The New Year Begins

How do we do it?


Dwane and I have been together for almost 14 years. We knew each other since we were well into our middle age. Now, we're really hitting the wall . . . okay, kidding.


Sitting in the new part of the lobby, the Sand Bar moved to, I feel, a nicer location. It sure was fun. Poor Dwane had a slight cold, but he fared well, seeing in the new year.


What the heck was I smiling so much about?







Gundy's picture.


Though he passed on, his spirit is with us still. We dressed him up for the new year.


What a guy.













Happy New Year Bob! Love the hat.









Of course, you can't have a celebration without our bud, Tom.

Happy 2007 everyone.

Can we hold off on the drinking for a while? I'm really think we need to exercise some temperance.

Who laughs!!?

The year ends in a month and though the year trembled with all this activity, it seems like nothing has been accomplished. Oh yes, there have been met goals, but the main project, the Condo, is far from completed.

Last night, the newly, partially installed wall bed (Murphy Bed) finally gave up the ghost and buckled under my grandoise body. We are back on the floor . . . practically. I was fit to be tied. Sorry about the cliche.

It does nothing for the morale, let me tell you.

Dwane tried to soothe my feathers, but I would not have it. I had to take a walk. That was around 1 A.M. I finally had to opt for the couch if I was going to get any shut-eye. I managed to work in one hour of sleep before coming wide awake again at 3 A.M. It's going to be a jungle of a day. Yikes, another cliche.

Oh, all right . . .

Politics . . . Gawd, I hate it, yet I can't escape participating in it. As an American citizen, I must participate. If I don't, then how can I complain, right?

It's election day (night), and the Democrats look to be winning the Federal House of Representatives. In fact, I think they just got the majority in the House. Bully. I hope they do a better job than the previous yahoos who were voted out.

You have to admit, the Repubs made a mess of things Why? Their leanings toward the religious right? Maybe. I mean, the legislators brought up a bunch of bills pertaining to individual's rights, the Terry Schiavo thing, the gay thing, and so on, all with the religious being involved. I got tired of the podium being turned into a pulpit.

Iraq? How's that for a mess? So many young kids dead or maimed because of a lack of material and quality equipment and because of bad decisions, lies, oil, big business. Can we win this war against terrorists? Maybe, if terrorists were attacking America. So far, the only terrorists are attacking their own people. The Dems had better have a plan. If not, then we may have to boot them out too. Maybe we could try Perot's party . . . what were they called?

Dems dominate Hawaii's political scene. This bunch is a real disappointment. Aimless and fat and sassy. They are so indecisive on issues that a snail can beat them in a race. The Republicans are as pathetic as their compatriots on the mainland, catering to the store front Christian sects who use tactics that cause most honest Christians to blanch in disbelief!

Let's see how the voting tallies tomorrow. I wonder if it will be a stunning show like when Bainum thought he was winning when, instead, Muffy won. I see comedy on the horizon.

Waikiki Sand Bar

was finally rebuilt in a different part of the lobby, farther toward the pool.

Athena was desparate for a kahu to bless the bar, she had it was christened by a Christian priest of the Nazarene sect. Interesting the Nazarenes. They were so pentecostal once, now they act like they are Methodists, or Presbyterians. They aren't the Nazarenes of the 1st Century Jewish sect, just goyim.

Mom is Nazarene, so was Gramps, her daddy. If Gramps were alive today, he'd shake his head in disgust because they were into "forms" of religion and did all for show and not from the heart. Is it any wonder I returned to the Hebrew practice?

It's all clanging cymbals to me.

Happy Birthday To Me

It's not often someone turns 56 and end up having it shaken apart.

I was lucky yesterday. Living in Waikiki is a long way away from the Big Island. The quake shook us up a bit, but no real damage really.

I saw birds taking off in droves just before the shaking began. I didn't realize the portent of it until then. Spooky. The building shook and swayed and standing was next to impossible here on the eighth floor. No, I wasn't drunk though that happened much later in the day when I joined some friends at the Sand Bar.

I saw pictures on the news. The devastation was really minor, compared to some of the stuff I used to witness in California. Still, it was sad for the people who have to deal with it.

Too Much To Ask For

I suppose it was too much to expect for this vacation.

Utz has yet to finish the bedroom. We're putting in a Murphy bed and the parts are either not right, or there isn't a hole here, or there and there is something wrong with the bed size. It goes on and on and poor Utz is about to have a heart attack.

Of course, Dwane and I are sailing through all this with heads held high, sleeping on the floor of our bedroom on our brand new mattress, sans the bed's platform, and a working Murphy bed. (Sigh)

My gawd, has this been going on since May? Oy.

The Long Hot Summer

When Utz and his bunch finished the kitchen and bathroom work, they started on the living room, adding the entertainment cabinet, then in the bedroom, working on the closet modules and more wall cabinets.

Looks like a good job to me, the Murphy bed, however, is proving a lengthy, drawn out task, not just for us, but for Utz. I'm surprised he's not buried a few suppliers along the way. If he did, I don't wanna know. Never tick off a German contractor. You could lose your life! I speak this because I really like Utz. A real character, this man.

After numerous false starts and many lies by the bed people (I forget the name of the store) we are now given the song and dance that we won't get our cabinet doors for the murphy bed cabinet until 9/15/06. Let's see, we begun all this back in May? Shoot me.

I doesn't help when you're enjoying a sinus infection either with sawdust everywhere and there's a pile of used kleenex on the floor next to your mattress that is sitting on the floor. Pretty picture that.

Family Reunions

Looks like we won't have one this year, as planned. I tried contacting my cousin about it, but had little luck. I checked the family website and found an email about her having some bad times. I didn't want to dig in on that one. I've learned to wait for the rest of the news, if they wanted to fill me in. And when you think about it, it is NOT my business. I just hope she is doing better now and that she's all right. Perhaps another time for a reunion.

Leaving on a jet plane

Well, it looks like the kids won't be staying on the island after all. Crap. J won the battle, though he is supposed to cover the court costs. I seriously doubt that he will come through and make good on the court order.

I could wax philosophically and say that it wasn't meant to be that my little buddy stay on the island, but that would be absolute b.s. The boy loves it here and no one is listening to him. His silent tears told us that much when he found out that he was supposed to leave.

Oy, Valerie is leaving tomorrow . . .

Kasper will follow soon after. The condo will be quiet, save for the renovation going on around here.

Last Nail In the Wall

Utz and his team of workers finished the kitchenl and bathroom, working till 7:30 in the evening. For me, that was late. For Utz, it was relief. They worked hard today, starting at 9:30am, late for them, a panic for us. We thought, for sure, they would be later. The water was turned off at 9am and set to go on again at noon. The plumber was to blame. Damn them.

Pictures of the before and after are out of the question. Had the kids not been the more important issue these past couple of months, it would have been a joy to take pictures. No, not this time.