Masquerade Ball...

Here is a pic from the masquerade ball we went to last night! I'll write about it later!!

Halloween in Lahaina..

I am getting stoked about Halloween! My costume is coming together, we have our hotel room, and now we have solved the problem of sitting in traffic for 4 + hours! Kurt and I have reservations on a Pacific Whale Foundation catamaran to Lahaina from the Ma'alea Harbor (which is right near my condo)! It ain't cheap, but the cost includes two drinks and pupu's... and we don't have to sit on the road forever to get there. Apparently there were over 20,000 people there last year... I can't wait! I'm off on Tuesday so I can stay up there.

I am surviving my salsa dancing lessons! It is a trip! You rotate partners and meet lots of neat (and not so neat) people. I thought I was keeping up okay but last night they threw some pretty intense step at us and I'm not sure I'll ever get it! A group of people that I've met here are in the class also. Jen, a speech therapist at my school, talked me into joining even though I have three left feet. Watch out Jill when I get home, I'm gonna show you up (yeah, right)!

School is going well. I still only have 3 students (very manageable students at that). I keep knocking on wood that my class stays just the way it is. My co-teacher's maternity leave starts next week. The long term sub seems cool and will fit in nicely I'm sure.

Tennis is good. Sometimes I get frustrated with all of the changes I'm trying to make with my game, but overall I'm really enjoying it. My teammates are great and so is my coach.

I have a short term (2 months) roommate named Sasha. She is here for 2 months to study yoga. SHe owns a yoga studio in Canada and is only here until Christmas time. So far we are getting along great and have a lot in common. She loves Jack! He is getting more exercise than he knows what to do with between the two of us.

Well, I'll sign off for now.

Aloha, Susie

Sunday Beach BBQ... Cove Park

Top: Sunday BBQ at Cove Park. Karen, Jen, Tina, Pandora, me, Kate, Darlene, Ashley, and Alyssa (front)
Bottom: Me in my "Brunette's Have More Fun" t-shirt!!





Tonight we had a get together at the beach.. Mostly chatted since it was all ladies, but we also attempted to play volleyball (poorly, I might add)! Talked to my dad and Maggie earlier on the web cam.. it was good to catch up with them. I got my halloween costume last night.. pictures to follow after Halloween! I'm going to be Martha Stewart in prison garb! Thanks to Jamie for the idea.. I love it! The blonde wig takes the cake. Jack wasn't too happy when I tried it on last night!

I met my teammate, Esther, for an early tennis match this morning, but we got rained out after 20 minutes. Bummer cause it rarely rains in Kihei. We attempted to go to the Wailuku Music Festival last night which was a bust due to rain. I am realizing that any festival that happens here is soo small and not a big deal compared to what I am used to. It was fun to look in the shops though. My favs were the music store and the shoe store.. surprise, surprise!

Well, hope all is well in your world. Have a super week! Aloha to you. Suz

Tiger's New Yacht, Victoria's Secret and Boo Bees!!

Hope and Desire

I just got the new Susan Tedeschi cd, Hope and Desire, yesterday!! I am suffering a bit from live music withdrawal, so it is great to have a new disc to enjoy. My friend Kurt also just gave me the double live set from last year's Bonaroo that i wanted to go see (with my beloved Ben Harper on it of course). Kurt is in Michigan for 2 weeks so I'll miss my new beer drinking, music sharing buddy. We are going to see Willie Nelson and Jack Johnson next month at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center ( http://www.mauiarts.org/nov05.html). I'm so looking forward to it!!

I finally got my funding for my classroom yesterday so I'll be filling out purchase orders all weekend!! It'll be like Christmas!! The first two pics above are of me with some girls from work at a "Life's A Beach." The place is pretty cool- live music and all walks of life.

The picture above is the view from the pool at Kapalua Bay Resort(http://www.kapaluamaui.com/accommodations/index.html). I took it when I visited Julie and Tyge Young last weekend up in Kaanapali. (Karen H., find out if this is where you are staying!! If you have a choice, here or the Grand Wailea would be best. I think the Grand Wailea is the very best and it is closer to me!!)

Playing lots of tennis. I'm on a PTPA ladies team called the Wailea Waves - our home courts are at the Wailea Tennis Center (http://www.waileatennis.com/). My coach, Barb, is awesome and she is helping me tremendously. My serve is improving... slowly but surely. If you come visit, don't forget your racquet!! Well, I'll sign off for now! Drop me a line when you can. Aloha!

Pakistan earthquake

I just got in from the movies (it's around 10 p.m.) and just found out about the massive earthquake that has hit India and Pakistan. I can't believe the magnitude of this disaster. May those who survived find peace, good health, and stability as soon as possible. Please donate to Unicef if you can. I was reading about their quick response to this tragedy and decided to donate a little to them. God bless.

10/8/05

Aloha to you. Just a quickie.. car is running well (thankfully), jack is doing well, and it's been significantly cooler in the afternoons. :) i made the mistake of trying to take jack to the beach earlier.. i was just going to go for a few hours... it was SO not relaxing having him there. another dog would walk by and he'd get all bent out of shape. note to self: stick with the routine of taking him to the beach before I go to the beach for relaxation!!

Lisa told me some new Gavinisms earlier. First, he wanted to know if Lisa brought the umbrella with them b/c it was raining really hard on the way to my mom's house. She said yes, and he asked if it would deflect all of the rain drops. This from a three year old. When she asked him where he learned that word, he said "The Incredibles." Earlier the same day, it was pretty dark outside for it to be daytime and he wanted to know, "is it the crack of dawn, mommy?" I tell ya that kid is a trip.

Katie is crawling all around apparently. I can't wait to see her at Christmas. Of course it will be great to see everyone but I think I'll be most excited about her!!

Dad and Maggie now are set up with a webcam! It was so good to see them. I hadn't 'seen' my dad at all since I've been here. He is now working on getting my aunt, uncle, and Gramma on board with a webcam of their own!! It's kind of sinking in how far away I am, so it's so good to be able to communicate this way.

Happy early Birthday to Gramma V. Her big day is on Monday. Wish I could be there with ya to celebrate!

I have some pics to post from my visit with Julie and Tyge Young last night up in Kaanapali (Jamie J's sister). Will put them up soon! Susie