1. Read this gorgeous chronicle of Aldaron Laird’s Humboldt Bay walkabout. That an NCJ story written by Heidi Walters makes for fine storytelling is no surprise, but this one is particularly golden. We experience parts of the bay rarely seen with a poetic sensibility few know how to offer. Also, the greater point of Aldaron’s walk is to document areas threated by sea level rise – a rapidly looming threat not yet taken seriously enough to avert.

2. Come out to Ocean Night tonight at Arcata Theatre Lounge. On the bill, two surf-related films that transcend what one of my more cynical, land-bound friends called, “the usual wave porn.”

The first, Under the Sun, by the same collective that brought us Stoked & Broke, explores the roots of surfing commercialism. Darker and subversive, Under the Sun nonetheless features stunning surfing and never-before-seen 1970s surf footage. Also, the film has won bunches of awards including Best Action Sports Film at the Newport Beach Film Festival 2008, Best Independent Film at the Huntington Beach Surf Film Festival 2008, Best Documentary and Cinematography nominee Surfer Poll Awards, and Official Selection in the Cucalorus Film Festival.

The second film, Manufacturing Stoke, examines the conflict between a surfing’s exaltation of nature-connectedness and the use of toxic products to reach that oceanic nirvana. The filmmakers describe it as “an introspective look into the surfing culture’s struggle to be beneficial unto itself.”

So, yeah. It’ll be a good one. Doors at 6:30 p.m., movies at 7 p.m., all-ages and only a $3 donation requested!

3. Get your Arts Alive! party on this Saturday night – don’t forget to install the superawesome Lost Coast Outpost AA! app if you haven’t already – and stop by the Humboldt Baykeeper office, 217 E St., next to Ramone’s. On display, the nautical-inspired copper sculptures from Scott Hemphill, plus the musical stylings of Kenny Ray and the Mighty Rovers. While you’re there, sign a petition supporting a ban on single-use plastic bags in Humboldt County and learn more about how to reduce the plastic trash flow to our coastal environment.

4. Speaking of garbage, make a note to get hands-on at Humboldt Surfrider’s Highway Clean-Up, Saturday, Jan. 14 at 10 a.m. Meet north of Trinidad off U.S. Hwy. 101 at the Seawood Drive exit. All supplies provided. Questions? E-mail humboldt@surfrider.org.

5. Whatever the reason for the ongoing sunshine, take advantage of it by heading to the beach and admiring that big blue stretch of water. Feel the awe? Breathe in that sweet salty scent and grin as your troubles evaporate for a moment. Please do all this from a safe distance – NOAA’s issued a High Surf Advisory and, no, that doesn’t mean go smoke a bowl first, Redheaded Blackbelt followers!

To witness the full power of those big waves, take the afternoon off and head out to the Humboldt Bay harbor entrance at the end of the north spit. Stay off the jetty and please do not trample the dune plants! But do stand up on top of the dunes, from where you can safely watch big waves muscle into the bay, peaking and crashing along the way – it’ll renew your appreciation for the ocean’s power. And, hopefully, also remind you it’s worth protecting.

Jennifer Savage represents Ocean Conservancy on the North Coast and serves as Humboldt Surfrider’s chairperson.