The grassy knoll

The other day Patrick and I had to go up to Lola’s Vet to get her some more flea pills and Heart-worm medicine ( can I tell you how expensive that crap is ??) Our vet is situated on a huge piece of property upcountry ( which just means further up the volcano than we are) It is nice and green and lush . On the back side of the building there is a little sitting area under a huge Oak tree( not sure if it is really Oak but that sounds nice so I am going with it). Patrick and I always thought it was kind of odd to have this area in the back of the building. Until the other day.

As we were coming pout of the building we heard a very loud hysterical child having a fit. We looked over to the sitting area and saw a family and, what seemed to be, their very old Labrador Retriever. The family consisted of Dad, a teenage girl ( who was sobbing but not hysterical) and another child about 9 or ten years old (the hysterical one). The Dad was beginning to pick up the dog and go back in (the pooch had a hard time standing up on his own). The little girl was holding the doggies paw while dad picked him up and headed back inside. We could only assume the worst, as we heard the little girl say “But why does he have to go to sleep?” Her dad replied, with tears in his eyes “Because it’s time .”and walked in to the vet.

We were trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, but the dad gave us a kinda mean look as we walked by him.  As we walked to the car I had tears in my eyes too, and Patrick was just really quiet. I am sure as mine were, his thoughts were thinking of Lola and what we would do when ” the time” came. Thankfully the grassy knoll is there for all of us ..who love and have to let go of a trusted companion. Sorry this post is kinda morbid but , the incident gave me pause (paws) . It is amazing how fast and how much our 4 legged furry friends can wiggle and squirm their way so firmly and so far into our hearts. Needless to say, when we got home Lola got many hugs and kisses. They will continue until the day that we have to visit our own grassy knoll.

Slightly Soured Spirit of Aloha

Here in Hawaii we live and breathe Aloha. For those of you not “in the know ” the meaning of Alohaembraces much more than Hello and Good bye. It is a way of life, we even have bumper-stickers telling others to”drive with Aloha” or the familiar “Got Aloha”derivative of the Got milk ad campaign. To have the “Aloha Spirit” means you have respect for all mankind and show it in outward manifestation. Very similar to Southern Hospitality (with a Polynesian twist).

Especially in the Hospitality field there is definite emphasis to show our guests how we live with Aloha. I really enjoy being surrounded by people who practice this. Until the other night, that is. Many times during our busy season, the clients will request a Luau themed party, and we have special Vendors that will come and do the Imu ceremony . The same vendors are hired to do the actual luau shows with Hula dancers and Fire knife shows etc.

Well a few nights ago, there was a male dancer, that was not too happy with the fact that another guy was doing the fire knife portion of the show. Apparently that portion is done by “unhappy guy” and he felt that it had been “taken ” from him unjustly. Now I understand that we all have bad days and, perhaps that was what was happening here. However, you don’t pull your manager to an area where you can be heard by the clients and, then begin to have a heated argument about why you should be preforming instead of the other guy. Did I say in earshot of the clients, who are, for the most part, mainlanders who are here to show their staff a good time, and reward them for a job well done. They should not have to deal with your issues, and then an hour later watch as you dance and celebrate the great spirit which you so willingly dissed just to get some more stage time. I’m just sayin’. But perhaps I am wrong.

Discuss.

Hungry for the Truth

For the past few months Patrick and I have been eating healthy, or at least trying to. Actually, we have been doing quite well. One of the sore spots for me is we have pretty much abolished all Fast Food from our diet. I used to be a frequent buyer of Mickey D’s as well as BK and Jack in the Box. And when I say frequent I mean at least once, sometimes twice a day. For the Past 2 months I have had none of the aforementioned items ( and I have lost about 25 pounds to boot).

Yesterday, to celebrate the fact that I only had a 5 hour work day, we decided to have Pizza for dinner ( Meat Lover’s New Yorker style !!). It was decided that I would call Patrick when I was leaving work and he would call Pizza Hut.  When I called to tell him I was leaving he told me to call again when said pizza was in my possession.

I left work and headed to the local Pizza Hut , when I had paid for the Pizza and placed it in the car I called to let Patrick know I was on my way, the following conversation ensued:

S:” Hey babe the pizza is in my car and I am on my way home.”

P: “Okay good ! What does it smell like ?” ( in his defense he had not eaten anything all day).

S: ” It smells like pizza, really good pizza.”

P: “Hurry home to me honey. ”

S:” Okay, I am coming, but I know you just want me for my pizza.”

P: Right now, at this instant, you could not be more correct.”( laughter)

S: “Well at least I know we can be completely honest with each other.” (laughter)

P: ” Just hurry up and get home, but drive carefully.”

S: “Yeah I know , we wouldn’t want anything to happen to your precious pizza cargo.”

P :  Laughter …..and then he hung up.

Can I tell you how much I love my Husband ??

Now serving #10,017

As of this post I have had over 10,000 visitors to my little spot on the internet !!! Now, I am not kidding myself into thinking they have been 10,000 different folks up in here …I know it is you …my regular readers who have made this possible. And to you all I say thank you, Muchas Gracias and Mahalo nui loa. Stay tuned …….

Doppelganger

For those of you who are fans of the TV Show House. If you were watching on Tuesday October 9th ( I think, I had it DVRed,and only got to wach it last night. But it was the one with the guy in the wheel chair that passed out and his guide dog was with him) The guide dog could pass for Lola Moorlach’s twin sister or brother ( except for the fact that Lola is a bit more beautiful, of course) The guide dog was a few shades lighter in color than Lola( think of the guide dog as a blonde then Lola would be a brunette). But she ( Lola ) has the same markings and is about the same size . And yes of course we called Lola into the living room to watch with us. She was already in bed, lying on my pillow, and could not be bothered. Which was kind of a good thing considering the dog died in the end. That, most likely, would have scarred her for life . I know that I got a little emotional when I saw it , but then again I am a big ol’ girl when it comes to dead/dying dogs. It is for that very reason I never watch the Animal rescue show on Animal Planet.

And there you have it…….. Just another peek into our fabulous family’s life.As you were.

Jinxed…..Or so it may seem

I am sure you all remember a couple of posts back how I wrote about possibly leaving in the beginning of 2008??? Well, not so much anymore I don’t think. We had totally forgotten ( more likely blocked out) that the neck surgery was just the MAJOR surgery Patrick was in need of. He still may have to have another surgery on his shoulder. He has a small tear on a ligament, but the Dr. thinks he also needs rotor cuff (rotator cup??) surgery as well. If that is the case then our move will be ..well…moved back at least another 6 months. Patrick will have to keep his shoulder/arm immobile for 6 months afterward. And so it goes………

I feel soooo bad for him right now. It’s almost as if someone else has taken over his life. He is always in pain or at the very least discomfort and there is nothing I can do for him. Now he may have another surgery to deal with. It just goes to show you that none of us are invincible. If you had told us a 2 years ago that Patrick was going to face 2 surgeries in the future we would have laughed. Well maybe not laughed but you know what I mean. The other night we were talking about how glad he was that he got to go to Disney World with me before the accident, because he will not be able to ride amusement park rides anymore, sometimes it takes all he has in him to walk up the end of our street.

It just makes me very sad that he is not the same guy anymore. Don’t get me wrong I still love him and will love him through all of this crap. It just gets me down at times when I think of what he must feel. I don’t like to talk to him about it much because then he feels that he is causing me to be depressed. I told him it wasn’t him just the whole situation. However, when we last talked to his Dr he said that what Patrick went through was a major surgery, and it has been less than a year since then, we just need to give it time. And so we will…. whether it be in Maui or in Flordia, and as time passes here’s hoping that the pain recedes and he can become more of himself again.

Confessions of a Slacker Blogger

OK so ….yeah ….. um …Haven’t been around much have I ..I try to write but then life takes over. I have a confession to make. I have been spending alot of time on another site. No it’s not you WordPress it’s me, I have found another love, not that I no longer love you ya know cuz I do really I mean it. I just have really fallen in love with www.goodreads.com. I get lost there and time has no meaning anymore. For a huge Bibliophile ( read book lover) as I am, it is …well the place to be. I have mentioned this “other site” in a post recently, before I knew how lost I could get in it. Before I knew how much time could be wasted just looking at what others are reading and getting recommendations for authors and book titles.

Work has begun to kick my lily white butt with the past three weeks being 6 day work weeks 12-14 hours a day. I say lily white butt because neither that part of me nor any other part of me has been seen by the sun or beach in so long I can not recall.  But it’s banquet season and that is a given . Patrick and Lola have become vague memories of mate and dog in forms of repose.

I urge anyone who has even a small love for books to check out the ” other site” . They have group discussions on many topics you can tag people as “friends” and even comment and post things to groups. In short it has anything a book lover could want . You can also organize bookshelves on your page as to what you have read, are reading, as well as what you want to read next. A rating system is also there to rate your reads, as well as do reviews if you so choose.

So if anyone is wondering where I am or whats been keeping me away it is a combo of all of the above …but chances are if you go to www.goodreads.com and look at the “Meet People” tab, more than likely you will find me there. Plus if any of you fellow book lovers join (free of charge) don’t be shy, friend me.