Getting Caught Up!

Sorry for taking so long to update the BLOG. DeAnna has arrived and we have been enjoying some relaxing time together. She arrived Saturday night. We slept in on Sunday and then took a tour of the King Kamehameha highway that skirts the eastern side of the island. We drove through many small towns and waded along a few beaches. The Waiamea beach on the north shore is already showing increased wave activity. According to locals, the waves get absolutely huge in the winter months. I'm looking forward to seeing that.

After driving through Haleiwa, we drove to Wal-Mart. Can it be a full tour of paradise without stopping by Wal-Mart? I think it's kind of like eating at McDonald's when you're in an exotic location - there's a sense of constancy and comfort when you taste the same burger where ever you go or see the same prices, signs and checkout lines in Wal-Mart. Of course, they have a large Hawaiian souvenir section - all made in China...

After that, we drove through Waikiki, where I used to stay when I first got here. We didn't find an easy parking spot, so we just drove through. Waikiki will probably be a purposeful visit for us since it's always busy. Passing around Diamond Head, we continued along the rocky southern shore through Hawaii Kai and back to Kailua.

We rented some snorkeling gear and walked to Kailua Beach in the afternoon. She enjoyed it enough that we bought her a snorkeling kit and went back on Monday. During Monday's dive, we actually got out far enough to see a lot more fish and even a teeny Moray eel that acted very menacing. Here are a couple more underwater pictures to try your patience or entice you to come see for yourself:


Joe Underwater








DeAnna's sexy new flippers








Moray eel (he's out of focus, but I wanted to make sure you knew I swam right up to him!)






Colourful fish







On Tuesday night, we attended the little friendship group from the church. It was the first time for DeAnna so there was a lot of questions and discussion. We're meeting a lady from the church Thursday night to see about installing a new sound / projection system. DeAnna is also searching out ways to get involved.

My work is getting quite busy, but you wouldn't know it by looking at my schedule. Each day starts with a mostly empty calendar and ends after countless meetings. I don't think I've put in this many full work days since I did shift work at television stations! It's fun, challenging, interesting and important.

DeAnna brought a head cold, so she's been dealing with the time change and health issues, but she's now unpacked and feeling better each day. Last night we confirmed that the grill on the rooftop lanai can successfully cook steaks. What a pleasant way to end the day: chat, grill, eat and relax at home! I'm glad DeAnna is here!