So you may or may not know that the entire island was without power for several hours last night. Well, if you're a news watcher you probably do know, but only because Obama is here and the fact that he and his family were "without power" for 12 hours has been a big deal. I won't bother to tell you that they had 4 generators on the premises. Oh, guess I just did.
I'm going to have to buy some unscented candles. Turns out all we have are super smelly Yankee Candles and when you have about 7 of those in your room (of all different flavors, I might add) you could get a headache. I would know.
And apparently we're supposed to be conserving water now since the pumps were down for so long. Well.... Since I didn't have cable for 6 hours today and didn't get the memo I chose to do the laundry, bathe the dog and do the dishes. Sorry for not doing my part, Hawaii.
But can we talk about how isolated it could make a person feel to look out over the island (we're high up enough to do that) and not see ANYTHING? I looked out last night and all I could see were about 10 houses (out of hundreds of thousands) with lights on. Talk about eerie. Good thing it wasn't a super foggy night -that would have just been too much. But then, I probably wouldn't have been able to tell...
Ahh, but there were jerks with firecrackers that insisted upon lighting up the night. All night.
So maybe I'm a little cranky.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
The Promised Blog
I should have posted this when I was thinking about it, because now I don't remember all the things I wanted to cover. I'll just start and see how far I get.
Last week-ish I got care packages from both Pat and my mom. Care packages from them are so much fun because they toss in whatever they saw that made them think of me. For example: Pat included some magazine pages that had different ways to use edymame because she knows I love it. My mom included a box of Christmas cards she saw with penguins on them, even though she knew I had already sent mine out, just because she saw them and knew she had to get them for me. How do I know this? My mom sticky-noted everything.
My care packages also included penguin items from both moms, and fun socks (with penguins on them) from both moms. What can I say? They know me. I'll have to start wearing real shoes that require socks so they can get some wear-time!
I also got a box from Erik the other day. You might know that we agreed on a $25 limit this year since there wasn't much we needed and we wanted to spend extravagantly while he was on R&R. Well, he emailed the other day and said to expect the package from FedEx and that he *might* have gone over the limit. The pacakge arrived, I opened it up - it's from a jewelry store! I haven't opened the gift yet (I promised I wouldn't) but I can imagine he had to spend over $25. Oh, dang....
Earlier this year I decided I was going to get a pink foil tree and pink oranments (or, ordaments, if you're my sister) and I would call it my "Geographically Single Girls' Christmas Tree" but when I got to WalMart all the little trees were gone and the big ones were like $35, plus I'd then have to buy ornaments, so I decided on a small tree that would sit on my bar. I am very happy with my decision. You can't see that it's lit up because it's fibre-optic and so the light doesn't show up on the camera (at least, that's my theory) but I assure you, it's colorful and bright!
Here is a picture of my Christmas area. I have a few decorations spread around, but this is definitely the most festive area.
Oh, and here are my Christmas flowers that Erik sent me!! They smell SO good with the pine in them. Thanks again honey! You rock!
Last week-ish I got care packages from both Pat and my mom. Care packages from them are so much fun because they toss in whatever they saw that made them think of me. For example: Pat included some magazine pages that had different ways to use edymame because she knows I love it. My mom included a box of Christmas cards she saw with penguins on them, even though she knew I had already sent mine out, just because she saw them and knew she had to get them for me. How do I know this? My mom sticky-noted everything.
My care packages also included penguin items from both moms, and fun socks (with penguins on them) from both moms. What can I say? They know me. I'll have to start wearing real shoes that require socks so they can get some wear-time!
I also got a box from Erik the other day. You might know that we agreed on a $25 limit this year since there wasn't much we needed and we wanted to spend extravagantly while he was on R&R. Well, he emailed the other day and said to expect the package from FedEx and that he *might* have gone over the limit. The pacakge arrived, I opened it up - it's from a jewelry store! I haven't opened the gift yet (I promised I wouldn't) but I can imagine he had to spend over $25. Oh, dang....
Earlier this year I decided I was going to get a pink foil tree and pink oranments (or, ordaments, if you're my sister) and I would call it my "Geographically Single Girls' Christmas Tree" but when I got to WalMart all the little trees were gone and the big ones were like $35, plus I'd then have to buy ornaments, so I decided on a small tree that would sit on my bar. I am very happy with my decision. You can't see that it's lit up because it's fibre-optic and so the light doesn't show up on the camera (at least, that's my theory) but I assure you, it's colorful and bright!
Here is a picture of my Christmas area. I have a few decorations spread around, but this is definitely the most festive area.
Oh, and here are my Christmas flowers that Erik sent me!! They smell SO good with the pine in them. Thanks again honey! You rock!
Also, 3 years ago today Erik and I got engaged. *dreamy sigh* Seriously though, where has the time gone?!
Saturday, December 20, 2008
A day of surprises!
So there I was, minding my own business, arriving home from having brunch at Carmens when I got to my street and there was a strange van parked infront of my house, literally blocking my driveway. Luckily, my brain didn't even think to go to that terrible place many wives of deployed soldiers would go to - I think I was too annoyed, this has happened before (plus it was a super crappy van with a Jesus Rocks sticker on the back - I don't think the Army has Jesus Rocks stickers on its vehicles). Anyway, I get out to go investigate, ready to go door to door to figure out what jerk parked his huge van infront of my driveway, and thats when I noticed him - the man on my porch, with flowers! Pictures of those later though, I'm feeling a bit lazy at the moment. There was also a Christmas package on my porch! YAY!
AND I got some pictures from Erik!
The first one is Erik in front of a mosque.
AND I got some pictures from Erik!
The first one is Erik in front of a mosque.
E at the LZ
And finally, the USO tour came to visit his patrol base this week - this pictures is of him greeting Louis Black (the comedian) - he's yelling over the noise of the helicoptor. Interestingly, Louis Black did a show at my college a few years ago. Being that Southwestern is in the bible belt, most people walked out. Heh. Also on the USO tour were Kellie Pickler and Kid Rock.
So that's that. Christmas blog SOOON!
And finally, the USO tour came to visit his patrol base this week - this pictures is of him greeting Louis Black (the comedian) - he's yelling over the noise of the helicoptor. Interestingly, Louis Black did a show at my college a few years ago. Being that Southwestern is in the bible belt, most people walked out. Heh. Also on the USO tour were Kellie Pickler and Kid Rock.
So that's that. Christmas blog SOOON!
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
This Wasn't In My Planned Post
but its blog worthy in my opinion.
Last night I woke up in the middle of the night. To thunder. Do you know when the last time I heard thunder was? March. In Oklahoma, the night before we left. Did you know there was a tornado in OKC the night we left? I digress.
The storm dropped more than 12 inches on parts of the island today in a matter of just a few hours. MAJOR highways were closed, there were mud slides, homes flooding, cars flooding (which is a problem in a place where lots of folks live in their cars). The news said it was taking 75-90 minutes to get from Kapolei to Kunia. If you're unfamilar with the area let me break that down for you, that's 75-90 minutes to get from exit 2 to exit 7. That is my route to work and I'm usually annoyed that it takes 20 minutes to get that far in the mornings. Luckily I had to pick up a co-worker and she new a better path that helped us avoid traffic!
You also might not know that people don't take great care of their stuff around here because it's hard to keep things nice when you live by the beach. So there are houses on the North Shore that were built 50 years ago by the owners grandfather and the current owner has done nothing to update the building (things are not made here like they are on the mainland). WELL, that proved a problem today when the rains came and houses literally floated off their foundations... The news said the houses got put right back down, but I'm not sure how that works. And apparently part of the problem was that the city let the dam on the river go in order to relieve some of the pressure put on the dam. I think the jury might still be out on which incident flooded the homes.
And with such a high homeless population this kind of weather sends people into a tail spin (it would me too!). The buses were packed, they had to open Red Cross shelters, it was like a serious natural disaster was occurring. Folks even said it looked like a hurricane outside, which I was VERY uncomfortable hearing.
Things are drying out now, but it's just amazing to me that folks around here had no plans for something like this to happen (and from what I hear, it's not terribly uncommon). People here have retention walls around buildings and homes. And they also have drains that haven't been cleaned out in awhile. Anyone know what that causes? Bueller? That's right, flooding. The city had to come to my office today to clean out the drainage hole because the parking lot was becoming a pond and I guess that was a familiar scene around here today. Why did they not think of this before rainy season? Makes no sense to me.
Oh, and the best part: The standing water is brown. I figured it was just the red dirt (that's right, out of the 3 states I have lived in in my lifetime 2 claim to be the red dirt capitol of the world). Well, the news just said you aren't supposed to go into it or near it if you can avoid it because it is likely over-flow from septic tanks and drainage areas. Delicious. Now my damn grass is just going to grow faster.
Well, I'm going to bed now, grateful to be dry thanks to living up on the hill.
PS - This same storm is bring snow to the top of Mauna Kea (a volcano on the Big Island). Didn't I hear once that an inch of rain = a foot of snow? Geez.
Last night I woke up in the middle of the night. To thunder. Do you know when the last time I heard thunder was? March. In Oklahoma, the night before we left. Did you know there was a tornado in OKC the night we left? I digress.
The storm dropped more than 12 inches on parts of the island today in a matter of just a few hours. MAJOR highways were closed, there were mud slides, homes flooding, cars flooding (which is a problem in a place where lots of folks live in their cars). The news said it was taking 75-90 minutes to get from Kapolei to Kunia. If you're unfamilar with the area let me break that down for you, that's 75-90 minutes to get from exit 2 to exit 7. That is my route to work and I'm usually annoyed that it takes 20 minutes to get that far in the mornings. Luckily I had to pick up a co-worker and she new a better path that helped us avoid traffic!
You also might not know that people don't take great care of their stuff around here because it's hard to keep things nice when you live by the beach. So there are houses on the North Shore that were built 50 years ago by the owners grandfather and the current owner has done nothing to update the building (things are not made here like they are on the mainland). WELL, that proved a problem today when the rains came and houses literally floated off their foundations... The news said the houses got put right back down, but I'm not sure how that works. And apparently part of the problem was that the city let the dam on the river go in order to relieve some of the pressure put on the dam. I think the jury might still be out on which incident flooded the homes.
And with such a high homeless population this kind of weather sends people into a tail spin (it would me too!). The buses were packed, they had to open Red Cross shelters, it was like a serious natural disaster was occurring. Folks even said it looked like a hurricane outside, which I was VERY uncomfortable hearing.
Things are drying out now, but it's just amazing to me that folks around here had no plans for something like this to happen (and from what I hear, it's not terribly uncommon). People here have retention walls around buildings and homes. And they also have drains that haven't been cleaned out in awhile. Anyone know what that causes? Bueller? That's right, flooding. The city had to come to my office today to clean out the drainage hole because the parking lot was becoming a pond and I guess that was a familiar scene around here today. Why did they not think of this before rainy season? Makes no sense to me.
Oh, and the best part: The standing water is brown. I figured it was just the red dirt (that's right, out of the 3 states I have lived in in my lifetime 2 claim to be the red dirt capitol of the world). Well, the news just said you aren't supposed to go into it or near it if you can avoid it because it is likely over-flow from septic tanks and drainage areas. Delicious. Now my damn grass is just going to grow faster.
Well, I'm going to bed now, grateful to be dry thanks to living up on the hill.
PS - This same storm is bring snow to the top of Mauna Kea (a volcano on the Big Island). Didn't I hear once that an inch of rain = a foot of snow? Geez.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Real Quick
I have a lot to blog about, and there are lots of pictures involved. But I also have a goal of being in bed by 8 tonight and it's already 7:53. People, I'm exhausted. I don't remember being this tired when I had the dang mono. Rest assured, I don't re-have the mono.
That said, here's what I do have for tonight:
That said, here's what I do have for tonight:
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Pay Day in Iraq
This morning I got an email from my lovely friend Lindsay. We met Linds and her husband Jim at CCC in OK, at the same time we met Rich and Melissa. Lindsays brother-in-law, Lou, is deployed to the same-ish area as Erik and I guess he sent this picture home to the fam and Linds noticed that Erik was in the back ground! (BTW, you guessed right, poor Jim's mom has two sons deployed... Bless her heart!)
So, here's the picture that Lindsay sent!
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So, here's the picture that Lindsay sent!
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Here's my question - isn't the dude in the undershirt, sweater and blazer a little toasty? It is the desert, after all... And here's my other question - is that a can of pop in front of Erik? I don't think I have EVER seen him drink a can of pop before. Do you call it pop? I call it either pop or coke. Never soda.
Also, I have some unsettling news and would appreciate any prayers that you could send my way. The program I work for is contracted by the state of Hawaii and the contract is up for review. Long story short, they are going to break the program up into two clusters and allow different companies to "bid" on one of the two clusters - however no company can win both. The top "bidder" will be awarded what they are calling Cluster 1, and the runner up with be awarded what they call Cluster 2. Well, Goodwill will almost certainly win Cluster 1, however my office is in Cluster 2. The point is that when the new contracts start on March 1st I could be out of a job, at least the job that I have. There is always the chance the new company will hire me (and I could make more money that way because both the "front runners" are for-profit organizations) but if not, Goodwill is saying that they "will make every effort" to place us within the organization, however the program I work for is the largest so I would almost certainly take a pay cut, and who knows what that could mean for my commute. I am sick to my stomach at the thought of having to look for another job, but especially while Erik has gone. The last couple of months have literally FLOWN by, and if I'm stuck at home, unemployed, they're going to start dragging.
I know there is nothing I can do but wait at this point (we should know who wins which contracts by the 1st-ish of February) so I'm trying not to worry, but it's hard. I don't want to lose my mind... So, any good thoughts you could send my way would be MUCH appreciated it. You know me, I can't stand the feeling of being out of control.
Okay well I'm off. Baxy wants some dinner.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Pirates
You may or may not know that I'm afraid of pirates. You also may or may not know that I don't go on cruises. A) Because I get sea sick and B) Because I'm afraid of pirates and C) Because what if someone is after you? (like pirates...) There's no where to go hide!
For years people would poke fun at the silly girl who thought Pirates of the Caribbean was a horror movie because "Pirates aren't a problem any more". Well to that I say "B.S.!" As if the recent months hijackings aren't proof enough, here's this:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28011013?GT1=43001
Sleep well America. I'll probably be having nightmares of pirates tonight.
For years people would poke fun at the silly girl who thought Pirates of the Caribbean was a horror movie because "Pirates aren't a problem any more". Well to that I say "B.S.!" As if the recent months hijackings aren't proof enough, here's this:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28011013?GT1=43001
Sleep well America. I'll probably be having nightmares of pirates tonight.
Monday, December 1, 2008
So one of the biggest pains of having your husband deployed is that he's not around to help you with the things he would ordinarily have helped with. I can make concessions for the yard, and the dishes, and occasionally switching over the laundry - that slack is easily picked up. But when things happen like your car needs to go to the shop, it's a big production.
How do I know? My husband is deployed and my car needs to go to the shop - and it's a big production! Not to mention annoying because the car is brand spanking new. Thankfully I have a friend willing to help me out, and I'd happily do it for her, but it's little things like "Oh my husband can just pick me up" that you take advantage of when it's available. And then you have to worry about "So if I get to the dealership at 7AM, the dog will be in his crate for 10 hours - that won't work" (Better email Melissa again... Hahaha! No pressure Melissa! I owe you Itallian Deliciousness!!)
In other news (because I'm getting on my own nerves) I'm sending Christmas packages on Friday. Well, I'm sending Erik's and Ichi's tomorow (hopefully I'll have a car!) and then I'm sending the mainlanders on Friday. Did you know you can print postage online now and you don't have to wait in line that the post office? It's amazing! And you get a discount!
Thanksgiving in Paradise was lovely. Good friends, good food, new friends, new food. Fun was had. Erik's Thanksgiving was good too, from what I hear. Ham, turkey, lobster, fixins and ice cream for dessert. I'd imagine ice cream is pretty hard to come by in the desert.
Okay, I've done my triple check of all the locks on the door and now I'm going to bed. Baxter and I are getting up early tomorrow to go on a walk. Hopefully.
Until next time!
How do I know? My husband is deployed and my car needs to go to the shop - and it's a big production! Not to mention annoying because the car is brand spanking new. Thankfully I have a friend willing to help me out, and I'd happily do it for her, but it's little things like "Oh my husband can just pick me up" that you take advantage of when it's available. And then you have to worry about "So if I get to the dealership at 7AM, the dog will be in his crate for 10 hours - that won't work" (Better email Melissa again... Hahaha! No pressure Melissa! I owe you Itallian Deliciousness!!)
In other news (because I'm getting on my own nerves) I'm sending Christmas packages on Friday. Well, I'm sending Erik's and Ichi's tomorow (hopefully I'll have a car!) and then I'm sending the mainlanders on Friday. Did you know you can print postage online now and you don't have to wait in line that the post office? It's amazing! And you get a discount!
Thanksgiving in Paradise was lovely. Good friends, good food, new friends, new food. Fun was had. Erik's Thanksgiving was good too, from what I hear. Ham, turkey, lobster, fixins and ice cream for dessert. I'd imagine ice cream is pretty hard to come by in the desert.
Okay, I've done my triple check of all the locks on the door and now I'm going to bed. Baxter and I are getting up early tomorrow to go on a walk. Hopefully.
Until next time!
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