Joseph Robertson uploaded this image to flickr, click the image and follow the link to the original page
A couple of nights ago we were on the internet searching for 1) SCUBA conditions for Monterey and 2.) airfares for Christmas trips to see family and coordinate our crazy travel schedules.
We didn't find the dive conditions for Monterey and we didn't figure out or book our holiday flights yet, but we did find a screamin' good deal on a quickie trip to Hawaii. So...being rather impulsive, we just pulled out the credit card and booked it: a direct flight from SFO to Kona and two nights at the Waikoloha Resort and Spa! It was just too cheap to pass up. This is the second time I've used Expedia's "Last Minute Deals" and booked a great vacation for a lot less than you'd imagine.
Plus, as things often work for us, we found a quirky little dive company that would take us out on short notice and seemed particular suited to our personalities and skills. The owner even has a blog. So we booked one of our three days here as a diving day and packed our bags for the Big Island of Hawaii.
After a three hour delay for some mechanical problems, a few too many glasses of red wine on the plane (we upgraded to First Class for a few thousand miles), and a too short nap, we finally arrived in Hawaii yesterday afternoon.
I used to live here on the Big Island ages ago when I was too young to appreciate it. Things have changed, but not as dramatically as I feared. It's funny to think that it was almost 25 years ago that I drove on this island road. Tomorrow we're driving up to closer to where I used to live in Waimea. It should be fun.
Friday we hung out at the hotel, swam in the warm ocean and had dinner outside with tiki torches glowing and our feet in the sand at the Fairmont Orchid. Our room is very nice and the bed is heavenly. I slept like a rock last night.
Today was the dive day and we went SCUBA diving for the first time as each other's dive buddies. The first dive of the day was sort of a bust for me because of the strong current and my guzzling of air like I was a Hummer drinking gasoline. But the second dive was great! I'll post more on that later, when I can download more pictures (I forgot the media card reader at home). In the meantime, I was able to pull a couple of shots off the Blackberry camera for a teaser illustration to this post.
Aloha!
Sadly, we fly back home tomorrow night at 10 PM local time, arriving at SFO at 6:15 AM Monday morning. Just in time to get back to work.
sMacshot uploaded this image to flickr, click the image and follow the link to the original page
"With warm shiny glee the chair held out hope for a renewal of the days of yore when freight deliveries; the comings and goings of an important building's factory needs, ebbed and flowed tide-like via the elevator by which it faithfully stood.
Unfortunately, this was not the case for some time as the factory fell out of use and lively activity moved on. For a while the chair maintained its faith that things would return to normal, but one day, quite suddenly, the shade was drawn on all loyal belief.
Now the chair sits stoically; aware, but numb to the curtain of blackness which it has finally allowed to claim a new home."
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Source: Belgium Digital
So, I've been film-watching again.
Its a nice selection I've been viewing, but if I had to choose one, Wanted would be the top pick - a lovely bloodthirsty film starring Angelina Jolie as top-flying assassin belonging to a secret brotherhood. The plot is surprisingly juicy and twisted and the action sequences are real crowd-pleasers. I found myself on the edge of my proverbial seat all the way through and when the credits contrasted against the darkness of the screen, I was disappointed.
Second, in no particular order, is The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe. The remake of CS Lewis' classic collection of the Chronicles of Narnia, was always high on the list. As a child I'd read all the Narnia books and shared the adventures of the four war-torn children who found peace within themselves in the fantastical world they found at the back of an old wardrobe. The books are incredible reads and cynically, I wondered whether the film would match up. It did.
Next up, a surprising choice of movie: Stardust. Whilst I enjoy Neil Gaiman's written work and am an admiring fan, the film didn't really appeal. The trailer left me cold and it was more boredom and desperation that drove me to it, in the end. And I'm glad it did. The film is hugely entertaining and the whole cast give credible and wonderful performances. The world beyond the wall felt immediate, real. The humour was a delicious bonus, and it all crafted together into a timeless classic. But did I detect touches of Tristan and Iseult? :)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, was another one of those films that could have gone either way. The book itself was....erm, well...boring. There's no other way to put it.....it was definitely the weak link in the chain of seven. Sorry JK. But I'd heard the movie had got a lovely, dark treatment that had left it amazingly creepy. I got excited.....until I remembered that was what they'd said about The Goblet of Fire. In that instance, the book was great, the movie not so great. But for Order of the Phoenix it was the reverse. The film was pretty scary for a child audience, I thought. But heck, I enjoyed it. The suspense and subtle menace was palpable the entire way through. My worst book it may have been, but it was my favourite Potter film, without doubt.
Last but not least, I watched the Bollywood classic, Devdas. The story of two lovers torn apart by circumstance and starring Aishwarya Rai and Shahrukh Khan
in the two title roles. Bollywood classics never disappoint in
costume and setting and this was no exception. Visually, the film is
stunning. Some of the music is out of place, giving the feel of
directors forcing in a requsite number of pieces to satisfy audiences,
rather than necessity. But some of the musical pieces are
breaktakingly choreographed and the setting is so perfectly richly
elaborate and delicate to the nuances of the scene, it really is such a
delight to behold. As for the plot...not for idle romantics, the story
is guaranteed to draw a tear (or two) from the most unwilling.
Yes! Finished the first draft of the new short -- working title Snow.
2,300 words written in the third person, present tense......female POV. Surprisingly, not a fantasy--but a kind of oddity, timeless and spaceless; a commentary on relationships and life. But at the same time, a story of fragility and depth. Am finding it hard to categorise....maybe 'cause I don't wanna to pigeonhole it.
A bit more work--actually a lot more work and some more text...and its all go.
Feel strange about it now its done. Its so intensely personal--even more so than The Photo. I don't know that can submit it just yet...but at least it's all down on electronic paper. And that was all I was after.
J.Salmoral uploaded this image to flickr, click the image and follow the link to the original page
Casa Amatller, designed by the architect Puig i Cadafalch. It can be found at Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona .
Anke Merzbach uploaded this image to flickr, click the image and follow the link to the original page
jessi. uploaded this image to flickr, click the image and follow the link to the original page
