So you wanna hear about Maui.
Actually I want to go to Maui (and possibly not come back).
But since that ain’t happening, I suppose I have to settle for hearing about it.
(technically, I suppose the highlight and the lowlight were the same event)
Kind’a like firing that brand new Christmas BB gun for the first time…
And having the shot ricochet off the steel sign you taped the target to right back to your face.
Oh. And pictures. You want pretty pictures to look at.
Well of course…
Else we’d have to actually read your drivel.
(which still beats having to read any of my drivel)
(This allows you to not read all the crap I write. Smart.)
Admitting that I’m smart?
Oh that’s one almighty mistake.
Now you have no credibility of any type what so ever.
Donald Trump has decided to appoint himself Prime Minister of Canada?
I'm not doing any of that, this chapter!
You never do what you’re ordered to (unless it’s Ruby giving the order)…
so that not much of a shock.
Just trust me on that, okay?
But you just said I was smart a moment ago.
How can any of us ever trust you again?!!
might as well go whole hog and give you all the deets.
But I HATE beets!
Oh, wait… you said “deets”. I like those.
Carry on.
This little trip formed in my admittedly tiny brain…
Tiny? And yet you keep asking us to trust you.
Imagine having to spend close to half of every year bundled up in layers
of clothing in order to fend off... well... death.
DW would never allow me to move that far north.
I’ll just have to live vicariously through your experiences on that one.
I suspect that the author had to go back and clean up the language after penning the original dialog for that one.
I knew... knew that I wanted to do that again.
You know... be warm... in winter.
Give it a few years.
Slow but sure, it’s creeping up that way.
And I wanted Ruby to experience that too.
Cause you know what’s important in life.
The kids? Meh. They're young.
Like I just said…
So I floated the idea to Ruby...
And got shot down faster than a reluctant bride at the altar.
(She still regrets not doing that 25 years ago.)
Was she wearing running shoes that day?
But I had about a year to work on her,
and I am nothing if not extremely annoying.
Huh… we hadn’t noticed.
(And why are you not? Are you not hanging on my every word????)
Never ask questions you don’t want to know the answer to.
"I'd really like to go back to Hawaii."
And I said "Yay!"
I suspect that’s a bit of an understatement.
Then she said.
"And I'd really like the kids to come."
And I said... well, I can't write what I said.
But this I’ll question not in the least.
So of course, we decided to take the kids.
(and when I say "we", I mean "she".
I am nothing if not cowed.)
Which is also why you’re still married.
(same can be said for myself, but we’re focusing on abusing you at the moment)
Unfortunately, from the time I booked the trip,
until shortly before the trip, the Canadian dollar
took a beating compared to the US dollar.
That is unfortunate.
(Especially since the fact has profited me not one penny)
A few months ago, a favourite cousin of mine was in town.
The occasion was a sad one, her aunt's mom had passed away.
Condolences
Sadly, just weeks before her return,
her father passed away unexpectedly.
Now cut that out!
More condolences.
And more proof that life’s second most unavoidable truth is always in play:
Life’s not fair (not now, not tomorrow, not ever)
Sitting at a two-three hour graduation ceremony
while complete strangers paraded by on stage
was not my idea of a fun time.
You mean to tell me that you’re not just aching to listen to Pomp and Circumstance nonstop for three hours? Go figure. (now imagine how awful it to be one of the musicians that has to play the piece for all those hours and without the option of not showing up).
So I emailed her back again, and said.
"But if you'd like an escort for the evening, I'd be delighted."
Got backed into that one…
Oh, and you’re a good man, there sir (of course I’ll deny I said that if questioned).
Upshot was, I took my cousin to her niece's grad.
It was.... interesting.
I think we may need to get everyone on the same page here as to the exact definition of the word: “interesting”.
There were two boys seated immediately in front of us.
They spent the evening bouncing up and down
and crawling over one another.
Thankfully their Dad was there to ignore them.
Wouldn’t want to be hindering the full development of their self-esteem, don’t ya’ know.
And then there was the lad seated directly behind us.
My cousin later fondly referred to him as the tuberculosis kid.
Now I don’t care who you are; that’s funny, right there.
Of course by Sunday I was in full blown sick mode.
That… however… is a decidedly unfunny.
And a dastardly application of Rule-2
Plus not having to get up at 4am was nice.
Not getting up at 4am is always a bonus.
And they reiterated that we'd have our bags in between flights.
Okay. Good.
May this not be an instance of foreshadowing.
You’re already pushing it on the bad omen scale, here.
we were going to be traveling with only two checked bags.
That's $100 I save right there, round trip.
Cool! Than you can loan me the $100, then.
I’ll be sure you get paid back out of whatever proceeds are actually left in my estate after all my other creditors have picked over the corpse.
I knew it wouldn’t be long before our national brand of discourse started invading y’all’s sensibilities and forced a cultural turn toward the scatological.
Two minutes later, I'm talking with a nice WestJet agent.
I think my VIP bus package extends to phone calls.
Natural states always seek equilibrium…
You’ll be paying for that good fortune and some point in the near.
I have about as much enthusiasm for a trip
as I do for eating Brussels sprouts.
If that were true, you wouldn’t have gone.
You may need a different metaphor here.
Well, maybe not that bad... but close.
OK, that proviso will suffice.
Plus my voice has dropped approximately three octaves.
That may be seen as a good thing…
"Well, hello there sweetheart."
I'd say in my super low, studly voice.
"Well, hi yourself big boy." She'd reply.
"Would you like to... <cough><cough><cough><hack!>"
"No." As she turns on her heels and sprints away.
…right up until you get to that point, at least.
Ya’ done spoilt the drama.
The trip (sans antibiotics) was on.
I was not totally reassured, however,
when he gave me a prescription
"Just in case."
Hedging his bets, I see.
Not a good sign.
If we hurried, we could get Elle's car just before we'd have to leave.
So that's what we did.
Stringing together an intriguing mix of wins and losses here.
I send her a text: "Where R U?"
She texts that I have to go to the office
otherwise they won't let her out.
Blasted procedures and protocols…
Don’t they know that rules like that should only be applied to other people’s kids!
I decide that sitting on the side of the road
while a nice policeman gives me a ticket
would probably take more time.
I concur…
And have the past experience to validate the theory as well.
Plus, driving in a circle wouldn't accomplish much.
Not a fan of left turns?
Granted, road tracks are far more challenging.
But this is more like a road rally (given that there are actual speed and time limits and all).
I of course miss the turn off and have to circle a second time.
I can't make this stuff up.
Well, you can, but it’s good for the narrative that you don’t need to.
I find a vacant spot about as far from civilization
as you can possibly be.
Polar bears and hobos roamed the area.
So polar bears ride the rails into Winnipeg as well?
I figured they were just naturally occurring in that area.
After a quick walk, meaning I walked fast,
While breathing shallow…
Making you even more tired.
(polar bears I'm used to, but hobos? Not so much.)
They’re similar in one respect…
Just don’t feed ‘em and they won’t seek you out.
At least it was hobos and not bums. Then you’d have been in trouble.
She lets us cut the line.
Sweet!
No idea what the other people in line thought of this.
Seething on the inside, polite on the outside.
Sounds like you do have a good idea of what other people thought of it, then.
I explain our issue to the ticket agent.
After typing 3,843 keys on her keyboard,
we are issued boarding passes
beat the 4000 keystroke limit, I see; lucky you.
I breathe a sigh of relief.
Which, of course, brings on another coughing fit.
That’ll learn you.
And I think I'll leave the pkondz family there for now,
So what did they think of that?
I suspect they pummeled you good when you got back.
Announcing a second contest when you haven't
even really finished the first is pretty lame.
Bur we already know that about you.
I can live with it.
And the prize will befit the size of the trip.
i.e. It'll be small.
But it's culturally a very important part of Hawaii.
Spam?
Oh, and if you're good little boys and girls…
Well that kind’a puts the kybosh on the whole thing right there, not don’t it?
There will be no, zero, zilch, nada points for flattery.
Flattery? What’s that?
1. Is our flight on time or delayed?
Delayed
Since you had to rush to get there, fate might as well punish you farther for the effort exhibited.
2. What annoying thing happens on our flight?
(Hint: Not turbulence.)
You are seated beside someone who spends the entire flight clipping their toe nails.
No?
Your coughing so frightens the other passengers that they are forced to reclassify you as baggage?
Still not it, huh…
Really not sure what to say for this one as so many things are annoying about commercial flight.
I’ll go with one of the other passengers keep invading you allotted space in some fashion.
3. What good thing happens at our hotel?
Are we talking about the the hotel in Vancouver on Maui?
Well go with some kind of unexpected discount or room upgrade.
4. Animals! Animals on a plane! What kind?
(Hint: Not snakes... or dogs... or cats.)
Well if it’s none of those then logic dictates that it must be a platypus.
That or an iguana of some type.
Oh. And 20 bonus points for anyone who guesses
what our one and only excursion is.
Gonn’a go with a zip Line for this one.
I’d sure like to be able to do that on Maui.
Heck, l’d like to be able to do anything on Maui (including live like a hobo)