Kickin' It Old School Style

Yesterday, on the way back from surfing a hardcore secret spot in the OC, Soul Brother #1 and I made two stops. Our first post-surf destination was Rainbow Sandals. Much to my amazement, it was a madhouse in there. People were going through stacks of sandals as if they were looking for a winning lottery ticket or something. Okay, I liked what I saw. Leather and hemp are interesting materials for sandals. But they lack that, oh, je ne c'est quoi. I didn't see what I wanted and was ready to leave empty-handed. Finally, Soul Brother #1 encouraged me to ask someone for help. I did that and . . . look what they found for me:
I've wanted another pair of these for a long time. When I didn't see them, I was heartbroken. But when that kid told me he'd found them in the basement, I wanted to hug him. What's even better is they were cheaper than the leather sandals. I know they won't be as comfortable. I don't care. These take me back, back to "back in the day," back to the years when I read surf magazines, wanting to surf but not ever expecting that to happen in my lifetime. My Rainbow Sandals (much like my Vans) kept me connected to the world I never thought I'd enter. Decades later and finally surfing, I wanted—no, needed—another pair of Rainbow Sandals, a pair just like those I used to wear. So when that kid brought them out, I felt like I had, in fact, found that winning lottery ticket for which everyone else in the store was searching. I suppose the sandals symbolize me coming full circle and reaching a goal.

Our second stop was Icons of Surf surf shop. If you love longboards, you'll love this shop. The place is packed with boards. There were so many boards that I didn't get a good look at all of them. There were so many boards that the people who worked there were bumping into them and knocking them over as they moved boards around. These folks obviously know how to navigate a lot of board in a little bit of space. They showed me one board they dinged with a tape gun while wrapping another board for shipping. They were sending the dinged board back to the manufacturer to be repaired. They they said we could buy it at a discount if we were interested in it. Interested in it? I wanted one of everything I saw!! If I ever decided to buy an off-the-rack Bing, I'm driving out to San Clemente to buy one from them.