Hawaii

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The January List – 2019

Not really starting off 2019 the way I wanted to. This is one of the latest Lists ever. I blame it on the Polar Vortex, knowing that really it’s because January is one of my busier months at work, and I flew to Hawaii for a week for my grandma’s funeral.

And now that I’ve remembered the List, I can’t concentrate on any of my other projects until I’m done writing it, and I have a freelance project due at the very least by tomorrow morning, so I need to crank this out.

1) We rang in the New Year with friends at the Dearborn Inn, as we have for the last three years. Shoutout to Emerald City Designs, who is also does the auction for the school where I work. They always do an amazing job. This year they featured centerpieces with flocked foliage, which is “in” right now, but not overly trendy.

2)  December was mostly void of snow. January it snowed and iced and everything in between. We had a total of six snow/ice/broken boiler days (school/work) this month, half of them during our Hawaii trip. The day of the ice storm, I moved two morning meetings to the afternoon because I am such a wimp driver in bad weather. But I wasn’t the only one, I mean school was cancelled.

3)  I can always tell how cold it is outside by looking at my rhododendrons. When it’s below freezing, their leaves are tiny little things, shriveled up and sickly looking. Between 30 and 40 degrees, they are slightly more open and above 50 they look healthy and happy. When it was below zero, they crumbled up into themselves to where each bunch looked like a single stick clump.

I’m very impressed with their survival skills and am hoping my other plants will hang on as well. Above pic, about 29 degrees.

break – Littlest keeps asking me when dinner is. I’m going to pause and attempt to make creamy Tuscan chicken, because I can’t stop thinking about it since we had some at a friend’s house last weekend.

back – Chicken came out good enough. Next time I need to double the sauce. I meant to take a photo, but forgot until we were cleaning up.

4)  I am so ridiculously tired. Exhausted. From the weather, work and kids. I had a coffee an hour ago and feel nothing. How am I going to make it to number 12 ?!?!? Also I have no photo to put with this number. I could take a selfie and post that, but I’m not willing to self deprecate on that level.

Instead I searched the interwebs for “tired busy mom” and give you this. Although I’m not sure why one of her hands is holding a martini, although I suppose one must make time for cocktails?

5)  My best buddy turned thirteen this month! Here he is with his new Christmas toy from Santa.

6)  Went to the new Grosse Pointe Park spot, The Charlevoix for the first time this month. They have a small menu, but everything is so good. What’s not to love about tacos and po’ boys when done right. And the drinks! They nailed the spicy margarita. Exactly how I like it. In this pic are the salt and pepper shrimp, which were super spicy and really good, and up top, the collard greens and coconut salad, which I loved.

7)  We voted in several new Board members this month at The Garden Detroit and I’m super excited about the new team. We’ve been taking turns hosting meetings and cooking for each other, which is nice. A lot of exciting things happening this year, stay tuned!

8)  Had game night with dominoes, champagne, Hummers and Georgie the French bulldog. My one girlfriend is really good about inviting people over just to hang out, something I need to get better at – the impromptu gatherings. It’s a little harder having to take the little kids into account, but still very doable. Perhaps a New Years resolution for 2019. I haven’t quite finished the mental list.

9)  So Hawaii. Once I open that whole can of worms (which, as cans of worms go, would be a very lovely can), I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop because I have SO many thoughts about it and SO many photos, I mean where do I begin?

I will say that the girls and I left on a Saturday, just as the first big snowstorm began (my husband, who drove us to the airport, had to pull over and stop on the way home to wipe the windshield because the car ran out of wiper fluid). My husband joined us the following Thursday, and we all returned on a Monday, which happened to be a snow day.

On the day of our flight home, my sister and cousins began piecing together our very large family tree.

10)  This trip was mainly about my Grandma, celebrating her life, coming together with family. But it was also about me in that I felt a shift. In a good way, I think. A shift in attitude, a shift in perspective. Something that maybe I’ll get into at some point here if I get my act together.

11)  And food. Hawaii is always about food. Have you tried opihi?

I haven’t, but I’ve had the opportunity to several times. It’s a Hawaiian delicacy that’s extremely dangerous to harvest. The opihi stick to the sides of very sharp rocks in the ocean. Apparently the guy main guy people used to buy opihi from died from harvesting opihi.

This particular batch was brought over from Hilo by one of our relatives. I just read an article that the “teeth” of the opihi may be “the strongest biological material known” to man, stronger than spider silk.

12) Number 12! I have nothing else for you. Except this photo taken the day we returned to school/work after all those snow days. OH. I do have something. My friend recently posted an article ranking all the states in terms of weather. Hawaii was number 1 and Michigan? Number 49. I don’t disagree.

Here’s the link if you want a haha. Based on the several places I have lived, it’s actually pretty spot on. THE ARTICLE

HAPPY NEW YEAR, everyone! And have a great rest of February.

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The (Mostly Hawaii) March List – 2018

I would wish you all Happy Spring, but it’s not really spring here, which I am also not happy about. The first half of March was a blur, but the second half slowed down quite a bit as we were in Hawaii for break.

1) The neighborhood pheasant thinks it’s spring, however, and he’s been ’round the house many times already. Every year we wonder if he will be back and every year he comes back, pecking at the mirrored kick plate on our front door, thinking he’s found a friend (or rival, perhaps). He’s a beauty.

Save for the Hawaii trip, March must not have been very exciting because I have close to zero photos on my phone taken in March, unless you are interested in screenshots of hairstyles that I like. Those I have about a million of and of course now you want to see one of them, so here you go.

2) I’m getting my hair cut next week, which is counter intuitive because I’m actually trying to grow it out, but it’s super jacked up for so many reasons, but I think the best thing to do is get a really nice trim and then let it grow out (wow, I am so interesting right now, I can hardly take it).

Also ignore the URL, oh my gosh. I got this photo off Pinterest, I promise (why so pensive, Sienna? Are you trying to read my mind?).

3) I was going to write a separate post about just Hawaii flowers, and another one about Hawaii food, and maybe another one about family and culture, but we all know that is not happening with my current state of affairs (#hotmess), so let’s go ahead and talk about Hawaii right now.

First of all, I love the shock of coming home and realizing that I grew up on a tropical island. I mean, obviously my whole life I knew I was living on an island, but the realization of how different it is than say growing up in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, is always kind of a fun awakening, if even for a split second. Like, holy crap! I grew up on a straight up tropical island!! That’s amazing!

Besides the humidity, the plants are a big clue that you’re not in Kansas anymore. Hawaii plants don’t care about boundaries; they will grow and grow wherever they please. And often times the property owners of said plants will just let them. I mean, why fight it, I guess.

4)  Secondly, food. And lots of it. Like endless supplies of it. I imagine the Asian Mom, Auntie, Grandma, is very similar to the Italian Mom, Auntie, Grandma and therefore every day there is something new to eat and not only that but you HAVE to eat it because they made it. Just. For. You. Image result for gritting teeth emoji Oh I do appreciate it, especially the endless supply of fresh coconut that was prepared a week before our arrival and frozen for us in little ziplock bags so I could take one out to thaw every couple of days, but it’s a lot of pressure!

The desserts alone will stress you out. Actual conversation with self after dinner: “Hmmm…I’m not hungry. But maybe I can eat something small for dessert. Should I have the brownies? Or maybe the mochi squares? Or wait, Auntie just made halo-halo and baklava and what about the chiffon cake?” I mean.

The above spread was for a party we had at my Grandma’s home (rehab center). Those noodles bottom right were made by my Auntie. Pancit, a traditional Filipino dish. She makes hers with fishcake and lots of scallions and shitake mushrooms. So good.

5) Speaking of noodles, you can’t really visit Hawaii and not eat noodles. We had spicy miso ramen bowls like we always do, but this trip I went to a new spot called Piggie Smalls and got their garlic noodles with shrimp and it was ah-maz-ing.

I planned on saving half of it to take home with me, but I ate the entire thing.  They look kind of blah in this photo, but they were divine and I should have gone back another time for more.

6) So back to the party for my Grandma. She will be 95 in June (I think?) and just a few months ago she got sick and had to be moved to a home (she’d been living with my mom and Auntie, her daughters). She is well taken care of and mom and Auntie visit her pretty much daily. She mostly remembers people, with a little reminding, but is not nearly as talkative as she was even a year ago.

She is the matriarch right now in our family circle and it is very sweet to see everyone gather around her and treat her with dignity and respect. It’s inspiring and humbling.

7) Hawaii fashion is very casual and pretty much anything goes. For example, here you see an older lady doing some bold pattern mixing. And guess what, she does not give two hoots about your opinion on the matter (which I love).

8) The weather wasn’t great, but we did get to the beach a few times. Our first stop was Sandy Beach, or Sandy’s, as the locals call it. It’s not a swimming spot for the average swimmer – the waves are unpredictable and really strong. A lot of surf/bodysurf competitions are held at this spot.

I took a lot of pictures with my new camera, determined to use it on the manual setting. I never go the light quite right, but it was a huge learning experience and now I know how (after some Googling) how to shoot in bright light with reflections off water and sand.

9) On the way home from Sandy’s, we stopped at the Leonard’s malasada truck (I can’t seem to get off the food topic), which you must do, for the proper live-like-a-local tourist experience (not so much the truck but Leonard’s malasadas in general).

10) I could show you hundreds of flower photos that I took, but here are a few of my favorites. Hibiscus, ginger, bird of paradise.

11)  One afternoon I took the short walk from my mom’s house to The Lady of the Mount monument, where I spent and hour and a half taking photos of all the plants and flowers. No one else was around and it was such a nice “me time” moment.

So many cool plants to photograph, but this one cactus in particular caught my eye. It was subtle, yet flashy, understated, yet vibrant.

12) Another thing I learned during this trip about photography (which I suppose you could turn into some kind of metaphor about life if you were that kind of person and had the time to word it correctly) is that sometimes finding the light means stepping out of it. Capturing shadows, capturing darkness.

Plus, I love a good moody photo. I mean, this double hibiscus is giving it to you right here.

And that’s a wrap. I hope that wherever you are, if spring has not yet arrived at your home, that it will come soon. Wishing you the loveliest April.

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Hawaii Vacation – A Reflection

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There’s a lot I could say about our Hawaii vacation. That it was so many things to be home. Amazing, heartbreaking, nostalgic, relaxing, invigorating, disappointing, delicious, fun.

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In Hawaii I settle into myself differently than here, or even compared to San Francisco, a place that I consider to be my heart’s home. There’s something about the islands that makes you take it down a notch – makes you not care about wearing the same outfit three days in a row, or not think twice about that second helping of dessert, or not worry about whether you should end an email with “Very Best” or simply, “Best,”.

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Mom’s neighbor’s house. She lives in Kalihi Valley with my aunt and grandma. It’s very lush, which means it’s also very buggy!

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I think Hawaii does that for everyone, tourists and residents alike. But for me there is a “coming home” element to it that somehow takes it to a different level. And it’s not just because my family is here (which of course plays a big part though).

My whole perspective on who I am changes. For example, I can walk into a store and feel comfortable chatting it up with the sales reps (which I do NOT do). Or when I’m with people who’ve known me forever (I went to a high-school reunion while I was there) – it’s all so….easy. To just be. It’s hard to explain.

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Class of ’90 (eek!)

They say Hawaii is full of ancient magic (it is no joke, you guys – the ghost stories I could tell you  – many from the mouths of people who don’t, or who used to not, believe in spirits).

But it’s magical in other ways, too. Its beauty, that I appreciate more and more each time I visit, its ability to make me slow down (even when I don’t want to) and its powerful reminder of where I came from, where my mother came from, where her mother came from and back and back and back.

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Mom with our little girl, making leis from her stephanotis flowers.

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Easter, Hawaiian style.

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My trip was hardly deep or spiritual. We did a lot of beach time, family time, eating, lazing around. The usual vacation stuff. But then, when trying to explain the trip and looking at all the photos and really thinking about what Hawaii means to me. There’s a lot there. And the beauty of it is that it will all still be there when I return. Until we meet again. A hui hou.

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Hawaii – Early Mornings

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There’s a six-hour time difference between Michigan to Hawaii. Even though we stopped in San Francisco for a few days, our little one never quite acclimated to the time change. She normally woke up around 4:00am, wide awake and ready to take on the day.

Me, not so much.

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But her early wake-ups did give me the opportunity to go running at Ala Moana beach park before it got too crowded or too hot. Twice I arrived before the sun came up. It was peaceful, seeing the moon quietly hovering over the water and later, exhilarating to watch the changes in the sky as the sun announced daybreak.

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There are surprisingly a lot of people at the beach at this time of day. Mostly senior citizen walking in pairs, but there were one or two boot camp-style exercise groups and people like me, out for a morning run to jumpstart their day. The surfers were up, of course, and the fishermen, doing what they do.

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I spent the early mornings of Good Friday and Easter Sunday at the beach, reflecting on spiritual things, life things and just getting my Zen on.

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If it weren’t for the four-year-old’s internal clock, I wouldn’t have had these great soul-cleansing moments. Usually I’m not very good at going with the flow, but this time I relented and was able to reap all the benefits of giving in to what you can’t control…

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..which is much easier to do in Hawaii while on vacation.

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The March List

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March, at least the end of it, was a whirlwind of Spring Break fun. In fact, I’m still living vicariously through myself on vacation. The Grosse Pointe weather report on my phone is showing three snowflake symbols this week.

1)  Dear Michigan: So you probably heard me telling all my friends in California and Hawaii that Michigan winters “really aren’t that bad.” You’ve made your point. Please, please, please move along so Spring can arrive.

2) Our neighborhood pheasant has been very noisy lately. I think he is also annoyed that Old Man Winter has been lingering. We hear him (and sometimes see him) every day now. Mostly I see him in Shirley’s yard (they haven’t come back from Florida yet. Can’t blame them). In fact, I can see him there now, pecking at the ground.

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3) Our living room curtains finally arrived. For the second time. Oh my word. The whole curtain thing has been such a ridiculous fiasco from the beginning. I won’t tell you how much we spent on them because I’ll start feeling nauseous and I just ate. I’ll detail the whole story in another post.

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4)  My four-year-old’s drawing of an elephant. Hearts.

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5)  One day in early March we got some unusual morning fog. After dropping the kids off at school, I headed to the Pier Park to pick up my park passes (city parks here are private and open only to residents). I walked around the docks for a bit because it was so beautiful and made me think of home, I was the only one there. Serene and magical.

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6)  There’s a strip of silver maples down Kenwood Road that were planted when the Convent of the Sacred Heart on Lake Shore was still in operation. It’s called the nun’s walk, as they are said to have been planted as a pathway for the nuns who lived there. Many of the trees have fallen, but this section of Kenwood is still intact.

I snapped this photo on one of my walks with Sam. It is lovely, but not nearly as lovely as it is in the spring and summer, so I will have to remember to take another shot in a couple months to show you.

7)  Our book this month was Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. It was a perfect beach read (and although I did finish it on vacation, I never actually read it at the beach. We have two non-swimmers). Not deep, but the plot held enough interest and the characters were fun and the mystery aspect was mostly exciting.

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8)  We stopped in San Francisco for two days on our way to Hawaii. It was nice to take the girls to some of our old spots – Golden Gate Park, Baker Beach, Ocean Beach (although the trash. nasty), eateries on Fillmore Street, the playground at Alta Plaza.

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9)  I got to see a handful of girlfriends, which always lifts my spirit and fills my heart. There’s nothing like spending time with old friends.

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10) A new Fillmore spot (although I’d been to their Hayes Valley location before) was Smitten ice cream. I initially resisted having some since we’d just got done eating next door at Pizzeria Delfina, but after ordering for the girls, I got back in line to order some for myself. They had sea salt caramel. Ice cream always wins.

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11)  I’m already on number ten and I haven’t even touched on Hawaii ! Let me just say it was just what the doctor ordered – a fantastic trip! So wonderful to see family (and the sun!) and have the girls bond with their Hawaii family.

Aside from the two flying cockroaches (pronounced cock-a-roach by the locals) that got into our bedroom two days before we left. One on the wall above our bed, so I slept the rest of the night with the covers over my head, which was very stifling because no air conditioning (this was after my husband smashed it and pronounced it dead).  The other was in the bathtub – GAH! So I of course showered in the other bathroom, even after my husband killed it. I mean, you guys. Deathly afraid. Obviously.

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12) Easter in Hawaii was really fun. The girls colored eggs and went on an Easter egg hunt in my mom’s front garden.  On Easter morning, my littlest woke up at 4am, her usual wake-up time on our trip (I know!) and I was able to spend the morning at the beach, reflecting on the day. Later we all went to my former church (still my mom’s) and it was great to worship with some of my old church family.

I hope all of you had a blessed Easter. I know some of you are already enjoying Spring. I know it’s on its way to Grosse Pointe. It’s just so hard be patient, especially after a warm-weather trip. Wishing you a very happy April!

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Hawaii: Running at Ala Moana Beach

Running at the beach

I was able to get several runs in at Ala Moana beach (a 15-minute drive from Mom’s house without traffic) during our short Hawaii vacation – yay! Definitely needed some exercise to balance all the sugary foods I consumed (if you can resist multiple helpings of the haupia pie that is eyeballing you from the refrigerator every day, you are not normal).

Here are some of the things I saw…

I saw someone using this, too!
Last morning run on our day of departure.
Crazy tree.
Beach Cafe
Bird (not sure what kind?)
Banyan Tree