I love Hawai'i! My favorite islands are Kauai and Maui. Kauai because it is more natural, or was when I was there many years ago, and Maui because it has a good mix of natural and more developed.
Kauai has several different areas with different scenery. For example, there is Waimea canyon, which looks a lot like the Grand Canyon, only with lots of greenery and rain. And Kokei Park is wonderful, too. When I was there, no roads went all the way around the island, so you had to plan going to one side on one day, and the other side on another. I don't know whether it is still that way. I hope so, actually.
Kauai is the wettest place on earth. The highest peak, Waialeale, gets over 400 inches of rain a year.
One of the things we did on Maui was to get up in the middle of the night and drive up Haleakala (the volcano) to see the sun rise from the crest. It was well worth it--but it's cold at the top! We also drove the road around the north side to Hana--it is a famously bad road...
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Pat, so sorry to hear about your brother. It sounds like he's been through a lot, and sometimes people figure that if nothing medical science can do will help, then why bother with herbal remedies. Of course, that doesn't prove anything about the herbal remedy. I imagine he's really sick of treatments of any kind.
Got a busy day today, but I actually had a weekend without much work, so that was great! I could really get used to days off again.
I didn't do so good today. The main reason, the scale was up 1 pound. Could I still be paying for that meal on Friday? So it sort of put my whole day off.
I was upset with myself all day, still am. I did so good this weekend, at least I thought so.
So I am so glad to be here though and hear all of the good stuff about Hawaii. Thank you very much! I told a lady at work that we were going there after she was telling me how she went to California over the Christmas Break. (Aren't I allowed to share?) I told her how fun her trip sounded too!So then there was a pause..., and she said, "I have NEVER wanted to go to Hawaii, it just NEVER has sounded like a place I wanted to go." What!? OK, if it had been me, and I really felt that way, I would not have shared that. Why do people feel the need to bring you down? My husband told me I should have said something not very nice, but even with 20/20 hindsight, I would not do that. So again, thank you for your positive thoughts!
I got my projects, 2, done at work today! Last year was my first year doing them, and it took me so much longer. Today, I just whipped through them. Guess I know what I am doing now!
We are expecting more snow tonight and tomorrow. I hope we have school, or we are going to be in session all summer if it keeps up! We have to make up any days over 5, and we are on our 4th, and it's only January 12th! A bus actually got stuck in the snow before picking up a load of kids at school today. I suppose it was better than having the load of kids on the bus and then getting stuck!
"Tomorrow is another day!" Thank you Scarlet... Have a good one.
Jen - we've already had all 5 of our allotted snow days. I'm hoping we don't get much snow with this storm coming in!
Don't fret over that lb. It could very well be water weight with the extra activity. That happens to me quite a bit. If you fret over the scale, it can really sabotage your efforts at losing. Just control what you can control - and unfortunately - the scale isn't something that can. I can't tell you how many times I've been perfectly on plan all week and the scale went UP. Usually the next week showed a nice loss (but not always).
Jay - your trip sounds like it was awesome! We haven't been there - but it is on our list of places to visit when we retire.
Linda - stay warm - hope you got all your errands done!
Gotta fly - church meetings went long tonight and DH is expecting me on the wii - more exercise for the rest of the night
Laurie- thanks for sharing your experiences with those up and down pounds. My scale is up a bit, but I'm back on program today now that we're back to our regular schedule.
Jen- You're going to love Hawaii, all the islands are special and wonderful. Too bad that lady had to be such a downer. The airplane trip is long, so take a good book and some sudoku puzzles to pass the time. Those healthy snacks are a great idea too.
In downstate Michigan we've only had one snow day. I think I love them more than my students do. An unplanned day-they're great.
Well I had a really BG day yesterday, thank heavens for another chance today. I turned into an eating machine for some reason, guess stress got me. In trying to get something Mom would eat, anything at this point, I ended up helping her eat I guess. The good news is she did eat again so now I'm not as worried about her.( She is going to be 87 next month)
Anyway thank you all for your thoughts, guess we're working through it...and I vow to do better for me too. Just have to controll what I can and let the rest go how it will....Again thanks for being here for me
We are getting the snow storm that was predicted. Added to the snow that was already on the ground from Saturdays snow storm! I had things to do today, not sure they will get done.
Jen, don't let the scale dictate how you feel. The scale lies, for different reasons. I know most of us still use the scale as a guide, but expect up's and downs. You can be holding water weight, you can be building muscle...just hang in there and the scale will move in the right direction! It's depressing when you do all the right things and don't get the results you want right away! But you can't controle what the scale says, you can only do what you can controle, eating and exercise. Wish I was going to Hawaii with you. It's something I plan to do someday too. Can't wait to see your pictures!
Lori, I'm sure you got the same snow storm we got Saturday and are getting today. Not enough for a school snow day, I don't think. But a lot to shovel. And horrible driving over the weekend. We stayed home Saturday. Just too bad to get out.
Trying, We all have "those" days sometimes. Caused by a lot of reasons, stress being one of the big ones. And every day is another chance to get it right.
Laurie, Buying suits again on E-Bay huh!!! Enjoying that new size huh? Good for you lady!!! Isn't it fun?
Lori & Freda - hope you are staying warm! It is mighty cold up here and the wind is NASTY!
I think some nice warm soup is on the agenda for supper tonight!
Pat - we all have those days where we just seem to want to eat all day long. I keep lots of fresh veggies around for that purpose. In any case - it is behind you. Just jump back on plan, and the damage will be minimal.
Freda - I AM enjoying this size. I am enjoying clothes actually looking good on me. I love shopping for clothes - something I used to DREAD! I am trying to pick classic pieces for the most part, but I must admit - I've thrown in several funky, trendy, fun items too. Working in a school allows me to view a variety of fashion ideas on a daily basis. I try to dress my age, but ...
Hi to everyone else! I have church meetings again tonight (like last night). So - I will catch up with everyone tomorrow.
We had rain here this afternoon. This front is so slow moving... by tomorrow night it will get cold here, and then we expect lows in the upper 30s. I know to you folks that's a joke! But for us poor little Floridians, it's cold... We do sometimes get lower than that, too. But, as most of you know, I have a fireplace and love to have a reason to use it on occasion.
CD, how fun to get new clothes! Hope you're staying warm... My problem when I'm munchy is that all the vegetables in the fridge don't help. It's like I'm after something... a sure sign that it isn't hunger... I'm looking for whatever-it-is in all the wrong places!
JLoubug, I would have asked that woman why she had no interest in Hawai'i... Just out of amazed curiosity! Sometimes people just think certain ways without any information. For example, I never in my wildest dreams ever considered Florida as a place to live... It just did not exist in my mind as having any merit... But the first time I visited, I thought... hey... hmmm...
Jay - good for you - look on the bright side - cold=fireplace
A good day here. I got "My Fitness Coach" for the wii - something to mix it up a bit. You go through a fitness test, take a bunch of measurements, then you get a computer animated "coach" that takes you through a workout. It varies each day, and you can choose the intensity of your workout, and the type (the coach recommended upper body workouts for me given my results - which is completely in line with what I need most).
I'm gonna add it to my arsenal of exercise strategies and use it 3 days a week for 30 minutes for the next month.
Hi all, Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr It's freezing! It is so cold here.
Jay I know 30 is cold to you because your body gets used to that warmer weather. I was very warm in Florida in the 80's just a week ago. It's below zero with the wind chill here. So Florida is sure sounds like a nice place to live right about now.
Laurie: I hope to follow in your footsteps and have fun buying new clothes in 2009.
I'm back on program and exercising so I hope to be successful this time.
Hi to everyone else.
Have a great day. Lori
Night before last, our heating unit tripped the circuit breaker in the middle of the night, so when I woke up it was pretty cold in the house. But I know it was not REALLY cold! I was just glad for that since the circuit breaker is located outside.
No clue on why it tripped. I have a feeling that when everyone in this neighborhood is running their heater, some sort of power surge thing happens.
I'm trying to figure out whether to change fitness clubs. I've belonged to Anytime Fitness for about a year now, but I would like to take some classes (which this AF does not have), have some different equipment, etc. There is a Lifestyle Family Fitness not too much farther from my house that has classes like step aerobics and so forth, rowing machines (which I love but are pretty rare), different kinds of weight machines than the ones at the other place, and a dry sauna in the women's dressing room! But, LFF costs about $14 a month more than AF does... so... What would you folks say about it? Is it worth making the change?
Getting there is no problem--as you know all too well, I go 5 times a week to whatever gym I belong to.
Here I am sitting and eating popcorn. I have the munchies really bad! Had a tuna steak and salad for dinner, still hungry. It could be worse. You are all right about that lb. Sorry I was so down. My pants were telling me something else. I am going to try to quit weighing myself daily. It really puts a damper on those days I don't see a loss. It will take some control, but I will do it.
So much for my projects. I got to work the next day and the lady has on my desk an updated report. Yesterdays was not accurate so "just throw that one away." So I redid it. Now it's done! (I hope)
Below 0 wind chills here. Tonight -15 degrees! Most of the school districts around us cancelled. Not us though! Maybe tomorrow. I do love the unexpected closings. I love it especially when I am just about to start getting ready and I get the text, "Closed." I'll take it even after I'm ready, but I love slow mornings.
I've been keeping up with my to do lists. I decided that I am not going to use my weekends for all of my house chores, so I divided them up during the week. It seems to be working out, but I may still have to tweak them a little. Sure I still have some things to do on the weekend, but not as much. More time for fun things to do. My sister says she refuses to do housework on the weekends, that is her time off. She has no kids or pets, and rarely cooks. Her house doesn't get as "used" as mine.
Tomorrow is Friday, and we are off Monday!!! (Maybe tomorrow too!) Long weekend! I'm going to have to start looking at my summer clothes to pack.
Have a good one everyone!
Lori - you WILL be buying clothes - just stick with your plan. I remember 215. Only 15 more to ONEDERLAND!
You can do it!!!! And we are gonna have a virtual party when you do!!!!
Jay - do you have to sign a long-term contract? If not, I would definitely move to the new gym. I find mixing things up is a key for me - on two levels. 1 - it keeps me motivated because I like new experiences and 2 - it keeps my body guessing - mixing it up with new moves really does help my fitness level. Will they let you try it for a month and see how it goes?
Jen - popcorn is my "go to" munch food. I love the mini (100 cal) bags. And, corn is a whole grain
I wish I got snow days off from work. I do like them, though, since my phone is quiet and I can get a lot done. We didn't cancel today - but we did have a two hour delay - I think so that the buses could get moving!
A good, but busy day here for me. Meetings all day and then I had to do teacher training after school for two hours. It was tiring, but I did manage to do 30 minutes on the wii, and will probably do an hour of tennis and bowling and the like with DH yet tonight. Good thing I had cooked ahead over the weekend!
Weight is still within a lb. up or down every day, so I think I got maintenance figured out! Until we travel next weekend anyway
It sounds like he's been through a lot, and sometimes people figure that if nothing medical science can do will help, then why bother with herbal remedies. Of course, that doesn't prove anything about the herbal remedy. I imagine he's really sick of treatments of any kind. 
-- it's cold and we got another six inches of snow overnight. 
It is mighty cold up here and the wind is NASTY! 
But, LFF costs about $14 a month more than AF does... so... What would you folks say about it? Is it worth making the change?