Summer Surf Instructor 2011

I'm officially a surf instructor! When I was thinking about this summer, I decided I need to do something opposite of what I have been doing for the past year and half. I wanted to do something in my field (Recreation Management and Youth Leadership) and something active and busy. And it would be a super bonus to involve my most recent passion: surfing. So, I've been checking out all the local surf schools/camps. Surf Academy (surfacademy.com) seemed pretty awesome and pretty legit. Here's some snippets of an email I received form them:

Aloha!

This email is to announce the interview for Surf Academy employment going forward for Summer 2011.

You're receiving this email because you have expressed interest in working for a kick butt company, teaching squeakers how to surf all summer long. Awwoooooo!!

The physical test consists of an ocean swim, a paddle, a soft sand run, and we want to see you surf. This test is timed.

We're looking for GREAT PEEPS (especially chicks. Chicks seem harder to come by in the surf world) to make our already radical program even BETTER. :-D

Aloha!

I went to the tryouts last Saturday and it was intense! And super fun. I really enjoyed the vibe.
The director is a 30 year old surfer girl, who is the daughter of the founder of the company (a 1970's women's surf champ).
I will be working with the kids surf camps:

Surf Academy’s kids surf camps are for ages 9 – 17. Give your Wahine (Hawaiian for Girl) or Kanaka (Hawaiian for Boy) the chance to learn ocean surf sports from an energetic and well-trained safety minded staff. Our instructors include champion surfers, lifeguards and moms. Your child will love the personalized attention that our low student-to-instructor ratio provides, and you will love the peace of mind knowing that safety is priority. Surf Academy Surf sports include surfing, ocean swimming, paddling, bodyboarding, body surfing, beach games, and ocean safety. Campers are provided with all the equipment required including, soft surfboards, wetsuits and colorful rash guards to identify them as part of our program.

Sounds like a job made in heaven just for me.
I'm really stoked! It's going to be Monday through Friday from 9am-2pm in Huntington Beach.
I'll keep you posted with how it goes!

Rain or shine, we love the beach.

Saturday was gloomy, but we hit the beach anyway! We are lucky to have such radical friends.

We (Shane was there, I promise) had a fun afternoon in Laguna with 4 other families. They have awesome beach wheel chairs- Katie had a blast. We explored the tide pools, caught crabs (get your mind out of the gutter), had a ladder ball tournament, ate some good grub, and the kids played in the water. It makes me excited for a summer on the sand!

Fred+Dorothy Forever!

Last Thursday, Dorothy's awesome husband Fred passed away. He was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease (a disease of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement) about a month before he died. We are all recovering from this huge blow. He was such a legend and a rock in Dorothy's life. He lived 88 very full years. He and Dorothy's 67th wedding anniversary is this month!Sarah, Fred's granddaughter, has posted a great blog if you'd like to know more about this great guy: http://ahulllotoffun.blogspot.com/2011/05/grandpa-fred.html

After his memorial at the local Catholic church, there was a luncheon at Dorothy's place. It was a really nice afternoon. They have such an awesome family and really great friends. They all came up to me and said, "YOU'RE Sally?! Ohhhhhhh! I've heard so much about you!" It's pretty funny. I really do feel like I'm part of the family now...at least a cousin or something :) They're all so good to me!

Below are Fred and Dorothy's 4 great kids. Nancy (Sarah's mom), Fred, Greg, and Hank (the guy who is my swim coach mentor and boss).

Thanks to Shane for taking some time off to show some love. And thanks to Sandy for always thinking I'm funny (AKA "creepy").

My girl and sister, Sarah.

Now that Dorothy doesn't have her trusty Fred around, she's going to need 24 hour care. That means I'm off to find a new adventure (a new job). Dorothy and I have become very great friends (don't make me cry!) and I'm going to really miss being with her every day! However, the time is right and we will continue to be buddies. Wish us both luck!! We'll need it.

Sunday Ship Wreck

Ahhhh, how I love Sunday walks with Shane.

This past Sunday afternoon we decided to check out an old shipwreck in beautiful Palo Verde. Palo Verde is located in between Long Beach and L.A.

It's full of huge coastal cliffs, amazing views, and million dollar mansions. We headed out on a trail we found online.

(Below, Shane is wincing while he gets his bum knee warmed up for the trek).

We found some pretty cool spots along the way.

After walking on these rocks for about an hour and 45 minutes

(it was way farther than I thought, my bad, Shane's knee), we came to the wreckage.

We found a spot to climb up to the road, without walking all the way back on the rocks.

It gave us the chance to check out the ocean view mansions...

...and the beautiful sunset.

If you're wondering if we walked all the way back to the car...we hitch hiked.

Sunday ship wreck success!