Billy is O'Neal of the Week!

She was the big reason for this vacation, he said.  "I want her to know who I am.  She's my sister, and she's a cute little baby." 

Billy spent the week visiting his parents, grandparents and brother, who all live on Ocracoke.  He has aunts, uncles and cousins on the island, too!  On Saturday, a birthday celebration for his brother, Mark, and Earl Gaskins allowed Billy to catch up with loads of old Ocracoke friends, eat some pig and drink a few beers.

A 1999 graduate of Ocracoke School, Billy studied at NC State, and then "bounced around" for a few years, before traveling to Alaska in 2005 to visit his aunt Joanie, who he said is more like a sister to him because they are only about 10 years apart in age.

"I was just looking for something to do, but I haven't been back much since then," said Billy.

During that visit he met a woman who was working in Joanie's school.  "We hit it off.  Within a couple of weeks we knew we were going to get married," said Billy.  He promptly moved to Alaska to be near Alpha, and to help Joanie take care of her daughter, Aurora, then just a wee baby.

After dating for a year and traveling together in Indonesia, Billy and Alpha were married at midnight in the daylight of an Alaskan summer solstice.  His grandparents Chloe and Fowler O'Neal, Kay Brelig, and parents Donna Kay and Bobby O'Neal were all in attendance. 

As newlyweds, Billy and Alpha worked in tiny villages in the Yukon, with populations of fewer than 200 people.  Alpha trains educators to deliver reading programs, Billy works in the IT department of the same company, and the two of them spent 2 1/2 years flying to remote communities, where they sometimes bunked up in the school buildings.

"We always end up in places in the middle of nowhere," laughed Billy.  The couple then spent three years in New Mexico, working on the Navajo nation.

Ocracoke Current:  Where in the world are you these days?

Billy:  We live in California, on the central coast near Big Sur, between Santa Barbara and Monterey.  It's a pretty part of the state. 

Ocracoke Current:  So you still get to be near the ocean?

Billy:  It's 30 minutes to some of the prettiest coast in the country.  I'm in the water a lot in California; I surf about six times a week.  You have to wear a wetsuit because the water is about 52 degrees year-round.

Ocracoke Current:  Did you get out surfing while you were on Ocracoke?  Who taught you to surf?

Billy:  It's a little shorebreaky right now.  Michael O'Neal gave me my first board.  Me and my brother used to go out a lot with Daniel, Marcus and all those guys.  They are a few years younger and we'd give them rides to the beach.

Ocracoke Current:  And now you live in America and have a proper, grown up job?

Billy:  I don't wear a suit, but I work in an office at a desk.  It's not what I pictured myself doing!  They send me all over the place.  I recently spent 10 days in Australia.

Ocracoke Current:  A lot of kids who grew up on Ocracoke seem to find moving away from home intimidating.  That wasn't an issue for you?

Billy:  I only spent one winter living on Ocracoke after high school.  I look up to Joanie a lot, and try to take her approach.  She's been all over the place.

Ocracoke Current:  Tell me about your wife.

Billy:  Alpha is an alpha female!  Right now she's busy working, in charge of a big project in Houston.  She grew up in New York.  She's gregarious and makes friends easily.  She was fresh out of college when we met, working in rural Alaska, and she dealt with it really well.  An attitude my wife and I both share is if you just sit back and let it flow it leads to something interesting.

Ocracoke Current:  What does your city girl wife think of Ocracoke?

Billy:  Alpha likes it here.  She said, 'It's like Key West.'  She was surprised because she thought North Carolina was going to be all farms.  We took her out on the sound.  It's pretty much the complete opposite of New York.  Manhattan is on the go and very busy.  It's a fun place to visit.

Ocracoke Current:  It's been a few years since you've been back.  What changes have you noticed?

Billy:  There's a new house here or there, and a lot of golf carts.  They finally got a nice gym, and the bike hut is gone.  I'm blown away by the baseball team. 

Another weird thing is you can't drive on the beach at will.  There's lots more regulation. 

(My grandmother) Chloe has internet and a cell phone.  That's definitely different.  And she watches netflix!  One thing that blew me away was that she watched Lost from episode one through the finale.  That's shocking news:  Chloe's a Lost fan.

Ocracoke Current:  What have been some of the highlights of your vacation?

Billy:  Visiting Mom, and Dad, and hanging out with my brother.  We caught clams, and ate a lot of seafood.  Dad fillets mullets on the grill with the barbeque sauce.  I always look forward to that. 

Ocracoke Current:  What do you miss about the island?

Billy:  My family.  The pace here is nice.  I like the quickness of errands; it's interesting how quick it is if you need to run out to the store.

Ocracoke Current:  What do you hope Ocracoke will be like in the future?

Billy:  I hope it doesn't lose all the things that make it nice:  the beach and clean water.  Hopefully people that are from here can afford to stay.

Ocracoke Current:  Tell me about your sleeve of tattoos.

Billy:  I got it in New Mexico cause there wasn't a lot to do there at the time.  Two and half years later and your arm is full.  I'm in the water a lot in California, but whenever I get landlocked I start looking for a tattoo.

Ocracoke Current:  Who should star as you in the Hollywood movie about your life?

Billy:  My life is not Hollywood-worthy yet.

Ocracoke Current:  You've got time.  You come from a long-lived line of people.

Billy:  I think it was all that fish they ate.  It's always better when you can cut down the steps between the food source and the plate.