Thoughts About Blogging

I thought I'd share some random, meandering thoughts about blogging.

I've been writing on this blog for five years but started posting everyday three years ago from July of 2010, missing only about three days.  It started as a challenge because I enjoyed writing and especially loved the feedback.  What a heady feeling to be connected to new friends around the world and my cousins and friends here in Hawaii and the mainland. And for everybody reading, but not commenting please know that bloggers LOVE comments.  It's the fuel that keeps us posting.

There are difficulties with maintaining the blog because I don't want people to know when we're gone on trips.  There is that security issue since we don't know who is reading our posts.  My brother works for the police department and I've been warned.

Therefore I have to schedule posts to go up while we're gone.  That isn't always easy.  But it's another challenge.  My children are also concerned about the privacy issue and want me to be careful about revealing too much or my actual identity.

When I don't know what to post, doing this blog can feel like a job.  I was beginning to think I would stop posting everyday despite those wonderfully encouraging friends who told me they read my post with their morning coffee. 

Then I saw in the news that people who kept on working instead of retiring were able to stave off dementia much longer.  My daughter has told me she likes the fact that I do the blog because she knows it forces us to go out and do something we normally wouldn't do just so I'd have something to blog about.

I also love all the advice and feedback I get.  I have gotten very valuable information from all of you and a lot of spirit lifting cyber friendship.

It's true.

And then I happened to read Len's blog, Lenman when he placed a comment on a recent post I wrote.  He said he thought I was posting Monday-Friday.  This is an excellent compromise.  I'm going to start doing that from tomorrow when I actually reach my three year mark of posting every day.

This is what I mean about blogging.  You get ideas from all over the place. 

Flossie Fizzled

It's 8:00 PM as I write this and I'll add my updates until Flossie actually does hit us.

We saw this map at 7:16 AM while we were having our breakfast.  It looked like Flossie swerved away from the Big Island.

It also appeared that we on Oahu were now in the direct line of fire from Flossie.  It hit Maui first and pelted the island with a deluge.  I've heard there were power outages there and on Molokai.

After hearing all the warnings, Art set up a tarp to prevent rain and wind from drenching our patio area where we have our washing machine and dryer.  Yes, it's common in Hawaii to set up your washer and dryer outside the  house.


At 3:00 PM all city workers on Oahu were sent  home and people were told to stay off the streets after 6:00.  Ummmm... nobody listened it seemed.  There was a huge traffic snarl.  

At 5:00 PM, just as Art was serving his special omelet dinner this rainbow appeared outside our door.  It was pretty darn awesome!  My camera just didn't do it justice.  Could that terrible a storm really be headed our way?

Uh oh... It's 8:30 PM and I'm seeing flashes of lightning and hearing a rumble of thunder.

We saw this map online at 9:45 PM on The Weather Channel showing the storm going south.   However, when we checked the network news on TV, they were still telling us to expect something.

We think we can go to bed now without worrying too much since the bulk of the storm seems to be moving away... we hope.

POSTSCRIPT:  Sheesh! I heard some gusts of winds around 1:00 AM and some rain, but not much else.  I'm even seeing patches of blue above at 9:00 AM and have already gone to the farmers market.  We were lucky.

Getting Worried

I wasn't worried yesterday.  I'd heard that Tropical Storm Flossie was weakening when it hit our cooler waters.

Our skies are gorgeous and the temperatures were lovely today.  It's been a peaceful Sunday. 

However I've been getting a ton of weather warnings all day.  There have been special news broadcasts telling us to get our prescriptions filled, stock up on 3 + days of food, look at our insurance papers, etc.  I thought this was a tropical storm, not a hurricane.

Our neighbor just cut down his tall palm tree today for fear it could fall on the house.

OK, now I'm starting to worry.

We brought our shoes and slippers in.  We moved our smaller potted plants away from the wind.  I checked our food supply.  (I've got 4 mini loaves of mango bread and Art's tuna cans.)  We've got a case of bottled water.

It's going to hit the Big Island first tomorrow.  I'll be reading Hattie's Web to see what happens.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed for her and her family because they are pretty exposed.

Judging from what she says, I'll see if I need to get out to stock up on more supplies.

Meanwhile, we went out today to get more shingles and Art used roof caulk to secure our roof.  I'm hoping our solar panels are OK.  I'm hoping the tree outside our house doesn't fall. 

We've had warnings before and things have fizzled out.  I keep expecting the same thing to happen, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

It's hard to imagine something awful could happen when it was so beautiful today.

Planting Morris' Pineapple

Art's classmate, Morris gave him the biggest, heaviest, juiciest, sweetest pineapple we've ever had and was advised to plant it. 

Art's pineapples have been very sweet, but of modest size, unlike Morris' so he decided to give it a try.

We twisted the crown off and Art put it in a bottle of water until the roots grew pretty long.

Then we had to shop for a pot and some dirt because we really have run out of places where we can plant anything.

The pot cost about $4 and the dirt was almost $6.  Art then mixed in some local dirt since the pineapples do grow in Hawaiian soil.

As you can see we do have a pineapple that's looking like it's beginning to ripen.  It's another miniature fruit.  I hope it doesn't feel intimidated.

Art has great hopes for Morris' pineapple.  I didn't want to bring up the fact that he's paid $10 in supplies for this one fruit.  Granted, we have great expectations for it to produce a monster sized fruit.

Then again maybe that's counting our chickens, I mean pineapple before it pops up.

Need to be Framed

When we were in Xian, China in May we went to the Buddhist Temple Park to see the Wild Goose Pagoda. 

There was a shop at the park where paintings done by farmers were being sold.  We learned later that these farmer's paintings are pretty famous.

Art said he'd let me choose.  It was very, very difficult. I loved the vibrant colors and primitive design.

I finally chose a painting with children because... well...  I am a retired first grade teacher after all.

I have a feeling it's not what Art would have chosen.  He would have selected something with more trees.

When we got home we considered our options on how to get it framed.  I checked into prices and found that the mat alone would cost about $40 to $50.  Sheesh!  That's without the frame!  The painting cost us $32 US dollars.  So we laid it flat in the guest room and forgot about it.

Then we happened to be at Panda Express here in Hawaii and saw several of these farmer type paintings and loved how they look.

What to do, what to do?  Does anybody in Hawaii know a reasonable place to get this framed so that it doesn't cost five times as much?  Sheesh!

Losing Sleep Over Losing Hair

Every so often I start worrying and picturing myself going bald.  One morning I woke up and found I'd lost this much just combing my hair!

I know, I know.  I've read about how you can lose between 40-120 strands a day.

I know, I know.  But it still freaks me out.

I see spaces now between roots.  Sigh...

I remember my grandmother losing her hair when she got older.  My brother laughs ruefully about his hair loss.  It's probably genetics.  Which only freaks me out even worse.  We have Alzheimers and hair loss in our genes.  Arrrghhh!

I asked my nurse practitioner, Kathy about it and she smiled kindly.  She said the only explanation could be a thyroid problem, but my tests are showing that I'm fine in that department. 

"Is it the age thing?" I asked.

She smiled again.  Oh darn!

Finally Finished!

After our trip to China in May, we had just three weeks before we left for the Canyons National Park road trip.  That gave us very little time to work on our China photo album.  We took about 4,500 photos in China since Art and I both carry our own cameras and take a LOT of photos.

Our first task which falls to me is to select all the photos that I think should go into the album.  Then Art goes through it and marks the ones he thinks should be removed or added.  We debate the choices.  I format the photos and add in notes from my journal.  Art adds his information.  I fine tune the formatting, add research on the different places, edit, and check for errors.  Then Art checks for errors.  Then I check for errors and print the album to a PDF and JPG files.  We bring the PDF file to Office Max and have it printed and we put the pages into sheet protectors.  Finally, the pages go into a binder and the cover and spine label are added.

We did the photo selections and some formatting on China before we had to leave for the canyon trip.  When we got home, we finished the canyon photo album first because mom couldn't wait to see the photos.  We had her add her own notes so that her relatives in Japan would be able to understand the trip better.

Yesterday we finally finished the China album!  There were 164 pages with excruciating details of every step of our 16 day China Tour.  It holds our thoughts, some of our speech, every day's schedule, things we learned and saw, what we ate... everything.

Until the trip album is finished, nothing else really gets done.  I haven't cleaned the bathroom in..... hmmmm.... I don't think I'll write that.  We work on the pages almost every day and night, sometimes stepping on each other's feelings as we work through the wording.  It's a good thing our marriage is strong enough to withstand this joint project.  Once it's done, there's this feeling of euphoria and satisfaction which we're now feeling.

We were really complimented when our neighbor asked to be the last one to see the albums so that she could leisurely read everything that's written and see each photo closely without worrying about someone else's turn.  We're sending digital copies to mom's siblings in Japan and her sisters here in Hawaii will get to see the actual albums along with her notes about the canyons.

Oh my!  What a feeling!  It's done!

Now I'd better go clean that bathroom.

POSTSCRIPT:  My friend, Hank Chapin has recommended for the longest time that I look into those bound books that look so much more professional and take up less space.   I thought it was cost prohibitive and wouldn't allow us to write all the text we always add. 

We happened to be at Costco today and I asked about Hank's advice in his comment.  What a HUGE surprise!  The prices had come down from when I first looked into this option years ago and the format would allow us to do all the things we like to do in our albums.

We will definitely publish our next album this way.  Thank you, Hank!  I'm so grateful to you for not giving up on me.

Art's Perfect Birthday

It was a perfect birthday for Art.  He woke up at 4:15 and went for a four mile jog. It did not rain.

In the middle of breakfast, Our son, Jon sent a message from Bangladesh asking if we could Skype. We rushed upstairs and turned on our computer and spoke to Jon for about 20 lovely minutes.  It was nearly midnight and he was exhausted from a weekend trek, but he regaled his father with stories of his visit to a hillside tea farm as well as tramping through leach filled streams in a forest.  I was aghast.  Art was fascinated!

Our daughter, Tiffany called to give Art her birthday wishes and we loved hearing our cheerful granddaughter, KC sing out "Happy birthday, Grandpa!"

Lunch was at Anna Millers and Art got a lovely free birthday meal.

We went to the BX with our little discount scratch card and the parking lot was almost full, but we found a lucky space.  We always manage to only get 5% off with these scratch cards.  This time I asked the salesgirl to choose.  She scratched off 10%!  Wow!  We scratched off the other two when we got home and saw that the other two was 5% off.

My brother stopped by and we had a wonderful chat.  Then it was time for dinner.

We went to our favorite place for butterfish, Maguro-ya.  I asked our waitress to take our birthday photo.

Then they brought out an ice cream surprise for us to share and sang to Art and everybody clapped for him.  We left the restaurant to a chorus of "Happy Birthdays".

When we got home, Art had his birthday watermelon.  It was sweet and wonderful!  I sent this photo to the kids and Jon wrote back right away saying that it felt rather weird because he'd talked to us at midnight his (Bangladesh) time before going to bed and now it was the following day (he was at work), but we were still celebrating Art's birthday on the same day.

What a day!  What a wonderful birthday!

POSTSCRIPT:  Thank you for all your kind birthday wishes, everybody.  Art read them all and was truly touched.  You've made his day, his week, his year!

Mango Bread Mayhem

My uncle and aunt have two mango trees.  One is a Pirie and the other is a Hayden.  I remember reading that they are the two main types of mango trees in Hawaii... or used to be anyway.

Uncle recently stopped by and dropped off two bags of mangoes.  Most of them were Piries this time.  The Piries tend to get very soft when ripe.  We like our mangoes on the firmer side so I thought I'd make some mango bread.  Let me tell you relatives with mango trees are golden!

I was able to get four cups of diced mangoes so I thought I'd make a double recipe of mango bread.

I got my ingredients together and then thought we should share some of the bread with uncle and auntie.  This would mean we'd need smaller sized loaf pans.  The recipe makes only one large loaf.

We went to Walmart, found these cute pans and I got started.

And then... arrrrrrghhhhhh!  I opened a brand new package of flour and found this!  I usually use unbleached flour so I thought at first that these tiny dots were just particles of wheat or whatever.  Then they started to MOVE!  Arrrrghhhh!

When we were living in Illinois the kids used to laugh at me for putting everything in our basement freezer.  I soon relaxed and stopped doing that.   This taught me a lesson!  All my flour things will go into our 2nd fridge or freezer from now on.  Sheesh!

We went back down to the market to get more flour.

At last, I got it done and they went into the oven.  I was able to make seven of these little loaves.  I shared them with our neighbor, uncle and auntie and brother's family.

Uncle and Auntie called to say they loved it.

I have to say they weren't too bad.

Art says the bugs would just have added a little more protein.  Riiiight....

If you're interested, here's the recipe I used from the Hawaii Baptist Academy Family Cookbook.

Mango Bread

(Makes 1 large loaf, but I made 7 mini loaves.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sift together into a large bowl:
2 cups flour
2 tsps. baking soda
2 tsps. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Make a well in bowl and add:

3 well beaten eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup salad oil
2 cups diced mango
1/2 cup nuts and/or raisins  (I used walnuts and cranberries.)

Grease a loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees F. for 1 hour.

Like Father, Like Daughter

I've never been particularly athletic.  I enjoy going for walks on flat land where there is beautiful natural scenery, but I'm not one for hills or mountains.  My children, it appears have clearly taken after their father.

I think a lot of it is due to his encouragement.  He absolutely revels in their athletic pursuits and accomplishments. From the time they were in grade school, the kids knew Art loved sports.  Both Tif and Jon were accomplished swimmers in high school and Jon was also into soccer, water polo and running.  I don't recall running as being Tif's thing.

When her friend, Jane who happens to be a physician coaxed her to start running with her, Tif decided to give it a go.   

Now Tif calls regularly to give Art an update on her training runs and sends us links to track her running during races.

This weekend, she and Jane ran in the Chicago Rock n' Roll Half Marathon.  Tif and her brother, Jon both ran in the Washington, D.C. Rock n' Roll Half Marathon in spring.

Luckily the major heat wave had passed through Chicago so it wasn't quite as bad, but it was still extremely challenging.  Tif says she could feel the effects for the last couple of miles when they were running along Lake Shore drive in the sun instead of the shade of city buildings and had to slow down to drink more water.  Apparently inexperienced runners who weren't as cautious were vomiting at the side of the street. 

Their rather over zealous coach in high school pushed swimmers too far and Tif, who was a champion breast stroker has had pain in her knees ever since.  She noticed yesterday after the race that some runners were getting ice packs for their knees at the first aid station.  Tif says it made a world of difference for she and Jane to ice their knees right after the race instead of waiting until they got home.

Tif also told Art that she used to have pain and numbness in her feet when she ran too much.  Her sports doctor advised her to lace her shoes starting at the second set of holes and to leave the first two unlaced.  Apparently it made a world of difference.

After the race, they went out for a calorie ridden lunch.  I can just imagine how much they enjoyed that!  Tiffany is now enrolling our little six year old KC in swimming and has even had her in a few "races".

Looks like grandpa's influence will reach the next generation.

But me?  Well...  I'll just go to my zumba class.

Obon in Hawaii

"Remember," said mom.  "It's Obon.  We need to go to the temple.  I have to bring flowers for my friend.  Remember.  She is the one who loved you and Dennis so much because she didn't have children of her own."

Well, it'd be hard to forget because she does remind us often enough.

Summer is Obon season in Hawaii.  I think there's a temple having Obon services and dances some place in the islands every week from June through August.

So, yes, of course we took mom to buy the most beautiful flowers she could find.

And we went to the temple.  There was the tower set up in the parking lot for dancing in the evening.





We went to the room where mom's friend's ashes are kept and she set up her flowers.  We sent up a prayer of thanks to mom's friend for her kindness to us when she was with us in life.

Here's what the dancing would look like in the evening.  There's a part of me that would love to learn the dances again.  (The photo above was taken a few years ago at another temple.)

It's quite warm in Hawaii too so I'm glad we were able to find a spot on the pew next to the door.

We'd seen these otoba sticks before but I didn't know much about it except that you could buy one and they would write your name and the name of the person you were remembering and honoring.


The sticks were put up at the altar and families would go up and offer incense when their name was called.

This year there was a guest speaker named Reverend Komagata.  I was startled because I know his grandfather knew mine.  Mom says she remembers him when he was just a little boy.

The wonderful thing was that this priest was raised in Hawaii and is an informative English speaker.  He said the word otoba comes from the Indian word stupa which was a Buddhist funerary structure.

Reverend Komagata's Buddhist sermon was about impermanence.  "Nothing stays the same", he emphasized. "Life is change."  When he was a boy, he'd gone off to school happily only to come home and find out his mother had suddenly passed away.

Everything and everyone is interconnected and dependent upon each other.  It's our duty to help when we can.

Don't reflect on the meaning of life, but be grateful for it.  Treasure each moment you have because it could be your last.  Treasure the people around you because they might be gone tomorrow.

"Celebrate the fact that we have three months of Obon in Hawaii when they only have three days of it in Japan." he laughed.

Be grateful for all the things the people you knew gave you, taught you, did for you.

This is what we do at Obon.  Celebrate the lives of those who went before us and paved the road to make it a little smoother for us.

So we took mom to do some shopping and then to a restaurant for some saimin (noodles in a soup) lunch and then came home to take a nap.

You know what?  I think I'm in the mood to attend a Bon Dance. 

Rainbow Jello

One of our dear neighbors was returning from an extended trip on the mainland.  They had some unexpected medical challenges while they were gone and had to delay their return for several weeks.  One of our other neighbors was taking excellent care of their yard and garden.  Art mowed their lawn and we all watched over the house.

We decided to make a dinner to welcome them home since we knew how exhausting it is to return from travel.  Art grilled some teriyaki chicken and zucchini that I'd marinaded.  Mom made  namasu (pickled cucumbers) and rice.  I cooked some super sweet corn and decided to use this excuse to make a Rainbow Jello.  I mentioned this to Kay G. of Georgia Girl With an English Heart and she asked how you make it.  She'd mentioned that they don't call it jello in England.  They call it jelly.

I promised to post the recipe.

Jello Layers

5 packages (3 oz. each) different flavors of jello

5 envelopes unflavored gelatin

6 1/4 cups hot water

Dissolve each package of jello and 1 envelope of unflavored gelatin, using 1 1/4 cups hot water, in separate bowls.  

Hint:  I dissolve the gelatin and jello with 1/4 cold water first and then add 1 cup of hot water.

Milk Layers:

1 can (14 oz.) condensed milk

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin

1/2 cup cold water

2 cups hot water

Dissolve 2 envelopes of gelatin in cold water.  Add the dissolved gelatin to the hot water and condensed milk.

Grease a 9 x 13 x 2 inch pan.  Pour one flavor of jello into the pan and set in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.  Add 1 cup of the condensed milk mixture and set for another 20 minutes.  Before adding the remaining layers, be sure that each previous layer is set.  Layer remaining jello flavors, alternating with milk mixture, ending with jello on top.  Refrigerate each layer.  To serve, cut into diagonal pieces.

I was happy to be able to bring these over to our neighbor for a cheerful dessert. 

I had more than enough so my nephew very happily drove over so he, my brother and sister-in-law could enjoy it as well.  

Mom loves this dessert.  It's a bit time consuming to make but I love the effect.  I cheat and put the jello in the freezer to hurry it along between layers.

As I told Kay G, jello is a favorite with a lot of people in Hawaii.  It must be the color and jiggle.  One of these days, I'll have to make it on the mainland and see what they say. 

Postscript:  By the way, make sure you put the condensed milk mixture between the layers.  There was one time that I skipped it because I didn't have a can of condensed milk and ended up with black jello.  You need the white separation to see the different colors!

Lunch at the Mililani Golf Course

We've been taking tai-chi now for about two years and love all the people we learn with.  It's a joy to go and see them every week.  We laugh about the fact that there are four Kays in the two classes that meet on Thursdays at the park and three Calvins.

Well yesterday two Kays, two Calvins, Art and Myra went to the Mililani Golf Club for lunch.  It's the first time the six of us have gone out together and it was so much fun.

Calvin suggested Alonzo's at the golf club because he thought they were more relaxed and wouldn't chase us out after our meal.

The golf club is an older one, and does show its age.  However, the people there are so very friendly that their smiles really brighten the atmosphere.

Calvin and Myra recommended  this hamburger steak which they said they always split because it's so large.

When it arrived, we were really surprised.  It's enough for three people!

Calvin and Kay also had the hamburger steak and shared it with us to try.  Yum...

Art had this spicy Chinese fish dish.  I can't remember the name.  He liked it, but felt it was a tad bit too salty for him.  I didn't think so.  He brought some home for mom to try.  I know she's going to love it!




I had their Alonzo's Hawaiian Beef Steak which is their signature dish.

Nope.  I didn't bring any home to share.  Art agreed I had the best dish.  It was very tender and tasty.  It was also a bit on the pricey side at $17.99, especially since we weren't sharing a meal.

We spent more than three hours there and had the best time! (Joanne Noragon mentioned in the comments that she could figure out which were the two Calvins, one Kay and Art.  I'll give you another clue.  The other Kay is next to me so that would just leave Myra.)

Since leaving Illinois in 2008 we have missed all the friends we'd made in the 35 years we lived there, not to mention our daughter and her family.  (I didn't mention our son because he lives all over the world.)  Yes, Art and I both have classmates, long time friends, neighbors, relatives and extended family that brighten our lives here in Hawaii.  However, having these wonderful new friends really add such richness and happiness to our lives. 

And the best part in all this?  We all agreed we needed to do this again. 

Anti-Theft Bag for Travel

My daughter, Tiffany gave me this Travelon anti-theft bag for Mother's Day and I used it during our travel through the canyons.  I have to tell you I really loved it.

I was surprised that you could disconnect the strap and thread it through your chair back or whatever so nobody could steal it without anyone knowing.  The straps and bag bottom are slash proof. 

I guess what I really liked about it was the fact that it could fit my iPad in it.  It was a bit of a tight fit, but it fit.  The zippers could also be secured so it would make it difficult for somebody to quickly get their fingers in there to steal your purse.

It's too bad that we have to be so vigilant when we're walking about, but this did give me a bit more of a feeling of security.   I'm wondering if I should make it my everyday bag.  I might.

AARP's Money Saving Tips

I was reading our AARP (American Association for Retired Persons) bulletin and saw an article that I really enjoyed.  It mentioned 99 Great Way to Save.  We were already doing many of them, but I saw some interesting tips I thought I'd share.

*  Tax stuff:  Ask your tax preparer about claiming dependents for any family member you support and who live with you (including your parents).

*  Freebie-Depot.com, Mrfreestuff.com and Shop4Freebees.com offer samples of products and online coupons and rebates.  I looked at Mrfreestuff.com and there were a few I might look into.

*  If your shoes are wet from mud puddles or perspiration, wad up some newspaper and stick it in.  You can also put a charcoal briquette into a sock and put that in the shoe overnight to absorb moisture and odor.

*  You can keep deer away by pouring or spraying a "rotten egg" cocktail around your plants. Just mix six raw eggs in two gallons of water and let it sit outside for a week.  The smell will keep deer away.  Hmmm... That would keep me away too!

*  Weeds?  You can get rid of most weeds with sprays made from 1 gallon of white distilled vinegar mixed with 1 ounce of liquid dish soap.

*  Insulate your windows.  Cut a piece of bubble wrap, spray the inside of the window with a little water and apply the bubble wrap.  It's supposed to cling for weeks and comes off easily.

*  Use those cheap perfume sample inserts from magazines as bathroom air fresheners by putting them inside the cardboard toilet paper roll.

*  The best day to sell your home is Friday and the worst is Sunday.

*  Freighter Cruises?  They mentioned offbeat cruising at reasonable prices.  Check out freightercruises.com.  You travel with the crew and usually with very comfortable rooms.  I'm wondering about the word usually.

*  Fine wine savings can be found at bargain prices at AccidentalWine.com.  I checked.  It's still not cheap enough for us. They sell wines that are mislabeled or has something wrong with it.  I'm assuming the wine is good though.

*  Hotels and Motels:  LaQuinta Inns & Suites, Hampton Hotels, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites and Quality Inn offer guest free breakfast and free wifi.   We stayed at a bunch of Quality Inns during our canyon trip.  I LOVED the free wifi and the great breakfasts.  I would definitely recommend them.

*  Go out for lunch instead of dinner because it's cheaper.  We do that all the time.

*  Instead of individual gifts for each member of the family, purchase a gift card for the entire family.

*  Use GasBuddy or Gas Guru which are free apps for your smart phone to find the cheapest gas.

*  Go to aarp.org/2013almanac for a free e-book with fun facts, news and plenty of ways to save money year round.

If you'd like to see the whole article, you can click here:

http://pubs.aarp.org/aarpbulletin/20130708_DC?folio=21#article_id=310018

The Tour Group Phenomenom

We will be hosting a pot-luck party next month with all our China tour members.  This came about because as our tour to China was ending, several people mentioned how sad it was to think we wouldn't be seeing each other again once we returned home.  One thing led to another and we agreed to host a pot-luck party after we returned from the canyons national parks.

During our China trip, our group of 15 became very close.  We watched over each other, shared our medications and a sundry of other items.  The only thing we didn't do together was sleep.  Then again we did even that together on the bus.

I remember our first tour that we took many years ago to Turkey.  It was a very small group then too and we became good friends.  We e-mailed each other every so often until it eventually stopped.  I remember marveling to one veteran traveler who had been on many tours about all the lovely friendships we'd made.  He smiled a little sadly and perhaps with a little cynicism saying that friendships made on tours don't usually last. 

We found that it can be true.  It was the same when we went to Egypt and Jordan.  However, when we went to the Netherlands, we met Jean and Mike who had so much in common with us that we still communicate with and see each other when we're in each other's neck of the woods.

We couldn't have After Tour group parties on the mainland because those tours contained people from all 50 states.  On the Air and Sea China Tour, everybody was from this state.  We did have one couple who is from the Big Island and they've said they're going to try to come to Oahu to join us.

I guess that's what I've loved most about these tours.  It's fun to travel on your own, but I really enjoy the people we meet on tours.  I'm picturing my kids smiling knowingly right now.  They know it's what I actually enjoy most about travel.

Hawaiian Airlines Reimbursement

After losing our gate-checked, carry-on luggage at the start of our trip to the canyons last month and then having it sent back to us four days after our return, my daughter said I should find out if Hawaiian Airlines would reimburse us for all the extra things that we had to buy.

Neither Hawaiian Airlines nor American Airlines who mysteriously ended up with our bag mentioned anything about reimbursement when we were going through this hassle.

I called Hawaiian Airlines when we got back and the friendly woman I spoke to said I should send all the original receipts and reference number to the Claims Department.  She also said the Claims Department usually pays for only toiletries and clothing (not electronic things like our chargers) and that there is a per-day limit for the reimbursement.  However, everything is handled on a Case By Case basis.

Art NEVER throws out receipts from trips so we had every single one.  We itemized everything on a page, highlighted the receipts to show which were the reimbursement claim items and I wrote a letter.

I told them this was supposed to be mom's last dream trip and it was supposed to be perfect.  Instead we had to spend the first couple of days trying to locate chargers for cellphones and cameras as well as clothing and other missing items. I did also write that we love Hawaiian and would continue to fly with them, but was disappointed at how this was handled.

What a surprise!  We received a check from them yesterday.   They reimbursed us for everything including the expensive chargers.

They paid for all of Art's t-shirts and missed travel clothing, too.

We'd been pretty careful with our luggage in the past because we've traveled quite a bit and know bags can be delayed, but we have been getting lax lately.

So here's what we've RElearned and will once again be more diligent with.

1.  Make sure everything is labeled.  I've now made large labels with our contact information to put INTO the luggage as well as on the outside tag.  On the tag, however, I put only our e-mail address and cell number.

2.  Don't put everybody's things in individual suitcases.  Mix them up.  That way, if one luggage is lost, ALL is not lost.

3.  If you have a rolling luggage type carry-on which we just bought for the China trip, don't put your important things in there.  Put the important stuff in your backpack that you keep with you.

4.  Art doesn't like this idea, but I'm really going to INSIST.  We have to buy new luggage soon.  I'm going to buy luggage that is distinctive and annoying (OK, I'm exaggerating.) that I can spot easily on the baggage claim carousel.  I won't buy black!  I wonder if they make fuchsia luggage.  Like other people I try to tie a short colorful, noticeable ribbon on the handle.

5.  Keep photos of your luggage with you in case they lose it.

6.  Keep a list of the contents of your luggage. 

7.  If they lose your suitcase, do look into being reimbursed for their handling error.  And don't forget to keep your receipts.

Can you think of anything else?

Excessive Bird Feeding Bill Passed

I can't believe it.  It passed!

Although Hawaii's Gov. Neil Abercrombie vetoed three other bills,  he did sign another bill that outlaws the excessive feeding of feral birds as a public health nuisance.

We had a problem with a neighbor who was feeding pigeons which caused those feathered friends waiting for their breakfast and lunch to roost on our roof so they could see when he came out.  They pooped on our roof, on our solar panels and cars.  Finally Art and another aggravated neighbor went over and talked to him and the pigeon feeding neighbor very kindly stopped feeding the birds.  We still get birds who refuse to believe that the free meals have stopped.  However, it's not anywhere near what it used to be.

There were other people reported in the news who were suffering much more than us.  Their neighbor was feeding pigeons, doves, finches by the hundreds ruining their homes with bird poop.  I felt so awful for them that I did help by providing testimony for the bill as it was going through the State House.  I was surprised to get a thank you call from the woman who saw what I wrote on the online state website.  She even asked me to later write another letter to make sure the bill was signed by the governor and I did.

We heard on Wednesday that the law was passed.  I got a sweet e-mail from the woman who started it all that ended with, "Thank you again for your support.  This bill became law because of people like you who wrote or called in to show their support for the bill."
 
We are very lucky to have neighbors on our street who are kind to each other and try to help.  Sadly there are others who refuse to care about those around them.

For those people, I'm afraid we need laws.