Liquid Lines
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•August 27, 2015
Enough of the ‘Participation Award’ Example; Plus Fun Waves, a Rare Tropical Burst and the Final Events of Summer 2015
So the NFL just had its second week of pre-season games, which means surfboards go back into the garage and the tailgate hibachi comes out. Evening sessions give way to Fantasy Football drafts, and…
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•August 19, 2015
Surfing Around Swimmers, Prepping for Cross Stepping at the LBI Longboard Classic and a Chance in Tropical Hell
Picture yourself walking through a park on a sunny day. As you stroll by the basketball court where shirts and skins are playing three-on-three, the big man in the paint misses a pass. The basketball…
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•August 12, 2015
New Tips to Deal With the Heat, a Sorta Nor’easter and a Visit From ‘Occy’
Seventy-eightdegrees as a high temp in August? We’ll take that.
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•August 5, 2015
An Unlikely Tribute to the Grateful Dead With a Stretch of Summer Surf
This Sunday it will be 20 years, two full decades since Jerry Garcia died.
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•July 29, 2015
Matching T-Shirts, Ladies Events, Dings and Other Amusing Summer Things
Have you ever noticed how people act when they are out in a group wearing matching T-shirts? I was on the Boulevard last Saturday while there was some pub crawl going on. Now, I’m not against…
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•July 22, 2015
Folks Have Always Asked Surfers Questions About Sharks; Do We Now Have an Answer?
There are three occasions when surfing makes headlines in the press: monster swells, Kelly Slater and shark attacks. What happened last weekend at the J-Bay open in South Africa was possibly the most…
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•July 16, 2015
Summer Notes on Hurricane Season, Distance Paddlers, Small Waves and Big Fun
Well, here we are, in the middle of July. This is that time of the year we always talk about ’round here. Locals say stuff like “Nah, the traffic isn’t bad, but you should see it where I live in the…
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•July 9, 2015
Summer’s Strong Start for Surfing, Plus Current Sand Sitch, Paddle Races, Yoga, and Music to Candidate’s Ears
The Discovery Channel decided that with all the shark hype this summer, it would move the week of sensationalized science and “docufiction” programming from August to July. There was a big debate at…
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•July 1, 2015
Last Weekend’s Storm Surf Called the Best June Swell Ever
There can be no doubt now. Summer of 2015 is here. Actually, according to the rainbow-colored assault of the last week, Summer 2015 is here, and it’s queer, so get used to it. I think most of us were…
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•June 24, 2015
News Flash: Racism Exists Here, Plus New Bridge Misinformation and Dad’s Day Swell
It was a banger! And if the first weekend of summer is any indication, it would seem that every bit of misery we endured last winter is going to be well worth it this season. Before I get into all…
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•June 16, 2015
Worshipping the Corporate Megachain (Satirically) and All the Happenings for the First Day of Summer
Did you hear the big news? There’s a Super Walmart coming to Little Egg Harbor! The groundbreaking was last Tuesday. I haven’t been this ecstatic since the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision.
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•June 10, 2015
Neighbors Behave Like Gentlemen, Water Warms, Locals Get the Nod and Other Beach Notes
You have to hand it to Seaside Heights. They just hosted the Gentlemen of the Road tour headlined by the British band Mumford and Sons. Festival goers from all over the world camped on the beach…
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•June 4, 2015
Major Water Temperature Swings, Full Legends, Surf Entrepreneurs, and What to See at the Lighthouse International Film Festival
Here’s a funny statistic. During the coldest part of the year in San Diego, the ocean temperature dips to about 58 degrees. On a really cold year, it might bottom out at 57. All you need to wear on…
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•May 27, 2015
An Idea to Deal With Stolen Bikes, Summertime El Niño, and Juggling The Fun Weekend Ahead
Well, we survived that unofficial first weekend of summer on this little sandbar. If you’re keyed into local goings-on, I’m sure you heard of a few bikes being stolen last weekend. In one case, a…
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•May 20, 2015
Discovering the ‘Naked’ Truth as We Begin Another Summer Season on LBI
This week I was looking for a break from all the serious issues that have been weighing on Liquid Lines this year: school closures, politics, home raising, a brutal winter, beach replenishment. I…
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•May 13, 2015
The Sandman Cometh in Ship Bottom in a Big Way, Plus That Social Media Savvy Shark and Many Wave Days
So let me get this straight. We had the first tropical storm of the year, one of the largest beach replenishment projects ever on the East Coast began on LBI, the ocean temps finally broke the…
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•April 29, 2015
Waves That Were Darn Near Perfect and Happenings of the Spring Swing
Since we just had a banging day of bowling surf, I’ll keep this bit short. I’ve followed the saga concerning the Long Beach Island Board of Education and the local discussion regarding the selling of…
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•April 15, 2015
Warm Weather, Businesses Open, People Around … Where Are We?
So, how ’bout that weekend? I thought I was lost.
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•April 2, 2015
Getting Back on the Wave Train, The White House Rain Gauge, and Addressing Replenishment Announcement Fallout
As we thaw out of winter and into the longest season of the year –late winter -I am well aware that local folks are starting to get truly antsy for spring. Not calendar spring, or astronomical…
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•March 19, 2015
Beach Replenishment Coming to LBI; How Will It Affect Your Summer?
The first event of the 2015 World Tour is in the books, and for those who didn’t watch every minute of the Quiksilver Gold Coast Pro webcast, it was kind of a strange one. First, you had the current…
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•March 4, 2015
2015: The Year of the Frozen Wetsuit Selfie and Other Musings From Our Arctic Existence
Beware of anyone who ever says, “I have some good news and some bad news.”
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•February 19, 2015
No Sugar Coating It: This Winter Is a Rough One
I’m starting this week with some sad news that has nothing to do with LBI, nor surfing, nor the polar bears that have been reported smashing holes on the ice of Barnegat Bay looking for a meal. Last…
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•February 5, 2015
Not a Historic Blizzard? It Was For Surfers
Let’s crucify him LBI-style! Let’s dunk his ass in the freezing Barnegat Bay and lash him to the bulkhead in the .jpg northwest winds. Let’s dip him in hot taffy, roll him in the sugar sand and make…
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•January 21, 2015
The Case of Shrinking Wetsuits (and Growing Waistlines) This Winter With a Few Fitness Options
I think folks would say we have a pretty tight community around here. And because of that, I would like to ask everyone to keep an eye out. It appears that since late December, someone has been…
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•January 8, 2015
Don’t Call ‘Em Resolutions, Holiday Wave Recap and Other Musings for the Long Stretch of Winter.
This first Lines of the year always feels more like an intimate conversation than a newspaper column. From the looks of the Long Beach Island area, I have to imagine I’m talking to only four, maybe…
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•December 17, 2014
Last Lines of the Year, a Look at the Waves of 2014
Just as I got used to writing 2014 on my deposit slips, it’s over. Damn. Where did that year go?
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•December 3, 2014
Surfers Sated After Thanksgiving; Six Months of Winter Ahead?
So far, this is turning out to be one hell of a holiday season. It sounds like most every surfer around had a similar T-Day sequence.
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•November 19, 2014
Enjoying the ‘Last Meal’ of Fall, Documenting a Worldly Storm and Things to Come
With the weather changing last week, did it feel to anyone else like it was ordering your last meal?
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•November 5, 2014
Rundown of Fall Nor’Easters and Why Local Politicians Should Run in Flannel
So there’s an election this week, not just for our national, state, and county representatives, but also local ones right here in Southern Ocean County. And I have to say that no matter who you’re…
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•October 23, 2014
Rundown on the Gonz and the Warped Reality of Social Media
Has anyone ever noticed how great everything is according to social media? No one ever gets skunked?
