Last Minute Miracle

Tay & Ryker in front of the St. George Temple

Ryker moved to Utah in January 2012.  It's hard to be away from your baby boy for such a long stretch, especially when another long stretch is looming.  He and Taylor have been planning this trip to China since before they got married, I think since they first met.  They left for China on Saturday.  (You can visit their blog Ryker and Tay, to read all about their adventure.)  For the last month or so I am have been checking flight prices to go visit them before they left.  Every time I looked, they were at least $700 round trip.  I had given up hope of seeing them before they left for their year in China.

By nothing short of a miracle, a flight for $300 round trip became available last Monday.  There was one seat left, the price was right, so I booked it, and left the next day.  Due to time zones, and over night flights across the Pacific, I spent Wednesday through Friday with the kids, and flew home on Saturday, the day they left for China.

I flew into Las Vegas and we hung out at our friend Angela's house in St. George, UT.  It was a great visit!  I really enjoyed being in the same space with my son and his awesome wife.  It is a great feeling to see your grown up child so happy and living his dreams.  What a blessing it was to spend that time with them.

We did a few tourist"y" things, but mostly just ate great food and hung out.  There just wasn't enough time for me to eat at all the places I wanted to.  Next trip I have to hit up Sonic, Steak and Shake, Pizza Factory and Cafe Rio for sure!

Lunch at the Happy Wives restaurant in Colorado City

 

 The landscape of St. George is so different from Hawaii.  I was freezing most of the time, but mesmerized by the beauty. We did a very tiny bit of hiking on the red rocks around St. George.  As long as I was in the sun, I could stop shivering.  I think I must be an island girl for life now.  I can't handle the cold, dry air.

Desert Flowers

Yes, moss on a rock - Cool isn't it?

Less Talk, More Do

I know it is February, and nearly the end of February at that.  January was just not the month for me to think deeply and make serious plans.  So, here I am in mid-February, formally stating my goals for the new year, which is already in progress.  So, better late than never, here are my goals for 2013. 

My theme for 2013 is, "Less Talk, More Do", pretty self explanatory. 

1.  Hike once a month.   Hiking makes me happy.  I love being outside, and seeing all the beauty of this island, particularly the things you cannot see from the road.  It feels great to make it to the top!  I also enjoy the conversations you can have while on the trail.  If you want to get to know someone, go hike a few miles with them.

2.  Become proficient at Hula.  When I dance, I feel joy.  Dancing Hula is a way of sharing that joy with others.  I am going to practice as much as necessary so that when I perform the audience sees the joy that I feel and are not distracted by the moves of a less than naturally graceful white girl. 

3. Read 50 books.  I need to read.  It keeps me entertained, and feeling connected to the world.  I love to learn new things, and reading is cheaper than tuition, and more flexible than going back to school.  Why 50?  It's more than I read last year, and I like a challenge.  It's slightly less than one book per week, and that seems completely possible to me, unless I get on another LOOOOOONG book kick, (ie. Atlas Shrugged, Middlemarch, Great Expectations, The Three Musketeers,  Don Quixote, etc.). 

Ok, here comes the big one, are you ready for it?  I saved the best for last.  If I say this out loud I am committed. 

4. Write my first book.  Yes, first, there will be more than one.  I will have a draft ready for the next step by my birthday.  I have been talking about this for too long, it's time to do it.  I have a desire, I have a goal, and I have a plan.  This is it, time to get serious.

Love Songs

Forget the flowers and the chocolates, let's DANCE!

Here's a playlist all ready to go.  So, hang up the disco ball, turn on the strobe light and dance the night away!

Happy Valentine's Day!



Yes, Journey is heavily represented here. I know, Faithfully is on there twice - sorry - that's how much I like that song. You may also have noticed a few anti-love songs, like that one by Joan Jett.  It's a great song, and hey, not every love story is a happy one.  I didn't include Love Stinks, cause well, that's just not true (and that is not a danceable song).  Love is great, even if it is a battlefield sometimes. :)

I Like Wednesdays

I like wednesdays.  Nothing much every happens on a wednesday.

I was born on a wednesday, a long time ago, to be sure, and I am certain I had no idea what day of the week it was at the time.  When I was learning to read and spell I thought everyone spelled it wrong.  I thought it was "Wend's day", like my own personal day.  Why shouldn't I have one day, every week that is just for me?  (Children really are self-centered aren't they?  Apparently I was no exception.)

Even though that misconception has long been dispelled, I still like wednesdays.  It's the only day that feels balanced.  It brings symmetry to the calendar. It is impossible to divide a week in half evenly.  The work week has the same problem.  Seven is not an even number, and neither is 5.   Only the weekend is even, and 2 is just too small of a number, and the weekend far too short, to be worth dividing in half.   If a week can't be divided in half, at least it can have a middle.  That's something anyway. Wednesdays are a nice center point in the week, the same number of days behind as ahead.  They are the eye of the storm.  By Wednesday the craziness of Monday has worn off, and it's too early to be distracted by the weekend. 

Oh, and it's the night the trash goes out, that's the only reoccurring, weekly event on wednesdays for me.  It's a nice, clean, even sort of day.  I appreciate a day that isn't already booked full in advance. I can start the day with nothing on the calendar to predetermine my plans, nothing to work around, just a nice, clean, blank slate.   It is a day that can be whatever I make it.  It's the perfect day to be productive, get caught up and make things happen. 

Maybe there is a metaphor for life lurking about in this whole concept ..... life here on Earth is the middle point in eternity and is a blank slate to make of it what we will ..... kind of a deep thought for a wednesday ....

Today was another classic wednesday.  I cleaned up all the tasks that have been loitering around on my to do list, unfinished, since Monday (Ok, I confess, some of them have been there since last week, and I didn't get everything done.  I tried to buy black ink for my printer, honest I did.  Walmart was out of the one I need, and I was NOT going to another store the day before Valentine's day at 5pm.  When did Valentine's day become a major retail shopping holiday?  Seriously, Walmart was nuts and so was traffic!  I have little patience as it is.  The ink will have to wait another day.).  I had time to walk the dogs, do some laundry, clean the kitchen, and even cook dinner.   It's not even 10pm and I am writing a blog post, always the sign of a good day. 

Speaking of to do lists .....  My love of techno gadgets has been at odds with my need to physically write out my to do lists in a spiral notebook, (old school, pen and ink), for some time.  I have tried to ditch the notebook and make lists in the digital notebook on my phone, or actually use a to do list ap.  I have even tried emailing myself my daily lists. I just don't think in straight lines.  I don't WANT to type out my lists. It doesn't feel right.  I want to write it out, and then make arrows and check marks, and draw little side bars, etc.  I also DON"T want to take that notebook with me .  My purse, aka Narnia, is heavy enough.  I recently came up with what I think is a BRILLIANT solution .....  Before I leave my desk I simply take a photo of the current page in my notebook with my phone.  I have all my notes,  lists, etc there, in my gadget of choice while I am away.  It takes less than 2 seconds, way faster than typing that mess into an email, or ap, and nothing is lost in the translation.  It works perfectly!