How to Make Friends with Strangers

photo by: Joni Storm

One of my favorite things about surfing and skateboarding is how you get to mingle with people you wouldn’t normally engage with so easily. Think if there was a ping pong table in the doctor’s office waiting room or something (pre covid, of course). Think of all the memorable interactions you’d probably have playing a game with those people instead of flipping through those germy magazines (or your phone), not talking. 

I used to paddle out and ignore people. I really wasn’t trying to hear about anyone’s job selling cellular data or teaching math to 5th graders- yada, yada. But over the years I’ve inched a little closer and given up a few more waves (or stories or tv show recommendations). We even named our son Costa after one of our surf friends. These are people I miss when I’m out of the water. These are more than just bobbing heads reducing my wave count. Paddling out to my favorite spot today after having a third kid, I kept thinking about that. That’s all.