A Most Active Crew

Donna, Preston, Gilliam and Rich came to visit a week ago. They get the prize! They are the most active crew to visit us so far. Wow, these folks were up at the crack of dawn even after they adjusted to the time zone. I think the 2nd or 3rd day they were here they raced down and up a muddy trail as part of the Hawaiian Ultra Runing Team ... yeah, that spells HURT! Would you do that? I wouldn't, but they did. They came back muddy and worn out ... ok, almost worn out as it seemed like they were up and doing something else that very afternoon.

After much effort, we got them to relax a little and go to the beach. Below is Rich coming out of the water and Donna is reading.




We climbed the ridge behind the house and then they climbed it several more times! The boys climbed up Shark's Tooth as well. It was windy up there. In the distance in the picture below, you can see our destination.

Donna grips on to Rich to ensure she doesn't fall off.

Each night, I'd come home from work and be enthralled with their descriptions of their day. Hiking here or the Arizona there. Then we'd play MarioCart or the Wii or a board game. Rich was generally asleep by 8:30 ...

On Saturday, we went to what is fast becoming my favorite Oahu hike, Palolo Valley. We hiked 5 of the 7 waterfalls and they were flowing nicely. Below Preston uses a rope to make his way down a cascading waterfall.

Donna edges her way to the base of the waterfall.

Preston takes Gilliam's picture as he wades acroos the pool of the 2nd waterfall.

Preston and Gilliam start up the first set of cascading waterfalls.

Rich brought to light a new term for me ... scurry! The sisters have always moved fast but the term scurry really covers what they do. To see them in a kitchen is like watching chipmunks scurry about. I'll certainly use that term when Cindy comes to visit in a few weeks.

Below, they ham it up by the palm trees.

It was a great visit and always great to see family. Donna also wins the prize as our first "return visitor" ... not that we were counting but she was! We were very happy to have her and the family come out ... you too Rich!

Ko'olina Mariott Resort

Ahhhh. that is about all I can say as I think back to the glorious weekend at the Ko'olina resort beach hotel. I still feel a sense of peace and luxury as I think of Kathy and my weekend there.

She fooled me. She did it well. We left work together ... for those of you who don't know, Kathy has succumbed to working at Hawaiian Telcom as a temp. So, we left work together on Friday. I had no idea where we were going. She told me to pack as if I were going to Maui or Kauai.

So, we headed into the dreaded H1 West Traffic and I knew we were staying on Oahu as we passed the airport and kept on going ... at 5 miles per hour! It didn't matter as I was with Kathy!

We got there and the valet took the car and the luggage. "Don't worry about the bags, they'll be in your room in no time" stated the valet. At the desk, Kathy took command and upgraded the room from mountain view to ocean view and then she smiled at me.

We walked into the room on the 5th floor and though it was a beautiful room overlooking the ocean. Unfortunately, it had not been cleaned. There were cups and dishes and the bed was not made. I took over and called the desk. They upgraded us again. Now, in an even bigger room with a bathroom the size of a normal hotel room, we looked out onto the Pacific facing west from our 11th floor balcony.

Dinner was incredible. We ate a delicious meal with excellent service. After, we strolled the grounds in the twilight and enjoyed the waterfalls, the ponds, and the walkways. Small hammerhead sharks swam below us at one point and large sting rays at another.

I enjoyed a scotch from room service as we went to bed looking out at the stars just relaxing with each other. What could be better?

I really wanted to just sleep in on Saturday but Kathy had other ideas. She set the alarm and awoke me early. We drove to a marina about 20 minutes away. As we drove, we could see whales swimming by in the bay. They were large, black whales spouting and showing their tails. Soon we were on a motorized catamaran and putting on our snorkel gear! Fairly quickly, we were in the water swimming after dolphins and turtles. The dolphins were wonderful and gracious company. The turtles must have missed Kathy's call as only one came by. He was beautiful but Kathy's ability to call up a turtle has spoiled me!

I truly enjoyed my time on the water. I just can't imagine living in the middle of the country where the ocean is not nearby. As I look out from my deck right now, I appreciate the waves that crash upon the shore. For this weekend, water would be the key ingredient.

After a full day on the boat, we were tired. It was exhausting chasing after dolphins! I mean, they just swim much faster than we do. I'd like to see them try to keep up with us on land!

Showered and shaved and waiting for Kathy, I relaxed on our balcony and realized that the finish line for a spinnaker fleet sailboat race was just concluding. It was an exciting race as big boats were angling for the finish line. What could be more perfect?

We got back in time to see two weddings from our balcony. I was amazed at the forethought as all the children of one wedding were dressed alike. It didn't take long to realize that the entire wedding was a "black and white" wedding ... the kids were really cute.

Not too much later, Dinner ... made the perfect day complete. We went to the "fancy" restaurant that overlooked the pools of water, the hammerhead sharks, and the waterfalls. A bottle of wine, lobster bisque, Caesar salad, fine seafood, steak, and dessert graced our table. The wait staff were attentive and willing to help at any moment. I could not have asked or expected more.

Very full and satisfied, Kathy and I walked about the grounds again and found our way to the natural pools connected to the Pacific Ocean. The moon was a sliver and we held hands along the rocks admiring the roar of the ocean as it crashed only 20 feet from us. The sun had set and left us a beautiful night.

On Sunday morning I slept in.


Lazily, we dressed for the beach and snorkeling at "Electric Beach." This is a beach that happens to be across the street from an electric power plant. There were lots of people there but under the water was mostly fish and not crowded at all. We made our way out into the warm water. We found beautiful coral, fancy fish, and enjoyed a wonderful underwater swim.

Back at the hotel, we relaxed in the room and slowly packed. I watched another sailboat race and took too many pictures. The hotel had been kind enough to extend our check out time but we actually didn't need it.

Heading home, I recollected how wonderful a weekend it was. I briefly wondered what it cost but put it out of my mind considering the point of money is to eventually use it but use it wisely. For me, the weekend was worth every penny.

Thank you Kathy for my 50th birthday present.

Maui Trip!

Ahhhh Maui! A beautiful place with a peaceful and relaxing atmosphere. OH ... and expensive! We stayed in an area where the lawns or should I say the golf courses were wonderfully manicured. Lots of golf courses that wound around tall palms and soft sand traps were all around us.

Kathy and I stayed away from the golf courses ... maybe next time or perhaps the time after that.

We took the Ferry on a Friday afternoon and soon were rocking and jerking to the bumps of the Pacific Ocean interrupted by the winds and the channels. All in all ... it was a lousy trip to get there. Kathy got sea sick even though she took Dramamine. Not fun. Fortunately, the trip back was much better!

We got to the hotel, checked in, put away our clothes and could hear classic Hawaiian music and quickly found our way to a small bandstand outside the bar. Even before the 2nd Mai Tai, they sounded pretty good! :-)

The hotel was pretty nice. Not stunning rooms but it was clean and in a good location, right on the beach!

Kathy and I started a game of checkers. WELL, as soon as I jumped one of her guys, she quit and accused me of playing like her sister Cindy. I guess I'm supposed to try and lose! Cindy, she will never play checkers again because of the way you abused her as a child! (or maybe that was last year?)

We wound our way to the less travelled part of the island ... the picture below is especially for Barbara Horton. The road was more narrow than Ireland! Kathy screamed the entire time we drove down this 1 lane, 2 way road and also screamed all the way back. Note the narrow road. Note the lack of guardrails. Note the nice sloping hill we'd fall down if I went off the road.

Kathy recovered enough to chit-chat with the 10 year olds running this refreshment stand.

On the way back to the hotel we found this beautiful stop ...

I am never far from my camera ...

Kathy enjoying dinner ...

The sun began to set and I began to click away ... Kathy had another glass of wine ;-)

This family walked by and made nice silhouettes.

I'm not sure what to say except the color of this sunset was stunning. Kathy refilled her glass.

We also went snorkeling with my new underwater camera from Olympus. It is a pretty good little camera but I'm still learning how to use it. Below is a video clip of a green sea turtle. Sorry about the shaking!

We had a wonderful time and are already disagreeing on where we are going next!

Peace, love and grace

John

Jeanne & Nathan Visit

I looked forward to their arrival with great anticipation. It was like Christmas in April ... we waited and waited and then they came and suddenly ... they were gone too quick! I guess that is the way it is when I am looking forward from event to event and I live my life looking forward to the next big event.

Jeanne and Nathan arrived on Monday afternoon and were picked up by Tucker. Tired from the long flight (oops, did I say that?) ... wait ... wait ... the flight was easy and simple and was over in no time!! Anybody convinced? I didn't think so ... oh well, cat's out of the bag that the flights here are tough, especially from the east coast. They stayed up as late as they could and then crashed in the spare bedroom.

Kathy took them shopping, they went to spitting cave, and toured the large and dangerous waves of Sandy's Beach. Jeanne worried about Nathan getting swept out to sea but Tucker was there to jump in at a moment's notice.

We watched the moon rise over the Pacific and looked at the craters through the telescope.

While the normal tourists were looking in another direction, we explored a lava tube. It took us under a small highway and led us to a cove where the waves crashed on centuries old lava rock. We carefully climbed the rock and enjoyed the roar of the waves while watching the native fishermen cast their lines.

Nathan is a fish. He could or maybe should live in the water! He swam everywhere and anywhere and especially enjoyed the waves. I could see him from the beach and watch a wave crash over his head, his body tumble through the surf, Jeanne would look concerned and then Nathan would get up and do it again with a laugh!

We had shave ice ... and more shave ice ... it was very good!

Tucker and I took Jeanne on the Pu'u Ohia hike high above Honolulu and Waikiki. The view from there is spectacular while setting the hiker far enough off the beaten path to be into the deep woods and mountain tops of Oahu. The bamboo forest was incredible and I think Jeanne really enjoyed the call of the wild birds as they followed us through the woods.

The turtles seemed to be favorites for Nathan. We saw them at Sea Life Park. We saw them on the North Shore beaches and it was especially exciting when one or two actually swam by us while at Kailua beach!

Sea Life Park was excellent. We went there for a Luau but got treated to seals, dolphins, penguins, dancers and singers ...

Sea Life Park also included demonstration dancing from many different cultures including these warriers painted up like New Zealand natives.

It certainly was a busy week and unfortunately it was over before we knew it. As I look back on it today, I remember most the laughter and the fun as the whole family sat around the dining room tables and played Pounce or I Doubt It (the other name shall no longer be spoken!)

Peace!