| « Chug, chug, chug! | Home | Drive in, drive out » |
Latest Entries
On the Set at the Toyota Commercial Filming
Dick Stein Reading The Tacomiad (and other fab audio!)
Photos ~ Frost Park Chalk Off #30
Fri. January 7, 2000, 11:23am PST
A little rough on the landing
Got to sleep in a half hour this morning. After a shower I took off downstairs to the parking garage to capture on film the deed Kristin, Renee and I did last night. In retaliation for the theft of my Jack Millenium ball we put together five Jack in the Box straw figures resembling the logo from the recent box office hit The Blair Witch Project. Our straw figures and rock pile sat atop the theft's car were perfect for our purposes. After our entire group met in the hotel's lobby to depart for the Big Island, the figures had been placed onto our rental car. Guess someone can't take a joke.
The Honolulu airport was our next stop. Dr. Benham's wife Lois organized us all while he and the drivers returned our trusty Oahu transportation. Right off, the people behind the ticket counter were rude to us. Without reason the woman basically denied Lois and our group service bitching that she wouldn't serve all twenty of us. Riiiight. Maybe I'm wrong but I'm thinking that she'd eventually see twenty people. Anyway, I diverted myself to another ticket agent who also was less than cordial toward me. Of course there was NO way possible to appease her which became very true when I couldn't, for the life of me, find my drivers license. The search ensued. I constantly apologized (because I had no cause to irritate some random ticket taker) and she insisted the swift return of my ID took place. Although I wasn't accusing her of anything I simply wanted to retrieve my ID. After she searched to the ends of the airport (up and down the room, she really went out of her way) I discovered the missing card between some wood at the base of the ticket counter. After she extended her search (to the next room) I showed her that I had found my card and she less than cordially wished me a "good day". Never before had I felt so bad for so much nothing.
A lengthy wait at the terminal for our flight provided me an opportunity to mingle with people in the group and to give my mom a call at the University of Portland's 1-800 number. Everything seemed to be going fine at home and I reassured mom that Hawaii and our group were treating me well. Soon thereafter we boarded our flight, took our unassigned seats and taxied down the runway for takeoff. Ascending into the air above the Pacific was a bit rougher than Kristin wanted which, I admit, also made me slightly uneasy. The flight eventually settled down a bit. Some of our group talked to the flight attendants while I whipped out the ol' GPS and clocked our speed and measured our altitude. With the Big Island in sight, we slowed from our top speed of 540 MPH and began descending from 26,000'. Faintly in the distance shown the glimmer off a telescope dome adjacent to some snow atop Mauna Kea, off to the plane's right. We rounded the north side of the island and came into Hilo from the northeast in the middle of a swath of drizzly precipitation. The landing was a bouncer. What do you think that did to Kristin or a couple others in the group for that matter? Nevertheless, we made it safely to the ground and hung around the front of the airport anxiously awaiting our rental vans. Par usual the wait for them could be no less than an hour. Anything less would be uncivilized!
The caravan of caravans left the airport and gradually climbed the gentle slope up Kilauea towards our home for the next couple weeks. While Kristin and I sat strapped in the same seatbelt of the packed van, Dr. and Mrs. Benham made the ride an enjoyable lesson on [some of] the flora of this island. My heart soared when we drove into Volcanoes National Park and saw active steam vents fed by the heat of the inner Earth. That's when the realization hit me that I was to spend the rest of the month on the back of an active volcano! It's a beautiful proposition that I hope does not dissappoint. Call me crazy but I hope we're rocked by an Earthquake or two before we leave here. Why? I like the things. Without the destruction that they have the potential to bring upon humanity they are a direct connection to the inner workings of this planet. What more could a geosciences major want?
After everyone got their room assignments at the Kileaua Military Camp (a.k.a. our home away from home) the Benhams headed back into Hilo to retrieve food for tonight. The time passed somewhat slowly while most of the group hung out in the firehouse to kill the hours away. TV watching, indoor beach paddle smash ball (or whatever it's called) with normal paddles and my snorkel fins, and card games were great activities while waiting for the food. Once the food (and the Benham's) came our group mobilized and, before we knew it, dinner was served. Everyone ate burritos while I jammed some shredded cheese and tomatoes into a soft tortilla and nuked it in the microwave. After clean-up some people left while other the rest of us played BS. How fun is exclaiming to one of your professors "B.S.!" and you're right?!
Bed time is soon coming for me and only Nick, Matt, Kristin and I are left awake here in the firehouse. Not sure what tomorrow will hold but I can only look forward to it.
Comments (0) | To Top