You're stepping off of concrete ground and into an element that is always changing and moving and surrounding you - and it feels good.

There's really no reasonable measure that would call me a "real" surfer. I'm more of a fish. I love being in the water, and in the end surfing is great, but I'm also happy in rivers, lakes, and even, if I'm desperate - pools. I do really miss surfing though. There are surf spots you can get to from Seattle, but they're only for the hard core. It's about a two hour drive, and the water is exceptionally cold. It's clear that I miss it though, when I was in LA for the World Cup in the fall I was in the water every day.

All this nostalgia happened because I just watched Step Into Liquid. This is a spectacular surfing documentary, and for someone like me who just a casual surfer it makes me want to quit my job, move to San Diego, buy a surf board, and figure out the rest as I go along. But then I remember that I have other outlets for the surfer inside of me. That's really what rafting is for, which is a good fit for me since I've always had a greater connection with rivers then oceans.

But rafting and surfing are very different. Surfing is a personal thing, where you have this intimate connection with the water. In rafting you're perched on top of this big raft, typically with a group of people. I always want to jump off the raft and just be in the water, swim the rapids myself. I might get into kayaking for that connection, but there you have half your body locked into a shell. That doesn't seem too appealing to me, since I'm the guy who likes body-surfing over any other form since it's just me and the water, I don't even like having a board along. I think the right answer is to tag along on raft trips and swim a LOT.

Clearly, this was a good movie. I can't get surfing out of my head. But this movie goes beyond reinvigorating my inner surfer. It presents the core of surfing, and tries to combat the surf bumb stereotype. The thesis is that surfing makes people happy, so it's a good thing. In addition to various "real" surfers, we get to see the happiness that surfing brings to young kids in Vietnam, or how it can help to bring together Catholics and Protestants in Ireland. There's a great dichotomy between these uplifting human stories and the terrifying shots of huge wave surfing. And it's all filmed with incredible beauty.

I skipped rafting today to get some rest, and now I wish I hadn't - I want to be in the water...

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