Magical

Last Saturday during paddling practice I was huffing and puffing, sitting in the first seat of the canoe when someone said "dolphin!" I looked up a bit and pretty much saw this:



It was absolutely incredible to have this one dolphin swim along at the same speed we were paddling our canoe. S/he stayed about ten feet in front of me, never broke the surface of the water, and cruised with us for about 15 seconds. The dolphin powered by his own body, our canoe powered by our bodies.

***

On Tuesday I was sitting in the canoe in the Ala Wai canal when we heard splashing sounds. A quick glance to the left and we all saw a tiny (12 inches across) stingray JUMPING out of the water. It probably jumped five times or more. It sort of looked like this:



Incredible.

Eleven Months Ago

May 24th 2009

A wedding is about a marriage. A marriage is between two people. Bryan and I would have had a marriage without a wedding. And we could have had a wedding with just the two of us. I'm sure it would have been wonderful but there is absolutely no way it would have been as fun and as warm as our wedding. Our wedding was fantastic because of all our friends and family that supported us, loved us, and enjoyed themselves as they celebrated our marriage.

It would take me way too long to list every special person at our wedding (but we actually do have pictures of each and every one of them), this is just a small sampling to illustrate how lucky we were at our wedding.

We had bridesmaids and groomsmen that had known us since day one of our lives, had been our biggest supporter in college, were there when we met each other, heard about our first date, had made goofy movies with us in college, and smiled with us all day long.







Friends that came from the east coast, family from a neighbor island, friends from work, friends from our paddling club, family friends that have known us when we were shy kids, and crazy outgoing kids.



Our two grandmothers gave us their love and hugs.



My family that became Bryan's family, Bryan's family that is now my family.



Little ones that are cheerleaders, and dinosaur experts.




Friends that make us laugh. And laugh. And laugh.








Moms that supported us. Dads that officiated. Brothers and sister that are incredibly special.



Friends from Boulder, friends from childhood.

So many wonderful friends and family!

Most Awesome Thing Ever

Prepare to be hooked...

http://www.mostawesomestthingever.com/

Happi

I am in love with a small piece of machinery.

With this new love of my life I am never bored as I wait for my takeout food, I am never at a want to know a random fact, I never need to ask for directions, I never need to write down a phone number again, I don't need to hit the same button many times to hack out a cryptic text message. This has truly changed my life. Not to mention I'm a scrabble fanatic, a rather crappy one (Words with Friend = hey_jenni).

Those of your with an equal love in your life, enlighten me... what are your favorite apps?

Those of you who do not yet know this love, I feel for you. Someday you'll know what you're missing. And you'll never look back.

Fishing for Birthday Fun

My birthday gift to Bryan this year was a "surprise adventure." I organized a charter fishing boat for us and four friends. It was absolutely incredible. We spent the entire day at sea (my brother can attest because he was sick the entire day) and ended up catching SIX mahimahi.

The day started before dawn, on the Blue Nun Too, as we sailed out and watched the sun rise over Diamond Head.


Then we settled in, got some fishing lessons, watched for "bird piles" and then quickly got to catching some fish! A day of fishing pretty much looks like this...








On our way back the guys threw some lines out but the sun was getting warm so I decided "fishing" for me looked like this:

To take in these views:


We got back to the dock, had some beers, talked some story, and eventually hauled our fish out to be weighed and filleted (it rhymes!). A little celebration and photo ops were in order.







Eventually we each left with an entire side of fish, and a desperate need for a nap. A truly awesome day. We would do it again in a second!

I'm a Cranky Old Lady

So I've got this thing about customer service... I think it's a lost art. And I've worked enough retail and "customer oriented" jobs to consider myself educated on the subject. I can't stand it when people do not say "please" and "thank you." I've been known to get all worked up, turn to a cashier, and say "you're welcome" in the snottiest voice possible when they don't thank me.

It's okay, I am aware this is an issue. I know it's not a healthy target for my anger. I know it's also a waste of time. I should just focus on myself and be as pleasant and I can be. But what's the fun in that?!

This leads me to my story... You will not believe what I did last week!

Following a rather crappy morning, I stopped into one of my favorite lunch places and ordered the very non-complicated bowl of soup to go. No one greeted me hello, no one wished me a good day, instead of "would you like butter with you bread?" they simply barked "BUTTER?" In fact, the cashier never looked my in the eye. Irritated to no end, I concluded I did not deserve to be treated this way. So I sweetly asked the woman...

"Are you having a bad day, or something?"

The second it came out of my mouth I knew I was a crazy old lady. I am passively correcting other people's manners!

And it gets worse. Because her response was "YES! My cash register is $50 short!"

So I felt like a jerk.

Easter Weekend in Hilo

We spent the long Easter weekend in Hilo, visiting my grandmother and showing Bryan all the hidden corners of the island. On Friday we started early and headed south. Our first official stop (after I stopped for breakfast even though I repeatedly asserted I was not hungry when my grandmother was offering me free food) was in Punalu'u to see the black sand beach.

Pretty! Black!

There we also saw turtles. I hovered over this one until it put its head up so I could be assured it was not dead. Then we made eye contact and I got this look. I don't think he's a fan.

After Punalu'u we meandered farther south to a teeny tiny town called Na'alehu where we grabbed some sweet bread for french toast the next morning, and we enjoyed lunch at a rather bizarre restaurant with a huge EAT HERE sign.

Then we went even further south to South Point. This is where I once (twice, actually) jumped off a cliff and fairly significantly hurt myself. That's a story for another day, remind me.

South Point is also home to the most southern location in the entire United States. And who made a point to stand there and take pictures? We did!

I am further south than all of you!

Now Bryan is!

Now we are together! Can't beat that!

About a two mile walk, that feels like five, is the green sand beach. Yes, green. So we walked there. Then we swam and enjoyed this little surprise of nature.

Does it look green? I promise it is. It's truly green sand. According to my friend Google, this is one of only two green sand beaches in the world.

The sun started to set so we began the long walk back to the car. A stunning sunset rewarded our journey.

Exhausted after our two colored sand adventures, plenty of driving, lots of walking, and the late hour of the day, we traveled back north and stopped for a yummy dinner in the Volcano Village.

The next day was "Hilo day" as I coined it. First must-do was the Farmer's Market. Tutu had sent us with the grocery list of papayas and apple bananas and we didn't disappoint!

A thorough review of every booth at the Farmer's Market led us to the conclusion that these bags of papayas for only $1 were our best bet.

$1 deals make me very animated! Also, please note the free orchid in my hair. The Farmers Market rocks!

Hilo day also included errand running for Tutu, mochi gathering, and a rest at Richardson's Beach for mochi eating. Then we headed back home to cook our Easter meal with the family. Yummy, funny, and a good time with folks who share my DNA.

Relaxing on Tutu's lanai we took in the view of Hilo and waited for the family to arrive.

Day three was our mellow adventure day. We headed north for sightseeing, lushness and hiking.

If you've ever "hiked" to Akaka Falls you know I'm lying about the hiking part. It's just a humid walk. Little exercise, big reward! Check out the view of the first waterfall.

And Akaka Falls!

The rest of the day we toured the coast, stopped to look at pretty plants and stunning vistas. Then we headed back to town to catch some hula, and enjoy Big Island Candies. Yumm!

Happy weekend in Hilo.