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Honor Is

When growing up in Goleta, one of my best friends lived a block away. Chris Maxwell’s Father was Joseph Maxwell, who worked as a Real Estate agent and Broker. Joe Maxwell was a pilot during the war. Flew a bomber. In taking enemy fire on a bombing run, the plane was badly damaged and caught fire. Joe waited as long as he could, so his crew would not be behind enemy lines, and then ordered them to bail out. With the windscreen having been shot out, and crew now having bailed, Joe had considered the options, and decided to try

The Thomas Fire

Sometime around Nov 28th I began seeing forecast estimates of a high velocity wind event for Central and So Cal. Taking a cursory look at the Unified Forecast Analysis did not particularly indicate that this would occur. That telltale high pressure which would first be seen just above Washington or over E Oregon was not on the weather map. I recall thinking: “that’s odd”. But I had been watching an old familiar pattern develop over the Western US, that of a ridge of high pressure. I knew that this meant wind and fire risk. We have massive pepper trees behind

Authentic Activism

The text a few lines below is from a conversation in one of the groups I am in, which is populated by some highly educated people who I have seen to possess fairly valiant hearts. Each wants to contribute to making our planet healthier, and Humanity happier. Our conversations frequently examine activism. This most recent one had me thinking about all the different voices in the world using Causes to drive Companies, rather than Companies to drive change within Culture. Healthy change will always come down to an embrace of Authenticity and Honesty. Here is my response in our conversation

Art and the Peaceful Warrior

This week I wound up shooting a motion picture project for my son’s martial arts company gym Puu Muay Thai here in Ventura. My wife Donna and I, also had a visit from our close friend, internationally acclaimed fine artist Edem Elesh and his 15 year old son Griffen, who I had not seen in over a decade when he was a teensy little guy playing with Donna’s hair as we visited Edem in his Hollywood digs. Simultaneously, my colleague and friend Robb Havassy, let the world know that Surf Story Vol 2 was headed to print after nearly 6

Studying Life

My education in Art began really early on in life, at crayon and fingerpaint age. My Father had taken up oil painting in what I believe may have been therapy, to alleviate pressure created by his work in Aerospace and Defense. Helping architect weapons that can end Humanity takes it’s toll on some people. I had seen the affect on my own Father. So Art made sense for him. But at the same time, my uncle Joe would come and visit from Hawaii. Joe was a successful and talented painter who also taught Art at UH. He would tutor my

World Oceans Day

Just in the door from a wonderful watery trip to Costa Rica, I found myself in a meeting at City Hall here in Ventura yesterday, with City Engineers, a smart Engineering firm from SF, reps from the California Coastal Commission, Army Corps of Engineers and some members of the Surf Community who volunteered to delve into a solution for an ongoing erosion problem at our town’s main point break, Surfers Point. As I looked around the room, it hit me how significant our people can be. We bring to the table an informed love for the watery world we live

Bali: dispatch 3

It is a curious experience, when you walk down a beach, and have a look around at your surroundings recognizing that it is coming up on the time to leave. The thought dawns: will I be in this place again? It is not an entirely comfortable feeling, this one. Especially when one connects to the place and it’s people. I doubt there is a place on this blue marble where I have explored, that has not left it’s mark on me or left a portion of it’s psychic presence upon my self. This after all, is what life is about:

Focus

I have noticed a lot of confusion amongst my friends, who really are quite a diverse lot (and some not so simple to peg themselves, really). What confuses some of them? Me, apparently. There are things which I have little patience for, as I view some issues and how society approaches them via political process, as being rather childish by design. As I have matured, I determined to put aside childish things as well as inconvenient things, like following politicians or religious leaders who are in point of fact, just doing their jobs. (It is important to know just what

Ethics Slice

There is much to be said regarding the power held in the art of a creative. The reason for this lies in the modus of all of the Arts: to effect the climate of the human heart and soul. Once again, a Facebook post by a friend illustrated the outrage that runs close to the surface in American Culture, at a Govt which seems to have run amok. They had been discussing the Clinton family criminal record and apparent lack of prosecutorial action to rein in what many see as an ongoing insult to the Nation. Below is what I

Echo Terminus: Bali

This place is odd, in that as we begin get ready to leave for the US, the island of Bali ramps up it’s serenade and little glimpses of hidden treasure sparkle from behind shadow realities. Just what it does. When that happens, this is what it means. Bali has you. You don’t have it. Gusti made it by today and we got caught up on all the “guy things” he and I typically discuss. Then he told me about his Mother’s passing, in intimate detail, and we both teared up. Some of the scenes from the burial ceremony day are

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