Hope everyone is getting some chocolate or flowers today. For Lori and I, we opted out as our Valentines Day is great enough being in Hawaii. She did bring me coffee and I found her a cute little blue dress for $64 in the lobby gift shop that was on sale. It had to be the cheapest thing on the entire property as even drinks at the pool are $65! Of course I’m just kidding, they’re not $65 but might as well be as they’re actually $18 which is super expensive. We, to save money, went to the grocery store Sunday and loaded up on things for our kitchen. We had planned flowers to all you grandmothers but didn’t get it together, so get yourself some chocolate today!
Yesterday after my meeting, which was great, went down to Kihea and hit Aloha Boards, one of the last great local board shops on the island. After Cory, who works there, helped Ty build up a custom board to his specifications, we headed to Wailea for lunch. While the board was being built, both Jag and Ty got henna tattoos on their forearms at a place nextdoor. Now don’t worry, these go away in a week or so. They both chose some Hawaiian tribal pattern and were quite thrilled with their new body art.
Next up was Monkey Pod, a great restaurant that sells a lot of our wine. Then it was back up island but we stopped at a local fruit stand on the way for fresh pineapple, mangoes, star fruit and more. Then it was off to the ocean where Lori and the boys surfed some waves with their bodies and boogie boards. Finally at 7, it was off to another good account, Sal Peppe, a great italian restaurant in Lahaina that again sells a lot of our wine.
Today we’re not sure what we’re doing. Tonight though at 8:30, we’re going to Star Noodle, which is this cult like restaurant in an industrial area that’s super tough to get in to. Jag really wants to go but Lori is unsure as she’d like to be in bed by 8:30! It’s windy here but nice. Oahu has been getting tons of rain and wind but we’ve been lucky.
Time to run as Lori and I are taking our daily morning beach stroll, giving homage to the local Gods and life itself! Ok, we really don’t know the local Gods but Jag is educating us. In closing, here’s an email from Jag’s teacher who ran the kids school trip. She’s from Hawaii. Read this, pretty darn impressive, here’s the email from his teacher below, 
(Lori hates this picture, ha ha) Aloha!
Dear Doug and Lori,
Thank you for your thoughtful email. I just wanted to tell you that Jagger, though he was one of only two freshman students on the trip, really emerged as a leader in Hawai’i. It is important when Hawaiians gather for a meal to do a pule, or prayer, to offer thanks for the abundance of food, drink and friends, and after the first night when Aunty Alva led it, I asked for a volunteer to perform this task.
Jagger did not hesitate. For two sets of distinguished guests, Jagger led us in our pule, thoughtfully, maturely and authentically articulating gratitude and the intention to continue learning and growing on our journey together. I was so impressed, as were the elders in our presence. He made a deep impression on his peers, as well. You have a good boy there…a good young man, I should say. You can tell he has been raised with a lot of love in his home. It was a pleasure to have him on our intraterm course. You should ask him to share with you the reflection he wrote and shared with the group on our last day together. It made me cry! In gratitude…
Aloha Nui,
Kim