I didn't realize that my hair has grown so long, or that I've already had my nose piercing for over a year now. This year was such a blur, huh? I feel like I was a starkly different person in the beginning of the year compared to what I am now.

Anyway, back to the topic. I AM EXHAUSTED. You'd think it would end at the crazy two-day commute story. Since Saturday morning up to today, I have been in transit for an awfully long combined period of time.

I finally broke in my board last Saturday. It's a 8' Girls McTavish, and I am well aware that it must be the gayest looking surfboard in the lineup. After having trouble making up our minds about whether to still leave for Zambales or not, Alex and I set off for the road, and we we spent a good 4 hours in the car. We nearly didn't make it because so many of our friends backed out from the trip and some of our friends just came back from Zamba and told us the waves were pretty weaksauce. Making our way there though ended up being a good decision because the sun was out and the waves were there. While they were not as high as experienced surfers would have liked it, it was perfect for me because I'm a beginner, and it was perfect for Alex as well because he badly just wanted to try out his new board.

Alex has a business building custom surfboards (click here), and the board he had on him was the very first one he had made. I'd say though that the waves that day were in between wussy baby waves and regular run-of-the-mill waves. Sorry, I wish I could explain it better but I don't know surfer lingo.

In other words, there were still many factors that held me back from maximizing my water time. My approach to my surfing is the way I tackled a lot of my hobbies, a lot of it was dependent on my nerves, observation, and determination. And that's just a fancy way for saying "self-taught." I'm still terrified of wiping out, so a lot of my time was spent sitting on the shore observing how the rest of them seamlessly flowed from paddling, catching a wave, then paddling back again. Take for example how it was only that day that I realize that no matter how shallow the water is, you just get on your board already because walking it to the water while waves are coming at you will be tiring and time-consuming. Things like that.

My board may be that girly shade of pink, but I was really happy with it. It was really easy to maneuver and entering the water wasn't too hard because the shape, height, and weight was perfect for my body's build. My board is very, very light and if you're a flimsy whisp of a girl like me, it really helps when you're carrying it or paddling on it. In Magsaysay, Zambales, the water's gets deep very close to the shore, so you'll be pretty dependent on your board to keep afloat if you're a weak swimmer like I am.

I'm still on the bodyboarding level (meaning: I can catch and ride waves, but I struggle getting up), and I keep telling myself to not be so impatient because it really has to be this way when I wanna learn everything on my own. It's a different story though when I have someone push me or cue me when to stand up. I stand up easy and remembering the rush I get from it reminds me why I do this. Surfing also became a very mental sport to me. It involves getting over your fears (about what you can and cannot do) and studying your environment. I never felt cerebral about sports this way and it's a good feeling.

The trip back was another 4 hours, and down we went on the SCTEX in pitch black night listening to the radio. And me eventually passing out.