100th Post! 100th Post!!

Woohoo! What an anniversary. 100 posts in 8 months and two days. Not bad at all.

So today is not so good. I picked a fight with Bryan this morning. The fighting points were valid but the timing was really inappropriate. And I feel awful. Then I got icky vibes at work and went to my only friend to seek solace and share stories. She is in the most wicked mood I have ever witnessed with her. So I stepped away. I was almost immediately on the verge of tears so I decided I needed to get out of here and deserved a treat. I went to Starbucks. Sugar and caffeine... the medicine for any emotional pain. The morning turned around when the Starbucks man commented on how nice my shirt is (it's from H&M. I'm incredibly proud of it and no one else all morning even acknowledged it). I swear I could have leaned across the counter, hugged him, and said "let's be friends." Instead I smiled like I won the lottery and said "thank you, that's really nice to hear."

So, in short, I ruined my morning and the Starbucks man fixed it. Totally worth almost $6.

A Week of Perspective

Last week I was in San Francisco for my first trip back ‘home.’ Bryan had intended to join me on Friday and we were going to spend the weekend catching up with friends. Bryan got very sad news early in the week that one of his childhood friends passed away. Bryan traveled straight to Spokane and I joined him on Saturday for the memorial service.

Clearly our vacation plans were adjusted. It’s hard to relaxed and have fun when you know people are in pain and mourning. But I think the change of plans really put a few things in perspective for me. I feel like I really learned a lot about who I am, what makes me happy, and where I want to be.

As cheesy as this is, I learned that home is where Bryan is. I was really looking forward to being in the city by myself and doing things I wanted to do. But immediately I realized it’s not as much fun as it used to be to be alone. I spent years in San Francisco where I basically did things I wanted to do. I remember being perfectly content to spend a weekend day walking through Chinatown and then reading a book in the park. But after just a few hours of that this week I was ready to call Bryan or visit with a friend.

I was also reminded of how special our friends are. It was so awesome just to hang out with people I know. Not have to start from the beginning of our life stories or create humor to communicate. It was so easy just to hang out. While I’ll definitely miss them and believe that they are particularly special people, it inspires me to make those friendships in Hawaii too.

Now, we’re happy in Hawaii and I think we’ll stay for a short while. But, I think as any lost often brings this up, I feel like we’re too far from “home”. I don’t know exactly how to remedy that right now but I think it’s important to be aware of.

I was also a bit surprised to learn that San Francisco isn’t all that. It is a beautiful city that was my home for so many years. But it’s sort of crazy. There are crazy people there, a ton of traffic, dirty air, exhausting streets. I might be going soft but I like the ease of living in Hawaii. I like that we relax more. But I do miss the energy. Our evenings in Hawaii usually wrap up around 8. The restaurants close, must-see TV is over, and it’s dark. And I really miss the neighborhood feel. There is nothing better than a neighborhood where you can walk to shops and restaurants. Honolulu is definitely lacking in that area.

I'm afraid to say I might be getting crunchy. I was cruising through the streets of San Francisco and didn’t really feel settled until I was in Golden Gate Park. I found myself looking at the trees and the blue sky and thought “this is so nice.” I would have expected to feel that way about the shopping, not the park!

So now, back in Hawaii... I welcome the warm air. I curse the noisy midnight winds that keep us awake. I yearn for a variety of restaurants. I look forward to going to the beach this weekend. I hope to surf and SCUBA. I miss cute fall clothes. I miss my friends but feel motivated to throw a party to meet new ones. And mostly I'm just happy to hang with Bryan.

It's a Two-Way Street Guys...

I got to thinking today (as I sit here goofing off at work) that I spend a lot of time posting things to this blog pretty much for your amusement. But rarely do I get much back in return. Aside from my mom, almost NONE of you comment. Which is cool most of the time.

However, today I'm asking for something in return. Bryan and I need Halloween costume ideas. And we're taking suggestions. I actually have something in mind for myself but it's rather conceptual and I'm starting to re-think it. So please post a comment (you can do it anonymously if you prefer) and let us know what we should be for Halloween.

Earthquake, We're Okay

This morning Bryan awoke at 7:07am to the violent (and long lasting) shaking of a 6.5 earthquake centered in Kona on the Big Island. He's totally fine but spent the day without water and electricity. Meaning he had to walk 12 flights of stairs to get to the car to get to the grocery store and then walk back up 12 flights of stairs with bottles of water and basic food items. And now he sits bored, trying to read by candlelight.

I'm fine. Totally fine but feeling terrible I'm not there with him. I'm in SF for a long visit with friends.

Everyone we know is 100% fine.

Yummy?

I just went downstairs for a quick lunch. I took my co-worker's suggestion to try the Korean BBQ place. It's called Yummy Korean B-B-Q. But I got the vegetable plate, so it's not barbequed at all.

The server and I had a true failure to communicate. I wasn't sure how the ordering worked so we stumbled over that. She wasn't able to tell me exactly what the choices were. We only identified the cucumbers were spicy after they were already on my plate. It was pretty fun in an adventurous way but now I'm stuck with a mysterious lunch. I think I'm eating kimchee cucumbers, maybe?

All in all, not all that Yummy. Next time I'm getting meat.