My First, First Friday

So like the title says, this weekend was "first fridays" as first friday of the month. So on these fridays in downtown Honolulu there are all sorts of cool and crazy things that happen. All these art galleries open up, people start performing street skits, poetry readings, wine tastings, and all that kind of really cool stuff. It also happened to be Chris' friend's birthday... Frank. Anyway after work Jess and I caught the bus to downtown where we met up with Chris and Frank and their friends... Jess and I also met our first person from NC here. She is from Concord and her name is Brittany. She works with Frank and goes out with some Navy diver guy who gets to dive on the USS Arizona at special times and said maybe I could go if he can get me clearance. Holy crap that would be amazing... so Jess and I get there right when happy hour is ending at this place called Indigo's. We hang out for just a bit and then leave and go to this really cool bar, Bar35. It was awesome and it had this outdoor patio where we all chilled most of the time under this cool tree and it was just a really chill and cool place. They had christmas lights up in the tree and all that kinda cool stuff. They had alot of Hawaiian beers I hadn't tried before so I sampled a few of those! Pretty much just drank beers there with my friends, drank a few too many and went home after that barfed in the drive way after the fun taxi ride with Jess and went to bed. Ha ha!

The next day Jess and I went with Frank - from the above story and we all went Boogie boarding at Waikiki. We went to the Waikiki Pier and even jumped off of it into some coral. Then we swam to the right of it and started catching big ass waves. We were even able to catch a few waves that got us over a sea wall, even though I ran into the wall a few times thinking I was going to clear it. Had a really cool time and boogie boarded all day, went and go some Wellbento - not sure how to explain this if you haven't eaten at a plate lunch place here in Hawaii... but its a plate lunch, but healthy for you made out of Tofu, Temphe and stuff like that - organic and vegetarian stuff because I found out later that Frank was a vegetarian which is really cool. We grubbed out on Wellbento went home and chilled out and went out again to Waikiki but ended up leaving early because it was kinda lame and Jess lost her phone and that sucked.

Then Sunday Jess and I cleaned the house and it rained alot, we made everything look nice in the house and did wash and all that good stuff. We wanted to go to the beach but were babysitting dogs and talking to people on the phone, esp skyping with the parentals. But later that afternoon we hung out with our friend Jonathon who took us to Makapuu's again and this time Jess came. I got into the water and into the waves right away but Jess was having trouble getting in because the waves are so big and they were knocking her suit off and knocking her down. So she went and chilled on the beach. I went out and got passed the monsters and rode a big wave all the way back to shore and then go Jess to come try to get back out with me. She eventually made her way out with my help and Jon's help, but we got her out. Once you get out its easy, but getting passed the breakers is hard! We rode waves til dark when the sharks come out and caught a wave in and that was it. Jon's Benz runs on bio-diseal which is like veggie oil instead of diseal fuel. He is big into conservation and optimization of enviroment, growing your own food, etc. He is really cool! Anyway we come back eat pizza and pass out and that was my night.

The next day was spent on the beach at Waikiki and chillin enjoying my day off of work. Columbus day is a Hawaiian holiday which rules! But yeah that was all I did. I did get a rice cooker from Linds and now that I have that I can have cooked hot steamy rice whenever I want it. This is cool because now I can cook some good ass chicken mix it with rice and veggies and bam I have a good meal. Yeeeeah! Thanks Linds... Jon and Fan said I am now officially Asian!

So thats about it other than work today was pretty lame. Ive been working on a huge mail merge database and its nuts. Other than that im passing out... finally took pics of the fish tank! Its a bowfront 35gal! African Cichlids and I have a pair of electric yellow haps that just mated and I have about 5 baby fish that are getting bigger daily and now swim around the tank. They hide in the coral head but come out to eat flakes... really cool to watch them grow. Night!

Big Waves

So its been a while since ive updated this and I figured it was a good time to def. get my ass in gear and write something on this blog. So there has been a lot of things that have gone on since the last time I wrote. Yeah thats about a month now that I have been absent from writing what I am doing and that just won't cut it anymore. I am going to take time to update this thing even if I don't really want to. But I am. Its going to be like excercise... no one wants to do situps and shit but they do it, well not really but im going to try. Ok... so recap since getting a job.

First in my job... I am being trained to do something totally different than I was hired to do. Its crazy. Its entertaining and its a very relaxed atmosphere unless your bank is being audited by OTS and things get kinda hectic... you are put in charge of managing a huge database, your kicking ass and then the violations your bank gets are retracted and you and your team of new friends and co-workers helped to save the bank alot of money... its pretty cool.

Linds came and visited and we had a complete blast! I was able to get a few days off of work that overlapped into a weekend and it worked out perfectly. We had a great time with many trips to the North Shore - Sunset Beach, Sharks Cove, and Waimea Bay. We had an awesome time snorkeling and checking out awesome fish at Shark's Cove and Waimea Bay... and we ate the best coconut shrimp that ive had in a while on Sunset Beach. We also checked out Waimea Falls and it was a pretty cool area I hadn't been. We also had a crazy night where we went with some of my friends to a club named Lotus and had a complete blast. It was so much fun and the drinks before hand reminded me of a special time when Linds got me wasted at a bar at the airport coming back from Marco's Island Fl... ha ha ha :) We kept getting these rum and cokes and they were so good - they were perfect and then bam im sitting on a plane trying not to barf! LOL So yeah it was so awesome to have Linds here and I wish I could convince her to move out here... but she has to work and blah blah blah... so I guess thats a maybe?

Anyway ive also been doing alot of activities... Going out and boogie boarding alot and learning to catch different types of waves. Its so weird trying to catch waves here, or just to me obviously because im so used to NC waves. Our waves on the east coast come at you, you get in them and bam... your riding the wave no problemo... And thats the only way ive ever known. But now, its different! TOTALLY DIFFERENT! You have to watch the waves and you have to learn the bitches! You also have to catch them far in advanced or be prepared to be in the exact spot where they are about to break. They are sneaky, BIG, did i mention BIIIIG! Deadly, and sooooooo much fun to ride on! That it makes it all the worth while to get your ass out there and ride them!

I went to this place Makapuu's with my friends Fan, Son, Chris, and Frank. I work with Fan and Chris at the bank and they are my boys! Anyway... They took me to this place where the waves were HUUUGE! Ive never been in waves that big in my life! It was so awesome and crazy I couldn't believe it! First I was the dumb white boy. After receiving about 100 lectures about how dangerous and strong the tide and the rocks and blah blah blah. I decided fuck that I can do this shit... and ran out there only to get my ass pounded over and over and over and over by these huge ass waves. I couldn't even get past the breakers and it was a 5 steps forward 100 steps back kinda deals. I mean these waves were like huge angry fists! They would come after me with a set of like 10 right hooks and by this time I was so exhausted I was like whoa man... I can't get past these things. I come back to shore and sit on a rock and watch the waves and notice a place where they weren't smashing people like me. I was getting what felt like being put in a washing machine, spun around, slammed into the sand for what felt like forever under water... just being held there swashing all around and not knowing which way is up because this wave was so big that it just crushed your little white ass under its 30 foot glory!

So yeah... I eventually beat the breakers, got out there, rode some monster waves and had such a blast I couldn't get over it. Its insane to ride a wave as long as you can here! I can catch a wave and cut in and out and back and forth and ride it all the way back to the beach if i want... its so awesome! I have even been getting Jess to go out and do it with me. Trying to teach her how to ride the waves here too and we are getting better. We went to Waikiki and caught some fun waves this past Saturday. It was so much fun and we were catching waves that went straight at a sea wall. The waves were big enough that when they hit the sea wall they would create something like a reverb wave. It would come back out at you. So there were several times when waves would come in big sets like 4 one after another. If you caught the middle waves of the set you could come down the wave into one of those reverbs and jump it like a ramp and catch air! My friend Frank and I were also able to actually clear the sea wall. Needless to say we are having a blast boogie boarding and this can only mean one thing. As soon as I get a surf board its on!!!

Anyway... im tired so im going to bed. Peeeace

New Fish Tank, Job, and the 8 hour Superferry ride!!!

So I figured its been a few days since I posted anything on here, so I better get crackin on this or I'm going to forget what Ive been up to. Other than the usual hanging out, working out, and cleaning up... I have actually had some interesting things going on.

The first thing I'm really excited about is my new fish tank! Since I've gotten to Hawaii my sister has given me an extensive lesson on how to use craigslist to our best advantage. The key to getting new things at a fraction of what you'd actually pay for them in the store. She is so good at finding "deals" on CL, I have deemed her the craigslist master! I am even going to get her a shirt that says this on it because she is that good. I have gotten practically everything I need from this site and its totally awesome! I got a brand new unopened desk for $25 that would have cost me around $100. A really nice dresser, a brand new mountain bike with all accessories and to top it off the best find yet - by me not her! A 35 gallon bow-front fish tank with a $300 canister filter that sits on the floor, and about $200 worth of air pumps protein skimmers, etc (it was a salty tank and I have converted it into an African Cichlid tank). I got all this for a mere $80!!!!! WHAT A STEAL!!! I couldn't believe it when I saw all the stuff... I expected to just get a glass aquarium and thats it! Its now up and running and through CLs again... found a professor at UH that led me to a store with such a selection of Africans I had never really seen before in real life only on pictures I was totally blown away! Thanks professor Tanaka I really appreciate your advice!!!

Anyway I decided to go with African Cichlids in my aquarium instead of salt water for 2 reasons! Reason 1 - I really really really really miss my tanks from home that are now currently at my mom's elementary school in the library for all the little kids to marvel at and possibly, hopefully, keep my dream of keeping fish alive in a new generation. Maybe blow a few minds, peak some interests, etc etc. I have already been getting a lot of good feedback from my mom based on her teachers and how the kids are totally blown away by this huge tank in their library! Reason 2 - Most salt water fish are a)predatory, which means they will kill anything else in their tank, b) very expensive unless you catch your own fish - which is pretty much illegal, esp reef fish the ones you want to catch, c) really hard to keep alive and constantly have disease and other crazy problems not to mention balancing the right solution of salt water and elements. I figured I just really don't need the stress right now of having to deal with all that and I know exactly how to take care of Africans... so thats what I'm going to do! And if I ever want to see some salt water fish ill strap on my snorkel and fins and head out to the reef to swim WITH them! :)

So the next big thing on my list... I finally got a job with the biggest bank in the Hawaiian islands - American Savings Bank. I will be working in their escrow department, which means ill be the guy making sure the bank is getting its money back after it lends out money. Escrows are the part of the loan that pay for closing costs and all those hidden fees your broker doesn't tell you about. If they aren't used, I'm the one tracking that money and making sure the bank gets it back and staying on top of all that good stuff! Yeah not my dream job, but hey its a job and at least ill be making a decent amount of money and will be able to continue this life in paradise without worries of draining the bank accounts dry!

A few nights ago Jess and I decided to go to Kauai yesterday on this new boat they have here in Oahu called the "Super Ferry" Its this huge ferry boat shaped like a giant speed boat that can get you from Oahu to the island of Kauai in under 3 hours! It has jet boosters that blast water out the back and takes off like a Sea-doo or Jetski would... same principle. Anyway, here on the islands especially Maui and Kauai the people do not like the idea of this ferry and have actually banned it for 10 days on Maui as of yesterday. They fear it will bring invasive species over to their islands, countless people, and may hurt whales that are migrating back and forth around the Hawaiian island.


This to me is really easy to understand and honestly if I were born on these islands, I would be angry about this as well. Imagine a boat that could bring about 282 cars full of people to your city every morning and every night. Think about that... your quiet paradise or home or whatever goes from being this sleepy quiet place. Probably the reason you live there and then becomes something like LA, NY City, or any place you've ever gone where thousands of people invade down like locusts and exploit everything you called your own. Thats pretty much what the super ferry is going to do. Its not going to be all bad though because you would have to think thousands of dollars are going to come with the people. But like I said, they are not happy about it.

So... we book our tickets for the ferry and its only $30 round trip! WHAT A DEAL! Considering we checked into getting tickets in late Oct and they were up to $250 for both of us and a car... ugh! But we also found out that its only $40 each to fly instead. Anyway we are all excited to go to Kauai and experience the jungle and what is called Hawaii's "garden state". Lush jungles, hiking trails, secluded beaches with perfect reefs.... ahhh couldn't wait! We pack up all our gear and tent and grill and get ready for a fun day and a half of camping and hiking and snorkeling, planning on taking pictures that could be sold for postcards.

We get there early, get on the boat and the adventure begins! This thing is like a huge airplane inside with luxury couches and seats and even bars and places to walk around and buy food and drinks. There are also flat panel tvs on every wall broadcasting the news, sports, and movies for kids. There is even a play room for little kids to go and play with toys and get all rowdy unlike airplanes where they are stuck screaming their heads off! Kinda like my flight over to Oahu from Vegas... grrrrrrr!

So we get going get our free turkey croissant sandwich and drinks and are enjoying the ride meeting people and just hanging out watching Oahu disappear behind us into the pacific ocean with the jet propelled trail we are now skipping across. The night before we left we heard that there had been some protests about this ferry in the harbor of Kauai and surfers, canoers, and people were swimming out to block the harbor from the ferry coming into port on its first few runs. This made us a bit nervous but we thought - environmentalists aren't violent like terrorists... we have nothing to worry about.

We get closer to Kauai and can start to see the island when the captain of the ship comes on to tell us that the surfers are protesting again and are bocking the harbor again! but its going to be ok because the Coast Guard will take care of them and we will be docking as soon as they get them out of the water. Well at first it was cool because the Coast Guard started yanking the people from the water and handcuffing them. The surfers were yelling at them and splashing them with their boards, it was quite entertaining! Some even climbed on top of bouys and were waving their boards around like GO HOME! Once they were caught by the Coast Guard, each receiving a felony charge for interfering with Coast Guard operations they were thrown in a boat and taken back to shore. This went on from like an hour to more than 3!!! They kept giving us updates while we were hearing that once you get off the boat the islanders had taken 4x4 trucks and vehicles and were now blocking the entire roadways so no one could get in or out of port. Grrrrrrrrreat!

The captain of the ferry kept telling us we were going to make it into harbor, but guess what... IT NEVER HAPPENED! We sat on the ship watching as we ate all the turkey croissants we wanted and drinking all the drinks we could. I think I had about 8 of them... lol! Too bad none of them were alcoholic because in this luxury vessel that would have been the best thing possible! I asked a staff member why she couldn't bring out the beers and she told me because most people were driving and it would be a huge mess if everyone got drunk and then tried to drive home... that was understandable even though I told her I was just a passenger in Jess' car! We made a lot of new friends which was really cool and the staff of the ship were very friendly. They started giving us free bags and lunch boxes and crap like that to keep us happy even though it wasn't needed. I was just happy to be apart of the experience of making history! They even at the end of the whole fiasco gave up and headed back to Oahu. This trip wasn't in vain because Jess and I and everyone else on the ship received 5 round trip passes for anytime we want to return to any of the islands they offer the service to!!! YEEEEEAH! It sucked that we didn't get to see the place where so many popular movies had been filmed and to just experience a new island, but you have to give it to the locals, surfers, and environmentalists! They stood up for what they truly believe and they beat the system. They forced the ship to turn around, but it will most likely come back which sucks, but you have to give them props! Anyone that gets time in jail for something they truly believe with all their heart, unless its just something crazy and out of it gets my respect!

Well... off to the beach to enjoy my last day of being unemployed! :) Lata!

Return to the North Shore - Shark's Cove

Yesterday my sister had the day off from her job at the blood bank. Its so cool the way she sometimes can get weekdays off, but I guess the trade-off is having to work on the weekends which could sometimes suck. Especially when I land a good job and will most likely be off on the weekends and most of the events, etc happen during that time! But on the bright side when she is off we can do cool things and not get the traffic and crowds that you do on the weekend!



We decided to go snorkeling at this place called Shark's Cove on the North Shore. My parents had told me about this place and had gone with Jess previously when they were here helping her get all the nitty gritty things setup and said it was an awesome place to snorkel.

When Jess mentioned going I was like sure thing, I never turn down a snorkeling invite... ever! So we set out to the North Shore on the H1 the famous interstate/hwys... Guess its not really an interstate cause it doesn't cross states... but it isn't really a hwy. Well in my mind its an interstate that doesn't cross states. There - no more debate on that one.

Anyway we finally get there after driving past scenic landscapes of pineapple fields, coffee fields and beautiful mountains that go forever across the skyline. Something that drops your jaw the first time you see it. Simply amazing scenery! It makes the 30min drive from our house in Honolulu so much better. So we get there and park and get our gear and head down to the water.

Just to give an explanation of this place its all rocks - well old eroded lava rocks and alot of smooth round boulder rocks. It almost like a big lava field that goes down to the shore and in between all the jagged craggy ancient lava creations, that by the way will cut you to pieces if you don't have shoes are the smooth boulder egg looking rocks all in between of thousands of different sizes.

We get in the water and the first thing I notice is how clear it is. I can see the fish from just looking down into the water. This to me was like being a kid in a candy store! We jump in and get our fins on and wow... simply WOW! Fish everywhere, all different shapes, colors, sizes, you name it from the Hawaiian fish guide, its there! Except for those nasty guys we like to call Sharks! Whew :)

Anyway Jess and I spend about and hour and half swimming around and just gawking at the beauty of this underwater masterpiece. Its probably the closets ive come to being in a fish tank other than my scuba experience in Honduras. Except its a totally different scene. In Honduras there was coral and fans and all these magical coral growths that protruded from all sides of everything you could see to infinity until it just turns to blue. Almost like you were swimming through a techno-color jungle of thousands of hues of colored coral. All different, all weird and cool and just wow! Here in Hawaii its alot different. Mostly lava rock but on top there are all sorts of colors of small squatly corals. They come in all colors, mostly yellow and bright blue but it doesn't change the beauty of the fish that surround you.

At one point we were so taken in by the beauty and the fish around us that we didn't realize we had swam almost half way out and around the cove. I realized this when I stopped to take a break from diving down to nearly 50 to 60 feet making my ears squeel and my mask almost crush my face to the point where I started to see tiny sparkles in my field of vision. I guess when I get into it the fact that you do have to come up for air isn't such a big deal. Its almost like you forget you need it... at least I do. We look around and there are no people, except for the idiots walking around on the lava rock above us looking down to see what we are doing.

We saw some crazy crazy colored fish, schools and schools of these guys. This place was truely alive and hoping! Diving down and holding onto the rocks so I could observe the juvenile fish and the way the all interacted with the coral and each other I came face to face with a spotted moray eel. At first these guys just pop out and scare the crap out of you, but after a few secs you get to know them a bit better and start to appreciate their beauty. Poking their long heads out of a hole in the rock to open their mouths at you gaping with teeth. Open and shut they move their mouths almost like they are talking to you. After the eel I was a bit more careful not to get too close to the reef, they always help me remember that! :)

After snorkeling we got out and decided to explore the North Shore a bit more. We went and hit up the surf shops and talked to some really really cool people. I think the North Shore is more of my type of place than the big city life of Honolulu. Its a totally different scene out there. Mostly surfers, chill people, and retired older people who still think they are in their college years. Talking like yeeeeah dude and things like that. Cracks you up to have a conversation with them. All in all id have to say its my favorite place so far on this island.

So after hitting up the surf shops and stuff, we went to check out a 35gal fish tank that I had seen an ad for on craigslist for 80 bucks. Holy crap thats a steal!!! The owners of the tank were moving and needed to get rid of it ASAP. When we arrived at their house I was shocked because the tank was an expensive bow front model and not only that but she threw in over 700 dollars worth of pumps and equipment to go with that tank! HOLY CRAP! The pump alone that she gave me was worth around 300!!! I really felt bad for only paying 80, but at the same time if she had wanted more she could have asked for it. She said she really didn't care and needed to get rid of it asap, so what more could I do than gladly help her out!

After that I couldn't get the giddy kid like feeling out of my system and we decided to hit up this AUTHENTIC Mexican place we heard about from our landlord. Jess and I had been disappointed when arriving that no one here seemed to know how to make true Mexican food. It was just a bunch of imposters trying to throw together some asian style taco with an egg roll... Come on guys the only Mexicans that eat those are the ones that cook for the Asian resteraunts at home so we weren't amused by the imposters out here.

Needless to say Cholos on the North Shore is indeed the best place we have been. Doesn't compare to Monterrays or Los Arcos, but hey it will do! I sure do miss the cheap prices of that type of food too... but when you have a craving you have to satisfy it! And thats exactley what we did with some tropical frozen margaritas!!! MMMM MMMM :)

What can I say, it was a great day and I still love it here!!! Don't think I will stop having a smile on my face... this is truely where I belong!

Here Goes Nothing - Why Hawaii?

So I guess I am officially joining the "BLOG" bandwagon... I have never really written an online journal before, esp not where others can read it, but figured this was probably the best way to let everyone know what im up to without having to repeat the same story a thousand times and then feel bad when I forget to tell one of my friends something that I did actually tell another one. I figure I can just post things here and if people are interested in my life they can read a bit and catch up on whats going on in my life without me having to tell them or necessarily keep in touch daily!

So, im finally in Hawaii... I still can't believe that I am actually living here! Its not something you really expect in your life, not something I ever thought would ever truly happen to me. But bam... the intangible thought of leaving behind the ideals of everyone else and their quest for money and power and moving on to pursue things most would think are silly. I don't think happiness is at all silly and I think its funny that most people work all their lives to achieve great materialistic/monetary gains and then try to take that money and buy happiness, like happiness is some end result of the big picture. You go and ask a 1000 people what they want out of life and I guarantee you that around 85% of them will tell you... "I want to be happy" Well guess what... I think I want the same thing, don't really see why you wouldn't want that? I figure happiness is not a destination... its the ride... and why be forced out of my happiness for some ideal that I just don't believe in. To me happiness is an everyday thing... its like getting hyped up just because you saw some crazy looking fish on the reef, or flipping out because you actually had the balls to move and then getting there to find you have fruit trees in your back yard! Maybe thats not exciting to you, but I LOVE IT!!! Yeah, I understand that everyone's version of happiness isn't some tropical island paradise. Thats cool with me... totally! You gotta find what you love, do what you love... and just do it. That sounds so cliche... but I hate to tell you if you sit around all day long waiting for Hawaii or whatever it is that blows your mind to come to you... its just not going to happen! It almost seems that the hardest decisions that take the biggest balls and gamble in life are the ones that can truly set you free!

So this is my first post and well I don't really know what to say - but I guess I will answer the question on here that I get the most. I should have started this thing the day I got here so I could relay the concerns, fears, just the everything of moving to a completely new place. Somewhere completely foreign to me and unfamiliar and then plot out how it all works out. Its 3am here and really crazy to think that all my friend back home are probably already up and at their jobs! Nuts to think that today is also the last day my company is going to be in business. To think if I had stayed what id be going through right now... ugh. So yeah I get off task pretty easily and thats cool, because that seems to be the Hawaiian way! So back to my story of why I chose to move to Paradise

I guess the whole thing kinda starts at an early age. I think its my parents doing, but im not quite sure. Maybe it was always destiny... I was just too logical to look at it that way. I remember as a little kid thinking that one day I would live on a tropical island paradise. You know those thoughts you have when you are a kid that you know what it is, but you can't quite make out where you are? Almost like some dreams that I have. Its like I know im somewhere but I don't know where and I can see things around me.... but where am I!!! It was kinda like that when I was little. I could always see the beach, not the NC type of murky brown water beach. This was a beach with real palm trees and aqua/green water... the type of scene you see on a postcard from Fiji. Thats how I knew I was destined to be here!

I also had the same visions as a kid that I would always have a black and tan dachshund aka wiener dog! I just saw this vision of me... with this black and tan dog. Needless to say my first dog was never a dachshund, more like a black cockerspaniel. Then the next dog a lab and so on. My parents would never really even consider a wiener dog at all so I thought the visions I saw were complete shit in my head and just some childish thought balloon that I had created myself. Well quite ironically in highschool we got a mixed mut that almost looked like a wiener dog but wasn't pure. The dog eventually died an early death and then after falling in love with that dog my family was then catapulted into being full time dachshund lovers. But it doesn't stop there, I didn't get my black and tan! We had a buff colored dachshund and then eventually ended up with Sydney a red wiener dog that set destiny in motion for me! I was like... ok, its a wiener dog... im not complaining. Eventually I went off to college and my dog had puppies! Guess what! I wanted one so bad but my parents would not let me have one due to me living in the dorm/on campus apts at school. Also they didn't think I was responsible enough at the time either! Ugh - I hate hearing that, but thats another story! I picked out a dog and claimed it as mine! Eventually Sydney's first litter was down to the last dog... mine! Charlie who I had dubbed him was awesome and had perfect markings! I would take him and hide him away when anyone came to look at the pups! Needless to say when I was away one weekend with my friend Neal to see Radiohead in Washington D.C. my parents sold my dog to our vet! I came home to find a 375 dollar check on my bed and knew at that moment my dream was crushed again! The vet named MY dog "Hank". WHAT! Are you kidding me? HANK? Give me a break... ugh I was not happy when that happened. My parents soon realized that had crushed me and promised to have another litter. Time passed, I matured, and then eventually got my own place in Charlotte. My own condo, owned by my parents and I! Somewhere I could logically raise a puppy and no one could tell me otherwise. So then one day I get word that my dog is pregnant again and that we are going to have puppies! So excited I couldn't wait and then destiny hit. Marley Dog came to be - my very own black and tan dachshund! He has been the best dog I have ever owned and I have put alot of myself into his training and life. I don't honestly know what I would do without this dog! But bam fate?

I guess at this point I am now 2 for 2... and yeah its a bit freaky to know that visions you had when where 5 are really starting to come true. Its weird but sometimes I see things. I know that sounds so dumb. But I get these flashes of future events that fly through my head. Call it ESP or slight clairvoyance or maybe im just more in tune - I don't know what it is... it honestly does freak me out from time to time. Just ask one of my best friend's Steven Craig about a few instances that he has personally experienced, where I have told him specifically... "Hey this is going to sound really strange... but (fill in the blank with whatever crazy thing I saw in my head) is going to happen" and then it actually does! Freaks us both out from time to time and it has only gotten stronger since ive moved to Hawaii. Not sure what it is but I think the human brain is alot more powerful than most people will ever give it credit for! I think we have gotten so far removed from intangible ideas in our modern world that everything needs solid proof before anyone would even consider investigating it.

So Hawaii...

I guess it all started when my sister and I briefly discussed moving to some tropical island paradise. I believe it was while we were in either Cancun, Mexico or St. Thomas, VI. Not sure which one. I do distinctly remember talking to her about it though. I remember thinking, I am done with the real world and everyone else's dreams. I am done living a life thats not my own. I played their games, I went through their education system, took their tests, jumped their hurdles, proved I was a good, dedicated, a responsible kid. Now what? It just didn't seem fair that you would go through a childhood of amazement just to be put into a cubicle for the rest of your life. The countless times I would question myself and God for putting me in a place that I just did not want to be. Sure it was survival and good money... but happiness was few and far between in those days. I remember getting so angry at the thought of... THIS IS YOUR LIFE JOSH... ugh.

Anyway - Jess and I discussed how we would just leave it all behind and start over in some lush paradise full of fruit and healthy living. A place to call our own something that only dreamers dream. Well time went on and I continued working and trying to cope with... the "real world" and Jess was working hard finishing school at UNC.

I got to the point where I was going to have a mental breakdown from all the stress at work and decided to take a break and meet Steve Craig in his own island paradise of Roatan, Honduras for a week of deciding what do I want to do with my life and a little rest and recovery with my girlfriend at the time Lindsay, and to learn how to scuba dive. Wow what a trip! I do believe thats when the wave finally crashed and I see it as my breaking point or diving board. It was the point where everything just clicked and I knew for a fact that I had to get out of America... at least mainland America and I had to get to some island and start really living my life!

I even remember coming back to work and telling everyone around me... at least my close friends at work if there is such a thing that I was going to live somewhere in paradise and I was never going to come back after I left. I got alot of mixed responses. Some were supportive of yeah you need to, that fits you perfectly, to the others who gave me... yeah right Josh and that will never happen. [If they could only see me now! :)] So while in Honduras having a huge dilemma of whether to stay and do some more diving or go back to hell at work, I was emotionally at my ropes end and broke down while writing an email to my parents asking if I should stay in paradise another week or head back to the grind I so desperately hated. That and the fact that my earlier weeks diving plans had been delayed when I wrecked a scooter and almost killed myself, but ended up with a gash to my chin and a nice case of road rash.

To clarify on my job... not so much hated, it was just such a waste of life for me. Pushing a pen and turning papers for some big giant machine where I was only a cog and no one really gave a shit literally about the true me. Having to hide who I really was and what I really felt just wasn't real to me and caused me to suffer internally.

So sitting on a couch in a dive shop in Honduras I receive an email from my sister. It basically read "Ive accepted a job in Hawaii, are you coming with me? I need to know so I can make plans for living arrangements". BAM - there it was... Jess had lit the fuse to a bomb that was going to explode and change my whole life, I just didn't know it yet. I wrote her back and said YES! LETS DO IT! Even though I was even skeptical of myself when writing her back. I thought... yeah right Josh who are you kidding, you can never move to Hawaii. Its too expensive and you have a condo, a dog, a girlfriend, stuff... you can't leave. At that point, my stuff owned me. I was materialistic even though the thought of that killed me. I lived for money and my work life consumed my real life and I was being drained of my youthful ways and becoming hardened inside.

So I decide not to stay in Honduras another week even though I could have def. basked in some free diving courtesy of Steve for free... Ugh... still kicking myself in the butt on that one! But there is lots of diving opportunities in Hawaii, just won't be completely free :) I get back to my job, settle back into the grind and things start going again. But I notice something is different with me. Im not there anymore. Figuratively I mean. This is hard to explain but this is how I knew it was time for me to leave. I would go to work everyday but a major part of me would stay at home.

It was like I was there physically but in my head I was stuck in la la land where no one could get to me anymore. Almost like I had checked out and it made work so much easier. Not to be emotionally attached was amazing. To be able to tell people to their face the honest truth and how I really felt was such a release. It was almost like a drug. I could go from telling someone that honestly I didn't really care about their loan and that the stuff they were sending me was complete shit and if they didn't start doing a better job themselves then their crap was just going to rot in my desk drawer. I wasn't that rude, after all I do have morals and ethics and have always found it hard to be mean to people for no reason. But you get the jist of what im saying.

So I had a dilemma. What do I do? WHAT DO I DO???? Jess kept asking me what my plans were and I kept telling her I was still on board, even though my logical mind said to me... Josh you are insane! I started to get really anxious and realized that no one could answer my questions for me... it was purely a matter of self choice. My parents wouldn't even give me the advice I wanted. It was more like... you only get one life so its up to you to decide. Thats it! It wasn't a YES or NO... it was all me. They didn't want to be responsible for some crazy mistake I would make or to be the ones that held me back from the experience of a lifetime.

I started praying... not just praying but really really praying. I know that sounds desperate but when no one else will give you the advice you need you have to turn somewhere and what better place than the entity that created you and knows your whole life's plan and your purpose and what you are here for. A question I constantly ask myself!

So I pray and I pray, mainly asking for two things... A literal sign to tell me what I need to do, and guidance/understanding. So this is when stuff starts to get a bit freaky. One day about a week later my dad calls me out of the blue! Normally when this happens its not a good thing. It usually means I have done something wrong, like the time when I thought I had setup my direct deposit for the homeowners association dues and obviously it didn't go through and was late by about 800 bucks! YIKES!

So I was a little hesitant to answer, but decided I better, and after all it is my dad! So I did. My dad says hello and then says "Josh, I have a question for you". Ok... what possibly did I do this time... oh no. "This is going to be random and you don't have to answer me tonight, but would you consider selling the condo?" Whaaaaaaaaat! :) I couldn't believe it. I told him that I would def. consider showing the place, but wasn't exactly sure if I wanted to sell it or not. After all this is the place ive lived for 6 years and LOVE. I had so many memories in that place it was incredible. Just one of those places you leave alot of good vibes, one of those happy places you will never forget in your whole life.

So that weekend the people that were interested came by to see the place. A quick story on how they found the condo... They went online and checked the tax records and saw my parents owned 2 properties and figured they would call and inquire. Their daughters are going to UNCC this coming year and housing on campus is a bit crowded and there is a waiting list because there are so many people. They wanted to eliminate that problem and get a place where there daughters could live close to campus but at the same time still having the comforts of home. I couldn't believe it! There was my sign... bam in my face. That was it and I knew it with all my heart.

The people came and saw the place. I gave them a tour and explained all the great times I had, had there and all the good points about the place. I then said... ya know, if you guys are really wanting to buy this place, and if I am really going to go to Hawaii, would you be interested in buying my furniture and all my stuff. Stuff aka pictures on the wall, tables, chairs, lamps and everything except my 55inch tv, bedroom suite furniture, and fish tanks. After all my next biggest dilemma was my stuff!

They decided to think about it and would let me know. Only a day later they put in an offer on the condo and decided to buy the place! Then after a week of thought they decided to buy all my stuff too! Wow, this can't be happening! But it def. was!!! So then the next big step, letting my job know that I was headed to paradise. I eventually let everyone at work know I was heading out and definitely got mixed responses. Ended up getting a deal and was able to leave July 7th as my last day... even though I got paid until the 20th because it was my real last day. Either they wanted to hook me up for being so damn dedicated and such a hard worker, or they were scared that I would be a threat to their information? Whichever Id like to think they gave me the hookup because they liked me. The very next week after my last day alot of people got the axe at work and I felt confident that if I would have turned down their offer I would have been canned with no benefits or pay or vacation pay or anything! I was so grateful, and yet another divine happening for me.

So around this time my parents are in Hawaii with my sis trying to find a place for us to live and getting her all setup with bank accounts, and all that good stuff. Well we ran into another problem! 85% of the places they were looking at did not allow pets. This was a major bummer and my dad was getting really stressed out about spending his whole time in Hawaii looking for places only to be turned away. I got a phone call one afternoon at work where he was really mad about this and just kept telling me that because of me they were wasting their time and couldn't find a place to accommodate my dog. I didn't know how to respond other than... thats ok, I just won't go if thats the case. There is no way in this world I could ever leave Marley Dog , ever! So as fate would have it my parents run into some guy that has a place available that loves dogs! Bingo... another bridge over troubled water.

So now everything is working out, its just up to me to move out of the condo, get a ticket, and get myself to Hawaii. The next weeks are consumed with going through all my stuff and getting rid of tons of clothes and tons of things I just didn't need anymore. My parents gave me a closet to put my stuff in. One closet... so imagine taking an apt and pushing it into one closet. I did it! I even went through all my stuff from before I left for college and organized everything. I would have to say that was one of the most stressful times ever in my life. But I think anytime you leave its stressful. So I get my ticket... I kiss everyone and NC bye bye... and here I am!

I can't even believe that I am here. Everyday I wake up and pinch myself as I take in the view of the crystal clear waters of the ocean. I see the light blues turning to aqua, to green, then to deep blue as the water gets deeper and deeper and the reflections of the reef shimmer through! What can I say... I think I made the best decision of my life... time will tell :)

But at least im happy... happy everyday! I constantly have a smile on my face and I haven't felt this good since I was a little kid, before the reality of the real world crashed into me and I had to be "responsible".

I guess thats enough for my first post. I had alot to say, so sorry if this took forever to read!