Beach sand or snow - happy Sandy Claws to you, wherever in the world you are!

Santa Claus and Surf Dog Diaries' grand dog Howdy Doody rode the Dog Beach break in San Diego at the annual Sandy Claws event. Howdy was a rogue runaway dog that made good, a rescue dog who found himself through surfing. Howdy started the Diaries back in 1991. His sandy claws prove you can reinvent yourself, however your first life began.

Young or old. Black, white, brown or any color in between. All of us have so much to share on this special day, on this special beach, Dog Beach. Smile and share the joy inside - outside -  with someone near you.

Speaking of outside - here's Doodle, the next gen Surf Dog Diaries crew. He's not big on surfing snow, but he can really shred the unfrozen stuff. We showed him how to surf three years ago, after we rescued him from an Oregon shelter. Doodle was a natural, just like Howdy Doody, his namesake. He's our 4th generation surf dog.

Sandy Claws! At Dog Beach!!! Barooooooooooo!

Surf Dog Diaries celebrates a life of all species, all breeds and all creeds. The only requirement is that you bring all four paws - and your rescued human along for the ride.

Really? That's what you're going with?

Elvis here, the 2nd generation surf hound of the Surf Dog Diaries surf team. I took over in 2004, after Howdy's work was done. I'm now 13.5, in human years. I'm counting on Doodle to carry on the rich Sandy Claws tradition into the new year ahead.

From our beach, to yours - Merry Christmas!

Don't let all the hoopla wear you out. 

Grandpa and Doodle share Christmas Day 2015 - 3 generations, with momma, too.

We build on the steps of those that came before. What matters most is - sharing the ride.

Surfing on sidewalks in snow

'Tis the season! What better way to celebrate, than to load up the Surf Dog Diaries land board and hit the streets? This year, it was just me, Doodle, and my pirate surf dog bro, Dude. Elvis stayed home to handle dog bone inventory. That's code for, his back hurts.

Surf Dog Diaries team hits the street at the Hood River xmas parade 2015 - photo by Tom Wilson, rad windsurf dude and photog

This isn't our first rodeo. Elvis and Dude do parades every year.... and before that, our grand dog Howdy Doody, rode in parades back in California. I'm pretty new to the parade thing but whoa, what a ride. 

Awesome photo by Blaine Franger - buy some of their killer scenic images, will 'ya?

Check it out, our little town of Hood River, Oregon, population of less than 20,000 - and every single human was down there on the street in the freezing cold, to celebrate. For sure, every kid was there because we got mauled by about 5,000 kids after the parade.

I got lots, but the kids always seem to really dig on Dude, who is blind. Together, we sang carols and counted down to that special moment when the community Christmas tree lights up the sky.

This is why we live in a small town. The spirit of community, our togetherness, how we feel about our home town, how we help each other out, makes our town so much bigger than a big city could ever hope to be.

Dude and Doodle - both of us got our names from Howdy Doody. He was the king of Dog Beach in our old home town. Howdy and mom ran events and co-chaired the Dog Beach Committee of Ocean Beach (OB) Town Council, and fixed up Dog Beach.

Howdy Doody, the dude I was named after, the surf bassador, Ambassador of Dog Beach, snakes Santa's wave in Ocean Beach, CA

Here's Howdy and Santa, riding the Dog Beach break. You really need to know more about OB. One of those small towns that gets into your blood and never leaves - like Hood River. There, Howdy surfed in a club called the Ocean Beach Geriatric Precision Surfboard Drill Team and Gidget Patrol. But that's another story.

Elvis, when we lived at Dog Beach.

Merry Christmas, everyone, or whatever else you believe in. Just believe.

Hug a warm puppy. Reach out - tell those you love, what is in your heart.

We are all on this beach together.