from NYU, America’s leading philosophy program he is currently a philosophy professor at the University of San Diego. He has a BA in philosophy from UC Berkeley and a Ph.D.

In the process, he’ll speak to readers in search of personal and social meaning in our current anxious moment, by way of doing real, authentic philosophy.Ībout Nick: Nick Riggle dropped out of high school to become a pro-skater, participating in stunt shows, demos, and world class competitions (including three ESPN X Games appearances). is waterskiing.” The avid surfer and lavishly credentialed academic philosopher Aaron James vigorously disagrees, and in Surfing with Sartre he intends to expound the thinking surfer’s view of the matter, in the process elucidating such philosophical categories as freedom, being, phenomenology, morality, epistemology, and even the emerging values of what he terms “leisure capitalism.” In developing his unique surfer-philosophical worldview, he draws from his own experience of surfing and from surf culture and lingo, and includes many relevant details from the lives of the philosophers, from Aristotle to Wittgenstein, with whose thought he engages. An accessible and entertaining lens for navigating the ethics of our time, On Being Awesome provides a new and inspiring framework for understanding ourselves and creating meaningful connections in our everyday lives.Ībout Aaron's book: The existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre once declared “the ideal limit of aquatic sports. From street art to folk singers, Proust to the great etiquette writer Emily Post, President Obama to former Los Angeles Dodger Glenn Burke, Riggle draws on pop culture, politics, history, and sports to explore the origins of awesome, and delves into the nuances of what it means to suck and why it’s so important to strive for awesomeness.

And if you’re a cheapskate, self-promoter, killjoy, or douchebag, you’re the type of person who shuts social openings down.

Awesome people excel at creating social openings that encourage expressions of individuality and create community. Nick and Aaron will be discussing philosophy, awesomeness, surfing, and what it all means.Ībout Nick's book: We all know people who are awesome and people who suck, but what do we really mean by these terms? Have you ever been chill or game? Do you rock or rule? If so, then you’re tapped into the ethics of awesomeness. Nick's book is On Being Awesome: A Unified Theory of How Not to Suck and Aaron's latest is Surfing with Sartre: An Aquatic Inquiry into a Life of Meaning. Philosopher-authors, Nick Riggle and Aaron James will be at The Book Catapult discussing and signing their books on Friday, February 23rd at 7:00pm.

Nick riggle on being awesome