Ohai Trail, It's Good to See You!

This past weekend was beautiful!   

Yesterday, I went up the coast on the west side a little bit taking the windy coastal road to the Ohai Trail at mile marker 40.   The Ohai Trail is a quick one, no jumping off waterfalls or climbing rocks.    It's a 1.2 mile loop, nothing crazy.   

It starts like this.  

Loops, being what they are, you can go either way and still make it back out.   I've never really thought about which direction to take when faced with a pressing decision like this one.   I know I've never hiked one each way to see which way was better.   

In the past, I would just pick a direction and get on with it.   No second thoughts.  

But what if I was wrong?   

The authors of Maui Revealed said that going right would make all the difference.   Going right turns this trail from remarkably dull to infinitely better.    

So yesterday, I took an infinitely better hike. 

Along the freakin' coast of Maui. 

This view!

On the way back, I pulled off and walked through the forest to see Honolua Bay.   

And saw this guy.....

Not too shabby for a Sunday afternoon.

Aloha Easter Update

Happy Easter!

Celebrating Easter in Greece - 2011
You can't go wrong with fireworks!

I've seen some fun Southwest flight attendants, but the ones that go viral are pretty sweet.  
Like this one.

Students lip syncing has gotten much fancier since I was a student singing Bon Jovi in the YMCA gym. In fact, they don't even call it lip syncing....it's now "lip dub."

How much do you want to be right?   (or would you rather be done?)

Celebrites and their younger selves.   You know this happens every Thursday with people you know on Facebook and Instagram when the #tbt #throwbackthursday hits.   For the record:  I was extremely awkward in 1999.

I think that mobile check deposit is the second most magical finance thing ever - second only to online bill pay.   In Hawaii, the banks common on the mainland (B of A, Wells Fargo, US Bank, etc) are not present.   With online bill pay (magical thing #1), my finances continued on as normal, not knowing they were now on an island in the Pacific.   They didn't see my tan or lack of shoes.    I hardly ever receive paper checks, but with the sale of my house, I'm receiving checks in the mail (escrow for property taxes, overpayment on home owners insurance, HOA refunds...it's raining money!).   I can just take a picture of it, press send and magically it soars through space and goes into my account to be used for practical things like sushi and mai tais.  

With the difference in time zones, as I read my friends status updates, they are done churching and lunching for Easter and I'm still in the slowly waking up and caffeinating stage.   My favorite contemporary Easter song is Christ is Risen by Matt Maher.

Since Easter is the happiest most joyful day in the Christian calendar, I was intrigued to learn about #100happydays .    The challenge is to take a picture every day  for 100 days of what makes you happy.   It's not a contest.   It's not a chance to outdo others.    You can be publicly accountable by sharing on social media, but if you want to keep your participation private but still be accountable, you can just email the pictures.      71% of people don't finish and many say lack of time is the reason.   Could you do it?   Could I do it?

And with that...off you go to enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

Mahalo for visiting!

Aloha Sunday Update

Happy Aloha Sunday!

Live from the fun & games department, Maui branch:  an Aloha Sunday Update.

Proof that things really are different in Wisconsin

You can't go wrong with a coordinated dance on the Fan Cam.    Or with words that have a different meaning in Wisconsin.  (This girl loves her Kringle....and I don't mean Kris)

I'm super excited to take a day tour of the Scottish Highlands with the Hairy Coo next month.  The name alone, and the possibility of photo ops with coo hats, or coos in the wild, guarantee a day of awesomeness.  

Loved this list of reasons to get off the couch and exercise.   #18 is my reason.  Ice cream, I'm coming for you!

The iconic Alma Mater statue at the University of Illinois returned to campus after 2 years of repair.   Did you know there is an Alma Cam?

Are you obsessed with blondies?   This recipe sounds amazing.  

Have you watched Amy Cuddy's Ted Talk about body language?   Ladies, take two minutes to power pose and then continue on with awesomeness!

And then there is this list of 39 things that only girls who grew up in the 80s would know....I feel like there were a few things on this list that must have completely passed me by...probably because I was racing through my neighbors yards and riding my bike without a helmet.

Yesterday we went to a fundraiser at Star Noodle called the Empty Bowl Project.    A $25 donation got me a handmade bowl and ramen with the proceeds going to Maui Food Bank.   I love these kinds of events!

Hope you had a great week and are ready for more awesomeness to come!   Hard to believe we're in the middle of April already.   Where is this year going?

Aloha Sunday Update

Happy Aloha Sunday!

Live from the fun & games department, Maui branch:  an Aloha Sunday Update.

The finished product:  the cinnamon frosting is the bomb!

This recipe for Carrot Cake Blondies from Crazy for Crust is amazing.    I made them this weekend and took them to a bbq.   Feedback?   So ono!

Working in the hospitality industry, I'm always interested in the posts that circulate about how to score travel deals, freebies, or in this case 8 sneaky hotel cheats.  No worries...we're on to you.

I love that coffee (and local coffee at that) is a thing here in Hawaii.   What better to go with your coffee than an infographic about it?

Looking forward to attending the Empty Bowl Project next weekend at Star Noodle.

In November back in Colorado, one of the news anchors at 9 news pleaded for more creative pictures than snow covered patio furniture.   With a late spring snow this past week, fans upped their game.   After all, Colorado owns winter.  

Who knew that this handsome fella lived on Maui?

Yesterday at the Maui Ag Fest

My favorite national park, Yellowstone, has been in the news a lot this past week.   Where are the bison running?  Why are they running?   Is there cause for panic?  Probably not.

According to this list, I've only been to 2 of the top 10 restaurants on Maui.   When I moved here, I also decided to start my own list...every single restaurant, shave ice stand, ice cream parlor and coffee shop that I've tried since November 2013.  

Happy Sunday Everyone!   
Sneak in one more nap, activity, or glass of wine before the day ends.