[ALL WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY A Photographer who, would now, after all these years, like to be anomymous.] Traveling and exploring foreign lands is one of the greatest experiences a skateboarder can have.  But what’s also amazing, is the many foreign women that you meet along the way. It really doesn’t matter whether you’re in China, Russia, Canada, Spain, or Latvia, if you play your cards right, then making that new “acquaintance” is always a possibility. Wherever your travels take you, there will always be women looking to share, mmm how should I say, a “cultural exchange” with you.  I’ve learned that if you try too hard to meet girls in foreign lands you’ll end up getting shut down every time.  The truth is, there is a very fine line to be negotiated when picking up foreign women. I’m no coach or guru, just a skater who has been on some skate trips. So instead of giving you advice, I’ll share some situations I’ve experienced in my travels.  I’m not bragging, just sharing the facts, along with some damn good skateboarding.
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In the U.S. anyone that dons dark skin, a healthy beard and a knit cap aboard an airliner, is believed to be a terror threat.  I’m Italian.  It’s an ethnicity that under normal circumstances would be the quickest escape route from any terror-like allegations.  However, three days after 9/11, this Italian-American man was mistaken for a bomb-strapping, terrorist.  Without any explanation, I was thrown into a chokehold by an air marshal, escorted off my flight, detained for two hours and then accompanied back to New York by another air marshal. Needless to say, the whole ordeal was ridiculously traumatizing, and the entire experience could have been avoided if it wasn’t for my flawless European skin and decision to wear a dense, silken beard.  Actually, I place all the blame on the ignorant, paranoid fools that this country has carefully produced.
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By Rory Parker.
I don’t know what it is about working at Automatic that exacts such a high psychic toll.  It seems like one or all of us is, at one time or another, is constantly battling some sort of anxiety disorder or depressive spiral.  Consequently each month we somehow manage to take an act as innately joyous as skating, and, using cynicism and nihilism, suck out every single drop until there’s nothing left but a barren, somber shell.
That’s why it was such a refreshing change to do Justin Cefai’s Shop Talent this month.  Rather than the usual sullen am skater who’s too cool for school, I was blessed with a good natured Michigan transplant with enough good sense to realize just how good he has it.  Justin is stoked on his current situation, and why shouldn’t he be.  He’s a handsome guy (I know that sounds gay but I am more than confident enough in my sexuality to praise an attractive man) with a beautiful girlfriend and a job he loves.  I could take a lesson or two from Justin, we’re not all that different, I guess I just don’t know how to appreciate what I’ve got.
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Since most of this planet is obsessed with vanity and making themselves look more appealing, I recently began to ponder the issue of personal appearance.  If somebody looks as bad as you do, then you have no reason to feel bad.  Right?  My momentary lapse into reflective thought led me to a magical doorway, one that stored away the bizarre notion of the Doppelganger.  You see a doppelganger is someone who looks exactly like someone else. Supposedly we’ve all got one somewhere, and most of us have never met ours.  The thought of the spitting image of myself prancing around some distant land all alone, made me feel terribly sad.  So in order to make myself feel better, I took to searching for the doppelgangers of others, particularly some of my favorite pros and ams.  After a long search, I was astonished to Find that each skater has a look-alike that’s an internationally known celebrity.  Seriously. Wow. Now what are the chances of that?
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All Pics and Story by Nick Kaufman
There are times when you have an idea that
just doesn't pan out, and then there are
times when everything comes together and
it all works perfectly. Tim Martinez's
concept of making a skate shop community
art show is excellent example of an idea
gone perfectly right.
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