3 Miles for a Cause

Last weekend I joined a group of my coworkers to run the Shelter Island 5k to benefit Wounded Warriors, an organization that assists injured veterans and their families. My company has hired employees through Wounded Warriors, so it's a cause that's near and dear to our hearts. We all finished at our own paces, but my coworker Jenny and I stuck together and chatted the entire way, which made the miles go by much faster! I finished in 572nd place, in case you're wondering. Whoo hoo! :)

Jenny and I at the 2nd mile

The Epsilon team before the race -
although there were several people who showed up too late to be in the group photo

Rough Job

Dan got beat up this week at his job - literally. The high school went on a retreat on Thursday and Friday where they played a nighttime hide-and-seek/capture the other team game, which has a tendency to get intense every year. Dan came home with some new injuries - a broken toe and probably a fractured rib also. That man is too competitive! He wanted me to post a picture of his purple toe, but I'll do you all a favor and spare you. It's pretty spectacular, though.

As if he hadn't had enough, tonight was the school/church Harvest Festival and Dan was "nominated" to be in the dunk tank. He's an unfailing good sport, and gave a lot of good smack talk no matter how many time he got dunked.

Oh well, he'll recover but I think he'll just be watching hockey on TV for the next few weeks instead of playing.

Still dry and ready to go

Going...

Gone!!

Universal Studios Hollywood

We spent a fun Saturday at Universal Studios Hollywood with some of Dan's friends from work, Paul and Chris, and their wives, Ann and Adessa. It was Chris and Adessa's first time to go (Adessa had gone to the studios 20 years earlier, but it was before they had all the fun rides so it doesn't count). Maybe it's because we're not from the area, but Dan and I have made sure to hit all the great amusement parks, National Parks, and lots of other points of interest in Southern CA. Or maybe we just refuse to grow up, even though our bodies are getting too old to handle rollercoasters well. Anyway, it's so much more fun to go with a group of friends and nobody threw up after riding the rides. I'd call that a pretty darn good day. :)

By the way, the new Simpson's ride is really well done. It's an IMAX/simulator experience, so definitely not for the faint of stomach! But very cool!

San Diego Super Chargers

We had a great time today at the Chargers vs. Ravens game with our friends, Paul and Ann. It was my first NFL game, which is somewhat sad since I've lived in three cities with pro football teams. I thoroughly enjoyed all the big money hoopla surrounding the actual sport - there was always something interesting going on, including the antics of the football-crazed (and drunk) fans. The Chargers lost, unfortunately, but it was an exciting game with some great moments!

Labor Day in Italy....Texas

We had the absolute best Labor Day weekend in TX with my mom's side of the family. It was a whirlwind, but we finally got to see my parent's new digs in Weatherford and visit my Uncle Brian and Aunt Margaret's brand new Lost Creek Ranch House near the town of Italy, which they built specifically to host family gatherings such as this. The whole extended family made it, which is a miracle in itself, with everyone's busy schedules! My cousin, Kyle, had been working for a private contractor in Israel and had only returned home on Sunday. He and his wife, Melissa, pretty much drove straight to the family reunion from the airport. That's the kind of dedication our family has for spending time together, and I love it!

We filled every moment with fun group games (Spades, Catch Phrase, Mafia, Chicken Foot, and 31), whiffle ball homerun derbies, a big family whiffle ball game, dirt bike and 4-wheeler rides, lots and lots of delicious southern food, and catching up and telling hilarious stories. Dan and I love spending time with our families and it's wonderful to have such a perfect place for everyone on my mom's side to gather. Lost Creek Ranch is a 100-acre property, and my aunt and uncle are building a 2 acre fishing pond behind the house, so the place will be even better the next time we all visit! We can't wait!

My mom and dad's rental house in Weatherford. It's really cute!

The Ranch House

My dad designed the logo for Lost Creek Ranch

Uncle Brian and Aunt Margaret, the best host and hostess you could imagine!

We love card game tournaments!

A very intense game of Chicken Foot.

Cousin Jeff and his son, Jackson, enjoying the 4-wheeler

The whole family played whiffle ball one evening - it was a blast!

All the cousins minus Leslie, who had to leave

a day early

And the whole family!

It Doesn't Compare (a.k.a. Debby's Panic Attack)

We spent some time this Saturday walking around La Jolla, which is a beachy area north of our house. There's a really pretty spot called La Jolla Cove, where we saw tons of people snorkeling and kayaking and having fun in the water. We thought maybe we should try snorkeling there, since our ocean is only warm enough for a comfortable swim during the hottest summer months. We had a blast snorkeling in Maui and the Florida Keys, and if lots of people were doing it at La Jolla Cove, maybe there was something beautiful to see.

Aaaahahahahaha!! WRONG!!! Our minds had been weakened by vacation time and too much sun exposure, and we were fooled into thinking that it was safe to venture into the water in San Diego. We broke Rule Number One: "Never Swim in the Pacific Ocean (Hawaii Excluded)." I may get it tattooed somewhere for emphasis. Here's a picture of beautiful La Jolla Cove, so you can see why we were lured like moths to a killer flame. It's a stock photo, but looks like it did this Saturday & Sunday - except there were twice as many happy beachgoers and snorkelers when we were there.

So we went on Sunday afternoon and the water actually felt quite pleasant. Then I broke my own personal Rule Number Two: "Always Make Dan Go First." I got my snorkel gear on and dove right in, swam a few yards...and began hyperventilating. There were so many things wrong, the first being that the area was full of long kelp and San Diego seaweed that brushed against my body like tentacles. And there were floating strands of the stuff that wrapped around my face, arms, and legs as I swam. I have a deeply-rooted and illogical fear of all things that live in the ocean, and it is never okay for ANYTHING to touch me underwater! The second problem was that the water was murky, so I only had 3-5 feet of visibility. There were fish to see, but they kept popping out from behind the kelp right in front of my face! To be fair, there was plenty to be scared of from both parties' points of view, but I'm pretty sure the people back on the beach could hear me screaming through my air tube.

So I'm hightailing it back towards safety, when I look up and see Dan about to dive in. I yell "Save yourself!! Don't come in here! It's not Maui!" but alas, it is too late. He dives in, swims to where I'm floating and says "This is nasty! Are you okay?" because if he's freaked out, he knows I'm not handling it well. I am not okay, but I'm willing to go a little farther out at his suggestion to see if we can get away from the seaweed and see anything interesting. Nope. This is not Hawaii, folks. Plus, it occurs to me (waaaay later than it should have) that this is the general area where the leopard sharks hang out. They are supposedly harmless, but it is my personal goal in life to never, ever see a shark in the wild. Ten minutes later I'm back on the beach, and Dan is too. The whole way home, I rock back and forth saying "...must blog...must warn our families...". Okay I wasn't that bad, but I'm never snorkeling in San Diego again. And you have been warned.

This is the closest photo I could find of the kelp that was floating upwards in the water like tentacles. Yes, I know it's a nice picture, but would you want that touching your body while you swam?

This is a piece of monster seaweed on Pacific Beach where we live. The photographer even tried to make it look pretty. I'd estimate that piece to be around 10 feet long, if you want some perspective. It's all over the beach here, and has been known to swallow small children.

Maui Vacation

We had the most amazing vacation last week in Maui, which is now officially one of our favorite places in the world! Our first day there, we visited Ka'anapali Beach to do some snorkeling. We swam a couple of yards from the beach and there was a huge sea turtle swimming just below us! It was so cool, and definitely a fun start to our trip. There's a lot of beautiful coral around Maui, so the snorkeling is great without paying for a tour (although there are areas you can snorkel farther away from the island, too).

We love taking road trips, so a good part of several days were spent driving around different sections of the island and seeing the sights. We took a drive around the west side and visited the Dragon's Teeth lava formations and saw the Nakalele Blowhole shoot water about 20 feet in the air. We drove along the Road to Hana on the east side of Maui that is famous for its waterfalls, lush landscape, and carsickness-inducing twists and turns. Dan got really good at driving curvy roads without making me sick when we lived near the Colorado mountains, plus we got out of the car to explore along the way. We did see lots of waterfalls, although they weren't very full since it's been a dry summer there. We had a blast in Wai'anapanapa Park, walking on a black sand beach, exploring lava tubes, and swimming in a springwater-fed cave! The road to Hana officially ends at the Seven Sacred Pools, which is a natural playground of multi-level waterfalls and deep swimming pools. So much fun! Most people go back the way they came on the Road to Hana, but Dan learned that you can continue driving on the road and see the southeast side of Maui on the way back. The road was unpaved and rough for several miles that way, but we got to see a very different side of Maui than most people do.

Another memorable experience was waking up before dawn (not exactly my idea of a good time!) to drive to the peak of Haleakala Crater and watch the sunrise. You drive from sea level to over 10,000 feet in 1.5 hours, and it's really cold and windy up there! We had packed our ski coats just for this, and we were so glad we had them! There were crazy people up there wearing shorts and trying to stay warm wrapped in their beach towels. The top of the crater overlooks clouds and mountain peaks, and seeing the sunrise from the top of the world is something we'll never forget. Afterwards, we hiked into Haleakala Crater, which is surprisingly vast and colorful inside. Then of course we went back to our condo and slept the afternoon away.

Since we were so close to the other islands, we took a day trip to Oahu and rented a car there. We visited the USS Arizona Memorial, which stands over the final resting place of the ship and her 1,177 crewmen who died during the Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7 1941. It was very impactful and well worth the trip just for that experience. We also hiked to the top of Diamond Head, the famous peak that overlooks Waikiki beach. It was in the 90s that day, and there was absolutely no breeze on the way to the top, so you felt like you were hiking in a stone oven. The view from the top was great, but tainted by the swarm of gnats that were there to enjoy the view, too. Dan unfortunately walked right into them and a sweaty bald head = a watery grave for gnats. It was disgusting, and Dan was done with Diamond Head after that. The sign at the bottom of the trail said to be prepared to hike for 1.5 to 2 hours roundtrip, but we checked it off our list in 50 minutes flat. Moving right along...

The rest of our day in Oahu was spent driving and enjoying the scenery of the south, east, and north coasts of the island. It was beautiful, but much more populated than the other islands we've visited. That translated into traffic jams along the way, especially during rush hour. (Rush hour in Hawaii?? What is this madness??) Before we went back to the airport that night, we had time for a 45-minute stroll through the Polynesian Cultural Center, which is a beautifully landscaped park that highlights the cultures, art, and traditions from individual Polynesian islands, like Tahiti, Fiji, Samoa, and Hawaii.

We were both glad that we got to spend the day in Oahu and see some of its famous sights, but for the record, I hated Honolulu and would be happy to skip it next time. It is the equivalent of driving through Los Angeles on a tropical island, which pretty much ruined the tropical island part for me.

Anyway, happily back in Maui, we enjoyed a luau, a magic/comedy show, some more snorkeling, and relaxation before it was time to head home. It was one of the best vacations we've had, and we'd both enjoy revisiting Maui soon. (That's HUGE if you know how much we usually prefer to explore uncharted territory!)

Here are some of our favorite pictures!

The sunsets were gorgeous every night

These "Dragon's Teeth" lava rocks were formed by the sea spray

Nakalele Blowhole

Kahakuloa Village on the remote west side of Maui. That tiny green shack in the bottom left corner was advertising "the best banana bread on the planet," and we just had to try it!

One of the spectacular views on the Road to Hana

One of the many waterfalls on the Road to Hana

We swam in a springwater-fed cave in Waianapanapa State Park

Dan exploring a lava tube

The Seven Sacred Pools at the end of the Road to Hana

Dan is jumping off the cliff (he's to the left of the girl in pink shorts - you may have to click on the photo to enlarge it). He jumped twice and loved it, and I jumped once and HATED it!

o'dark-thirty in the morning at the peak of Haleakala Crater

At around 5:30 a.m., the sky began to turn beautiful colors

It was an amazing experience waiting for the sun to rise above the clouds and mountains

In our ski coats and still freezing!

The wind blew the clouds through the crater really quickly. This is me hiking inside a cloud in the crater. 10 minutes later, it was gone.

Inside Haleakala Crater

During our day trip to Oahu, we visited the USS Arizona Memorial

"Dedicated to the eternal memory of our gallant shipmates in the USS Arizona who gave their lives in action 7 December 1941. May God make his face to shine upon them and grant them peace."

The names of those who lost their lives on the USS Arizona

A lighthouse below Diamond Head

The view of Waikiki and Honolulu from Diamond Head

Back on Maui - we finally had a good day to see I'oa Needle. This valley is often filled with clouds and rain, hence the lushness.

Hula dancers at a luau

A fire dancer at a luau

Another romantic sunset on the beach before heading back home!