Just now, he got a call from the realtor Jimmy Johnson in Kauai. Jimmy, a surfer, has all the information he needs so the place is ours! All that's left to do is sign the lease and wire him the money. If he has the information for us, we'll be doing that tomorrow. After my dentist appointment (for the implant), seeing Avatar (on the IMAX screen), buying a new HD camera, and having our name (not the banks) put on the title for the jeep.
We met Brenda (former Sr. Manager of Marketing at work) at Crowfoot Coffee, a local coffee joint, this morning. The Christmas lights and decorations created a magical setting as we sat down to breakfast burritos and coffee. Me, I can't resist the calorie laden egg nog lattes this time of year. It was energizing to be with her. She is running her own business ("As broadly experienced writers, Bloomery Forge crafts the hand-forged tools – concepts, copy and content – that will make your project sing. Because we know the language of developers, agencies, art directors, photographers, and designers as well as the words that move consumers, we think you'll also find the process as easy as it is successful. Living and working abroad – in Berlin, London, Oxford, Oslo, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Auckland, NZ – as well as the major cities of these fine United States, has been the perfect preparation for our feature articles. Our lifestyle stories have covered everything from the fine fit and finish of a luxurious residence to eco-adventures in St. Lucia") and loving it. She says she doesn't make as much as she used to but the trade off is more life. She is happier, doing things she loves, spending more time doing what she is passionate about. She is working on a project for an old colleague writing about luxury resort homes in the Caribbean. Her eyes light up as she tells us she had to go to the Caribbean to do research! She is singing my tune! More Life, Less stuff! Passion and magic infiltrate the day. Turns out, early on in her career she was doing a documentary on a couple (the first in modern times to build a traditional Polynesian log canoe and sail it across an ocean), Bob and Nancy Griffith (mentioned here) who owned a sail boat and were circumnavigating the globe. As payment they took her on a journey sailing from California to Oahu, over to Kauai and finishing on the Big Island. She brought a book with her that the couple wrote, Blue Water: A Guide to Self-Reliant Sailboat Cruising. Animatedly, she tells of her adventure, joyful, like the young woman she once was, I can see her, going back in time, to life on the ocean. It changed her. Her friend Nancy, now nearing 76, owns an organic Kona coffee farm on the Big Island called A'ama Farms. I leave feeling like I wish I had spent more time with her. I had no idea I had such a treasure of a friend. Her experience, wisdom and joy are inspiring, uplifting. She left some of her joy with me, for which I am truly grateful.
