It's the middle of the night here in Honolulu, which is much later for everyone else in my home timezone. For some reason I feel compelled to update. Maybe after hours of surfing youtube and watching every imaginable Tokio Hotel video, I want to do something more substantial with my time. Maybe I'm just so tired that I am rambling. Either way...
I have been here on Oahu since July 1oth. I'll be here until September 6th. It already feels like I've been here forever and I can't imagine that I'll be staying for over another month. Wow. Paradise only feels like paradise for so long, you know what I mean? It's beautiful, but the shine has worn off and mainly I'm suffering from a bad sunburn and hormonal crankiness. I am really grateful that my two brothers have come to hang out with me for the next two and a half weeks. They are a lot of fun and they keep me hip. Honestly, I've never had much of an eye for fashion and my youngest brother is amazing. I wish I could be more on top of things like him. There is amazing shopping here as well, not that I can afford most of it... oh well. They also expose me to great music, which I'm also happy about. Some recent favorites: Empire of the Sun, CSS, and some others I can't think of because it's too late. Well, maybe I'll talk more about that another day.
What have I been doing here? I get that question a lot and I feel like a phony pretending to vacation here. The story is that I came home to Oregon after a pretty crappy experience in Utah from January to June and I needed a break. My dad had been asked by his work to do a project in Hawaii this summer and it proved to be just the right escape. Actually, I couldn't ask for a better one. So, here I am, bumming it in Honolulu. I am not approaching this trip the way most people would. I am simply trying to soak in the atmosphere and avoid the tourist traps. I don't feel compelled to buy souvenirs or even take many pictures. I keep my routine simple. I go to the beach; sometimes I volunteer; sometimes I snorkel; some days I sit indoors and watch the Price is Right before I even head out to the beach. I can only spend an hour or two in the sun anyway before I'm burnt to a crisp. Right now my life is very simple. Probably the simplest it's been in years. I take care of myself, live in a studio condo with my family, and chill. It's great. I think my mind is a little numb at the moment, but I am glad for it. I had too many months of pain and anxiety. It's harmful to stay in that state and I am glad I'm out of it. My heart hasn't raced much lately--except for when I occasionally run on the treadmill. I feel blessed.
The best things I've experienced so far on the island have been:
1. Swimming in the turquoise blue ocean, looking off into the distance, and seeing no other land in sight.
2. Eating local food. I am crazy about loco moco. I am currently a rice-aholic.
3. Getting into snorkeling. The fish here are awesome, and much bigger than I thought they'd be. My dad helped me get into this one. Without his help I'd have never mustered up the courage to try out the deeper water where the cooler fish are.
4. Volunteering at the Bishop Museum. It has given me greater perspective and a glimpse into the rich tradition here on the island.
5. Long drives along the coast. I haven't gasped out loud so many times in my recent memory.
6. The farmer's market. Haupia bread pudding is amazing and so is fresh pineapple. There's nothing like it on the mainland.
And it wouldn't be complete without the worst (I'll keep this one short):
1. Sunburns!!! Argh
2. Smelly garbage (boy it gets so much worse here because of the warm weather. Yuck!)
3. Busloads of tourists clogging up every road
4. Smoking everywhere! Even on the beach it's hard to get a clean breath
5. Screwed up transportation and difficult to decipher street names
6. Loneliness
I'll try to update a couple more times before I leave. I'm sure I'll have something else to say at some point. For now it's aloha and mahalo for reading.
