The story behind the brand
Two lives. One of them I chose.
Recovery Life was started by Michael Barrett Fields — author of the memoir The Big Who? and its sequel. Everything on this site comes out of a life he actually lived.
Michael was born in Freeport, Grand Bahama in 1965 and raised between South Florida, Costa Rica and the water. He surfed some of the first empty lineups in Central America, spent more than a decade chasing waves from Boca Barranca to the North Shore, and survived an addiction that took him to the edge more times than he can account for. He has been clean since 1998. He is a chef, a single father, and a lifelong waterman, and he lives on the Kona side of the Big Island of Hawaii.
"As I began writing, I realized something important. I've lived what feels like two completely different lives. Rather than blend them together, I've chosen to tell them separately."
Michael Barrett Fields, The Big Who? — A Personal Note
Before everything
Happy days (mostly)
Every story starts somewhere small — a beach, a sibling’s hand, a childhood spent half in the water. The memoir opens there on purpose. Recovery isn’t only about the worst chapter; it’s about remembering there was a person before it, and building your way back to him.
The book is dedicated to Michael’s daughter — “and for everyone still finding their way back.”
The road
A timeline, not a highlight reel
1965
Freeport, Grand Bahama
Born on an island, raised between South Florida, Costa Rica and the water. The ocean was the first thing that ever kept me steady.
1970s–80s
Empty lineups
More than a decade chasing waves from Boca Barranca to the North Shore. Adventure, music, unforgettable friendships — and the beginning of something I couldn't control.
The active years
More close calls than I can count
Addiction took me to the edge more times than I can account for. Tragedy, heartache, dark places. I lived it, and I got to tell it.
1998
Clean
The second life started here. Chef. Single father. Lifelong waterman. Still on the Kona side of the Big Island.
Today
Recovery Life
Gear built the way recovery is built — heavy, honest, and made to hold up when everything else doesn't.
The books
The Big Who?
The Big Who? The Active Years covers the first 25 years — addiction, love, loss, survival, and the music that ran underneath all of it. The sequel picks up at the turn: the second life, the one he chose. Both are written plainly, by someone who says up front he’d never written anything before. That’s exactly why they land.
“What you’re about to read is my truth… Aloha and Mahalo.”