Kilauea Iki

Kilauea Iki Overlook

Kilauea Iki means "little spewing" which relates to the eruption in 1959 - the hottest and highest eruption in recorded Hawaiian history. If you only have time for one hike in the park, this is the one. It takes you through lush "jungle-y" rain forest, down into the crater which is still steaming. It took us a little over 2 hours. We purchased the little guide book at the visitor's center for $2 which gave an excellent description of marked sections of the trial including historical and geologic significance. If you care for all the gory details, click on the link above for the trail guide; otherwise... on to the pics.

Offerings to the goddess of volcanoes, Pele

Walking along the bathtub ring - where the lava lake was at it's highest level.

Dave & Little D out on the lava lake, the mounds of lava looked like the tops of loaves of freshly baked bread.

Z at the 'heart' of the eruption. It was from this hole in 1959 that lava spewed 2000 feet into the air.

Z falling into a crack in the lava (not really)

Notice the look of terror...

New growth

Playing in the steam vents... it was HOT!

Our Christmas Present

Z and the Awesome Big Banyan Tree at Rainbow Falls State Park

This year, in lieu of presents to each other, we decided to take a trip to the Big Island - Hawai'i. (A small side note of information: Hawaii is the state, Hawai'i (notice the break) is the Big Island) I've got way too many pictures, and we crammed way too much fun stuff into our 4 days so I'll break this into several posts. (patience requested)

Our first day we left at 9-ish AM, and arrived 45 minutes later in beautiful Hawai'i. We had previously tried to get a rental car, but were told by every and all car rental agency that they were all sold out. We had arranged to be picked up by the KMC (Kilauea Military Camp) shuttle and planned to just hang out at the camp and do a tour or two through the camp. My hero, Dave, decided to check anyway for rentals and pulled up a few minutes later in a mini-van. THANK YOU! Knowing what I know now, there is no way I would have enjoyed our trip just hanging around the camp. Ignorance is bliss, they say, but I'm happy - so very happy- fortune smiled on us, even though it was a Dodge.

We piled in the car, and opened our Hawaii The Big Island Revealed book that Stalker let me borrow. Despite being more than 6 years old, we credit this book for some of our greatest surprise finds, and plan on diving more deeply into our Oahu Revealed book. Enough book plugging...

Our first stop was FOOD! We grabbed some breakfast at Ken's House of Pancakes with delicious Coconut Syrup, and the fluffiest omelet ever, then worked our way to Rainbow Falls, famous for it's wishbone shape and the ability to see rainbows when the sun is behind you. The awesome cave beneath the falls is where Kamehameha reportedly buried the bones of his father. The kids favorite spot here was the amazingly ginormous Banyan Tree they got to climb. We made a stop further up road to see Pe'epe'e Falls and the Boiling Pots, but without hiking down to the river we couldn't see much. Don't get me wrong, everywhere we stopped or looked on the Big Island boasted amazing views and stunning scenery, this was no different; however, we didn't actually hike down to the actual falls.

We made another stop at the Kaumana Caves to see our first lava tube (where lava flows underground). This one was opened in the middle, and had we brought flashlights with us, we could have gone spelunking through either side. Instead, we piled back into the car and headed towards our destination -- Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. KMC is located inside the National Park and is only for members of the military and their families and guests. We arrived in the early afternoon and checked into our 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom cabin with fireplace. Fireplace? ... in Hawai'i? you may ask... Well, the park is located at 4000 ft, and temperatures dip into the 40s at night - downright COLD to those of us who have lived in warm places for the last several years. We had a fire every morning and evening... it was delightful!

After depositing our bags in the room, we headed straight for the Visitor's Center for the low down on what to do first, and opted for the Kilauea Iki hike - HIGHLY recommended. That will have to wait until tomorrow... (which is a guesstimation as to when I'll have more time)

Z & D start their ascent

Ain't he cute?

A's turn in the tree

Beautiful Rainbow Falls

Pe'epe'e Falls

Getting LOST... the exciting conclusion

Okay, I finished making dinner, but then needed to study for my final which I took today and now have a few minutes to get to the good part. Hmmm... where was I? Oh yes, we parked the car and piled into "E's" really cool car and drove very slowly and quietly down the dirt road. As we drove along we could see big production lights ahead and it started to feel more "real" with each moment. "E" rolled down his window a few times chatting with his fellow employees and subordinates about this and that and fulfilling some of his responsibilities. We drove passed all the trailers, the sushi guy (hired by "Josh" as "E" calls Sawyer), and a myriad of other trucks and carts and generators. We kept driving until it was dark again and drove for several hundred more yards before he turned off the dirt road and turned off the car. So, we know we're near the set, but we're still in the middle of nowhere in the dark with a strange guy, albeit cool guy with the potential to make our wildest Sawyer dreams come true, but still... we're a bit trepidacious (well at least I was). He pulls out one flashlight and starts walking on this path ahead of the car. We carefully follow along trying to place our steps in the dark while not losing sight of E and his one flashlight. We emerge from the path onto the beach - gorgeous, by the way, the waves all light up by the production lights off in the distance... and the stars... ah, the beautiful stars, more than I've seen in a really, really long time. Sigh... it was a spectacular night. Oh, sorry... back to the beach. We head North a bit along the beach towards the lights and E tells us to hang back while he scopes out the set area. We wait probably 5 minutes or so when I look around and see a really big Hawaiian guy come out of the brush headed straight for us. A bit unnerving, but we don't start running or screaming or anything like that. He had on night-vision goggles, removed them as he approached us and asked what we were doing there, saying we could all get in a lot of trouble. We told him we were with E who was just up the beach a bit. He must not have heard us completely because he put his goggles back on, scanned the beach ahead and said "who is dat guy up der?" "Is he wichu?" "Yes," we replied, "that's 'E' and we're with him". This time he heard us. "That's 'E'?" (DUH! That's what we said! - grin) He made a visual confirmation and then walked back into the 'jungle'. When E came back he had two headphone sets, what he called 'director's sets' because you could here everything the directors were saying as well as the actors. (COOL!) He put one on and gave the other to Stalker. We followed him a bit further up the beach and then he and Stalker continued right up onto the edge of the set. The rest of us were close enough that we could hear them saying "ROLL FILM" and "ACTION". At this point it started to hit me that E really was legit and we really might get to see Sawyer. I think I might have said "OH MY GOSH!", "HOLY FREAKIN' COW!", "UNBELIEVABLE!" or any/all combinations of those words upwards of 100 times or more. After about 15 minutes or so (felt like much longer), Cheri came back with a HUGE smile on her face and handed off the headset to Laura, reporting that she actually saw Sawyer and Kate and heard them saying their lines. "Unbelievable!" E handed off his headset to me and took Laura up to the set. Not a lot was going on in the headset when I got it... they must have been on a break, but as Laura and E got up there I could here E talking to the mic dude with very colorful language... he must have been a sailor at some point. Soon enough he came back and motioned for me to come up. I sat with Laura in a golf cart of sorts while we waited for things on set to get underway again. Tired of waiting, E went back and got Elisa and Cheri again. We all huddled just out of sight while they made the last preparations for another shoot. At last, they started again. Kate (wherever she was in her top secret location) and then... there he was... in all his splendedness... Sawyer! (all together now... collective dreamy sigh) He sauntered into position, and started his top secret dialog with Kate - which I'd wager big money that all 4 of us could still repeat word for word. I don't think I mentioned that we were only about 30 yards away from SAWYER!

Anyways... I'm not sure how long we stood there drooling... I mean watching them go over and over that scene. Some moments seemed an instant, others dragged on (where's Sawyer... why can't I hear him anymore?) Ok... I know Kate was there, but for some reason that didn't seem very important to me that night. So, when we finally left the set area, we walked back down the beach and tried to find E's car. It actually took longer than we expected and we ended up traipsing through some brush after we made a wrong turn. We all piled back into E's car extremely satisfied with ourselves and a most enjoyable, 'unbelievable' night, and expected E to take us back to our car so we could head home.

However...

E asked us if we'd like to see Locke's jungle... Uh... YES! It was awesome and creepy dark.

Then E asked us if we'd like to see Sun's garden (ya know... the one she planted while she was pregnant?)... Uh... YES! We literally drove right through it! Obviously it was all previously destroyed and/or overgrown.

So then we start heading back to ground zero with all the trailers, and we can still hear them trying to finish the scene. As we get closer, we can hear the director (or some other authority figure) asking "what is that noise?" E realizes that they can hear the car engine through their powerful mics so E shuts off the engine and we sit quietly whispering in the dark until they finish. By this point we are beyond giddy with our evening of good fortune and E drives us up to the chaos of clean up where he needs to actually do his job and give instruction to his minions. We're sitting obediently and quietly in the car when E opens the door and says "Get your cameras ready and be ready to move quickly." OH! MY! FREAKIN' GOSH! We're gonna see JOSH! A minute later E opens the door and says "He's really tired, but said he'd take one picture with all 4 of you." (OK! DUH!) We get out of the car, and there leaning against a pickup right next to us is SAWYER, smoking a cigarette and looking exhausted, with that grumpy "what did you just say" look he does so well on the show. He sees us and puts on a fantastic smoldering smile, tosses his cigarette down and shakes our hands. We pose for our photo, say our thanks and make small banter as we leave when he realized that, just like his wife, one of us had stomped out his cigarette during the photo op. We hop back in the car and FREAK OUT! Within minutes HE has left and we are still sitting in shock, waiting for E to take us back to our car.

When E does show up he asks us if we'd like to GO INSIDE Sawyer's trailer.... Uh.... YES! We take pictures outside the trailer, inside the trailer, with his name outside the trailer, check out his bathroom where he showers, sit on the same couch he sits on, look in the same mirror he checks his beautiful smile in... breathe the same air he breathes... sigh...

After exiting the trailer, we pile back into the car. We start to fawn over E and thank him profusely for all the trouble he has gone to with absolutely no expectations from us. He says slyly, "you're finished? I thought you might want to see the beach camp"... Uh... YES! So he drives us to the other side of the property and it's like we were really there. It was the second beach camp, after they went inland to the caves and then came back. The shacks are all still there - with airplane parts, luggage, bamboo, etc. We snapped a zillion pictures in the dark hoping that some of them would turn out. Then back to the car.

Next we stop at the graveyard and Ecko's church... SERIOUSLY! It's all still there. Then back to the car. He still doesn't take us to the car, but back to ground zero where he proceeds to give more instructions to his crew. Then turns to us and asks: "Would you like to go on the set where they just filmed?"... Uh... YES! This time we climb into a golf cart of sorts and he drives us around the woods which are now dark because the production lights are off and already dismantled. We find THE SPOT and proceed to do our version of the scene we just watched. UNBELIEVABLE!

So finally, our tour is complete. We are utterly and completely dumbfounded by our evening of amazement. E gives us all big hugs and asks us if we'd like to go to stop by the shoot tomorrow downtown.... sigh...

The money shot... yes, he DOES look even hotter in person...

At the beach camp...

HIS trailer

IN his trailer

The graveyard & Ecko's church

At the set of the scene we watched being filmed... yes... Sawyer and Kate sat here... sigh

Getting LOST... (part deux)

So... sorry about the delay in posting. Think of it as if you were watching the real season of LOST and they started showing re-runs mid-season. Anywho... where was I? Oh yes, Friday I was totally worthless as a productive member of society. I didn't get any laundry done, I didn't clean or cook or even think about providing sustenance for my offspring - I just passed time until it was time to leave. 4 o'clock rolls around and we (Cheri, Laura, Elisa and I) we all a bit antsy to get our adventure underway. None of our husbands were home to watch the kids, so we pawned them all off on Z & A until the men came home from work. We piled into the car and braved traffic up to the North Shore. We were all still a bit skeptical as to if this was really going to happen... were we really going to get a glimpse of Sawyer? Was it possible that this was just a sham? Was "E" legit? Well, hold on to your leg-warmers, because here begins to craziest night in Hawaii yet.

We opted for dinner first, based on the instructions we received from "E" and decided on Haleiwa Joe's, (Two thumbs up) where we watched the sun set while we enjoyed a fantastic meal; all the while mildly freaking out about the possibilities still to come. As we left the restaurant, Cheri "Stalker" called both numbers "E" left for contacting him, but he didn't answer either one. We decided to drive up to a beach a bit further down the road and give him 10 minutes before we tried to call one last time. 2 minutes later, "E" called "Stalker" with instructions to meet him at "the opening". It was dark by this time, but luckily we had scoped out the meeting area before dinner. We arrived and waited about 10 minutes. In the meantime, one of us (name withheld to protect our identity) had to urgently relieve our bladder and hemmed and hawed about going in the bushes, finally opting for immediate relief. As said nameless person exited the vehicle, the door slamming drew the attention of the posted security dude who soon came to see if we needed assistance. Fortunately, said bladder was already relieved and personal parts protected. We replied that we were waiting for "E" - who promptly arrived in his awesome car (details also withheld to protect his employment status). We followed him passed the security dude to where he determined we should park, at which spot we piled into said awesome car to begin our crazy adventure.

(Sigh) I have to go make dinner... stay tuned for part 'teen' (That's Hindi for three)...

Getting LOST...

Thursday evening (Nov 19) about 8pm I received a phone call from my neighbor which basically said "You wanna go see LOST being filmed at the Bowfin?" WHAT!!?!?!?! Apparently, the LOST crew was filming at the Bowfin submarine just across the street from where the kids have swim team. In fact, all the trailers were parked in the pool parking lot. My reply was something like "DUH!" and 5 minutes later, Cheri, Elisa, Laura and I were piled in the jeep hopeful for a glimpse of Sawyer who was reportedly seen crossing said parking lot earlier that evening.

Upon arriving at the pool, there were indeed several trailers with obvious LOST connections, but no Sawyer to be found. They had already finished shooting and were packing up. One of us bright ladies suggested that someone should 'go ask if anyone was still here.' (NOT ME! are you kidding me?) Fortunately for all of us, Cheri has no fear, and turned the jeep around and rolled down the window. It was a tie between the security guard and the 'other employee' as to who reached the car first, but luckily the 'other employee' waved the security guard off and engaged us in a fantastical conversation that sent all kinds of bells and whistles off in our heads. Let's call him E, to protect his identity and his job. E gave us his business card (Yes, official LOST business card WITH phone number) and invited us to the shooting on the North Shore the following night. He even put Cheri's phone number in his phone under Cheri Stalker (HER new nickname). Then we headed home.

So... at this point, a thousand thoughts go through your head. 'Who is this guy?' and 'Why is he doing this for us?', 'He's totally NOT going to call', 'BAAAAAAA! I'm going to a shooting of LOST with Kate and Sawyer!', 'This guy is probably some nutcase, and we should be afraid for our lives', 'WHO the heck IS this guy?', 'OH MY GOSH! This is freakin' CRAZY!'

I walked in the house and told Dave that I'd need a rain check for our Date Night because "I had a date with SAWYER!"

Later that evening, Cheri actually DID get a call from E who gave her some directions for the next evening: Drive up to Haleiwa, get some dinner, call E after dinner, don't drive the jeep because you look like a tourist, and don't dress like hookers. Sounds simple enough.

Needless to say, I was totally non-functioning Friday. I got absolutely NOTHING done. Stay tuned the exciting conclusion to.... "Getting LOST!"

Housing Update

I know I promised an update a few weeks ago, but it's been smoldering around in my brain and I still don't have any real answers - but here's the update regardless:

We are 3rd on the list for new 5 bedroom homes being built right now. Great news! Except for the fact that there are only 2 - 5 bedroom units being built. So that puts on down on the 4 bedroom list chronologically according to move in dates. We're farther up than most people because the first determining factor was those families who had children attending the middle school or high school, however, we are still 11th on the 4 bedroom list. Great news! Except for the fact that there are only 10 - 4 bedroom units being built. Sigh! A personal visit to the housing office has given no new answers yet.

So, what are are options? Good question! We have the option of staying in this AMR area where they have begun building more new housing which should be available late summer '10. But, the kids would have to change schools, which is the biggest decision factor for us. (sigh) So, as has been our practice for Dave's entire Air Force career, we wait for someone else to tell us where we'll end up. And that's where it stands right now.

Furlough Fridays

I mentioned earlier that I would write about Furlough Fridays. What, you may ask, is Furlough Friday? Well, to put it in terms everyone can understand: The Hawaii State Budget is so messed up that the Department of Education (DOE) is facing "unprecedented budget cuts totally $468 million over two years". Their solution to this ridiculousity is "Furlough Fridays" - or 17 Fridays throughout the rest of this school year in which there will now be no school. That's more than 3 weeks less of school! Hawaii already boasts one of the worst public school systems in the country.

(visualize Ange getting up on a soapbox now)

I understand that we are in a global economic crisis, and that with these budget cuts it might require job cuts, but this is asinine. In order to save jobs, which I do not disparage by the way, they have opted to take a pay cut by working fewer days throughout the year. From my perspective, which I recognize might be skewed, it seems that the DOE is opting for more time off resulting in less pay. (Who wouldn't want more time off?) Hawaii's keiki (children) are the biggest losers in all this. Not only do they have the worst (okay, California was pretty bad too) education system to begin with, now they have less time to learn the stuff they are supposed to learn, which they aren't learning anyway. The Elementary schools already have half-day Wednesdays; so now, B & D will have 3 1/2 days of school most weeks left of school. I've just re-looked at the new school calendar, and determined that there is only one full, five-day week of school in February, April and May. Count 'em... 3 full weeks of school for the rest of the school year. UNBELIEVABLE!

But wait... there's more! Believe it or not... it's buy one get one free! That's right. This will affect the next school year too!

Obviously there is a positive here. The kids will have more play time... more time at the beach, more time to enjoy this beautiful place we live. However, give them enough time here and they won't know how to read the signs at any of the places we visit.

Moving?

(sigh) Sighing seems to have become a regular part of my life lately. A sign of my discontent?.. maybe. Or maybe it is just an indication that I have accepted the fact that I am not in control of my life.

We've been in Hawaii a little over two months now, and last week attended a housing demolition meeting. Our little section of Ghetto-dise is slated to be demolished and must be empty no later than October 2010. At this meeting, we were told that there are 78 new homes nearing completion on Ft. Shafter, just up the way a little bit, with the first of the new homes being available for occupancy as early as November (next month). These 78 homes should be occupied by the first few weeks/months of next year. In determining priority, the housing office has decided (wisely) that it is important to keep continuity for kids in the Middle Schools and High Schools, so families with children in Moanalua Middle, and Moanalua High, will have priority for these new homes. We have one in each school. (sigh) There is another meeting on Monday with more details and possibly a more specific timeline. Here's my understanding so far...

We will be moving sometime in the next 3 months.

Cons:

• leave fantastic neighbors
• we live in a great location with proximity to swim team, schools, Target, base shopping, etc. Moving will put us farther away
• car-pooling will be way messed up!
• change wards
• B & little D will have to change schools
• I HAVE TO MOVE AGAIN!

Pros:

• brand new, bigger house with a garage
• if all MS and HS kids are priority, then A & Z will have lots of friends in the neighborhood
• did I mention new, and bigger house?
• the sooner we move, the longer we get to stay in the new house before we have to move again.

Well, there you have it... at least for now. I'll update again after Monday's meeting. (sigh)

Waxing & Waning

No, this isn't about the cycles of the moon, more like my mood. It's been a wild ride the past few months emotionally, physically, mentally, etc. And you can blame (or thank) blogger for the lack of descriptive details of the whole crazy ride. I really can't stand the interface, especially adding pictures. I sure miss the old website. (sigh) It's still there, just in need of serious life support in order to continuing posting to it. Obviously a project for another day, frame of mind.

So, now for those casual readers that's the end of the post, but if you really want to glimpse the warped inner workings of my mind then, by all means, read on.

I would first like to acknowledge that I am aware that I live in paradise. Yes, the weather is perfect every day. Yes, the skies are blue and clear. Yes, the ocean is more beautiful than the pictures I post, the water temperature is ideal, and snorkeling, boogie boarding & surfing are really that fun. Yes, I could do any or all of these things every day if I wanted to. Yes, there are gorgeous waterfalls, prehistoric looking mountains, and fantastic flowers everywhere you look. yes, LOST is filmed here (no, I haven't seen anyone yet). And Yes! I am very grateful to be living here.

However...

Just like many who haven't been to India thought I was super-spoiled by having a cook, housekeeper, gardener, sweeper, tailor and driver; so also is there the perception that I live on the beach, sipping fruity umbrella drinks, served by 'Sawyer' in a 'bond' bathing suit. Let me assure you all... that is not the case. Don't get me wrong, we are all bound and determined to enjoy our 'beach living' as much as possible; but, life is life, and requires that we actually DO stuff to survive (laundry, cooking, shopping, chauffeuring, school, etc). And, at the risk of having one of the few readers still here conclude that I 'need help,' I will delve a little deeper.

Adjusting back to 'normal' life has proven more challenging that I anticipated - and not because I'm cooking and cleaning for myself again. It's remotely possible that these challenges could be linked to the 10 lbs I've gained from having Maui Caramacs (chocolate & caramel macademia nuts) for breakfast everyday, but I'm thinking not. We all go though life trying to deal with the 'issues' of our past, our personality quirks, character flaws and haughty hubris. We contend with these things usually as a part of life, little by little, overcoming and improving. Sometimes we choose not deal, instead we avoid. We mask these issues with coping mechanisms we develop over time. For some it's retail therapy (gosh, India was SO great for that). For others, entertainment, food, facebook. (hee hee) Some may even escape into a good book (if Jean Valjean can do it... so can I!). However, from my observation, this is like putting a band-aid on a person suffering from skin cancer. Band-aids do little but mask the wound, hide it from sight. In many cases, painful surgery is needed to remove the disease, and then chemotherapy and radiation.

This move, for me, has been one of those moments in life where I can choose to put another band-aid on, or elect to have surgery. After 3 years of 'oh my gosh, I'm going to live in India', 'oh my gosh, I live in India', 'oh my gosh, I lived in India'... now it's over and we're back to 'who the blazes am I?' and 'now that all my kids are in school, what the heck am I going to do with myself?', 'what is my purpose?' This, and more (stay tuned for an update on housing and schooling), has been running around what is left of my brain causing all kinds of unpleasantries. However, I have elected for surgery. (big sigh) And while the process is proving quite painful, I am hopeful it will prove most beneficial in the long run. 'Slow & steady wins the race...'

Enough blogging... now I'm back to lazing about the beach in my modest bikini, sipping virgin Daiquiris, reading trashy novels.

Upcoming blogs... Our upcoming move & Furlough Fridays

Under the Sea...

Diamondhead

While Joan was here, we decided to try something new. Dave, Joan & I booked passage on a submarine for some fish-seeing adventure. It was a 15 minute boat ride out to the sub with gorgeous views of Waikiki and Diamondhead, followed by a 45-60 minute underwater tour of sunken planes and ships and artificial reefs all placed for the purpose of the tour. It did not disappoint. We saw many, many fish, and even a reef shark and 4 hono (sea turtles).

The Atlantis XII (our submarine) surfacing to pick us up

Sunken plane

Reef shark resting under the wing

Joan & Dave in the sub

Large fish

My favorite - the hono

D's Baptism

A family picture on the way to little D's baptism.

Eight is a special birthday where we are eligible for baptism into our church. All of our children have chosen to be baptized when they turned eight, and all occasions were special days. D's special day was no different, except that we live in paradise and got to spend the morning at the beach. Here are a few pictures from the baptism.

Just before the baptism

Hawaiian tradition is to give a lei on special occasions. D especially appreciated

that many of these leis were made of candy. SWEET!

Grammy Joan flew out to celebrate this special day with D.

A rare moment of bonding

Used, abused, beat up, stung.... and going back for more!

Don't ever get tired of this... (insert sigh of content)

Saturday morning we took Grammy Joan to Bellows AFS for a rockin' day of Boogie Boarding. We were seriously beat up by the ocean, but despite our nasal/brain salt water enemas, our pulled muscles, and repeated attempts by the ocean to toss us out, we had an amazing morning. Because the waves were so huge and strong, when we did actually manage to 'catch' one, the ride was awesome! Grammy Joan put up a good fight and enjoyed her first attempt at boogie boarding. She and I were the only that emerged from the ocean unscathed by jellyfish. Supposedly, it hurts like the dickens, but the pain subsides after 20 minutes or so. I'll let you know when my turn comes.

D's poor little leg after the jellyfish stings. Both legs were stung, but he's a real trooper.

A got stung on the hand, but eventually got back in the water

Dave & Grammy Joan preparing their attack strategy

D's 8th Big Day

Happy 8th Birthday Little D!

When did THIS happen? When did my baby grow up to be 8 years old? Anyway, the big day is Thursday, the 24th of September. D has been a real joy in our family, with a fantastic smile, ridiculously long eyelashes, and a witty sense of humor beyond his years. His happy demeanor is evidence to me that God doesn't give us more than we can handle. We celebrated with Grammy Joan who flew out here to be with us, and even ate dinner at the historically significant (at least in my family) Farrell's Ice Cream Parlor for dinner and more importantly dessert.

The happy boy reading a birthday card

Dessert at Farrell's

Wings Over the Pacific

"Z"-22

Prime seats