Feelin' the Aloha

Today consisted of way more classes than I would have preferred. Six hours worth to be exact. Some were good, i.e. Old Testament and Arabic, some not so good, i.e. Islam and Judaism. I have the hardest time focusing in those classes. So what did I do when I wasn't focusing? I took a stroll down memory lane and worked on labeling my pictures from Hawaii.

Reminiscing about my life in Hawaii may not have been the greatest idea because it made me really miss it. I love that place so much, and I'm realizing it truly feels like home to me now. After all, I did live there for the better part of three years. And, if this isn't proof that I'm now a Hawaii citizen I don't know what is, I even have a Hawaii Driver's License now! Yup, it's official. Hawaii is my home. My perspective on life changed so much during my time there that I will forever be indebted to that land.

What makes all of this homesickness worse is the fact that, as most of you know, I am strongly considering transferring to BYU Provo next semester. Changing things up makes sense for me in a lot of ways, but it also stresses me out sometimes. Like the time we went to the beach in Tel Aviv a few weeks ago. The second I set foot in the Mediterranean and remembered how much I love the beach, I thought 'what the heck am I thinking even considering leaving the Aloha State??' Leaving is quite possibly the dumbest decision ever. But also quite possibly the most correct decision. Bummer when that conflict happens.

So, in honor of my homesickness, I am compiling a list of the things I miss about Hawaii:

-Aloha Friday

-the beach!!!!

-the relaxed atmosphere

-knowing everything runs on Hawaii time

-Acai bowls

-teachers wearing aloha shirts to class

-hearing the ukulele everywhere you go

-hearing tons of different languages all the time (way more than the standard 3 languages in Israel)

-laughing at the dumb tourists who would get ROCKED by the huge waves at Waimea. (quite possibly one of the most entertaining things a person can watch. Period.)

-Impromptu activities like sky diving!

-Reminding myself that if I can handle sky diving, jumping off the rock at Waimea should NOT be that big of a deal.

-Malasadas

-The Laie theater that was only nine seats across. (I saw The Blind Side THREE times in that theater. Good times.)

-Ted's Bakery!!! 

-Rewarding myself, while also being counterproductive, by going to Ted's Bakery for the best bacon cheeseburger and Chocolate Dream Cake after a long run.

-Otter pops!!! (Jaimie and Wolfgang - hahahahaha)

-Going for a run and knowing most of the people who pass you in their cars.

-Just running in Hawaii in general. Especially with a cute guy. (uh, does life get any better???)

-AMAZING hikes.... namely Stairway to Heaven, Crouching Lion, and Maunawili Falls

-Sneaking into the Turtle Bay hot tubs. (Which usually ended in being kicked out....)

-Foodland at 11:30 pm on Saturdays was the Place To Be.

-The fact that every hike led to a WATERFALL. Utah hikes now pale in comparison.

-The excitement that came with getting to ride in a car somewhere.

-Laying on the landlord's tramp during a mega rainstorm.

-Surf comps (Eddie Would Go!!!)

-Trying, and failing, to hold your breath going through the H-3 tunnel

-Tourist watching at Waikiki

-Listening to tourists try to say the Hawaiian words. I especially loved "Likelike", "Haleiwa", "Hales", "Hukilau", and "Ka'a'awa". Heck, even hearing the attempts to say "Laie" was entertaining.

-Jamming out to music while driving along the North Shore, feeling like everything was right in life

-Angel's shave ice w/ ice cream on the bottom (TONS better than Matsumoto)

-Wal-mart/Jamba Juice runs to Mililani

-Driving a Spyder Eclipse around the island for 4 days

-Singing Aloha 'Oe (Even though I always became a crying mess during the song)

-Going to Sunset Beach at sunset

-Hearing the night show at PCC and knowing exactly what time it was

-ALOOOOOOOOOHAAAAAA

-CHEE-HOOO

-Finding geckos on my bike

-Camping at Malaekahana

-Snorkeling at Shark's Cove & Hanauma Bay

-Being a tour guide when family would visit

-First dates at Sunset Beach at sunset (bonus points: being with the cute guy I had a mega crush on)

-Island hopping every semester

-Riding in the back of U-Hauls to make island-hopping trips more affordable

-Knowing I was going back to warm weather once I survived a freezing cold Christmas in Utah

-Usually knowing other BYUH students on my flights

-Car pooling to the airport

-Riding beach cruisers from Sunset Beach to Shark's Cove by moonlight

-Becoming a sand connoisseur

-Finding sand EVERYWHERE. In your room, in your bed, in the shower, in your clothes, etc. You get the idea.

-Shopping for cute swimsuits at Windward Mall. Especially with Jaimie. :)

-Seasider Basketball!!!

-Melona bars

-Hi-Chews

-Having the sales at Foodland determine what I would be eating each week

-Knowing a trip to Costco or Wal-mart would quickly become an all day adventure

-Running races with friends, i.e. the Banana Man 5K w/ Evan and and City Solve Urban Race with Kent

-Talking about a teacher and everyone knowing who it is

-Seeing your teachers at the beach

-people being a lot less cutthroat about grades

-Hearing and talking pidgin

-Seeing sea turtles, dolphins, and whales when you go to the beach

-Tsunami evacuations

-Watching the 'tsunami' on tv while eating kettle corn at Jaimie and Wolfgang's 2nd floor apartment

-The annual flooding of Laie during finals (Yes, some finals have been cancelled due to said flooding)

-Opening a window in your house and feeling the ocean breeze

-Seeing and hearing the ocean waves from your house

-Glorious sunrises and sunsets

-No marriage pressure

-People being way less judgmental

-Working Luau at PCC

-Seeing the same Luau show every night, but still loving it

-Cute brown boys everywhere

-Buying all my Christmas presents at the swap meet (one stop shopping, anyone?)

-Kahuku football!!!

-The beautiful drive to North Shore. Probably one of my most favorite drives ever. Lightyears better than driving from Duchesne to Roosevelt.

-7-11 runs to Hauula at midnight

-Laie Temple (don't EVEN get me started on the fact that I am missing the re-dedication. I am beyond traumatized.)

-Hearing everyone say 'Aloha' all the time. I still expect speakers in church to start off by saying it, and it catches me off guard when it doesn't happen. Don't worry, I still say 'Aloha' constantly. Gotta spread the love, right?

I know what you're thinking: Who would ever give up so many great things?? Good inquiry. I'm currently pondering that exact question. Still not sure I'll be able to go through with the transfer to Provo. In an effort to console myself, I'll name a few things I don't miss. Whatsoever.

-dealing with BYUH administration

-FREEZING cold, and long, bus rides into town

-Biking home a mile with a gallon of milk in my backpack and my groceries on my handlebars. Most annoying thing ever.

-Paying way too much for milk

-Roosters that will NOT shut up and insist on waking you up every blasted morning.

-Cockroaches

-Rats

-BED BUGS (One of the worst experiences of my life, so far.)

-Cane spiders

-Ants (I ate them for breakfast several times when they broke into my cereal. Zip-locs became my new best friend quickly.)

-Getting not one, not two, but three different bikes stolen by the Laie Boyz (That's one for each year I was there, for those of you keeping track.)

-Being hated on for being Haole. Discrimination sucks. Don't ever participate in it.

-Taking some of the hottest, sweatiest naps ever. (You can be sure that a super loud industrial fan was first on the Wal-mart shopping list)

Ok, so there really aren't that many cons to Hawaii. Dang it. Guess I better start making a pros list for Provo asap.

Call me a slacker. Go on, I dare you.

Alrighty, I swear I am not abandoning my blog! Mid-terms were way too stressful for me last week and blogging was the last thing on my mind. Sorry, people. I'll try to do better now, but no promises. I'm gonna start typing up my Egypt posts, but they'll probably take a few days. You will be seeing them soon though!

Not gonna lie, today was pretty great. We walked through Hezekiah's tunnel, and it was so cool!  (Ok... so I actually feel like every day is SO fun here. Some days seem uber long, but I still love them. I love, love, LOVE my life!!) The tunnel is about 500 meters long and starts at one end of the City of David, goes underneath the whole city, and then comes out on the other side. Since we knew we'd be sloshing through water the whole time, I didn't dare bring my camera, so no pictures this time. Sorry. 

I loved walking through the tunnel, partly because it was nice and cool inside and partly because I love to explore things like that. I especially loved the splash fight some of us had. I hate to admit it, but i got worked. Let's just say that I exited the tunnel looking like I had chosen to swim through it instead of walk. But hey, I'm pretty sure not very many people can say they've had a water fight in an ancient tunnel.

After we got out of the tunnel we took a short walk to the Pool of Siloam, which is where Jesus sent the blind man to wash the clay from his eyes, giving him his sight. Brother Judd gives the best mini-devotionals that really help me appreciate the significance of the sights we are seeing while also helping me draw parallels to my own life. I actually have some pictures from this place, so once I get them from Catie I'll include them in a picture post.

And, once you factor in the four hour nap I took when we got home, that pretty much describes my day! Over and out.

PS. Egypt was a BLAST!!! By far one of the best 'trips' I have been on. So, so fun. I loved getting to know everyone in our group SO much better and seeing all the cool sites. Best of all, i was able to EAT there! In fact, I hardly needed all the snacks I brought with me. We stayed at some pretty nice hotels that had really good food and it was heaven. Total and complete heaven. Especially the crepes we had for breakfast. I felt like I could die happy after eating them.

PPS. Not to brag or anything, but I wrote a 7 page SINGLE space paper for one of my mid-terms last week, and I didn't have a mental breakdown/panic attack about it. Not only did I survive writing a paper, but I was mature about it for once! (I know you don't believe me, Jaimie, but I promise I was a big girl about it.) I must be growing up. Finally.