I remember this day like it was yesterday. 23 years ago. I remember praying for there not to be any surf that day. There's not too many times in my life where I can recall
praying for that. But on this day I prayed to God to please don't let there be surf this day. And the Lord answered my prayers. It was barely a foot. Although, I did see one wave that day. And I saw it as I hid behind the small chapel where I was waiting for the day's events to unfold, that would ultimately change my life forever.

For on October 10, 1987 I was getting married. My bride to be was Cory Bunton.

I had proposed to Cory at 33,000 feet onboard a 737 United Airlines flight to Virginia in December of 1986. And as romantic as that sounds, it was not without some humor. I was sitting next to a total stranger. A large African American woman who I had made small talk with during the flight. For as much as I'd like to say it was a tender, romantic moment between Cory and I, it was not. We shared that special moment with that total stranger, who was blown away by it all.

"Did you just ask her to marry you?" she asked me in a loud voice.

"Yes mam I did." I answered. "Right here? Right now, on this airplane?" She asked
out loud. I shook my head 'Yes.' "Good Lord. You just asked her to Marry you"? She asked again. "Yes I did." Then she leaned forward to look around me, to get a look at Cory. "And did you say Yes?" We all just laughed. Now I can't remember if we ever got her name or not. My guess is that we didn't. But we both wondered what it was like when she told her family about what she had witnessed. I bet there was some loud laughter going on at that holiday gathering.

"Oh no he didn't ask her to marry him in front of you!" "Oh hell yes he did!"

Getting back to the Chapel on that blissful day. I was waiting on the Pastor and the arrival of Cory. I was with my brother John who was my best man (and not a surfer).
He couldn't understand why I was so obsessed with checking the surf. "I don't need
the distraction today. Besides, if there's surf, half of the attendees will bail on the service and go surfing. " My brother was like "What are you talking about? No surfer would leave a wedding to go surfing." Like I said, my brother was not a surfer. He
was not aware of what surfers are capable of. "Are you kidding me? Johnny trust
me, if there was good surf today, we'd be in trouble. "

But there was no sign of any kind of bump out there. It was, smooth sailing.

And no sooner did I think that, when about 5 minutes before the ceremony was about to start I saw a rogue 3-4' single wave rise up, and perfectly fold on the reef across
the street. "Oh my God..." I said out loud. My brother looked over "What?" I just stared out across the large span of manicured lawn and pointed toward the ocean.

"That was a wave. A good wave. Oh no...please don't tell me that the surf is coming up. " My brother completely dismissed the notion of the surf coming up. In fact if anything, he dismissed the fact of surf altogether.

Turns out he was right. There was no surf that day. It was just that. A single wave.

Though I took it as a sign from my late friend Joe Somogyi. After all my last words to Joe before he passed away in 1978 was "Try and contact me. Send me signs. Let me know you are there." Maybe he just conjured up that one lone wave, and sent it in off the reef, as a reminder of what this day, and this marriage, and new life of ours was going to be about. Maybe it was a positive sign from Joe in heaven above. Well 23 years later, I think of that day and the events that have happened since that day.
And it all now seems to make sense. We wanted to raise a family around the surf community and that's exactly what we did.

We bought a house here on the seacoast. We moved our business here. And we are truly blessed with 3 healthy, loving children who are now 20, 19, and 15. Of course
we have, like any other family, had our share of grief and loss. We lost both of my parents, and Cory's father. Almost every single aunt and uncle who was present at
our wedding are now gone. Two of Cory's grandparents are no longer with us as well. And at times it seems overwhelming to look back and see all of our loved ones who are no longer with us.

But we do consider ourselves lucky. Lord knows there are many others who have suffered more than we have. And for that, we are truly grateful and feel blessed. We have established ourselves here on the seacoast, and have entrenched ourselves and lifestyle that revolves completely around the ocean. We are a part of a community of ocean loving surfers and non surfers who love and appreciate our beaches and ocean.

And we still have Cory's Mom and loving step father John. And Cory's grandma Parker is still very much a part of our lives. She writes to us on a regular basis. And let me say this, we absolutely love getting hand written letters from Grandma Parker. It's like connecting with the past. My late parents loved to send cards and letters to us. As did Cory's dad. And it was always fun trying to read her dad's letters because his hand writing was...well, let's just say it was unique.

Before I committed to surfing everyday for a year with my "Catch A Wave For Molly" fund raiser I asked my wife if we were going to try and get away for our anniversary this year. After all it is 10-10-10...and I'm so into concepts and numbers. But we both agreed with two kids in college and one a sophomore in High School, we needed to tighten the reins a bit and shoot for the Big 25th Wedding anniversary.

If I'm not mistaken, the SILVER Anniversary is still a Big Deal. 25 years. Is it not?

Now that warrants a trip to Hawaii. And yes, that's where we'd go. That's where we went for our Honeymoon. Kauai and Oahu. It was the first time I ever surfed Hanelei Bay. Man, what a wave that is. I'd love to go back and surf that spot. Though, I did hear that the SUP scene has completely overrun that whole spot. It does not surprise me. Let's face it...SUPs are here to stay. And they are coming to a break near you.

Now before anyone thinks that in two years time I'll be SUPPING guess again. If there's one thing I am certain of in my surf lifestyle it is this. I will NOT SUPP. Or rather I will NOT SUPP when there's surf. Same with TOWING. I will not Tow into a wave. And I will Not SUP on a wave. As long as I am healthy and I can paddle , I plan on earning every single wave I try and catch. The old fashioned way. On my own power. I will not rely on an oar, or a motor. I will rely on the strength of my own two arms and shoulders, and the strength of my legs.

I do not have anything against either one of those. It's just not for me.

The same with punting airs and surfing slabs. Nope. Not gonna do it. I will never boost an air intentionally. And I will never surf some demented slab. I'm too old for that stuff. I just want to surf like I have been my whole life. And I still want to able to surf both a shorter board and a long board. For as long as I can...because I know, we have all been issued a round trip ticket. And it's only a matter of time before we leave this world to go back to the other world. So while I am still here, I want to be able to continue to enjoy the simple pleasures of surfing.

Without all the recent hassles I've encountered as of late.

I just want to surf with my friends and family. That's not too much to ask for. I've been married for 23 years to the same woman. I love her as much today, as I did on that flight in December of 1986. I'm hoping that we can make that trip back to Hawaii in two years when we reach 25 years. Maybe I'll ask for that water Proof tazer I've had my eyes on, as a wedding anniversary gift. You know, to keep the SUPS at bay.

Oh come on...I'm kidding. (Nope). I LOVE you Cory! 10-10-10.


Now for some of my Weekly Global Observances:
Thank God the jury in CT found that evil son of a bitch guilty in the Home Invasion triple murder case in CT this past week. I know you know the story. The first of what should be a GUILTY verdict for these two losers was handed down to the first evil SOB this week. The poor surviving husband and father of the three victims has had to endure this long drawn out trial, of having to listen to the testimony of both police
and neighbors, and the bank teller, as they rehashed this bona fide nightmare of a story. I say go the one step further, and give him the death sentence.

If there was ever a case that warranted the death sentence, this would have to be it. If all Christians are supposedly fighting the devil and evil, then clearly, this is evil. This
is the work of the devil, and they must be dispatched. With 100% conviction. Destroy this evil. Send a message to the other evils SOBs out there. And trust me, they are out there. Waiting, stalking, and pouncing on the innocent and weak.

Let's stop with the BS about what is morally right and wrong and get rid of this scum
of the earth, so we don't have to hear about these kinds of stories anymore.

Speaking of morally right. What about that loser Christian church group that travels around the country protesting at the funerals of US servicemen and women who
have been killed in the GWOT. Oh my God, if there was one story that really got my blood boiling last month it was this one. Are you kidding me? These losers are allowed to do this? Again, this is another case of stepping up and quelling something that needs to be stopped. If I ever saw this first hand, you would all be reading about it.
And you wouldn't be reading it here. It would be in some major publication. Because
I would be dealing with this in a forceful and righteous way.

In other words, I would not be pulling any punches. I would engage. And engage with authority and conviction. In short, I'd knock their blocks off. I'd be kicking some Christian looney butts. That is just morally wrong on so many levels.

So we all got together to watch the Patriots play the Dolphins on Monday night. It was another great game between both clubs. We had visiting families from Hawaii who are hardcore Dolphin fans. So it was some good harmless ribbing going on between both camps. The Dolphins clearly owned the first half, while the Pats came on strong the second half, and basically blew the game out with some special teams plays and a solid defense. Who would of thought any of that possible? Not me, that's for sure. It
was wild to say the least.

But like the other great games this season, we had to listen to and get caught up in
the RANDY MOSS show. What the hell...? Why couldn't they have let him stay on until the year ended? Now we are once again surrounded by all this negative publicity. I
am sick to death of this crap. I'm sick of whining freaking millionaires too. You guys want to know what tough is?

Any one of these over paid super stars could not survive the way we do. Good lord, they need to be concerned about their families. Really? I think me and my family
could survive on a few million, if we absolutely had to. I don't know. I guess we'd find
a way to survive on a few million a year. It would be hard, but we'd figure it out.

Meanwhile Randy is back where he started from. It should be interesting to see how this all pans out. Randy we hardly knew ye...but then again, what we did know, did
not sit well with all of us. Don't let the door hit you in your skinny ass on the way out.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
HAPPY 23rd Wedding Anniversary Cory, October 10th!!
HAPPY 23rd Wedding Anniversary Tim O'Shea and his wife. October 11th!!
HAPPY Wedding Anniversary Rick and Karen Evans, October 8th!!
HAPPY 70th Birthday John Lennon October 9th!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Markey J October 14th!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Arlene Nichols October 16th!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Birthday Evamarie October 19th!
Check out the PIPING MAD Plover story down in Hatteras. Just Google PIPING MAD.
REST IN PEACE Anne Hammer (mother of Curt and Jay Hammer)
REST IN PEACE Dianne Dewar (Mother of Mackenzie and Ryan).
REST IN PEACE Helen Kutt (Mother of Joe Kutt).
REST IN PEACE Tucker the cat. (Grondin family) .
New Christian Surf Club starting up. Look for ad in right hand column.
Don't forget to Check the DAILY BLOG on My CATCH A WAVE FOR MOLLY. (Click
On the Banner on this page.) Started on July 26, 2010 ENDS July 26, 2011. A Wave
a day for 365 consecutive days. Just click on the banner ads on this page.

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beyond Surf Pics! *NEW PICS added each week!

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Remember my friends...Surfing Heals All Wounds....
Pray for Surf. Pray for Peace. Surf For Fun.

Ralph