Days Off

If you always thought it would be cool to hail a cab by whistling through your fingers, you were right - and you owe it to yourself to learn this essential life-skill before another unfulfilled whistle-less day passes. Fortunately, I can teach you how to do it in four easy steps, none of which involve providing information about your banking account.

It's the first day of snowboarding season, and nothing, not even shirt-sleeve warm weather, a constant depressing drizzle of rain, near-zero visibility due to fog, and an unfortunate lack of snow can stop us from hitting the slopes. And by hitting, I mean literally hitting. Hard.

In a last warm spell before winter chills the ocean, I pack up the camping gear and head back to the beach for one more surfing trip. Although I initially only fear the few remaining creepy campground people in my vicinity, a far more sinister development - no decent waves to ride - proves even more troubling.