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Published: July 28th 2009
Tying Aric Up
um....it involved us sending his 100th Hash ribbon down the front of his pants and up the back!Time has flown by. My summer is quickly, too quickly coming to an end. It is the final countdown to departure. It's Saturday morning, my last Saturday morning...I met Terry at Niketown for my last Saturday morning run. It was hot out and I was exhausted; we ran 4.5 miles around Ala Moana and were both happy when it was over. My short runs are definitely improving, but I am a little worried about my long ones. The 1/2 marathon is only 3 weeks away and my longest run here in Hawaii has only been around 9 miles. I hope all this working out will carry me the extra distance! I said my goodbyes to the Nike employees in case I am gone by Wednesday, and thanked them for providing this awesome weekly experience.
After running, I walked through the Kapiolani Park Art Fair. There are always little art fairs, farmer's markets, something...there is ALWAYS something to do here and I just love it! I spent a little too long lingering and looking at jewelry I couldn't afford and artwork I couldn't possibly fit in my luggage, and by the time I got home, it was already 1:30.
Terry & I
in our "shiggy" socks. they keep our legs safe out in the brush and off trail runs Terry, her husband Dave, and Aric picked me up at 2:15 and we set off for Aiea, the location of today's Hash. It was one that they were all looking forward to...it was Aric's 100th and two of their friends last Hash in Hawaii as the military was sending them to South Carolina. For me, it was my first time back since that awful one by the waterpark. Terry gave me a pair of extra tall striped socks to wear to protect my legs from the brush and thorns; I've noticed that tall socks are a common apparel for Hashers and from what I've experienced, I can understand why. There were a lot of people today and I enjoyed the opportunity to sit back and not worry about being humiliated for it being my first time.
Terry wanted to do the "Turkey" or shorter trail and I was more than happy to accompany her on it. I had no desire to take the longer one at all! Today's trail was much more my style. We ran the road, then a beautiful forest trail, a preserve, then a creekbed in which I was surprisingly able to remain dry. It
Dave, Terry, & Aric
Terry's husband and their friend all hash together was a short trail and we finished it in just under an hour. Fine by me!
After everyone returned from the trails, the usual ceremony begins. A circle, songs, drinks, songs, drinks...etc. I still find it hard to believe that they do this in public places (like today: a park next to a school), where kids are playing nearby. Seriously...the songs are so vulgur, dirty, obnoxious...I'm embarassed just to be sitting there, but I'm uptight - everyone knows that. At one point they asked for volunteers to come and tie Aric up. I volunteered assuming I would be tying a blindfold or something. Little did I know that I would be shoving a long bandanna thing down the front of his pants, between his legs and up and out the back. Yeah, right. Luckily I wasn't working alone and the other girl seemed to have confidence with what she was doing (no doubt she'd done it before) so I just aided her in the task. Glad to be done with that! We spent quite a while hanging out afterwards and socializing and left around 8pm.
Pete, from Niketown, and I had been talking and planned to meet up
Aric's 100th Hash
yeah...not sure what I got myself into here. They said "tie him up", but I wasn't prepared for this! at Duke's (again) for a drink around 9:30, so I went home, showered, dressed, and walked down to Waikiki. I ran into the Aussie's Sam and Dan on the street which was fun, then met up with Pete. We spent a few hours at Dukes sitting at the bar, had a few drinks, shared some food, and had a fantastic time talking. It was a lot of fun! After Duke's, we walked over to the Sandbox, a bar that I had been at a few weeks ago. Tonight was a lot different than the last time. No live music, and the DJ was playing rap/hip-hop. But we were having such a great time anyways, enjoying the drinks, soon we were on the dance floor too. He could dance, which made it a ton of fun! It felt like I was 21 - out clubbing again! A great night - probably ended around 3 in the morning.
In no condition to be walking home, I stayed at Pete's place...a great condo (his friend's) with some fantastic views of the city! In the morning we grabbed coffee and he dropped me off back home.
Sunday morning, I grabbed my necessities
The Hash
everyone standing around waiting on directions for the long bus ride, my ipod, book, and longsleeves, then took the bus down to the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet. I was hoping that I would be able to get most of my souvenir shopping done here, though I am really, really worried that I won't have any room in my luggage to take stuff home. My two suitcases were overflowing on the way out here, not to mention the weight of the clothing alone was 50.1lbs. Indecisive as always, I didn't pick up much, though I did almost 2 complete circles around the stadium. I think I spent about 3 hours wandering around the swap meet in intense heat. By the time I got home, sometime after 3pm, I was exhausted. I laid down and passed out until the evening.
Monday morning I woke up and went for a 6 mile run down the Ala Wai canal, back through Waikiki, around Kapiolani Park, then back home. I am so inspired by my surroundings; I can't get enough. Tiffany woke up as I was leaving to head down to the beach, so we decided to go to Cafe Kaila for a late brunch. Cafe Kaila is a fabulous
Paki Ave
a beautiful tree lined street that I love running down little restaurant tucked into a strip mall just around the corner from me on Kapiolani and King St. It's the kind of restaurant where the local servers greet you with a hello kiss and conversation. By the time you leave you know eachother's names and are sure that the next time you come in, they'll remember you. I'd recommend this place to everyone! Tiffany and I split lox & bagel and a combo plate with pancakes (with fresh fruit), scrambled eggs, and bacon. The food is made to order, organic, and delicious! We talked through brunch and then some and it was after 3 when we finally left. The more we hang out, the more I am going to miss her!
I caught the bus to San Souci beach at the Diamond Head end of Waikiki and spent 3 hours laying out, enjoying the sun, and trying to make some progress in Harry Potter #3. I'm about halfway through with it and still...I can't say that I'm totally into it. I hear that it does get better, so I will try to finish it in the next day or so. While at the beach, I decided to try another
open water swim out to a flagpole and back. Tons of swimmers were there doing it, so I figured it couldn't be too bad. I wore my snorkel and mask to avoid having to take sideways breaths and taste the salt water; at first, it was easy, but as I swam further and further out into the ocean, I began getting a little uncomfortable. The waves were breaking over my head, but I made it to the flagpole and turned around. That's when it got a little scary. I was swimming free style, but I wasn't really making any progress. The only significant forward movement that I really made was when carried a few feet by a wave. It was unnerving. I turned on my back and decided to just relax and backstroke in to the shore. (And yes mom, I remember to swim sideways :-) Not thinking very clearly, the first breath I took in through my snorkel while on my back was a giant mouthful of water. Yeah...snorkeling doesn't work when you're on your back..so stupid! I wasn't panicing, but it wasn't quite the experience I had hoped for. I made it safely back to shore, but I
The Hash
The "GM" in red giving out the directions think that if I do anymore open water swimming next time I'll be doing it horizonatally along the shoreline, not vertically out to sea.
I got home at 7 to watch the Bachelorette finale. Having not watched any TV this summer, I was excited and eager for some good old reality television. I had watched the last episode online in order to prepare for the finale, but I can say that it doesn't really matter if you miss the entire season, the finale is all you need. Tiffany and I watched it together, and then the show that came afterwards too; which was pretty good, but the cable went out during the last 10 minutes and we never saw how the show ended. Oh well....I've enjoyed my summer free of tv and hope that I can continue on this reality tv free path when I get home!
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Angela
non-member comment
Enjoy your blogs
I recently discovered your blogs and I just wanted to let you know how much I've enjoyed them. My husband and I are coming out to Oahu in a few weeks for a visit and I've gotten a lot of great info from you! I've been taking notes of the restaurants, bars, hikes, beaches, etc. that you recommend and can't wait to check them out! Too bad you're leaving soon so we can't meet up for a drink when I get there =0) Anyway, just wanted to thank you for all the great tips! Aloha!