Off the Beaten Path

Went for a run today - in the wind & rain. It felt great to be out in the cool, refreshing gusty air. Decided to take a few new streets I normally don't venture down and do a little exploring in my own neighborhood (well, sort of). I was amazed to see how many beautiful large new homes have replaced old broken down wrecks in the old part of town. At the turning point of my run, I came across probably the friendliest place on earth (well, maybe not). Approaching the long driveway there is a large board propped up against a coconut tree with a fair and seemingly innocuous request painted on it. "Do not pick coconuts" I can understand and respect that. Coconut poaching is a problem here. A few paces more and the full view of the expansive driveway opens up to reveal several additional requests & instructions. Warnings like "Never mind the dog, Beware of the owner", "You're being watched by security cameras", "One way in, no way out", "Stay in car Wild dogs running" "Do not take surfboards. You will be 'Shot' Wounded be 'Shot' again" and the most memorable one said "If you're not blood, you will bleed" I'll just let you enjoy the scene for yourselves.

I'm a sucker for amusing signs and found this scene very amusing. I'm not sure the owners would appreciate me posting pictures of their fiercely private property so I'll just leave the location unnamed. For fear of being shot, wounded and shot again. :)

I met my goal of improving on my previous time in the Great Aloha Run again this year. It was my 8th time participating in the 13K fun run and I've improved every year with last year being the one exception. I slipped backwards by about 24 seconds last year but more than made up for it this year coming in 1:30 faster than my previous best. This, for a self-proclaimed lifelong non-runner (my abhorance of running in my youth was one of the many reasons I took up swimming as a sport), after spending the weekend playing on the Big Island and flying to HNL 11 hours before the race began, discovering my i-pod had no power remaining as I walked up to the starting line and stopping for hugs with my favorite fans mid-race.
Coming in at 1:25:58 this year was a proud and exciting moment for me. Now I've broken the 1:25 barrier I can't wait to see how I do next year. After the run, we went back to our hotel near the airport and cooled off in the pool.
I'm all out of order here so let's hop back to Kona, where our great little Valentines/President's Day weekend trip began. The reason for the excursion was to go to the Temple with our friends Henny & Gen and their kids who were eternally sealed together as a family in a sacred ceremony on 2/14/09. It was beautiful and such a happy occasion. The rest of the weekend was spent mainly in the many waters of the Waikoloa resort with our FHE gang. We attended the Kona Stake Conference Sunday morning and saw some old school friends then took a little drive (1.5 hrs) down to South Point to visit the most southern point in the US. Took a couple pictures of the cliff divers, of the wales breaching and of the awesome waves pounding in the high winds. It was breath-taking. Here's a sample of our weekend in Kona, HI.

Every Valentine's Day at Zana's school they hold a "Sweetheart Lunch" where the parents come and eat with their kids. It's kinda a big deal. This year they had members of the National Guard serving in the kitchen and while waiting for the kids to show up, they were dancing with the teaching staff to the slow jams being blasted by the DJ in the room with his massive sound system. It's always fun to see the kids get all excited when their parents arrive. At the same time, it's a little heartbraking to see the few kids whose parents can't make it. Their little faces can't help but seep their disappointment. I'm so grateful both my husband and I work close to home and can be involved with our kids for special events like this.