Rainy Day

Today I woke up at 5:30am to pouring rain in the jungle. I couldn't go back to sleep, my mind was racing about something that I cannot pinpoint at the moment. Meg and I had our morning breakfast ritual of pulling a card from the Osho Tarot deck and the Well Being Deck, it's a wonderful way to start the day. I pulled Integration a Major Arcana ... for those of you who know about Tarot. I found it helpful in reminding me that I'm integrating the clearing and expanding that the psychic/energy healer did with me yesterday.
Breakfast!

Bananas that Mike the landlord gave us...

Last night Elfriede called me and we made a plan to meet down at K Bay and we'd go to Koohana to look for my fin. She was there with a new friend Mikah who just arrived to the land where Elfriede is staying. As we stood near the bay's edge talking we were all soaked by a big wave...it was pretty funny. Soon after Elfriede and I left for the other beaches. We tried to get Mikah to come with us but she was seduced by the dolphins swimming in the bay... Elfi and I didn't get to Koohena because it started pouring on the way down there so we just turned around and decided to do some collaging, Horray!!

We did a mini-facilitated collaging experience. That was fun for all of us. I led a meditation then we created. We worked for about 3 to 4 hours...it was really awesome. Here is what we made...

This is Meg's, it's all about being a world traveller and living in luxury...I'm following her around.


This is Elfriede's, this is about what she really wanted to get from her trip to Hawaii.


This is mine, from my experience with the psychic yesterday.
Clicking on any of the pictures will make them bigger...this one doesn't show the detail very well.

I'm clean! I just took a shower which feels really good after about 3 days. I was really beginning to look like a local there. I loved it, all tan with wild sea water hair, dried stringy. I love that look of wild abandon, it's so beautiful in such a raw way. It feels good to be clean and pristine again too.

lost a flipper, gained a psychic

My friend Liljana from Australia called me this morning and we met up down at Two Step the snorkle sight at the Place of Refuge. The water was rough and she was talking to our friend John Smith the underwater videographer and photographer. He said he was going to check out Hookena so we decided to go with him.

Getting there the surf was still really high. But John started talking to a woman who had just gotten out and she said the dolphins were there. So we all said...okay we're going in. We got on our stuff and went to the place where we thought the best spot would be to get in. We waited for the wave cycle to go down and then rushed in. In the midst of getting in a wave came in and took one of my fins. There was very low visiblity there and the fin was gone instantly. I have hope that it will show up again and I will be able to retreive it. Doug another local friend told me where the flipper bone yard is, so maybe when the waves calm down I can get it.

So I didn't go in, I waited on shore for my friends while the people on shore tried to help. When Liljana came back in she was confused and hadn't seen John or me or the dolphins out there. John came in and said he was with them but it was merky and they were staying low in the water. He left and Lilyana and I stayed on shore and sunbathed. As we were leaving a nice lady started chatting with us. It turned out she was a psychic and was doing readings on the beach. I, for some reason, decided to get one from her and she was accepting donations.

Unfortunately, I only had $11 on me but I told her I'd bring her more later. She said she'd feel good about that. We sat on her towel under a big tree and she began to tell me things. I told her nothing but my name, birthdate, and signs and she began to relate lots of information. Many wonderful things, like that I am a very old soul, who has been very spiritual for many lives...she got a Tibetan monk, a yogi, a shaman and something associated with Stonehenge. She said I am very balanced and need to make sure I have a lot of time alone, people can really throw me off and people who are out of balance energetically want to be near me. She also said I'm a healer. I have a soft power that I don't bring forth as much as I could. She called me a Queen and then changed to Goddess and used them back and forth. She said I'm joyful but I am not estatic and that this is what I've come here to learn and that the dolphins can help teach me pure estatic joy. I need a man who is a very high vibration, she said he doesn't have to be enlightened but very high. (That was a relief) By the end I could see in her eyes how over joyed she was to be talking to me. She did some energetic clearing and she was glowing with delight. She hugged me and shared her grapefruit and orange with me and it felt like we were friends.

Later Meg and I went to the Nasturium Cafe where beautiful music guitar was playing and good food served. We then went to town to take care of some Meg real estate business. She's fastly becoming a real estate tycoon. You can check out her blog at http://meg-thisismylife.blogspot.com/

At 5:30pm while I was laying here online we had an earthquake (3 on the richter scale) based out of Honaunau which is a town right next to Capt. Cook. Yikes! Pele speaks to us in low rumbles. I just checked the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory website (http://tux.wr.usgs.gov/). A minor earthquake occurred at 5:33:48 PM (HST) on Tuesday, January 30, 2007. The magnitude 3.3 event occurred 38 km (24 miles) WSW of Honaunau. Honaunau is exactly where Misha and I are staying, and the earthquake's epicenter was in the ocean 24 miles off of our coast - wow!

The Local Hook-up

Today was strangely wonderful. I woke up thinking I would be getting back on the boat to try to see the dolphins again today. I was able to talk to Matisha last night about slipping onto today's tour. He was going to take some people from the cruise ship that came in...who were serendipitously on an Abraham cruise (if you know what that means). I really wanted to go with them and he even said I might be able to help crew and get a little pay. That was just what I was wanting, yah! However, upon getting down to the marina I could see that the surf was high and it didn't seem like a good day for snorkeling...I was right because I got a call from Matisha saying the ship wasn't letting anyone off and they were leaving port because people couldn't use the tenders. Oh well. So I was down in the Kailua-Kona area and thought I'd bum around town a bit and explore.
It was wonderful, every shop I went into people were talkative and wanting to connect. I went to a dive shop and talked to a dive master there about going to see the manta rays again. He was super friendly and helpful and he sold me a snorkel bag. Then I drove around some more, first looking for a motorcycle rental shop that wasn't Harley. I don't think there is one. Then I went down to the main strip...Alii Drive and walked. I met the info woman who was so cute and excited about sitting in front of the ocean and talking to people. She was adorable. She told me about a great drive up the mountain almost to the crater that is paved straight up from Kona. I left there and had breakfast where the bacon was flying off the plates because it was so windy. I ordered 2 eggs over medium with flying bacon and potatos. Luckily my bacon stayed on the plate. I also met a girl at 808 Skate and Surf who was awesome, a fashion designer developing a business plan here and helping 808 develop their label. We exchanged contact information. I then met another woman who I had seen earlier that day at the coffee shop...she was very helpful and interested in my retreat idea and gave me her info and some other people she knew that would be interested in participating. Meg called to tell me she was on her way and was in the process of buying a vacation condo on the Gulf Coast of Texas. I had coffee and then went to Stilletto Monkey and cute shop where the woman sells beautiful shoes. It turns out she's also a painter and into authentic expression so I got her contact info too. It was amazing to meet all these wonderful people. I even got a call from someone interested in doing a dyslexia program back in Santa Cruz when I get back in late Feb. And I got another inquiry about renting my cottage from a friend of mine. Today was a hard day of work, I tell yah! Haha...I love making all this happen in my joy.

It reminds me of my Well Being Card I pulled the other day...The measure of my success is my joy.

I wish I would have brought my camera when I went to pick Meg up at the airport. I stopped in Kona for the sunset and it was amazing. Looking back up at the volcano...I could see the top with just a thin line of clouds cutting it in half, the mountain was lit up in a deep red which reminded of lava...beautiful and rare to see the top of the mountain.

It's nice to have Meg back. We had dinner at Cassandra's Greek restaurant. I was just there with my family a few weeks ago.

The Elusive Dolphins

So yesterday after the big hike I took it easy. I went for a swim down at Hookena Bay, it's another great dolphin sighting bay (supposedly) and there's easy entry and exit. Plus there's an actual beach there. There are more locals and less tourists. I swam out and floated around. Watched some SCUBA divers and had a glimpse of an octopus about 30 feet down. So far. When I got out I ran into Matisha...the dolphin guide who took us out on a boat today. Later I just did some errands and cleaned up the house and had dinner.

Today I picked up Elfriede at 7:45am and we carpooled to the marina. We got to the boat nice and early and stopped by the SCUBA shop to pick up a shorty (wetsuit) for her. My 3mm full length has been working quite well actually, I can stay in the water until I'm tired...but I haven't gotten cold once. Matisha was there in the parking lot when we got back. We all gathered and got on the boat. Going out to the spot we saw many whales. They were leaping and spouting and diving down. It was and has been a great show.


Unfortunately, the best breach I got came out blurry.

We got to the dolphin site and saw lots of dolphins swimming around our boat. I got some good pictures of them too.





We got out of the boat...I was one of the first ones in and we did see a few swimming around...way below us. Then they were off and our captain kept yelling...they're over there, now they're over there...we did a lot of swimming and not a lot of communing with the dolphins. It was fun to just be in deep blue water, nothing to see but the rays of light beeming down. Matisha also can blow these beautiful huge bubble rings and we played with those for a bit. Finally, we got back in the boat, ate lunch and then saw another large pod of dolphins. Only three of us jumped in quickly but it was an amazing moment. Lots of dolphins were all around us coming up from the depths. The photographer estimated there were 80 in the pod. I think I only saw about 15. But I was one of the lucky ones that was ready and willing to jump in again.

I may have a chance to go with them tomorrow...Ester & Jerry Hicks happen to be coming in on a ship tomorrow and some of their participants will be going with Matisha...if there's room on the boat they will take me too. I have a feeling that tomorrow will be a better trip.

Magic in the Trees

Last night Meg went to Texas to buy realestate...This morning I hooked up with Elfreide down at the Bay. There were no dolphins so we decided to go on an adventure. We went up to the Pololu Valley in North Kohala.

We walked down a steep switchbacked trail to the end of the valley where the ocean meets the fresh water of the falls above. We immediately decided to strip off our clothes and jump in the ocean...the water is much warmer that in K Bay...it was amazing. But it was rough seas and rocky so we couldn't get in very far. But it was nice to get cooled off after the hot hike down the hill. We ate our snacks on the lava rocks and then walked back into the forest to find the trail leading into the valley. We couldn't find what we were looking for so we ended up cutting along the back parallel to the ocean. We came upon a camp sight with a rope swing with a drift wood seat. We had a fun photo shoot laughing and playing on the swing. Elfreide would make this awesome sound of deep joy during her swings.


After we finished playing we kept going along and then there was another site with three swings...one was a fishing net made into a hammock the other two were drift wood short swings. We played again and laughed and did a little photo shoot...and then moved along.

Then again we found another site with long thick ropes wrapped around several trees to make huge unusual swings. This was so fun. As I sat on the swing looking out to the ocean with the sun on my back I could also see the moon hanging just below the trees. It was an amazing moment. We couldn't believe that there were more and more swings that we would come upon, each different and magical in their own way.


We then found a trail leading up the mountain on the opposite side from where we came. We hiked up to the top where we were even with our car on the other side. We were wishing for a zip line so we could just glide across without having to go all the way down again. On our way back we stopped to have more snackies. Walking on the lower end of the trees we found even more rope swings and hammocks...I loved that people had recycled the old boat lines that had washed up on shore. Popping out of the trees and looking out onto the ocean we could see the garden of stone pilings that people had made.

This place had such an abundance of creative life force where the people were really working with all that place had to offer. I fell in love with it. We started back up and gave an offering to the place with a little blessing.

Heading back through Hawi we stopped at the little stores along the way. Elfriede wanted to go the chrystal shop where they had the chrystal singing bowls. They let me play all of them for a really long time. The resonance of those bowls are like no other. Some kids that were skating outside the shop came in and asked me if it was magic. I said yes, and then let them make their own magic. It was fun to play with the three beautful dark curly haired boys. Later we couldn't resist the pull of the bakery next door and we ate 4 desserts and had some tea. Elfriede says that sugar is good for sore muscles. I'd never heard that before but I decided to agree with her and share the truffle, the raspberry swirl, the Hawi crunch bar, and the sugar cookie. Man was that a sugar high.

Driving back I just wanted to get home as soon as possible. I knew I'd be tired soon. However, and unfortunate wrong turn somewhere landed us a half hour away from Hilo before I realized we were on the wrong side of the island. HILO! Where are we? Damn, we've almost driven to Hilo. Luckily we figured it out, turned around, picked up a Subway sandwich on the way home and just drove straight home. I'm so tired now but I didn't want to get too far behind in my journaling.

I don't think I've even mentioned that we swam with dolphins yesterday for the first time. It was mellow, their were 6...three each swiming together. No jumping. One did break off from it's smaller pod and swam toward me, though didn't get very close.

TransenDance

This morning I woke up to see a mouse scamper across the floor. Meg and and tried to get it but to no avai so we headed down to K Bay. No dolphins again...walked to Malini Beach with new friend Elfriede from Holland...Meg and I drove to The Painted Church...there was a small black kitty playing among the pews and at the altar...He reminded me of Squishy.














Meg sang ancient Catholic chants to the sea.













For most of the day we were home relaxing and discussing how content we are. I received word that someone else is interested in renting my cottage for a month...and possibly taking it over when I'm ready to move out. I love how things are just working out for me. We picked up Elfriede to go to the dance...the space was a nice little dance studio...we recognized many of our friends from around town. We made lots of new friends including Matisha who will be taking us on a dolphin and whale tour on Sunday where we will definitely be having a one-on-one dolphin encounter. Unfortunately, Meg is going to Texas tomorrow night to buy a peice of property and won't be back until Monday. Don't worry Meg, we'll get you some dolphins very soon.

I'll try to fill this in more tomorrow...now it's time for bed.

A Misha Adventure!

Yesterday Meg and I went on an ADVENTURE! After going down to Kealekakua Bay and not finding the dophins I suggested we go to Kiholo Bay where the waiter from Bubba Gumps (while I was on the cruise) told us he had swam with hundreds of turtles and even saw a whale shark. As we were driving out of town Meg looked up the site in the Hawaii book which said there was a bit of a walk...we were a little worried since we had only brought our flip flops but we were determined. It was good we found the site in the book because we never would have found the road from the guys directions. The dirt road was unmarked and very narrow. We were definitely not very prepared for the hike we were about to commence, but our curiousity and the beauty ahead carried us on. We walked along the dirt road which turned into a coral and lava beach. The beach was steap and rugged and hurt our sensitive sandaled feet. The water was amazingly beautiful. We found the Queen's Baths, a lava tube with crystal clear fresh water inside. I dipped my feet but it was a little too cold for my taste. About 100 yards down was "The big yellow house" built by the guy who runs Paul Mitchell hair care products. It was beautifully laid out with a pool overlooking the ocean and hammocks scattered along the palm treed beach. Just beyond that is the "Bali House" an ornate house which was built in Bali and then dismantled and rebuilt here. Just past the Bali house we decided to rest our weary feet and as we were dreaming of living in this gorgeous spot in luxury and relaxation the whales began to dance. For the next 45 minutes we sat and watched whale after whale leap into the air and coming down to create individual tsunamis. There were three different pods, two nearby and one way off on the horizon. One of the farther out whales actually cleared the water as if it were a little dolphin. We sat in amazement. Cheering them on and hoping for more. Closer in we could see turtles bobbing around in the wild surf.

Finally the activity seemed to die down and we kept moving on. As we got closer I almost tripped on what Meg thought was a dead turtle on the beach. Later we realized that he probably wasn't dead, just resting and drying out. We saw many of them in the sheltered cove of Kiholo.

The Dolphins are Coming

This video was taken by a man who shows up down at K Bay every morning. This is what we have to look forward to when the dolphins show up.

We're Surrounded

This morning we decided to check out a new bay...the one just south of the Place of Refuge, Ho'okana Beach. It was recommended to us by our dinner companions last night. The great thing about this place is that there's actually a beach of beautiful fine black sand. Meg and I laid on the sand for over an hour just enjoying the place. We seem to be doing a lot of that. Toward the end of our stay we heard people yelling and pointing, usually meaning they are spotting whales. As I was looking for them I saw a huge flying fish leap out of the water much higher and farther than I've ever seen. Then directly after I saw the tail of the whale lift up and then sink down into the depths. Just a bit after that I saw a breach way out on the horizon, it had lept out so far almost to his tail. Then just after that I saw another pod of whales in another location. It was amazing to see three different pods in totally different locations just from my one little spot on the beach. What a spectacular sight.

We came home and had lunch then while listening to the ipod I fell asleep for hours...pretty much from noon to 5pm. I'm not sure what knocked me out. I awoke to the pleasant sounds of the rainy afternoon and evening. After watching the sunset Meg and I ventured to our grocery store, ChoiceMart and picked up some things we were running out of. We also decided to get a movie, My Super Ex-Girlfriend was what we ended up with.

Kona Snow

This morning I woke up early, 6am and got the tea started so we could get down to the bay earlier than we have. Meg wanted to meet up with Shannon, a man she'd met on her last trip. I pulled the card "aloneness" yet again today. I had pulled it in the afternoon yesterday. It's funny because I am really wanting connection and the card is reminding me that when I am solid in myself is when I will be truly connected.

Right now I'm watching the Kona snow flurries drifting about the jungle. Our first day Kenny told us the coffee plants had just bloomed and that is what they call Kona snow. In a week or two the beans will be developing. Today is the first time I've seen the white pedals of the flowers drifting around and I can now see why they call it Kona snow. It is so easy here to appreciate the magic of the ordinary, since every moment is so extraordinary.

Meg and I took a lava walk at the Place of Refuge. I felt the power of the place as I sat near the water's edge. This is a place where, if a law breaker could get here he/she would be forgiven, but they would have to swim rough waters and navigate over the lava to get there. Every time I come here I forgive more and more and I am released from the confines of regret, remorse, blame, and shame. This place is still a Place of Refuge. Others joined me on the waters edge to meditate and forgive.

Tonight we had dinner with Trish and Doug, they have created dolphin and whale retreats here and in Tonga. They were nice and interesting people.

Letting Go of the Lie

Today I received the Osho deck card "The Burden". The message is to lighten up, and send the tyrant that I carry on my back away. "The moment the lie disappears, truth is there in all its beauty and radiance. In the seeing of the lie it disappears, and what is left is the truth." I want to remember this as I create my retreats.

Today we headed down to the the bay to see if the dolphins had come in. Instead we talked to our newly made human friends. The die hard dolphin people, showing up at 7am (and sometimes earlier) daily. Willy is one of the guys who looks like he's been at the bay for years and it almost seems like he never leaves. He's quite the character with tattooed stars running down the side of his face and drizzling down his neck. He's friendly and informative and an incredible swimmer. He hangs out on the lava wall with his dog, Hoku. Another guy who moved here about a year ago talked to me about his work as a somatic (something) healer and he showed me some of what he does. When he sees a pattern in a persons posture he has them go into it exaggerated and then release it again. It was interesting.

Meg and I decided not to get in the water at the bay and we moved to the Place of Refuge and sat on the lava and sunned ourselves, looking at the crabs and the yellow tangs in the surf. We lazily drifted back home to have breakfast and then later lunch. Kona was next on our agenda and we decided to check out some of the resorts to see their spas and get that feeling of luxury that we are bringing into our lives. I found that I don't resonate with "country club" luxury. I really appreciate a more unique type of luxury, something with flare. It will be interesting to see what I will create with my own unique luxurious life.

We also popped into an open house on Alii Drive and then later looked through the real estate listings and fantasizing about co-owning property together in the area where we're staying. We'll be looking at properties this week.

This was our view from Huggo's on the Rocks. The ship was sailing into the sunset...this one is for you Jon.

The Whales are Calling Me

Here is the collage I did before leaving for Hawaii...this represents my intentions for the trip. My blog is named after this collage.

The start of my magical trip to Hawaii was brought to a culmination as the whales welcomed us into Kealakekua Bay with their high pitched songs. Swimming far out into the bay...the open water...nothing to see except endless blue, but quieting my mind and then listening until the unmistakable sound of these beautiful marine mammals calling to each other and calling to me. I was drawn to swim toward Captain Cooks monument to get closer and closer.

Santa Cruz seems so far away, getting to the airport yesterday in perfect time to step onto the airplane without wait. The ride was smooth and the cotton ball clouds beautifully scattered over the Pacific. We arrived in Honolulu with enough time for lunch and I celebrated with a chocolate covered waffle cone with Kona coffee ice cream. Stepping off the plane in Kona was a warm tropical delight. Then playing with possibilities of getting a convertible...almost, but no cigar.

Our new apartment is incredibly spacious, on the second floor overlooking the tree tops to the bay. We were up with the birds shrieking and cawing. Freshly ripe bananas will be ours just outside the front door. Our gecko friends have started popping out of their hiding places to see the new arrivals.

Now we're off to breakfast...

The breakfast I had was the best ever. I ordered a half papaya bowl with mixed fruit and yogurt with bread pudding on the side. It was yummmmmmmy! I even took a picture of it. We sat high on the hill overlooking the bay where we swam earlier. The hibiscus flowers surrounding the cafe were brilliant colors of magenta centers and yellow bursting pedals.

Later we went to the grocery store and were delighted to find delicious healthy food for our meals. It turns out Meg and I have similar tastes. We came back home and unloaded our stuff and I promptly returned to the water, leaving Meg to relax and take care of some business. I headed for the bay but the wind had kicked up and there were white caps. No one was around so I headed for the Place of Refuge. I found a little spot on the lava where I could dip my toes in the tide pools. Soon I found a friend who told me he had seen some baby eels in there earlier. We started searching for things and he gave me a crab. I said, "Thank you so much, that's what I've always wanted." Later he found one of the eels again and we excitedly chased it around the pool for a few moments. I told him we had heard the whales singing that morning in the bay and he was intrigued. Maybe we'll run into his group again tomorrow morning searching for the whale calls.

I came home to find Meg ready to make a collage and get even clearer on our intention of being here. While we were discussing it the landlord stopped by with a huge bucket of oranges, two papayas, ten avocados, and a bunch of bananas which he had all picked from the property today. It was so incredibly wonderful.

We decided to do a meditation on the porch setting our intention for the collages and calming our minds. Then we started creating. We had fun, talked, passed pictures, listened to music, listened to Abraham, rested, munched on snap peas, and glued. It was all very fun. I was inspired to create two very different collages, one beautifully artistic one and one more concrete with less flare.



We collaborated on dinner and just finished. I'm surprised to find out that Meg is an ant killing machine...she's really quite vicious. And she calls herself a vegan.