The Longest Week

The average week for a human being flies by at breakneck speed, seldom yielding any spectacular events or memorable moments.  It is much easier to sift through a month in order to find nuggets of awesomeness and joy.  This first week of December however, has been of for the books. 

My presence at Candlestick has always brought good fortune.  Never been to a game that didn't end in a win!

I couldn't find the damn place, but luckily this man and his sign helped me out.

Jesse and drove down to Redlands the next day so we could skate/chill and drink beer outside of 

dilapidated houses.

The following night was the Nike Premier.  Daryl and everyone in the video crushed skateboarding beyond all recognition.  An open bar means double fisting.

Daryl was nice enough to let us all pass out on his floor that night... and allow us to collect all of the old pumpkins in his neighborhood.

Ivan and Waka joined us for the long drive home.  This sexy beast needs no filter.

I worked for a couple days just to keep myself grounded, but then it was off to the Los Gatos Christmas Parade.  C.B Hannegans had the tastiest looking float.

Strange how the worst liquor store in the South Bay has a float with a built in bike jump.  Ryan Nyquist always throws out a backflip or two.

True LG Locs enter the Black Watch thirsty and leave with red cups.  This town's got issues.

We end this week the same way it started, with 49ers football.  I had to pick my folks up from the airport and this was the nearest place with beer and a tv.

They always had a nice warm fire, comfy seats, and a black Santa.

Not to mention Kool-aide mimosas!  Odd but good. 

Happy Holidays!

Mirror Images of Beer Scrimmages

This liquor store is, and has always been, located on the corner of 6th and Williams.  Many a beer has been purchased from this particular alcohol and "food" merchant, and consequently consumed in either a respectful or abusive manner.  No beer was purchased during either of the two visits to said liquor store in the pictures below.  

Caswell steps upon the threshold of chips, candy and cola.

Nugget follows in suit, most likely about to buy a banana and coffee. 

  

Some Pics from the Past, to Save my Sorry Ass(t)

Never before in Clog history have a been so horribly negligent!  Never before have I shown such sloth and flippant nonchalance towards something I traditionally hold so dear!  Never have a gone the entire month of October without posting a Clog dedicated to the changing color of leaves or the coming of Oktoberfest!  Not even a mention of Halloween on this oh so sacred of poorly made blogspot sites!  What on earth have I become!?!  I ought to be tarred and feathered by the blogging community and dragged through the cybernetic streets of the internet, while the four or so followers I have laugh incessantly at me.  Or maybe I should just post some unused photos I have stowed away from a couple years ago... yah, that sounds much better.  

A slice of pumpkin pie and my Maine coffee shall be companions for life.

If you see the bamboo bike then you know the photo is old as dirt.  

At some point during 2011 I wanted to write a Clog highlighting my favorite skate spots within a few blocks of my parent's house.  I scrapped the idea because the post was filled with spots like this.  

Cruise through the leave and soak up the crisp breeze.

This LG pole jam was short lived but entertaining. 

I assume the buyer of this automobile chose this color in honor of the fall season.

NIght falls on Candle Stick Park.  This shall be the last fall I visit my beloved stadium.

Hopefully this one Clog makes up for the posting drought that swept through the entire month of October.  

Happy Halloween my Friends!

Roots, Rock and Raffin

After noticing all of the coverage Peter has been having, whether it be Transworld, Vogue or Better Homes and Gardens, I decided to throw a little Clog hype his way.  

Peter Raffin's skateboarding has received much praise over the years, but not so much his musical ability.  The following video takes us back to one Peter's impromptu solo recording sessions.  Here he speaks straight from the heart about a San Jose nightlife only someone with his deep ties to the city can truly understand.  What you are about to watch is considered by most to be Peter Raffin's very first music video.

 

Wine Inventions by White People

I typically dedicate my summers to vacationing in either Morocco, Scotland or at least a brief stay at my cottage in Maine that boasts a spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean.  Not this summer my friends.  I have been too busy working 60 plus hours a week at different jobs to have full blown summer vacation.     I have barely even been able to properly Clog for Christ's sake!  In order to ease my way back into the world of competitive blogging, I have decided to focus this post on an invention that may change the way you lounge around in the grass while watching a concert forever.  

Yes, this is a wine glass holder that sticks into the ground so you do not have to worry about your beverage being spilled by an uneven lawn.

These two are always a step ahead of the partying game.

If none of this interests you, then here is a picture of some ribs I bbq's on 4th of July.  This summer hasn't been all work.

 

"Tell me a Story, About how you Adore me"

Lately my external hard drive has taken on the form of a stumbling drunk fool, vomiting up chunks of footage and coating the streets of cyberspace with bile and filth.  All of this is perfectly fine, because after all, what is else is the internet good for?
     In the edit I have created here for all of you loyal Cloggers I attempt to juxtapose the act of skating inside the confines of a skatepark with that of shredding in the mean streets.  I also bring into view strange and disturbing elements of life outside the realm of skating.  All of these images have been set to a Rolling Stones songs whose meaning has always been a mystery to me.  The question, "have you seen your mother baby, standing in the shadows," confuses me to this day.  I will just assume that the lyrics of this song, centered around darkness, light, and alternate realities, perfectly describe the themes of the video.  Who here has truly lived in the shadows?



ps.  Happy birthday to both Kara and Mikey.

Through Another Man's Lens Vol. 3

This marks the final installment of TAML (through another man's lens).  I think it is high time I stopped  reliving my memories, fond as they may be, through old photos taken by Lane.  The nostalgia brought upon by these images is heartwarming, but I need to move on with my damn life.  It is also hard to find photos that I can accurately give an explantation of what is contained within them.  So without further rambling, I present to you the last batch of Lane's Facebook photos I deem worthy of reposting on the Clog.  How arrogant was that last sentence!?

This photo was taken on Jesse's 21st birthday, an age that he insisted he would never make it to when we were growing up.  Jesse has since managed to existed several years beyond his self proclaimed expiration date, and sure as hell made the most of them.  Lane and Jesse are pictured here sitting on a bench at Hillbrook School in Los Gatos.  After a night of partying at Tyler's old house on Race Street, Lane, Ty, Jesse, Mikey, Thomas, and myself drove around skating whatever random spots the birthday boy desired.  Jesse and Lane has the same haircut and the innocence surrounding us on this day was magical.    

Katie has allowed me to rest my shaggy head upon the soft carpet of just about every place she has taken up residence.  For this I thank her, and hope that someday she will forgive me for all the jars of peanut butter I consumed without asking.  This picture is of Lane in his most "Lanesque" state, taken at Katie's apartment off Bascom Ave.  Lane and Katie began dating and living together around this time.  I loved how this apartment was biking distance from my parent's house, how Matt Hicks was always a regular guest, and how Lane was constantly doing something random and entertaining.

Not mush else can be said of this photo other than that it is of Clark being Clark.  He is shown here shirtless and in nature.  I couldn't tell you when or where this was taken or even if it falls in the appropriate time period of this TAML Clog post, which is 2009 to present.  this is neither here nor there, because Clark is a timeless being.  

Speaking of timeless, here is a photo of Thomas being mindless.  I met this man during the turbulent year of 2009 and he has remained a positive influence ever since.  Thomas and Lane have been through countless adventures and hopefully can reconnect somewhere down the twisted road of life. 

When Mikey turned 21 he invited all of his friends to stay with him and Courtney at her parent's cabin in Bear Valley.  What ensued was pure mayhem, and one would think that two days of complete raging insanity surely wouldn't turn into an annual tradition spanning three years.  But it did, and this was a group photo from the first visit.  Mikey and Courtney split up some time ago, so all we Bear Valley vacationers have to remember the cabin by are crude photos and priceless stories.   

Tyler and Lane living together in a one bedroom shack in Berkley probably wasn't a great idea.  It probably wasn't very sanitary either.  Twelve pack carpeting anyone?

I could probably dedicate an entire series of Clog posts to photos of Tommy's alone (note to self... create a series of posts dedicated entirely to Tommy's), but this one is a personal favorite.  I love the symmetry of Katie and I and the level of beer in each glass.  I love our facial expressions.  I remember seeing this picture and wondering whether or not we were pissed off at each other during this moment.  I want this picture touched up a bit and framed.

I seldom see Lane these days, but I assume he is doing well.  I have little to say about this picture because I know neither when nor where it was taken.  I do not know who took the picture and whether or not Lane knew it was being taken.  All I do know is that there is a Burger King in the background and Lane is smoking.  Cigarettes, ground beef,  and beats is all anyone needs to know.  Maybe through a Heineken in there for good measure.