Catching up

The time came when it was time to leave Hawaii. It was a sad day indeed. I took a two-mile walk around S.'s neighborhood while she went to teach class, and we went out to lunch and for coffee. Then she took me to the airport for my overnight flight. I'll tell you how it was. Depressing. On the flight home, I basically broke my neck and could not move it for several days. I tried to order coffee at the airport Starbucks during my Houston layover, but I was so deliriously sleep-deprived that I just shook my head sadly at the barista when I got to the counter and walked away in a haze.

It was a weird adjustment being home. Being back to work and school instead of on vacation. The time change was crazily life-wrecking in a way that has really surprised me. And mostly I just miss my wonderful friend more than I can ever say.

Now I'm settled back at home, fearing emotional aneurysms daily relative to the election. My nerves are totally shot. I start weeping when I contemplate a certain outcome. My sister came into town, and she and B. and I did a little phone banking, which was a good experience. I've also started training for a half-marathon, which Erin and I are writing about over here.

Yesterday my sister and I went to a football game. It was fun. My shins hurt. I'll miss Mad Men after the season ends tonight. That's really all I can think of to say right now.

Last full day in Hawaii

My last full day in Hawaii was another fun day. We got up early in the morning and went on a tour of Pearl Harbor on the Admiral's Barge.

(Photo by S.)

It was a small group of people, as this is a tour you can only go on if you're with a member of the military. Since S.'s husband is in the Navy, we were in like Flynn. It was a gorgeous day on the water, and if I love anything, let's face it, it's a good history lesson on the history of war. Being at the actual site of the events was amazing. Riding on a boat while doing so was just gravy. We learned all about the area, the ships in the harbor, and the events of December 7, 1941. I was particularly struck by the presence of the U.S.S. Missouri, on which Japan surrendered at the end of WWII. And the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial was, of course, very moving, particularly the area listing the names of survivors who chose to be interred upon their deaths later in life with their shipmates.

After our tour, we headed to nearby battleship (?), on the deck (?) (not good with my Navy terminology) of which S.'s husband had a promotion ceremony. It was very, very cool. The military life is very foreign to me, but I'm getting a closer look at it now through the eyes and experiences of my closest friend and her husband (my junior prom date!). The best thing about this ship besides the ceremony was seeing the launch site of the missile that shot down the space shuttle.

We celebrated his promotion at the Dixie Grill, sucking down beers and water and fries and mahi mahi sandwiches after roasting in the sun on the ship. It was fun to hang out with their friends, who came along.

After that, it was time for pajamas, Thai leftovers, Java Chip ice cream, and the presidential debate. The next day, it was time to leave and return to real life, but I'm choosing not to think about that.

Livin' the dream

After our day at the beach, we decided on a day of rest. It was a day of laundry doing, General Hospital watching, and spaghetti making. We did venture outside for a two-mile jog around the neighborhood, which was (a) hilly and (b) hot but still nice. We finished off the day watching Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which made us laugh a whole lot.

Which brings us to yesterday. We drove back into Haleiwa to visit S.'s favorite coffee shop, the Coffee Gallery. It was as cute as she promised ... she got a drink called the Coconator and I got an iced hazelnut soy latte.

We snacked on things called California Bars and Banana Date Blobs and sat outside on the patio with some chickens, talking about The Sopranos (which she is just finishing for the first time) and Deadwood (which I'm encouraging her to watch next).

Next she took us to the Soap Factory, housed in an old sugar mill. It smelled like heaven, and we bought some soap for the road. We stopped in a shop next-door that's also a coffee factory; I was talked into a sample and luckily noticed the small worm floating in it before taking the first sip.

We were left wondering which beach to visit. So we headed along the North Shore, and each beach was of course more stunning than the one we just passed. Ultimately we decided to visit Turtle Bay, where her parents stayed when they were here and where Forgetting Sarah Marshall was filmed. Like geeks, we got excited to see the things like the desk where Mila Kunis worked, the bar, the restaurant, and so forth. The beach there was lovely and relaxing and we settled into the sand with our mango (her) and raspberry (me) slushies and magazines.

I have only met two locals here who were anything less than friendly -- one at the farmer's market, who became livid when I realized I had just spent $10 on four mango/peach scones (I dislike both mangoes and peaches) instead of four cheese biscuits and asked to exchange them, unopened and paid for 5 seconds before, for something else. And one was on the beach at Turtle Bay. He wanted to sell us some "Hawaiian art," and when we (politely) declined, he set off on a tirade about how visitors act like "they" offend us, but it is we who offend them. He said, "You're looking at someone who's pure." Then as we packed up to leave, he told us to go ahead and leave because we'd spent enough time on "their" beaches. Then he called out to S. as we once again politely declined his offer to sell us some art, "You live here! You should know better!" S. has lots of thoughts and insights into the "us" vs. "them" situation in Hawaii, and I have to say it's pretty damn fascinating.

We walked along the shore back to the car and did not leave until embarking on a covert mission led by the intrepid S. to find the beach cottages where Aldous, Sarah Marshall, and Jason Segel stayed in the movie. It was exciting.

We then headed home, at which point we headed to two exercise classes she was teaching. One used all balls ... the body ball, the medicine ball, the pilates ball. Thankfully, it was only 30 minutes because though it was fun, it was hard! Next came Rep Reebok, and I have to say that it was also tough but I loved it! I kept thinking how much my sister would like this class. My friend is a great teacher.

We got some Thai take-out and headed home; S. and her husband watched Heroes, and I took to my bed to watch the season premiere of Friday Night Lights online (wonderful), and that was the end of yesterday. It was another great day; apparently there are no bad days in Hawaii.

Hawaii, Day 3

Our day began with a drive to the Valley of the Temples at the foot of the Koʻolau Mountains.

The mountains were mindblowingly huge and beautiful. The whole temple and burial ground area was very peaceful and calming.

After wandering the grounds for a little while, we headed into Kailua, where we had sushi for lunch. S. was quick to point out the side of "mac salad" that apparently comes with everything in Hawaii whether you order it or not. Good to know!

Our next top was Bellows Beach. The moment we parked the car, it started pouring down rain.

We woefully watched the rain through the car windows, but it stopped a few minutes later. Hooray! We relaxed in the sand for a few minutes before deciding to brave the water. It wasn't nearly as cold as the water at Chun's. S. explained that Chun's is a reefy bottom and Bellows is a sandy bottom, which means at the latter we could swim without fear of being slammed into a volcanic rock and dying. The waves were super strong and knocked us over multiple times, but it was very fun and thrilling and outstanding in that way that only being smashed around by ocean waves can be. S. yelled, "The Pacific isn't very pacific!" We took lots of pictures of ourselves throughout.

We swam until we couldn't swim anymore, and then we headed home along a winding mountain road. We pulled over immediately when we saw a sign reading "Scenic Point." It was scenic, alright. It was the Halona Blowhole, and it was gorgeous and breathtaking and all of those other adjectives that don't begin to capture what it felt like to stand up there.

After sufficiently taking in the glory of the view, we drove home through a very ritzy part of the island. We stared with mouths agape at the HUGE movie star mansions on the mountain and decided to try to see if we could get up there. We could not, as we would learn from a security guard who laughed in our faces. It was called Hawaii Loa Ridge. In my mind, the stars of Lost live there.

We got back to the house, showered, ate pizza, and collapsed. It was another really exhausting and really wonderful day.

Hawaii, Day 2

On my first night in Hawaii, I could only sleep until 3 a.m. Two hours later, S. and I departed in the dark to the gym for her 6 a.m. spinning class. She helped me set up my bike and made sure I was good to go. Her group of regulars was there. It was awesome to see her in action. I've known her for 25 years now, but I've never seen her in teacher mode, and she was a natural! So proud of her. What I was not so proud of were my knees, which screamed even as I pedaled with zero resistance at 0.00000001 mph. Whatever muscles knees need to ride a bike? Mine apparently don't have. Not to mention that my entire nether regions felt like they were in a state of severe pain and torture. So I meekly climbed off five minutes into class and headed to the treadmill in the next room. Never did I think it would feel so good to run two miles. Anything was paradise next to that bike. I am a little sad that I am not equipped for my friend's expertise, but what can you do? After her class, I headed back over, where I was informed by one of her regulars, who was gifting her with two homegrown avocados, how wonderful she is and how much they all love her. Heart=warmed. So nice!

After the gym, we headed to a fancy mall for iced hazelnut soy lattes ... yum. This mall is akin to Rodeo Drive ... Tiffany, Harry Winston, Prada, Gucci, Jimmy Choo, Louis Vuitton, and so forth. Fancy. Apparently lots of rich people either live in or travel to Honolulu to do their shopping. Then we returned to the house (in a town nearby), drove past the very lovely park where they got married, and prepared for our hike!

This is a favorite hike of hers on the North Shore, the Kaunala Trail.

She told me it would be "easy" but perhaps her fitness ease is different from mine considering she is a fitness instructor. At one point along the trail, we began to encounter many fallen trees blocking the path.

We would climb over them and under them and around them and it was sort of like maneuvering around town post-Gustav. This was very flummoxing and she kept saying, "I've never seen the trail look like this!" Finally she realized that was the case because we weren't actually on the trail. We found the trail and from then on it was mostly smooth sailing. Despite some hard inclines, it was definitely beautiful.

It took about 2.5 hours to get to the destination, a lookout where you can see the ocean down below and the mountains in the horizon.

It was very beautiful indeed, and we plopped down happily to have a snack, but it started raining shortly thereafter. Alas. The hike down was very muddy as the path has been overrun by tractors lately putting in some communications lines. But we still had plenty of fun.

Afterwards, we headed to lunch in a cute town called Haleiwa and ate BBQ chicken pizza and salads at Pizza Bob's. And then we went to the beach! A beach called Chun's. The North Shore is apparently famous for its beaches/surfing. I went into the water in my shorts & sports bra because I was a little bashful about changing in the car. The water was cold but clear and AWESOME. Word to the wise ... the currents here don't exactly feel like those in the Gulf of Mexico (duh). You don't have to go out very far to quickly be too deep to stand, and the currents really knock you around. I floated around for a while blissfully until I got pruney, but then I came in because I got a little nervous about the currents ... there are huge rocks and it wouldn't take much to smash into one! Anyway, it was so fun and relaxing to swim and the surfers were very cool and it was all stunningly beautiful to behold.

Then we came back here and S. cooked us a delicious dinner of fish, corn on the cob, and broccoli. I managed to stay awake until 8 pm at which point I collapsed. It was a great day.