Dia de el Mayo

May Day is a fantastically huge event here in Hawai'i.  Although I've lived here for 5 years, today was my first May Day experience.  Here are photos from the event at my new school.

 

Conch shell blowers

   

Line-up by of royalty by island

 

The royal court 

  

The whole court

Kindergarten hula1st grade hula2nd grade hula4th grade hulaMaypoles!5th grade Maypoles!

The result of the maypole dance..beautiful weave

6th grade girls' hula

The Queen's hula

Awesome thing about Hawai'i?  Flower leis!

Aloha

Tonight I say aloha to one of my childhood friends.  She was killed in a car accident today in Albuquerque.  We haven't spoken in many years, although not out of malice.  We grew up together, sharing many a dance stage.  Today a man chose to rob a bank and speed away, hitting her car and killing her and her friend in the car.  She was out on a lunch run; just picking up lunch for her coworker...a normal, every-day event. 

Many, many emotions have overcome me.  First of all, life is too short (as cliche as that may sound) to not move forward in the directions of your dreams.  WHAT are we waiting for?  A long life is not guaranteed...

Second, America is sad.  People are in such states of desperation due to drug abuse, failed economy, etc that they are making decisions to do things like robbing banks and burglarizing homes.  And with what to show for it??   Words need not describe...

The other night I had the worst nightmare dream that I have ever had.  I dreamt that my brothers died.  In my dream we were not old, we were as we are now.  I woke up with the worst feeling...It was like my heart no longer existed.  I wanted so badly to hug them and I wondered why I don't call them every day just to tell them that I love them.  It made me so sad to live so far away from them.

I wonder...why do we hold grudges?  Why don't we live for the moment?  Why does it take such a tragedy to recognize what is important in our lives?  Have we conditioned ourselves with busy work past the point of reflection? 

May we all start to live with an awareness of life...of what it is today...right now...at this moment.

I am heartbroken, sad, sentimental...

 Here we are as kids...my friend who passed away is to my left...I'm sure you can find me...the smallest, scrawniest kid...

Kauai!

Spring Break on Kauai....

...need I say more?

Sunset

Why buy bread when you can make it so much better??

Waterfalls!!

Can you spot the monk seal?

Sopapillas!  There was a New Mexican restaurant...what?

Dolphins!

A cave

Taro fields

Waimea Canyon

Wild flowers growing at the top of the canyon

Hiking the Na Pali coast

The Na Pali coastline

Checking out the ocean below

The beach at the end of the trail!

YEAH!!!

Crazy February!

What a February!  Amazing, Life-Changing, Nerve-Wracking, Scary, Exciting...the list goes on. 

February began with a new job.  I am now a full-time 6th grade special education teacher at a school across the island...near to where our wedding occurred.  Coming into a new school at the end of the 3rd quarter, with state testing coming up and a 6th grade graduation looming over my students heads has made for an interesting first few weeks.  Not to mention the LOAD of information on a new school (what's my copy code, how do you use the laminator, fire drills, etc) and a new career that is heavily law-based (why is there am acronym for everything?). 

To make a long story short, I've felt sick all week.  The combination of nerves, 6th grade germs, and having to get up hours earlier has sent my body through the wash.  As sad as a furlough day is for the kids, I am thankful for a day to chill today.  Here are some pics:

Here's a shot from my drive homeAnother from the drive home...can't complainMy drive to work takes me past this marsh which usually is fog covered...so fresh and dewey!

My room is the last on the right!Sunrise from my classroom doorI also get to pass Kaneohe Bay on my way to workThe view from my class windowMy classroom!The Ko'olaus on my drive homeAnother fantastic view from the drive homeDriving homeReally? This is my view on the way home...Doesn't matter how bad the day was...

Okay, so the other interesting February event was the tsunami warning last weekend!  Yikes!  Nick and I, as well as most of the rest of the island, woke up at 4-5am when our friends and family from the mainland called us to see if we were okay!  When we went to bed, there was a tsunami watch, but we get those evey time there is an earthquake anywhere near.  We didn't think twice about it.  Well, at 6am, we found ourselves in line at Safeway with hundreds of other people, trying to get our share of water and canned goods.  Despite all of the hurry and rush, the tsunami didn't come onto land here.  There were unusual tidal changes, but nothing destructive.  We were slummy all day...watching the news, sleeping, not doing the work that we should have been doing.  Luckily we are in an extremely well-built buliding, unlike alot of structures here on the island. Below is a picture of the weather on tsunami day.  Although I know that a tsunami is not a weather-driven occurrence, I did find it interesting that it was a PERFECT day to go to the beach (other than a humounga cowabunga from down unda that was on it's way):

Aloha for now!

Valentine

Happy Valentines Day!

A beautiful Ginger lei

white flowers, my favorite

Our entry-way

pre-dinner

homemade ravioli, from beginning to end!

the beginning....

...the end...all homemade using local ingredients!

the first use of our mortar and pestle...sundried tomatoes for the inside of the raviolis

my latest candle invention...an old spaghetti jar and some seashells

What dance has taught me...

Dance...an artistic movement form that drives life, breath, and, in my case, happiness. I have been a dancer for 25 years. Now, on the eve of a career switch (I am now a special education teacher!), I am reflecting upon the lessons that dance has taught me.

1) (This is the one that got me thinking about all of this) First impressions are integral to the succuess of your future. When going to a dance audition, the dancer spends hours (if not days) considering the role that he/she is auditioning for and planning their "look" accordingly. For example, a dancer would not go to a ballet audition without their hair in a bun or with sweatpants on. In my most recent interview for a teaching position, I had the same consideration. What should a teacher "look" like? Well-kept and professional, but certainly not wearing my highest heels. Which colors would promote a peaceful feeling? Blue, certainly not red. Coiffed hair do? Neat, pulled away from the face to show good communication. Guess what? I got the job!

2) You get from your work what you put into your work. Call it procrastination, call it lazy, call it what you will. Yes, I could plie without working from my center, but that is only going to force me to work harder tomorrow. Need I draw the parallel to college coursework, work deadlines, exercise routines?

3) How you present yourself on the outside speaks measures about how you regard yourself...respect, disdain? Sloppy clothing, unkept nails?

4) You have not because you ask not. So much can be said for simply asking for something you desire. If you don't ask if you can understudy a dance, you may never be seen. There is no harm in asking. Demanding or persistently asking the same question, on the other hand, can be deadly. If you never ask for the internship, or if there is a job available, they WILL NOT FIND YOU! If you don't ask the credit card company to take off the late fee, they will not.

5) If you begin to do something and find that it is difficult, or you fail, go back to the beginning and try again, but this time start with the other foot forward. In dance, this refers to progressing movement, which we call "the right side or the left side". Usually, one side is more natural for a dancer to do; therefore, if one side is difficult, the other will be easier. Similarly, most things in life can be tried again. "You pick yourself up and try again, you can dust it off and try again, try again." A dancer would add to that song "...on the other foot". Start anew. Try again with a new start.

More to come...

Great thing about Hawaii? While the rest of the nation is trapped in feet of snow, I am going to the beach. Now, what else can I get done today??

Saturday morning

Damp morning here in the islands. Total grey cloud cloud cover, streets wet from a night of nourishing rain. Coffee from Bird Rock...yum! Nice cool breeze coming in through my window, time to think and process the big changes going on. Everything is slow this morning. All is at it should be. This is why I live here. Aloha.

Everything old is new again

Pepsi "Throwback"...Using REAL sugar for a LIMITED TIME ONLY! Hahahaha! HEHEHHEHE! HOHOHO! WHATWHATWHAT???? Who are we kidding in America? Do the people at Pepsi really think that they are doing us a favor by offering a REAL product for a limited time? Nick and I don't drink soda for many reasons, with the biggest reason being that it has corn syrup in it...and we have vowed to "just say no" to that nasty stuff. However, when we saw this product, we thought we would try it and hopefully, by buying it, send the message to Pepsi that people like their product when it is REAL...haha.


As we were in the checkout line, the cashier said, "Hmm..Pepsi Throwback. It will probably just taste like the Pepsi that is sold in other countries. Europeans know of a product called 'American Pepsi', or the Pepsi with corn syrup in it, which is different than the Pepsi with real sugar that is used there. Just another reason to laugh at America." I laughed out loud, much to the dismay of the man behind me, at this cashier's ability to freely distribute his opinions to the customers. I simply said, "I hear you loud and clear" and allowed the perturbed man behind me to buy his corn syrup laden pepsi with a smug look on his face.


In this country, we have (on the majority) come so far away from what "food" is. Processed, corn syrup filled products may be "edible", but I in NO WAY consider them food. Food is meant to nourish us, keep us alive, and provide joy in our lives! I don't consider obesity and malnourishment to be nourishing or joyful. So, thank you, Pepsi, for attempting to "throwback", but next time can we make it a forever change instead of a "limited time"? Found an interesting article on how this all relates to the obesity epidemic recently. Here's the link:

http://www.thatsfit.com/2010/01/18/low-fat-caused-obesity-epidemic/?icid=main|main|dl5|link3|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thatsfit.com%2F2010%2F01%2F18%2Flow-fat-caused-obesity-epidemic%2F


My next thought on this topic is actually one of my continual New Year's Resolutions...Lifetime resolutions, better said. In attempt to simplify my life, I recently cleaned out my closet. I found many treasures that were donated to give them new life, but one piece stood out to me. A white dress...a beautiful, simple, white dress that has been worn 2 times or so. I pulled it out of the dry cleaning bag to properlly hang it and was APPALLED at what I found! I had not removed the safety pins after having it cleaned about a year ago and the pins rusted the fabric! Orange holes in the armpit of the dress! Not only that, but apparently the dress did not fully dry after the cleaning and had MOLDED in the bag. I was sad, heartbroken, and bewildered.

I decided that, rather than throwing the dress away (for it really looked atrocious), I would attempt to remove the rust. Away to Longs Drugs I went, in search of something helpful. RIT has a "rust remover" product, so I bought it. This morning, I used the rust remover, and save for one small dot, the dress is NEW AGAIN!!! Now, this product is quite stinky and I'm guessing that it is not the best environmentally friendly choice that I've made. I am happy to have my dress back, though. Now for the perfect opportunity to wear it. Always wanted to do a beach dinner picnic...

Find something old and make it new again! Just like Pepsi (haha) and my white dress! Reuse!