MORE HAWAII

Here are a few more photos from Hawaii. More to come later as I get them sorted.

I traveled to the Big Island Film Festival with fellow "Sixes and the One Eyed King" folks. From the left, Scott Ford (Andy) and his girlfriend, Pat, director Ray Robison and Tamara Barrus (Brittany), who is sporting one of the lovely kukui nut-and-turtle necklaces the festival gave us instead of the huge cross she wears in the film.

We (OK, Scott, as I was going to get a nice sedan) rented a Jeep convertible, which proved handy for seeing the Waipio Valley and was a lot of fun. I found myself wishing I had a long scarf to wear around my hair and whip in the wind.

We saw an incredible sunset at Waikoloa, where we were staying in a condo near the festival, which was held at the Hilton, the Marriott and other nearby venues. "Sixes and the One Eyed King" and other films were shown in an outdoor theater, which was an experience that makes me think back to those days of going to drive-in movies. There was something cool about piling into the back of someone's pickup and stretching out with friends, even if I'd seen the film before. These were walk-in movies. Ours had the ocean nearby and torches for light.

I saw my first gecko in Hawaii. I hadn't understood others' fascination with the little lizards before. They're beautiful, and I was glad I had the chance to run across some. The array of plant life was also pretty incredible. I wish I were better with identification. Good writing earns flavor through details, and I rely on research and picture books where others carry ready knowledge. We had to balance time between sight-seeing and film-seeing.

There is much of Hawaii I would like to experience on a return trip as more of a tourist or as a longer working holiday. I don't regret seeing the films I did, though, and it was wonderful to mingle with others and see what they'd done.

Overall, the trip was quite relaxing, and I still have a bit of Aloha spirit clinging to me despite the busy return to my regular life.

I did hardly any writing on vacation, and I'm glad to be back at it, like a friend I hadn't seen for awhile.