One door closes, another opens

What an odd adventure... So Lynn, Alexis and I took a cab to the airport, arrived in plenty of time for our flight, we started to board the plane when they, Island Air, announced that we would be delayed. Not good for us because we already had a very limited time in Lanai before heading to Maui. So we went to the counter and asked to change our flight to go directly into Maui. It happens that there were seats available and they were just getting ready to board so away we went.

We decided to upgrade our rental car to a 4 door jeep wrangler. It was really nice. We headed to the winery before we had to pick up the other two girls. The winery was in the upcountry, very pretty up there. The other two girls got in about an hour apart from each other. We went to dinner at a nice Mexican Restaurant and then went go-karting.

Sunday we got up at 3:30am to head to Haleakala National Park. Haleakala is Hawaiian for the House of the Rising Sun. We drove to the summit at nearly 10,000 feet to watch the sun rise. It was well worth it. However, it was very cold (43 degrees) and a very windy road to the top.
After the sun rise we went to I-Hop for breakfast and back to the hotel to nap.

In the afternoon, we took a three hour snorkeling adventure boat trip. Snorkeling, laying on the sun deck and there was even a slide to enjoy. It was so cool. We had a deli lunch on the boat and beer & Mai-tais were flowing. After the boat ride we went to dinner and then out for a few drinks at Mulligans on the green.

This morning we relaxed before hoping on our plane back to reality. It was a really great trip... so many beautiful things to see and do. I can't wait to go back again.

Once again I am headed off island this weekend. tomorrow morning I am catching a flight with Alexis and Lynn to Lanai then we are catching a ferry to Maui for the rest of the weekend. Two other friends will be joining us at different points on the trip.... awesome pictures to come....

Johnny, Orlando and whole crew were in their glory for the third installment of Pirates. The official opening for the movie is tomorrow, but once again at least here in Hawaii, they previewed the movie tonight starting at 8pm. Alexis, Lynn, Amanda, and I were there 45 minutes early and still had to sit in the third row from the front. The movie was long but it was good, confusing at times, but good. There were laugh out loud moments and moments where I was confused. I will definitely need to watch the movie again.

If you liked the first two... I think you will like this one!

Tonight was the official MS WALK victory party. Team captains were invited to the event plus a guest. There was food, prizes, and awards. The party was small only about 30 people. Some of the local company supporters came. We did receive an award "New Kids on the Block" we did the best out of any of the new teams. I think they said our final numbers were just over $2700. The plaque is nice, we get to keep it for a year then give it back so next year the new kid will get their name added. The plaque has winners since the 2002 walk. The team that raised the most money had brought in over $4000.

Unfortunately, the event wasn't handled as well as it could have been. It was not organized well and started late (at least according to my invitation). For all of the companies that were involved or sponsored teams, it was sad to see that they didn't raise much money. The are defiantly lacking a good volunteer person to over see the team captains. I wish I could get more involved but since I will be moving before the next walk I don't think it is appropriate, hopefully where ever I move next...


Highlight...Alexis and I did win prizes..... James Bond movie buckets!

Tonight we had appointments with Mia our nutritionist and I had an appointment with Alana, my personal trainer. I have been sore all day today and could not figure out why...that is until I was telling Alana about my weekend. Of course... the driving range yesterday.

Our first stop was to see Mia, she is very happy with our progress. We make her laugh alot, I think we are on the track to winning this competition. Mia is currently writing a nutrition article for Midweek and wants pictures to accompany it. Therefore, I took my camera to the gym where we had special permission to take photos. There are a few pictures of me doing some of the workout plan, a couple of Alexis working out, and one of Alexis and I doing the ISO AB (attached picture).

This competition is turning out to be so worth it. I am having a great time and I feel really good. Everyone is very supportive, it is wonderful.

Today was busy. We woke up and went to the driving range in Hawaii Kai. It was nice to be out hitting the balls but man is it getting hot here. Summer is definitely coming...all day it has been stuffy. After hitting golf balls we went to work out, only an hour today because we wanted to head to the UH baseball game at 1:05pm. It turns out that a friend of mine, Sharon, had extra tickets (her boyfriend is the Athletic trainer for the team and he went to school in Oregon with Beth). We had awesome seats, front row on top of the dugout. The Rainbows actually won the game 7-6 which was awesome because Fresno State is the number one team in their conference. After the game we went to Costco with Heidi to stock up on fish and other yummy foods.

What a great trail to get back into hiking. We travelled over the mountains to pick up Lynn for our "Lanikai Hills" hike this morning. The hike was said to be one of the most dry and dusty hikes on the island, but man was it worth it. The hike to the top only took around 30 minutes and at the top of the "hills" there were two pill boxes (WWII bunkers) which we were able to sit on and Lynn was daring enough to climb down into them. The hike itself was a challenge as there was a lot of loose gravel and some areas of steep climbing. But well worth it. We spent a long time at the very top pill box just looking at the view. We sat there long enough for one man to run up and down the trail twice and we passed him again on the way down. It was amazing and well worth the time. After the hike we went for a dip in the ocean. The rest of the day was spent doing homework and relaxing. It was a nice Saturday.

We had big plans of going to see Shrek the Third, which opens on Friday the 18th (tomorrow) , on Saturday with all of the crowds and children. Luckily, Alexis was checking the movie times and found out that Shrek was opening early at a few locations. We were one of the first people to see the new Shrek at the first showing here at 10pm. To our surprise there were not that many people at the show...probably because no one knew it would open late tonight instead of tomorrow.

The movie was really cute. I laughed out loud a bunch of times. I have to say Donkey's babies are adorable.....

Today I went for my third weigh in with Alana. I was a bit nervous as I haven't seen as much change over the past two weeks as I did those first few weeks. But like everyone is telling me... the first 10 pounds or so is water (and easy, they say).

If I look at my starting weight compared to the weigh in today, I have lost 16.4 pounds. I have also lost 2.25 inches from my chest, 1.25 inches from my waist, and 2.5 inches from my hips. I think I am off to a great start. Alexis has also been rocking it... according to Alana, we are the two to beat in this challenge.

We have a little over a month left in the challenge....Alana thinks I can truely work my butt off and hit these amazing goals she has set. I guess time will tell.

Well I finally finished the semester and I am ready for summer school. However, I am taking an incomplete in my thesis (paper 1). I have until September to finish my first three chapters. Summer school starts tomorrow, I looked at the syllabus today and it seems like a lot of work. I guess I like being busy as opposed to sitting around with nothing to do. Summer school is only 7 weeks long so it should be quick and painless, with a couple months left to enjoy.

As for the rest of the weekend. We have been busy busy busy. Saturday I went to the beach and to the gym. Today we went to the Aloha stadium swap meat, the mall, the beach and to the gym. It was a good weekend.

So I have been to the gym the past three days and I think my body is now in shock. I came close to passing out or possibly dieing during my work out yesterday. Today I couldn't bring myself to go into the gym because a majority of my body was hurting with every step I took. Luckily, Alana (my trainer) called to check on me after our intense full body workout yesterday. She really pushed me to the limits and I can happily report that I did not break. I completed everything she wanted me to do I may not have been smiling but I did it. Tonight she told me just to stretch and stay home... I like that plan alot.

However, I did catch myself strapping on hand weights and starting to work on my triceps. I've always heard that working out is contagious... but I never believed it. Hmm...

My beloved dog, Parker, passed away on Friday at home in moms arms. He had been fighting a battle with a brain tumor for the past six months and was finally unable to walk and needed a lot of assistance. He is in a better place now chasing all of the sticks he can find. Mom said he was very peaceful at the end, like he waited for mom and Bob to get back from their trip here to see me. I wish I could have been there with him but I am glad I was able to say goodbye when I was home in December.

Finally, what everyone has been asking for.....

Arrival, Wednesday evening 7ish:
The flight was wonderful, we flew Hawaiian Airlines and it was good. The flight attendants were on top of their game. The only strange part was being sprayed by pesticides when we arrived, the entire inside of the plan was sprayed with us in it. Upon arrival we ended up taking an airport transport to the hotel.

First full day, Thursday:
We awoke early to hop on the train to the Blue Mountains with a pit stop in Blacktown. Blacktown was the home of the Featherdale Wildlife Park, smack in the middle of a residential neighborhood. Once we entered the park we walked through a gate into a magical area of Australian wildlife. Kangaroos were hoping about freely, there was a man holding a python (I touched it, the others in my group kinda of skirted around it) and finally tons of koala bears. They were nestled in their trees sleeping with a few out for people to pose with. Their fur was very rough and they kind of smelled bad but they were neat. Next, we purchased an ice cream cone and filled it with kangaroo food. We entered another area full of roo's. Alexis made the first attempt at feeding them. Her cone was snatched out of her hand by a large roo. It was really cool, they almost seemed like dogs, nothing like I expected.
After the park we caught the bus back to the train station and continued on to Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. Once there we found a trolley bus to take us the Scenic World. Scenic World is a park that has several methods of taking you to the valley floor. So we hoped onto the incline railway. It was a train that went at a 52 degree angle straight down. Believe me we were all scared and holding on to the cage around us, mind you, no seat belts and only one door, the other side was open. Once at the bottom the view was beautiful. We walked through the rain forest and rode on a cable car back to the top. We then went to Echo Point to see the three sisters and the amazing canyon. The back on the train for a two hour ride into Sydney.

Day two, Friday:
We hoped on the Sydney explorer bus. This bus is run by the government and stops at 29 different points of interest around Sydney. Our first stop was the Fish Market where we ate lobster, scallops, prawns and calamari at 9:30 in the morning. Next, we went to the Harborside shopping plaza, looked around a bit, then continued on. The highlight of the day came at our next stop, the world famous Sydney Opera House. It truly was amazing. A majority of it was made from tiles. It must have taken forever to build. From the Opera house, we could see the Harbor Bridge and all the little people walking across the top of it. Next we went to the Sydney Tower observatory, the elevators were a bit scary but the view was worth it. We then went to the Opal Museum (mom's choice). Then back to the hotel for a quick rest and change before heading to Star City. Star City is the only casino in Sydney. I can happily say Sydney has nothing on Vegas or even Ho Chunk for that matter. We ate dinner at the food court area and played a few games then headed back.

Day Three, Saturday:
Bondi Beach explorer bus. We hopped on and headed towards the world famous Bondi Beach in a suburb of Sydney. The bus went on a path through rich residential areas and down the coast line. Our first stop was at Harry's Cafe de Wheels, a very popular meat pie wagon. There we ate meat in pies with mashed potatoes on top and smashed peas, very interesting especially at 10am. After that we stopped at the Gap, the famous area on the heads heading into Darling Harbor where a ship crashed and all but one person died. It was a beautiful place. On to Bondi Beach, it was the start of fall there so there weren't many people around but it was still neat. We went to some shops where I bought a swim suit then continued on. We made it back to Circular Quay by early afternoon. Circu;ar Quay is the main dock for all vessels in Darling Harbor. We decided to take boat rides in the Harbor. Mom and Bob booked a trip on a sightseeing ferry and at the same time Alexis and I booked a ride on a speedboat. The ride was crazy... first it was cold then it was wet. It started raining on us and then they made the boat go fast, just imagine 65 degree weather in a speedboat without a coat when it was raining...not happy campers.
After that adventure we went back to get ready for the night. We all went to a pub that served Toohey's New (a beer) and had dinner. Afer whichAlexis and I were off to the Australian Rules Football game... the Sydney Swans. What an interesting sport...we had a few beers and watched the game.

Day Four, Sunday:
We headed out the the Olympic Park to check it out. There was a cute market that we had breakfast at. We had a wonderful European pancake type thing, we liked enough that we went back for a second order. As for the park, first on our list wasn't to tour a stadium or anything but instead we went to an outlet mall close by. Yes, I did buy shoes and a few shirts. But like Alexis says... EVERYTHING IN AUSTRALIA IS ON SALE!!
We headed back to the park and decided to go to a Rugby game at Tesltra Stadium. The venue was really cool. Alexis and I bought a few items from the gift stands.... GO South Sydney Rabbitohs. Everyone really gets into the game. We did leave a bit early as it was really warm. We hoped on a train and went to a shopping mall. We were in search of TARGET. I have to say it was the worst Target I have ever been in. It was all crammed together and it didn't look very clean. They must have a different reputation down under. After shopping we went back to the hotel before catching a cab to the airport.

We crammed a lot of stuff into those four days and it was a blast. Mom, Bob, Alexis and I all had a lot of fun. It was also their fall so that was a nice change from Hawaii.

I would love to go back someday!