Am I Bipolar?

I keep forgetting to get the temps. It was hot, hot, hot today! No rain. The news says there was snow in 49 states, all of them except Hawaii.

One day I'm anxiety ridden, clinging to Dan, Baxter and Lucy for comfort and affection. The next day I'm on top of the world grateful that I live in such a beautiful, rugged place. Vibrating with joy, I know everything is going to be ok, in fact, it's going to be perfect. I tell Dan that I think I'm bipolar (JK) and he says he is too, so I guess that means we are normal!

Today, we spent the day picking up our stuff from the harbor and erecting a shed. Dan worked his butt off in the heat getting the storage shed up. Ladies, I know you know what I'm talking about when I say it sure was fun watching him, it's sexy to see your man at work, even if he is extremely irritated. He did a great job making all the little pieces fit and getting everything to work. Meanwhile, I carried boxes up and unpacked them.

Yea! My man at work.

All of our boxes look like this, and, the shipping company went out of business, so I guess we have no recourse if something major is broken. So far the damages are; a wood sculpture Dan made me when we first met, a ceramic chandelier we brought back from Spain, a small bowl from Spain and some Christmas ornaments. We have most of the boxes to unpack tomorrow. Our wedding china and beautiful platters from Spain made it in one piece. Thank you Deb for your fastidious packing! And, I love all the little things you tucked here and there to use up space!

All done!

We are both really tired, clean and relaxing, having pineapple, guava and vodka drinks. It's almost like home, tomorrow will be even more so!

Yum!

The highlight of today was having lunch at Verde and dinner at Kintaros. Other than that we napped, blogged, and watched TV.

My Veggie Stuffed Sopaipilla; local greens, chili-lime dressing, guacamole, potatoes, green chili sauce and cheese, YUM!!!

Dan's Al Pastor Pork Burrito; Pico de gallo, cheese, potatoes, cilantro and green chili sauce. YES!

We are so glad we can get green chili and burritos here. Verde is owned by a husband and wife team. He is a classically trained chef and she does the marketing and accounting. The food here is fresh (you can get the Ahi Tuna or catch of the day fish tacos) and flavorful, better than Chipotle's. We will be regulars!

I went to the dentist the other day and was able to find someone to do the implant. I'll have a tooth in one month, yea! This is how small Kauai is. Irene works at the front desk in the dentist's office. She is totally cute and totally nice. Plus, every time I see her she has fresh flowers in her hair, that's pretty cool. She is full on Hawaiian. Her family, going back generations, has been here since the plantation days. They all live on 20 acres, across the street from us, and even have burial sites on the property. We went to Kintaro because Justin, our guide last June, recommended. Irene asked us if we went there because we looked familiar to her. She is the first person we see in Kintaro, she works there too. She comes over and gives me a hug! I love her. We have sushi. This is my third time trying it, I really want to like it. But, I'm not a sushi girl. The combination of HUGE bites and nori kick in my gag reflexes. Next time I'll have something else. We got three appetizers we didn't order, I guess everyone gets them automatically. Lightly seared tuna, a salad and wontons. We also have some hot saki (thank you Dyanne) and a local beer. Still full from lunch, we only order two rolls. A California roll with broiled salmon on top and one with eel and avocado, both are rolled in caviar. The California roll with the salmon was good but I could only do one bite of the eel. We come home and Phil, our neighbor, Simone (his wife) and Phil's sister come into the yard to say hi. They had a little party last night and were apologizing for the noise. I told her we were so tired from canoe club, we fell right asleep. Turns out, Marco, who Dan paddled with last night and who goes to the Wailua Golf Course where Simone works as a bartender, was at their house. After canoe club, he went over there. Simone even knows Irene and my dentist, his brother sings karaoke where Simone works. Small world here on Kauai! 

Irene at Kintaro

Seared Ahi Tuna

Salad and wontons with a peanut dipping sauce

What's left of the California rolls

Eel and avacado

The Jeep Is Here!

Makai

Mauka

I didn't get the highs and lows today, warm and sunny! 11.5 inches of sun!

Dan and I were taking it easy, still recovering from Sunday's canoe club, when he got the call that the jeep was at the harbor. We hurried over, putting an end to the expensive car rental. It was so nice driving in a car we are accustomed to, and that we really like. We have needed the jeep several times here and have avoided certain hikes because we didn't have it. There was little time left before canoe club so we had a shave ice (our tradition for laundry day, we did our laundry at 9am and it wasn't open yet) and checked out Opaeka'a Falls. 

Colorado plates in Hawaii!

Opaeka'a Falls

In the early evening sun, the riverside is hot and shade is scarce. The sun, directly overhead, is intensely fierce, and it's winter here! No one is around but our coach Midori,  Lou, and Jerri. Lou is hardcore, in her late 60's or early 70's she owns a bunch of rentals here and is a badass on the water. Midori goes over the itinerary: run, warm up exercises, paddle, core exercises. 

Dan, Lou, Jerri and I run down the beach, it's tricky finding the right line to run. To high and the sand is loose, to low and you run in foamy, 3 inch deep water that has come onto the shore when a big wave crashes.  In no time I am covered in sweat, and I distract myself by looking at the beauty all around me. We run just over a mile and it's a lot harder than I imagined. I have to laugh inside. In Colorado I had fantasies of running on the beach, and, here it is! I never imagined I'd be doing it as a warm up with a bunch of women before paddling. I guess you never know how, what you ask for, is going to show up. Reminding me of the old adage, be careful what you wish for!

The men's team Pu'uwai, practice in the same place on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Once their coach shows up, Modori goes over and talks to the him, calling Dan over after five minutes. The last I see of him, he is paddling out to the ocean joined by four other canoes. We are all in a circle and after thirty minutes of aerobics, one canoe goes out on the ocean and one, mostly novice, is on the river. Today, the ladies are serious and don't have much time for the newbe. I am silently determined to pull my weight and maybe even impress the coach with my potential.

I have never been really good at sports. I was in soccer when I was a preteen and my freshman year in high school, but never did really well. Swimming was also something I tried my freshman year, I always came in last.  In middle school, I joined the basketball team. During a game, trying my hardest, I finally got the ball. I ran up to make a basket, everyone was cheering. For a second I wondered why the other team was watching me, but I decided not to spend too much time figuring out why. I ran up and scored! I was so stoked! My first basket! I turned around with a big smile on my face to learn that I had just scored for the other team! Doh! I like to be active and push myself but competition is not my thing. For this reason, I have always done solo ventures; cross country skiing, hiking, walking, running, yoga, snowboarding, kayaking and rollerblading. I can learn at my own pace, usually the hard way, without feeling like I am holding someone up or being insecure about my (in)abilities. 

The practice is informative. Midori spends a lot of time on paddle technique and pacing. We learn about the three phases of the forward stroke or propelling the canoe forward. The "catch" is when your paddle first enters the water, "compression" or "the power phase" is the stroke, and "recovery" is getting the paddle out of the water, up front, and into the water. There are so many things to be aware of; my body position, the pacing, head position, hand position and of the person in position 1, I need to look forward, to listen for when to switch paddling sides, make sure my paddle is transferred from one hand to the next fluidly, hit the water on the word 'hoe!" and say hoe!, loud at the same time, change my foot so that my support is coming from the same side I am paddling on, stretch forward and put my paddle deep into the water - to the hilt -, push with my top hand and pull with my bottom hand untwisting my body (which is not bending causing my arms to do all the work but twisting so my core does most of the work) until my paddle reaches mid thigh, pull my paddle cleanly and silently out of the water and reenter. Run silent, run deep. An easy pace is doing all of this in a second. Sixty strokes a minute is not going to win races and  a clean, quick recovery reduces drag on the boat increasing your speed. Midori shows us, we copy. When asked if we should be watching the paddle only, Midori scrunches up her face, draws a deep breath in, exhales and lets out a no. She says it's hard to explain, it's a feeling. You need to watch everything; the water, her head and hand position, the pacing of her paddle, her body language. Sometimes, she is going to mess up her stroke, maybe she's looking at the scenery or thinking about something else. If you only watch her paddle, you will mess up your stroke and so will everyone else. We paddle again, she corrects. Always firm but kind, I really like her. She knows how the boat feels when everyone is pulling their weight and paddling in unison. At one point, I was tired, and I messed up my paddling and she could tell. Looking forward and paddling, she shouts "keep it together girls! Follow my pace!" We are on the water for about an hour, the last thing she has us do is paddle individually, 4 sets of 8 (2 sets on each side), everyone else is calling out the count and rocking the boat forward. That pretty much finished me off!

The sun was setting when the other boats came in from the ocean. The women arriving with the men, means the women kept up with them! In the twilight, I try to help the girls pack up  the boats. I found out I was expected to do this (didn't know it even needed to be done) when one lady walked up to me and handed my a bailer. A bailer is what you use to bail water out of the boat, there was no water in the boat. I just looked at her as she walked off. Someone else said fill it up with water and rinse the boat off. Ok, direction, good, I need that.

Dan is exhausted. A mile from shore, they did sprints the whole time. He figures they did 6 to 8 miles. At one point, everyone is hot and sweaty and they all get out of their boats to cool off. At the end of practice the guys are trying to recruit him and Midori is a little worried. She wants her team to be a mixed team and needs Dan to be the third guy (haven't seen the other two yet) but understands Dan will become better and stronger with the guys. Midori has been a coach since her early teens and knows how men and women train, it's very different mentally as well as physically, she says. Dan wants to try and practice with the guys, cruise on Sundays with Midori's team and compete for both. 

Thank god it's too dark for the core exercises! Pooped, Dan tells me the men's coach invited him to come over to his house, which is right by the river, for beers. In the jeep, Dan just wants to get something to eat and go home, relax and watch Lost. Plus, the dogs need to be let out. Rolling out of the dirt parking lot, we see everyone outside and decide we should at least say thank you for the offer.  Turns out it's a luau, someone's birthday. We talk a little bit and head over to Bubba's Burgers. We are starving, the veggie diet isn't that appealing when you are burning this many calories!

Exhausted!

One of the bruises from Sunday.

Recovery

Sunrise, makai view. Makai means toward or by the sea; seaward.  Ma; directional particle, Kai means the ocean.

Five minutes later

Mauka, towards the mountains (uka inland or upland) 

A joke from Justin the barista at Java Kai. What do you call a surfer without a girlfriend? Homeless.

We are sore today and seriously lacking in energy. I blog, Dan surfs the internet. Dawn, from the canoe club, told me she has a blog and I enjoy reading about her adventures when she first got here. The stories are fun and I understand why people like to read my posts. She even includes a link for Luau Pig. Here is an interesting excerpt. 

"I like watching the birds here.  We have wintering Peeps (sandpipers) here now.  They just started showing up a couple of weeks ago with the trade winds.  What is so interesting is they winter here, but do not stay, and so there are many breed types.  I saw them in CC often but not the variety I’m seeing here.  It is a long flight for them.  Did you know we do not have seagulls?   Some do fly this far but they usually die after arrival as the environment is not what they need here.  I thought that was interesting.  On that subject; we do not have snakes either.  Whenever there is a snake sighting (stowaways from the airlines, etc.) it's a big deal.  There was one sighting I especially remember.  The news was reporting with an interview of two teens who were describing how they saw the snake in the road and, no kidding, demonstrating how they caught it in a trash can.  It was so funny watching this big long news affair and how the great hunters had caught them.  But it truly is a very important thing, even if I do laugh, because Guatemala has a real problem with the brown tree snake.  They have lost 35% of their bird population because of them.  There are direct flights from Guatemala to Honolulu so they search the planes from there and then again when they arrive.  Last year they found 10,000 stowaways.  Another thing we don't have is poison ivy, oak, and sumac.  I really like that as I just go tearing down the trails with no worry."

It's getting dark and my laptop is ready to die. I tear myself away from her blog to go make a salad for dinner. It's pretty cool, getting to know someone this way, tomorrow when I see her it will feel like we go way back!

Fun In The Sun

Sunrise over the ocean. High 82, low 65

This morning we got up before the sun, had some coffee and a lara bar in the car and rushed to the Wailua River. Today is the day for our first outrigger canoe class with The Kawaikini Canoe Club. We are eager and show up at 8am, like we were told. No one else is here. The state park is a popular tourist spot, there are a lot of services provided here, with the Smith family being the largest provider. While we wait for the canoe group, we talk with the visitor center folks. Both natives, and familiar with our canoe club, they laugh and tell us Hawaiian time would mean between 8 and 9, probably 9. Darlene, a little round lady of Chinese decent, is in her 60's. She was a paddler for 17 years and kindly gives us a rundown of etiquette and jargon. She also says this part of the Wailua is brackish (when fresh water and salt water are mixed), making the water thicker, once you get out on the ocean "you will be amazed at how much easier it is". They wish us luck as we cheerfully head to the river, laughing at their remembered first day and the soreness that ensued.

Wailua River

We walk into a grassy, cool clearing, shaded by trees. Beside the river there is a circle of women doing warm up exercises. I feel Dan's energy sink as the realization that he is the only man unfolds in his mind. Undaunted, he joins right in. Dawn, the president of the canoe club and who I have been corresponding with via e-mail, warmly welcomes us, as Sam, her daughter plays fetch with their dog. Dogs are ok in state parks. Our coach Madori, a beautiful, dark skinned and fit middle aged woman, guides us through 15 minutes of stretching, calisthenics and running exercises before we get to paddle.

We learn that there is to be a huli drill today (click on the words huli drill to see a video). A huli drill is when you intentionally capsize the canoe and upright it, practicing for when it really happens. Before that, we are divided into two groups the competitors and the cruisers. The coach and competitors head out to the ocean, the cruisers run the river. The Wailua river flows into the ocean so it's easy to accommodate both groups. Assigned to the cruisers, Dan and I get a quick lesson from Dawn then help unload the canoes. Weighing 400 pounds, the 6 man canoe requires everyone's help to get it into the water.

Position 1, seated at the front of the boat, sets the pace. Everyone follows, watching the paddle going in and out of the water, matching the stride. Position 2, counts the strokes and calls out when to switch  sides. With everyone is in unison, all the paddles come out of the water and switch sides. When the word "hoe"is called out, your paddle should be reentering the water. The word hoe means paddle in Hawaiian. Position 3, 4 and 5 paddle, and position 6 steers. In our case position 6 also called out directions, like get ready to turn, and pointing out when a paddler was out of sync. Dan and I were assigned paddler positions and off we went, maybe a mile in total. I wanted to do good, I knew these ladies were serious and weren't looking forward to any newbie's. I focused on position one's paddle, the most important thing being synchronicity. I didn't look around, I paddled. Once I got the rhythm, I tried switching my lead leg as I switched my arm position. Sometimes I was successful, most times I forgot. There were moments when we were all in sync and it was beautiful, meditative. The cool water splashing on your hot, strong arms (or soon to be) and the beauty all around was exhilarating. The combination of  power and beauty somehow create a peaceful effect. I've never been one for team sports but, something about this is different. It's a real team effort, everyone works in a rhythm. There is not much room for competing (maybe for positions) you have to be in sync with each other or you can die. One off centered move to the right (opposite of the outrigger side) and everyone is in the water.

We get off the canoes and walk under the bridge where the river and ocean converge. It's almost time for the huil drills and we want to see where the coach with her boat of competitors are. Carol (position 6) and I squint into the horizon, looking for them. Dan walks up and, with his bionic eyes, spots them about a quarter mile straight out, maybe a mile and a half down the shore. Carol tests the strength of the convergence to see how best to guide the boat into the river. Madori has a different idea, the current is strong and an exposed rock is in the middle. As the team pulls onto shore everyone helps to push the boat around the narrow channel and back into the river.

Dawn President, Kawaikini Canoe Club

Carol checking the convergence

Dan and Diana 

Once inside the secluded safety of the river, the huli drill starts. Everyone in the boat paddles out to the center and stops. Madori calls out a countdown 3...2...1... and they capsize the boat. Madori does a roll call to make sure everyone is safe and accounted for. Once a person answers roll call they begin their assigned duty. Position 1, 3 and 6 go to the outrigger side, 2 and 4 the opposite, and begin to upright the boat. Position five's responsibility is to gather all of the paddles. You don't chat, you don't dilly dally, you only do your assigned duty. In under a minute, the boat is upright and everyone on shore sends out a great cheer.  Position 3 and 4 bail like crazy until everyone is in. Paddles are redistributed, quickly passed under the seats, and position 5 bails until the boat is mostly empty of water. As they paddle back to shore someone looks at us as asks us if we are going to do it. Dan is ready but I'm hesitant. Once we learn that there may not  be another huli drill for 6 weeks, that you can't go out into the ocean until you have done one AND a new sport regulation means no paddling until you huli, I say, why yes, I think I'd like to huli today!

Madori, in black, giving instruction

Ready to Huli

Capsized canoe

Successful huli!

I am assigned position 2 and Dan is 4, which means we will be helping to upright the canoe. At first I don't have a problem with this. It is not until I look at the boat and see where position 2 is, that I feel anxiety beginning to bubble in my stomach. The 25' long boat is perpendicular to the water and only the nose is on shore. As I walk deeper and deeper into the water I wonder how the hell I am going to get into the boat! Dan, in waist high water, jumps right in. Once I reach the second seat, the water is up to my chest. I begin trying to quickly muscle my way in. I struggle, hoisting myself up, using only my arms. My legs flail around in the water (which is now to my waist). Splashing around like a fish out of water, I battle to get my girth into the boat. When I am really nervous, I laugh. Ha Ha Ha. Everyone is quiet, everyone is watching. I exclaim "How embarrassing!" In unison, the women cry out, "Nooooooo! It's ok, it's always hard the first time, you'll get it, you're doing fine". I am comforted, happy to know that the only man here is my husband, and he'll always pick me for his team. I stop, spent, and hang onto the arms that attach the outrigger to the canoe. Madori tells me to relax and swims over to me. Very calmly, she shows me how to get in front of the seat, hold onto the side of the boat, lift my lead leg into the boat, hook it under the seat, grab onto the other side and lift myself in. Easy, I get right in with no problems. I do have a nice bruise the length of my inner right thigh and on the inside of my left arm though. Finally in, we paddle out to the center of the river. Sam is in position one and, braving scolding from position six, she quickly tells me "as soon as you are in the water, drop your paddle and swim under the boat to the other side."  "But I'm supposed to be on this side." "Yes", she says "but when the boat is upside down it'll be on the other side" "Oh, right" I say. Doh!! We pause, position six counts down and we are in the water. I let my paddle go, come up for air and wait to be called. Replying that I am safe, I overshoot to the other side and get into position. Very quickly everyone is ready and someone counts down. With very little effort, the boat is upright in seconds and a round of applause from shore goes up. I easily hook my leg and hop into the boat.

I am ecstatic, jubilant! What a beautiful experience. We help wrap things up and rinse off. While we are rinsing off, we are told where ever there is brackish water, there is a bacteria called leptospirosis which will give you flu like symptoms for a couple of days. We rinse thoroughly! Walking to the parking lot with Dawn, Dan and I are ready to pay $270.00 (135.00 each) for the annual fee.  Dawn explains that this is a commitment. Practice is every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday with competitions (that can last all day) interspersed. The Tuesday and Thursday practices start at 4:30 and are for competitors. There is a rigorous 60 minute workout proceeding any paddling. Paddling starts at 5:30 and goes until sunset. It's club policy to have potential members practice for 2 weeks (at no charge) before they will be accepted. Dan and I leave, ready for Tuesday.

I'm feeling guilty that Baxter and Lucy have not gone out to play, really play and run, since we've been here. Dan and I decide to have lunch at the Olympic Cafe, go home and get the dogs, and find a place to run them off leash. I am starving and want to eat healthy so I get the Ahi tuna with 2 eggs and rice. Dan get's miga's with homefries.

Baxter, giving me the "I'm sick of being stuck in this house all day while you go out" look.

Old Town Kapa'a from the Olympic Cafe's balcony.

After some side excursions, looking for a place closer to home, we find the place Dawn had told us about. It's just past the Wailua Golf Course, down a bumpy dirt road for about a mile, to the ocean. I'll let the pictures speak for the beauty! Baxter played fetch for about an hour and a half. We were having so much fun, and Lucy, timid of the waves, wanted to join in. Her idea was to steal Baxter's stick after he returned it to me. I ended up having two sticks so she could take one while we played fetch with the other. If I threw the stick out too far, Baxter would look at me, give a little whine, walk forward a few steps, come back, look at me, look at the stick, and look back at me. I started walking to the stick and he'd follow me out, becoming more brave overtime. At one point I turned to walk back to shore and there was Lucy, right behind me in 3 feet of water, courageously swimming her butt off! I was so proud of my baby girl (well, she is 8 this year), she did it three times!

Nice, but too close to the (2 lane) highway

Score!

Back at home we are tired. All we want is a quick shower, some tasty dinner and TV time.

Whole wheat EINSTEIN bagel, avocado, baby lettuce mix, fresh basil, mayo, dijon and turkey sammies with Kale chips, a healthy and delicious replacement for potato chips.

Chillin