I was awoken, awoke…awoked, awakesd… woken up at the unmentionable hour of 7 am. The girls were all texting each other their plans for breakfast. I forget that they are still on mainland time, so 7 am feels like 10 am to them. I however, am set on the time zone of some distant island off in the South Pacific which is 3 hours behind Honolulu. I couldn’t go back to sleep so I reheated the burritos I made yesterday and watched Sons of Anarchy while Rebecca got ready.
We left around 9 (noon for the Seattle people, 6 for me) and went to target to buy some things and then settled in at the beach while everyone else waited an hour in line for a breakfast place. We got a great spot on Lanikai beach, set up our chairs and umbrellas and beach mats. We had applied sunscreen and had gone into the clear warm water and we sat in the sun for over an hour waiting for everyone to arrive. I soon got bored and took an inflatable ring out to the water and floated aimlessly. The dark ominous clouds had begun to roll in from the north blocking the healthy UV rays from blessing us with their radiation. Everyone showed up and I casually walked back to our encampment. After everyone had applied sunscreen, they made their way to the water. The men tossed a football while the girls clung together in a tight circle and talked about pregnancy, shopping, cookies, shopping, ribbons, jello recipes, and various cleaning products… or whatever it s broads talk about when they get together. After a while the ladies headed to the beach while the guys donned snorkeling gear and explored the mysteries of the deep. I looked up at one point and saw everyone else had gone ashore and they were packing everything up. I made my way to them and felt the warm tropical rain splatter against my muscular frame. Rebecca and I had brought enough chairs, inflatables and beach mats to accommodate the number of New England Patriots who don’t lie, cheat, or murder. Jim stayed behind and helped us pack and walk our stuff back to the car.
Most of the group headed up to the North Shore while Rebecca and I drove home to shower and make lunch. Brandon and Di had moved hotels and were now staying in town. Di and I were exchanging ideas for where to go for dinner on the drive home. We had finally decided on a time and place and then I promptly fell asleep. I woke up half hour later and tried to tell Rebecca about the plan, but half of my mind was still sleeping.
We met up with Brandon and Di at a Korean restaurant called Itchy Butt, it has a weird name, but the food is allegedly great. They do not have a dining area, as it is take out only, so we drove to Uncle Bo’s. I was nervous. I had been suggesting the place to them since they had arrived, and if they hated the food, I would have felt like I had let them down. We waited nearly 40 minutes for a table, and we were told that we could have the table, but only if we would be gone before 8 when it was booked with a reservation. Rebecca and I ordered a total of 4 appetizers, Di got the salmon and Brandon got the dynamite shrimp and pork sliders. They loved the food. Brandon said it was his second favorite place on the island next to Opals. I was so relieved.
We made haste to get to Waikiki to watch the fireworks, Rebecca and I made it in time, but Brandon and Di had trouble finding parking. They stopped their car and we piled in, drove in a few circles and then parked and went in search of the North Shore Goodies stand at the farmer’s market, but they were not there tonight. We decided to walk through Duke’s Lane and look at all the souvenir trinkets and then they dropped us off at our car. Once home, we noticed our bathroom sink was draining slower than my metabolism so I headed to the store for some drain cleaner and soda for breakfast.