Another trip to the Aquarium

Bryan and I both had the day off yesterday, so we took the borrowed Jeep to the Maui Ocean Center's aquarium.

We gawked at eels...





...and lots of fish...





...and sharks!



Of course, the underwater tunnel was a big hit.



After the aquarium, Bryan and I had reservations at Cuatro, a seafood restaurant in Kihei.  I had received a gift certificate to use at the restaurant at last year's Christmas party, and I just now had occasion to use it.  It's nice having a car to get you from one place to another, isn't it?

Cuatro is a teeny tiny restaurant that features Asian Fusion seafood that integrates bold and spicy flavors from Mexican cuisine.  Bryan and I got a crab cake appetizer topped with a light aioli sauce with a habanero salsa and cilantro olive oil swirls on the plate.

For entrees, we both got monchong fish filets.  He got his prepared with a classic lemon better sauce with white truffle mashed potatoes and asparagus on the side, and mine was prepared with grilled vegetables, garlic mashed potatoes and a balsamic glaze.

The next time we make it back to Kihei, we will definitely be trying this place again.  They only serve beer, so it's bring your own wine.  We bought a Oregon's A to Z Pinot Noir and really enjoyed it.  I miss Oregon wines!!

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Busy, Busy, Busy

I've been told that I've been neglecting the blog.  My sincerest apologies to all of my readers--all five of you.

I have been a little tied up with new adventures at work.  I got promoted to dining room server at my new restaurant about 7 days ago, so I have been studying, training and preparing to rock everyone's socks off and make lots of money.

Tonight was my first night serving solo at the new restaurant, and it went fairly smooth.  Granted, this is because I work with a lot of amazing people that helped me along my way and made sure that I didn't drown.  But I would also like to think I did a good job because I was prepared and I worked hard tonight.

Because I get a little bogged down in the details, I found myself spending a lot of time indoors this past week preparing to serve tables, so I didn't go on any adventures.  This is too bad, because I return the Jeep I've been borrowing in a few days.  I hardly put a dent in my short list of Maui adventures I wanted to have while I had wheels.

Now, that I'm done studying and am now a real server, I plan on catching up on a lot of sleep and allowing my brain to relax.  I may be missing in action here for another few days, so in the meantime, I leave you with the always excellent Mindy Kaling.

Mindy Kaling is a comedic writer and actor, most famously known for her work in the television series The Office.  She also has a book out that I can't wait to read (pictured above).

I want Mindy Kaling and I to be best friends.  Like right this instant.

If you are friends with me on facebook, you are probably already overwhelmed with the many links I posted that will direct you to the wittiness and awesomeness of Mindy Kaling.

While I am missing in action, I leave you with Mindy Kaling's blog.  She writes much better than me, and she is way more funny.  She will keep you entertained while I allow my brain to recover.  I do hope that you like her as much as you like me, but I hope that you will leave her blog every once in a while to come back and look over mine.

Check it out: Mindy's Kaling's blog

But don't be afraid, I won't be gone for long.  I just don't want to leave you with nothing to read if I end up not writing anything for a week.

Enjoy!!

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Makena's Big Beach

Yesterday Bryan and I packed our beach bags and a cooler, hopped into my borrowed Jeep and drove to "Big Beach" in Makena.

our set up: beach towels, cooler, chips and books

You may recognize the view in the next few photos.  I was last here with my friend James when he was in town visiting.  The beach lives up to its nickname.  It is BIG!  Soft, golden sands stretch out for nearly 2/3 of a mile along the water, and the beach is about 100 yards wide.





When we arrived at Big Beach at around 2 in the afternoon, it had started to lightly mist but we continued to lay out our stuff on the sand.

The light rain and the cloud cover may not have been ideal, but it was refreshing after roasting in Lahaina earlier that day.

The rain stopped, but the cloud hung overhead for another hour before breaking up and letting sunshine flood down across the beach.



We enjoyed the sun, sand and surf and stayed to watch the sunset.

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Absolute Bookworm

I've always been a big reader, but I've been tearing through books lately.  This is a short list of things that I've read in the past few weeks:

• Trash by Dorothy Allison
• Slammerkin by Emma Donoghue
• Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness by Alexandra Fuller
• 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
• Sick Puppy by Carl Hiassen

Right now I'm flipping through travel books for Maui to plan some cheap day trips to do on the fly before working nights while I still have access to wheels that are attached to an engine.  Right now, my bike is taking a long vacation parked in front of my house since I don't bike to work anymore.  When it starts to cool down, I'll probably venture back out onto the highway and take long-ish bike rides again.

I'm planning on starting David Foster Wallace's weighty tome Infinite Jest, and hopefully tackling some Hunter S. Thompson as well.  I've never read him before, and I feel like I must.

Since I'm on such a reading rampage, does anyone have any recommendations for me?

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Get Happy

I was talking to my good friend C. on the phone a few months after I had moved to Maui, and one of the first things she said to me was that I sounded "so happy."

And I really was.

I had moved to Maui on what I tell people was a "well-researched whim."  It was a whim, because, well, I don't know of too many people who pack all that they will live on in two suitcases and head to an island where they know absolutely no one, and they have no job lined up, and only have a tentative place to live.  It was "well-researched" because I had been playing with the idea of leaving Portland for over a year, and then, in the winter of 2010, I started planning on which island in Hawaii I was moving to after the company I worked for began laying off most of its employees.

For anyone who knows me, moving to Maui was a very big deal for me.  I don't think of myself as a very spontaneous person.  I like to meticulously plan things and draft to-do lists before settling on a final master task list.

For a while, moving to Maui was at best a dream that kept me warm on cold, drizzly Portland nights.  It was a dream of sunshine, salty air and warm beaches.

I finally made that warm and fuzzy dream into a reality, and I arrived on Maui on the evening of October 15th of last year.  In just ten days it will be my first year anniversary, and I intend on celebrating because moving to Maui has been one of the best moves I have ever made.

Writer Konigsburg says that "[h]appiness is excitement that has found a settling down place.  But there is always a little corner that keeps flapping around."  These two sentences ring like the noon bells from Maria Lanakila Catholic Church down the street from my house.  They are loud, pure and cut through all the background noise.

Happiness is excitement, but it is also consistent and comforting.  I love Konigsburg's idea that happiness is excitement that has settled down but still can't help but flap around out of sheer joy.

Of course, I still have my up's and down's--even on this beautiful island of Paradise, but I find that I am happy. every. single. day.  Maybe not all day, but I find something to be happy about every day.

For those of you who know me, you are probably fearing for my sanity.  The above statement sounds much too mushy to be written by Paige, you are probably thinking.  And it is mushy, but it is a true statement.

Now, I'm not talking about jumping up and down on Oprah's couch kind of happy.  I'm talking about feeling settled, but still being excited.  I'm excited for my next set of adventures and the next set of people I will get to meet, and those that I will be reunited with (I've been lucky to have been able to hang out with a handful of Portland friends already, and I've run into family friends as well while I've been here).  I'm excited that I have the option to swim in the ocean every day.  I'm excited that there are still so many places on the island I have yet to visit and explore.  I'm excited that at the end of every day there is a beautiful sunset before it gets dark.  And at night, the stars are so plentiful and bright you can't help but keep looking up.  I hear that the sunrises are just as beautiful, but I'm excited that I have a job that doesn't require me to be up early enough to see them.

Although I make no guarantees, for the moment, I have found my "settling down place" and even though I do credit Maui for injecting a lot of excitement into my day to day life, I believe that Maui has most importantly made me a more exciting person simply because I am so happy to be here.

And once more, with feeling:

"Happiness is excitement that has found a settling down place.  But there is always a little corner that keeps flapping around."
- E. L. Konigsburg

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Vroom, Vroom!

I have a temporary set of wheels, everyone, and it is divine!

My friend G. is out of town for three weeks, and he is very kindly lending me his Jeep while he is on vacation.  I haven't done too much with it, but every time I walk past its parking spot in front of the house, I smell freedom!

I picked up the Jeep Saturday night, and on Monday I filled the tank (ouch) and drove to Kahului, the other side of the island, to run some errands.  I turned the radio up and rolled the windows down and, well, I wish I could say that I drove fast on the highway, but I respect my friend's vehicle and most importantly, the speed limit is well under 60 mph on the highway--on average, the speed limit is 45 mph.  It's almost disheartening.

But I made it to the other side without incident.  My first stop was the MacNet Computer & Home Theater store to get my 2006 Macbook serviced.  And I'm glad that I went.  They did an amazing job fixing up my laptop.  My original battery had actually swelled over the years and had to be replaced.  They also replaced the top case on my computer, so now, my 2006 Macbook runs like new and it looks like new too!

While they were working on my computer, I ran over to Walmart and bought everything I need for my Halloween costume.  I can't wait to show you what I'm going to be!  I'll post photos after I assemble it.

I've been running through a list of places I want to go while I have G.'s car.  I want to go back Upcountry.  I want to swim at Makena's Big Beach.  I want to visit the aquarium again.  Hopefully squeeze in some hikes as well.  So many choices and so little time!!

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Lahaina Jodo Mission

This morning before taking a dip in the ocean, I swung into the Lahaina Jodo Mission. The Jodo Mission is an authentic Buddhist temple located a mile away from my house.

The temple is a small building set on the ocean. Its roof is covered with real copper shingles. The 90 foot pagoda across from the temple is covered in copper shingles as well.

I had never been to the Mission before, but I can see coming here more often. It is beautiful and completely peaceful. There is a small gazebo at the entrance where I could see myself holing up with a book.

The main attraction at the Jodo Mission is the 12 foot Amida Buddha statue. It is the largest Buddha statue outside of Japan. It is made from bronze and copper, and it weighs 3.5 tons.

I missed it last year, but the Jodo Mission celebrates a widely visited lantern festival. I hope to make the next one.

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