Report from South Kona

After a great night at the movies , first we had went to Bale a French Vietnamese place in town , Ute and I had crispy noodles with Bok Choi and Chicken . Chris had some Shrimp Summer Rolls and Kyle had a BBQ Chicken plate . Waiting for the movie we sat down and had lattes at Peaberry and Gelato , that is right next door . That’s our after surf spot for a coffee before going home . We watched Avatar it was super good and so fun , eating our smuggled in snacks . Man they charge like 4.50 for a little water in there . LOL . Loaded up this morning and hit the beach ready for a kick back day . There were a few more people then usual around at the beach after the New Years , several extra dogs for Dewey to play with . Breezy warm day with a very low tide from the full moon they reefs out basking in the sun today . Swam around with Dewey , Played some Frisbie under the coconut trees and just hung out in the sun and shade . Lots of Whales jumped and spouted right off the shore for a nice little show .

Steve & Ute

We are off to town and the movies , maybe a little dinner too , Avatar is the movie we are going to see like everyone else . LOL There is a nice little latte place right next to the Movies too . Worked just a little this morning , still recuperating a little from the late ,late night on New years . Haven’t made the big pot of beans I like to do on new years , tomorrow Ill do one up . There has been a lot of waves , now after the holidays we are going to get out more . Hot and dry , little rain so far really drought like conditions . Ok off we go ,

Steve & ute

Amid the crashing waves and bright as day full moon. The New Years , spent on the shore by Keei beach on the rocks at the cliff jump . The waves were stupendous smashing with powerful white plums of water over the rocks . We arrived down there just before sunset and did get the spot we wanted , there were a few revelers about and many cars went by toward the beach .Four kids all 14 , Dewey the dig , BBQ , the new one Ute got me for Christmas , Cooler with steaks and hot dogs , chips , bunch of sodas . A array of fireworks , Chinese style New Years , sparklers and small explosives , after about 9 pm till 2 am is the legal time anyway that they can be lite off . Started off with sparklers and progressed up to the big string that Kyle lite off just at Midnight .

The dog ran around and we started off with a quick set up ,lighting of the BBQ , letting the kids plow thru a couple of bags of chips we started off the festivities . Watching the big fire from the group of people just down from us . The full moon started to come up over the island . Grilled up the steaks and we had them on big rolls , a couple of hotdogs here and there and made some coffees . Two more people , Christine the Mom of one of the kids and her friend Greg came down about 11pm and started of a second wind of fun . Bringing some more food and new life into the group . They had a little fire wood and the kids got a little pile of it going . We all hung out eating and watching sparks fly from little fireworks tossed and had fun till about 130am to start out the New Year .

First report of the year , Love Steve and Ute

Out in the warm water , riding the bands of energy almost every afternoon this week . Had Ute out riding along in the bubbles and smooth faces . Switching off to my long board , had Ute on the cool Manta 46 body board . She rode it well , it worked good for her , last time she rode the smaller 42 that is a little too small for me too . The waves have been coming in all week , a little bigger on some days . Tuesday is Utes day off so I ended going out alone in a little bigger surf , then I had Ute back out on the other days . Except Friday , we had a long day stopping at Cosco for supplies on the way home , turning off the water at a couple of pools that needed some refilling along the way home .

All in all it was a good week getting out in the water so much with the waves coming back . having a good weekend so far , Kyle is down hanging out , Chris is off to the Home Coming game tonight and Kaylee has been a little sick over night she may not be able to go . But had planned to . Just roasted some Anaheim peppers and a big white onion for a little batch of salsa . Drinking lattes and Listening to Gregory Issacs the cool ruler on the Ipod .

Good Vibes , Steve

Mondays can be plenty of fun . After a mellow morning and early afternoon of work . With a cooling smoothie stop at midday before finishing off our stops . Ute and I pulled up to a warm and clear ocean down at Kahaluu beach park . Small waves broke softly with their white foam over the reef . After a summer of either no waves or too rough of waves , Ute and I went out for her first time surfing . Ute on the Slick a 9 foot long board with three fins in back , this board has been around almost 15 years . One of the classic boards made by the Slickermeyer a super cool old time Big island board maker . I went out on my black body board . Entering the ocean in a small channel thru the lava rock with its fresh cold spring water coming up in the warm water of the sea . With a little push out we paddled , Ute getting right on the board for her first time . Voyaging out toward the breaking waves with her first strokes pushing her out to warmer waters . Once out about midway we stopped for a little lesson in sitting on the board , Ute with her Horse back ridding experience just sat right up and balanced just right . Floating around a little we moved just inside the break after not getting any waves breaking where we had been . Now as the first ones came I had Ute lay down and paddle , but at the last minute I pulled her back worried about a wipe out . LOL I shouldn’t have , the next wave off she paddled and with a push she caught the wave and sped away . Riding along till the wave rolled up on the inside , her first wave . Back out right away we went just a bit farther out and caught a little bigger wave . Ute ridding cleanly right along again 50 or more yards right to the inside . Now the Slick is not the perfect learning board , one of those big foam one that float so much and are super stable are , anyone can ride those . Ute tuned right into the board and rode a total of 7 nice waves , the biggest one I thought for sure I would see her flipping and the board go flying . But off she went just the back of the wave visible , speeding in a long ride about a 75 yard cruise toward shore . Inside , right in line with the ride a tourist and a surf instructor sat catching the smaller inside waves . Ute unseen from the back was being propelled right toward them . The reason this was apparent was the instructors eyes slowly got wider and wider . Oh no , it looked like Ute was going to run right over them , realizing that there was no brakes on a surf board . At the last second she pulled a perfect turn right out of the wave . laughing away as the instructor asked if she was alright , Ute paddled right back out thru two breaking waves to ride some more . It was such a classic wave for the first time surfing that we laughed for several minutes , rode a couple more and headed in surfed out , happy and hungry . Just the way to be after a reat afternoon in the water . Now I don’t know if I ever will get the Slick back , I think I will have to drop her off tomorrow while I go work . lol

What a fun afternoon , Steve & Ute

After a long hot week of work , we found some beds finally . We found one on Thursday for Ute and I on Craigs list . Rushed down in the morning and got one , they go quick if you don’t get there . We had to load it up and leave it at one of the houses I work at so it didn’t have to ride around on the truck all day . It was a llloonnng day , we worked all day and then hit the big food store and loaded up at the end of the day . Then went back loaded up the bed again and off to home . Where we unloaded the bed again and hauled it into the house , we had been sleeping on a air mattress so long . Oh it was almost to comfortable to be on a real bed again . LOL It is pretty nice from a vacation house so it wasn’t used much and came with a bunch of sheet and pillows too , all almost new . Friday the kids had no school , due to the new furlough of the teachers to save money . Its a little crazy but they are not having school for 17 Fridays to save money on the teachers pay . Republican Governor has screwed up the state once again . Just a ploy to cause trouble to the teachers union . Anyway Ute stayed home with Kaylee and Chris and Kyle came to work . Ute found another bed and we called at the end of the day for that one . When we called back for directions to the house they didn’t answer so we thought we had missed it . After stopping at the book store for Kyle , he wanted a book that was his pay for working , and a couple of other stops we were just headed home when they called just before we left town . Hurray we got another one for Chris , another good one , we lucked out big on used beds . Now we just need a set of bunk beds so Kyle can have one and a extra for sleep overs and guests . Kyle hasn’t come down much but I hope he will .

Saturday the whole crew , Ute , Kaylee , Chris and myself all set out on a moving garage sale mission . Looking for a desk or table for Chris’s computer and also any furniture or other good stuff . We scored two boxes of really cool dishes , lots of plates and bowels and a plethora of coffee cups . Chris got a house intercom system , yikes , lots of buzzing the first day LOL . A set of small book shelves , but no chairs or anything , our offers must have been too low . hahahaha After shopping we stopped for lunch at Bale a Vietnamese French spot , they have a great crispy noodles dish and that Pho soup that is so good . It comes full of rice noodles and chicken . Then you add fresh bean sprouts and basil plus a little bit of fresh hot peppers . Yum . Then went for a little shopping for some clothes and shoes , a little this and that . Loaded up we hauled out booty home and kicked back sending the dishes thru the washer and getting buzzed with the intercom system . As evening set in we hauled down for a little swim with Dewey and then home for dinner and a little Movie watching .

We did have a little scare at lunch , a large bit of crispy noodles , almost had Ute . Looking over Kaylee had a wide eyed look and turning my head left next to me . Ute could not talk , some expanding noodles had got lodged in her throat . She couldn’t talk a sign of choking , just before I jumped up for a little Heimlich they slipped back out . Neatly into a napkin phew that was close . watch those crispy noodles .

Hanging out now having coffee in some of the new cups with the neat blue flower and leaf vine wrapping around . Ute got a new drip coffee maker since that was the kind she liked , but we may have spoiled it for her with all the espresso , oops LOL

Rubbing Ute’s toes on Sunday Morning , Stay Cool Steve

Ute and I spent all day Saturday at the beach . Keei , with good waves breaking all day , sun and turtles . Laying around drinking Lemon aid and watching the waves , riding a few , letting the palm fronds cool the breeze . I have been wanting to take Ute out to ride some waves , it seems that each time it’s a little to big and rough . LOL She just got some new fins . a nice set of voit duck feet . Old time classic , the ones I have most always used , good for swimming and Boogie Boards . Dewie came along , he is very happy to be down at that beach , still a cool and free one with dogs and no ticket writers . The water was just right , a few turtles munching seaweed off the rocks along the shore . Drifting back and forth in the waves that had been slowed and calmed by the inside reef . I ended up doing two surf sessions , one long , a shorter one as the tide came in with a strong current . Riding several waves all day .

Sunday was just a mellow one , a morning trip out for a omelet at LL drive in . It was fun to do , nothing much fancy . After that we just hung around in the heat , it was much hotter then yesterday . Made a big jug of Lemon aid and a batch of salsa , watched a couple of episodes of Fire Fly and fixed a tire on the hand truck . With the cool of the evening here having a little coffee with Ute , enjoying the transition from day to night . Making some brown rice and some shrimp .

Watch out for Global warming , Steve & Ute