Aloha!

Just a quick hello from Hawaii's Big Island, sitting here typing on our laptop out on our friends' lanai (patio, veranda), wearing shorts and a tank top in February and listening to a loud tropical bird...I just stood up momentarily and caught a nice glimpse of the ocean off the Kona coast, though there are a few clouds and a little fog (or possibly vog). Also, it's been a little chilly at night. But Friday evening was amazing. We spent the late afternoon at Hapuna beach, about half an hour north of Kailua-Kona, splashing in the water, drinking many beers, keeping our friends' two-year-old son Zach from getting dashed against lava rock by waves, watching the sun set, and seeing whales spout and jump offshore. Ahhhh.

Our friends' son is hilarious. He is very chatty and is good at repeating what you tell him to say, but certain sounds are still difficult for him. This means that if he sees a dumptruck, he will point and say "dumbfuck." A motorcycle is "momofucka." For a while, milk was "milf." He also copies his dad when he says "damn turkeys" (there are wild turkeys in their neighborhood that come into the yard in the morning and eat the passionfruit that falls off their tree). So somebody (probably Uncle Jake, their roommate) figured out that it was quite amusing if you tell Zach to say "motorcycle turkeys."

Anyway, tomorrow we're thinking of either going down to the Volcano national park to hike around, or perhaps taking a boat ride along the coast, if such a thing is possible. The surf is apparently too rough for snorkeling this time of year...