Mele Kalikimaka!

Matt and I had a different but wonderful first married Christmas Eve. It even included a visit from the police!! Yes, at 4:45 in the afternoon a friendly police officer stopped by our door to let us know that a neighbor had called in a complaint about us playing our Christmas music too loud!! Are you kidding me?!! Where's the aloha and/or Christmas spirit?!! Needless to say, we were pretty peeved! But we continued to get ready(no scrooge was gonna crush our spirits) and headed into downtown Honolulu. We toured the "Honolulu City Lights", which was actually really cool...the main attraction is of course the famous "Shaka Santa" with Tutu Mele (Grandmother Merry) pictured above. We then ate a good Italian Christmas Eve meal at Buca De Bepo...and were able to bring home our commemorative wicker basket bottle of Chianti! We headed home at about 9:30 and our friends Charlie and Roisin dropped by on their way home from mass(they're so good!) and we sat around and told funny Christmas stories while drinking a few Christmas Eve toddies.

It was a good time, but missing the people we love the most (ALL of y'all!) and so that was hard. I was saying last night that in about 10 years when we have kids and are running around playing Santa and driving from party to family and back we will look back fondly on this Hawaiian Christmas when we had absolutely nothing to do and no where to go...and when the cops came!!

Oh Christmas Tree...Truck!!

Yea! We got a real Christmas tree! I had been a little worried because one of our tree shipments was infested with wasps and had to be returned to the mainland. Yes, surprisingly (haha), there are no tree farms here and all Christmas trees are shipped from Oregon and Washington. There are only 2 shipments of Christmas trees made each year to Hawaii and when the 2nd shipment arrived in harbor it was found to be "swarming" with wasps and was immediantly returned. Hawaii went into a small panic because most of the 1st shipment trees had already been sold and many of us were waiting on that 2nd batch.

Well, long story short...a new batch eventually reached us over here and now we have a perfect Oregon Christmas tree...and actually it was pretty cheap...alot less than the one we bought in Atlanta last year!

From the port they load all the trees into Matson Moving trucks and set them up in random parking lots. So about a week ago we headed to our local shopping center parking lot to try our luck in the Christmas tree truck. Please notice that I am not in your usual Christmas tree hunting attire...with the temp. still in the 80's, it's really hard to believe that it's almost Christmas!

The tree is now set up and decorated and the postman is working over time to get all our gifts out and delivering us up to 5 packages each day!!

Today was the last day of school so I'll have more time to catch up on some blogging. Some of you know that Matt and I took a much needed vacation (heehee) to the Big Island in early December. The beaches were awesome and the active volcano...one of the coolest things I've ever seen! I've got tons of pictures so I've got to figure out how to do a slideshow on the blog so I can post them. Please standby!

love, E

SO much to say...

VS.

Are you kidding me?!?! I feel like we willed this to happen...I think God got his lines crossed...I was praying that Georgia would come here and play in the Aloha Bowl...oh well!!! Sooooo crazy! People had been throwing around the idea for a few weeks now, but I didn't really think it would happen! The front page of the paper here today says...BRING ON GEORGIA!! I seriously think this is the first time the word Georgia has ever been in the Hawaii paper. It will be fun to follow the hype around this game...makes me feel closer to home. Although I think it will be surreal to watch the game, and downright depressing to not be there!

I will admit that Matt and I have become big warrior fans, but those who know me well know who I'll be cheering for. It will be tough though...I still might have to cheer for Colt Brennan...he's so hot! And I'll probably have to watch the game at our house with all the windows and doors closed as to not be attacked by the Hawaii nation! Starting today, i'll also have to rethink my gym attire...my Georgia t-shirts and sweatshirts might not be the best choices anymore. I want to be a proud Georgia fan, but this football team is pretty much the only thing sports related that they have going for them over here, and they take it very seriously. Click the link below and see what the Sugar Bowl attendees have to look forward to...these Tongans and Samoans don't play!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pCZ5RkhJkY

It has been about 2 months since I last posted a blog. You would think that would be ok and that nobody was really that interested in my life anyway. But one thing I have learned since Elizabeth started this blog is that most people have too much time on their hands and reading blogs and bitching about lack of posting is one thing they do to pass it. I have not been more harassed about a spare time activity since my masochistic, high school wrestling coach told us, on a daily basis, that we couldn't beat the "Sisters of the F$%^ing Poor". So thanks everyone for bringing back those long suppressed memories.

Anyway, after Halloween, I worked 21 straight days without a day off. I got into a regular routine of breakfast, work, lunch, work, dinner, sleep, work. It was a great time. I forgot what an actual day off felt like. I was able to take advantage of some physician kick backs during that time, however. First, we had a physicians recognition dinner at the Oahu Country Club. It was a very nice club and on more than one occasion I was wondering what I was doing there. At one point they introduced all the new physicians and we had to go stand in front of the podium to be recognized. Elizabeth had to come up with me and while more names were being announced she told me to "stand up straight". Apparently, I was slouching against the window ledge behind me and looked like some kind of professional slacker. That is pretty standard for me. But the night ended without further incident and the ambiance was superb. On another occasion, I went to a drug rep dinner at Nobu, a japanese/seafood restaraunt huge on the West Coast. The cheapest dish is about $50. I ordered the most expensive food on the menu, ate 5 courses, and did not pay a thing. The tab went to some pharmaceutical company I can't remember...thanks. I learned a little about more effective ways to treat heart disease, but mostly I learned how to effectively use chop sticks without looking like a complete jerk. I would later be complimented on my skills at a Beni Hana (ask the Kidd family).

The Kidd Family arrived just as my 21 day shift came to a close. A vacation with the family was just what I needed. Alex came to stay with us and the Mr and Mrs stayed at the Hilton in Waikiki, which turns out to be a cool little village filled with shops, pools, restaraunts, and even a small peguin habitat (that my Mother-in-Law became obsessed with). On my first official day off Alex and I went golfing at the Hawaii Kai golf course. We got paired with a couple who were Boise State fans. In fact, Boise State fans littered the beautiful Hawaiian landscape all week, just waiting to get beat by the undefeated and underrecognized Rainbow Warriors. I vowed to harass the guy the entire game but he turned out to be pretty nice, and from Canada.....phony. Anyway, I played as well as anyone who hasn't played in a year and, thankfully, drank too much to continuously keep score. But the course was beautiful, Alex played well, and we had a good time.

The following day we went to Pearl Harbor. The area is basically a big museum with the official memorial a short boatride to an open structure overlying the location where the USS Arizona sank and still lies (and still leaks oil!). Before going to the memorial, groups of about 100-150 are shown a 23 minute movie. It is a very educational and sad experience, but one any American, or Japanese for that matter (we may have even been outnumbered) would want to see. Interestingly, the ranking Admiral aboard the Arizona was named Isaac Kidd. Needless to say, the place is solemn and patriotic and represents one of the more significant points in American history. But this did not stop one dirty old man from wearing a "Liquor in the Front, Poker in the Rear" T-shirt. Priceless.

The rest of the week we spent traveling the island. On Thursday we went to the North shore where we swam in enormous, 15-20 ft waves and I got bullhorned by a lifeguard for drifting dangerously close to a rocky jetti as I unsuccessfully tried to boogy board on surfing sized waves (just about the entire beach looked at me then and after I got out as I was scolded by the YOUNGER lifeguard. I guess I am just a clueless haole, but it isn't a vacation until someone makes an idiot of themeselves) That night we ate a long, drawn out, 2-3 helping Thanksgiving dinner at the Hilton. It wasn't like home, but we had turkey, prime rib, stuffing, potatoes (not mashed? what the hell?), crab legs (huh?), bread and all the other fixin's. The dessert sucked. We then closed out the week Hawaiian style with a 4 hour luau. The Luau was actually really cool. It was basically one big pig roast, served with a lot of Hawaiian culture and 5 free drinks. There were flame throwers, hula girls, ukelele's, a hukilau (look it up), and games of skill (if you still need to fish with spears). Elizabeth even got on stage (typical) to learn how to hula. In the end, it was a great week and we hope they had as great of a time as we did.

Well, I wrote a long one. Now stop harassing me and be prepared for my next installment.....in three months!

Hawaiian Halloween

It doesn't quite feel like Halloween when it's 85 degrees, but it did feel like Halloween today in kindergarten!! It was a scary one for Matt too...poor guy capped on his patient amount at 18...which made for a 12 hour work day, EEK!!

I sported a spider theme and Jersey debuted her new MuuMuu...not happily!

Matt and I have no clue whether y'all have "fallen back" time wise...but we think it's about that time. That means that you will only be 5 hours ahead of us (on the eastcoast), so now you can start calling us at about 1:00 pm (Grandmama!).

Hope everyone had a great Halloween!

It's official...We're Kama Aina'!

Yes, we both finally have a Hawaii drivers license... after only one meltdown at the Hawaii DMV.

The first time we went (about a month ago) we waited in a 2 hour line. When I got up to the counter they wouldn't accept a copy of our wedding certificate(for name change purpoes), it had to be the original...which was just back at the house(nice!). So as Matt took the written drivers test and got his fun rainbow drivers license, I sat in the car crying...a little homesick, but mainly pissed at myself for not bringing the real marriage certificate. Matt felt pretty bad...and barely showed off his shiny new license...poor guy. So out of annoyance of the system and not wanting to wait in another ridiculous line, I boycotted the DMV for about 4 weeks. Everytime we got carded at a bar or restaurant I looked like the girl visiting from Georgia, which was fine with me, except... All my debit and credit cards have been changed to my new name and my Georgia license was still sporting "Kidd", so long story short, it was causing "shopping" issues. I finally broke down and went back to the DVM...the line wasn't so long and everything actually went smoothly. AND...I missed one less than Matt did on the test. We had a friendly competition going...and I make the most of every chance I get to feel smarter than him!!

So we are officially "Kama Aina"! That roughly translates to "of the land" or "from the land", but more importantly to us...it gets you lots of local discounts that all you tourists don't get to take advantage of! Hee Hee! It does not infact help out at the grocery store, where yesterday I racked up a $212.00 tab...A personal best (or worst).

PS - Drivers licenses are really hard to photograph... holograms and flashes don't work well together.

We haven't become shark bait...just real busy!

Aloha! We are still alive and well here in Hawaii. I know we've been slack about blogging (okay, ME...since Matt keeps reminding me that it's my turn). We have had an amazing 2 weeks! Thanks to our first couple of visitors!



We were lucky enough to host Matt's fraternity brother, Chris Strom and his new wife Linda, on the last leg of their Hawaiian Honeymoon! Chris and Linda stayed with us for two nights after living it up on Maui and Kauai! Since they were our very first guests, we worked hard to get our little house just perfect. Unfortunately Matt had to work the 2 days that they were here, but of course he rushed home each day and was ready to party at night. Chris, Linda and their favorite 3rd wheel (me!) had lots of fun though. We went to Pearl Harbor, shopped, climbed that damn Koko Crater...again (Matt wasn't upset about missing that) and cruised Waikiki. It was so fun having them even for a short time. We hated missing their wedding, but I think we ended up getting the better end of the deal!

We had one day to wash sheets and towels, then it was off to the airport to pick up Ansley and Michael!! They hadn't planned on coming so soon, but surprises happen everyday, right!! Turns out my sweet Matron of Honor shouldn't have been celebrating as "heavily" as she was at our wedding since she was about 2 weeks pregnant!! All is well though and bambino Clarkson is now 14 weeks old and very well traveled! Ansley knew she better hurry up and get here while she could still look awesome in a bikini...and of course she did!


Ans and Michael were here for a week and man did we live it up! Matt was off most of the time which was great. We did almost everything you can do on this island. We beached it a lot, hiked to the top of Diamond Head and Manoa Falls, went to a luau, shopped and ate in Chinatown, toured the North Shore, snorkeled in Haunauma Bay, cliff (okay, big rock) jumped, and most exciting for the boys...surfed!! Michael and Matt successfully surfed on long boards at Waikiki Beach! I think Ans and I had more fun watching them try to get up...but both actually were pretty good.


No Mai Tai's for Ans:(


I could go on and on about everything we did, but it would be like writing a novel! The best part was having Ans here and just sitting around talking about the BABY...but the beautiful beach is a great backdrop. We will be continuing to post amazing pictures from their stay because Michael, who is a very talented photographer, took at least 800 pictures! We appreciate it, Michael! A trip very well documented!!

We're calming down now...no more guests till Thanksgiving. Matt starts a long 14 day rotation tomorrow and I start my NEW JOB on Wednesday! Yes, I was offered a part-time position at Koko Head Elementary. I decided to take it for the sake of consistancy and so I could actually help kids and maybe meet some cool people. The subbing was driving me crazy! Now I will be working Monday through Thursday from 8-noon (nice, huh?). I will be pulling out struggling kindergarteners that are falling behind and working with them to get 'em back on track! I'm excited and will keep you posted. YEA...more school stories!


Lastly, Matt and I would like to report that we are NOT pregnant, BUT we do want to congratulate all of our crazy friends (hee hee)!!

• Congrats to new parents Mandy and Trey Prophater on the birth of sweet Catherine Frances (Cate)!


• Thoughts and prayers go out to Megan and Rhett Shirley...week 39 of pregnancy cannot be fun, but it is all worth it! Can't wait for baby Ford to arrive!


• We're sending all our love to Milmont Park to Megan and Matt...can't wait to hear whether baby Murray is a girl or boy!!


• And to all of you who had a "randy" summer...we are anticipating all the spring 2008 babies! Chris and Kathy Hogan due on St. Patty's day (Yea...a new niece or nephew!), Ans and Michael of course, due on April 1st! Wild child Csontos due on 4/20...appropriatly! And Rick and Danielle Flounders rounding out late April!

WHOA!!! Anyone we're missing?! I'm sure more news of baby bumps is headed our way!
Keep us posted...
love, E

Climbing the Stairway to Heaven...

The first picture is starting out at the bottom...

Next, is from the very top coming down.

Third is the tressel where you have to stay on the tracks or you will fall through (about a 20 ft. drop. Last are the beautiful views of Hanauma Bay and our town of Hawaii Kai.

I am out of shape. I have said it before and I will say it again. I am out of shape. So what the hell was I thinking when I decided to climb the mountain that abuts Koko Head crater. Was it pride? Was it determination? Was it curiosity? Was it jealousy (Elizabeth has already done it)? It was probably a combination of the above with a little added stupidity.

I was working when Elizabeth climbed it about a week ago. I called her at about the time she made it to the top. When she picked up I couldn't understand a thing being said. Her words were blocked by the wind blowing across the mountaintop and her own oxygen deprived gasps. Elizabeth works out. I don't. Sure, I can do this!

So I have my first day off after a long two week shift and decide to spend it killing myself. I don't mind spending days doing myself in, as long as it involves a couch and a beer. I'm Irish remember. So we get in the car and drive about 2 miles to this park that leads up to the mountain. Behind a baseball field the path begins. The first 100 yards are twists and turns up and around makeshift dirt paths that lead to the beginning of the end. The treck up the mountain is actually a nice stroll up a step-like incline made by an old tram car that used to travel up it back in the day. At the top is an abandoned helicopter pad. It is the most intimidating feat I have seen since I decided to go lazyboy. But I attack it with vigor.

Elizabeth sets off behind me. The first 100 or so steps aren't bad. The incline is about 20 degrees. My heart rate is about 50% of maximum. Already! By the way, there are about 1000 steps. After the first 100 or so the incline turns to about 30 degrees. My legs hurt. My breathing is a little labored. I have to rest. We brought 3 water bottles and I have already consumed one.

Back to the grind. About midway there is a small tressel that bridges a 30 yard gap and sits about 10-20 feet off the ground. It is a place we will later witness a grown man crawling across like Vern in Stand By Me. We cross it gingerly. It is old with very visible dryrot and very suspect planks. But we make it. We have crossed about 500 steps. I am nearly spent. And we haven't even hit the hard part.

The next half sucks. There is no better descriptor than that. The incline changes dramatically. it is now at about 60 degrees with various areas probably reaching 65. We have to stop and rest every 25 or so steps. My legs burn. My chest hurts (I think. And no I am not having angina. I think). Elizabeth is huffing behind me and occasionally laughing at me. My pulse has reached its peak. It is going at about 120 and I can feel it in my neck. My pits are drenched and my mouth is dry. The surrounding terraine is like a desert and I think I see a lake. All right, I am being very dramatic here but it did suck. Anyway, after several stops, we made it! What a view. Standing on top of an old, beat up landing pad you could see the the entire south side of the island and clear to the next. The wind blew nearly as hard as I breathed. It was worth it. We stayed up there for about 15 minutes and then had to go because Elizabeth absolutely could not miss Oprah. The way down was a breeze even with Jello legs. I will do it again, but it won't be soon. Tomorrow I think I'll have a beer instead.

Working Girl...and it was tough!!

I have just spent 4 days as a substitute teacher in a Kindergarten class at Koko Head School (only in Hawaii)!! I finally completed all the friggin' paperwork that it took just to be a sub and within a day or two I was called for my first job. I worked last Weds., Thurs., Fri., and today (monday) and it was a challenge, but a lot of fun!

The schools here are so different than the ones on the "mainland", as everyone here calls the continental U.S. As you can see in the picture above, all the classrooms are in long buildings that open up to the outside with big double doors...that is the only way in and out of the classroom...there are no hallways, more like sidewalks! Two things really shocked me...I had 24 kindergarteners and NO aide!! That is totally against the law in every other state (Georgia's K max w/out an aide is 18, I think). Yep, it was just me and 24 5 year olds, so I thought! I learned on Thursday that the cut off date for entering kindergarten is December 1st here, so actually I had 16 five year olds and 8 FOUR year olds. One of those had a #2 accident today that WAS NOT pretty!! This is why I never taught kindergarten!!

The other big shocker is that there is NO air conditioning in the entire school (yes, this is Hawaii!). I had to come in every morning and use a 6 foot window opening pole to pry open all those slatted windows that you see in the picture...and the ones covering the whole back wall!! Seriously, the window opening AND closing every afternoon, was a job in itself! It is so hot during the day that the kids are lethargic and whiny and they get to bring their own waterbottle in each day, which is a management nightmare! Did I mention that there are no screens on the windows and we keep the doors open all day too for ventilation...do you see where this is going? Most of you probably know of my bird "phobia". A bird( and there are plenty around) could have just swooped in to the classroom at any moment. This was always in the back of my mind. Luckily, none flew in, although a few hopped in the door looking for crumbs...but the kids scared them away for me.

The kids really were good for me though and it was fun working with children and in a school again. The class was an amazing "melting pot"...kids from all, over the world. It took me untill today to get most of the names right! Speaking of names...In Hawaiian culture most kids call adult women that are close to them "Auntie" (an-tee). So instead of Mrs. Hogan, which I was excited to try on for size, I was called Auntie and just plain "teacher" most of the time...lovely. Another funny thing...ALL the kids and teachers (awesome!) wear flip-flops everyday. BUT, here they call them SLIPPERS!! The kids all take them off and leave and lose them everywhere! Everytime I said, "whose flip-flops are these?", all the kids would laugh at me and be sure to correct me...it's like they've never heard the words flip flops!!

Overall, it was a good experience and I'm looking forward to doing it again...after I take some days off to recooperate!! Below is a cute pic. of Jayden, Kalani and Sunny giving the Aloha sign. Please note that Kalani's T-shirt gives simple instructions to all of us...and I agree: LISTEN TO BOB MARLEY!!
~Elizabeth (obviously!)

GOOOOOOO Rainbow Warriors!! (sic'em....??)

Hmmmm....Not quite the same...but not too bad!! Opening weekend of college football and I am in neither Athens or Clemson. It was a hard one for me, but was made a little better by the accomplished Hawaii Rainbow Warriors and their(our, I guess) Heisman hopeful QB, Colt Brennan. Late in the week I started feeling sad about no live football for us on opening weekend, so I went on the UH website, figuring the game had been sold out for awhile, but just thought I'd check. Oh no...plenty of $34 tickets left...sweet! So I bought 4 and after watching football all day (literally from the moment we woke up at 9:00) we headed out to Aloha Stadium at about 5:00pm (11:00pm ET) with our friends Charlie and Roisin to watch the rainbow warriors play!

The stadium is about 20 minutes away from our house and it isn't even on campus(the stadium overlooks Pearl Harbor)...I think that adds to the lower attendance....the not on campus part not Pearl Harbor. We hadn't allowed for much tailgating time so we each chugged a lone beer as we left the car. We were a little more than surprised when we got into the stadium and they were selling every kind if beer right there inside...The perks of an off-campus stadium I guess! By the time we made it to our seats (last row in the place, no joke) it was about 5 mins. into the first quarter and Hawaii was already up on Northern Colorado by 21 pts!! Colt Brennan didn't even play the 2nd half and the final score was 64-6 Rainbow Warriors! We had a great time! There really was a big crowd and everyone was super excited and into the game...the alcohol helps in a blow-out like that. We will definitely be back! It's not Athens, GA or Clemson, SC (or State College, PA...had to say it for Matt), but it was pretty cool.

It was a good opening weekend...The DAWGS looked great (thank God the game was on ESPN2, or we would have had to pay like $60 to buy it...and we would have!). It appears that Georgia is going to be really good which is great, but selfishly I wanted them to have a par season and be relegated to come play in the Aloha Bowl...just so I could see 1 game live!! But I'll give up that dream for another SEC championship!! Right now I'm counting down the minutes untill the Clemson Tigers kick-off their season with the Bowden Bowl. Just got off the phone with Reagan who was exiting a port-a-potty outside Tiger Stadium....I'm soooo jealous! Fight, Tigers, Fight...stomp out the rednecks!! HeeHee

Love you & Miss you alot,
Elizabeth

Ask and ye shall receive.....late

We finally got our stuff on Thursday, only 8 days after it arrived in Honolulu. I called on Monday, knowing our stuff was in city limits to ask when it would get here. The women said, "You previously requested this load expedited, correct?" I said "yes". Then she said "When do you want it". Last time I checked, expedited meant ASAP. So I said "ASAP" She then told me we could have it Thursday, which seems more like ASAWeWantToDeliverIt. Had I known this would be the response, I would have called last Wednesday and said I would like it now. Anyway, it is here and we are unpacking. We finally have furniture and kitchen supplies (pics to follow soon). You never realize how much you rely on things until you have them no more.

Right this second we are watching college football. Penn State just crushed lowly Florida International and Georgia is playing right now but we can't watch it because ESPN 2 has to show the rest of the Illinois game. And Michigan just lost to a AA team Appalachian State. Ha! We are also heading to our first UH Rainbow Warriors game tonight to watch Colt Brennan tear apart Northern Colorado on his way to the Heisman. We are going with 2 new friends, Charlie and Roisin (pronounced Rosheen - irish/gaelic). Go Warriors!

We also spent 5 and 1/2 hours leasing a 2007 Jetta for Elizabeth yesterday. It was especially fun and exciting because I hadn't eaten all day, the salesmen was formerly in the "Hospitality Industry", and his partner tried to throw numbers over our heads all day. But needless to say we walked out of there with a fair deal for a 24 month lease. What a day!

And on a funny note, Jersey ran head first into our screen door yesterday, thus beginning what is sure to be a semi-monthly trip to the local hardware store for repair.

Aloha,
Matt

Some House Pics.

I wanted to post a few pics. of our place. I'm only showing you the outside of our home because the inside is pretty bleak. We do have a great front yard lined with huge hedges about 9 ft high, so it's pretty private. We also have 3 coconut trees in our front yard and a lime tree (which is currently bearing a lot of limes) in our back yard. The city has to come and pluck the baby coconuts off of one of our trees twice a year because it hangs over the street and is a liability. That's all we need...to get sued for a coconut busting out someones windshield!! We also have tons of exotic plants and trees only local to Hawaii (I can't explain further, cause I don't know what any of them are called). Basically our yard will need a lot of work to maintain, but we are going to try and do it ourselves for a while and see how that goes.

Our yard is also the summer home of the Geico Gecko...and all of his Ohana (hawaiian for family)!! Geckos are everywhere! They don't really bother you though because they move so quickly to get out of your way. Although they are making Jersey crazy because she sees them and then they are gone...she can never catch 'em! They also eat all the bugs...and there are a lot of those too. So geckos are our friends...they're pretty cute actually. Jersey has loved being able to be free in the yard. She runs around with fallen coconut tree frawns (is that the right word?). It weirds her out when we leave her out there though and if we go inside she sits by the screen door and doesn't play. She'll get used to her freedom soon enough I'm sure.

I'm glad to have Matt home for 2 weeks and I think we will get a lot done. On the docket for this week is getting Hawaiian drivers licenses' and a Hawaii tag. We also want to get up to the North Shore and hike Diamond Head. Most importantly, we want our stuff to get here so we can live normally again. Then I'll send some "inside the house" pictures!

Aloha!

"It's a dog eat dog world, and I'm wearing milkbone underwear"

I just looked at my schedule for the next few months and let's just say I got sucker punched! And my nose is still bleeding.

I finished my first week at Straub and it went swimmingly (I never really understood what this meant). 8 hour days, 11 patient averages, great staff, and smooth and timely care. Needless to say I was in a great mood and ready for a nice week off. Then I woke up this morning, got on the internet as all people hopelessly trapped by technology do, and checked my email. That's when I saw a message from the dude responsible for making the schedule. I opened it up and noticed that I work over both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Both! I knew that I would have to work holidays but I assumed I would get at least one off. And you know what happens when people assume. But then I also realized that these schedulers (who by the way are fellow MDs whose own schedules depend on everone elses, including mine) inexplicably gave me two weeks off starting today. This is strange, you see, because we are only supposed to get one week off at a time and nowhere else in my schedule do I get two weeks off. Well, then I noticed that this little shift pushed my schedule forward a week and had I only had the one week off I would have had Thanksgiving off and would only have had to work on Christmas day. And with this forward shift, the powers that be were able to get the time off they wanted. I've been a puppet, a poet, a pawn, and a king. But That's Life!

Anyway, we have been doing good otherwise. Our furniture still isn't here and we are living like crackheads in a house that is fitted with a bed, a small TV, a wiley dog and nothing else. The furniture will hopefully be here this week. And I have been studying, STILL, for my boards this Friday.

This week also had it's share of luck though. It turns out two of my fraternity brothers, Jim Pauciello and Jeremy Askin, are here. The former is on his honeymoon and the latter on vacation (you like that). We have spent some time with both and caught up. I haven't seen either in at least 3 years. We also went to a beach called Sandy's (we had mentioned it before) and tried to boogie board. We pulled out our $30 Costco Morey Mach 9 boards and excitedly entered the ocean with the biggest waves I have ever seen. Everyone else was going out with flippers on because apparently you can't touch the ocean floor where the waves break and need to catch up to the waves before you ride them. But the mainland howlies were ill prepared. After getting slammed 3 times, concussed twice, and laughed at by locals I called it a day. Meanwhile Elizabeth was pulling her bikini bottoms up from the only thing that caught them at the last minute, her big toe. These waves are beyond us. We need practice.

High-Ho, High-Ho...it's off to work (Matt) goes!!

And me too...hopefully!

Matt and I have had a whirlwind week...sorry for no blogs. We've had our ups and downs for sure! Where do I start... Matt went into work on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday of last week to get a badge, go through orientation, Hippa training, etc... That kind of thing stresses him out, but he was happy to get back in a hospital after a month and a half of not working.

On Tuesday we put our deposit down for our house...YEA!!! We will move in on Wednesday. We had to go to Sears and buy a matress set so we would have something to sleep on because none of our furniture is here yet. We're hoping it will arrive in the next week or so. Our new address is (as of Weds.) 6206 Milolii Place, Honolulu, HI 96825. It's a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom townhouse type of place with a private fenced in front yard (perfect for Jersey). It is in Hawaii Kai, a suburb east of downtown Honolulu. Only 2 more nights in this ROOM!! It's driving me crazy!

I did get out this week to a few elementary schools in the area. They are so strange looking...every classroom opens to the outside an they have these huge panel windows that they keep open during the day(I'm scared a birds will fly in the room!!)...no AC..but really not many places have AC here anyway. I had a few call backs from principals and am currently filling out the lengthy application just to sub. One principal at KokoHead Elementary said she was interested in hiring me for 15 hours a week to teach reading to struggling students...that would be perfect. We'll see what happens...

We had a fun weekend (kind of). One of Matt's faternity brothers, Jeremy Askins, and his girlfriend, Gina are on vacation here and so we met up with them Friday night at the trendy W Hotel on Waikikii. It was a lot of fun and we stayed out till 2:00...a first for us here!! I actually called my dad when we got home and he was at the Sunday morning farmers market...it was 8:15am in Georgia!! That was funny. We made plans to meet up with them the next day at a beach, but when we tried to leave the next morning we realized that our rental car battery was dead...and when we tried to jump it, that didn't even work. SO, we waited over 2 hours for the AAA tow service to come. Matt had to ride back with the tow driver to the rental car place and rent another car...that took forever. By the time Matt made it back to our place it was 5:00!! We were miserable!! On our way to the beach, his friends called and said that they were leaving...perfect!! We couldn't return to "the room" so we got burritos from Taco Bell and drove about 2 miles to these beautiful cliffs overlooking the ocean. We just sat there and ate and wandered around...it was awesome. We did end up meeting them at the same beach on Sunday...but the best part was as we were leaving, Matt got the new rental car(a Jeep Compass) stuck in the sand...I mean we were in a hole!! I was dying laughing...just our luck. His friends had driven away already. A nice guy, about our age stopped and helped Matt push the car as I had to step on the gas. Randomly the guy had a Penn State visor on and was a Penn State grad...small world! We got out, but we could barely drive home we were laughing so hard!

Matt is at his last day of orientation today and then will work the rest of this week. We'
ll try to keep blogging this week about the move, but we're not quite sure how our internet service will be. Also, sorry no pictures...I keep forgetting to take my camera anywhere. I'll do better!

Hawaii is on alert for hurricane Flossie, but it doesn't look like it's gonna come too near Oahu...let's hope...just what we need!!

Also, just for kicks I'm doing NFL fantasy football...crazy, I know. My draft was yesterday and I got Peyton Manning as my QB, The Ravens as my defense, Veniteirrri (sp?) as my kicker and Georgia boy, Downtown Reggie Brown (now an Eagle) as one of my wide-receivers. My starting TE is Jeremy Shockey and I got rookie RB Adrian Peterson...who knows how that will go. But for having absolutely no clue what I was doing, I think I got pretty lucky with my team. So Bill, Greg, Brady...and whoever else...Fantasy...BRING IT ON!!

Love to everyone,
E

Made it to the beach!!

Hey all. I have been told that some people are having trouble knowing which of us is posting which blogs, so this is Matt.

Well, we are getting settled into the Hawaiin lifestyle as best we can. We still can't pronounce any street names and have yet to eat poi, but we go to the beach pretty well and know how to relax. We have been exploring the island every day. And I think it is safe to say that we found a few places on Oahu that are about as close to paradise as we will ever get. Here are some pictures for you. We were on a beach yesterday in Kailua which, without a doubt, rivals anything Maui has to offer. Great waves, blue ocean, long beaches, no hotels, and a view of the mountainous terraine. I have never seen anything like it.

We hung out with Elizabeths' high school friend Sam Leathers at that beach. Here is a picture of him. He grew up in Athens and has lived here for the past 7 years. He is cousins with our wedding photographer. I also found out his grandfather, Red Leathers, played pro football for none other than the Philadelphia Eagles. So I even found an Eagles fan in Hawaii (greatest fans on Earth).

In our recent travels we also found a cool surfing beach called Sandy's and I am happy to say we found a place to live. After searching for several days, limited by the fact that we have a dog, we found a secluded 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom house in a place called hawaii Kai. It has a front yard, and yes it allows pets. It is located at the end of an inlet to a bay. Very cool area. Short distance to the beach and bay.

I start work next Tuesday and am now studying for yet another exam I have to take on Aug 24. After that, I can relax and enjoy paradise. Come visit soon, everyone.

Photo-Blog

Just a few pictures I thought you'd enjoy...and that I'm just getting a chance to upload.

A view of the HOLLYWOOD (in the back..it's there!) sign from atop the Kodak Theatre.

A lemon tree in Brady's LA yard...I thought it was so neat! The lemons were huge!!

And our lovely view from our temporary place...Matt studying for the boards and playing with Jersey all at once!

Enjoy!

Hawaii Kai: Day 2

Hey, It's Elizabeth. We are doing better today...getting used to our small space. I have to add that the "apartment" we are in is part of a multi-million dollar house in a very exclusive neighborhood (Hawaii Kai)...too bad we are living in a room in the basement!! The view is unbelieveable though! We are on top of a mountain looking down onto the ocean...and the breeze is great...we wouldn't need an AC even if there was one!

Yesterday was our first full day and we were pretty prductive. We spent the morning online looking for housing and actually made an appointment to see a duplex. The owner was a wierdo, but the place was decent. We have a couple more appts. today and this weekend. We are hoping to get out of this place in about 2 weeks. I'm trying to take advantage of the good parts while we're here though. Jersey and I went on a long walk yesterday afternoon down the mountain...it was gorgeous. I also made a trip to the grocery store which is called Safeway (strange). Even though we don't have a kitchen, I managed to spend $175.00!! So what they say about cost of living in Hawaii and high priced groceries is true!! Matt almost died when I got back. A small bag of dog food for Jersey was $15.00...and that was the cheapo brand (which I bought). We do have a college dorm sized fridge with a microwave on top and a toaster. It's amazing all the things you can cook in the microwave! We need to try and eat here as much as possible so we don't spend all our upcoming rent money on eating out.

Oh...we haven'y told you about our one stroke of luck!! When we went to pick up our rental car Wednesday night they were all out of the economy cars and had to give us a mid-size sedan(for the price of the economy)...A 2007 Honda Civic with 4 doors! It's really nice. Much better than a focus or yaris! When you have to rent a car for 2 weeks...that's important!!

Hope things are well with all of y'all. We did experience the "time zone lonliness" last night. We were so busy running around during the day and then when we wanted to call y'all and return your calls we realized it was after 11:00pm on the East coast...only 5:00 here and we couldn't call anyone...it was wierd.

We're going to another house showing today and another tomorrow so hopefully we'll have some good house news soon!

Love you!

PS: The Hawaii Rainbow Warriors are ranked 24th on the AP poll!! Go Warriors!!

Aloha

We made it! We are here! We picked up the dog and she is fine. There is a problem, however. The temporary apartment we rented is actually just 2 bedrooms and a bathroom. No kitchen and no livng area. One water source in the house. It is not conveniant at all. The only thing going for it is the view. I have already gone at it with the owner and the realtor (about how we were lied to) and we are getting out ASAP with a refund. I will post more later but we have a lot to get done right now. And so everyone knows, we are 6 hours behind y'all. Talk to you soon.

Day 4: Goin' Back to Cali...

Hey! As most of y'all realize, we are a whole day behind on all our blogs...but when we get somewhere we're so tired we don't have the energy to type.

BUT....we are in Los Angeles!! We made it!! We got to our friend Brady's at about 4:00 (Pac time) yesterday.

The drive through Arizona and into California was awesome. We were hoping that it would be our shortest driving day and I think it was, but we were on the road for 7 hours. I had convinced Matt to stop and get out at the California state sign, but when we crossed the line the sign was on the side of a huge bridge crossing the Colorado River...and wasn't the safest place to stop! We entered California in the Mojave' Desert. It was crazy! I have never seen a real desert and this was it! About 30 minutes in, Matt looked down at the car thermometer and it was 107 degrees outside!! We also had to get gas in the desert for a whopping $3.89 a gallon!! We kept thinking we were closer than we were to LA, but when we hit it, we knew (The temp. had also dropped about 20 degrees). Crazy traffic and we had to get on about 6 different (and scary) highways to get to Brady's.

Brady lives in Hermosa Beach(in between Rodondo beach and Manhattan beach) and it is really beautiful. We went down to the beach and bellied up to a bar to watch the Phillies game (fun, fun...)! We went out later to some cool bars and met up with some of Brady's friends. I was completely entertained by two of them that work on that TV show "medium" starring Patricia Arquette. I've never watched it before but I might now because it was fun hearing about exactly what they did for the show. One was the final editor and the other was a costume assisstant in charge of keeping continuity from scene to scene with the clothes of all the characters...I thought this was cool.

We dropped Matt's car off at the shipping dock this morning and headed into Hollywood and Beverly Hills with Brady for the grand tour. I still have to upload the pics. from that, so one of us will write about it later.

Love You! Miss You!!