snownami 2011

Totally jealous of ThunderSnow 2011!! Extreme weather in any way, shape, or form excites me. I've wanted to be a tornado chaser since high school, although I'm almost certain I would die. I miss me a good old-fashioned thunderstorm, so the broadcast of a huge thundersnow??? I've been making everyone text me live pictures. It probably won't live up to expectations, as weather forecasts never do, but I'm guessing 10 inches to a foot.



And yet, why is the midwest acting like it's another y2k? All the grocery stores are running out of the necessities: milk, bread, eggs, , banana, oj, etc... It's not a month long storm people! School will be canceled, roads will suck, maybe some minor power outages, but you live in Michigan! We're supposed to handle this shit with a cocky dismissal and four wheel drive. Get a grip.

no beach for me

I swear, every day I have off the weather is total crap. And I'm really not exaggerating. Each week there's a handful of perfect beach days. Then Monday rolls around and, lo and behold, it's completely overcast. I would rather it pour rain if it's going to be this dreary. At least then I could get a chilly, curl up and watch movies sort of day. This is just dull and pointless, as is seen in the pic of my front yard below.



Gross.

Normally I aspire to hit the beach on days off, especially since the boyfriend and I acquired some moderately priced snorkel equipment last month. It may be near impossible to get him out of bed in time to enjoy the beaches of Lanikai, but I sure as hell am not going to let $50 of aquatic sporting gear go to waste! But alas, the sun does not want to cooperate.

Today I planned a biking excursion. I started the South Beach Diet once again on Friday and, in an effort to encourage my formerly somewhat svelte self to return, I decided some exercise was necessary. The beach was out already and I have a strong aversion to gyms, so the logical choice was an intense bike ride around the area. And then I rescued my bike from the garage. Apparently the garage was not sheltered enough for the bicicleta. The rust and creakiness factors were enough for me to call it quits. While I would have trusted it enough to get me to Blockbuster in town, I was not about to drive into the unknown only to have to drag the thing back had the chain snapped.

So my day remained relatively exercise-free. I did, however, make myself a fantastic SB friendly Indian inspired meal.



Mmm tomato beef curry with mushrooms and zucchini.

freezing in paradise

Back in June I had the pleasure of visiting Maui. I am an informed traveler and therefore knew to not miss the sunrise on Haleakala.



After waking up at 3am, Wheeler and I started the trek up the mountain. By 5am we reached the Haleakala National Park visitor center. We pulled over to use the lavatory and braced ourselves for the inevitable drop in temperature. We dressed as accordingly as we could with what we had. The brisk 52 degree morning air instantly catapulted me back to a chilly springtime afternoon in Michigan. I was comfortable and refreshed. Wheeler, who was born and raised in Hawaii, thought she was dying. As she was going to move to Chi-town in 2 weeks, I had a good time teasing her and warning her that she might as well get used to the temperature. By the time we reached the top it had plummeted another 10 degrees or so. I was still fine with this. Yet looking back at photos, Wheeler is miserable and incapable of smiling. I decided to do a little climbing in order to get a better view and took my hoodie off at one point from the exertion. The cold air hit my lungs and stung a bit as I jogged up to the summit, but the sensation simply transported me back to the way I felt after a round of conditioning during a softball practice early in the season.

Looking back at this experience I laugh at myself. It was obvious I was new to the islands still (and in most ways I still am). Today it probably didn't hit 70 degrees during the day. It was overcast with an occasional sprinkle, although no real rain. And windy as hell. It was freezing. Yes, I now react to any drop in temperature like the rest of those that live here. If it's below 75, it's fucking freezing, especially without sun. You can spot the Hawaiian residents. We're bundled up in pants, sweatshirts and jackets on days like this. The tourists stick out in their vacation garb, tank tops, and sandals. For them, the weather here is still warmer than it is back in Iowa or wherever it is they're from.

It's just sad because I desperately wanted to go to the beach today. My barely perceptible tan lines are one shade of melanin away from being completely imperceptible. And that's just not acceptable.

the deluge of '08

It appears as though Honolulu has been taken over by a monsoon. I am not entirely clear on the exact meteorological definition of the word "monsoon," but this is what I imagine one being like. It began yesterday evening and continues still.

This is what Manoa Valley usually looks like from my lanai.


And this is Manoa Valley completely imperceptible to the human eye thanks to torrential downpour.


This may come as news for those that believe I live each day in a constant state of paradise. While there is a noticeable lack of blizzards, we are blessed with sporadic yet inevitable bouts of rain. Usually it lasts a few minutes and can be escaped by walking two blocks in any direction. Usually it occurs, inexplicably, without a cloud in the sky and only takes the form of a harmless mist. However, I haven't seen blue sky for the last two days.

Last night I was certain that palm trees would be uprooted. There is some sort of wind tunnel-ish vortex present in front of my apartment building between the parking garage and lobby, the center of it being a very large tree. This poor mass of foliage was being whipped back and forth so ferociously I couldn't help but being reminded of someone headbanging, which of course only brings to mind Wayne's mullet headbanging along to "Bohemian Rhapsody" in Wayne's World. Between the rain slamming against my window pane, my blinds being whipped around in a frenzy despite my window being shut (there must have been a tiny crack where the wind got through), and my window rattling from the force of the gales outside I couldn't fall asleep until 4:30am.

Mind you, I've slept through my share of thunderstorms in Michigan. I love them, in fact, and they usually lull me to sleep. I also believe it rains more forcefully and with more quantity (i.e. the droplets are larger and closer together, if that makes sense) there. But damn...

I woke up and I couldn't see anything but white out my window because the fog/mist was so thick. Like pea soup, haha. And this persisted throughout the day.



The strangest part of it all is how much I liked it. It was nice to have variety. It was nice to be a little chilly for once, even if the rain was joined by a distinct mugginess. I felt the need for a hot caffeinated beverage, which is often never the case here unless I'm somewhere heavily air-conditioned. Rain can be soothing. It can be a great excuse to have a lazy, cozy, introspective day. It can also be peaceful and almost ethereal.