Return to Cleveland

November 1, 2008. I drove through Colton and Riverside. I had started early. Dawn was a close companion and I smiled thinly to myself. Reflection aging. How long can I do this thing that I do? Funny thing. Once I got sober, I really started hurting. My joints hurt so much on certain mornings… I wish I wasn’t a junkie alcoholic so I could actually obtain a bit of relief and a full night of sleep. Broken bones start aching once you pass the four decade mark… I know. I pushed such thoughts away. I had long ago given up on chemical peace of mind. I’d lost that right. “Suffer son.” I gave myself the finger and continued driving. Steve Alba had emailed me the previous night and asked me to check a few possible pools. I had the day to myself and gladly welcomed the task. Finding pools. It is the one thing that I love the most. I pulled off the freeway and slipped into a gritty neighborhood. Older vehicles. Bars on windows. Graffiti. Trash. It wasn’t hard to determine that I was no longer on the prosperous side of life. Hope turned a blind eye. Drugs crept under the door and took hold. I drove in the early morning light. On a twisting side street, I saw it. A dead lawn lay to my left and plywood covered the windows of the home. Ramshackle. Blistered paint. Pulling over, I parked and watched. I scanned the area. Nothing. It was quiet and I quickly crossed the yard and pulled myself over a fence. The pool lay virtually empty. It looked amazing and would prove to be a gem.

 

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HPZ5kbljWw&w=420&h=315]

We rolled it for a few short months that winter. On Thanksgiving morning that year, my friend Scott Ward and I, drove out to ride. It rained on us for about an hour… we waited. A rainbow came out and we ended up riding together. Thankful.

A few months later, I drove over and found the pool filled in and weeds growing on top of it. I was appalled. Loss… and so it goes.  Thank you to Kyle Lightner and PK for the images. Thank you to Scott Ward for the footage. Make every minute count while you can… Skate- Ozzie