LOKI: AN ELEGANT YET GNARLY SKATE MOMENT

Our friend Justin Pierce had just past. It was a tragic feeling. Shortly after I heard a bunch of bros were going to have a  "Skate for Justin Day" where we would go Uptown to his old neighborhood in Washington Heights to skate and bomb hills in memory of him. And shoot some photos for a Japanese magazine. Harold, Jamie Story, Brian Loki, Giovanni Esteves, myself, Neal, and a bunch of other Supreme heads were there. Loki led the session. This one moment I will never forget.

We went to  Overlook Terrace which is one of fastest hills Uptown. It was night, and dark with the occasional street lamp light. We dropped in and within a few seconds guys started wiping out and taking each other out. I remember dodging bodies trying to keep up with Loki. A slide here, a mega slide there and into full tuck to catch up with Loki. We were flying down the dark straight away. At the bottom is a stop sign. I was right behind Loki and about thirty feet before the intersection he gets super low, bows his head down, as if closing his eyes, spreads his arms out like an eagle and drags his finger tips lightly on the pavement as he blazes past the stop sign. It was one of the most elegant things I have ever seen. For a tough solid dude, it was such a graceful, sincere, yet gnarly maneuver.

The visual is burnt in my memory.

To my Lady Marisa and Homey Loved Ones.

Aloha Lady Love,

Before you went to bed last night you wanted to go out and dance. It was just approaching midnight on a Thursday Night in Honolulu. I said "it's a perfect time, it should be going off ". You came back home  by 2am and said everything was over or closing up every time I walked in the door.

There is a part of my life that I never shared with you that is hard to share. It is my love to dance to House Music.  A good dance club is hard to find, even in the best cities. You always asked me  what House music is and it is tough to find an awesome House Music Track, because usually there is only a short portion of the song which is awesome. And that is why a good DJ is necessary, "TO PLAY THE MOST AWESOME PARTS OF EVERY AWESOME SONG HE/SHE KNOWS" 

I want to dance with you for a few hours until were sweating bullets, not drinking alcohol. Here's a house song with some good parts. Remember you have to play it loud, and shake it like you know how. Be patient through the parts you might not like. 

I love you so much. It aint over til it's over. We have a handful of years to create some good life.

And to all the rest of my Homey Loved ones and myself. No doubt, we gotta keep rockin'. Making the beautiful rad life a reality, especially when the circumstances that you wish to live don't exist yet. 

Make it Happen. Create it. Paint what you like to see. Trend Set Like you know how. 

Life is Good

I'm a super sensitive dude. That's why I had to move out of New York. I would get too depressed in the winter, just because it was cold out. Surfed this morning, just down the road from this spot, where better suited for my personality. 

From surfing most of the breaks on the south shore of Oahu, each surf break attracts a certain type of personality. For instance, lets start at Ala Moana Bowls. 

• At Bowls you'll find your super competitive South Shore Surf Jocks, with you're occasional high performance trippy surfer dude. It's your cool guy surf spot.
• Queens just further east. is the classic long board spot. And surfers who are loyal to the history of the surfing. It is after all where the Duke surfed.
• Your chick long board spot just further down, next to your
• Your stoner Arty private wave
• The Arty Carpenter, working man, philosopher wave, mixed in with other professionals 
• Your aunt and uncle spot

Oh shit. my wife just made me realize that our funds are low and that  I need to write an important email. I'll return to La La Land if I can soon.

Over and out.

-Manny Aloha.

Last Sunday Pools Sesh

Elements of Magic: a note to self.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
The same full moon seen by one may be non existent to the other who sits inside watching television.
The world and universe are doing magical things all day long. Its just a matter of surrounding yourself in the magic: magical people, magic places, magical scenarios... setting yourself up for magic... creating a fertile ground for magic to happen. Listening to awesome, beautiful music.

Like putting yourself on a Ferris Wheel.

But What is Magic. Webstser Dictionary defines Magic as:

Definition of MAGIC

1

a : the use of means (as charms or spells) believed to have supernatural power over natural forces

b : magic rites or incantations

2

a : an extraordinary power or influence seemingly from a supernatural source

b : something that seems to cast a spell : enchantment

3

: the art of producing illusions by sleight of hand

To me the super natural is the ability to make a choice.

Magic is the act of doing things unseen or unfamiliar, beautiful of mystical.

Setting yourself for magic means to keep practicing and seeking what is good for you and exciting.

To keep putting yourself in magic scenarios, like putting yourself in the ocean.

To keep practicing art. Arranging dots and lines in a magical order to create beauty.

If a thousands of people read my blog everyday, I'm not sure I would be sharing this, but because it is usually my friends and family keeping up to date with my doings, that I feel I can share. Because it seems when the magic is let out of the bag to too many folks, the magic dies.

Because the magic becomes too familiar and is taken for granted.

However, the ocean, no matter how much I enter it, never seems to be filled with magic. Leaving me feeling magical. Where I have nothing to figure out. Succumbing to the fact that no matter what, I will never be able to control the magic of the universe. And that's ok because I've accepted that the universe is magical, and thus life is magical. We just have to put ourselves in the right place in this complex labyrinth of so many things that we have created that can be so confusing. The labyrinth which is so easy to get lost in. We must focus on the magic of nature and keep it alive, because that is all we have. We must preserve the magic.

Life is short. Loved ones pass. We need to be a part of the magic every day if possible.

And cry sometimes because life is good and painful at the same time.

I'll stop here for a while before my tangent veers too far from magic.

Aloha.

*Manwell*

Inspired by surfing with a bro, Aaron Suis.

Revalation

A magician is not a magician if he reveals his tricks.

Confessions of a Surfer Artist

So Yeah I surf. Work Hard too. So what.

What makes me so special. I'm an artist. What does that mean?

It means a lot of things. One of those things is that I express myself.

Yeah, but everyone expresses themselves, just by living. Living is an expression of the soul.

But what makes me different than an ordinary person that expresses?

As an artist, I choose to express myself and present that expression to the public for ridicule, judgement, entertainment, admiration, inspiration and whatever else.

So how is art therapeutic? By laying out my feelings and thoughts, I can lay them out and arrange them.

Realize Dreams.

So let's see: I've been working solar for the past 3 months. I've been paying for a studio that I don't use.

I've been surfing some pretty awesome waves.

I have a beautiful wife and child. And I feel little uneasy, not completely on it.

I have some goals for this year.

1) To do the best art show I've ever done to date. (First Priority)

2) Financially Maintain Studio

3) To see my family this year.

4) To go on a a surf trip to Indo with some friends

5) To continually have enough money to travel once a year.

These are the things I've been juggling around in my head and sometimes the priority balls are bouncing off the walls of my head and its a big mess. I put a big blanket over it all and go surfing and everything looks radical. Oh yeah, Manny lives a good life, he has a modest job, surfs rad waves all year round, has a wife and kid. What a perfect life.

But life is definitely not all about surfing. There is so much else, especially if you have grande modern dreams. So my goal is to keep it simple. Not trip up in complication or wanting too much.

As an actual person that can juggle, juggling 3 balls is cake. Any Joe Shmoe can juggle 3 balls and go through the motions. Its juggling 4 or 5 balls that is stunning. And that is where I personally want to be. Or if 3 balls, make sure those dream balls are original, dynamic. OK enough of that analogy.

The Wrench

Oh and a big wrench in this whole equation, is that I got into an argument with a big guy in the water yesterday when he dropped in on me. I was deep in a barrel at my favorite home break. It hardly barrels like that all year, and he just caught the last awesome wave. It was my turn and I was lined up perfect. I drop in, he drops in, we're both in the barrel, and he kicks out fast,  we were so close that his leash caught the nose of my board, and yanked it beneath my feet and my head got caught in the face of the tubular wave, and tweaked my neck out a bit. Before I could get my head out of the water, my arm and middle finger rose out of the foam and I imagine he saw it. I came out and said "come on man?"

If I was zen master, I would have said nothing. Maybe that experience has brought me one step closer to zen master, where all my energies are at peace and I can handle any obstacle and accident with grace.

But at that point, this was not the case. It was a guy that surfs there all the time. I see him in the water and as well as on land checking out waves. He knows a lot of the people I know, but we don't talk very much.

Anyway he proceeded to say "don't say anything to me", I said "all I said is come on"He then proceeded with I've been surfing here for 20 years and remember when you started surfing here."

"Yeah so what"  I said. He said, she said. Who cares. The main deal is that I lost my cool and said Ok then well "Fuck You" and F this, F that. And that is something that I am not proud of or happy about. So this incident made me realize that I need to take a step back and get all my priorities in line so I don't snap.

End of Wrench 

Writing is so much better than venting to a friend over the phone. Although it may be very valuable, there is also great value in figuring out hardships on your own. And having it drawn out so you can reference it yourself, or better yet laying it out as inspiration or a trail so the next seeker or awesomeness can learn from your mistakes, trials and tribulations.

So back to the dreams. They need to be tackled one at a time. Here they are again.

1)Art Show

2) Maintain Studio.

3) See Family on East Coast

4) Save for a Surf Trip with friends

5) Make enough money to consistently travel.

Art Show

What do you need to do to have an art show in September.

1) Find the venue you want to show in.

2) Make the art

3) Invite the people and have a small agenda and let the rest play out itself.

Process breakdown. One painting per month.

Maintain Studio

One small studio show per month to fund rental.

Bring all art work wanting to sell to studio and frame and hang for sale.

To see my family this year

1) Find out when you want to go

2) Find out how much tickets and how much spending money needed.

3) Save money every week or month for trip

Surf Trip to Indo

1) Find out when you want to go.

2) Find out how much tickets are

3) Surf Camp or Place you want to stay

4) Spending cash needed.

5) who you want to invite and how much they need to save per week or month.

6) Make the invite.

7) Save the money, 

8)Purchase Tickets, 

9) Make Reservations. 

10)Go.

Have enough to Travel once a year.

1)  Decide where you want to go each year and when 

2) Decide on a budget for each trip

3) How much you need to save per week, per month

4) When the deadline is to purchase tickets, and make reservations

5) Save the money

6) Purhcase Tickets and Make Reservations

7) Go

What to do today.

Home. Breakfast. 

Greet Mommy and Hayden.

Ask what they want to do?

Family time.

Make a visit to studio to drop off all art and Hang for show.

Spend some time prepping walls and art for hanging.

For Friday?

Thanks. 

-Manny Aloha

Clear Communication with , Systems more organized tools or studio,  finishing following through. See them through.