this morning

limited by many things largely positive (academic) rather than active, I am due to the first module of a masters on monday, as well my day job and all the other stuff, must be mad! 

today (if only for a moment in thought) I am going back to something I have missed, that is the sea. living so close often I find my self taking it for granted, going weeks without appreciating it. conscious that I am set to write anther surfing column for Go2 by the end of the weekend and that there is a good swell forecast to come through this weekend I really need to keep checking the web cams and get to the beach at some point in the next days.

one of those weeks

well it has been one of those weeks, didn't even manage to get to post yesterday.

got my land rover back, it's fixed well I hope it's fixed. I got it back yesterday and have been driving around in it today, it appears to be fine. but it just seems strange that it's working again after making such a horrid bang and then shook and ground to a halt last week. 

I have taken on far too much this week, so have spent far too much time trying to get it done. at least I managed to get another article written for go2 magazine, also got some new design work sort of finished to be presented on monday which will be interesting, and of course there is my real job. 

however I am slowly getting back to normal and hope that next week I will be back properly.

go2 >> the september issue

I know it's not cool to promote your own work but I am sort of pleased with the article (for a change) I wrote for the september issue of go2 magazine so after thinking about it for a while decided to promote it again here. what is so good about go2 as far as I am concerned is that editor viv twornicki and deputy editor rachel weightman are totally behind the magazine and believe in their work fully, but still have the confidence to let me have control over what I write, very rarely changing anything. not the same experience I have had with other publications.

if you can't pick up a copy in the SW of the UK because you aren't in the SW, visit the go2 web site and download an issue or two.

its all about go2 today >>

sorry but I had to mention go2 again today. 

just longer than a year ago I received an email from rachel from the then yet to be published magazine (to be based in south east cornwall) asking me to think about writing a piece about surfing (my other passion) to be included a new lifestyle & listings magazine. I did write something and subsiquently managed to write an article for every issue over the year. in that time the magazine has become a very well read and informative addition to the published media in the area as well as online. am not pretending that it is because of my articles by any means as there is so much more interesting stuff in it. viv, rachel, matt and the production team are consistantly responsible for producing a quality free magazine. I just hope that the magazine continues to grow and becomes even more well read, and hope that I can continue to write for them. 

happy birthday go2. 

bit busy today >>

I am a bit behind time for a deadline for go2 magazine today/tonight so I will catch you later. I should have finished it sooner but you know how it is!

Go2 february - march issue 2008

just thought I would give an extra plug to Go2 magazine, not simply because I write a surfing column for them & have done since the launch in may 2007. but it is a good magazine and if you live in cornwall you can pick up a copy for free at most newsagents, music shops,surf shops as well as supermarkets, if not just go to the Go2 web site and read it online.

surfing >> conditions and contests

some of you will know that I have been involved in surfing for years and years first as a lifeguard then for a short time a competitor, more recently a contest judge, as well as a surf writer for Go2 magazine and the owner of surf98.

so one way or another I have be around the surf scene in the UK for more than 35 years. we have just had a really good weekend (for summer) as you can see from the first couple of photos, but today monday (last picture) the rip curl boardmasters contest started, a 5-star contest for both men and women and the surf went to mush. I always want to apologise to the visiting surfers who come to compete as we do get great waves just not very often in august. but if you read the rip curl contest website it seems as though the waves are fine.

that is summer in cornwall not the most constant surf, that is why we are off to france in a couple of days.

picture credits (moby & 'the wilkin')

a little self indulgent >> more france stuff

yes I know you are probably a bored of france but it is one of those days, it has been sunny and warm. so late this afternoon we got the camping stuff out to make sure it was all ok and pitched the two tents we are taking in the front garden.
I know we are not going to france for over a week but carol is getting excited, she still only has a few shifts left.
I am on summer break but still have to write the september's surfing article for Go2 magazine, before we go as it has to go to press early-mid august. the august issue is out and a good one .
I am also playing around with another project a complete re-design of an academic web site, the deadline is september so still early, and I am still thinking about it.

any way these three pictures will hopefully sum up a part of our next surf trip to south west france (basque country).

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surfing >> moby picture >> Go2

I don't want to turn this blog an extension of my surf web site surf98, but I have to include this picture as I like its composition so much.
it is not a picture I took myself rather a picture I would have liked to have taken. my man on the north coast 'moby' took it this morning it was amongst a few pictures he set to be included in the forecast page of the site. the fence is the border of the golf course at fistral beach, newquay, cornwall. so the picture is taken from a good distance away.

what looks like a black dot is a surfer waiting for a set wave to take, gives the waves a scale.
whilst on the surfing subject I have to say I have been surprised at the positive comment already for the first article in the new magazine I mentioned in yesterdays post Go2. I am sure that a few will have bad things to say but that goes with the territory when you write you views down in ink!

sorry for another short blog today but I seem to be extraordinarily busy at the moment (this is a good thing).

grass seed >> frog >> Go2

just a quick post tonight, as it was wet and raining this evening I thought it would be a good time to get some grass seed on the parts of the front garden that are worn. while I was spreading (in the rain) the seed with an open hand the frog literally jumped into it. I only had a short time to take a picture before I let it go in the next door garden.

please accept this has nothing to do with all things french that I have been talking about in previous posts, just a coincidence.

I for the first time saw the my surfing column in the new cornish based 'Go2' lifestyle magazine. it was strange to see it as although it had been very slightly edited. it was only the last section that had been left out just because it was a self contained story and I was over my 2000 words any way. nice to see work in real print.

Go2. A new FREE magazine that enables you to GO2 do what you want in Cornwall and Plymouth.
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