...a new beginning

I don't even remember the last time I created an entry. Yes I could look at the history, but it is just that, history. If you read this blog before it was dark and bleak, I have changed my outlook and attitude and how I am going to present myself here as well. Delete the old entries, hence they are history and a nice spiffy template. Having cleared the canvas, here goes...

I am vacationing in Hawaii (good reason for a new outlook:)) it is day 2. Day zero will get its own "special" entry in a few days, because I and my family had a 25 hour travel day, nuf said.

Day one...

I woke up on yesterday and raced to the beach, 450 steps to be exact so I could photograph the sunrise. A sunrise you say, big deal! Well, it is a Pacific Ocean sunrise, not exactly easy to get from mainland U.S. I stood on the beach and I was being pushed back by a steady 20 mph wind with occasional gusts a bit stronger. I have learned since that these are the "trade winds", the islands "natural air conditioner"

After that I went got the kids and wife (3 boys 12, 9, 3 and a wife of almost 17 years) and we went and played at the beach for a bit. We then went to Pearl Harbor, catching up with wife's brother who lives in Honolulu, her wife and her family and her mom, a regular family reunion. Mom-in-Law took my youngest and the rest of us visited the memorial.

If you ever get out here and visit the memorial, get the audio tour, it is worth the 5 bucks. Words and even pictures will fail miserably at describing the emotions and thoughts of the experience of the memorial. There are the names of those that both survived and died. There are artifacts from some of the families of the fallen as well as things from the ships. When you get to the memorial itself...well it is just very powerful. There is a bridge built over the sunken USS Arizona, of which a few small parts still stick up above the water. At one end of the memorial (bridge) is the list of all those who died on board, most of whom are still underwater with their ship. And then there is a smaller list of those, who survived, but have since died and have asked to be laid to rest with their shipmates the most recent was in 2006.

Pause here and think about that...

When we left, we returned to regular life our group split up for a bit while we went and got groceries and stuff for the house that we are renting. We then went to Hanauma Bay to look at the reefs and relax. I passed on snorkeling on this first trip to the bay, but I will be going out next time.

Dinner was at a very cool Italian place, (name to be remembered later) and then we went home and crashed.

End of Day 1