"Waves of Our Lives - 2011"

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Monday, December 12, 2011

"Mele Kalikimaka or Christmas in Hawaii"

Okay......I am officially a really bad blogger! It is the 12th month of the year and I was just looking to see how many blog posts I have done for the year and this is only my fourth. Four!! Four blog posts all year!! That is really being a bad blogger!

Oh well..... enough berating myself....in my own defense, blogging is not my life and it is NOT how I make a living. Selling real estate is how I make a living and unfortunately, I am not wealthy enough to not have to work, so if I'm too busy trying to make a living to write blog posts, then that is just how it will have to be. If there is someone out there that adores my writing style enough to pay me to be a more prolific blogger, I'd love to hear from you. ; ) Until that day comes, I will blog when I can fit it into my schedule.

As 2011 comes to a frightening fast close, I can't help but reflect on how grateful I feel for everything and everyone in my life. As I write this my house is decorated beautifully for Christmas complete with a lighted Christmas tree and our favorite decorations that we've collected over the years. Two of my very favorites are these cheap little hand crafted ornaments, one, a Santa made from a pine cone and the other a little red velvet angel elf, that were from my childhood in the 1960's and 70's. I think the little elf angle was made to be put on top of packages, but I've stuck a hanger through her pointed hat and hung her on my tree. There are also two old glass ornaments with my and my brother Mark's names written on them in glitter. I love those old ornaments!

Last night we attended our company Christmas party which was held at our owners (Putty Clark's) ocean front vacation rental home, which was a really lovely setting. We munched on pupu's from Big Island Grill, drank a little wine, shared our favorite homemade desserts and several of us brought our instruments with us and played Christmas carrols while the rest of the party goers sang along. I played my violin with our little "band" and my husband Eddie played his guitar. We had two other guitar players, a pianist and an ukelele. With absolutely no rehearsal together, I thought we did fairly well. Well..... at least we had fun doing it. That's what's most important isn't it?

Today I finished my Christmas shopping online and feel really good about getting that done and over with. Christmas always kind of stresses me out and when I lived on the mainland it was probably ten times worse than here. That probably had to do with the fact that when I worked for the State of CA I spent over 40 hours a week stuck in a cubicle behind a computer, so there just wasn't the flexibility with my schedule that I have working for myself as a Realtor. It also may have to do with the fact that Hawaii is just so much more laid back and I'm also not having to deal with freezing cold weather and driving in all the traffic and interacting with the crazy shoppers, etc. etc. We've got less than 200,000 people total who live on the Big Island, so that alone cuts down on the stress! I certainly enjoy Christmas in Hawaii much more than I did in California.

I hope that you and all of yours have a wonderful Christmas and a very happy 2012! Maybe we'll see you out here on the Big Island next year!! Mele Kalikimaka!!

Thursday, August 11, 2011

"Paradise in My Own Backyard"

My home office is located in my family room and while I'm typing away on my laptop or speaking with clients on the phone, I am treated to a lovely view of the paradise that is my own backyard. Our yard is fenced with a tall border of areca palms and there are six very large coconut palms scattered about as well as a large planter of ti plants and other planters with flowers such as hibiscus in a variety of tropical colors like red, pink, yellow and orange. In Hawaii, the flowers bloom year round, of course, and I never tire of their beauty.

The pool that we built a little over a year ago, has a lava rock waterfall that attracts birds like crazy. When I have a few moments to just sit and enjoy the show, I am delighted by the birds bathing and ruffling their feathers about, drinking from the pool at the top of the waterfall and generally just having a wonderful time. We get such a variety from itty bitty finches no bigger than an inch or two, to large doves or common mynas, who are the bullies of the backyard.

Earlier this summer, I had the privlege of being able to save the life of a baby cardinal who had fallen out of the nest which was in our areca palms. I had noticed the adult cardinals, Mom and Pop, frantically flying from above, where the nest was in the trees, to the ground where their baby had fallen. Thankfully, the baby appeared to be intact and I quickly got on-line and found plenty of information about what I should do to help the baby. In the nest there were three other baby birds and there really wasn't any room to place this one back in, so Eddie and I built a new nest from a paper bowl lined with paper towels and attached it right above the original nest. I gently scopped up the fallen baby and placed it in the new nest. The parents discovered the new nest and their baby very quickly and Eddie and I felt like heros. Within a week the babies were beginning to fly with their parents close by, assisting all the way. Now the family is long gone, but when I see a cardinal in the backyard, I can't help but wonder if it belongs to our little cardinal family.

When you are your own boss and run your own business, as my husband Eddie and I do, you don't ever REALLY ever get a full day completely off from work. In real estate you need to be available for your clients when your clients need you to be available, and Eddie and
I try very hard to accommodate our clients schedules. We do TRY to make Sunday our one day off together and I feel cheated if I don't get to spend at least an hour or two on that day off swimming, lounging and reading by the pool, enjoying the beautiful paradise that the birds enjoy all day and every day in my own backyard.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

"Living With the Geckos"

Finally a spare moment to write! I'm actually forcing myself to take a moment because I just got caught up with my phone calls and now I need to get back to my studying for my Brokers license. Yes, I've decided that I want to get my Brokers license now after almost seven years as just a Real Estate Salesperson. Hooray for me!! Lot's of studying and then another State exam to take, but I'm confident that I can do it!!

Anyway........onto life with the geckos! I will never forget the first time that I encountered a gecko. It was on our very first trip to Hawaii, which was to the island of Maui, and there was this small, brown gecko in the kitchen that really freaked me out. It freaked me out so much that my dear husband, Eddie, called the front desk about it. The front desk folks chuckled a little and told us that geckos are considered lucky in Hawaii and that it would just go away and not to worry about it. Looking back on that phone call now, I just have to laugh.

Living with geckos is part of living in Hawaii. They are everywhere here in many different colors and sizes. (All small) I even have a gecko that I consider a pet who I have named "Gary". Gary hangs out with me all day long while I am working at my desk. He sometimes sits on the window sill next to my desk begging for a taste of fruit, jam or whatever I happen to be able to provide. Just a moment ago Gary was drinking water from the condensation on the outside of my ever present glass of ice water!

I have taken so many darn pictures of Gary the Gecko that it is laughable. I was tempted to grab my camera to try to capture him drinking the water just a minute ago, but restrained myself. After all, how many gecko pictures do I need? Gecko photography here on the Big Island has actually become big business for some photographers and I've met two of them who take incredible photos. One of the women even sets up little "scenes" like geckos doing laundry or cooking, on motorcycles, in snorkel gear and other gecko fantasies. They are actually quite adorable!! This photographer lives in Kona Paradise and I love her work! I can't remember her name though!! Uuugghhh!

Gary the Gecko My gecko photos don't compare to hers, but I'll share one here with you. As you can see, Gary is pretty cute! I must say that I've come a long way with my gecko phobia since we've moved to Hawaii these past seven years. Sometimes I will even attempt to pet Gary, but so far when I extend my hand slowly out to him, he scurries away and hides. I don't know what I would do if he actually let me pet him or if he climbed aboard my hand. I'd probably panic, freak out and accidently through him across the room! Maybe Gary can sense that about me and that's why he keeps his distance. For now, we're content to share office space with each other.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

"Aaahhhhhh.......Winter in Hawaii"

Aloha!

Well, I've only got a few moments to sit down and write today before I get going and get busy, but I just can't help but reflect on how lucky I am to live in Hawaii. Especially when I think about how lovely this day is, with high temps in the mid 80's, sunshine and soft ocean breezes, while so much of the rest of the country is digging out of snow. For me, winter in Hawaii is absoultely the best time of the year and when I lived in northern California, it was absolutely the worst time of the year. It's amazing what a change in the weather can do for your mood! Did I mention that I am grateful, grateful, grateful to live here? Well, I am!!! Gotta run!

Have a wonderful day!!

Shannon