awesome. We had knocked a few back and we were calling it a night.

Or so I thought. I was a little juiced up at this point and walked home. No problem. I get back and a whole slew of people have shown up at the family house in the hours that I´ve been gone. They decide that force feeding the gringo rum and cokes is a good idea. As I´ve said before, I was already a little tipsy, so it was starting to get interesting. I also just happened to fall into a groove with my spanish. So me boozed and in a groove led me to being pretty chatty.

I have a hard time remembering quotes and exact words of conversations in spanish so with a few in me, I forgot most of what was spoken about. I know I didn´t do anything too stupid, but I definitely said a handful of dumb things (which included calling my host mom crazy...which she is). So basically Saturday involved them making fun of me the whole time.

No one should worry because I completely made up for it last night. It was a goodbye party for Peter, the other gringo, and they decided to have a barbeque...and karaoke. The food was incredible and everyone was feeling good so they decided to break out the karaoke. In spanish. It took me a while and involved some interesting segways, but I sang as well. Interesting singing karaoke in a second language to songs I haven´t heard of before. I´ll say I did really well for the second half of the songs because most of the songs here are really repetitive.

This went on for a couple hours and then they broke out the English karaoke. I definitely did my brother proud (Reyn, in case you are unaware is a hard core karaoker and has a great knack for picking the right songs for the right time). I was on fire, there was Journey and Bon Jovi and of course, the knockout punch, the Rolling Stones. Peter, Pato (Pati´s oldest son, who´s studying to be an english translator and is a metal head) and me were bringing it all down. I was a crushing performance for all others that aspire to Karaoke greatness. There was all the right parts for the performances. Overzealousness, dancing (I killed it in ¨billie jean¨), and of course improvisation (Peter is the improve guy, who goes simply by adding as many cursewords or garabatos as possible).

I don´t think many people can possible know the joys of singing ¨Under the Bridge¨(which I soloed, and of course, kicked ass) as the sun comes up. It was a good night. The only possible way that this can be topped is if Reyn, Scott and I really turn it up a notch and kill it in Fiji. I realize that it can be done, but for us professionals, we really have to put long dedicated hours (and beards Peter had a full beard, Pato has this chinstrap to fu manchu facial hair thing going on and my beard is sensational at this point, I mean the length of my neck beard along is making things interesting) to get the show just right. It´s a tough life, but somebody´s got to do it, might as well be me.