Hawai’i: Day four

sonofabitch

Boyfriend and I made eggs and toast with honey this morning (plus cereal with a banana for me) before heading to the beach to swim around and meet up with Nancy and Bella. The water was gorgeous, not as choppy as the previous days. But I got stung by a man-o-war! I even saw the one that did it, the bastard. It hurt like hell, but I didn’t get out of the water or even bitch that much (I’m so brave).

After we showered and changed, we went on a day-trip to Haleiwa on the north-western end of the island with uncle Bobby. He was amazed at the number and strength of the waterfalls all over the mountain range we passed through. We decided it must be raining really hard at the top of the mountains, passed through a long tunnel, and came out the other side to be met with a torrential downpour. We almost drove with the top down, and would have if not for all the sun I’ve already gotten. That would have been great, driving in all that rain.

the Ko’olau mountain range with loads of waterfalls

We went to a cafe in Haleiwa, then got shave ice at Matsumoto’s. We stood around the parking lot outside the shop staring at chickens while Boyfriend and I split a shave ice with lilikoi and strawberry flavors (with ice cream and azuki beans) while Bobby devoured his (papaya, mango, pineapple flavors with ice cream) at breakneck speed. Apparently he has a serious sweet tooth.

one of the several hibiscus near the cottage

The drive there and back was long, but we had a fun time. I harassed him to wear his seat belt by tapping his face with a hat until he put it on. I told him about how, when he was growing up, some girl told his friend’s younger brother Ray Fox that he had pretty eyes. Ray didn’t like that much, so he took a swing at her face, which was a big mistake since this girl was amazing, and ducked in time to avoid the punch. Ray hit the wall behind her instead and broke his wrist. We had a good laugh about that today.

I went on a walk with Nancy and Bella when we got back, then watched an episode of The Protectors, a Danish cop drama she’s hooked on right now. Boyfriend and I used some of the special salt we got at the farmer’s market earlier on some ground beef, and I grilled up some burgers for dinner (they were delicious). Nancy made a rice and bean salad and corn. We had some red wine to go with it, what a feast.

family, goodness, manfolk

Hawai’i: Day three

this guy was hanging out on the cottage stairs this morning

Today we woke up around 8 and made eggs and toast with some honey from the big island that Nancy was nice enough to give us, and took it over to the house to eat with her and Bobby. Nancy made an amazing mango, papaya, banana fruit salad, which is saying something considering the fact that I hate fruit salad. We decided to go on a hike today, and almost went on one recommended by Sister, but were diverted by Nancy’s recommendation to do the Pillbox hike right up the hill. We walked all the way to the turnoff of the main road before we decided we needed water and sunscreen, so Boyfriend went back to the cottage while I went on to Kalapawai Market, and we met back at the base of the trail head.

It was a pretty good hike for us since we’re not very athletic recently, but it was definitely worth it: the view was incredible.

view from below the first pillbox, which was a gunnery station during WWII

view from just below the first pillbox, which was a gunnery station during WWII

wtf is this?

On our way back home we walked by a tree with some fruit I’d never seen before. Boyfriend suggested that it might be a guava tree. I forgot to ask Bobby and Nancy what it was.

Back at the cottage, we changed into our suits and rinsed off at the outside shower to get all the sweat and dust off. We were starving and wanted to try the “beach burgers” from the Kalapawai market, which Nancy apparently loves so she came with us and bought lunch for us. We sat and chatted about Cambodian art history and American politics before heading back home with a burger to go for Bobby.

hit the spot

We were going to visit Tutu (grandmother in Hawai’ian), who I haven’t seen since we had a family reunion here over a decade ago. She’s aged a great deal since then, and Dad thinks she won’t remember me. Bobby got caught up with work stuff (he’s in real-estate), so we decided to go see her tomorrow morning instead.

With our afternoon freed up, I looked through the other lectures being offered at the social sciences conference I’ll be speaking at, then decided to help Nancy with whatever we could. She was doing taxes while Bobby took a nap, and asked us to take Bella for a walk. Nancy recommended that I do what she does: keep Bella on my left side and give her a little yank if she pulls on the leash. Bella did very well most of the time, and when she pulled too much and ignored my little yanks, I had us stop, told her to sit (which she did immediately, good dog), and just ignored her for a few seconds before rewarding her with affection, and then letting her know we could walk again. We took her down a couple of paths the beach, but it was crowded and the tide was all the way in, and Bella got overexcited and was a bit intimidated by the water, so we went back to the house the long way to give her a chance to explore and get some exercise.

so good blehhhh

Boyfriend and I helped make some salad to go with the AMAZING lamb shanks she made yesterday in a giant red Le Cruset pot in the oven. We had them with potatoes, it was like a medieval meal, and the meat fell right off the bone. It might be the best lamb I’ve ever had, so tender and delicious, mmmmm.

Last night after dinner we watched the first episode of Sherlock, and tonight Nancy suggested that we watch a second one. Boyfriend and I of course said yes, but couldn’t make it through it. We were totally wiped out from the hike and still had to shower before bed.

Tomorrow we’re taking a day-trip to Haleiwa with Bobby and Nanners, where Bobby says there are shops and shave ice to be had. We were gonna do that today, but Bobby had to work. It seems like whenever we make plans, they get put off due to a combination of Bobby’s work and our flexibility, which actually works out great. I don’t want him to feel pressured to take care of us, and we don’t really care what we do with our time, as long as we’re experiencing island life and getting lots of family time.

family, goodness, life, manfolk, uncategorized

Hawai’i: Day two

Nancy is the best, super smart and fun

We woke up today around 8am to the sound of a dog racing around upstairs. Once the confusion faded, I padded upstairs to find Bella waiting for me; she barked just before I came into view, and gave me an excellent good-morning freak out. Turns out Bobby had intentionally let her into the cottage, knowing she wouldn’t go downstairs (where the bedrooms are), and figured that would be a good way to wake us up. Bobby is nothing if not a trouble-maker, so this surprised no one (although he did receive a gentle reprimand from Nancy, bless her heart).

Boyfriend and I went with him and Bella on a walk down to the beach. His emphysema is slightly better, but he had to stop at the top of the driveway on our way out to catch his breath before we went on, and he kept our pace a bit slow. It’s so nice to see him and Nancy. I’m looking forward to seeing loads of them throughout the trip.

Once we got back from the walk, Nancy said, “We have to hurry if we want to get to the farmer’s market!” We headed out and meandered around the stalls set up in the Lanikai Elementary School parking lot. The very first stall we encountered had a couple dozen types of salt, which made Boyfriends eyes bug out of his head because I just got him a book called Salted so he’s kind of obsessed with salt right now. We ended up getting two kinds: Boyfriend wants to use the red one for steak when we get back, and the spicy black one for seafood (I’m thinking salmon). I got a Belgian waffle with pumpkin spice paste and whipped cream and cinnamon, so fucking good. Boyfriend got a large breakfast burrito, along with Bobby and Nancy, and we all sat down next to the spot where the musicians had set up (bunch a’ hippies).

salts from Salty Wahine

We headed home, and Nancy recommended Waimanalo for a beachy place to relax, and a little restaurant just down the road from the beach, called Home Sweet Waimanalo, for lunch. The beach was, of course, beautiful. On the way we saw four wild pigs! They were black and hairy, and looked big enough to eat, so I pulled over with every intention of grabbing one and stashing it in the car. Boyfriend thought they were too cute to eat (he’s probably right). They all ran into the underbrush once we pulled over, and came back out as we left (clever bastards).

The beach wasn’t too crowded, and we had fun getting smashed by waves for a while, then laid out and dried off. We got fish tacos and a beet salad with hibiscus mint iced tea for lunch, all delicious. I texted Bobby and Nancy to let them know we were on our way back, and they said not to hurry since Bobby had to deliver some paperwork or some such. So we stopped by a little Hawai’ian ice cream shop with every intention of getting the Kona coffee flavor, but I had to try their azuki bean ice cream and omfg it was amazing. It might be some of the best ice cream I’ve ever had. Usually I get accustomed to the flavor and get a little tired of it by the end of the cone, but this one was amazing.

azuki bean ice cream, yum!

Then we stopped in a shop next door and I FINALLY found the type of li hing mui-covered stuff I’ve been looking for going on seven or so years now: turns out it was some kind of ginger (I don’t like ginger, I wonder if my taste has changed that much since I had it last). I haven’t broken the bag open yet for fear that it might actually be awful, and not as good as I remember it (how could it be, though?). Tomorrow I’ll break into it and we’ll see.

The four of us grabbed dinner at some golf club (totally overpriced, and the waitress was annoying and flirted with Bobby the whole damn time), but the conversation was good. Boyfriend says he enjoyed watching Nancy and I hating the waitress while Bobby grinned and enjoyed the attention.

We chatted earlier with Nancy about the Danish TV shows she’s been watching on Netflix, and we mentioned Sherlock, the series from the BBC. When we came back home we all settled in and watched the first episode, which they enjoyed very much. Bella came in midway through and wanted to play, and made it halfway onto my lap before getting shut down by her folks. I find her enthusiasm infectious. It’s gonna be tough to train my future dog properly if all I’ll want to do is play with it and watch it be hilarious. Bella rolled around on the ground for a while today while Boyfriend and I were on our laptops at the house, waiting to put more time on the roast in the oven. She looked like she was having an awesome time chewing on some toy and thrashing around, then sprinting back and forth for no reason. I wish I was a golden retriever sometimes. This afternoon was one of those times.

goodness, life, manfolk, school

Hawai’i: Day one

Boyfriend and I are in Hawai’i! We arrived in Honolulu last night and will spend ten days here. I’ll be speaking at a social sciences conference next Saturday, June 1st, held at a hotel in Honolulu, but until then, Boyfriend and I are bumming around the island in my uncle’s old Kia. There’s no air conditioning, the breaks are crap, and the interior reeks of wet dog. Neat!

Uncle Bobby and his super cool wife Nancy picked up me and Boyfriend from the airport and showed us around their guest house (they call it the cottage, and it’s fucking amazing) where we’re set up to stay for the first five days. They gave us some eggs, milk, cereal, fruit, and macadamia nuts, so tasty! This morning we woke up around 715, got dressed and went over to have breakfast with them and their adorable golden retriever puppy, Bella (we’re obviously best friends now). After cereal with banana, some tasty mango, lychee from a neighbor’s tree, and tea, we discussed our plans for the day.

the leis Nancy gave us when we arrived

Nancy, Boyfriend and I took a walk with Bella down to Lanikai beach where we walked waist-deep in to the water for a while and threw a stick for Bella. On the way, we ran into Barbara and her mother, Mrs. Fox. It was nice to see them. Barbara’s niece will be moving to LA soon and wants to be part of the industry, so I’ll introduce her to Boyfriend and our friends who will show her the ropes.

After our walk, Boyfriend and I drove into town for malasadas (a family tradition), then got lunch at K and K, then sat on the beach a while to digest. it was super windy today, so there were a bunch of kite surfers out (Boyfriend and I liked it when they would go up high, then crash down into the water with a splash). Then we headed back to the cottage to dump our stuff so we could head back down to Lanikai beach to swim around. The water was really choppy due to the wind, so we got tossed around a good amount.

colors like a cartoon paradise

At one point, Boyfriend said, “Ow! I think something stung me!” He said it didn’t hurt much though, so I figured he was hallucinating or something. Turns out he was definitely stung by a jellyfish, probably a man-o-war, since we saw about a dozen of them floating around today, but neither of us saw what got him. He has a very faint red dotted line along his right trapezeus that flows down toward his shoulder. It doesn’t hurt or even itch though, so he’s just excited to have had a new experience.

After we rinsed off and changed, we drove across the island to Shimazu’s for shave ice (Matsumoto is good for tourists, but Shimazu’s is a local favorite). Even their small size was WAY too big (as big as my head!), but it was pretty tasty. I called my dad to see how he usually gets it, and ordered one of the same: azuki beans, ice cream, and green milk tea royale. It looked like an unripe, mishapen, frozen coconut, but tasted pretty good. Boyfriend got orange and milk tea with mochi cubes.

traditional male and female hula

On the way back to the car, boyfriend’s sandals started irritating him, and he had to take them off 😦 So we headed toward our next destination and bought him some $8 sandals that he’s super happy with now. Then we speed-walked to a spot on the beach where there was a free hula demonstration. So cool! Boyfriend and I really liked it. He particularly liked this one old guy who was amazing, and clearly the instructor for the men, who wore long, royal blue loin cloths that they constantly pulled at to make sure they hid their junk, haha.

Then we walked a couple of blocks to a great hole-in-the-wall sushi place called Hanna no Sato. Delicious. After a long drive back across the island, I’m totally pooped (and a bit sunburnt) and ready for bed.

delicious tuna

goodness, humor, manfolk

Protected: Sleepy boys

goodness, manfolk, nerd

Supernaturally hooked

So *sigh* I’m definitely kinda super hooked on Supernatural. It is my new X-Files: ridiculous in premise, and demanding of a good amount of willing suspension of disbelief, but it’s got its hooks in me, and it doesn’t hurt that the protagonists are both straight males (which rules out the chance of every episode being injected with a will-they-won’t-they love story that derails the whole plot, thank the FSM). Plus they’re fun to look at, so that helps.

There are a good number of genuinely funny moments, and there are no topics the characters won’t address. If something should be bothering them, they bring it up and have an actual, believable conversation about it. The series’ formulaic nature is well-hidden behind solid dialog, believable effects, genuine brotherly love and pretty faces.

Plus, every sign points to the actors not being dicks, which is always good.

yes plz

UPDATE: April 17, 2013
And now I’m spending too much time watching random gifs from the show on a tumblr site dedicated to random gifs from the show.

goodness, humor, manfolk

Japan, you sexy weirdo

I found an app a while back called Sleepy-time Boyfriend, and yes, it’s just as amazing as it sounds. It consists of about a dozen anime-ish drawings of Japanese men in various states of recline, each of which have a series of phrases that match their persona. One is a flirty girl-boy named Sosuke (“Just being with you makes me very happy” and “I guess I should get into bed so you don’t feel lonely”). Another (and my personal favorite) is Sei (voiced by Takaya Kuroda), a kimono-wearing DREAMBOAT with a voice like butter (“Come closer.” YESSIR).

But the one that gave me pause (between laughing hysterically and legitimately getting a little turned on) was this guy, Satoru, whose quotes have to do with being stressed at work, and how he wishes he could spend more time with you, his favorite lover:

he’s a slave to his job… and his heart

Is this a thing? Do Japanese men fly off the handle at their partners when they have a bad day at work so often that apologies are a sexual fantasy? And seriously people, up your standards. My dream man does not apologize for getting angry at me for forgetting shit. He doesn’t get angry at all. In fact, there’s very little talking involved. He’s more a man of action… *cough*

goodness, humor, manfolk

A slow day at the office

Was I bored at work today? Yes. Is that any reason to not have fun? No. No it is not.

So I texted Boyfriend.

what a smartass

goodness, manfolk, nerd

Doggie toof brushin’

Boyfriend plays WoW arena with a guy who has a menagerie of pets at his folks’ place (he’s a college freshman this year), and occasionally tells us hilarious stories about their personalities and habits. He off-handedly mentioned that he has taken to brush the dogs’ teeth almost every day since they were puppies, and I almost died. SO CUTE. I demanded a video of this, and he sent a pic with this IM conversation:

I was sitting in the back yard and she’s on a bench

she was like sleeping against me

and then i started playing with her mouth

it was funny

whiter than mine… by a lot

Apparently the dogs are so accustomed to him sticking his hands in their mouths that they don’t freak out about it at all, which is adorable.

goodness, manfolk

Winter break debacle: Success edition!

Boyfriend and I have been dating for almost 5 years now, so I’m glad to report that I finally made it to the east coast to visit him during winter break. I even managed to keep it a secret!

some woman almost forgot to take her dog out of the x-ray boxes. I was ready to spring into action and rescue him, though, which would have been REALLY fun.

If you’re new here, you might not recall that I’ve attempted this trip before: said attempt was marked by a tragic lack of success (as you can see here). This time, though, the whole thing went off without a hitch. I got a redeye flight to avoid any delays during layovers (which is part of what screwed me last time). Once I arrived one of his friends, Coppertop, drove me to his place, then dropped me off at a mall where I needed to find a way to surprise him with some kind of subtly spectacular display of love.

I bought a pretzel (hadn’t eaten in over 12hrs) and wandered around the mall, chatting with attendants, feeling out who would be game to help me do something ridiculous. I settled on an employee with whom I had a brief conversation about tea selection at William Sonoma. She seemed nice, and their uniform is just an apron, so I figured if I asked nicely, she would let me wear an apron for a few minutes and hand out samples until Boyfriend came around, at which point I would treat him like any other customer and offer him one (and only one) sample before drifting off to help someone else.

This, however, did not pan out. I got a text from Coppertop: We’re here. Shit! I texted STALL!, scarfed the pretzel and asked the lady at William Sonoma if I could borrow an apron for a loving prank. She winced. “You need to ask my manager,” and pointed to the most stressed out woman in the mall: apologizing over the phone to an irate customer, ringing someone up, then dashing into the back room, she clearly wasn’t about to get on board with any shenanigans.

pictured: inspiration

I hustled out of the store, and wracked my brain for new ideas while scanning the very thin crowd for Boyfriend and Coppertop. Then I heard it: toot toot! The mall had a children’s train that made a circuit around the mall. I got in line and fidgeted, eyes darting around, waiting to get caught. The train pulled into the “station.” Kids got off, kids got on, but there wasn’t enough room for all of us. I stayed in line with two more families in front of me while the train pulled away. I texted Coppertop I’ll be on the train in a few mins, and waited anxiously while the soft toot toot! slowly grew softer then louder. As I glanced around, excited that I had almost made it onto the train without being spotted by Boyfriend, I noticed a sign: “$2 to ride.” I froze. I dug into my purse knowing exactly what I would find: one dollar in quarters. I had spent my last three dollars on that damn pretzel.

Now I had a choice. I could wait for the train to come back and throw myself at the mercy of the “conductor,” or beg for a dollar from the mother in line in front of me.

I chose the latter.

I explained how we’d been together for so long, but I had never been able to visit him, and the last time I tried it all fell apart, and now I was only a dollar away from a fantastic surprise, and would she be so kind as to loan me a dollar for the train ride? “My boyfriend will pay you back, he’s a sweetheart,” I explained, but she was already nodding and reaching into her purse, as was the mother in line in front of her, who had over heard my sob story. The train pulled in just as I said my twentieth thank-you, and we all piled on. I pulled my ponytail out, put on some chapstick. I was ready to wow Boyfriend.

We choo-choo’d around the mall for a minute before I spotted them. Eventually we pulled right up alongside them. As we idled by, I sat up straight, waved like the Queen and called, “Hello, peasants!” He and Coppertop laughed as I pulled away. Then I became that weird adult on a kids’ train ride without a kid to legitimize my presence. So that was awkward.

The ride (finally) ended, and Boyfriend couldn’t stop smiling and laughing as we followed Coppertop around (he had some actual errands to run at the mall). He loves his friends, family and me so much. It makes him giddy when we’re all together. He’s a good person. I’m glad I got him.

Be Random, Be Clear

with as few runon sentences as possible

Category Archives: manfolk

Hawai’i: Day four

Hawai’i: Day three

Hawai’i: Day two

Hawai’i: Day one

Protected: Sleepy boys

Supernaturally hooked

Japan, you sexy weirdo

A slow day at the office

Doggie toof brushin’

Winter break debacle: Success edition!

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