MOvember

November is prostate cancer awareness month. MOvember "MO Australian slang for Mustache" is a month in which all are encouraged to grow out their best MO to raise awareness towards prostate cancer and other major male health issues.

What I am here to talk about are the overly ironic mustaches. I am over the "hey look I'll grow a handle bar so everyone will know I'm joking around and not serious about having a mustache" mustache. Grow some cajones and keep it within the smile line. The goal of a good mustache should be that when someone looks at it they ask "is that for real?, no its a joke!, no its for real!, wait or is it a joke?" Keep that in mind the next time you manicure that hair on your upper lip.

Mutual Thanks on Thanksgiving

Right when I moved to NYC I met old school NYC skate legend Andy Kessler. He talked shit on surfers yet surfed. So we had that in common. There can be an intimidating crew of locals and/or visiting pros at the Autumn Bowl in Brooklyn, and when I first got my key and started showing up Andy gladly made it known to all that I was one of his boys. So instead of getting the who the fuck is this guy skating with a stank surfer style vibe, I was given the benefit of the doubt. Every now and then I'll get a call from Andy and the conversation starts with a "Hey you homo have you gotten in the water lately?" and always closes with a "Well we should go and skate soon."

Back in the Spring of 2005 Andy busted his hip skating the former Blinde bowl in SoHo. Like many Andy didn't have health insurance so in that fall all of his creative friends got together and applied some artwork to his model blanks. An auction/party was held to raise money to chip away at Andy's surgery bills. Wouldn't socialized medicine be nice? My friend Dewey and I built a website for Andy pro bono to sell the remaining pieces. My favorite was this Ric Charnowski piece that had Jesus is Answer stuck to it. Ric Charnowski and Buddy Nichols made the skate films Northwest, Fruit of the Vine, and Tent City. These titles feature the most credible pool/bowl skaters and the infamous Anti Hero team. Andy knew I had been eye balling it and 2 years later he has given it to me as a sign of thanks. So on this Thanksgiving thursday I wanted to give thanks to Andy "you little fairy" for saying thanks to me.

A Tale of Two Burritos

A few years ago I was in the constant presence of some of the worlds best surfers. I was amazed at their ability to disect the shape of a short board and explain how it did and didn't work for them. I started tripping and wondered what is was in life that I had enough confidence to break it down to someone on what did and didn't work for me. The answer.....burritos! Those of you who know me well know my obsession with burritos. Having just returned from San Diego I figured I share my thoughts on my San Diego and New York City burritos of choice.

I was introduced to Ricos Taco Shop in Encinitas, CA by my friend Andy Davis in 2000. It is the taqueria that I measure all other taquerias by. The Justin Burrito is my favorite (refried beans, rice, cheese, guacamole, french fries, lettuce, all double wrapped in two magical flour tortillas); only I tailor it by requesting no lettuce and extra cheese. Rico's gets every ingredient right and their home made hot sauce must have some crack cocaine in it. Washing you meal down with large Orange Bang is a must.

My good friend Chrissy Lee Barnes had a birthday party for her boyfriend at Taco Chulo back in 2005. Chrissy worked at Taco Chulo and told me that there burritos were to die for. Truth be told I walked in there as a hater. NYC could pull off tacos but failed at burritos. Over two years later I am one of Taco Chulo's most frequent and favorite patrons. I have a couple of items on the secret menu. 1. Moose's Carb Bomb (refried beans, rice , cheese, potatoes, guac,and jalepenos) 2. Surf and Turf special (Baja Taco and Tex Mex Taco).

If you have burrito issues like myself or way too much time on your hands check out this site for some nation wide reviews and suggestions Burritophile.com.

One California Day :: New York City

One California Day is screening at Anthology Film Archive tonight in the East Village. Below is the synopsis, a link to the trailer,the location and show times. I'll be at the 9:30 screening.

From the filmmakers who brought you Singlefin: yellow, DRIVE and Stylemasters, comes a story about surf culture and tradition. One California Day is a visual journey through six distinct coastal regions, capturing the California surfing experience through the surfers who live it. Shot in brilliant super 16mm color film, the movie examines the variety of subtle differences that make California so unique. View the Trailer

NEW YORK CITY, NY – NOVEMBER 6th, 2007
ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVE – 7:30pm and 9:30pm
32 Second Avenue New York, NY 10001

Joe Strummer :: Punk Rock Warlord

My sisters told me that when I was 4 I would walk around the house singing "Rock the Casbah!, Rock the Casbah!" You can imagine my delight when I found out Joe Strummer : The Future is Unwritten was playing at the local movie theater in Biarritz. I bought a ticket then ran to buy a bottle of wine to polish off while watching the film. This weekend it is being released in States. Go buy yourself a ticket. I can pretty much guarantee it'll be the best $10 dollars you will have spent all week.