Maui

I landed in Hawaii completely exhausted, and pretty sure I was about get sick (after going to Powell/Vegas/OSL, and then heading straight to Hawaii early Monday morning with no breaks in between).  I was heading into two days on Oahu with Stacey and friends, and then 5 days on Maui in a vacation rental with 9 people to celebrate Phuong and Huy's 5 year wedding anniversary. 

!!  Crazy, but so much fun.


Time on Oahu with Stacey was sweet and chill.  I felt like I got to relax and recover a bit -- but, that we also got some quality time:

Lunch, beach, shave ice with Cara
Dinner at Monkey Pod
Stand up paddle boarding in Waikiki
Lunch with Mike and Abigail
Ant-Man and the Wasp


Then, I was off to Maui to celebrate Phuong and Huy's 5 year anniversary!  I didn't know most of the people in the condo, but they were all lovely and it was really fun staying together.  The celebration was beautiful and delightful, and just a wonderful night all around.  I felt so honored to be a part of it. 

Here's some highlights from Maui:

Meeting Phuong and Huy's amazing friends and family
Staying at the condo with everyone
Boogie boarding in the ocean with Thu Mai and Steve
Pool games with Steve, Ben, Jenny
The anniversary celebration!
Taking all the polaroids
Spa day
Meditating with Steve and Thu Mai at the hotel
Clapping with Ethan
Face masks with Jenny and Tony
Red beach with Yuki
Finding the labyrinth
IAO Valley
Eskimo Candy
Nakalele Blowhole

OSL

I met Danny at the airport (me coming back from Powell/Vegas and he coming in from Chicago), and off we went!  We were both, separately, out way too late the night before but, if we didn't stop for a nap, we could still catch most of the performers on Friday -- which was the start to a very sweet, emotional, and ambitious weekend.

To be honest, the festival was kind of a blur (mostly due to borderline exhaustion, a few too many sips of beer, and a put put game in the middle of the festival that included a wine tasting.).  We went to all three days and saw so much music.  Here are the ones I remember in no particular order:

Beck

Janet Jackson

Future

Janel Monae

Jaime xx

Saltnpepa

Portugal. The Man

N.E.R.D.

Odesza

Big Gigantic

Knox Fortune

Beyond that, we did sleep a bit and had a few nice brunches, my favorite being Outerlands, for which I had a gift certificate, and for which the idea of actually kicked off Danny's extended stay last summer and our first Outside Lands.  

Outerlands describes itself as "Locally sourced, organic fare served in a warm, handcrafted setting."  The atmosphere is casual and classy, the food delicious, but the chairs left splinters in my legs.  Say no to wicker! 

Powell

I was invited to join an annual family and friends trip to Lake Powell for 8 days.  It was a trip full of beautiful canyons, jet skis, wake board surfing, cooking, hiking, and just hanging out together on the water and under the stars.

I wasn't sure what it would be like living on a boat with 11 people and 2 dogs for 8 days -- but, it was magical.


The moments:

All of the games with Kaleigh
Driving the boat
Learning about Jocko
Heads Up game starring Dan and Annette
Dan's recaps of what happened while we were gone
Getting to know all of the lovely Ermshars including Bella and Beau
Late night talks/songs under the stars with Kaleigh, Geoff, Patrici, Kendall, Cynthia, Stephen
Jet skiing through the narrows
Paddle boarding to the bat cave, and then quickly back to avoid the monster (beaver)
Paddle boarding in the dark of the night to see the reflections of the stars on the water
Climbing the anchor ropes with Kaleigh and Patrici
Hanging out in the hammock
Wakeboard surfing in the canyons
Discovering that Beau is god
Rainbow bridge
Patrici and Kendall's badass surfing
The return of Beau


The trip ended with a very full night in Vegas:

Michael Jackson One
Yummy sushi dinner
Pool party - Fetty Wap
Patrici pointing at me when the dj would ask who was celebrating a birthday - haha
Late night best room service ever