I've had some down time this weekend due to the removal of all four of my wisdom teeth, so I actually had plenty of time to update the website. In November, Nicole and I went on a 3 week trip to Costa Rica. I've added a Costa Rica section to the galleries. Check 'er out.

A little over a week ago, my cousin Jamie called me to ask if I wanted to do something “rednecky” with him. I said “sure”, and ended up going to my first Nascar race yesterday in New Hampshire. Looking to experience “Real America” and always being down for just about anything new, I knew it'd be worth it even if I didn't like the race. Well, I turns out I had a really good time, and I found the race to be really fun and exciting (at times).

Gearing up for the race.

Approval of the leader after the restart. This is one of those things that normally screw up your shot, but luckily makes it better. I followed the cars with my camera on a low shudder speed and got this guy's thumb.

Another lucky shot. I hoped I'd get a shot of a crash, but figured it wouldn't happen near me, or I wouldn't have my camera ready. I was just trying to get I shot of people cheering as the restart got underway and the 88 of Dale Earnhardt Jr. went spinning into the wall.

Smoke billows into the crowd from a crash in the final lap.

Surfing is one of those things that I really enjoy doing, but I only do it once or twice a year. The best time of year for catching waves big enough to ride is in the winter, and I think it's fucking nuts to surf when there is snow on the ground. And I'd rather spend my winters surfing H20 in its solid state. So the only time a get out is when there's a storm brewing some swell in the summer time. Thanks to Hurricane Bill, I turned into a beachgoer for the whole weekend in search of some waves.

Yesterday, fellow surfer and co-worker, John Huffaker, and I explored various beaches of the Massachusetts' North Shore in search of waves. We didn't find anything that was ridable, so I continued up to New Hampshire where we surfed for the day. And conveniently, we had a thunderstorm come through while we were already on our lunch break. When that passed, we hopped back in.

Today, I went on a solo mission, and surfed at a beach between Lynn and Swampscott for the entire day. It's pretty exciting to go surfing at a place that is only a 15 minute drive away when you live in Boston. If anything, it was a good weekend to get out and enjoy summer, since it only seems like it arrived this month. It was nice looking around and watching everyone have a good time. Much of this good time was provided by the hurricane surf hitting the seawall at high tide, as you'll see in the photos below. The forecast for today was scattered thunderstorms; I surfed all day with blue skies, finished up, had an ice cream cone, and when I was in my car driving home, for no more than a minute, it started downpouring. I'd say this was a pretty perfect summer day.

Surfer "ripping" at The Wall in New Hampshire.

People getting blasted by waves hitting the seawall in Lynn, MA. You can see Boston in the background.

About to get soaked at the seawall

More wave/seawall action

The African Wildlife photo gallery is now up. These are a few of the wildlife photos I shot while I was in South Africa (and traveling other countries) in 2006. Enjoy.

Enjoying the cool air provided by the ocean fog that crept in around 5pm. A really refreshing experience, especially compared to the hot, humid air that lingered just an hour earlier. I've been looking through old photos, and I came across this flower that I shot in Zimbabwe in 2006.

Expect an African wildlife photo section up in the next day or two, Don't expect anything crazy, just some shots that I took while I was there.