Jaimal Nikos Yogis

It’s a very exciting day. We are finally beginning production on Saltwater Buddha: The film and you can view the pre-production trailer above. This is just the first stage — putting out the word and raising money — but I’m so grateful that the renowned and visionary film-makers at Nohoch Productions and Roberto Vezzone Films saw potential for Saltwater Buddha to be put on the silver screen and that we’re also partnering with beautiful organizations like Save the Waves, Surf Stronger, Las Olas Surfboards, and others. Plus, my favorite musicians, Jim Klar and Nine Pound Shadow, are creating the soundtrack, which I know will give Saltwater Buddha the right vibe.

If you’re interested in joining Saltwater Buddha: The Film as a sponsor or collaborator, contact Producer Lara N Popyack at lara@saltwaterbuddha.org

Stay tuned as scenes develop. I’ll be posting updates here.

To order a copy of Saltwater Buddha, the book, click here

Hope to see you all that Aqua Surf Shop’s surf photography event tonight. As you all know, Aqua is the most rocking shop in SF and, as exhibited by this Paul Ferraris photo, the photography will be stellar.

November 11, 2009

Here’s the info:
AQUA SURF SHOP PRESENTS LOOSE CONNECTIONS 2
San Francisco, CA—Aqua Surf Shop is pleased to announce the opening of Loose Connections II, a special exhibition featuring the work of eleven photographers united by their art, their friends, and the ocean. The show begins on Friday, December 4th at Pkirkeby Fine Art & Framing in Potrero Hill.
 Rob Brodman, Scott Eggers, Paul Ferraris, Art Gimbel, Mark Gordon, Dickson A. Keyser, Jake Johnson, Matt Proehl, Adam Warmington, Sachi Cunningham, and Elizabeth Pepin are all Bay Area residents and photographers who share a deep connection to Ocean Beach. They have captured this landscape, and the special community to which they belong, in their personal imagery. Loose Connections II offers viewers a unique opportunity to see through the eyes and lenses of these ten committed surfers as they pursue a life of wave riding in an urban setting surrounded by natural beauty. 25% off all sales from the exhibit will go to benefit San Francisco Baykeeper. 

Catch a glimpse of the surfing lifestyle—and all the adventures that this passionate community experiences—at Aqua’s opening party for Loose Connections II on Friday, December 4th, from 7:00 to 11:00 p.m. Feast on Mexican food from an on-site taco truck while live DJs supply the evening’s soundtrack. 

Pkirkeby Fine Art & Framing is located at 128 Texas Street in San Francisco. For more information about the space, please call 415 863 3060.
 For more information visit -
 aquasurfshop.com

been learning to sail and thinking about joining a pirate crew

These past weeks in San Francisco have been like surfing in a National Geographic special. A couple weeks ago it was solid double overhead plus, glassy, and my friend and I surfed alone with what seemed like well over 100 dolphins and seals. The seals were surfing ten to a wave, leaping out of the water and barking at each other while pelicans dove between them. Dolphins were coming right up to our boards, practically rubbing against us, and sometimes leaping fully out of the water just a few feet away as if to show how stoked they were about the wave conditions. It felt like we were all the same that day – all surfers, out for exactly the same reason.

So it was all the more poignant this past weekend at the annual Save the Waves Film Festival in San Francisco. Hundreds of surfers and ocean lovers came out Friday night to raise money to protect waves and see the headliner film, The Cove.

The festival started out with an appropriately festive vibe. We hooted and hollered at beautiful new films like Lost Prophets (http://www.lostprophetsthefilm.com/) and All Points South. We clapped and whistled while the legendary Captain Paul Watson of Sea Shepherd told us that the work of passionate activists like Dave Rastovich and the makers of The Cove has driven the Japanese whaling industry into the red the past three years. “I think this is the last year they’re going to be able to operate,” Watson said. “And that’s not because of governments. That’s because of individuals.”

Still, all the optimism and pride at seeing the surf community show up to support healthy oceans didn’t make it any easier to watch The Cove. Even though I’d heard about the dolphin killing, to see The Cove is far different. It brings home an absolute absurdity: that the animals we’d been surfing with for hours last week – mammals that scientists have speculated may be more intelligent than humans – are right now, in this very season, secretly being rounded up and killed for meat. It’s tough to stomach, but the coolest thing about The Cove is seeing how dedicated the activists in the film are. They literally risked their lives to sneak into a barricaded, razor-wired, heavily guarded area to expose the dolphin slaughter.

Leaving the festival, I knew that everyone had the feeling that these Friday night fundraisers won’t be enough. We each have to do more to keep our oceans healthy. The directors of The Cove believe that if the Japanese people and the global community actually know what’s going on in Taiji, the dolphin killing will be shut down for good. Environmental activism can sometimes feel abstract or hopeless, but this is a tangible effort all surfers can all be a part of and feel good about. Watch the The Cove, tell your friends, and take a few seconds at http://www.takepart.com/thecove/ and see what you can do for our mammalian surfing buddies.

Watch the trailer here:

For those who haven’t gotten a chance to join me on the book tour, here is a recording of a recent talk and reading I gave at Books Inc. in San Francisco.

In the midst of the wily western book tour and making plans for an Indonesia trip at the end of August (yes, there is a God!) there has been almost no time for thanking the kind people who have been supporting me along the way. Also, a lot of you (especially my mom) have been asking me to keep you updated on my media appearances and I’ve kind of dropped the ball on that too (the product of living out of my van). Anyway, here are some of the recent media highlights which have made the book tour possible. I am eternally grateful!

First, I could hardly believe that The Times of London reviewed Saltwater Buddha and in such a beautiful way. But then I’ve been told Jeff Baker at the Oregonian is more difficult to get a review from than the New York Times so I was equally stoked when he wrote two different articles in his column and even showed up at my Powell’s reading with his very warm and mellow son Chris. I also got my first TV appearance TV appearance on Channel 2 where the hosts basically just teased me for having put my parents through running away to Hawaii — and who can blame them? The very same day it was up to radio host Paul O’Brien’s beautiful river-front sanctuary of a home for a podcast interview on his show Pathways. Portland was so supportive, I was sad to leave, but crashing at the City of 10,000 Buddhas on the 4th of July and seeing my old friend Heng Sure made me feel happy to be back in northern California. Just after leaving the Buddha hall, I had an appropriately meditative interview with Nadia of the popular site Happylotus.com. I arrived back in SF just a few days ago after an absolutely magical reading at my old summer camp on Asilomar Beach and now I’m headed to Sacramento, my hometown, for a reading at Time Tested Books tomorrow and interviews with PBS and NPR, which I will post shortly. Lastly, just a few hours ago creative writing professor, Dr. Will Buckingham, sent me his very well written review of Saltwater Buddha on his site, Thinkbuddha.org.

There, I’m caught up for now. It’s a beautiful day in San Francisco and the warm sand is calling my toes. They’re getting squirmy. See you on the road. You can see upcoming events here.