This is an additional story to last night's post, Solo Boating.........It's Good for the Soul
“It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.”
~Henry David Thoreau~
A perfect paddle like the solo paddle I experienced on The James Friday evening will help any troubled soul feel contentment, even if only for a short while. After styling Pipeline with as much grace, precision, and delicate skill as I could exemplify, my heart was filled with peace and I felt lucky to be in that place at that moment. I exited the final sinuous drop of the last rapid just as the darkness of night began to set in. The rivah was coming in and the final Class I rapid had all but vanished under the swell of high tide. I serenely paddled out, floating quietly under the Fourteenth Street bridge, listening to the familiar sound of cars clicking across the city's oldest rivah span. Then I pulled up to the steps of our socially shattered takeout and found a fond memory reminisce within my mind. I remembered the times when I would pull up to those stairs and would find Marcelle and Marlow waiting for me to welcome me back from my adventures. My heart grew heavy and I felt the familiar lump form in my throat, but I swallowed hard, shook off the bittersweet recollection, and exited my boat.
As I walked across the virtually empty parking lot I encountered one group of fellow gradient seekers still enjoying the night air, tipping back a few Friday night cold ones, and engaging in the normal activity that kayakers engage in..........talking lots of shit. As I approached my good friend Keith sarcastically looked at me and stated, "son, you shouldn't be boating alone. That can be a dangerous!" I chuckled at the comment, tossed my boat on the gravel, and joined the crew for a cold beer (yep, I'm a hypocrite) and quality conversation.
They informed me that I had just missed The Fat Bastard and I responded that I was heartbroken by that piece of information. Then they offered me a beer and we immersed ourselves in captivating conversation and some friendly whitewater banter. The conversation consisted of the normal exchanges among kayakers..........who was heading to Gauleyfest, when is it going to rain, how is it that I always WALLACE on the rivah, and why does The Fat Bastard have to suck so much. Keith talked about how pretty his boats were and how worried he was that they may get scratched one day, and I returned the comment by pointing how shitty and leaky all of my boats looked, especially PINK. (I kid.......she is a sexy little bitch)
After a few minutes I tipped back my beer and took a giant swig and one of my fellow Dirt Bags looked at me and began to chuckle. I stopped drinking and questioned why he was laughing at me. He comically stated, "Dude, I just realized who's beer you are drinking."..............I already knew the answer before he had to tell me. It was one of the many bribery beers given to him and everyone else at the takeout by, yup, you guessed it, The Fat Bastard. We all had a quality laugh at this ironic coincidence.
“It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not. ”
~André Gide~
Ever since The Fat Bastards return from his violent assault on one of our own, he has taken the weak and sad approach to reinserting his presence.............he has attempted to bribe those around him. Not once has he attempted to apologize or stand up and do the right thing. I constantly hear from fellow paddlers about his sad attempts to buy back their friendship and respect with bribery beers, snacks and gifts, and other material items. Most of the time these stories are told to me with the conclusion that it is a sad and desperate attempt by a corrupt and disloyal soul who has fallen so far that he has no other option but to procure people's friendship. I find this truly pathetic, almost to the point that I feel sorry for that fat slob of a man............almost.
Apparently it has never dawned on The Fat Bastard to look at the example I have set in reasserting ones self into a community.............stand by what you believe in, hold true to your word, and never, ever back down to the ideals that you know are right. I have only once faltered in my beliefs along this journey, and ironically that slip up was the decision that I made to back off of the charges against The Fat Bastard out of guilt for the waves I made in the community. I am proud of the fact that I have held firm to my beliefs, no matter how bad it became, and can now continue to hold my head up high. There are many in this community who still do not accept me, and probably never will, but my concern is not with those shallow souls. My attention is now being paid to not only the ones that stood by me, but also to the ones who have come back. Many of those people play somewhat of a pretend game with me, and I buy into it to a point, but I assert my opinion and state my thoughts when I find it is needed. The one thing I NEVER stopped doing through all of this was respecting myself, and I am fucking proud of everything that has happened to me, everything that I have been through, and I will forever hold those lessons close to my heart.
“How people treat you is their karma; how you react is yours.”
~Wayne W. Dyer~
The Fat Bastard does not have this ability, because not only are his actions unforgivable, but I truly feel he lacks the depth to understand what true friendship really is, and what it truly means to be a man. My only concern is the exposure and damage this has caused to his son, because despite all that has happened, I want to see that kid grow up to be a better man than his father will ever be. I worry about the damage The Fat Bastard has already caused to that once innocent child.
I have decided to step away from the issue of The Fat Bastard for a while, because with the help of some loyal and good friends, I have been able to make a profound conclusion to this issue...........The Fat Bastard is a very emotionally sick and tortured soul, and he needs help, therapy, and a very, very good counselor. I worry that he is not seeking any of these solutions, and I worry that his priorities are confused. He still seems intent on attempting to conquer a gravel parking lot as his life's endeavor, and he is too ignorant to understand how badly he is pissing off a community, and damaging a boating family. If he truly loved and cared for The James Rivah the way myself and my fellow paddlers do, he would realize that the best approach is to remove himself from the scene for a temporary reprieve and give the community time to heal. I think it is apparent to everyone that is never going to happen, and for that I am truly heartbroken for Fourteenth Street and The James Rivah Community.
I tipped back The Fat Bastards bribery beer and slugged down the ice gold nectar created by the Rivah Gods. Our group of gradient seekers and whitewater junkies continued to laugh at one another in the night air, and jokingly rail on the human faults that makes us all unique. It was a beautiful evening, and a humble end to a quality day. As I swallowed down the last few sips of The Fat Bastards beer I realized that this lager tasted exceptionally more refreshing than most, and it was extra soothing. Then I chuckled for a moment once I realized what that taste was....................the sweet taste of victory.
Something tells me The Fat Bastard is already eating enough shit as is. Funny how life works.
See ya on the rivah................enjoying all that humanity has to offer. PEACE
As I walked across the virtually empty parking lot I encountered one group of fellow gradient seekers still enjoying the night air, tipping back a few Friday night cold ones, and engaging in the normal activity that kayakers engage in..........talking lots of shit. As I approached my good friend Keith sarcastically looked at me and stated, "son, you shouldn't be boating alone. That can be a dangerous!" I chuckled at the comment, tossed my boat on the gravel, and joined the crew for a cold beer (yep, I'm a hypocrite) and quality conversation.
They informed me that I had just missed The Fat Bastard and I responded that I was heartbroken by that piece of information. Then they offered me a beer and we immersed ourselves in captivating conversation and some friendly whitewater banter. The conversation consisted of the normal exchanges among kayakers..........who was heading to Gauleyfest, when is it going to rain, how is it that I always WALLACE on the rivah, and why does The Fat Bastard have to suck so much. Keith talked about how pretty his boats were and how worried he was that they may get scratched one day, and I returned the comment by pointing how shitty and leaky all of my boats looked, especially PINK. (I kid.......she is a sexy little bitch)
After a few minutes I tipped back my beer and took a giant swig and one of my fellow Dirt Bags looked at me and began to chuckle. I stopped drinking and questioned why he was laughing at me. He comically stated, "Dude, I just realized who's beer you are drinking."..............I already knew the answer before he had to tell me. It was one of the many bribery beers given to him and everyone else at the takeout by, yup, you guessed it, The Fat Bastard. We all had a quality laugh at this ironic coincidence.
“It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not. ”
~André Gide~
Ever since The Fat Bastards return from his violent assault on one of our own, he has taken the weak and sad approach to reinserting his presence.............he has attempted to bribe those around him. Not once has he attempted to apologize or stand up and do the right thing. I constantly hear from fellow paddlers about his sad attempts to buy back their friendship and respect with bribery beers, snacks and gifts, and other material items. Most of the time these stories are told to me with the conclusion that it is a sad and desperate attempt by a corrupt and disloyal soul who has fallen so far that he has no other option but to procure people's friendship. I find this truly pathetic, almost to the point that I feel sorry for that fat slob of a man............almost.
Apparently it has never dawned on The Fat Bastard to look at the example I have set in reasserting ones self into a community.............stand by what you believe in, hold true to your word, and never, ever back down to the ideals that you know are right. I have only once faltered in my beliefs along this journey, and ironically that slip up was the decision that I made to back off of the charges against The Fat Bastard out of guilt for the waves I made in the community. I am proud of the fact that I have held firm to my beliefs, no matter how bad it became, and can now continue to hold my head up high. There are many in this community who still do not accept me, and probably never will, but my concern is not with those shallow souls. My attention is now being paid to not only the ones that stood by me, but also to the ones who have come back. Many of those people play somewhat of a pretend game with me, and I buy into it to a point, but I assert my opinion and state my thoughts when I find it is needed. The one thing I NEVER stopped doing through all of this was respecting myself, and I am fucking proud of everything that has happened to me, everything that I have been through, and I will forever hold those lessons close to my heart.
“How people treat you is their karma; how you react is yours.”
~Wayne W. Dyer~
The Fat Bastard does not have this ability, because not only are his actions unforgivable, but I truly feel he lacks the depth to understand what true friendship really is, and what it truly means to be a man. My only concern is the exposure and damage this has caused to his son, because despite all that has happened, I want to see that kid grow up to be a better man than his father will ever be. I worry about the damage The Fat Bastard has already caused to that once innocent child.
I have decided to step away from the issue of The Fat Bastard for a while, because with the help of some loyal and good friends, I have been able to make a profound conclusion to this issue...........The Fat Bastard is a very emotionally sick and tortured soul, and he needs help, therapy, and a very, very good counselor. I worry that he is not seeking any of these solutions, and I worry that his priorities are confused. He still seems intent on attempting to conquer a gravel parking lot as his life's endeavor, and he is too ignorant to understand how badly he is pissing off a community, and damaging a boating family. If he truly loved and cared for The James Rivah the way myself and my fellow paddlers do, he would realize that the best approach is to remove himself from the scene for a temporary reprieve and give the community time to heal. I think it is apparent to everyone that is never going to happen, and for that I am truly heartbroken for Fourteenth Street and The James Rivah Community.
I tipped back The Fat Bastards bribery beer and slugged down the ice gold nectar created by the Rivah Gods. Our group of gradient seekers and whitewater junkies continued to laugh at one another in the night air, and jokingly rail on the human faults that makes us all unique. It was a beautiful evening, and a humble end to a quality day. As I swallowed down the last few sips of The Fat Bastards beer I realized that this lager tasted exceptionally more refreshing than most, and it was extra soothing. Then I chuckled for a moment once I realized what that taste was....................the sweet taste of victory.
“If you're really a mean person you're going to come back as a fly and eat poop.”
~Kurt Cobain~Something tells me The Fat Bastard is already eating enough shit as is. Funny how life works.
See ya on the rivah................enjoying all that humanity has to offer. PEACE
