Hurricane Season is Upon Us

Just a month into official hurricane season and Tidewater Virginia may have a visit from its first major storm as Tropical Storm Arthur - which is expected to strengthen - heads up the east coast.  As of 11:00 AM, this is what the National Hurricane Center has to say:

The National Hurricane Center has issued a tropical storm warning for parts of North Carolina as Arthur moves north off Florida’s coast, threatening Fourth of July plans for thousands of people.

The warning issued Wednesday stretches from Little River Inlet to the North Carolina-Virginia border. The warning means tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere in that area within 36 hours.

The hurricane watch is in effect for Dare County in the Outer Banks. 

Once again, the local media is hyping the story to the max and  setting the stage for a situation where many will ignore important forecasts simply because too often the media has blown actual facts all out of proportion.

Saturday Morning Reflections

Well, we arrived at the beach house last evening and the remainder of the contingent will arrive shortly. So far the weather is good - especially compared to last year when we had a full blown Northeaster with 50+ knot winds -and the sunrise over the ocean was gorgeous. In fact, much like in the photo above. With the weather warm, we were able to leave the doors onto the deck open and sleep to the sound of the waves on the beach. I love the beach and the Outer Banks are a wonderful escape destination. Joining the group this year are my friends Martin and Christopher who are getting to know our lively Hampton crowd. Since Martin has never been down here, we will probably go to the top of Jockey's Ridge - the larges sand dune on the east coast of the USA - and maybe make a run down to Hatteras Island.

Outer Banks Weekend

My posting over the next few days will be reduced since the boyfriend and I are headed down to the Outer Banks of North Carolina later today. As a result computer/Internet access will be reduced. We will be staying at a friend's ocean front vacation home and helping her set up for a weekend house party in a few weeks where a whole bunch of us gay boys and gay friendly straights will descend upon her place. The photo above is a recent one that my son took of a sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean. To me, early morning on the beach or out in the water surfing is such a beautiful and magical time.

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The Outer Banks - Hatteras Island in particular - are among my favorite places. It's a desolate beauty in the winter and pure sea, surf and sand in the summer. I have been down countless times, including the "boys' surf trips" I did with my son and various of his friends over the years. Other favorite places are the lake house at Brantingham in the Adirondacks and places in British Columbia that I visited with my son back in 2004. Once one hits the Outer Banks, it is as if the real world has been left behind. I suspect that we will have a wonderful time.

Surfing

No, that is not me in the photo. It is my friend Skip who has been one of my most consistent and supportive straight friends since I came out. In fact he was one of the first friends I told and he took it in stride and teased me that he had had his suspicions. He has a wicked sense of humor. He calls me his "gay girlfriend" with whom he can share things he'd tell no one else.

It is very rare for Virginia Beach to get waves like the one in the photo - which was taken at Oceanfront around 57th Street - due to the wide continental shelf off of Virginia Beach. In contrast, the Outer Banks and Cape Hatteras regularly get larger waves (often MUCH larger) because the continental shelf is much narrower and causes less drag to diminish wave size. I have been in larger waves than the one in the photo a few times (see the top photo from Hatteras Island where the waves were 12 feet or more and it is a wonder none of us drowned). It is exhilarating, but it scares the Hell out of you at the same time - falling and having a wave that size hit you is like getting hit by a truck. In winter - when the waves are generally the largest - there is the added fun of being dragged deep under in the cold water. Definitely brain freeze time when that occurs.

One of my New Years' resolutions is to get back into surfing regularly. I had a 70 consecutive month period where I never missed going out each month, even in January and February when the water temperatures can get down to about 38-40 degrees Fahrenheit. Surfing in such temperatures requires full body armor consisting of a winter weight wetsuit, gloves, booties and a hood on really cold days. You basically look like Batman or Robin in some of the newer wetsuits. It is great exercise and also a great stress reliever since one must focus solely on the waves - OK, and perhaps discretely on the eye candy out in the line up too - and your worries fade away. I need the exercise so I can get back my toned six pack - I haven't surfed since September and sadly it shows.