Drawing clean lines, the back leg is the crucial pivot point when going “off the lip”. Here, we also see the value of the paddle blade as secondary fulcrum when SUP-ing… Same physics, different tool !
photo provided by Surfing Nosara
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The Halloween Crab
A not so scary story: The first time I walked down the sandy path through the trees leading from the Harmony Hotel to the beach, it was fast approaching sunset. We were visiting during green season, and the first small stretch of the trail was quite dim as we walked under a rich canopy of leaves. Suddenly I became aware of a rustling in the forest floor, and I drew in a quick breath as I saw a few darting movements just at my feet. As my eyes adjusted, I quickly realized I was witnessing dozens of beautiful Halloween crabs sprinting back to their burrows as we approached. I quickly became fascinated with these far from spooky, colorful creatures flashing their black and red body with purple claws, occasionally and remarkably finding their way up a tree trunk or onto a low branch, but most often peeking out just so from their front doors as they waited for us to pass.
Fernando Durán Ayanegui
Monday, Monday–can’t trust that day. In Fernando Durán Ayanegui’s story “Monday,” the day of the week is not necessarily relevant. The story simply takes place on a normal day that is just like any other: Adán goes to work at the garage, the “dirty shed that rose beneath a rusty old zinc roof on a dusty plot of land cruelly discolored by the constant drip of motor oil.” And from his position in the garage where he works on an old, dilapidated Ford, he watches his wife walk by with Mario Solano. It is not the first time that Adán has witnessed this precursor to his wife’s infidelity, but it is the first day that he decides to do something about it.
The story is pervaded by imagery of the heat of the day, as “Suspended between the overheated blue sky and the earth’s cover of sweaty human moss, buzzards slithered in tight flocks.” In fact, it is the constant heat that has always stopped Adán from taking action before, but on this Monday, he matches the situation with his own heat.
Fernando Durán Ayanegui is the author of many works of fiction, such as Cuentos para Laura, Cuando desaparecieron los topos, and Opus 13 para cimarrona. He is native to Alajuela, where this story takes place.
Photo Credit: Julia Falkner / CC0 Public Domain
Source: Ras, Barbara, ed. Costa Rica: A Traveler’s Literary Companion. San Francisco: Whereabouts, 1994.
Buy Better Candy
Conventional Halloween candy is a serious trick. Chock full of food dyes linked to allergic reactions and behavioral problems in children, the chocolate is typically cultivated in Africa by children who are virtually enslaved.
But with a little effort, you can get good treats to give away. First off, make sure your Halloween candy is food dye free. Not only are these chemicals dangerous, they’re discriminatory: After European manufacturers were required foods to display a food dye warning label, they began to substitute natural colors for dyes—but only in Europe. Nestle, for example, announced in 2012 that they were phasing out use of all artificial food additives from their entire confectionery line in the U.K., but not the U.S.
When it comes to chocolate, look for fair trade certified—often times, these candies are also USDA Certified Organic. You can get better Halloween candy everywhere from Whole Foods Markets to Amazon. Sweet!
Guiones Surf Photo of the Week
There’s nothing quite like having paddled into a “maybe” wave, only to have it pitch on the inside for a curtain call. Nice reward for keeping the faith! This inside zipper qualifies as “the worth it wave” of the session…
photo provided by Surfing Nosara
The Two-Toed Sloth
Sporting a longer snout than the three-toed sloth, as well as a larger stature and one less intimidatingly large curved claw on its front foot, the two-toed sloth spends most of its life in the trees and is most active at night. Active is a relative term here, as the sloth moves in relation to the energy it gets from its low carb diet of leaves, typically at a pace of around half a foot per second at a good clip. Its slow, deliberate, often acrobatic movements, paired with a shaggy coat that actually encourages the growth of algae, help this beautiful animal avoid detection from predators and enjoy its daytime naps peacefully in the canopy.
Photo credits: Diego Achan
Quince Duncan
The Montezuma Oropendola is a Central American bird in the Icteridae family (along with blackbirds, orioles, and meadowlarks) and named for the Aztec emperor Moctezuma II. Quince Duncan’s story, “The Oropéndolas,” is a short, sad, and beautiful tale of these birds, who “always fly in the protection of the gods. Mornings, they streak across the sky southward; at dusk they return, the sunset in tow behind their yellow tails.”
The speaker of the story and his friend, both twelve, make a “daily pilgrimage” to visit these birds and “learned to love them.” Their regret comes, however, when they invite another friend to join them, and he brings his bow and arrow. Though only two pages, the story is packed with beautiful and touching imagery that makes the reader connect with the speaker:
Like always, at sundown the oropéndolas flew in the protection of the gods. They streaked across the sky northward, their yellow tails shimmering, and in tow behind them, the last breath of twilight. We watched them pass overhead with a sorrow that pierced us to the depths of our spirit.
Quince Duncan is the author of Final de calle and Kimbo. His stories “explore the social milieu of Costa Rica’s blacks.” Duncan himself is of Jamaican ancestry and was born in San José and grew up on the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica. His time in this region no doubt influenced the beautiful nature imagery of his stories.
Photo Credit: Wiki Commons
Source: Ras, Barbara, ed. Costa Rica: A Traveler’s Literary Companion. San Francisco: Whereabouts, 1994.
Guiones Surf Photo of the Week
Launching just to break free from gravity has its merits. But, as with most things in Life, Function is Beauty. Feet, Body and Board all focused on re-engaging with the momentum of a continuing wave peeling to the inside… Functional Air at its best.
photo provided by Surfing Nosara
