Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life

At age 16, Finnegan stopped surfing and busied himself with working to save up for a summer cross-country road trip with his friend Domenic. They drove across much of the US, including New Orleans, New York City, and Cape Cod, living on Cream of Wheat and practicing the skills they later pursued as professions: writing and photography. Finnegan reflects on how his “rapid progress” in surfing declined as he became more interested in exploring the world, later traveling to Europe, where he didn’t surf either. Back in Hawaii, Finnegan and Domenic took to camping on the fringes of private farms, stealing fruit at night and watching the ocean for surfing opportunities; they surfed Honolua Bay together this way. Finnegan reminisces about how he and Domenic were increasingly divided politically. Now studying literature at the University of California, Santa Cruz, Finnegan embraced leftist politics and felt that Domenic was “critical” and “dismissive” of him, perceiving him as an “egghead” (110). Domenic wasn’t in school and was therefore eligible for conscription into the Vietnam War. He planned a trip to Canada to avoid the draft, and Finnegan was unperturbed by his girlfriend Caryn’s offer to accompany Domenic on his trip.

Finnegan soon dropped out of school and moved to Lahaina with

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