Getting “Married” to Our Neighbors

BirdsTogether_8542What would you call a couple that lives in separate houses, doesn’t eat meals together, dates other people, and splits custody of their children? I would call this couple separated and if they aren’t already I’d say they will be divorced soon. We have this similar separation from our neighbors and our community and yet we don’t say we are divorced, we say this is normal and the way we are supposed to live.

I am twice married and both times our relationship changed significantly after we got married and lived together. In my dating experience there was often much time apart, and before we saw each other there was a discussion about where, how, and when we will be reunited. Then there was the parting of ways and saying goodbye for the night or maybe forever. For me that’s the real difference between dating and being married, we are uncertain where we stand and if this person is going to be in our life and for how long. Probably the real question we need answered is…

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Appreciating our home or home appreciation?

PoolSurfI’m sitting on the lanai in Maui enjoying breakfast after a really fun surf at the break we can see from the kitchen window. The enjoyment of the sound of the waves breaking and the birds singing is interrupted by the roar of leaf blowers and a sit down lawnmower. Cue the phrase “first world problems”, and that’s when it sank in how far from natural this development is.

The monthly Home Owners Association (HOA) dues at this gated community in Maui are around $800 and where I live in California are $380. Both grounds are beautiful and very well taken care of, and at the same time I’m wondering where are the crops, the orchard, and the fruit trees? Every Tuesday a full crew of people come and mow the lawns and blow the leaves for what is usually a full days work. What if instead of taking the mowed grass and tree trimmings to the landfill they left…

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The Real Reason to Buy Local

Village-FijiWhen my first wife left me I was living in her house, in her neighborhood, next door to her brother and his wife, and most of my social relations were with their friends. So the day she walked out I lost most of my community and to say I felt isolated, lonely, and terrified would be a massive understatement. Also I didn’t see us living in this higher crime neighborhood for very long so I didn’t invest much time making friends nor knowing my neighbors. Further I was also doing most of my shopping either online or at the big box stores, so I didn’t have any relationships with the people that worked there. For me the pain of divorce was a huge wake up call to take a look at all my relationships and how I want to live.

When our first impulse is to invest our time and money outside the community we are…

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The solution to all our problems

Surf Village Sketch From 2012

Surf Village Sketch From 2012

One of my teachers offered this idea:

Imagine being born into this world and being seen by everyone in the community as a cargo bay containing precious goodies that no one else carries, and these goodies are needed by the community. Also no training, diploma, or certification is necessary, we are seen as being born with the diploma and all the credentials necessary to take up this unique purpose of giving these gifts to everyone. Further our community recognizes and acknowledges and celebrates us for our giftedness, before we achieve or accomplish anything. There is something about being seen in this way that elevates a human being in a way that is very exhilarating.

Once this idea got a hold of me I haven’t been able to let it go, and even more so when I learned that all our ancestors used to live this way…

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Bamboo POV camera pole mount for surfboards

OB-sim-sup-poleExperiencing the fun and welcoming vibe of SUP Downwinding and seeing how undiscovered it is I wanted a way to get the word out and share the stoke. I have lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 40 years and had no idea there are surfable waves in the bay, and even after I discovered this I didn’t really believe it until I saw it. Growing up I had the belief that the bay was dirty or gross and only for boats, definitely not a warm sandy beach for swimming kinda place. My first summer living in Alameda introduced me to a different idea, one where there are thousands of empty waves every day right in front of a beautiful warm sandy beach. For me the thing that really blew mind is that there is no one out surfing these waves, and when I tell other surfers this they don’t believe it. The idea or dream of having endless uncrowded waves with warm welcoming people is real…

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