Monster waves = monster fun!

One of the largest sets of waves to hit Oahu in nearly a decade came early this week. Rumors of waves up to 60ft were reported on the north shore, were it was predicted that the "In Memory of Eddie Aikau" surfing contest would happen any day.

Despite fears of horrible traffic, the commune crew cruised up to Waiamea Bay immediately after school on Monday. We watched some amazing surfers surf what appeared to be nearly 40 foot waves, ate some delicious Thai food at Phuket Thai in Millilani, and got dessert at one of my all time favorite FroGo joints, "Menchies". Overall, it was an amazing way to start the week!

New Posters Coming Soon...

I have officially set up both Monica and Dorothy with gmail accounts, so I am expecting that they will soon be adding to our commune blog!

Hold strong, the storm is almost over!

Though I may have just taken this quote from a priest on Criminal Minds, it rings true. At least everyone I know in Hawaii...or maybe just Waianae...or it could just be me and my friends has been really stressed and tired lately. Every person that I know has been tired for the last few days and, and, and, something has to be going on here! I just want us all to get along and have fun like we used to.
Personally, I am tired. Not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually. No more urge for excellence exists in me anymore. How do all of the type-A, micro-managing, asshole despots maintain such an energy level?
Maybe this is just a rant and I am the only person feeling the stress and fatigue but it still matters to me! As anyone who lives here can tell you, Hawaii isn't always paradise. In fact, some of the most difficult days in my life have occurred here. So there it is, locked forever in indelible binary code. I would love some support.

Bobby

Makua

We started a new tradition at the beach commune today - Makua beach with the dogs!

After a quick jaunt down a dirty disgusting brush, Shea,Bob, Dorothy, Abby, Ed, Zeke, and Buddy all arrived at the beautiful oasis called Makua beach. Makua beach, which is right across the road from Kaneana Cave, is a small beach known for its shells. As soon as we were there, we let the dogs off of their leashes and let them play. With Zeke leading the way, Buddy (who is usually very tentative in the water), was leaping and playing with carefree ease. Everyone there enjoyed the trip immensely, and I hope that we return to play in the water with the dogs very soon.

Worst Hike Ever

Shea and I have been wanting to get back into hiking again. Visitors, buziness, and laziness have all kept us from one f our favorite activities here on the island the past few months.

Several weeks ago, Shea and I decided to go on the Kaunala Trail on the North shore. This appeared to be a fairly short and easy hike that would be perfect for easing us back into the sport. The hike begins at the very end of Pupukea Road (Where it is rumored that the man who owns Wallace theaters lives AND where the old Elvis mansion is). It seemed like every time we got to the trail head, it started to rain. We turned around and went home two times after it started to rain on us, but yesterday we were dead set on doing this hike, rain or shine. So despite tiny raindrops, we geared up and started the hike.

So we hiked and hike and hiked. Everything seemed pretty normal on the hike for the most part. Lots of trees, great smells, good views, etc. Eventually, we reached a point where the trail intersected with the road. On the other side of the road was a trail marker that was very unclear. We could not tell if the trail marker was pointing us towards the road, or towards another trail that seemed to be leading downwards. Because we love adventure, we decided to take the trail that led downwards instead of the paved road.

So we kept hiking and hiking and hiking. This trail was definitely not as well maintained as the previous trail. There were overgrown plants scrapping at our bodies, huge hidden mud piles that our feet sank into, and rushing streams. And then it started to rain. So now, we are wet, cold, muddy, and tired. I felt like I was running away from the bad guy in a scary movie.
After an hour on this trecherous trail, it eventually intersected with a road again. We figured that this MUST be the road we came in on, so we started to walk down it.

We walked and walked and walked. We probably walked for a mile before we started to lose all hope. This was obviously NOT the road we came in on, and it was clear that we were completely and utterly lost. I forced Shea to call 911 in an attempt to GPW our location. 911 offered little to no help, except scaring us into thinking that they were going to send helicopters out to search for us.

While Shea was still on the phone, a truck full of men and garbage drove by and we waved them down. There were 6 men, all who worked on the road which turned out to be the new "striker road" for the military. One of the men was from Waianae, and knew my principal! We squeezed into the mens trucks, and got a ride back to Pupukea Road ( this was about a 10 mile or more drive). We thanked the men, and jumped out of the truck.

Shea and I grabbed a quick bite to eat and a hot chai tea latte and once again started hitch hiking, this time up the steep hill of Pupukea Road. We almost instantly got a ride part of the way, and were forced to walk another couple of miles up the road to our car.

All in all, what was intended to be a short jaunt in the woods took us 2 hitch hikes, 1 "911" call, and 6 hours. This was definitely one of the worst hikes ever!

Law and Order

On Sept.19th, 2009 I was appointed the infamous title of "DD" for Shea and Monmon as they romped the Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki. At approximetly 1:00am that night, after my roomies had consumed several mai-tais from a revolving restuarant ("The Top of Waikiki) that reaked of dirty wash cloth, I was driving back to Waianae completely sober. Immediately before the exit for Kapolei, I got pulled over.

I saved the following notes from the incident:

"Did not notice cop until late, when he seemed to be quickly approaching my car

Appeared to come from the lane to the right of me, and then turned on his lights

I was not going 15 miles over the speed limit

Cop appeared hostile and biased – asked me to repeat my statements, asked me if I was in the military, asked if my car was a rental (after I gave him the registration), pointed out that my id was out of state in a weird way, when I asked how to contest he replied “I already told its on the back of this sheet but if I will explain if I have to” "

The cop did not laser gun me, but rather guessed how fast I was driving that night. He guessed 75mph and stuck me with a 130$ speeding ticket. I was not happy. I planned on taking that cop to court.


A letter in the mail came today, telling me that I could not have a court date and I have to pay the speeding ticket in full becuase I did not contest the ticket in a timely enough fashion. Since when have people in Hawaii received a consequence for not acting in a timely fashion?!??!?!?!?!?!/

A little history...

Dorothy, Seamus, Kyna, Monica, Dan and I are all teachers living in Waianae, Hawaii.  If you don't know anything about Waianae, stick with the blog.  A full 4/6 of us hail from the midwest and the other is the daughter of Polish immigrants who grew up in Massachusetts.  None of us are from a broken home, circus family or are Amish, so we are always in pursuit of angst.  Keep up with the blog and you can make new discoveries in the fields of North Indian Classical Music, Linguistics, Polishry, computer science, beard propagation, community development, shenanigans,  the military, confrontation strategy, cooking and parties, local issues and education.  We recently picked up a new addition to the commune.  Zeke and Abby are a killer canine-human combo from Kauai.  Currently both are seeking employment, so if you have anything for a couple of cute blondes then let us know.  Keep up with us regularly as we are committed to making this a light-hearted romp worthy of cult status.  

don ak like won beech,

BAH