Star-Crossed Putters; Doing Some Fun Normal Things

[Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland.]

2/26/22

Aloha Everybody!

Well, there is a LOT going on in the world that just plain sucks, but I want to focus on the good things this week.

First off, I did have another eyeball injection last Saturday even though I wasn't expecting it.  This may sound bad but it wasn't.  My retina was in pretty good shape, actually, but there was some edema starting on the periphery that would have gotten a lot worse if I tried to go another 4 weeks.  So this injection undoubtedly headed off some worse problems down the road.  Yet again my doc did a fantastic job of doing the deed and the procedure wasn't all that bad.

On Tuesday our guests arrived and since then we've been doing enjoyable things, like whale watching,

One of Many

hiking to an Hawaiian petroglyph field, and -- get this -- attending a concert *in person.*  The concert was in Waimea at the Kahilu Theater, a venue that holds about 300 and has great acoustics.  The attendance was limited to 1/2 because of you-know-what and we had to show our vaccination cards and wear masks.  Despite these things, it was very enjoyable to experience a live performance *in person* for the first time in over two years.  The group we heard was an internationally acclaimed quartet of Spanish classical guitarists named the Romero Quartet, and given my guitar interests this made it even more enjoyable  -- and very, very humbling.

On Thursday the four of us went to Makalei golf course.  We did some practice putting and driving and

Star-Crossed Putters

then played a "selective" round of golf.  This means we focused on the holes that were the most interesting and scenic, skipping the others.  Think of this as Mar-a-Lago bespoke reality golf.  Karen and I did most of the actual playing, though our friends joined in for some shots. Basically the outing was an excuse to see some beautiful scenery, feed the peacocks and see the nenes, and get some exercise.  I did much, much better than on my last outing, with two pars and a bogey.  One of the pars was on a challenging  par-4 hole, and both Karen and I got pars with some rather amazing putting by both of us.

So far the weather has cooperated for their visit.  It turned much warmer and has remained dry and clear for the most part. We could really use some rain but we hope it holds off until after they leave next week. The pool has now reached 82d -- geezer perfect.

That's about it for this week.  Hope you're guarding your health and sanity ok.  Keep looking for those silver linings -- they're there even though well-hidden these days.

1 Ship, 3 Doctors, 5 Friends

[Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland.]

2/19/22

Aloha Guys!

I'll be nice and skip the snarky comments about weather, other than to say that in contrast to a couple of months ago, we're getting close to having one of our best solar pv production months ever.

Last Saturday we had yet another visit by a cruise ship -- one of the Holland America line.  Merchants along the waterfront must be delighted with the increased business these visits bring.  Sometime next month our weekly ship will resume, and that's more good news.  Beside the economic shot in the arm for the community, it will make it easier for me to keep track of what day of the week it is --  ship in port = Wednesday.

On Sunday we had brunch with our good friend who teaches in Waimea, and her parents who are visiting.  Her parents are also good friends from working days in Ohio, and are staying with her for most of the winter, escaping from Wisconsin where they are living now.  Their daughter teaches at Hawaiian Preparatory Academy, one of the best private high schools here.  She lives on campus as a dorm counselor (!) and after brunch we were able to visit the campus and see the rather impressive facilities.  It is a very attractive place, and her apartment has an excellent view of Mauna Kea and the surrounding countryside.  Very nice. 

On Tuesday I had my 6-month checkup with my internist.  Everything seems ok (considering), and my bloodwork numbers were good,  perhaps a bit better than last time in fact. Sodium has climbed back into the low end of the acceptable range after I ditched the diuretic.  I'm now trying an alternative that so for hasn't caused any problems.  Later today I'll be seeing my retina doctor, so that makes two physicians this week.  With my skin check last week that means I will have had three medical checkups in the last 14 days!  Isn't Geezerhood fun?!  I think my bad retina is ok for now and I probably won't need another injection.  Most likely we will try to go for another month.

Best Part of My Golf Game

I played golf with Karen and her usual partner on Thursday.  This round was...well..challenging. Let's just say that if I played that way all the time I might part ways with the game altogether.  We did see a Nene family (mom, pop, and three chicks) take a swim in the course lake, definitely a treat and a welcome distraction from my game.

Next week we will be hosting our first guests of the year -- good Ohio friends who have been here several times before.  They are on Kaua'i right now and will transfer here on Tuesday.  We're looking forward to it.  They are the first visitors since early last year, when we hosted twin girls and their grandmother, also from Ohio.

Finally, we have made even more travel plans.  We've put a deposit down on a Viking River Cruise along the Danube from Budapest to a town in Germany called Regensburg.  This will be interesting, since we have tended to be rather cool to this kind of travel in the past.  We'll extend it on one or both ends by traveling on our own in Germany.  We've been there before but it was quite a long time ago, and there are parts we've never visited, including Berlin.  We won't plan many details until we have nailed down the Caucasus trip in May.

That's it.  I seem often to start these missives thinking I don't have much to report and then find it was a pretty busy week.  Anyway, I hope all is well with you.  Hang in there.

 

My Blue Nevus in Azerbaijan

[Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland.]

2/12/22

Aloha Everybody!

How's your furnace doing these days?  Snicker. We don't have one, as I've mentioned before. Although the nights here have been chilly (60-65d), we've had many sunny days that have finally managed to heat our pool to a relatively comfy 80d.

The big news for us this week was that we heard from our tour company about the May trip to the

Hopeful Itinerary

Caucasus and it looks like it is a go.  They were holding off to see how the Covid situation was developing and what the various restrictions would mean for our itinerary.  The company is combining the May 17 group with the one starting on May 10 to have the minimum number of participants, so we'll be going a week earlier.  To remind you, the company is called Eldertreks and is based in Canada.  We were attracted to them because of their interesting itineraries and because they restrict group size to 16 maximum.  This is the outfit we were scheduled with to go to Ethiopia two years ago until Covid and civil war made it impossible.  Anyway, we're excited to at least have the possibility of going on this trip, and we've been looking into air travel and getting all the forms filled out.  The three countries that make up the Caucasus are Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia -- former reluctant members of the Soviet Union. Russia borders Georgia and Azerbaijan to the north.  To the south of all three are Turkey and Iran. The old saying, "between a rock and a hard place" comes to mind. It's this strategic location that makes the area so historically interesting and worth visiting.

On Wednesday I had my yearly skin check and everything was fine -- including "Ben," my "Blue

My Buddy Ben

Nevus." Ben has done me well in many a Geezer Competitive Complaining contest, and came through again on Wednesday when the trainees observing my exam suddenly crowded around to get a good look when the dermatologist announced that I had a Blue Nevus on my left hand.  Actually, it's a harmless form of a mole, and in my case is quite small.  I've had it for many years, and the variety I have usually doesn't change over time.  I could have it removed but I've kind of grown attached to it (so to speak) and Ben seems like an old friend now. And if I get to Azerbaijan I want him to go, too.

Karen and I went to the Makalei driving range and putting green on Monday, then had a beach picnic.  On Thursday Karen played with her usual partner (*3* pars!) and I went to Planet Fitness. All this exercise puts me in great shape for my extended naps afterward.

That's it.  Enjoy whatever you can.  It's time.

Volcano Snorts, Foil Fixes, Workout Mania

 [Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland.]

2/5/22

Aloha Ohana!

All is well here. Hope that's true for you too.

I realize I haven't mentioned anything about our volcano for quite some time, so I'll catch you up.   It's still active, but not doing anything newsworthy. Basically it's gone into a pattern like someone

sleeping who has an occasional brief snorting episode as they turn over. All activity is in the summit caldera of Kileaua, inside a vent called Halema'uma'u, where a lava lake formed about 1 1/2-2 years ago.  Most of the surface of the lake has crusted over, but there is a spot near the edge where fresh lava spews then shuts off for a week or so. For about the past 6 months these cycles have been very regular. When the lava is flowing the SO2 levels rise, which produces a slight amount of vog along our coast, then things clear again when the lava stops.  The Volcano National Park is open and draws a lot of tourists, but parts of it are still closed and there really isn't much of a view of the current activity.  

I managed to fix the keyboard of my old computer.  As you recall, it died right after I transferred all the files to the new one.  I still want to keep the old one accessible, though, in case I need something I might have overlooked.  I cleaned out the battery compartment of the keyboard and this week I examined it very closely.  One of the contacts was very badly corroded, and much of it broke off when I tried to scrape off the corrosion. This meant the new battery wasn't making hardly any connection. Hmmmm.  In a flash of ingenuity I tried taking a piece of aluminum foil and stuffing it between the battery and keyboard contacts.  Voila!!  Kindasortamaybe fixed!!  So, let's see. To everybody's toolkit should be added bailing wire, duct tape, and aluminum foil.  

Karen and I worked out at Planet Fitness on Monday to earn our Vietnamese Lemon Grass sandwich on the beach afterwards.  Very few people were in the gym at the time, so we felt pretty comfortable.  Besides being a very large facility with great equipment, we like this venue because the motto is "No Judgement,"  which draws people of all ages and body types.  Sure there are the trim and firm youngsters, but there are also many of us who...uh....aren't.  On Thursday Karen played golf and I went back to the gym again.  Wow, two workouts in one week.  I may have to buy some "muscle" shirts.

That's about it.  We are watching the mainland weather with sympathy and maybe a touch of amusement.  Just remember, Spring will come eventually.  That was the change of seasons I remember loving.

Take care.  Stay healthy and warm.