Morrissey said it best.

one of my favorite groups of all time are The Smiths. I think that Morrissey is one of the greatest vocalists and lyricists of all time. although many of his lyrics are not very happy or bright or inspirational, they are very powerful. he throws in some subtle humor at the right times, they are very well-crafted, and they can make you feel what he is feeling. many times, they are simple but the message behind it is very meaningful. perhaps my favorite example is from How Soon is Now

"you shut your mouth, how can you say
I go about things the wrong way
I am human and I need to be loved,
just like everybody else does."

yes, this song is not a very happy song, but I love the lyrics. we are all human and we all need to be loved. sometimes, we forget that, especially in this day and age where everyone is easily offended by everything. people can't simply share their opinions or stand up for their beliefs without someone getting offended. part of this is due to overly sensitive people (maybe this video can give you an idea, it is a bit of an exaggeration but you get the point). but it can also be due to people who don't care that they are offending others, they want to make it CLEAR that they have an opinion and that everyone who agrees with it is good, and anyone who doesn't agree with it is Satan. they do this while forgetting that we are all human and we need to be loved.

now, we don't need to love everyone, all the time, but we need to show respect. one thing I would like to make clear is that RESPECT DOES NOT MEAN AGREE! I'll share a personal example here. one of my very best friends who I've known for a long time and I have completely different political beliefs. she is liberal, I am conservative. she is a registered Democrat, I am a registered Republican. she is a vegetarian, my favorite food in the whole world is steak. I'll stop there, because you get the idea. but from the day that we established that we have these different beliefs, we decided that we will not fight with each other or criticize our beliefs. only respect. I love having a liberal best friend because I am able to see multiple perspectives of the same issue. whenever we have political discussions, she shares her beliefs, and I share mine, and instead of bagging on each other for having the "wrong belief", we listen to each other and we come out of the discussion more open-minded. do I agree with her? NO! but do I respect her and enjoy hearing her different perspective? YES! will I switch political parties? NO! do I want her to switch political parties? NO!

what would the world be like if we all thought the same? if we all had the same opinion on everything? it would be boring! if we all had the same ideologies, there would be no conflict. I'm not encouraging conflict, but we wouldn't be able to be more open-minded if we weren't exposed to different perspectives!  what would be the point of opposing sports teams? the Nadal-Federer rivalry? what would be the point of competitions? different music tastes? if everyone thought the same, those things wouldn't exist! there would be no variety!

if anyone walks away with anything from this
1. stop being so offended when someone's beliefs are different than yours. they are not bad people; they are human, and they need to be loved.
2. if you must share your opinion, do it in a loving manner. of course, someone will get offended because that's how the world is. but don't say "anyone who doesn't agree with me is going to hell!" that is not being loving or respectful of humans.
3. if everyone thought the same, there would be no variety, diversity, or competition. and I believe all those things are necessary in life.
4. respect does NOT equal support or to agree!
5. I am human, and I need to be loved; just like everybody else does!

so to end this little rant, here is another quote from The Smiths, this time from I Know It's Over

"it's so easy to laugh,
it's so easy to hate,
it takes guts to be gentle and kind."

we all need to use our guts to be gentle and kind, now, don't we?

have a great day.

when good things happen to you, but bad things happen to your friends

rejection is possibly the worst feeling that anyone has ever experienced. there is no other way to put it. we have all deal with it at some point in our life, and if you haven't, then you better watch out. because IT WILL SUCK. my life in high school has been full of great achievements, but it has also been filled with rejection. for a while, I felt like nothing good would ever happen to me after getting rejected from every program. every time. I was a junior in high school, and I had failed to make acappella choir (and all my friends did), I didn't get asked to Homecoming (and all my friends did), and perhaps the worst of all: I didn't even make JV tennis.

so, to get a more clear picture: I played both singles and doubles my sophomore year. it was my first year (I was living in Tokyo for part of my freshman year and missed tennis season), and pretty much, I was happy with whatever spot I could get. I was just grateful to play. but I really liked playing singles, and I made it my goal to make the JV team the next year and have a stable position. so, I practiced at least 2 hours every single day, playing in several matches and practicing with my mom and I even got a new coach, who was absolutely excellent. I worked on my serve, my groundstrokes, my net play, my footwork, everything. but when I showed up for tryouts, there were a bunch of new freshmen, and they were GOOD. but I still thought I could play, like, 3rd JV singles?
but after 2 days of playing matches, Coach all called us to the courts and read a list of Varsity players, and as expected, I didn't make it. then, she proceeded to read JV. I sat there, hoping the next name she called would be mine, but name after name, I began to question if I could make 3rd singles or even play doubles.
finally, Coach said: "and that's our JV team. the rest of you are our alternates. you will play in matches, depending on the size of the other team. but don't expect to be played very often."
so, what else do you do when all your friends are standing in a group, celebrating that they made Varsity and JV?
so you go and stand on your own,
and you leave all alone,
and you go home,
and you cry and you want to die

(side note: listening to The Smiths or Morrissey after getting rejected can either make you feel a lot better, or it will just make you cry even more).
so that's what happened to me. and it was really hard. and while I hated hearing, "oh, your time will come", it did. my senior year, I played as 3rd JV singles and played in every match and won around 90% of my matches. I had never felt better in my life.

but what if you were the one who did make the tennis team and you are celebrating your accomplishments (as you should be doing), but your moment of happiness is interrupted, and it was your friend who's name didn't get called, so she goes and stands on her own, and she leaves all alone, and she goes home, and she cries and she wants (hopefully not) to die? what do you do then? I mean, you know you deserved it, but you want to be a good friend.

so, without further ado, here is my guide to
when good things happen to you, but bad things happen to your friends: aka helping other people deal with rejection
(based on true experiences, experienced by me)

so, let's consider the following scenario. you are a senior in high school with nagging parents who threaten to disown you if you don't get into the best college in the state. it doesn't matter if your dad is a professor at this university or not; you have to try hard. and to get into this university, an ACT score higher than a.....(cough cough) 24 is recommended. (but there are always exceptions.) but you have ADHD and can't sit still for the life of you and you go in to take the test, and you studied and studied but it's the math section and ALL OF A SUDDEN, everything you ever remember learning about math just isn't there, and no matter how hard you search your brain, it cannot be extracted, and FINALLY you remember something and the--
Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide, 
No escape from reality. 
Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see
I'M JUST A POOR BOY, I NEED NO SYMPATHY
Because I'm easy come, easy go
Little high, (other side of brain) little low
Anyway the wind blows, doesn't really matter to me
To me.
*(enter Freddie Mercury's first piano solo)*

and basically, the next 2.5 sections of the ACT are totally BSed because, well....your brain has shut off and basically the entire Queen Greatest Hits album is playing in your brain, among other ADHD cacophony. ANYWAYS......you are under pressure (there will be more Queen references, just to warn you) to get into this school and you have to take the ACT again because your nagging strict professor dad didn't like your first score, and Heaven forbid that you have a full schedule......with 4 YEARS OF MATH....as a SENIOR IN HIGH SCHOOL?! and in order to keep your grades up, you don't skip class with all your friends while they go get food and are having a good time without you. as a result, people stop asking you to hang out because you are "too boring" and "take senior year too seriously". but it will all pay off. because in a few months, an email comes from your Dream College and guess what it says?
YOU HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and then you go upstairs to tell your parents, and your 13 year old brother starts belting out "WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE are the champions, my friends!" before you can even get one word to your parents. and once you do, they are very proud of you and everyone breaks out singing We Are The Champions. so then you celebrate. because YOU KNOW how hard you worked to get into this school. YOU KNOW the hours spent doing ACT prep, going to class while your friends skip and be punks, taking a math class instead of having a few free periods, and having to deal with ADHD and nagging parents at the same time. your friends text you, asking if you got in, and you say "YES" and then they reply "ME TOO!" and you all celebrate together because you all worked really hard to get to this point.

naturally, as any excited person who just got accepted to their dream college would, you then start texting your friends, assuming they will all celebrate with you. but then, one of your friends replies with a "No, I didn't get accepted. I don't understand....but congrats!" or even worse, this happens in person. because I (whoops, now I just blew it and now you know for sure this is a story about me, but you were probably smart and figured it out) am old-fashioned and still talk to people face to face.

oof. well, what do you do now? that's a tricky one.

1. give them a hug, and say "I'm so sorry." that's all you have to say. really, it is. being someone who has dealt with rejection, they probably don't want to hear anything else. if you want to be extra nice, maybe say, "I really wish both of us had gotten in", but it is a huge risk, because your friend might be extra sensitive and interpret it as "I got in, you didn't, and I really wish that both of us could get in, but I'm just reminding you that I'm better than you and I didn't." so you gotta be careful when you use that one.

2. do NOT say "I wish it was you and not me." unless your friend is a heartless wench, this doesn't make anyone feel better. it makes them feel worse. because 1. they probably realize how hard you worked and would want you to be happy, and 2. it's just awkward. just don't say that.

3. never, NEVER say "well, maybe something better will happen", "the Lord probably had a reason behind it", or "it's all part of the plan." this is the worst thing anyone could ever say. people would say that to me, and it would confuse me. if the Lord really loved me, then why would He make bad things happen to me? and what is this freaking "plan" you speak of? and for goodness sake, you have just been rejected. HOW CAN SOMETHING BETTER HAPPEN? and while many times, good times are ahead, your friend just isn't ready to hear that. instead of telling them that, let them experience their life so they can realize it themselves. which leads me to

4. if they want to vent, let them vent. be there to listen to them cry, scream, yell, swear, complain, everything. just be there. if you are ready, vent with them. and always reassure them of their great qualities. if they say something like, "but if you really think I am so smart/talented/pretty, then why didn't I get in?" just say, "I don't know. I'm so sorry. but you are amazing!" and give them more reassurances of their amazingness.

5. if they don't want to talk about it, then don't talk about it. give them their space. it isn't your job to keep them happy 1hunnit percent of the time if they don't want you to! if they want to talk but aren't ready to talk about getting rejected, then talk about other things. keep them distracted. when they are ready to talk, proceed to number 4.

6. never, never, feel guilty. you know how hard you worked, and your hard work paid off. just because the same thing didn't happen to your friend, does not mean that you need to feel guilty that it was you and not them. you should be happy for yourself! you are amazing, and don't you ever forget that! sure, it's okay to feel sorry for them. but you don't need to feel bad for yourself as well. of course, you need to have empathy. it makes you seem more genuine, and they will probably feel better. but being empathetic does not mean feeling guilty that you did something good!

7. EAT FOOD WITH THEM. because sometimes, you just need to eat your feelings.

so, I hope that can not only help you feel better if you get rejected, but also know what to do when that happens to one of your friends, siblings, or acquaintances. and if that was a lot to take in, just think, what would I want my friends to do if it was me who got rejected? I hope that will help you know what to say so that you can be a good, comforting friend. I wish all of you luck, and hope that good things will happen to you and your friends!

the last MRRRRRP errrrrrr

hello, it's me again! remember how I only update this thing when I go on dates or vacations? well, I went to my last girls choice dance on Saturday, and IT WAS A GOOD TIME!

so, first, I need to share a throwback.

2013-14 Timpview Sophomore Homecoming Royalty, Sep. 20 2013

so when Josh and I were nominated as Sophomore Homecoming Royalty 2 years ago, neither of us were 16 and we couldn't date yet. I still had braces, my hair (which was supposed to be very curly) went flat within 5 minutes, we barely said 3 sentences, and well...we were sophomores. but 2 years later, my braces are off, I know more about how to do my hair, Josh and I have become great friends, so I thought that it was time I asked him on a real date, rather than ride on the back of a moped with him at a football game. One thing to know about both Josh and me is that we are two of THE biggest 80s rock music fans. even though I mainly listen to alternative music, I was raised on 1980s rock music, and I went through a nonconformist phase in my younger years where I wouldn't listen to Hannah Montana or the Jonas Brothers and I would only listen to Heart, Boston, Pat Benatar, Journey, REO Speedwagon, Guns N' Roses, Bryan Adams, and Queen (OKAY, their best era was in the 1970s, but 1. they went into the 80s, 2. they are classic, and 3. Queen's Greatest Hits was the first album that wasn't the Wiggles that I remember listening to over and over again, so they count!). When I found out that someone shares my love for 80s rock music, I just have to ask them on a date, using 80s rock music. and I'm sorry I took no pictures. but I wrote JOSH- "I can't fight this feeling anymore..." so I'm asking you to MORP! and I made cookies with letters of my name on them and scattered them so he would have to unscramble my name. He really appreciated my REO Speedwagon reference. His answer was really funny: he got a Payday candy bar, but he crossed out all the other letters except the "p", so his note said: "yes, I would P[ee] to go to MORP with you!" 

the day date ranks really high on my list of day dates. we went to this really cool pizza place in Park City called The Junction for lunch. and this place completely matched my aesthetic. It had the coolest red tile, a bunch of beer cans on the wall (ok, maybe that didn't match my aesthetic exactly), old diner-style tables, and guess what music they were playing? 80s rock! Josh and I knew every word to every song. but the music wasn't even the best part. the food was so good. I got this really good chicken pesto pizza, and he got this really good looking burger with lots of pork on it. so if anyone needs lunch in Park City, go to The Junction. it's right outside the outlets and it is SO GOOD!

 the really cool bathroom

for the actual date, we went on the zipline at Olympic Park. it was described as an "extreme zipline that drops 40 stories and goes 55 miles per hour!". I wasn't too scared until we got to the top. so they strap you into the zipline, and you are secured behind this gate, and once it opens, you go flying. so after I got strapped in, I started freaking out a little bit. but this "extreme" zipline wasn't very "extreme" or scary- it was just fun! you do go fast, but not so fast it makes you sick. it's supposed to simulate the feeling of going off an Olympic ski jump, and I loved it! the only complaint I have is that it's really cold, so I would recommend wearing gloves. but if anyone needs a good date idea, PLEASE DO THIS!

 Josh and I post-zipline

the group pre-zipline

after a long (1 hour ish) drive home filled with good music, "never have I ever", and good conversation, we all went home, took naps (or at least I did), did our hair, and it was time to continue the date! so I put in the new 80s rock playlist I made, picked up Josh and Rebecca and Joe (the other couple in my car, obviously), and WE HAD A GOOD TIME! the chosen picture spot was literally this path on the side of a road. which was also downhill. so we had to be really careful to make sure there was no slant in the pictures. but they turned out really well! for dinner, we went to Carabba's. the wait time was a lot longer than expected, but lucky for the boys (and myself and some other girls), the Kansas vs. Villanova basketball game was on, and Carabba's has FLAT SCREEN TVS. so even though we were hungry, we were watching a good game! even our waiters were getting into it! I ordered this really good shrimp pasta called Fettuccine Weesie, which you say WEEZY and I couldn't stop saying WEEZY so I annoyed everyone (or hopefully they were more focused on the basketball game). after I ate too much bread and weezy, we were on our way to the dance! it was at the Manor at Riverwoods, which was really nice! the music was good, and everyone looked good! one of the better school dances I've been to. and of course, for the after dance party, I made my famous peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, which were devoured within 10 minutes. we all went to Lindsey's, played ping pong, and everyone drank Italian Sodas, and Josh was able to find me a Diet Coke so I was really happy for the rest of the night. it was definitely one of the most fun dates I've been on, and I truly loved every minute (even the really hungry ones). 

I know, big improvement from Homecoming Royalty, right?

 Hailey, Nicole, Me, Becca, Cami, Madisen, Vanessa, Lindsey, and Kelsey

 unorganized group picture, back row: Shannon and cami, Joe, Vanessa, Levi, Keenan, AJ

middle row: Josh, me, Becca, Nejad, Madisen, Hailey, Brady, Kelsey, Lindsey

squatters: David, Nicole

HAWAII part deaux

I've been back from Hawaii for more than a month, I turned 18, I started my last semester of high school, I've been busy trying to convert my friends and family to British '80s alternative (which has been really successful with most people, but in Justin's own words, "Miriam. No one cares about The Smiths anymore except....YOU! and they're probably really stupid just because you listen to them!" someday he will appreciate the classics.) now I am finally getting around to posting the rest of the pics from our trip (while listening to the 1980s Throwback Thursday playlist on Spotify)! this is where a lot of the good stuff starts happening.

DAY 3 (finally!): my dad still had part of his conference in the morning, so mom, the boys, and I hiked Diamond Head. it wasn't a really strenuous hike because most of it was paved, and if a Japanese tourist could hike that thing in platform shoes, then anyone could. it was very windy and on the way back, I lost my hair tie. but it had a gorgeous view.

typical shot with tourists

after the very strenuous hike, we went back to the apartment, the boys watched TV, and Mom and I went shopping. then we had to pick up Dad from the conference, and our next stop was Pearl Harbor! I feel like I was the only one really excited about this because I'm a history enthusiast. my very favorite unit (ok, maybe besides Europe) in AP world history was the World Wars unit. since there are many Japanese tourists in Hawaii as earlier stated, I didn't expect a lot of them to be at Pearl Harbor because....they were the ones who bombed it. but then again, we were the Americans at the Japanese World War II museums in Tokyo. there were more American tourists (including one of Justin's friends), but there were also plenty of our Japanese friends. it was very windy so we weren't able to go on the model of the U.S. Arizona, but we were able to go inside a submarine from WWII! our favorite audio tour guides made a return (a highlight from England and New York ), and it was so interesting to see how they lived and fought. Justin asked why the ship didn't have any windows. I told him it's a submarine, they are underwater and there isn't much to see. when we were finished with the submarine, we exchanged our audio tour guide for another audio tour guide, this time in the submarine museum. by this time, Mom and the boys were getting a bit impatient, but Dad and I wanted to spend as much time as we could learning about submarine warfare. 

 return of the audio tour guides

 listening to their guided tour

 outside the USS Bowfin

 (I edited this so it looks good)

DAY 4: a day full of snorkeling, safety videos, driving, wind, teriyaki burgers, discovering unknown facts about my father, more driving, more safety videos, sea kayaking, getting lost, almost getting shipwrecked, abandoning the group, sitting on the beach, getting sand in places that shouldn't have sand in them, and more! 

nothing will do justice for how awesome Hanama Bay was. we don't have any cool underwater cameras, so you will just have to trust us and believe me when I saw we saw a lot of fish. when I was little, my parents got me a picture book about different kinds of fish, and I recognized at least half of them from that book. it was amazing. if you look at the ocean from the surface, you can't see anything. no one would think there are any fish in there. but when you actually go snorkeling in it, it is like a whole new world. I probably said that in my part 1 post, but holy crap there was SO MUCH MORE FISH here than at Shark's Cove. it got really windy and the currents were getting strong after a little bit, so we only spent like..an hour ish(?) snorkeling, but it was beautiful.

we drove for a bit, stopped at some lookouts, enjoyed the scenery, listened to Crowded House, and then we found a really good teriyaki burger place called Teddy's. all week I'd wanted a juicy, delicious teriyaki burger with pineapple on it, but for some reason, there was nothing in Waikiki that offered anything like that. I was so happy to finally get my burger. most of us ordered the same thing, except my dad ordered some Swiss burger with mushrooms on it. I asked why he didn't get the traditional Hawaiian one, and he said, "I don't like pineapple." well, this was a shock to all of us, especially my mom. she couldn't believe she had been married to him for 21 years but had no idea that he didn't like pineapple. you learn new things every day!

our next phase of our adventure was the sea kayaking phase. we went to some kayak shop in Kailua Bay (which is where Obama likes to visit on holiday), and watched a really long safety video that claimed that it would only take 15-30 minutes to kayak to the island we were trying to reach. Mom and I shared a kayak, Dad and Justin shared another one, and Wesley had one all to himself. some really kind Japanese man launched us from the beach, and we started paddling towards the island. however, the wind was a lot stronger than we expected, and we spent 15 minutes going in circles. well, at least Mom and I did. somehow, the boys were able to fight the strong winds and actually make headway. after a near encounter with seasickness and more spinning around in circles, Mom and I decided to turn around. and in less than one minute, the wind just blew us straight back to shore. at least a half mile from where we were originally launched. Mom and I had our cameras, so the boys weren't able to take any pictures on the island. we were on the beach for about an hour watching kite surfers do tricks and (of course) staring at the ocean! when the boys returned from their island adventure, they made fun of us and said we were sissies and we gave up, but we had such a good time watching kite surfers and it would've taken us an hour to get to that stupid island!

 kite surfers

 shaka

 I peed while this was taken

after getting teased by all the boys, we headed back, just in time to watch the sunset. I'd been in Hawaii for 5 (counting the day we arrived) days, and had never seen a Hawaiian sunset. it was either raining, or we were stuck inside doing something else. but mom and I took a walk to the beach and got some amazing pictures. but even these pictures don't do any justice for how beautiful it is. you have to go there yourself and see it with your own eyes!

DAY 5 (FINALLY): I like to erase the morning part from my brain. basically, my parents were freaking out trying to pack this place up, Justin was singing "Need You Tonight" by INXS nonstop, we lost a key, Wesley wasn't feeling great, and it took forever to find our car. it would be a day full of driving and hiking and eating shrimp and driving and driving and going to the airport. sounds great, right? I love gorgeous scenery, but I don't like getting stuck in a car all day. our hike was gorgeous until it started raining on us. the shrimp was amazing, until the wind came and it started raining. and our last lookout place? that just pretty much sucked, because it was raining on us and we all got muddy. 

 no one wanted to be in this picture

 I didn't want to take this picture

 Justin didn't want to be in this picture (he did have underwear on in this one. he was probably unhappy about being in the car all day instead)

 Laie point

we arrived at the airport sometime in the evening. we had about an hour and a half before our flight came. we were obviously not dressed for Utah weather, so some people (Dad) changed in the parking lot, some changed in the car, and the sensible ones (Mom and I) changed in the airport bathroom and wiped off all the mud we got from hiking in the rain. this flight was one of the most depressing flights I'd ever been on. first of all, it was a red-eye and the AC was on full power all night. second of all, Mom wasn't being very courteous and wanted to read a book, so all the lights were off except for her seat, and this wasn't a nice subtle light. this light would blink on and off every 5 seconds. but the worst was the seat quality. I've been on several long flights, many longer than this one. I've endured through many discomforts, but these seats were literally filled with rocks. I did sleep for maybe 2 hours (a new record for an airplane!), but I woke up with the worst numb bum I'd ever experienced. my back hurt, my neck hurt, and I was really sad that I was actually on my way back to Salt Lake and I wouldn't be in paradise anymore. getting off that plane was a relief, but it was very depressing. as soon as we walked outside to the shuttle, it was snowing. all I had on was a light jacket, yoga pants, and Converse. not the warmest option. our van was buried in snow, and we had to just stand outside and freeze while Dad scraped the snow off. (what a saint. also the only one to have gloves with him.) we were all so jet lagged, we slept the entire drive back to Provo. it took a while to get used to the crappy weather, and I still want to go back. I always will. as much as I loved England and New York and all the other places I've been, I have never been so sad to leave a vacation. the weather was perfect, the scenery was gorgeous, and I was able to get a tan. it was the best way to ever spend winter vacation, and I better save my money because I don't know if I can handle another Christmas break in Provo after this!

HAWAII (part 1 of who knows how many)

hello, hello! I hope everyone's Christmas break is excellent! I know mine definitely was. it's not over yet, but it was definitely the best one in my (almost) 18 years of living. it was also the warmest. so 10 years ago, I never really thought of "vacation" meaning anything except California or Bear Lake. but when my dad told us he was going to a conference in Hawaii, I decided that Disneyland wasn't my dream vacation anymore (after all, I had already been there over 50 times because I was blessed to have been born in California). all I wanted was to go to Hawaii. it was the first place on my travel bucketlist.

10 years later, I was finally able to cross it off. my dad had another conference there, and instead of being selfish and just bringing Mom like the last 4 times, he would bring the whole family! so this was our big Christmas present/senior trip.

I fell in love the moment we got off the airplane. the air was humid, there was Japanese tourists everywhere (Justin even asked if Hawaii used the same money as America, or if they used yen), it felt like Tokyo, but the air smelled of the ocean and fresh flowers instead of subway station. I was extremely jet lagged, so the rest of the day was just spent eating dinner and sleeping. sorry if you had to suffer through the boring part. here's the exciting part where we actually do stuff.

DAY 1: my dad left early in the morning for his conference. so it was just mom, the boys, and I. without a detailed schedule filled with museums, restaurants, lookouts, and historical sites that we needed to be at certain times, we just had a relaxing day at the beach. both my brothers headed straight for the water, but I just enjoyed sitting in the sand and looking at the ocean, hoping that I would get as tan as I was in the tennis season (minus the embarrassing tanlines). I just sat there while my mom rented 3 boogie boards and a surfboard. I enjoyed the boogie board, but the waves weren't as big as I had expected. so I went back to my spot and just looked at the ocean (keep in mind that I have ADD and sitting still is something that can be physically and mentally painful at times. apparently it isn't if you're looking at the ocean). once we got the surfboard. my mom would sit on the boogie board and push one of my brothers on the surfboard while I stayed at the beach with the other brother. finally, it was my turn to try the surfboard. my parents love surfing and I was hoping that I would be the same way. however, the second I paddled out on that board, I felt exhausted. when a wave came, my mom launched me on it, and it felt good, until I wiped out and cut my foot on some coral. but I wanted to try again, and this time I was more successful, but I almost nailed a Japanese tourist. I tried again, but I was feeling really seasick and if I was out there another second, I was going to throw up all over the ocean, so I paddled back to shore and gave the board to Justin. after a few hours, all of us were really hungry so we went back to the apartment to rinse all the sand off and found a substandard sandwich place. after lunch, the boys decided they didn't want to get any more sandy, and Justin cut his foot and Wesley had a horrible rash all over his chest, so they chilled in the apartment while Mom and I walked around Waikiki, went window shopping, enjoyed the fresh air, and went back to the beach to do what? LOOK AT THE OCEAN, OF COURSE! it was a very relaxing, beautiful day.

 Waikiki beach at 8 am

DAY 2: my dad had to go to his conference for most of the day, so again, it was just Mom and us kiddos. first, we went to the Dole Pineapple Plantation, which, according to my mom, it's pretty boring except it has great pineapple ice cream. we got there a half hour before it officially opened, so we just walked around, took some cliche touristy pictures, fed some fish, and chased the wild chickens. our ice cream was absolutely delicious.

 I'm the oldest in this family....

the next phase of our adventure was Shark's Cove. it had the most beautiful, clear water I had ever seen and you could even see fish. however, it was extremely rocky and just walking around in the water got annoying, so Mom got out the snorkel gear and we went snorkeling! the first breath underwater felt really weird, and it took a minute to get comfortable, but I loved it. I thought I could see a lot of fish when I wasn't underwater, but that was nothing compared to what I saw underwater. (also, I don't even want to think about how many people saw me peeing in the ocean.) we spent a good hour there, and then drove further up the North Shore to Sunset Beach. holy crap, these waves were huge! Mom told us not to get too close to the surfers and we couldn't get in very far, but we could body surf close to the shore. it was surprisingly really fun getting knocked over by huge waves. I made a mistake and wore my worst swimsuit that day and had a few embarrassing malfunctions. oh, and there was sand in every place imaginable and as fun as it was getting thrashed around on the beach, we had to leave before Mom lost a contact, I lost my swimsuit, or before one of my brothers got swallowed in the sea.

 shark's cove

 if you look closely, you can see Wes's banged up chest

 Sunset beach

before we moved to the next part of our adventure, the first thing we had to do was get all the sand out of our swimsuits. however, this was a lot more difficult than I expected because the only showers are public ones. since we had to move rather fast. Mom was the only one who could wash her hair. I was left with the leave-in conditioner and my hair was an absolute wreck for the rest of the day. we found some bathroom to change in. however, Justin forgot his undies and there was no store nearby that we could acquire a pair, so he was stuck in his sandy swimsuit for the rest of the day. after getting food, not finding underwear, and doing my makeup in the only public restroom in Lai'e, we moved on to the final part of our day: the Polynesian Culture Center!

I loved this place. for those who have no idea what I'm talking about, the PCC is a place where each of the Polynesian "islands" puts on a performance that tells about their island, and we learn about the different cultures. there is also a movie theater, a boat ride, several different places to eat, and many different gift shops. my favorite "island" was Samoa. the guys were really funny and showed us how to break a coconut and make coconut milk, and one of them even climbed a coconut tree. my favorite part was the fire dancers. I was expecting the guy to burn himself, but that never happened. I was amazed. I wish I could do that but sadly, I would end up in the Burn Center of some hospital. I also enjoyed the Aotearoa (New Zealand) performance and playing with the poi balls (and whacking Wesley in the face while doing so), and the Hawaiian hula dancers. contrary to popular tourist belief, "hula" is not where you wear grass skirts and coconut bras and shake your hips. that is from Tahiti. Hula is actually where you are fully clothed and dance and sing about nature.

after we watched all the performances, we got seated for the luau and Dad finally joined us. it was amazing. there were so many meats to choose from, and if anyone knows me well, they know I LOVE MEAT. I decided to try everything. my favorite was the pork from the big pig. we feasted while we were entertained by more dancing, singing, and more fire dancers. at the end, anyone who wanted to could go up and learn how to dance. everyone in our family but Justin went up and danced. I don't know how I looked up there, nor do I want to, but it was really fun.

finally, we got to see the big show: Ha: The Breath of Life. this was a 1.5 hour performance complete with music, grass skirts, singing, cool outfits, chest pounding, and you guessed it-- MORE FIRE DANCERS! this was the best part. there was more fire, and they did even more tricks, and didn't burn their bums! we weren't allowed to take pictures or videos, so all I can say is GO SEE IT YOURSELF. It is amazing! 

 cute flowers in the PCC bathroom

 Justin, apparently still upset about not having any underwear

 the canoe pageant (really Justin? GET OVER IT. we know you are still in your swimsuit and have sand in your bum)

our very photogenic family

well, that's the first 2 days. I know, so many pictures! so that's why I am choosing to end this here. but tune in next time to see Pearl Harbor, more beaches, failed sea kayaking adventures, more Waikiki sunsets, waterfalls, and more pictures of our lovely photogenic family! also, find out if Justin ever found some underwear! ok for real. the Beatles are on spotify and it's hard to type this and explain to Wesley that they were really high on LSD while they wrote a good majority of their songs, so that's why they are so weird sounding, but so amazing as well.