Tag Archives: golden retriever

family, goodness, manfolk

Hawai’i: Day seven

amazeballs

amazeballs

We got up super early this morning to go to the convention so I could hear a talk on social media in the classroom.  I made a couple of contacts (and emailed them immediately), and got a tip on another one at Harvard.  Boyfriend and I got some AMAZING tonkatsu and curry afterward at Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin in Waikiki.  I’ve been craving some Japanese curry since we got here, and I’m so satisfied now that I’ve had that meal.  The pork loin was crunchy and juicy, the curry was hot and flavorful, the service was amazing, the ambiance was great.  It’s located on a little side street and I’ll definitely have to find it another time.

this hibiscus was outside Tutu's building. I've never seen one this color before.

this hibiscus was outside Tutu’s building. I’ve never seen one this color before.

We came home and Jon knocked out while I went out with uncle Bobby to get some stuff at the hardware store and visit Tutu.  She was sacked out when we got there, so we went back to the hardware store and bought some sink drain stuff and lumber, which we lashed to the top of the car with a trucker’s knot (pretty cool), and headed home.  The whole time, Bobby filled me in on the family drama, all of which sounds totally unnecessary, but it’s family so what can you do?  Anyway, it was nice to spend some time with him one-on-one.

I showered with Boyfriend when we got home and headed out to dinner with just Nancy (Bobby’s root canal went well but it started bothering him in the afternoon) to get dinner at one of her friends’ houses on the other side of Kaneohe Bay.  The house is right above the water, and the view is absurd.  There’s a set of stairs right down to the water, and a little private dock.  We had dinner on the balcony.  Ridiculous.

kaneohe bay

kaneohe bay

Dinner was nice, and all of Nancy’s friends are intellectual, educated and super nice.  Nancy brought mochi-ice cream from some market and it was easily the greatest mochi I may ever have.  I had a little white one that was lychee flavored, and almost tasted like it had some rose water in it, it was so perfume-y and delicious.  I drove the Kia home and we chatted about cats and coyotes on the ride home.

More importantly, this is Bella:

always in a good mood

always in a good mood

Bella is awesome.  She’s a golden retriever, only about 8 months old, super sweet, and my new best friend.

 

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Hawai’i: Day two

Nancy is the best, super smart and fun

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

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!

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.

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Proof; dogs are the best

OMFG ok so apparently there is a professional photographer (named Carli Davidson) who has FINALLY decided to do what I wanted to do in middle school: take photos of dogs mid-shake.  You can see them here.

For the record: Dogs are awesome, and in no small part because they do hilarious stuff like shaking all their loose skin around so hard that they hit themselves in the eye with their own lips.  I think people love dogs because they’re the same animal before and after doing something stupid and humiliating.  They’re panting and happy before they accidentally run into the wall on their way down the stairs, and they’re panting and happy afterward.  Who wouldn’t love that kind of hilarious consistency?

I had a 130lb golden retriever growing up named Buster.  He was the BEST.  He would lean on you with all his weight if you pet him, and fall over if you stepped away too fast.  His tail was so strong that it could (and did) slam doors.  He would occasionally go nuts, and run up and down the stairs at break-neck speed for no reason, only to slip on the wood floor at the base of the stairs, and roll around in my parents room with a mad look in his eyes before taking off down the hall again.  When we played with him, he would never gnaw on us too hard.  Mom would yell “Ow!” when he chewed on her arm, and he would let go and calm down until she pet him to show she was ok.  He kept her company at home while she took time off work.  Sister liked to put hats on him, and tried to get him to sleep in her bed (he always took up all the room).  He was a total softie, and would scamper to hide behind us if a significantly smaller dog barked at him on the street.  I once kicked a dog that went after him.  When the owner yelled at me, I told him to put his (significantly smaller) animal on a leash.  The only time anyone ever heard him growl was when Mom was home alone, and a man who came to the house wouldn’t let her shut the front door on him.  Buster apparently stood next to Mom and snarled.  The man left.  What a great dog.  We found him in 1995 wandering the streets while babysitting another golden retriever named Sadie.  He died at home in 2002 while I was on a first (and last) date with a friend.  He was the BEST.

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