"This," he replied, holding up the 12th-century ewer, with its bold wave pattern, "is worth one or two American dollars -- good money.
The waves are not worth riding, let alone hassling for.
But he said the waves were still worth the risks.
From seemingly nowhere, every third-wave coffee bar worth its salted caramel shortbread is on the case, from East London's Timberyard to Edinburgh's Brew Lab.
Getting out looked impossible, and the waves looked not worth the effort anyway, but Mark was out there, a small black-wetsuited figure in a world of furious white water, throwing himself into the stacked walls of onrushing foam.
It is worth waving away this fog of dogma that dominates much discussion involving America to consider that, even in a world characterised by realpolitik with its shades of grey, there remain issues in black and white.
Doug McCoy, 31, a community college administrator, had $507,500 worth at Wave's peak, on investments of $30,000 to $40,000.
When a parking-meter attendant warned one chauffeur that a ticket would be forthcoming if he did not move his Rolls-Royce off the double yellow line, the driver dismissed him with a wave — the cost hardly worth the inconvenience to his boss.
It isn't clear what the value of Next Wave's holdings is worth.
Exposing the lie that capitalism is all about greed, 144 companies, including BP, Chevron, Citigroup, Eli Lilly, Exxon Mobil, General Electric, Boeing, Amgen, Home Depot, 3M and Abbott Laboratories have all pitched in with an unparalleled wave of generosity: $362 million worth of donations, services, supplies and equipment to date.
