Lately, the memoir genre has been growing on me.  I’ve come to the realization that not all of the work in this genre is a ride through another’s world of self indulgence and aggrandizement. Not all of it is “…a lesson to the wise,” either.  Sometimes, and I’ll admit that it has something to do with taste for given topics, a good memoir can be read as a single perspective on a set of observations – the more objective the writer can be, the more the reader is permitted to interpret or in some cases identify with it on a personal level.

51kz1xP+sDL._AC_US160_I recently read just such a memoir titled, Barbarian Days: A Surfers Life by William Finnegan. I posted a review of it on my personal blog, but without writing a multiple page essay, I really couldn’t do this story the complete justice it deserves.  My advice to anyone interested in reading or perhaps writing a memoir, would be to read Finnegan’s with an eye for his ability to displace himself from the experiences he’s able to share with such clarity and transparency.

Previously, I’ve made posts to a theme of “Wind and Water”.  Finnegan’s book contained passages that evoked such strong emotions that my pulse raced several times and at other times I shivered with chilling memories of having been thrashed in the cold dark shorebreak at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach.  I thoroughly enjoyed the Chapter Finnegan included of that locale.

Though I experienced surfing a winter at Ocean Beach a decade before the fabled days of “Doc Renniker,” Bob Wise (owner of S.F.’s oldest surf shop) and his buddies, I could relate to all of the named spots.  Regarding the Wise surf shop, if my memory serves, it was located on 39th and Geary, and moved down to the strip along the Great Highway sometime after I graduated from Cal State Hayward (that University’s name has since been changed to Cal State East Bay, along with a complete overhaul of the campus – to include the tearing down of the iconic Administration and English Literature Department building).

I’m still leary of embarking on writing a memoir for two reasons:  About 15 years ago, the U.S. Navy ran a TV ad with the by-line similar to the following – “If someone made a movie about your life, would anyone pay to watch it?”  and the other is closer to home and would probably equate to a review that reads something like – “Sure, the guy has a ton of experiences and has done a lot of things and been to a lot of places.  Who hasn’t?  Just another Jack of All Trades and Master of None.”  Though it may be true, it would hurt to read a review containing such a comment, especially when written by a complete stranger.  However,  I am a believer that every person has a unique specialty and unique set of experiences worthy of sharing.

I also know for certain that not every Jack of All Trades was blessed with the opportunity to spend the better part of their professional years flying a U-2 Reconnaissance Aircraft (gosh, so politically correct – It is really a spy plane!).  All said, you won’t have to worry, I won’t be writing a memoir anytime soon.