Urban Camping

Before I start, it must be noted that this entry was originally posted at www.markmcinnis.com

I find myself cramped in the backseat of a Volkswagen Golf at 1:35am on July 11th, 2008. My 12 volt power converter - which is allowing me to keep my computer alive in order to post this composition - is locked into the lighter outlet and annoyingly hums with life. Luckily, I am not enduring this alone. My compadre Logan (AKA: Log, Lowguh, The Logness Monster) is uncomfortably situated in the front seat, somewhere between a slouch, lying down, and sitting up. It is amazing to me that just 20 minutes ago he finished a quadruple shot iced latte at some 24-hour coffee joint in Beaverton. Yet, here he is claiming, "It calmed me down." I had the same drink. My heart is racing, my hands are shaking, I have not blinked for at least half an hour and I can not stop thinking about the last time that Logan poisoned me with copious amounts of caffeine. We will save that story for another time. Also, luckily for me, it is roughly 8:00am-ish in Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa and I have a live stream from the Billabong Pro going on in the browser window next door. So, considering the circumstances, life is pretty good. I am accompanied by a great friend, am super high on caffeine, and professional surfers surfing 4-5 foot Jeffrey's Bay, truly the best point break in the world, grace my screen. This is urban camping at its finest. Logan just tossed around up front and said a few choice words about the things "poking me all over." I know the feeling. Why, you may ask, are we putting ourselves through this? Well, it is quite simple. You know those really nerdy Star Wars freaks that wait and camp out in line so they can be the first to purchase the new movie, or lightsaber, or princess Leia hair extensions? Well, as embarrassing as it is to admit, we are not too distant relatives to those weirdos right now. The only difference is that we are doing this in order to be some of the first in line to purchase Apple's new iPhone 3G. I must have one. No doubt about it. Believe it or not, my eyes are getting a little heavy. It must have something to do with Logan's deep breathing and odd snorting sounds. He is probably dreaming about eukaryotic cell structure and function. Hopefully I dream about getting an absolutely insane frontside barrel at Jeffrey's Bay or join Logan's lead and have visions of bilateral symmetry in spindle structure and chromosome attachment. G'night.