Halloween 2010

Banjo was our only trick or treater here at the cabin...he came calling this morning, and again tonight. He gets dry food in the morning and a treat of Friskies wet food at night. He still looks in suspiciously when he sees us in the kitchen....he remembers spotting Zorro walking around last Sunday.

It was a great Fall day today so after church Salem Stitcher, Go Postal, and Dairy Queen headed up to Hanging Rock. I haven't done much hiking this year and it was good to get some exercise a very clear day; we could see all the way to the Greensboro skyline from the top.

Then we had time to stop by and wish Bull (Jengo Fett) and Little Man (A Werewolf) a Happy Halloween and watch them and about 15 of the kids that live on their street take off on their quest for candy. Our Werewolf heard about a dentist that is offering money in exchange for Halloween candy....and he told me he wasn't eating any of his but turning it in for cash.

Good Reminder

I went to a training class for work last week, one of those motivational speakers that remind us about our "soft skills" The engineer in me always thought these were kind of a waste of time, I am not sure you can teach people to be nice and respectful and thus good leaders if it isn't already in them....but I digress.

The speaker gave credit to George Carlin for the following, and it struck me as funny since this was out of character for him, but also a great reminder of how I hope I am living......

* Spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever
* Say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side
* Give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent
* Say "I love You" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside you.
* Hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again
* Give time to love, give time to speak. And give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind
* Be a person of influence where people will come back to you

And for the Quilters

I took a two hour Hawaiian applique class on Friday afternoon, to mainly learn more about the history and techniques of these beautiful quilts. It was supposed to be a group of 6 but a few had cancelled and I had the instructor one on one. I selected a kit that already had a taro plant design cut out in green batik on a brown background knowing it would blend in with the cabin decor best. The Hawaiians all learned to needle turn mostly from missionaries from New England. Most of their patterns reflect plants and nature. They echo quilt once they are done, and don't cut away the backing like I have done before with freezer paper pieces. I liked not having to prep all thei pieces, but I would have to practive a lot to be able to turn in the sharp valleys and curves consistently. But I hope to complete my square and have a nice memory of our Hawaiian honeymoon.

We had time before catching our red eye home on Sunday and GP actually found an add for the Maui Fabric Mart. I didn't think it would be open but much to my suprise it was....and what we found was the Hawaiian version of Mary Jo's. I knew I was pushing the 50lb limit on our suitcase but couldn't resist buying some fun fabrics. They were all between $3.50 and $4.75 per yard...and were nice 100% cottons. The woody/surf board fabric in the upper left will be a shirt someday for GP to wear to car shows. The lower left has a postcard theme.....of course he liked that one too. The upper right hand fabric was very nice so I got enough to use in a back and the lower right hand jeep/palm tree fabric was so soft...I could resist buying the last yard and a half that was on the bolt. It is sometimes hard for me to know how to buy fabric when I don't have a specific project already in mind.....but I couldn't resist.

Ahhh Maui

Here are just a few of the shots from Maui. We had a great trip and decided to spend our whole week on Maui after seeing how high the inter-island flights were priced. But this gave us the opportunity to do ALL we wanted on the island. Here is a top-line agenda (mostly for me, because I know as I remeber back, it will be hard to keep it all straight)

Sunday - Arrived about 3:30pm which with the 6 hour time difference felt like 9:30pm to us. Got checked in and had an early dinner...then off to bed.

Monday- Got all our plans set for the week, excursions on the water and other day trips...explored the little town of Lahainia

Tuesday- Up at 3:15am to drive to the summit of Mt Haleakala to watch the sunrise. Unfortunately clouds blocked the sun's orb from peaking over the crater but it was still beautiful...and cold. It was in the 40's and windy at 10,000 ft. We then had time to visit Iao State Park on the West side.

Wednesday - Raft/Snorkel trip around the island of Lanai. I hadn't snorkeled in a long time and it was GP's first time. We saw all kinds of beautiful fish, green sea turtles and even a pair of Monk Seals (which the guide said are extremely endngered and rare to see) The water was cooler than we had expected, but it was a fantastic day.

Thursday - Road to Hana, we packed up the Jeep and did the 60 miles of curves and bridges as we stopped along the way to see the waterfalls and rugged coastline. Our day concluded with a dip at the seven sacred pools in Haleakala NP's rainforest. These pools cascade down the side of the hill in a series with waterfalls. Breathtaking...and refreshing!

Friday - Kayak/Snorkel trip to Turtle Town. Getting in and out of a kayak in the water with all your snorkel stuff on is a trip in itself. We saw bunches of green sea turtles hanging out on this part of the reef. Then I took a Hawaiian quilting class in the afternoon....don't think I will be a big needle turn applique person but I hope to finish the Taro leaf pillow I started. The day concluded with the Luau at our hotel.

Saturday - Learn to Surf Its not too hard if you have an instructor giving you a little push on your board and its about 8 ft long! GP had this on his bucket list.....so check that one off. The rest of the day we did a little shopping and watched the Sunset.

Sunday - We took a red eye home giving us plenty of time to take a helicopter tour of West Maui and the island of Molokai. It rained that morning delaying our trip so when we went at 2pm there were still a lot of clouds but we got to see more waterfalls and even a double rainbow! We had time to grab an early dinner of Mahi Mahi and chips and watch some sufers and kite boarders on the North side of the island where the trade winds are always ripping.

Our trip home was long....but now we are settling back into the cabin. I even made Gina's apple cake last night to welcome Fall in North Carolina. Trips like this one will stand out for us but we teased each other about coming home to paradise....it really is where I prefer to spend my time.