We recently had the chance to connect with Chrs Ahrens and have shared our conversation below.
Chrs, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is a normal day like for you right now?
I do something I’ve termed “Stress and Release.” I work until I feel stress, then do whatever I want until the stress falls again. That way I can work 12 to 14 hour days and feel like I’m on vacation. Try it, if you can. Typically, I wake about six A.M. and, first thing, go to my office, still in my pajamas and write for about 90 minutes. Then, I’ll do my devotions–Prayer and Bible reading. In prayer I’ll think about people I’ve offended. I’ll call them, or try to make up for whatever I did that hurt them. I don’t eat until around noon, so I usually take a long walk, call a friend, surf or do something physical. After a lunch, it’s back to work until my wife gets home at 5. We hang out, talk, and have dinner around 6. Then, it’s back to work until around nine. I only watch about an hour of TV, so work takes up the majority of my day. I hesitate calling it work because it’s so rewarding.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I write books, mostly on surfing. My latest book is called Windansea: Life. Death. Resurrection. It concerns the iconic surf spot Windansea from 1937 when Woody Brown first surfed there, through 1981 when one of the best surfers in the state, Chris O’Rourke died on cancer. I also write for the San Diego Reader and have a weekly column in the Coast News. I have two YouTube Channels: God N Gangsters, about the world’s toughest criminals and how their lives changed, and Surfers Rule, which is about all things surf. My newest project is a book called Good Things Love Water. It’s a coffee table book of short stories on surfing.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
I never did well in English, but I always knew I would write for a living, so the world had little sway over who I was or thought I was.
Do you remember a time someone truly listened to you?
My mom was a great listener and a great woman. She always listened when I was troubled, which I often was as a teenager growing up in Los Angeles. My dad was very kind, but not really a good listener. I have a friend, Paul Danison, who was the editor of the Orange County Register for years. He was the first person who knew I could be a writer and sat down with me to finish a story about my mother that was eventually published in Family Circle, which is kind of humorous since I rarely write for middle aged housewives.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
I hope they would say family and friends followed by making a difference in the world.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I think I would give the same answer Augustine gave when asked what he would do if you knew he was going to die that day. Apparently he answered, “Exactly what I’m doing now.” At 76 I figure I’ve got about 10 more years, so that seems like a safe bet.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Chris Ahrens
- Twitter: God N Gangsters@Perelandra7
- Facebook: Chris Ahrens
- Youtube: God N Gangsters Surfers Rule
Image Credits
Chris Ahrens and Kevin Kinnear
