Starve The Algorithm, Feed Your Soul

Issue No. 24 : Arguments for simple, easy, and carefree summer living

Early morning summer swells in Encinitas, California. Photo: Per Håkansson.

No season offers simple and easy living like summer (now in the Northern Hemisphere). The sun is shining, the grass is green, and the days are long and bright. Life is naturally concentrated into the basic essentials for a life lived well.

I decided to escape the City of Angels for the summer and return to my favorite surf breaks in Encinitas, San Diego County, less than an hour north of Mexico. Here life is lived in surf shorts and flip flops, no tees required.

The weather is still shifting from “May grey, June gloom” with marine layers spread across the region in the mornings until the sun burns through and delivers warm and sunny afternoons and evenings, mild nights, and zero rain.

By Juli the weather will shift to all sun, all day with temperatures around 80°F (27°C) until the Santa Ana winds, that brings hot, dry air from the desert returns in the latter part of summer, early fall and push the temperature towards hundred.

My preparation for this summer trip was simple and fast: clean out the car, replace my worn down Rainbow sandals, and only pack the absolutely essential for my favorite activities: swimming, surfing, reading, music, and people.

Summer Essentials

• Swim kit, including trunks, paddles, googles, and cap

• Wetsuit, rash guard, and surf wax

• Summer apparel: tees, shorts, sandals, sweater, and ball cap

• Tech device: now only iPad with ear buds and charger

• Trainers and kettlebell (for early morning workouts on the beach)

• Camper kitchen with coffee mug (for home-brewed coffee anywhere)

• Toiletry with lots of suntan lotions

• Sleeping bag and fleece blanket

• Water bottles and storage box for snacks and fruits

• Books from the local library (also my office)

• A medical kit (accidents do happen)

The only thing still lacking is the used surfboard I’ve been searching for. In the meantime I’ve been offered to borrow a board from three different local friends so I’ve time to find what I’m really looking for until the real swells hit in the fall.

I’ve Shazammed 300+ songs from the lifeguard playlists at the UCSB pool over the past year. A delicious and very eclectic mix of groovy songs covering seven decades: from Blues for Lester by Sonny Stitt to Mariposa by Peach Tree Rascals.

What I’ve learned from previous extended summer trips is the importance of focus and daily structure. I’ll keep working out, reading, and writing as usual with the added mission of getting to know new people face-to-face. No social media.

My books – at least two per week to hit my goal of reading 100 books this year – I’ll get from the local library, a beautiful building elevated on a hill dressed with palm, lime, and lemon trees, with a wall of windows facing the Pacific Ocean.

You could say that I’m on a diet of the best life has to offer from my perspective. It’s an intentional shift from addictive objects (alcohol, drugs, social media, shopping, gambling et cetera) to deeper relationships with myself and the world.

I love the Internet but do no longer share my adventures via social media, not even LinkedIn. In the long run – with unregulated usage – we risk to become what the algorithm think that we are. I rather feed my soul with what matters.