All Posts Tagged ‘Colorado’

A season to say thank you
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A Season to Say Thanks

November 27, 2014
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I walked into our home office yesterday after a day of buzzing about, updating technology, writing and baking and noticed that the wall calendar still displayed the vintage corn advertisement artwork for the month of OCTOBER. Yes, I am a nerd and I have a whole calendar dedicated to vintage advertising, but more importantly where the heck did November go?!

Maybe it is the fact that I am still running around in shorts and tank tops (I did not get to wear this combo enough in Colorado!), or that the weather is FINALLY cooling down to really enjoyable temps and humidity levels, or maybe it’s that R and I are guilty of being busy and letting time get away from us, but in no way does it feel like today is Thanksgiving.

First a quick update, November was very good to R and I, and most of this post is to recognize that and be thankful. But is being thankful the same as saying thank you? I don’t think there are enough thank you’s floating around out there, so an update, and then a whole lot of THANK YOU is coming your way.

November was a booty kicking month, here’s why:

  • An actual marketing job posting came my way, I applied, I interviewed, I interviewed again with a presentation, and then I got it! I was hired by the NTBG (National Tropical Botanical Garden) to be the marketing manager for the south shore gardens on Kauai. This is right up my alley in that it is marketing and communications AND still in an educational field since the NTBG was started by government charter 50 years to protect the biodiversity of the pacific islands. It is a research institute as well as incredible tourist destination, and I get to make it my job to communicate about this place. I know I will learn much more about this incredible organization in the future, but for now, that’s what I know.
  • Not to be outdone, R also applied for a position and got it too! Crazy! R was hired by a design/build company on Kauai to be a part-time draftsman for their projects. They are a little firm right now, but have lots of work and are training R in some of the drafting programs he isn’t familiar with. This allows R to keep working on design/build himself AND learn the office side of the field of architecture. I’m proud, ridiculously proud. He may even get to earn hours toward his architectural internship requirement. I know this isn’t the right term, but it’s a good thing. Ask him and he’ll tell you all about it.
  • I turned in the first draft of my thesis. It’s almost 70 pages. The good news is that I’m still alive and breathing. Awaiting feedback for a December 4th defense that will be the last thing I do as a grad student. Yippee!
  • We went to Polihale. I have no words to describe just how beautiful the experience was. It is very easily the most beautiful place I have ever been. When you visit, we will take you.
  • We’re buying another house. Everything is still processing so nothing is final until it’s final, but we’re excited because it is a place that we can really call home. Not a project for Richard to come home to or a construction zone to live in. Fingers crossed!

OK – here’s the good stuff. R and I know there is a heap load of crap going on in the world right now, you know what it is I don’t have to remind you. Why we are able to live the life that we do while that heap of crap is going on I will never understand, but I do think that it is in big part because of you, yes YOU, THANK  YOU!

THANK YOU to our families. We know you have mixed feelings about us picking up and trekking across the pacific to live on a tiny island, but we know you supported us too. Thank you for the care packages and encouragement as we figure out what the heck we are doing out here, slowly but surely we are figuring it out! We miss you!

THANK YOU to our friends back home and new friends on the island. Friends in CO, you pushed us to be brave, to take this chance and know that when we have bad days you’re there on the other end of the phone or screen. We miss you all like crazy! Come out and visit! Thank you to our new friends on the island for helping us figure out this place and how to survive.

THANK YOU to all of our former co-workers and colleagues at the places we have been. It may not have always been fun, but it was always leading us to where we are today and for that we will always be thankful. I know what I know because of the people I’ve worked with and I think R would say the same. Thank you for being teachers and mentors, motivators and reality-checkers.

THANK YOU for reading this and our crazy social media updates about our daily life here and for your kind words and thoughts. We have been completely overwhelmed by the response to our move and adventures out here, and you’re a big part of why we’re still going!

Happy Thanksgiving. Go say thank you for something that you are thankful for too! Maybe saying a few more thank you’s will help that heap of crap going on in the world get a little smaller.

XO
RT

Take a hike
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Take a hike

October 13, 2014
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It’s been almost four months since R and I landed on this little green island and with the lack of seasonal change here (no golden leaves, no cooler temperatures or fleece jackets and nothing pumpkin spiced in sight) the four month mark is prime time for a little homesickness to kick in. It’s not overwhelming, but every now and then I really, REALLY miss Boulder – the food, the people, the mountains, the ability to walk to more shops and restaurants than I can count.

With both Richard and I working from home we are also guilty of not getting out as much as we should. We’ve met a few people, but it’s not as easy to make new friends as we thought it would be since we don’t have traditional workplaces to get us started. This is especially troubling because I need to gather a group of people willing to help me with my thesis research for free! Fingers crossed I can find these people soon because it is hard to call on strangers for free help! In any case, we’re slowly starting to get involved in some activities here and we are looking forward to getting even more connected however the difficulty of getting connected on top of the insanely hot temperatures make me think about Colorado and what the heck we are doing out here often.

With the homesickness kicking in, R and I have gotten out into nature and tried to do things that we loved in Colorado here in Kauai. Colorado and Kauai share incredible natural environments and even though there may not be snow or evergreen trees here there are mountains to climb and lots of them.

At the end of September we went on our first Kauai hike and instead of easing into it we picked a 7.8 mile trek out to a point along the NaPali coast called the Nualolo Trail/Lookout. This trail starts in Kokee State Park which is in the Waimea Canyon. We were told that when we start to feel homesick for Colorado that our first stop should be Kokee not just because it is in the mountains, but also because it is cooler, much cooler in fact. After winding our way up the canyon to the park and trailhead we jumped out of the car and noticed it was only 71 degrees! A very welcome surprise since we’ve been in the mid to upper 80’s through the last few months. We laced up our shoes, layered on the sunscreen and bug spray, put Ellie in her harness and hit the trail at about 11:00 a.m.

We have a great Kauai trails book and thankfully we had read about the Nualolo before attempting it because it is a doosie of a trail, especially on the way back. The first few miles of the trek start downhill and wander through incredibly interesting and varied landscapes from thick, lush rainforest to tall grass meadows, to dry, dusty mountain ridges. The last quarter mile of the trail takes you along a traverse not for those with a fear of heights or wobbly balance. This trail is also not one to attempt if there has been any heavy rain. The red dirt here in Kauai turns into super slick red mud when it rains and this trail would be impassable and dangerous in wet conditions. Thankfully the trail was bone dry the day we trekked and the view at the Nualolo Lookout is nothing short of breathtaking – teal and azure water, stunning green and red NaPali Cliffs and dense tropical valleys that make helicopters look like tiny flapping birds.

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At the lookout we marveled at the view, snapped a few pictures and stopped in the shade for a snack and water break and then started our trek out and UP. Remember how I said the first few miles of the trail are downhill? It’s more than the first few, truly the trail slopes downward the entire way to the lookout which means the way out is ALL uphill. Also, the first part of the trek takes you through dense forest, but the majority of it wanders through open ridges and tons of sunshine. We probably should have started our journey a little earlier to avoid the highest and hottest sun, but we didn’t. The first mile out of the lookout is tremendously brutal! A VERY steep incline with lots of boulders and tree roots to stumble on plus hot sun and intense humidity made for a very slow and sweaty return to the car. We drank every drop of water we brought with us and we packed more than we thought we would need. Our advice to you if you decide to hike Kauai (and you definitely should!) is to pack double the water you think you and any furry friends traveling with you will need or travel light by buying a water purifier you can take with you on the trail and is able to filter out bacteria and other yucky stuff.

Although intense, the trek was everything you want in half day hike. Incredible scenery, great workout and very few other people cluttering the view.  We made it back to the car dirty, sweaty and tired around 4:30 p.m. making it the perfect half day hike. The trek wore us out but not enough to keep us from enjoying dinner and margaritas out that night to celebrate the start of R’s 28th year on the planet. We highly recommend this trail to any experienced hikers or those beginners with enough patience and determination to meet the challenge. You won’t regret it, we definitely didn’t and look forward to doing it again with friends.

Last weekend we also hit another trail on the east side of the island known as the NouNou trail (or Sleeping Giant trail) This was much less intense, and a lot more muddy so we didn’t quite make it to the summit, but the views of the ocean and Homesteads below are fantastic as well. Also a much less intense incline to worry about – we saw many hikers in teva sandals and lugging expensive camera equipment which I wouldn’t recommend on Nualolo. Ellie enjoyed the NouNou trail and leaping from rock to rock along some of the washed out sections where you could see water had carved out the trail. This hike only took us a few hours and was a great way to get us out of the house for a while.

We look forward to more hiking in Kauai and hopefully some Colorado visitors to join us on a few for that extra dose of home. If you can’t join us on the island for a hike just yet, please send us green chile, rio salsa/margaritas or any other fall treats you can think of. The closest I’ve gotten out here were some delicious honeycrisp apples I found at Costco but they did make a very fine fall salad with butter lettuce, sliced almonds, yellow peppers and dried cherries. 🙂

XO
RT