My fair lady.

Even after a good nights sleep, I think my senses are still in overload after last nights visit to the Maui County Fair. I don’t know what came over me as I usually avoid it like the plague, but I was drawn to see the prize winning veggies, take a looksie at the photo’s and stare at the children getting scared and dizzy on the rides. Must be the full moon.

I suspect most western countries have their own version of a traveling fair with, games rides and local contests for everything home-grown in the area. Maui is no exception "oh look dear, Colin’s Round-Head Cock came in first again and how about this Cuban Cock, my word, isn’t he a beauty”. Personally I fall in line behind Austin Powers and the things that scare him, “Carnies. Circus folk. Nomads, you know. Smell like cabbage. Small hands”.

For a mere $4.00 you too may enter the maze of community noise, lights, people, candy floss, teenagers, music, strollers, screaming, arts, crafts and creativity (all in a smoke free environment) but after a few hours a break was in order. Like a pair of old people we gratefully sat down and ate our Dahma center vegetarian food and took a much needed moment. That was the beginning of the end as my senses slowed down like an unplugged hard drive; then I realized we were actually fortifying ourselves for the energy it would take to navigate ‘the leave’!

As we started our journey back to the car I stood and stared at 20 people suspended upside down in the night sky, Giampaolo nudged me with an angelic smile on his face. "Look" he said, I did, at the group of 16 year old girls stood directly in front of us “what” I said. “don’t you see”?...as I watched their flirty behavior I cross examined them searching for the attraction he was drawn to and I didn’t get it "no, do I know them”? “look again” he said and then I saw it. The big amber orb of our moon hanging low and beautiful in the sky and my senses rested.

PS: Author exhibiting enormous maturity in the path of a giant Zucchini!

It's all about me.

With a distinct lack of anything to post, this is best I could come up with.






Me basked in a sunset glow sporting my $10.00 Longs Drugstore (I forgot my $200.00 Maui Jim) sunglasses! Wotdafuk .....it bugs the crap out of me that the market can bare such grotesque over pricing and even worse, that I buy into it!

Value, it’s a strange and wondrous variable that ebbs and flows with what ever is important to me in the moment. Normally I wouldn’t be seen dead wearing such cheapies, but going to the beach without shades was not an option. So what price was I willing to pay to allow my eyes to rest for the afternoon behind a pair of non polarized specs? Well it turns out I’m quite a cheap bastard because the threshhold showed up quickly at $15.99 and then I found these at $9.99, score!

North and South.

My sunset walks are working! The gentle massaging received by my internal organs & tissue feels like an affectionate awakening after a short hibernation. Love this woman, her priorities match mine..... :-)

On the South shore it's possible to have quite the Robinson Cruso experience, including the appearance of a second set of footprints with no one site! I confess I looked over my shoulder once or twice, but all I saw was a solo sandpiper tenaciously foraging for its dinner. She played cat and mouse with the waves sometimes flying & singing, but mostly escaping like a roadrunner to avoid being swamped by the shore break. She didn’t always make it.

On Maui’s North shore, walking on the beach for an hour actually takes you an hour and a half because you always run into someone you know.Case in point, last night after ambling at sunset with Ulli, Michelle and GP we rewarded our efforts (as one does) with a cold beer and were soon joined by Max (who has a wet nose) taking Martin (who doesn’t), for a sandy stroll. Delightful.

A work in progress.

Last week someone said “go to the beach everyday-it will change your life” and I believe it. Having just been off the hamster wheel for the longest time in my adult life, I’m reluctant to jump fully back on. Until I can figure that out and am able to exercise more vigorously, I’ve decided to walk on the beach everyday after work. I can’t think of a better transition for my body and my mind.

Routine...I like it but, (like Mary Poppins) I’m also feeling a shift in the wind. Life is short and despite the fact that I have a great existence, I believe it can be better. So I’m fine tuning in my mind, playing with dreams, prioritizing my values and experiencing a bit of an internal make over. I haven't got a clue what the outcome will be, but I'm begining to figure out that removing an ovary and endometrioma may have made room for more than I bargained for.
How supercalifragilisticexpialidocious is that?!

Sunday snooze.

It doesn’t matter how old you are, wiggling ones toes in the sand always feels good and today (despite it being a bit overcast) we headed for the beach. In lieu of water wings I had a touristy florescent green blow-up mattress for me to look idiotic on. It worked well (both the floating and the idiotic parts) until I became a petulant child coming back to dry land after only five minutes because I was cold! In my defense let me say I could not lay belly down and paddle...still. This moved me swiftly to plan b, to be pulled behind Giampaolo’s windsurfing board on said blow-up mattress. Let me just put it this way, good idea, poor execution!

I beached myself after such vigorous exercise and doubt anyone will deny that a good nap was in order. While thankfully we have no photos of the floating green goddess, unfortunately the same can not be said of my forty winks. Good grief...!

Aerial maneuvers.

Freedom! I was out and about this weekend and as breaking a sweat is still not yet on my to-do list, I now rank myself as a semi-pro in the beach spectator division! The pooch and I shared some grass and watched a great show.

Luke Sky Walker, I mean Siver, was going off and pulling a different maneuver out of every wave. I have a recurrent falling dream and every time I see big air like this, I wonder if the feeling on the way down matches the plummeting I experience in my dream. Oddly I never land….but repeat the fall, go to another dream or wake up. Not a problem I assume Mr.Sky Walker suffers from.

At the risk of boring you, here are a few more images from my five star deck chair obervation post.

This is not a dress re-hears-al!

Once upon a time I heard that the most stolen sign on Maui was that at Hookipa Lookout or as it’s often graffitied.... Hookipa, lookout! As I’ve frequently seen the sign cleaned up and the size change, I have no doubt this is true.

Today’s version (for me) was a classic. The subplot is not exactly hidden, some frustrated surfer feeling territorial of his precious spot posts a message for all to see. Unfortunately his spelling (or lack there of) is also on display, which makes the whole thing rather amusing to a UK eye, as we only know this word with two 'l's! 'Kinel, I guess this is in the same family as 'travelled' and 'traveled'...but I digress.

A while ago I’d pointed out a hearse to Giampaolo (I have no idea why) and his response was ‘I wonder how many boards I could fit in that thing'?! So today at Hookipa when I saw a hearse pull in, I knew some canny surfer had had the same thought as the Itai.
I was sitting in my car and got my best image via the wing mirror, but imagine my surprise as the car drove by and I saw the undertaker! (gotta double click on the pici to find out).

Read all about it.

Over the weekend our book club held its annual gathering of intellect, astuteness and buffoonery, The official thinly guised reason for this revelry is the picking our reading list for the up coming year, of course we all know the real incentive to eat, drink and be merry!

Having missed Friday nights highlight of competitive Abba induced drunken aerobics I was delighted to be included in Saturday morning’s group advil handout!

I call this work of art ‘Rude Food’ by Nancy Robberson.
It seemed especially apropos as we were discussing ‘Middlesex’ by Jefferey Eugenides with an intersexed protagonist! One is left wondering what exactly are they putting in the water in Wailea?!

An hour to spare.

Labour day brought sun, wind and a small bump to Hookipa. That tantalizing combo summoned a get-together of happy loop throwing sailors, one cheerful Brit back to the great outdoors and an inventive Itai with a desire to film the vibe and acrobatics in his midst.

GP had engineered (and I use that term loosely) a system to film his session and after a while switched boards with looping fool, Andres, in the hopes of getting some radical footage. The outcome of which was not so much radical as unusable, however his excitement regarding the on-going ‘gopro research & development’ is infectious.

I sat under the shady tree to scope out my spot. For maximum enjoyment the nesting area has to have certain parameters, a little sun, a little shade, a great view, shelter from the wind (some what negotiable), maximum opportunities for people watching and if possible a latrine that doesn’t make you gag.

I only hung out for an hour or so, but the restorative effects were undeniable. The dogs, the characters, the friends, the weirdo’s, the famous, the talented, the kids, the unexpected, the amusing, the beautiful, the exhilarating, this is the joy of.....the beach.

Most people send flowers......

My friends Floyd & Michael are not 'most people'! These are the contents of my homeopathic get well parcel.Suffice to say I'm having a lot of fun sipping my honeybush, whilst eating my spotted dick and playing with my new snatch!