Island Girl

For me its balmy airs are always blowing, its summer seas flashing in the sun; the pulsing of its surf is in my ear; I can see its garlanded crags, its leaping cascades, its plumy palms drowsing by the shore, its remote summits floating like

islands above the cloud-rack; I can feel the spirit of its woody solitudes, I hear the plashing of the brooks; in my nostrils still lives the breath of flowers that perished twenty years ago.

- Mark Twain, a Biography

No one really knows how rough it's been for me this past week. After spending a week in paradise, I don't think it's fair to complain to those who stayed behind. When I'm not running around, I'm back to wearing sweaters and using the blanket in the family room. (How can it be warmer outside than it is inside??) I'm sick of this cold. I'm missing the warmth. I'm missing the connectedness. I'm missing the adventure. All kidding aside, this feels like withdrawal.

The big island was my favorite for years. When I was on the big island, I remember floating on my back in a pool, listening to Hawaiian music and staring up at Orion in an inky black sky, thinking, this is as Hawaiian as it gets. Then I discovered Oahu by scooter. You can't get the same views or the same feeling of adventure when you're traveling by car. Now I'm longing, yearning to feel it again.

I am not a cold-weather girl. I was born in the Philippines and grew up in pre-polar shift California. My sis and friends agree that winters were not this cold and summers were not that short. Last year we were lucky if we felt a total of three warm weeks. This does not help my seasonal affectiveness disorder.

I thrive when I spend time near a beach. The less I have to wear, the better. I'm more energetic, thus more productive, and I smile all the time. Sure, it's easy for me to say, since I don't have to live there, but the best day at the office can't be better than the worst day working in Hawaii. No matter what happens at work, you're still in Hawaii at the end of the day.

I'm working on plans to be able to stay there for at least a month at a time. There are many people to consider first, so we'll see what happens and hope for the best.

In the meantime, I'll have to buy a full-spectrum light bulb, grab sunshine when it's available, and continue my search on the mainland for the world's best Mai Tai. Right now, the titleholder is where I want to be - some 2,390 miles southwest of San Francisco. 21:18:25 North Latitude, 157:51:30 West Longitude, to be exact.