balancing act July 24, 2007

check this out.

i challenge any and all of you to stack dishes
higher than this! it will be an insurmountable
and dangerous task!!

all of you without a dishwasher know
just what this is about.

now, look closely.  this stacking
takes skill.  the clear blue cup
on the left and the cloudy blue cup
in the middle are hanging on knives.
there is a clear measuring cup on
the right hanging on a metal spatula.
there are two cutting boards and a
cookie sheet in the mix, as well as a
pot, a blender hanging off the edge
and half a drawer of silverware
in the holder on the end. 

it doesn’t get any better than this!!

now all you who wish to take the
“stack it like lisa” challenge must
be safe because safety has no quitting time!
and you must abide by a few simple
rules. please write to me for the rules
if you are interested.

now let the trash talk begin…
provided by julie:
“they can’t do it!  no one can do it!
they only dream of stacks this high!
anyone can stack cups, but we’re talkin’
multiple shapes and sizes!!

bring it on baby!!”

trinity July 24, 2007

three sundays ago i visited
First Presbyterian Church of Honolulu.

i went to the 8am service.  the drive was
so worth getting up at the crack to get
there on time.

two sundays ago i visited trinity presbyterian church
it is on the same side of the island as first prez.
so the drive was magical!

i loved trinity. it was small and friendly.
the pastor was the first person i met.
he talked to me a long time and knows
all about redeemer and tim. 
he made sure to adjust my expectations
before the service began.
“this is not new york city, and i am not tim
keller” he said.  “and i’m not asking you to
be” was my response.

i met three or four people before the service
even began. all asking where i was from and 
when i told them i’d just moved from nyc the
all asked of i was a member of redeemer. 
i was happy to say “YES!!” and that was enough
to carry the conversation a while.
anne, the book table lady, and her husband
seemed especially glad to talk to me.
i was thankful anyone talked to me at all!

there was liturgy, sweet music, a time for the
children to come up and hear a short message
from the pastor, todd. there was a time where the
congregation gave prayer requests and then todd
led a time for the prayers of the people.
my favorite part was right before the sermon when
todd read a question from the heidelberg catechism
and we answered it in unison.  the music was full
and appropriate. 
            the back wall is 60-70% windows!!

it looks out onto the mountain covered with thick, lush,
green plants and trees. i was mesmerized by the
greenery flowing with the wind.  i could have sat
there all day!

a lady came to talk to me during the greeting time.
she was from new york!!  she was born and
raised on the upper west side!!!!  she asked me to
sit with her and her husband, so i did.
she leaned over to tell me little tidbits about the
people and their history throughout the prayer
request time.  like her.  troy, is her name.

then she introduced me to about 80% of the
people left in the sanctuary after the service.

the pastor wrote me an email to say hello and
thanks for visiting. he asked me over to have
lunch with his family when his wife returns from
a trip.  i was really blessed and amazed with
how lovely the people i met at trinity are.

i look forward to returning this sunday.

surfing 101 July 24, 2007

jeff, julie’s big brother is in town.
so we went surfing!
it’s much much harder than it looks.
duhhhh!!

something we CAN do is look cute on
a surf board. (see pics below for the
cuteness)

we decided to go to waikiki to surf.
this was not the best of ideas. the
waves were lame.  so we ended up
sitting on our surf boards for a couple
of hours with lots of other people…
it being waikiki and all.

i’m not so good at surfing yet.  i
caught one or two waves, but only got
up once… it was pretty shaky and
i didn’t ride the wave for long.

but, the board shorts and rash guard
were fun to wear. (i’m such a girl)

this story is to be continued…

i WILL improve.

(setting: jeff, julie, and lisa way out
in the water waiting and watching for
waves)
lisa: so jeff, how’s it goin’?
jeff: well, i haven’t fallen off my
board in 3 minutes! (from a sitting
position in virtually flat water)… s p l a s h
julie and lisa: ha ha ha hee hee ha ha

it was straight from the funnies in the sunday
paper. can you see the conversation bubbles?

this is sweet julie and her wonderful
brother, jeff. we all went to church
together in high school and college.
we spend almost every friday night
together. bible study, eating, and fun.

i love the repass family!
funny
smart
witty
genuine
good bargain shoppers

manoa valley public library July 24, 2007

today julie and i took a trip to
the library.

we were laughing and the librarian
gave us the stink eye…as if laughing
were prohibited…who can shut down
our laughter??  no one!!

we browsed through the dvd section.
of the three we checked out
i am most excited about watching
extraordinary animal behavior
they have a large bill nigh the science
guy section.  i will be checking out
from that section soon.

we also checked out anne of windy poplars.
julie was hurt and offended that it was
not in the “classics” section.  we started
reading it as soon as we got in the car.

the whole time i thought about erica and
kj.  no one loves the library like those two.
i should have left with a whole canvas bag
o’ books in true kari jo fashion, but i did not.
one day.

July 14th July 23, 2007

not to freak you out,
but
july 14th was

O V E R  R E A C T I O N   D A Y ! ! !

julie and i observed the holiday.
i must give credit to brianne and meghan
for having the first overreaction day
several months ago on the streets of
new york.

our overreaction day was placed on
the calendar the first week i moved here
when i accidentally overreacted about
something.  it’s now strictly observed in
our apartment.

our overreactions included fake hyperventilating,
lots of shouting (in glee and anger), a seizure or
two, and fainting. It was very fun, but I must
warn all who plan to participate;
there will be some residual that
shows itself for a few days afterward, so be
prepared.

since july 14th when one of us gets overly
excited about something we say, “what
is this, overreaction day?” and it gives
a nice calming effect… and is always
good for a laugh!!

here julie is hyperventilating into my bag.

in this photo i have fainted.  it felt good to use
my fainting skills.  some of you know these
skills all too well!

i invite you all to participate in your
own overreaction day.  please let me
know how it goes. 

warning: those of you with younger children
may want to refrain from overreaction
day for several years, as the overreacting
may not ever stop once it starts.

Ko’Olina July 18, 2007

yesterday julie and i ventured to
the western part of the island.
there is a group of resorts with
4    L A G O  O N S

pros:
lawn chairs
grass
nice bathrooms
unbelievably beautiful

cons:
no waves
all tourists
no waves
no waves
no waves

  

we lazily floated in our pink rafts, got
lots of sun, and read more of anne.
i was rebellious and refused to put
sunscreen on. 

my little pony happily drove us home
with a thin layer of salt crusting on
our skin and our shoulders a light shade
of pink.

it was a good afternoon.

3/4 mile July 16, 2007

that’s approximately how far i walk,
on average, from the place i park on
the street to my floor at work in
the hospital.

it’s a nice walk.  please take this
journey with me through photos.

the view of the city from my driveway.

after i park and walk down the street
past houses and apartment buildings
i pass this park.  i do not know what
happens in this park becuase I walk
by it too early or too late in the day.

then i come to a beautiful church that
looks like a retreat house tucked back
in the forest. 

next is a tall apartment building with a
waterfall in the front.

    

a bit down the road the sidewalk curves
under low hanging trees with benches
along it.

i am almost there, but to make it to
the home stretch i have to cross over
the highway.  don’t worry, there are
well marked crosswalks here.

so, now i’m at the hospital and i
walk down a path lined with
leafy green plants to the main
hospital entrance.

at the end of the day i do it all in
reverse, in the dark. this can get a
bit tricky if i don’t quite remember
exactly where i parked.  it’s an
adventure every single day!!

hazzelelponi July 16, 2007

1 chronicles 4:3
this is the name of my new ride.
julie and i are calling her
my little poni for short.

yesterday she found me.
a black 95 isuzu rodeo

i’m so thankful!!

i’m so thankful July 12, 2007

a few things on today’s list:

i get to live with julie all my days
in hawaii!!  Y E A H ! !
i like my new hospital
i get to borrow a car until i can
find one to buy
the car i’m driving has not been ticketed,
towed, or stolen yet
i can get redeemer sermons online
(the perfect way to spend a sunday afternoon)

“Rejoice in the Lord always; and again
I say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness
be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;
do no be anxious about anything, but in
everything by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving let your requests be made known
to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses
all understanding, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4:4-7

ways to tell July 12, 2007

that i’m in hawaii…

the physician tells the mom before a
bowel procedure, “Do not feed your
child anything except breast and coconut milk.”

medications are not flavored cherry
or grape, but pineapple.

the pastors of a church i visited wore
aloha shirts and lays.

we sang the doxology in hawaiian.

when I wake up and it’s raining my thought
is not, “oh darn, it’s a rainy day!” but “oh, no
worries, it will stop in about 30 min.”
it’s never gray and cloudy here all day like
some places i know and love.

one out of every 4 tattoos i see are
of the state of hawaii. a popular tat
for both men and women.

Children who can hardly walk are taught
taught to walk in flip flops.  they are
the official footwear of the state…in my
opinion.
90% of the shoes on our shoe rack
are flip flops.

well…90% of julie’s shoes are flip flops.
my shoe rack is still adjusting to life in
hawaii. do you see those two pairs of
heels on the left?

beach of the day July 10, 2007

W A I M E A

it’s on the north shore. 
to get there we passed the dole
plantation. we saw coffee bean
plants and pineapple plants
from the road.

it is an A M A Z I N G beach! 
judge for yourself.

safeway July 10, 2007

our grocery list for today:

acai
egg whites
whole wheat english muffins
light soy milk
baby greens
spinach
onion
bananas
low sodium chicken broth
reduced fat mayo
tuna
protein powder
protein bars
turkey breast
chicken breast
pork tender loin
trays and trays of pastries

we went to the local health food store
and safeway and successfully shopped through
our list. we only forgot one thing on the list.

new to me July 10, 2007

julie and i saw an infomercial on tv
the other night for lip fusion.
it’s a lip plumper. we stopped by
sephora at the mall to try it. it works
           …we think
neither of us have lips that
are tragically thin, so we are not 100%
sure it did it’s job.  julie’s were noticeably
larger because she she had to wear a
hot fusia color.
it’s worth a try for all you girls near a sephora.

julie has introduced me to a new japanese
ice cream treat. it’s call mochi. a ball of
ice cream wrapped in a sort of chewy 
thin rice flour dough covering.

it delicious! We tried
green tea
espresso (my favorite so far)
strawberry dark chocolate
guava
peanut butter chocolate
french toast

i found these glasses in a box on julies book
shelf. what do you think? a bit librarian?
or is it velma from scooby doo?

julie and i have a few new traditions that
are new and fun:

bedtime routine
we turn on some shane and shane, brush
our teeth, (julies does stuff to her face and
i watch her from my bed), and then we turn
off the lights and usually have something
funny to laugh at on our way to dreamland.

beach/car time
julie is a big fan of anne of green gables
…as am i
so when we are in traffic or laying on the
beach one of us reads anne aloud.  we
giggle at the funny parts and talk over
what’s happening in the story.

car trips
when we are on our way to the beach
or to do something fun, we decided to
always put on the same song for the first
song of the trip…    are you ready for this???

                       gettin jiggy wid it  
thank you will smith!!!
that’s right! i can get out about 60% of the
words and julie is learning.  we sing loud
and dance in our seats.  are you picturing it?

my first day July 6, 2007

Monday was my first day of work on
the unit.

i like this hospital. a few reasons
(all of you nurses will understand)

*bbg
*ora-sweet
*tympanic thermometers
*chloraprep
*syringe pumps
(shall I go on??)

the new job situation is all so much
better than it would be without those things.

so far i’ve met very nice people, but no
‘kindred spirits’, as anne would say.
i could be surprised by a wonderful friend
at any turn. i am hopeful.

all the kids and parents call the nurses
“aunty”.  i, who enjoy nicknames, really
like this one. it’s very sweet.

a few old school practices
*paper kardex
*supplies charge stickers used to bill pt’s
*pagers carried by the nurses instead of phones

 there is one major problem with my new place
of employment…
now you all know how much i like to wash my hands
and you also know how many paper towels i use…
well, they have automatic paper towel dispensers
which means I only have time to get two or three
paper towels with each hand washing. 
This is t o r t u r e for me

t o r t u r e

once i get the computer systems (yes, that is
plural) i will be golden.

are you ready for a sad story?
there is no parking at the hospital for the
day staff. (well, there is, but it’s the public
parking and it costs $20/day) so we have to
find street parking. the police are strict here
on parking. if you are not in the right place
you WILL get towed and/or ticketed with
very little mercy.

i, understanding the above statement, leave my
house 45 min early to give myself time to find
parking. oh, by the way, i only live a couple of miles
from the hospital. i look and look and look. finally i
find a spot far far away. after the 15 min walk, i
get to the unit exactly on time.

i go to work. i have a fine, but mildy lonely first day.

i come out and start looking for my car. it’s dark.

i can’t find it. “is it towed? is it stolen? did i park it
here? or there?”

so i call julie to come get me. we drive around the
neighborhood for a while looking for the car and
finally find it!!

on the drive home i called the nursing friends
i missed dearly at that moment. neither were
available.

“hi, brianne. sniff sniff  it’s lisa. sniff. i just
finished my first day of work. it was fine,
but i’m just a little sad. lip quiver  i was just
missing you and thought i’d call.”

“hi meghan, it’s me.  my first day of work is
over. everyone is nice, but no kindred spirits.
i miss you. sniff sniff…tear  i lost my car. but
found it. give me call when you get this. sniff“

it was a pretty pathetic scene, i must confess. 

boy, did i wish i had my girls from work at my
side that first day. i’d give a lot to have louis
from work there as well. Thanks for making
my time at NYP so wonderful!!!

beaches July 1, 2007

julie and have visited four beaches
since i’ve moved here.

kailua- julie’s favorite beach

beach mat, towels, book, iced water.
playing in the waves. i accidentally
body slammed julie like in nacho
libre. we were trying to swim through
a big wave.  any minute now we are
going to reenact that on land.

sandy’s

this is a beach mostly visited by
locals
huge powerful waves
dangerous
scary

julie was not feeling well, so she stood
with her feet in the water while i went
in to get
T H R A S H E D
i had a boogie board and a pounding
heart.  the only thing i did on the
wave was get in the way of the locals.
after a truckload of sand in my suit
and h a i r (that i am still scratching out)
and a belly full of ocean water we left.

waimanalo

it was portuguese man of war day
on this beach. they are little floating
creatures that sting you. when it’s
windy they get blown in.
(see local or tourist for the story
on this beach)

waikiki

we ventured out on a saturday in
the land of the tourist. 
crowded
south shore swell
bigger waves than normal

our entertainment on the beach for
today were
b i g   p i n k   r a f t s
(thank you walmart)

it started out innocent enough.
we were not out to hurt little
children or elderly people.
we have no beef…we also don’t
have eyes on the back of our heads.
here is where the problem lies.

we catch the wave as it swells
and breaks onto the beach.
then we get washed onto the shore
in our  b i g   p i n k   r a f t s…which
= b i g  p i n k  f u n!!

so julie caught the first big wave.
unfortunately she mauled a young
boy by going over the top of his head…
he came up out of the water and while
rubbing his head he said,
“ouch!!  that sucked!!!”
julie said, “that was really fun!
except for the mauling part!”

we continued this for a couple of
hours and had several close calls
with the crowds. 
this is a dangerous sport.
you have to catch the wave at the
perfect time.  if you don’t you get
thrashed and you eat sand. we later
built a sandbox in our shower with
all the sand from our suits.

but it all came to a climax
when once again julie caught
a beautiful wave. she was riding it
up on the shore when a nice, tan,
older, balding gentleman probably
from southern europe wearing a red
speedo tried to enter the water.
her raft was set on it’s course with her
back to the man.  there was no hope of
avoiding a collision. she clipped him right
below the knee and he topples over her in
a somersault. his head flips over and hits
her knees and into the water. 
thankfully he thought it was
almost
as humorous as we thought it was.