Monday, April 13, 2009

3 weeks in paradise...

Breakfast at The Coffee Shack!! YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!



I'm sitting right now on our lanai (outside porch) overlooking the ocean. I have my water bottle on one side of me and a Starbucks frappucino (from Costco) on the other. OH MAN, is it ever beautiful here. I tell you, it sure doesn't take that long to get used to nice weather. :) :) :)

The biking I've been able to do here has just been awesome. The weather has been just about perfect. Not scorching hot, but still hot! Today was a 5 hour bike ride followed by a little run, then it was playtime in the ocean. My hair is still damp from the ocean swim -- our pad is right across from the little beach, and Mike tanned, while Jake boogie-boarded, and I swam back and forth in the waves.

Mike is the SUPER SNORKELER. I don't really care for snorkeling -- I know, I know. I'm probably the only person in the world that doesn't go nuts for snorkeling. I mean, I like it, but I'm not as ENRAPTURED as Mike is. And, yes, the capital letters are necessary for that! Hahahahaha!!

Swimming in the ocean has taught me a lot about my stroke too. It's like I have to swim properly in order to move ahead. And the waves! WOW! I thought the piddly little ripples at IMC were "waves." Hahahahahaha -- was I ever wrong!!! Real waves bob you up and down and push you left and right and all around. And they are actually fun!

BIG NEWS on the running front...My coach left a comment telling me that my turkey running style is slowly disappearing. Or as she calls it, "Running like Phoebe." Hahahahaha!! Do you know how aggravating it is to KNOW that you are doing something wrong, can SEE that you are doing it wrong, and can even see when other people are doing it wrong, but you still continue to do it? AAARRRGGHH.



As for biking...

Oooh! There is something to be said for biking with people who are faster/better than you. There are just so many free lessons to be learned that way. For example, on Friday's ride (just over 4 hours), this girl passed me on my return trip. Now, it doesn't matter what my workout was, or what her workout was -- the point is that after she passed me, I found myself keying off her, and actually increasing my cadence and pushing myself a bit more. It's like she woke me up from a comfy slumber-bike ride and helped me get back on track.

And during today's ride, it was pretty windy (I'll come back to the wind here too), and I remembered how that girl had maintained a solid cadence and just went. I didn't doze off during today's ride, and when a guy passed me near the end of my ride, I watched him as well and found a teeny bit more inside to keep my legs going. What lessons! Both times I honestly thought I was pushing myself, but both times I had even more to give. But, because that girl passed me on Friday, I had a much more honest workout today! :) :) :) :)

Okay -- back to the wind. It is just as windy as the Pass. So -- all of you that are worried about the Kona winds, just bunk at my place if you want to train in the wind. The crosswinds are pretty hairy too -- we don't get too many crosswinds in the Pass, because the roads and wind go east to west or vice versa. But, there are a couple of spots where the crosswinds can nail you!

The crosswinds here don't just come out of nowhere -- you can tell when they are coming. There are rocky embankments on the side of the road, and when these end, the highway is fully exposed to wind. The terrain is rolling, with very few trees and just grass -- so the wind just blasts out from land to the water. After countless hours watching my Ironman DVDs and hearing about these famous winds, I was frigging ready. They did buffet me around a bit, but I stayed in aero. I thought to myself, "It's a good core workout this way!" Hahahahahahaha!! And once I did get blown onto the rumble strips, but like I said in an earlier post, the strips here are barely a blip -- let alone a rumble.

And they have wind turbines like in Cowley here too -- so I was right at home! Hahahaha!! I am not kidding, I just about spit up my water when I saw the familiar white turbines off the highway. Hahahahaha -- Yup! Just like home! :) :) :)

As for wildlife -- they have wild goats here, and they have these "Donkey Crossing" signs. I haven't seen a donkey yet, but I did see a dead wild pig on the side of the road today. It was black, bloated, and with that terrible fascination that PULLS you to look at the macabre, I took another glance at the corpse and saw it's tongue was sticking out. ECHH. Wonder if that'll make it to luau tonight? Hahahahah! Poor taste, I know!! LOL!!

Let's see, what else did I want to talk about -- Oh yeah, I LOVE the pool here. I really love swimming there. There is lap swimming from morning 'til night and you are pretty much always guaranteed a lane to yourself. The water is beautiful and deep -- so cool and clean. I relish the beginning of the workout when I get into the pool -- it's like as soon as I get in the pool, I slip into a happy, meditative state. Mike thinks I'm nuts (and to be fair, I am) that I feel like that about a pool and not like that about snorkeling, but to each his own!! :) :)

The change rooms have LOTS of black hair on the floors -- Hahahahahaha -- I never wear sandals, so I just make sure I step between them...Heh-heh-heh!

I found out how coconuts really look. You know when you buy them from the store and they look like a little brown bowling ball with three darkened spots like holes? Well, they are actually wrapped in a husk, sort of like corn on the cob. I asked a local yesterday why the coconuts looked different than at the store, and he illustrated the husking of a coconut with a little help from his dog, Moki. Heh-heh-heh -- the dog tore into that coconut like my dog tears into a teddy bear. :) :)

Here's a pic of us three amigos after exploring a lava tube with flashlights. As we emerged from the black depths, we could smell the sweet smell of pot ahead -- someone had deked into the darkened space and had a puff. We joked that we were going to be high when we got into the light again -- what do you think? Hahahahahaha!!



Jake and I doing what we shouldn't be doing...



Mike doing something he shouldn't be doing...(If you tell him he's not allowed, you are guaranteed him doing it -- is this a man thing? LOL!!!)



Bye for now!! :) :) :)

14 comments:

Keith said...

Sigh. I'm sure you'll remember this vacation (if working out that much counts as vacation) forever.

Melissa said...

Great update! So, how long are you staying there ;-)

Jealous!

Kelly B. said...

Is Mike taking a poop? Or did one of those branches go up his bum...? I can't tell...
You three look so happy!! Isn't paradise wonderful!!

Beth said...

So I've been reading your blog for a few weeks and was also just in Kona (but sadly for only one week) and had to comment because I saw the dead pig as well and I think my husband thought I was making it up because he never saw it.

Sounds like you are enjoying Kona as much as we did!

Julie said...

Hi Beth! It's true -- the dead pig exists! Hahahahaha!!

Charlie Browne said...

Soooo what I would like to know is did you loiter in the pot infused cave a little longer than needed or did you run out of there to the fresh air????

Coach Sara said...

So glad you found the Coffee Shack, one of my fave places in the world! Now that you've enjoyed your vacation to the max, what do you think about racing there?

Julie said...

Ooooh, Sara! I would LOVE to race there....but I have a LOT of work to do! :) :) :)

Kaloko Drive needs to be properly conquered, and I have to stop running like Phoebe...

Hahahahahaha!

KK said...

Wow, sounds like paradise, especially because you guys know how to have a good time :). I love the word ENRAPTURED in all caps-funny. (You're right, people do go gaga over snorkeling. I've never done it but it sounds like fun.)

Enjoy the rest of your trip-it sounds divine!

Amy said...

LOVE the pics. Looked at them last week and must have forgotten to comment. You guys look like you're soaking up every minute!

Jonno said...

Wow, sounds like you had a blast. Awesome, I'm jealous (not really, wink).
John Mykytchuk
Regina

Julie said...

Hey John!!! Long time no hear!! Hahahaha! You should have seen it -- we ran into Gary at the airport in LA. He was returning from Maui, and I teased him about what you said "getting locked up in the Penitentiary" with southern drawl and all. Hahahahaha!! How's training going for ya?

Amber Dawn said...

isn't Hawaii Heaven on Earth? I loved the snorkeling too and D and I have talked about a vacation property there (since we can't move there forever) :-)
Looks like an amazing holiday, that is the stuff life memories are made of.
:-)

Keith said...

So. You're back. Probably dreaming of Kona, and wondering if you can get a work permit that lets you live there.

Accumulating training milage here, suffering into the wind, devouring all in your path at the pool, and trampling anyone who gets in your way on the run. I can see the big grin on your face as you do all this. Since you aren't telling us about your adventures, I just have to imagine them.