Tsunami

If you checked any news source today, I am sure you heard about our Tsunamis. I have not been able to check the news myself, because I was evacuated.

My neighbor came downstairs at about 6 am to wake me up and tell me that a Tsunami was predicted to arrive at about 11am. We live about one block from the shore, so it didn't take me more than a few minutes to snap awake start to panic.

A few minutes after that, civil defense sirens began to go off, and they went off several times after that (about once an hour or more) for the next 5 or 6 hours. I could hear them all the way inside of the valley and on top of a mountain.

At the sound of the sirens, I panicked...as in, the screaming, sweating kind of panic you see in movies when people are getting attacked by aliens from outer space. I was genuinely afraid. I did not know that the first siren was simply to wake people up so they knew to get to an evacuation area soon.

I got me and my neighbors up to the IAO Valley. Two of us decided to hike to the top, another meandered off and did his own thing. The hike was nice,  but super hot...and in my panic I forgot to bring sunscreen, so the greatest injury I incurred today was sunburn. Otherwise, I am alive and well.

After the state of emergency was declared in the clear, I came back down from my high place and headed home...but police would still not let those of us who lived lower into our homes for another  hour. Roads were blocked. From where I was on the mountain, I could at one point see that the water was sinking away from the shore before a wave hit. It was kind of odd, and a little hard to believe that I was really witnessing it. The waves, however, came in fast but were small. From what I have overheard and been told, there is some damage in Kahului Harbor. The upper part of my neighborhood is undamaged.

I have not even glanced at the houses down the hill and by the water, but I imagine they are suffering minimal damage, if any.

Isaac is on Kauai, but has been in touch and I know that he is safe. Despite being apart from me, he was still a strong head of our household, keeping me on the phone all morning to keep me calm and help me determine the safest and fastest route to safety. I am thankful that in just a month or two, there will be far fewer chances that we'll be separated during an emergency.

Thanks for the concerned calls, texts and etc. I am still off facebook, so if you sent me a message that way I won't read it until after Easter. If it happens again, I plan to do what I did this time (minus the panicking): hike to the top of a mountain. I was surprised to see only 3 other people up there. I kind of expected to see a crowd.

Aloha, Pete!

As I wrote earlier this week, Isaac's brother, Pete has been in town visiting us. We've spent hours every day at the beach, but Pete also got to go do some early morning whale watching, and go on a few adventurous hikes with us.

Isaac loves to be in the water

Isaac and Peter at the beach after body surfing for a few hours.

Humpback waving aloha?

Showin' some tail.

Jumping!

Ike & Pete on one of the bridges on the "Swinging Bridges" hike.

Me and Pete posing next to a bamboo grove.

Not sure if he knew his picture was being taken...

Isaac and Pete taking a minute to pose while swimming and playing under a waterfall.

Da News, Brah

I talked on the phone to one of my dear friends last night who said that she was disappointed that there weren't any recent updates on my blog. I thought I was doing pretty good, but since she said something...

We have a house guest right now. Isaac's brother is in town. I am loving his company. Nothing like a teenager to make you realize how old you're getting. Lots of beach time. He seems to have the same love of boogie boarding I do.

Isaac and I went on a whale-watching tour a few weeks ago. Did I already blog about that? I think I did. See a previous post (I don't remember which).

I love Maui. It is beautiful. No wonder so many people come to visit here...although I'm not a fan of outsiders acting like this place exists solely for them and having no regard for those of us who live here. No wonder the locals are so hostile to outsiders and newbies.

As for the island... I feel like I have seen most of it. I don't feel quite at home, although I do have one grocery store I particularly love, and one sandwich deli I especially love. Both places are the only places I can go and feel recognized. Perhaps that's just a testament to my love of tasty food. Despite my access to delicious goods, I haven't gained much weight. I haven't weighed myself either, but everything fits the same.

The aforementioned sandwich deli made me realize that even I, a former pork hater, can love pork. It was a euphoric awakening. The Southern Squealer = life changing. Unfortunately, I still don't particularly love pork in most of its other forms. The semi-inconvenient wait for the kitchen cooks to make it is totally worth it.

Um... what else? The wedding countdown has hit the 5 month mark. It seems like we just got engaged yesterday. In reality it was August. Where has the time gone?! Soooo much to do!

I am hoping to have Dax here no later than April. Gee willakers, I miss that pup. He is my sunshine when skies are gray.

Most new news: I have given up facebook. Cold turkey for 40 days. If that goes well, I may suspend my account FOR-EV-ER. I waste too much time on it. Same as TV for some people. Just uses up time you could have spent doing something you'll actually remember one day. I needed to cut myself off. Long overdue. Feel free to check in on me and make sure I'm sticking with it.

That's all for now. I guess I'll be using this to post pictures for the next few weeks. So stay posted!

A Double Dose of Happiness!

Earlier this week, Isaac's sister, Alicia, gave birth to twins! She stuck to her guns in the delivery room and birthed both babies naturally, without an epidural or any medication. Word has it, she's the talk of the hospital!

Welcome to the world, Claire and Gwynne! We can't wait to meet our wonderful little nieces!