More Hawaiian Photos - Kauai

Top: the falls shown at the beginning of the old TV series "Fantasy Island". Remember "de plane, de plane"?





Middle: a view from the Top of Mt. Waialeale, the wettest spot on earth at 451" per year, height 5,148 feet. This photo does not do it justice; when the sun is out, the canyon walls are emerald green and the water below is aqua and turquoise.



Bottom: A view of Waimea Canyon; truly spectacular and so unexpected in Hawaii, at least by me. It is very similar to the Grand Canyon, but there is a lot of vegetation, making it look very different in character.

Kauai is not a large island, and you could conceiveably tour all of it in two days. There is much to see and do there; the beaches are among the best in the world. Poipu beach, on the southern coast has been named the Travel Channel's #1 beach in the world. Close to that is a feature called "Spouting Horn", which is a "geyser" formed by an old lava flow. Every time the waves come into shore, the water is forced upward through a hole in the old lava, creating the spout.

About Being Old.......

This is another gem sent to me by a friend. I have no idea who wrote it, but it sums up my thoughts about growing older. I sent it to Hoss, and he agreed, so we offer it for your perusal:


The other day a young person asked me how I felt about being old. I was taken aback, for I do not think of myself as old. Upon seeing my reaction, she was immediately embarrassed, but I explained that it was an interesting question, and I would ponder it, and let her know.
Old age, I decided, is a gift. I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometimes despair over my body ... the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt. And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror, but I don't agonize over those things for long.

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to overeat, to be messy, to be extravagant. I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 a.m., and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 50's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will. I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the bikini set. They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten ... and I eventually remember the important things. Sure, over the years my heart has been broken How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when a beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turn gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so any have died before their hair could turn silver. I can say "no", and mean it. I can say "yes", and mean it. As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself any more. I've even earned the right to be wrong. So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day and drink soda!

Author unknown.

That Addiction Thing Again

We have all written about being somewhat addicted to the computer; especially blogging. I was hard at it this morning early, when my hubby walked into the room with a disgusted look on his face, and said "That is your new husband!". I laughed, and then I began to think about it. We can get almost everything from the computer that we get from our spouse:

friendship, appreciation for our abilities or appearance, interesting and important news, compassion, recognition, pretty pictures, knowledge, humor, sex (sort of, if you are into porn), weather, directions, travel, income ......I could go on and on, and I am sure I have left out something important. But it seems to me that just about the only things a computer cannot provide are touch and smell.

I can only imagine how soon we will have an anouncement that one of the large computer manufacturers has added "smellavision" to their computer programs! Imagine that! When Angie http://www.bigredcouch.com/journal/ posts her birthday menus, we could get a whiff of each and every mouth-watering morsel. When I post photos of the latest wedding flowers, anyone could sniff the lilies and roses with just a click of the mouse. If you frequent any of the many sites which provide video of nubile young things (NO link provided!) running around in the buff.....well....you get the idea. I am surprised they haven't invented it already!

My Latest Wedding.....uh...well, not "mine"

Here are some photos from my latest wedding on July 2nd. I couldn't get a good shot of the ceremony arbor due to the chairs being in the way. There was garland on the arbor, with three sections of flowers, and two big urns on either side.

The cake had white chocolate curls all over it; when they first rolled it into the ballroom, I thought it was seashells.

The stair railings in the club had to be swagged with tulle, and tied off at intervals with sprays of foliages and blue hydrangeas.

Each table centerpiece was in a silver plate container. I have a collection of Victorian teapots, bowls, cachepots, etc. that I use for these. The bride requested French blue and raspberry colored flowers, and I used snapdragons, lilies, bells of Ireland, phlox, bouvardia, roses, spray roses, hydrangeas, blue delphinium and dendrobium orchids.

This wedding presented an odd situation for me: I was initially contacted by the bride's mother, who lives in PA. The bride's father lives here in our area, and the bride was in CA. I never got to meet the bride or her mother; my meetings and all communication were with the father and his current wife. I always feel sort of funny about not being able to speak with the bride before the wedding. It is hard to know exactly what she wants if I have to imagine it through the voice of her father (in person) and mother (via email). I do know the father was happy with everything, but until I hear from the mother or the bride, I will not rest on my laurels.

Childhood Photos

The top photo is of me at age 2, in my zinc washtub "swimming pool" - and I assure you I do have panties on - even if you can't see them. Hoss, I promised you a bathing beauty photo.......how's this one?

The second photo is my friend Doris and me at age 8, playing "dress up" and posing like models. I am on the right. My mom had a great trunk full of old clothing, hats, shoes and accessories for me and my playmates to fantasize with. It brought us hours and hours of fun. Doris and I attended the same school for the first three years; we both moved away from the neighborhood after that, and I seldom saw her again. Many years later, she learned my whereabouts; she was coming to my town for a geneaology convention, called and we had lunch together. I had not seen her in about 40 years, and it was great to play catch up and find out about her family. We stay in touch now via email. Old friends are the best; as the Girl Scout camp song says:

"Make new friends, but keep the old, One is silver and the other's gold".

Moonflowers and Roses

The moonflower vines grew on the pump house last summer. The blooms were often 9-10" across; looked like dinner plates and the aroma was intoxicating. The roses were at their best in May, and now there are only a few blooms on the trellis. If we get good rain in the next several weeks, the roses may perform again this summer, but the beetles finally arrived, so the foliage looks like lace again. I guess you suppose that a florist has a beautiful garden, but in this case - you would be wrong. Our soil is very poor and I have never had the patience to amend it. I plant in pots - or not at all. This year, due to an early heat wave, no pots were planted, so I have no flowers except the roses and a gardenia bush with rapidly browning blossoms. It is depressing. The current heat wave is making everything more difficult.

Another Email Funny.....

Good Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach a person to use the
Internet and they won't bother you for weeks.

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to
criticism.

Why does a slight tax increase cost you two hundred dollars and a substantial
tax cut saves you thirty cents?

In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird
and people take Prozac to make it normal.

Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to
realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.

I had amnesia once -- or twice.

Protons have mass? I didn't even know they were Catholic.

All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy.

If the world were a logical place, men would ride horses sidesaddle.

What is a "free" gift? Aren't all gifts free?

They told me I was gullible ... and I believed them.

Teach a child to be polite and courteous in the home and, when he grows up,
he'll never be able to merge his car onto a freeway.

Two can live as cheaply as one, for half as long.

Experience is the thing you have left when everything else is gone.

What if there were no hypothetical questions?

One nice thing about egotists: They don't talk about other people.

I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not sure.

The cost of living hasn't affected its popularity.

Is Marx's tomb a communist plot?

It's not an optical illusion. It just looks like one.