PERMA-GRIN...

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...is nothing to smile about.
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GREASY BREAKFAST

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Early mornin' bilge dumpin into the lineup. Gotta love duck diving in water slicked with the smell of fuel and oil... plus a few hearty gulps.
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DEATH IS BULLSHIT (Sometimes, In Some Ways)

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Recently saw a documentary on PBS about Orca Whales— Their bodies are so full of high PCB levels that a washed up dead one needs to be treated as hazardous waste.
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A large number of the breeding adult males have died due to the effects of the PCBs, whereas the adult famales have not been so largely effected because the PCBs are fat soluble... So the nursing mother Orcas are able to rid their bodies of some of the pollutant through their milk.
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But the those PCBs are being passed on through the milk to the calves. Many of the calves never reach maturity now because the PCBs severely debilitates their immune systems. Along with that, the PCBs cause malformed reproductive systems in many of the calves that do reach maturity.
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All combined, a quagmire that is threatening the future of the species.
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Photo above from August 14, 2008 Seattle Times article, Newborn orca spotted in the San Juans
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PCB INFO LINK
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SUMMERTIME BLUES

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The beach is for everyone...
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...But some things will always be hard to swallow:
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1) Mandatory Blackball for the inside shallows to be played in while sets go unridden on the outside.
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2) Returning next dawn to a parking lot and beach of trash.
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3) Abandoned chicken and styrofoam.

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HOW MANY LAZY ASSES DOES IT TAKE TO SCREW IN A LIGHT BULB?

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PUNJI STICK

My local spot lived up to its heyday name of Tin Can Beach yesterday.


The next time you're running and jumping around the beach with your kid, beware of creased aluminum cans buried just inches under the sand. Sucks that having a good time barefoot on the beach is such a gamble.

In my time, I've also been hit by a hypo-needle in the sand... bummer to leave the beach needing an HIV test. At least this time 'round I don't have to think about that— just a hand full of days out of the water.

Just heard a story about a friend of a friend that had to get his big toe reattached after stepping on a broken shell while running down the beach for a paddle out. A good story to temper my irritation with a forced surf break caused by what is really just a minor cut.
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TIME TO GET THE CROPS IN THE GROUND

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Moving into Spring it's time to get a jump start on the gardening. Here's a simple how to for the urban beach head:
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1. Comb the beach shell litter line for seeds, otherwise known as Nerdles.
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2. Collect Nerdles to your heart's desire.
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3. Find a patch of sand with bubble holes below high tide line.
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4. Plant one Nerdle per hole.
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5. Wait for high tide to rise over planted sand patch and return after tide has fallen. Nerdles will have sprouted into straws.
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6. Harvest and wrap straws in paper sleeves and store in glove box for future trips to your local corporate juice bar chain, ice coffee slinger, or slurpy outlet.
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A note about Nerdles: While growing up as a grom spending the whole day at the beach, laying around in the sand between sessions, many a Nerdle was found, popped into the mouth and chewed on while pondering the mystery of where the Nerdle came from. They were chewed to pass the time away until flattened out into really thin patties that couldn't get any more wafer thin, then spit out. I've heard many an explanation over the years of where Nerdles actually come from. From... God given grom-mana from heaven, hacky sack innards, and Barbie doll poops, to the squished remains of little spherical plastic balls used by the thousands to facilitate the easier moving of shipping containers across the decks of freighters. But of all the explanations, the only thing I've ever seen living proof of is their sprouting into straws when planted correctly.
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