San Diego. November 19, 1998. It was a Thursday evening. I had to work at Mercy Hospital that night. Andy Mac came rushing into my room –all smiles. He was chewing on Red Vines.  I can still hear his voice. “Ozzzzzzzz ! Combi opening tomorrow night!” His eyes gleamed. It was a moment all of us had waited for. He then handed me a pass/ invite to get in. I was so stoked. Unfortunately, it proved to be a ‘no go’ for me. All the anticipation & stealth missions to watch construction meant little on opening night. Working at the hospital would prove to be grim that shift. As the city slept, I lost a patient to AIDS early that morning & it threw me off my game. He was 26 years old. I lifted my red-rimmed eyes to the morning sun but felt little… except sadness. Why so young? Why the  suffering? Questions. One could go mad in this line of work.  I came home. I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t feel too social. So, I ended up helping a friend move instead. Regardless, the Vans Combi opening was a success & everything that has followed has helped keep the flame lit & bowl riding in the public eye. In the photograph, you will see an original piece of Pipeline Combi coping, a few tiles & plaster from the 1998 Vans Combi & my pass/invite that Andy Mac gave me. I keep these, much in the same way I keep photographs…  to remind me of all the good in the past. The young man died but his suffering is over. There is good, even in the bad. These are my memories from November 20, 1998. Thus endeth the lesson. Skate- Ozzie