Surfers Paradise shining with sunlight amongst a gloomy moment of an overall boiling week.

Alex and the boys checking boulders in one of our missions down south

Waking up hungover and heading to the ocean in towards the rare sight of shipwrecks (Byron) looking uninteresting

Now, this mobile phone camera has been doing my head in.. that last shot is of a xmas ball on my shops ceiling. It's meant to show how clusttered the stock is and how full on the next weeks are shaping up to be. I shouldn't expect a communication device thiner than a butterfly fillet to have the sophistication to capture all that info into an image lol

 

 

 

 

That was huge! Rudi and Ben came up with this schoolies 09 T-shirt idea and I sponsored it with Beach Bum. They sold 3,000 of the bloody things, 90% to chicks! What a massive promo, I was stoked with havin my logo on the tees ay. We also did a draw for a bikini and got a heap of subscriptions yeeow
Business apart, damn, schoolies was fun this year ay! Now that Im an old fart I kinda kick back and crack up at some of the stuff the grommies get up to, they're fucken wild hehe
The boys n I had a ball down in byron one of those nights with the odd youngsters n the European travellers that make that town as loose as cicciolinas cnt. Spewin I didnt have a small camera with me.. been missin out on a few gem partyin clicks although it aint my thing anyway.

 

 

 

 

Wow I really need to buy a small camera.. been takin fuck all photos lately, pretty much only of "work" stuff.

This is Dani being photographed by Brent Matthews. She won the model comp we put together on myspace and earned a shoot and a bikini.
Below is Safari Blue. My mate's girl, Sarah, opened it a couple of weeks ago. It's a shop specialized in Brazilian bikinis! to make it even better she's selling my gear and the store is just around the corner from mine, behind mcdonalds! awesome stuff.

 

 

My new pad in Coolie, before and after hahaha taking the furniture upstairs wasn't fun.. it really does pay off when it's finished though.

 

The Beautiful Girls concert in Neverland about a month ago or longer.. not too full on, pretty much only chicks, free and just around the corner. They should come to Coolangatta more often.

Indo 09!!!

 

 

 

 

Finally published!!!!! no stories.. hehe ok, I'll make it real short. Andy n I spent 25 days battling against our booze cravings and tryin to catch a few amongst the biggest crowds I've ever seen in Bali. We had a lot of fun in the process.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got pretty tight with the reef this year.. we were best mates! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This lil camera is that much fun! spewing it makes you delete its memory by accident when ur a rookie hehe guess I won't do it again after learning my lesson in such bitter way.. That happens to nearly everyone that tries to use it for the first time though. Still, I feel that this trip was kinda jinxed image wise.. I mustve fucked up somehow last year hehe

Rip Curl Cup, Padang Padang

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sickest comp ever, no shit. O'brien is a fucken freak.

 

 

 

 

Padang Padang, a tidy swell just b4 goin back to the real world..

 

 

 

 

Time up, had to leave Brazil just when I was starting to have fun. Had the best time, but couldn't miss out on Indo. Plus, I'm on a mission to get the hot aussie girls in my bikinis.. and If Im not back and set by September it'll be pretty hard.

Packing up for Indo now... this bottom shot is of me at Andy's garage, where I'm crashing for the 10 days Im spending here in Aus b4 heading off again. This little camera is sick, dodgy as, but heaps fun.

 

 

 

 

That's gotta be the highlight of the trip: Renata's shoot for Beach Bum's summer 09/10 collection.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In fact, these shots were taken by Renata, the nicest Braza chick ever! I was so lucky to meet her, we swapped a surfin sesh shot by her for a bikini shoot shot by me. it's a win win win win win win win situation! With the legendary Lepo in the bottom photo.

 

 

 

 

Tiago "Jon Jon" Arraes was on fucken fire. Got better photos of him than of the CT cunts in the previous week. He's tryin to hook me up to sell them to his sponsor, would b nice.

In the bottom, a beautiful lookin wipe out by curumin

 

 

 

 

Back in Arpoador RJ.. in my last week in Brazil we had the funnest day of my stay. Jon Jon and Guilherminho lovin it

 

 

 

 

Something else about that comp.. it was the ultimate party trip. Caio, manao and I stayed at a tidy little pad in a farm on the beachfront thanks to my stepdad. He rocks. The place is unreal.. and the clubs were on fire with the CT in town. I don't usually take clubbing shots though.. this sunrise looks a lot better to me.

 

 

 

 

I hopped on a plane once again.. off to the south to watch the CT and have some more of that magic.

This was by far the best comp ever. no shit. I'm fucken obsessed with Slater, the dude has been my idol since day 1 and I always go for him. The outcome of kelly winning over Adriano was pretty much custom made for me. The conditions might not have been great, but it was fair, 8-10 tricks lefthanders for everyone, like a skatepark. The funny thing is that Slater was kinda hiding in the bushes at first, but gettin better in each heat till he was impossible right at the end. I bet his wizard sleeve is superfun to surf, but he's gotta get his shit together and stick to normal boards if he wants to take this year. No Kelly, they won't give you extra points for shaping your own boards, save it for when u retire and win this thing for the 10th time already! 

 

 

 

Primata's bday, old school pimps n whores party. couldnt be fucked dressin up, but that was fun!

 

 

 

 

Rocinha, the world's biggest favela. Not far from mine.. don't think it's that hectic though.. the beach is just down the road and it's so peaceful. Hollow beauty in Diabo. Chilling with my cuz, hehehe coolest kid around, not a nerd like I was at his age lol

At one stage.. I fully got used to it. My body and soul fully readapted to that reality. I was loving it. I suppose It's easy when you don't have to work... But the consistency and lack of crowd in the surf, the presence of so many tight mates and the ever sweet weather were quite pleasant. That shot is my tribute to Alex hehe the Braza cow. She had a great time in the bush as well.. awesome chick mate that one.

I didn't go to Brazil to fuck around. In fact, I wasn't even formally invited. The original reason was to actually design Beach Bum's new range. I planned it all pretty well.. Went out a lot until I met the right person to team up with. This Camuri dude is awesome, he's passionate about bikinis too. We went away for about 4 days in this factory and they treated us like we owned the joint. It was fun to determine how much coverage the aussie bums will get next summer hehe I gave it a lil more than what my previous swimmers offered.. The material, the equipment and the staff was deadset premium. There's no point in giving details.. go to beachbumbrazil.com for more if u wanna check it out, but it won't be up till september 09.

 

My mum. Stunning as usual, or maybe a little more. This was a bit of a complicated year.. things were changing.. I was glad to be there and be able to try and help with what I could. Now it all went back to the same place.. but in a much better context. Adults....... hahaha guess I should be calling myself that by now.. but my mum still looks so young!

 

 

 

 

We got a few at Lagoinha do Leste (longest track ever), Mole, etc. The waves were pretty sweet, and the nightlife was insane cause we had a whole fucken mansion filled with Caipirinha and fun travellers

 

 

 

 

I bumped into Caio in Rio and he convinced me to come back to Floripa with him. What a great fucken move, the neighbours down south have it pretty bloody good. I was blown away. The bloke has turned the house he grew up in into a hostel. Genious. I goes off, there were 25 Euro chicks and us during the week I spent there. Plus he's making heaps of money. 

Floripa is all time! everything about it rocks. heaps fucken cold but who cares.. loved it.

 

 

 

 

Good old Omar hehe mad cunt. Apart from Ian, who was in Tahiti for ages, he was the only total beach bum around. Mid week sessions like this made this trip worthwhile.

A Beautifully typical offshore winter day.. I think it was the first of June.. Glassy slabs, pretty much no one out and a bushfire

The vibe was pretty mellow this year in my hometown.. Before I started getting some work done I was nearly as relaxed as that sand neptune surrounded by his maids In Copacabana. thats the life, he says

There was a stupidly big swell hitting it right outta front of my place, in Leblon, in my first week in Brazil. That was all time! my biggest (and only) board was a 5'11, so I swapped a pair of shoes for a 6'2 with Ian and paddled out. I snapped it in my third wave.. 5 of my mates broke their boards too, but the trophy goes to Pedro, who tackled this bomb up here. It would be even better if the mofo wasn't still claiming it 2 months later haha

Rio was unbeliavably uncrowded this year. check ou these jewels in Leblon, Arpoador and Ipanema respectively with barely anyone out

Late arvo in that first day in arpex. Things seem to be just like I left them

 

Gettin on it in my first nite. 

And back to Brazil again

 

Once back in the country, I was straight out at good old Arpex with Iao. as the tradition demands. Not my favourite wave really, but still my homebreak, and it's awesome to catch up with the crew

 

Big butts out and hollow lefts close to the shore. Gotta love Sao Conrado

 

I fully shaved my hair by accident! Thanx niccy n Ross! haha oh well, history teaches us that being bald is more efficient anyway 

Eroded Gold Coast beaches, it's hectic atm. just after I left there was the biggest storm ever, I wonder what it looks like now in blackrock if it was already like this just before I left.

Pretty good reception in Brazil this year.. been here for a week and got a few good small fun days, caught up with most of my mates and had heaps of my beloved Caipirinha!

One of the styles for the new range has already been defined, I'm getting help from a female designer who's been around forever.

My mum is movin next door in a few days.. that means I am too hehe

Other than that its all good. still heaps hot and some good waves about

 

 

 

 

Had quite a mild last 3 weeks b4 taking off to Brazil.. Sydney has got the best of the southerly trend trend present for most of the month of May. I was left with little ones at the points, fun sessions at D-bah and some drinking to do prior to my departure.

But overall I was a bit of a "good boy" for a change haha pretty steady really.

I left my shit packed up at Andy's and organized with the surfshop people to work there again when I get back from Indo. Still not over it haha

But the reason for me to be going to Brazil is to put together Beach Bum's new range, so hopefully stuff will work out pretty good when I get back to Aus and I won't have to work anymore in a near future.

The photos are just a reminiscence of the April swells.. it was on some Monday late arvo.. fuckn Epic

This sunny/rainy Tallow shot is just of a surfless trip to byron in my last week.. pretty symbolic lol

 

 

 

 

Here's one more reason to luv autumn: The aftersunset looks like that virtually everyday in the whole country during April and May. These pics are of Snapper on Wednesday. 

Off again soon

 

Haha haven't got much material to post from lately.. but wanted to write something.. so I decided to use this shot from Angourie.. there's fuck all in it really.. no waves, no people.. just me going back out after losing my board cause my leggie snapped. plus the shot is blurry! But who cares.. 

So I'm leaving in 3 weeks to do a very similar trip to what I did last year.. Brazl first then Bali, ditching the Australian winter. The difference is that this time I'm going for a reason.. will be designing the new summer 09 range for Beach Bum! good excuse ay hehe

Will be great to see my mum too, we are in new circumstances now.

Bali, as boring as it sounds, will be hopefully the same as usual! that place is so awesome! except cause I'll try not to go to g-land this year.. i've been there too many times! gotta go check out sumbawa, lombok etc. might take a flight to nias too, but not till later on this year.

Life here has been almost funny of so easy.. working in this surfshop is unbelievably cruisy. It's hard to think we are in the midst of a world crisis when I'm here gettin $20 an hour to chill out. I was lucky enough to find an industry where my natural behaviour pattern originates success. I've been reading about sales n merchandising on the web in my spare time at the shop.. apparently the customers are more prompt to buy if they sense that you're laid back, just cruising around in the shop haha. that kinda goes against the company policy here, but they are happy with the results in terms of figures, so it's ok for me to be me lol

Plus Ive been gettin a fair bit of free gear from a brand called Lizzard, they're awesome! we have an account that fills up as we sell their products, it's all time! it feels like a sponsorship, but instead of gettin results in comps all I gotta do is sell their gear.

The waves have been unreal too, some epic days lately. After that superlong swell it didnt really die off, it was still pumping till 2 days ago.

This Autumn has been specially good, slightly less cold than the past year and with a lot more swell! the banks aren't as good as usual for this time of the year, but the quality of swell and wind directions have been making up for it.

I'm having so much fun that I've been slack towards Beach Bum.. not doin much promo lately or anything. I want the new range to be ready before I do anythng else for it.

The bikinis will be at the shops in Pac Fair, Kingy, Coolangatta and Burleigh while Im gone anyway.. Looks like the long desired residual income has finally been built. 

But I'm saving my best business tricks for when I come back in September.

April 09, best month ever?

Pics: Decent hack captured by Tchelao. In that shot it looks like there's only Tiago and I out there, as he was the only paddler;
Tiago's shot on Coastalwatch! Yeeeeow
Hanging at the tent in Angourie
Jumping off.. view from the tent, from the spot and of the tent from the spot hahahaah gotta luv overcast uncrowded warm righthander days ay!

The Weekend after that one was still going off. After getting a few around the Coolie area on Saturday, we were drinking before going for a lap at the pub. Before we could even get changed, something better came up: let’s go to Angourie! Fuck yeah, good old Tiago was still sober and drove us down. We had 2 tents but decided to spend the night napping in the car cause there was an annoying rain about. To seal the deal, a morning sickness onshore kept us in the car snoozing for another 3 hours before it straightened. Tchelao went for a wave at 6am anyway. That was great, cause he ended up taking some shots of us from 9 to 10. Angourie is a seriously delicious fucken wave. Its bowly shape resembling of sunset invites one to smash it. I was surfing real bad at the start, used to the speedy, ever forward walls of the Superbanks.. it took me about 10 waves to readapt to this unique wave. Its wall is always marching towards you.. Although it’s a right hander, it’s gotta be surfed as if you were going left. At some stage I thought Tchelao was done photographing and paddled to the first section. Got a few for myself there.. usually only bodyboarders go for that section.. but I seem to agree a lot with them lids in taste for waves. I ate shit a thousand times, but nothing is more fun in surfing for me than sucky right handers on a dry reef, even when it works me.
We had the best time hanging in our little tent set on the rocks and surfing those waves 3 hours south from home. One of Tiago’s photos even made Coastalwatch! That was pretty sick. I know that this is the time of the year I’m supposed to be working.. but fuck it’s always fun anyway!
There are plans to bail again.. it’s no secret, everybody knows it already.. Im off to Brazil for business in late May till late July.. then off to Indo for Hols.. not too original I know.. but what else can I do? Those 2 places and Australia are everything to me! hehe

After a busy weekend ODing on surfing, the bomb was upon us. Monday was by far the best day I’ve ever seen in Kirra. 8 feet glassy and barreling off its tits. Most people being towed… the best of the local crew were there charging it.. I was stuck at fucken work.. knowing how good it was.. They now gave me the keys to the shop.. Twice a week I go there on my own, open it, do a 9 to 5ver, count the money and go home.. that means I can’t surf in these 2 days.. oh well.. The next day was still epic, the wind shifted to straight offshore and the beaches were bullshit. I’ve never thought I would see Surfers Paradise copping 8 footers that clean. There was nothing out of place, massive kegs were on offer, but the paddle out was pretty crazy. It looked a lot like Puerto Escondido, in Mexico. If there was any day I would point out as the most impressive and best looking this would probably be it, spewing I didn’t have my camera. I got my mate’s 7’1 and went outta front of my old place in Surfers. That was the biggest surf in a few years for me.. but nothing too exciting to say about it really. I was stoked for catching a few but nothing really outstanding happened.
Wednesday was probably my best performance.. Went out in Greenmount with Ross and ended up in Kirra in no time.. Got one special keg that was worth the whole swell to me.. the one I was waiting for. I was heaps stoked, it made me fantasize what Kirra woulda been like back in the day.
Pics: not very inviting low tide Kirra on one of the 12 straight days of big swell;
In the same day, bloke showing how it’s done in between sets;
Goofy footer in immaculate position down the line in Kirra;
Coolie Hotel.. After the Ct I spent a whole month away from it. The waves were way too good to be with a hangover lol

I don’t remember exactly when it started.. but from sometime early in April it started pumping and never stopped! This was probably the best year on the goldie I’ve ever witnessed. There was this session in Burleigh on Friday morning.. fuck that was all time! I went out through tally around 8am and caught this sick wave from way before the crowds all the way down the line.. Quite sizey too, there wasn’t a lot I would change about that day. Coastalwatch named it Fantasy Friday! They went ballistic with the number of epic days we had in Southeast QLD and northern NSW in April. And so did I! it’s like having 6 xmas and 12 nye in 3 weeks! You kinda don’t expect it, it gets hard to deal with it cause it’s so good you just have to make the most of it even if it’ll kill ya!
Allegedly there was a cyclone somewhere combined with a low or something. I don’t know, but that was as good as it gets for our pointbreaks.
Pics: Fantasy Friday in Burleigh

Pic: If you’ve been here this is pretty self explanatory.. a sequence of random photos taken between a surf in Greenmount and a walk home all the way into the shower! Why? Dunno.. I musta been bored lol

Pics: One of the million Barbecues at ours;
Tiago, all time bloke..;
Greenmount pos-CT;
Misty’s Globe van, sick!

Behind the scenes of the CT there was a hellavalot of fun. Coolie hotel was firing every night with this many people in town. The sales went really well too, I even put a stand outta front of mine to sell a few extra bikinis while everyone was here! The pro show was pretty sick, except cause there were that many fights.. mostly between kids though. The funnest part was prob the attempt of jumping the fence haha
We were drinking every day for 2 weeks.. barbecues every second day.. not that much working.. fuck that was cruisy, although I was psyched about using the opportunity for Beach Bum. Stickers were everywhere, people seem to dig them. The trend is still going.. from bartender’s bums (thanx Cara!) to poles, to cars, it’s just spreading heaps! Cards were given to heaps of chicks too. Everyone has to know about the firm lol
Pics: A card in it’s final destination: some girl’s purse, if it had a face it would be smiling in triumph lol;
Negao and I being city cunts with the bikini stand outta front hehe guess u gotta do what u gotta do, don’t really care if it looks weird hehe; Deadly encounter at Coolie hotel! Batman and the Joker hahaha check out his t-shirt;
Off my face at the Sands!

Overall the Comp was all time. Using up from the first to the last possible day and in a number of conditions, it put every surfer to test.
From round three it was obvious that whoever made it in the semi finals between Parko and Mick would take the event. They both were in a whole different level to everyone else at their home spot.
It turned out that it picked up and got stormy so the arena was taken to none less than Kirra for the last day!
In 6 to 8 feet grinders they had the best heat I've ever witnessed. Spewing it was raining bucked and I couldn't take any photos. But there was specialized media for that anyway, It's worth checking out the latest Tracks issue to see Parko's insane kegs.
After exchanging massive scores Joel claimed it with a nearly perfect 19.93.
Making Brazil look great, Adriano made his first final ever, he was on fire all through it and beat heaps of rippers, only being stopped in the final by Joel Parkinson. It takes local knowledge to negotiate those stormy conditions.
That was the best Quicky pro ever, hands down.
Pics: Sand being pumped just off frogs;
Joel in Round 3;
Mick in Round 3;
Adriano about to go out in Kirra for his semi against Taj

I was spewin when Kelly lost.. kinda worried about him getting dismotivated and leaving the tour.. things will be shit when he goes.. but it seems like he copped it sweet. Hopefully he'll shred it in Bells and get back on the game.
Pics: Julian Wilson taking out kelly.. bastard.. lol guess he was just doing his job hehe
Kelly Ripping at D-bah
Gossman at the trials final
Slater on the wizard sleeve risking it all in an alley oop against Julian

Hahaha I bet no one really took me seriously when I said “game over”. It’s more like it all has just begun!
Putting a company together and having fun with my mates meanwhile is the set up I’ve been wishing for all my life! Most postings are pretty boring to read when there are no major issues in life.. That’s probably the case of this one.. Life’s way too easy right now.
The pro tour came once again turning this joint into Zoolangatta by bringing tons of ripping mofos and hot bitches thirsty for their piece of fame. By now, I’ve understood where I stand and just sat back enjoying the show.. Instead of battling for waves against the 45 hungriest surfers in the world plus 300 aspirants, I took the opportunity to do a fair bit of promo work on the beach. The Brazilian girls parading in their almost illegal bikinis were an advertising in itself of how good those little pieces of garment can do to a female body.
The comp lasted as long as it possibly could, it used up the whole allowance of time, which bought me time to make the most of it in every ways. I actually don’t mind when Coolie goes busy, it makes me feel home hehe
Ross has moved in! the lucky bastard got here just in time for the CT. The landlord isn’t quite that fond of him though hehehehe don’t know why.. the bloke has read over 10 thick as books since’s he’s been here! That’s more that a book a week! Quiet as.. just a little wild when drunk though haha
Pics from top to bottom: The Rainbow Bay crew havin a Barbie! Our place is pretty sick, awesome vibe!; Froggie’s looking good in a shitty day; Our lil turf at the comp; random hot ass

Game Over?

And there they r!!
Pics: Beach Bum Swimwear at James Street, in Burleigh heads. Right next to Rip Curl and Roxy.. it’s actually a bit more expensive than them, but it’s been doing great! That glamour up in the second pic is Krystal, she modeled my swimmers for Glen Bowden a little while ago.
After a few months of work I’m proud to say that we got our kinis in Burleigh Heads, Coolangatta and Kingscliff!! If you know me it’s not hard to picture how stoked I am. It all started so randomly, but I decided to make it happen and it did!
There’s heaps of people I should thank.. Definitely Alex Rose for helping me get a job in that surfshop and later helping me (pretty much doing all the work for that matter) to get the swimmers in stores, on top of being my first model and HB.
Tiago Schardong for the advices and Designs, specially that logo, it’s all time, got heaps of stickers now, been paining the town pink lol
Wayan Wiednya for sharing this ambitious personality that drives us to success, he’s even got the tattoo I was gonna get! and obviously for the designs and Syn-tec supplements as well hehe
Glen Bowden for the great shoot a couple of weeks ago and contacts generated from it
Ross for being a loose c*nt and partner in crime from the very start when we walked up and down in surfers doing promo work for the firm
My home boys for supporting it no matter what: Andy, Tchelao, Edu, Gilson, Todd, Sequela, Joey, Kyle, Mundango, Negao yeeeeeoW!
Stef, Sarah Crawford, Tasha Zahara, Kelly, Chelle, Simmy, Jessy, Dani, Trudy, Alice, Mish, Kate, Karalee, Dia, Raina and Meela. Thanx for loving Brazilian bikinis and encouraging the business! I wouldn’t have gone ahead without your kind words, positive feedback n ever uplifting attitude!
Carmen for being so freakin hot and encouraging importation!
Ebany Meisje for being the face (and ass) of Beach Bum and sexiest chick alive, as well as for having taken me seriously before I even “existed”
Printers, accountants, embroiderers, marketers, lawyers, EFTPOS dude.. u’ve all been great so far hehe
Tim for opening the doors for me at Surf Xcess, and the chicks for selling the swimmers there!
And obviously, my Mum and Stepfather. They believe it all so much it’s unreal! And, of course, they helped me crucially in the financial field at this first stage of Beach Bum. Someone had to do it, I'm so happy you did! Thanks heaps, I’ll keep it evolving and it all will work out sweet!
Ok, this may appear a lil too much.. but this feeling of accomplishment isn’t generated only from getting into stores and having the business growing..
What I’m way more pleased to announce is that I’ve finally got my bloody permanent visa in Australia!!!
That happened on the 6th of feb.. now if u look way back on this blogger, around mid 05.. there it is.. the very day I decided I would go for it.. I took on the challenge of putting up with chefs, the grumpiest bastards on the planet, and did something I hate for a living for over 2 years in order to achieve that goal. Definitely the biggest thing I’ve ever done.. I’m a fart away from dual citizenship now. There’s nothing in particular I need to do to get it except for not dying. It’ll be in hand around the time for the next Australia day, then I’ll finally be able to get on the doll!! Jokes.
Now I can express how much I really hated being a chef.. hahahaha all the nightmares I had.. cutting my fingers, burning my arms.. listening to bullshit from clueless idiots who thought they were teaching me something about life.. Their power trip was that extreme at times when they would let out all swear words mixed with that coffee and cigarette breath you could see in their dull eyes how much they were sure to be lecturing you on how to live ur life.
I held on tight. Underrated, unfit for the task, often abused, always on time but never really there.. I got through all the many requirements. The chances of this not working out were that much bigger than of it going ok..
If I missed one more day of class and had my attendance drop from 80%, or got sacked 1 month earlier than I did in my last job at Saltbar, or screwed up any given subject of my English test and scored less than 7/9, or contracted HIV from some whore and never had a clean medical cert, or got arrested for a fair or unfair reason, or got sick and missed out on an exam or something essential or, the most likely fuck up possibility, if I simply couldn’t take the crap from the chefs anymore and walked out it all would’ve bluntly gone down the drain.
Luckily I made it.. I don’t mean to make it look like “game over” for this blogger with credits and shit, but I can sincerely affirm that a massive battle of my life has come to an end.
What comes next? The answer seems to be Beach Bum Swimwear.
I could be doing anything anywhere right now, if I’m living here in Coolangatta with my best mates and supplying Brazilian bikinis to the Goldcoast it’s because that’s what I wanna be doing right now.
Knowing I’m not doing something so I can do something (eg: going to uni so I can get a good job; or being a chef so I can be a permanent resident in aus) makes me happy in itself.. It’s great to have goals and I do have a heap of’em, but living the dream daily is the only way you’ll ever touch realization.
Ooops did I sound like a chef just then? hahahaha

The paddle out, although short, wasn't that fun to negotiate at times.. Being dragged to Greenmount b4 making it wasn't rare.
Pics: Crew struggling behind the snapper shelf; An ugly wave on a cute bum; Kyle n Joey rocking up; finding their way out

Check out that guy's head on Photo 2! He's tryin to flirt with the chick that's surfing past him!! hahahaha that's what happens when u don't catch a wave for too long.. gotta keep yourself busy and productive somehow!
2 nice set waves n an interesting wipeout in the other shots.

Bipeds interacting in Zoolangatta

Water sculptures.. that’s how wicked Froggies can look in a good Snapper day. Best of all is the ausence of bipeds (aka humans) in the pictures..
Luvin this new camera.

Kirra on the 14th of this month was the best sesh this year so far for my liking, but it was overcast and too good to shoot. After a quiet v-day I woke up feeling pretty well on Sunday and took these shots at Snapper b4 going 4 a surf down in South Fingal. The crowds were just stupid.. guess I had more fun taking photos than struggling to catch a wave that Sunday at Snapper.
My good old mate Garuti arrived at 3pm on that day, he's crashing here for a week b4 heading to Sydney.
Me Kyle and Joey got a few at Fingal. We all had a bbq in the arvo, fucken hilarious. After getting interrupted by the rain we took it back indoors. Was all good except cause we r all boys, luv blue meat, belching and alcohol. All time, but the ladies prob wouldn't quite agree haha
Jessy came over and got 5 pairs of swimmers in the arvo btw.. she loved them! The business is rocking.. again, will get back to it later..
Pics: How frustating is that.. sick waves and a million dudes on them.. a joke huey put on us.. like an old pirate I have it but find it hard to enjoy at times..

There were great banks in D-bah towards mid February.. Here's some action from a fun Sunday a coupla weeks ago

That time of the year has arrived.. The water is warm as piss, there's sick waves everyday.. I'm located back at my favourite joint (coolie), nothing can go wrong.
Although I have the easiest job on earth this makes me wish I was on the doll.. just cruising around miking every bit of swell there is.
But I got a job at a surf shop 4 a reason... I'll get back to that later.
Pics:A few good ones down at greenmount in the first swell of february. The right hander up the top is closer than u imagine. And yeah, we got Mick shredding another poor superbanks wave down the bottom.

 

 

 

 

I moved back to Coolangatta.. things r always way better down here.
so much happened since then, that was a massive upgrade in lifestyle!
Pics: Dust at snapper; one more moon shot n our amphibious mate

 

 

 

 

Australia day was fun.. Joey n I went down to Kirra for that paddle out thing. about 1000 of us got out there and tried to for an australian map shape haha bythe time we got there no one really knew what was happening. after a fair bit of struggle we decided to do a circle, throw some water to the air and paddle back lol
Good fun though, awesome day, except cause I got sunstroke hardcore.
Pics: Aboriginals playin in the cerimony b4 paddling; Joey n I; Never thought I would see that many people going out at the same time in a day that flat.. scary view, but that was just us going out to do the aussie map haha

 

Went to Big day out on my own.
Was fucken awesome.
This is the only photo.
nothing else to say

 

 

 

And yet another trip to Byron. Tiago, Renata, Andy and I were there in early january.
the waves we got to surf at tallows on Sunday morning were way better than the night out at Cheeky monkey we had a few hours before then.
I was seriously fucken epic, dnever seen the place like that. the number of yeeeeows per hours also reached the highest rate I've ever observed in Australia. Waking up in that tent right in front of it was all time. There are no photos. We got out at first light.. it was gray and glassy.. I broke my legrope in my 3rd wave, but stayed out for another 2 hours. A fair bit of swimming, but even on a 5'8 fish on those 4-5 footers it was just too good to miss.
Wategos was fun later on as well.
Pics: Andy being a funny cun; chilling at the lighthouse with Tiago

And yet another trip to Byron. Tiago, Renata, Andy and I were there in early january.
the waves we got to surf at tallows on Sunday morning were way better than the night out at Cheeky monkey we had a few hours before then.
I was seriously fucken epic, dnever seen the place like that. the number of yeeeeows per hours also reached the highest rate I've ever observed in Australia. Waking up in that tent right in front of it was all time. There are no photos. We got out at first light.. it was gray and glassy.. I broke my legrope in my 3rd wave, but stayed out for another 2 hours. A fair bit of swimming, but even on a 5'8 fish on those 4-5 footers it was just too good to miss.
Wategos was fun later on as well.
Pics: Andy being a funny cun; chilling at the lighthouse with Tiago

 

 

 

 

After quite a few photoshoots I came across this gem down at Wategos, Byron bay. She didn't even say anything.. rather than that the bird used all her skills to be right in the line between sexy and porn and make our day. I still don't quite know why but she posed right in front of us for ages! and even took photos of us taking photos of her haha
very mutual indeed. Pics by Andy - the lucky bastard had the camera right at that time cause he wanted to see what it was like to shoot with a DSLR Well done bottled fart

 

 

 

 

Pics: Tiago chilling with renata, then about to take off while struggling to make that fish work; chicks going surfing; me being a douchebag XVIII

 

 

 

 

Some moments from the single fin comp in Burleigh.. Got a parking fine while taking these shots ha gotta luv that bus spot up on the point.
Oh yeah, forgot to say that i randomly walked into a surfshop somewhere inland from Burleigh while waiting for my car to get fixed at the wreckers and scored a job there!
That was absolutely sick, I wasn't even working and got a chance outta the blue to learn more about retail so I can hopefully apply it all to my business.
It's actually pretty hard to call that working.. the action is in sandals and boardies.. plus there's the aircon! And I'm the only bloke! The world can be a fair place to be at times..

 

 

 

 

After that shit nite I started being more productive.. got a sick new camera, Canon 1000D and been playing with it.
This toy makes anything look good, even fucken Andy looks like a mean gangsta mofo!

 

 

 

 

Now this is the bit I'm disgusted to make public. I spent this nye in the worst possible way. I would rather walking around wearing one of my swimmers back to fron all night than doind what I did.
After I got back from byron I had a few beers with Joey at mine and headed to the Kiwis' house party outta front pretty early without any rest and obviously after not sleeping at all overnight in Byron. There's no excuse though, u gota be awake no matter what in nye. I was a weak cunt and after bubblering up and down sippin that bottle of straight Vodka for a few hours I felt a crack on the camel's back.. that was it, way too much shit, couldn't take it, had enough and simply crossed the road finding my inviting bed where i would spend my nye sliding over black satin.
This is just unacceptable. I don't actually know whether the kiwis party was good cause I can't remember shit, but as shit or awesome it was, I had no right to be in bed before 1am that night..
The boys swear they tried everything to wake me up. toothpaste all over me, water in the face, close up farts, they even brought a chick into my room and made her try to wake me up.. nothing worked.
I woke up the next morning to see the biggest mess in the house finished by a stilish puke on the carpet.
The boys got home one by one, each of them with a more fucked up story. No one really remembered much at all. Some woke up at the neighbours garden, others at random's sofas and Andy woke up in hospital getting his lips stitched after a fight no one saw or knows about. He got served badly and doesn't even know by who! oh well, he may have killed the dude for all we know.
So yeah, that was a totally crap nye! but I couldn't hide it and make it look good.. this thing has got to stay loyal to facts as it's always been..
On the first day of 09 I realize I was drinking every fucken day and decided to stop. That was one more important step to get where I am now and keep on heading where I'm aiming to be.
Photos: The fireworks were fuck all, but looked good in this photo from the neighbours balcony; I was obviously too pissed too early..; being a sequel the next morning

 

 

 

 

Went down to Byron on my own on the 30th.. thought I would see what it was like just b4 nye, but didn't wanna be there one more fucken time for the 31st.
That was a fun trip, hanging out by myself is always sweet, except cause I don't have anyone to talk about it later haha and the way my memory is going I honestly would be lucky to recollect 7% of what happened in that trip. Its was surely fun though, it's easier to remember when it's shit haha
Oh yeah that's right! just had a flash of memory.. I'd received awesome news in the middle of the party at beach hotel so everything seemed sweet and I was flying!
Plus my stepfather and I had a good talk on the phone and we r tight now after so long!
I rushed back to the goldie on the 31st.. the weather was flawless.. so many offshore days in a roll, shame there was no swell.

 

 

 

 

A few photos of the shoot I did with Ebany just b4 xmas.. check out the embroidered logo on the bikini! That's when the brand started to get shape.
Xmas was whack. My 5th one away from the family, will make it up the them next year.
Woulda been understandable if I ran a muck like I usually do, but this year I drunk so much and started so early that I spewed in a random's toilet at a house party and caught a cab home when things were actually still just warming up lol not a typical move..
Got an awesome xmas present from Alex though, a Book of surfing photos and stories by Sean Doherty. He rocks.

 

 

 

Sickest rainbow in late November

 

 

 

 

The final couple of months os 08 were remarked by isolated developments that leaded me where I am now. Each week saw the arrival of new ideas/implementations towards building Beach Bum and planning the next steps. The good part is that all of it was happening in a classic superfun boys house environment. The first step was quitting my job, I'm no longer a chef and probably will never be again. Once I decided to quit and put my whole time and energy into my business, a few awesome things happened. But it was too long ago now and I can't really remember hehe
Photos: Despite the lack of decent swell there were a fair few offshore days in this crispy ending of 08.. boys spazin at home

 

Yep, Im still alive.. that many things happened I wouldnt even know where to start from..
Might resume with this cracking lighting back when I was still living in Surfers sometime in December 08.

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=9WdCwLbZACc

I've got Tiago Schardong onboard. He is the first person I let in to effectively be in this project with me. It's been great, he is a mad designer with heaps of experience plus his sense of style is outstanding and I've know him for 10 years. Check out this logo! it's just great ay. This url is for a nice lil video of his on youtube.
I might be getting a lil too obsessed haha bikinis are all I think and talk about all day..

Don't be lazy, leave ur comment!

Another shoot I did, last week.. her name is Alice. Guess I'm getting good at that lol

Fun peaks over schoolies; One more sesh on tiny surf; Tiago, freshly arrived from my town n crashing on my sofa atm, surfing back home; An intimate photo of me trying to have fun with what I'm given.

We had schoolies.. bloody packed with kids. it's always fun hehe.
The last 3 months have probably been the most inconsistent I've seen since I live on the Goldie. that's 3 years.. Although this may be bad news, the truth is that it's exacly what I expected and what I was set for. 1-2 foot of northerly JUST surfable little ones everyday.. best bet has been out the front.. points are not working, even though the extended flat period has shaped divine banks on them.
Now I've been surfing what I'm given, everyday, at some stage of the tide there's something surfable.. some days I just don't go.. get that deep into doing stuff for my business.. But very soon the cyclones and that are coming to find perfectly shaped banks at the points, and I'll obviously be in Coolie waiting for them from February.
Shots: Tiny surf over schoolies week, got a few with Todd; Lookin good outta front with the offshore; Dawn fun; Chilling with Andy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This shoot was hectic. It kinda fucked with my head haha needed a few days to recover and accept it's only business.
Ebany has been helping me heaps, nicest chick. The photo with the other blonde (her mate Cora) was during a shoot they did in sydney for someone else, but wearing Beach Bum yeeeow. All the other shots r from the house lol here we go, one more natural beauty to be appreciated with the lifeguard hut in the scene.

 

 

 

 

Lifeguard hut outta front pictured in 4 different circumstances over the past few weeks.
I spend a great deal of time staring at it everyday..
luv living here, it feels like I’m never wasting my time, even if I’m just at home doing fuck all, cause technically, I’m at the beach hehe.

fun outtha front

 

yeeeeew there were (are) a few little waves about this mornin!
Andy just got this footage of me outta front from our place.
off to work now.. 11 hours.. makes me feel like I gotta earn the life I have and not take it for granted.. lucky I only gotta do that that shit twice a week atm though ha
The photoshoot of tuesday was mindblowin.. im still recovering. no point in tryin to describe, will post some photos when they r ready.

Beach Bum

 

It’s been ages again.. the truth is I haven’t been taken that many photos. Nevertheless there’s that much going on it’s not funny.

I arrived back from Indo and crashed at Rogerin’s in Kirra for a couple of weeks until I was kicked out for having a guest lol. I understand chef’s tend to get grumpy, but in this case he’ll need to get sorted by karma for that once he finally goes to Bali.
Image: The Persistence of Time - Salvador Dali

 

 

 

Don’t matter though, since I've been back I have a lot more happening inside my head than outside. I thought of a whole business plan, a name, a goal.

I wanted the beautiful Aussie chicks to sunbake in proper sized bikinis. So sick of those fucken grandma style old-coffee-filter looking pieces of rag covering their lovely bums.. some are already using better stuff and many are looking for it, so I decided to catalyze this process by diving head first into a high risk plan. I got another batch in the country and now it's on. Started the label, took a few photos, etc.. won't give away too many details lol

All the support from the people I met in indo was quite a fuel to inspire me to do it.. and also this random dude I met in Brazil who convinced me of how important it is to represent something from my country while I'm here. He definitely deserves some credit for it although he has no clue I went for bikinis.. or that I'm alive at all hehe. I was gonna call it Brazilass in an endeavor to join Brazil and ass in one word, but decided to go for Beach Bum instead, it’s a lot more universal.

The 2 years I spent between the warehouse and the head office in Diva were that important to educate me on how to do it all. I’m sure I’ll make it.
Photos: the evolution: from pillows to mannequins and finally models lol

 

 

 

 

gotta luv business..

 

 

 

 

Back with what’s been happening outside of my head.. I was kicked out of that joint in Kirra and moved in to the place I've always dreamed of, living with a really close mate and 2 apprentices. It’s hard not to go for a wave everyday when staying here, even though the last decent swell to hit QLD happened just before I arrived back in the country.
Photos: Impossible not go surfing when u that close to the ocean even when it's shit.. plus u get to see and register some funny random moments, like this bugger pimping 2 yoga chicks ha

 

My ankle was still sore for 3 weeks since I’ve been back, so was the hole left by my wisdom teeth. Only since recently have I been feeling like a complete man again.
photo: no wonder I call it my wisdom cunt. Looking so relaxed with its legs crossed.. had to saw the bone in between it so the piece of fuck could come off. I should crush it.. but it's kinda cool, might make it a necklace pingent instead

 

 

 

 

With all my confidence towards Beach Bum I didn't even think of getting a job for a while, so I got as broke as $60 in my account ha. Used my good old trade to get me back in the game. Started chefing at this nice little take away joint in Burleigh called Tropicana. Things got back on track in no time.

At the moment I’m not working much, just putting most of my time and effort into my business, even though it might appear like I’m not to those who are close to me because of the nature of the activities such industry require. Alex Rose has been my greatest helper, but I’ve got a few people involved already, and still going. She’s finishing school forever only this week but is a lot smarter than most people I met in the past 5 years.
Photos: beautiful Multifunction Alex, business chick and model lol

 

We had indy.. What can I say about indy this year? it was something like one big pool of shit. Blended within all that crap, unexpected items could be found, such as diamonds and roses, or knives and broken bottles

The deeper you got into that big pile of feces up to an extent, the more likely you were to come across valuable random items. It wasn’t surprising, however, that you would get slashed by nasty cutting objects as you struggled towards the surface if you went deeper into it than you should.

It was a sausage fest but chicks would still dig you if you were only partially covered in shit lol. Once you went too deep in shit you were more likely to attract fights, get kicked out of clubs etc.

So yeah, that was Indy. Getting deep in that fudge meant getting blind, shitfaced.. that was prob my mistake. Hope They manage to bring indy back next year somehow, I swear I’ll just have a quick dip into the crap then.
Photo: being a douchebag ha lol

 

The only thing annoying me at the moment is my bad luck with chicks lately. I'm under the impression that them females are not putting much faith in me because I might come across like a guy who gets heaps with this swimwear company thing, but they don’t understand it’s not like that… Oh well, guess I’ll be fine, I’m never really lonely, just fucken horny quite often.
Photo: to the bitches who reckon i'm a playa.. check out me new rings I brought back from Indo!

 

"mmmmmm, how can I make more money?"

I have a new photo shoot tomorrow, can’t wait. It’s Melbourne cup too, gotta figure out a way to get sales outtavit lol

The waves r still tiny.. but so glassy today I might go for another sesh b4 work. When I start with this petty writing like now it means it’s time to stop.
L8r

What happens in Indo stays in Indo (but fuck I love that place)

 

 

 

I left to Indonesia at 4am of Thursday the 21st. Alex took me to the airport and the feeling was totally different of what I had going to Brazil… after the 12 flights I had within 5 weeks before this one I was feeling home at the airport and not freaking out anymore.

When the wheels of that Garuda plane hit Bali’s soil at 3pm right in between a left and a righthander reef I knew it was on. I was stuck in the customs line for about an hour, then jumped on a cab and took the first room I saw in Uluwatu. It was 5pm so I ran straight out to inside corner before thinking about anything else. That session made me remember why I’m alive. It might not have been the best and my 5’10 was too small, but fuck, that sunset and the speed of the waves… amazing shit.

It’s funny how Bali’s weather is dramatically cooler this year, everyone agrees on that one. I came back in after the sunset and it took me an hour and a half to find the little place I was staying at. Once I did I was still kinda stuck and had to break one of my Indonesian rules: hired and drove a godamn moped to Padang Padang. I’ve always been pretty firm about not ever driving those things, since everyone I know lost so many days of surfing from accidents riding it, but I didn’t have time to waste, just wanted to find the boys and organize our first trip, and of course a hectic night brawl to celebrate my arrival.

 

 

 

That Balinese old lady and I were having trouble to communicate, but she was the only person around to teach me how to drive that lil motorbike. I never knew they had gears, fuck me dead. I took off in the dark slowly at first, then I kinda got the hang of it. Being on a motorbike and feeling the wind on your face as you rapidly win over each k of road makes you feel like the terminator, even if, really, you are just a skinny surfer in boardies on a tiny moped going at 50km/h down a shitty small road. I got to Padang Padang Inn, where most Brazilians stay so I would most likely find people I know and maybe they would know where my boys were hiding. Before I even stopped I heard tchelaos voice calling from a car. I should’ve parked before looking, but instead I fucked it all up and jumped off the moped in movement, nearly hitting another bike in the park and creating a massive domino effect. Definitely the first last time driving that thing haha

I was stoked to see them: Tchelao, Duda, Babysauro, Romy and Greta. We got some dinner and hung out at the 2 storey house Romy has rented for a few months. The vibe was great, but from what I understood the waves had been shit for 2 weeks, since the CT in Ulu’s. Knowing that, I psyched everyone up for that sick night out in Kuta. Everyone was on Vodka, but I decided to honour the Balinese tradition and go for Arak. The results were fucken funny. I was having too much fun, that place goes off ay..

 

 

 

 

The next day I was pretty well fucked up, but not as much as the waves. Spent every single minute of the day planning exactly what my next move would be. My decision was to drive up to Kuta around 5, get a room there, have good dinner, massage, internet and all that crap then go extra wild at clubbing, waking up in Kuta and driving to Cangoo for a surf the next day, since it was the only surfable spot at that stage. The plan was fantastic, but because I would not drive in Bali for any reason whatsoever, I had to get at least one person to come. It took me about 4 hours, but at the end of the day I had a good little army. We were 5. All of us boys got all we desired for, and Greta, a young hottie that blows everyone away every time she steps on a surfboard, decided to just chill at the room we got in Kuta. Before getting too drunk, Me, Tchelao and her sat 1 hour in front of a Balinese travel agent deciding what trip to go for. Because the forecast wasn’t that great I thought G-land would be the pick, so we locked in for the 24th at 10pm. It was even better to go clubbing knowing we would be in the jungle that soon.

We woke up feeling not too bad, rented a car, I got a Bali number (081338771220), and we finally headed to Cangoo. The waves were… quite good for normal standards but not much for Bali. It was pretty chilli again, I used my 6’2 for those 2 footers and it wasn’t quite flowing.Tchelao and Greta were ripping it even though it was pretty average. This sesh pretty much fueled me to leave Bali and spend some time in G-land with much bigger waves and a lot less people out. We were chilling at that Idyllic spot till noon, hanging out with a couple of really nice dudes that have been living there for a year.

We arrived back at the Bukit peninsula quite late, just in time for a local’s barbecue celebrating his birthday. Didn’t stay for too long though.. Just went home early, prepared my shit and had a good sleep before surfing fun ulu’s the next day and leaving to G-land that night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 9 hour trip was impressively entertaining for a number of reasons. One of the highlights was totally filling a 800ml bintang long neck bottle with piss and dumping it out of the window before it went everywhere. I probably wouldn’t even remember it was my Birthday if Greta didn’t wish me happy bday at 12 sumfim. The perspective of being on my way to the one place I love the most was overpowering the importance of date I was born on. But yeah, Im twenty fucken 5 now! We got there at 6am. The waves weren’t that great, as they never are in the morning out in this blessed piece of earth. We knew that having a nap and going out once the offshore was on was the way to go. I met maya again, she said it was better than the past days, knowing that this was enough for me to smile.

The late arvo section in that first day was the best, I enjoyed that sunset on the water with the one guy who has been my closest mate for the past couple of years and Greta, whose compelling elation kept us amped 24/7.

 

It would probably be unrealistic trying to talk about day by day, I’m sitting here in the night of my sixth day and it wouldn’t be exaggeration to say that I lived more in the last 150 hours than I did in the past 2 years.

Some say that the human being is never satisfied. Indeed, we are not, ever satisfied, unless we know that what we got is temporary. That set up makes it possible to reach the utopist feeling of genuine reaching a final goal, engraved with conquer of the ultimate pleasure.

That’s why holidays can be so enjoyable, so can the interactions originated in them. Sharing the achievement of a common goal to be seized within a limited amount of time catalyzes human relationships. Fearlessly of any type of further attachment due to the nature of the situation, all that’s left are restless hedonist activities that make the time seem to go by way too fast, yet eternal while it lasts.

 

 

 

 

Tchelao and I dedicated only about 20 minutes of the whole trip to taking photos of each other. Fuck it was worth it! shoulda done it for longer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

G-land and I have tightened our ropes. The 11 days I spent there were sick. There was a fair bit of swell, pretty much always overhead. Also, we ended up having a few great little sessions at tiger tracks, a mellow, superfun a-frame where you can surf 30 waves per hour. We were meant to stay for only 4 days, but extended it twice. Greta left on the 7th day, I couldn’t go away from that newly arrived swell, I would never forgive myself. It was going off, I got my 6’6 out on those 8 footers. For my surprise the first day of this swell was the least fun of them all. We weren’t exactly the only people out there. The efficiency of the swell forecasting models these days has virtually ruined the possibility of solitude during major pulses.

I never thought G-land could get that crowded. For 7 days we were pretty much the only people in the camp. The sense of privacy and almost ownership I had developed over the place was now lacerated. No longer was I fucking around in the middle of the reef in between surfs like no one was watching. I never got to speak to myself again while watching the waves from the tower. It was a totally different vibe.

 

 

 

 

But with the arrival of 150 blokes, the expressive rise of the swell and the departure of Greta, the atmosphere became a helluvalot more boysh. I was feeling free to fart loud in my bed although the 10 rooms next to mine would be able to hear it as clear as if it was coming out of Pink Floyd speakers. The consequence most times was long and loud farts from anonymous authors in response. Boys will be boys.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I made good friends and everyone was heaps supportive about my plans when I get back in Australia. We shared great waves in the last few days and then headed back to Bali. But not before I sprained my ankle in my last session. I was a tad frustrated because in the best day of them all I surfed tiger tracks during the crowd period then went out in G-land at 12:30, the very time lunch is served and the tide was lower. The waves were fantastic and I shared it with only one guy. Definitely the best surfing session I had this year as yet. I was truly stoked, but when I went for a lap at bobby’s that night and saw the photos from the morning I couldn’t believe it. Cunts standing up tall in kegs was something normal, absolutely sick. I did get those waves, but obviously the photographer wasn’t there for only me and another dude. I sort of wished I surfed with the other sheep so I would get some photos of that magic session. I did exactly that the next day, went out with everyone else hoping to get a good souvenir shot. Totally regretted it. Way too many cunts out there, I had to bring my standards of selection down and ended up taking off on a white close out that was heavy but didn’t barrel that wide. I got hit by the lip and with the booties my front foot didn’t slide off, being crushed against the board. I was hurting like fuck. I got a couple more and came in when I realized it was impossible to pull tricks.

It didn’t matter though, it was my last day there anyway..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back in bali I got a room in Kuta to celebrate our arrival. Haha there’s always an excuse for getting on the piss. Me, the dudes from g-land (Tchelao, stick, mitch and rafa) and Greta had a blast.

The swell was as good as gone. I heard Padang Padang worked for a couple of days while I was away. I spent about 4 days having mild fun. Unable to surf and not too amped to go out, I chilled in the bukit basically. After 3 seasons I finally overcame the fear of driving in this island. We went to a barbecue in Canggu and I was behind the wheels all the way back to Padang padang. After that experience the taboo was over.. It’s fucken nuts, but you gotta do what u gotta do. Because I love this island so much I had to adapt to its traffic in order to be able to roll.

 

 

 

 

In that sick barrel photo: Babysauro in padang Padang. The bloke has an interesting story… an old friend, he was here for a couple of months but lost every material possession in a fire that destroyed about 20 Bungallows of Ayuguna resort. Passport, money, clothes, surfboards.. it’s all history now. Thanks to that he met heaps of people and his fiancée, not to mention the barrels like this one he’s been scoring while he should be back at home if none of that had happened. The more you screwed you get, the more fun you have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once I was over what they call “post G-land depression”, I was myself again, or what was left of it. Greta left to New Zealand and my foot felt better. I went for a surf at small ulu’s only to find out I was still screwed and unable to pull it. All that was left was the booze. I had some massive nights out and met heaps of good people until my foot was really healed. There were amazing days in uluwatu, I never knew it could get that good. The swell hanged around for a decent amount of time, and as soon as it was gone me and the boys had a transcendental full moon trip out. That was pretty much my farewell, I came to kuta the next day to spend my last 48 hours here. Tchelao and I had the best eye fillet with a gigantic prawn on it in canggu and he took off to desert point last night. I came here with quite a list of things to sort out.. print business cards, go to Celuc, buy heaps of Dvds, do my washing, print out photos, surf kuta reef/middle, return the rented car, sell my 6’6 and post stuff on my blog, since I got no home in Australia at the moment, much less internet. Had the best farewell night last nite.. I even sold a couple of bikinis! Time to kick back and wait for my flight.

 

 

 

 

As a conclusion to this trip I would have to say that Bali is not just an island, but a straight as judge, ruthless with those who fuck with it, yet wonderfully kind with those who know how to treat it. I don’t exactly believe in good or bad, but the whole karma thing becomes totally evident out here. I’ve seen cunts paying for what they’ve done way too many times… As for myself… it’s only when I’m here that I realize how doing right by people pays off. Sometimes I get the impression that being an asshole is the way to success in Australia and Brazil. But in Indo, even when it comes to business, it’s the ethics and love for one another that fuels prosperity. I’m once again taken by these amazing people and totally relieved for receiving a confirmation that I must be doing something right.

Goldy 4 a week

 

I got lucky enough to arrive back on the Goldie at the same time as a flat spell breaking south swell. The flight was good overall, way better than the flight going to Brazil. I read my first book in Portuguese in about 5 years, it's called The Schopenhauer Cure. David swore that one of the characters was just like me so I got curious. Philip Slate, ex-sex maniac, decided to become a therapist to support himself while he carries on with his pursuit for knowledge through the great minds from the past. Typical situation of those who don't quit their dreams.. having to do something to survive while don't quit their real passion.
I like the book, almost lost it along with my newest camera, but some good hearted Queenslander found it at the Coolie airport and called me so I picked it up straight away. Lucky it was this Airport or i would be too far by now..
My sleep is fucked, rested from 7 to 2am and up I am since then.. it's 11am now, i got pretty much every minute of today well planned so I get my obligations out of the way and have a solo session at cudgen precisely in the best time of the day.
Oh buggert it, I'm writing too much.

 

After the Natal trip I had probably the best week in Brazil. Didn't really take that many photos though.. the farewell party was pretty sick, there were heavier waves, specially outta front in Leblon and the club crawls were all quite wild.
Some funny moments illustrated in the photos above.. with the boys, the hottie danielle surfin and gettin on the plane to Aus but already fantasizing about gettin in Indo.

Natal

 

 

 

Just before my last week I went to Natal with my mum, sister and her mate. Its in Northeast Brazil, a 3 hour flight. Sick town, always warm and fabulous food. The "excuse" was a botanics congress my sis was participating. No one wanted to come into to town at nite, so I headed there on my own, good fun, as it always is when one goes out alone in a completely strange city.\
The only downside of the adventure is that, in spite of keeping my taboo of never getting robbed in Brazil in my whole life, I got too drunk and gave away that necklace of mine to some random chick I don't even remember the name lol
She was cool though..
Lucky I'm going to indo in a week, so it won't be hard to find another necklace.. and all the barrels I didn't find in Natal.

 

 

 

 

No shortage of reefs in Northeast Brazil, shame that the wind is restless and the water color is kinda ugly.
Still, the consistency of swell is not bad and it's the water temp is always above 21 celcius. pretty relaxing, uncompromised surfing around here..

 

 

 

 

Sick views on the way to that historical army thing

 

 

 

 

For how far it is, 3 days in Natal was probably not quite enough.. The swell was semi inexistent, but the shape of that extra long rock bottom right hander point break was in itself enough to make me dream of how good it can get. I had waist high long and fast rights for myself all day in the second day, so gotta say I loved it.

The last day was raining like a matha facka, we didn't do much b4 leavin at 12noon

 

Ended up leavin Rio b4 I got a chance to have a go at hang glinding.. def next time though.

Buzios

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alright, one more trip. this time to Buzios. My mum and I spent 22 hours there on monday in her new house.
That was fun but I don't know why I travelled so much with my mouth still like that..
I got the stitches out on wednesday and am surfing again, but eating is still the biggest mission, almost not worth it.
I'm kinda feeling the same way, but it's been 9 days now so I'm just doing everything normally and letting it sort itself out.
Been pretty bored today.. I better start drivin here, the traffic is crazy but staying on the computer for fucken 5 hours is just unacceptable.

 

 

 

 

After being naughty on Saturday I was fucked up on Sunday and had to be spectator in a classic late arvo at Arpoador, my home break.. useless bloody wisdom cunts...

Sao Paulo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since I was screwed up from pulling my teeth out I decided to spend 8 hours in Sao Paulo and catch up with some relatives. Shame that Saturday happened to be the biggest day of swell so far.. pretty bumming but I would have to get rid of them wisdoms at some stage.. so may as well do it where your mum can hear you complain rather than Aus or Indo
My mouth was still jaded from the surgery of 3 days b4, but i didn't resist and ate heaps in SP.. it felt afterwards like there were pieces of food in the holes where the teeth came from lol
I hadn't been to Sao Paulo for about 12 years.. it seems I can survive perfectly well without it, but I gotta admit the food is all time. From those street markets where you can find every eatable resource known to men to the buffets and restaurants full of variety, it seems like they got so much free time due to the lack of beaches around that they dedicate their lives to eating well.
It was awesome to say hi to my great grandma n grandpa too, they still remember me although I’m twice as old as last time.
I was back in Rio by 6pm.. that night I had a blast and broke in every possible way the jejum from the prior 3 depressing crook days, only to wake up worse than ever on Sunday lol