I can get used to Vacation

I have fallen into a lovely pattern here in Hawaii. Get up, look out the window to verify that it's another beautiful day in paradise, go for a run, put on sunscreen, go to the beach, look at the clouds, listen to some hawaiian reggae, put on more sunscreen, hang out with my brother, all at a leisurely pace (except the training of course...). I met these two really cool girls visiting from New York, we went to the beach together and talked, amongst other things, about how they could ditch the city and make a new life in Hawaii. This was on Friday. At the time I was thinking about how lucky I am to live in the Bay Area. Today is Sunday. Today I was thinking about how I could make a new life in Hawaii. This place grabbed hold of me completely - the colors, the air, the water, the way no one is in a hurry because wherever they are it's gorgeous, almost everything about it has made me want to stay. Even though I got jeered as a hauli today for making a left hand turn into a beach parking lot.



Anyway. Not to worry, I am not up and moving to Hawaii. They don't have bike races here. And my life is in California, where I am very happy because it's an awesome place and I love what I do. But, this trip has made me think... I never take vacations. I get so wrapped up in whatever it is that I am doing that it never occurs to me to go do something else or to allocate money towards something else. So I am already working on a New Year's Resolution: have a better variety of fun. I want to go skiing with my brother and cousins in January. I want to come back to Hawaii. I want to go to Sundance this summer with my dad's family, who I haven't seen since before I started bike racing because the annual trip is always the same weekend as some race. I have never been to Yosemite, or to Tahoe, but I live within a few hours' drive of each. Don't get me wrong, bike racing is definitely fun, but I am now craving a bit of variety.

Back to the here-and-now. Today I went to Waimea Bay on the North Shore which was (shock and surprise!) gorgeous. The waves can be huge and powerful, I saw this movie a while ago called Riding Giants about the big-wave surfers and Waimea Bay was one of their spots. Today the waves weren't too huge but the current was definitely powerful. I stayed close to shore.

Here is the bay late in the afternoon:

Here is my sky photo of the day:


Last night we went to the University of Hawaii vs. Purdue football game. The last football game I attended was the 49ers vs. the Cowboys last year. It was horrible - gross, loud, dirty, and I couldn't see the game because I needed new contacts. Still do. Yesterday's game, however, was a blast. Especially when Hawaii won, 42-35. I only asked lame and poorly-timed questions during 5 of the touchdown plays... and I even managed to get a photo of the winning touchdown!