Happy New Year

Hawaii has to be the fireworks capital of the world. When we were driving home after the tennis party(those tennisers really need a how to through a convivial party tip) Waimea was thickly covered in smoke so thick that we could barely see to drive, as though it was a thick fog. And it was simply the smoke from local fireworks. Our neighbors were so intense that they started their continuous fireworks by 5pm and by midnight they were so fast and furious they must have had 3 people doing nothing but lighting them. It was quite a neighborhood competition, one you realize that they take very seriously. I will declare our immediate neighbors that we can see from the lanai the winners compared to those that surrounded us simply because of the intensity of the post midnight display and the longevity. I worked out that inbetween the big huge fireworks it was important to have those little noisy ones firing the most intently in the neighborhood, and then just when you think the others have given up or their little ones are fading, you shoot a big huger into the sky. But the other neighbors surrounding are also very sly and they also have saved a big huger to try and dominate. But I would have to say that our lanai neighbors appear to be the slyest (and richest presumably) so that they ultimately had the last big fireworks. So really the most interesting part of the 5 hour fireworks display is that time after midnight when all the competitors are trying to achieve dominance. I wonder how they greet each other the next day? Do you think there is any overt acknowledgment of the winner or is it just one of those things where they carry the knowledge smugly inside them and only let it out months later at an opportune moment? In the few days leading up to New years the grocery stores sometimes have up to 8 aisles devoted only to fireworks. Not the kind of island for dogs like the Tobes.
Snorkeling and boogie boarding continue at a fast pace as we try to outrun the cloud cover that is supposed to descend tomorrow and not leave until our vacation is over. If that is the case we will still try and be intrepid and beach it in the clouds, and sometimes that is okay. It is really the water conditions that dictate the success of the expeditions and those don't seem to be linked to whether it is sunny or cloudy.