Naialani

It snowned on the Big Island of Hawaii last night. So the burning question for some today was, "SHOULD i surf or should i ski?" The picture was part of a news story here in the islands. It has been a chilly day all day... 75, 76 degrees or so....LOLOL I am an island gal..........

I was on the road headed west early... the sun breaking thru the clouds as i moved on.. I love the morning and the ocean together... There is something about blues and greens in the morning that make it worth being up and out. This turtle passed me this morning in the blue blue water and I was just AMAZED by his shell! Cool, Clean mornings....in blues and greens... the planet celebrating the sun! I am an island gal......

Video of the North Shore this week.... Not even a humpback whale will take on these waves! LOL Winter is in full swing! At least my blogger friends will get to see more than the North shore now! =0) I remain an island gal.......

There is a reason I have not spent much time on the west side of Oahu. Even though I LOVE dolphin swimming and the WEST always has dolphins, the WEST is also the home of hundreds if not thousands of homeless people. Tent after tent, mile after mile, the homeless families of Oahu call this THEIR place. Drug addiction, alcoholism, mental illness, lack of work,unable to pay sky high rent,home foreclosures, the west is where they come. Theft and assault is high out here in this area. The homeless existence seems to make people mean and desperate and i have not wanted my belongings stolen while i am in the water so i have just stayed away. The answers to the problems out here are not easily come by and on this day before THANKSGIVING here in paradise, I want to let my gratitude for the dry solid roof over my head be known. As i eat the turkey i cook tomorrow, i will be extra grateful for the meal, the table i eat it on and those in my family who will join me. TO my fellow Hawaiians who are ...

November 22 Sun... I woke early.. i was going BACK to KAHE Point to tell the Ocean i was sorry for my "dumbness ". It wasnt long after I hit the water, this happened. May I ALWAYS REMEMBER to be a HUMBLED island gal.....

Sat. November 21st.. Oh Lord, I hope i don't confuse you with today's blog. The West side of the island is considered the home of the dolphins. Boat after Boat filled with visitors makes the trip from Honolulu to the west side bringing with them hundreds in life vests who jump in the water over the top of a pod of dolphins in hopes of being able to swim with the dolphins. The perfect place it seems is a place called KAHE POINT or electric beach to the locals named for the BIG electric plant that sits on shore. I NEVER swam with dolphins on the west side before. The pictures I have taken of dolphins have all come from my beloved North Shore. So after watching these boats for 2 weeks now I thought well.. its crowded but the dolphins were there and Id really like some dolphin pictures! SO in I go..... I tread water for a total of 4 HOURS, i got out twice, swam around alot but NOT one dolphin would get near me. I had watched from shore the dolphins tease these boats swimming back ...

The West has beautiful clear water.. I am not a west coast swimmer so the divers i see while swimming i welcome. Being out there in the deep with just a mask and snorkel can be intimidating but... I have decided i need to step outside my comfort zone and go for it. As you can see the sun setting in the west is absolutely breathtaking...... So much so it stopped this bird . He just sat there staring at the sunset .. I wondered WHAT he was thinking! I am an island gal...........

............leaving my beloved north shore behind, i headed west.... The west side of the island of Oahu is considered the dry,rugged side of the island. One hotel stands out there. The Ko Olina Resort. To my right, what you cant see are 3 big time- share condos. sigh.. and those large cranes in the picture suggest another one to come. The resort builders built 5 little lagoons along the coastline fronting the hotels property and i stopped in at lagoon number 3 the HONU (turtle) lagoon. The lagoons are beautiful ! I call it high- end swimming. After swimming you walk up a short stretch of sand onto green green grass.. shower.. go to your car.. no sand, no mess. All very proper, quiet and clean. The lagoons are the same. Quiet,serene,tranquil, very much the opposite of the deep, current driven waters of the North Shore i am so used to. You can imagine then, the shock and surprise on my face when...

It rained hard last week. A storm front circled the islands torturing us with humidity and thunder. Lightening which is unusual in the island brought torrents of rain. INCHES in just an hours time. The normally placid river at Waimea Bay pushed against TONS of sand breaking through with a vengeance. Regulars at the Bay who were there said they have NEVER seen the river that angry. The river spewed mega tons of brown muddy water into the ocean, making it unsafe to swim anywhere on the north shore. The River jettisoned dead pieces of wood onto the beautiful sands of the Bay, leaving nowhere near the shoreline to sit and bask in the beauty of the Bay. It happens every year at this time.... for me it NEVER gets easy to watch. Blue water turned brown with mud. In time mother nature will turn the Bay back into blue and I will again marvel at the power of Nature. The next set of winter waves will move all the dead wood on the shore out into the depths of the sea and sitting, laying and baskin...

Na Leo - Hawaiian Lullaby Acoustic Vrs .mp3 Found at bee mp3 search engine Sunday morning it was raining. In Hawaii, rain usually means beautiful rainbows and this Sunday morning was no exception! The islands for some reason have the ability to rain while the sun is out and that creates some beautiful scenery. The Waimea valley and its river look prehistoric when it rains. Turn around and face the bay and this is what greets you... Hop in the car and go down the road a mile or two.. ..The rainbows cascade over the heads of the surfers who LOVE a colorful sky out there! AND THEN top it off with a turtle who swims up to you and says,"HEY MAN u see the RAINBOW?" MAGIC!! LOLOL i am an island gal

I set off early Saturday morning to work on the goal I made to swim the waters beneath Diamond Head. The first thing i notice is the beauty, the next? everyone going down the cliff to the shoreline is at least 25 years younger than I.! LOL The beach is just stunning and i notice right away the WIND! WINDY WINDY! The wind kicks up the water and makes it milky. I ask ONE of the MANY surfers entering the water there, if it was always this WINDY! He said,"80% of the time, Ma'am".LOLOL Ma'am?? LOLOL oh BOYYY! If you want the honest truth it felt good to be among so many younger people. WHY? Did i feel younger? NO! LOL The air around younger people is so positive and strong. It is just GOOD to feel the energy! I entered the water and saw that it was just tooo milky to take pictures. I brought my head up out of the water and there stood the U.S.COAST GUARD LIGHTHOUSE!!I had forgotten it was there! HOW FITTING that this beach, this shoreline filled with young adults should be...

By the time I got to Sunset Beach on my beloved North Shore on Monday, the days event was over! It was Day 2 of the XCEL PRO SURF meet. THANK GOODNESS for video... this was taken by one of the event photographers. As you can see my beloved North Shore has turned wicked!! "> WHY was I LATE? Well i was down the road a bit, colliding with turtles! LOL, I should of KNOWN better then get in the water on a day like this! Turtles don't seem to be bothered by the rough water. They float around happy as can be, meanwhile this human spent her time in the water upside down! LOLOL I am an island gal.......

From Waikiki I headed about 3 miles south to Diamond Head. I stopped at a look out, at the foot of Diamond head, just off to the side of the road. I realized that I have LIVED HERE on OAHU my whole life and NEVER swam in the waters you see in this picture! I asked my self, " WHY?" . I have no answer, so in the coming weeks I WANT to see what is UNDER the water in this picture.! I LOVE this planet, there is no end to the word "NEW". I will keep you posted on this New Goal! I am an island gal......