Shaunna's Soliloquies

Yer Birthday

Today is my sister's birthday.

I was a precocious four-year-old when she was born, and according to our mother upon my first look in the bassinet I said accusingly, "That's a playmate?!!!"

My mother should have shaken some sense into me (metaphorically, not practically), but she couldn't. She was an only child and had absolutely no personal knowledge about the gift they'd given me.  She could only imagine.

I know I've put this picture up on this site before,  but this time it's for my sister. She's the smallest one to the right at the party. Isn't she cute?

Happy happy birthday to my sister... who is not only my sister, but also a beautiful wise woman and a very good friend.

Now... dance!!! (This is the song that usually blasted from the stereo in the morning when my kids woke up on their birthdays. It just seemed to set the right mood; get up and boogie with joy that it's your own special day.) 

Living Aloha

It's time for Travel Tip Thursday, and I'm once again woefully unprepared.

One of these Thursdays we'll get to Ojai, but meanwhile it's easier to hitch a ride with Pseudo and travel to the windward side of Oahu.  She's right, when family visits (as in moi) we always take a drive around the island, and the east side is, to be sure, the most scenic (although the favorite in my heart belongs to the north shore...).

Anyway, this week I'm merely embellishing upon Pseudo's post.

Be that as it may, here we go for a scenic view of the windward side of Oahu:

                                         

                      

(these are near Hauula)

                                        

                      

                                        

                      

                                         

                      

                                        

                      

Gorgeous, isn't it? Sigh. So wishing I was there.

                                        

                      

One of the rocks from La'ie (Laniloa) Point (note the itty bitty cairn that was placed on this to the extreme left, it's small and hard to see, I know... but it's kinda fun to wonder how it got there).

I'll leave you with where fresh water meets salt at one of Pseudo's favorite spots:

                                         

                      

Remember to live aloha... wherever you may be.

Wish I Was There

The Power of Dreaming

By now you've more than likely seen the amazing performance by the unassuming woman in Great Britain who walked onto the stage and kicked ass. I've watched it a few times, and it elicits the same emotional response each time.

While extremely satisfying to witness David slaying Goliath, and Ms. Boyle possesses an amazing voice, I'm come to the conclusion that the emotional impact of the performance had more than its share of assistance by the lyrics of the song.

There she was, an-almost-fifty-year-old woman who while reaching for her dream concludes, "Now life has killed the dream I dreamed..."

(If you want to watch it you'll have to go here, they've disabled all the embedded coding.) 

Wish I Was There (Redux Redux)

Wish I Was There (Redux)

Wish I Was There