Wednesday, January 30, 2008

ONLY IN HAWAII...OR GO HALF WAY UP CALIFORNIA AND TURN LEFT

This request came from Kimber An
"More pictures of Hawaii"

"Hawaii is a unique state.
It is a small state.
It is a state that is by itself.
It is different than the other 49 states.
Well, all states are different, but its got a particularly unique situation."
This was said by former US VP Dan Quale.

Yeah. Well. An exotic location like Hawaii can add cache to an author, but poses unique challenges. Like the long swim to California. And the fact that my arches are flat from only wearing flip flops.
Sure, I know what you're thinking.
You're thinking all I do is loll in the sun, swim, and drink maitais all day.
First of all you're forgetting I have to snorkel and go to luaus too. And my drink of choice is a pina colada or anything with rum.
But outside of that there is something a bit isolating about never having winter. About hearing all the fun you all are having with sleet and snow and wind chill factors.
I feel positively left out.
So it's 11 pm and 74 degrees outside.
Do you know where your muse is?

36 comments:

ORION said...

to start things off. One of my muses is in the forward cabin and the other is buried deep, sound asleep in my clothes cupboard.
I wondered why I was having so much trouble coming up with my word count today...

Lynne Griffin and Amy MacKinnon said...

Pat, this post strikes me as particularly cruel as I prepare to warm up the van (remote starter) before bundling my daughter for a trip to the doctor's. This time of year in New England it's always frigid (25F right now) and every one is sick. Do me a favor? Turn your face toward the sun and have a drink for me. I miss flip-flops.

Amy

Ric said...

Okay, that was uncalled for. It is 10 degrees here with 8-10 inches of snow coming tonight.

Still, I moved back from Texas in 1984 because I missed the changing of the seasons. The Muses seem to hover closely to wherever home feels right.

Kimber Li said...

Alaska's all that, except we're a BIG state. The biggest, in fact. Oh, yes, I feel sooooo sorry for you, Pat, especially after looking at the thermometer just now seeing that it's a balmy O degrees Fahrenheit here on the Last Frontier. You poor thing!

My muse? Didn't I tell ya? Angelica, heroine of my current WIP, chucked the Old Hag into a flaming tarpit. She promised to replace her with a sweet kitty-cat muse, but so far nada. Now, there's talk of a Beagle. Can dogs be muses? Even if I'm a cat person?

D. Robert Pease said...

If you were only within striking distance... ;-) 12 degrees here, windchill much, much colder than that.

But since I can't slap you, I can make fun of your geography know-how. Hawaii is the southern most state, so if you went halfway up California and turned left, you'd eventually hit Japan. Unless of course you take into account the north west leaning of the state of California, then... oh never mind. It is too hard to be sarcastic when I'm this cold.

Sandra Cormier said...

"Pat is a unique writer.
She is a small writer.
She is a writer who is in Paradise.
She is different than the other five million writers.
Well, all writers are different, but she's got a particularly unique situation."

We who shiver in the dark envy you, but we also love to celebrate with you. I'll do my best to close my eyes and feel the sun, and listen closely for gulls and the sound of surf.

My muse? I think it's buried under the snow somewhere in the back yard.

BClark said...

At the moment it is +2, hooray! and feels like -10. We do have some sun a plus for sure, but walking out to take care of the critters was a challenge to any exposed skin. I can send pictures so you can share. My muse is, I believe under one of the larger snow drifts that adorn my yard.

Rum, yes, rum is good with some lime and cola and sun and pool. I do remember those days. Enjoy all that hard work. Barbara

Lisa R said...

Seeing the weather in the Midwest reminds me to very glad that we live in Hawaii. A little wind, a little rain, then rainbows, sunshine and balmy breezes. It's tough to take!

ORION said...

Robert ya gotta take into the account the wind, the currents, and the curve of the Earth...leaving anywhere from San Diego to San Francisco you have no choice but to hit Hawaii! How do I know?
Because our boat was abandoned by the former owners 400 miles off the coast of California- They thought it would just sink- instead it ended up "sailing" all by itself to the Big Island...
True story.

Trish Ryan said...

My muse wouldn't mind a trip to Hawaii! Will have to chat with hubby about vacation possibilities :)

Anonymous said...

74 degrees?!? Color me jealous. (I think that would be a sickly green, right?) And, yes, it's clear just how jealous you are of the rest of us, slogging through a very cold, icy, snowy winter. (That would be...not at all, right?)

Mary said...

We’ve got gale-force winds and hail stones. A day to stay inside if you value your face!

Living in Hawaii must be gorgeous. The photos and temperature reports are two of the things I love about your blog. But I would miss the changing seasons.

My muse divides her time between my head, and the bottom of the garden. If I move to an apartment, she’ll be forced to spend more time indoors. Good news for me! :)

Holly Kennedy said...

Sneeze! Cough!
Let me clear the snow off my keyboard and blow on my hands while I think of exactly how to comment on a post like this :)

It was minus 51 degrees here yesterday w/windchill. Not a good time to feel all warm and cozy writing my next novel!

ORION said...

oh I did not mean to be nasty!!! really and truly!!!
I did not mean to be cruel.
No. No. No.
I meant my post in only the kindest and most positive way.
I think.
I'm sure I did.
Honest.

Anonymous said...

ah...... you poor, poor soul. No change of seasons. tsk tsk. I'm such a kind a giving person that I'll offer to trade you places. I'd sacrifice myself so that you could get out of that flat-foot-carpal-tunnel-from-jumbo-rum-drink situation.

Is tomorrow soon enough??

:)

hey, btw, i just found my muse. She's on a basement foundation, on a hill, facing the sunset, and overlooking Chesapeake bay.

~~~ Dawn Anon

Janet said...

I wish wearing flipflops would lower MY arches. They are unusually high and no amount of insufficient support has ever managed to change that fact, despite the threats my grandmother made when I was a child.

I was out walking today in sub-freezing weather, thinking (and I am perfectly serious) how much more fun it is to walk in the winter than the summer. I like winter. I will probably be moving further south sometime in the next couple of years, to an area that makes intermittent, feeble attempts to simulate winter, but mainly gets grey and rainy. I am not really looking forward to it.

No, I'm not insane. Why do you ask?

My muse is circling warily around my brainstorming papers, asking if she can go play elsewhere. Stupid muse.

Kanani said...

Right now my muse is a ship bound for Mexico!

LadyBronco said...

My muse is writing a paper on balance sheets and the conceptual framework of financial accounting.

Basically, my muse is nerded-up right now. Freezing in the 15 degree weather.

Bernita said...

Pina coladas?
My favourite.
We're beginning a blizzard up here.
You do like to rub it in, don't you?

Bookfool said...

My muse drowned.

Oh, that Dan was a bundle of laughs.

I knew you were a sensible gal. "Anything with rum." Yep.

The Anti-Wife said...

My muse is home sound asleep in her doggie bed. I'll be in Kapolei in early November for 5 days.

Anonymous said...

I'll trade you! You can have this sleety, freezy, damp, grimy ooze that's coming out of the sky over here on the mainland! :)

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

My muse is listening to the icy rain pelting my windows, worrying about gas bill this month and considering an extra large glass of rum in a HOT TODDY!

You're evil, woman. Evil I tell you. May your sunblock turn rancid overnight and barnicles grow on your....

Aloha!

Michelle O'Neil said...

You are evil.

Evil I say.

I also say Brrr...

ORION said...

ANTI WIFE!!!!email me with the dates!! I'll buy you a rum drink!!!
That goes for anyone else brave enough to come to Hawaii...

Michelle H. said...

Ouch!

You're warm. You're drunk. You're teasing us.

I just got a half inch of freezing rain out here in not so sunny Pennsylvania.

Sob.

Michelle H. said...

Stupid me.

I was so taken up with the picture of sandy beaches that after I made my comment about the weather and returned to the main blog, my eyes finally turned to the left and noticed the book, The Lottery.

I did the biggest double-take that you could possibly imagine.

I know that story.

I read a stellar review about the book.

Chris Eldin said...

*waves to you from the beaches of Dubai*

heh heh!
:-)

I can't live without autumn though. The chilly bite and the panaramic colors are my two favorite muses.

Chris Eldin said...

Oh, and poor Dan.
All I remember about him was the inability to spell tomatoes. Potatoes.
I can see him in front of some board, struggling about the 'e.'
sigh...

Chris Eldin said...

It does have an 'e,' doesn't it?

Okay.
dictionary.com

Sustenance Scout said...

Hahaha, Pat! Thanks for the good belly laugh, I needed it! Snow on the ground here in Colorado and yes it's cold but blue sky and bright sun really do help. My muse is up on the slopes and I've yet to find my way to her this winter. We'll get there! K.

Travis Erwin said...

Ahhh ... Rum. A woman after my own heart.

I might be a landlocked, dryfooted, texan but I'm pretty sure i was a pirate in a past life. Arrgh!

ORION said...

oh pirates ROCK!!!
Beach in Dubai??!! I taught a science teacher from the American School there -- he came to Hawaii for my Marine Science Studies course... I wonder if he's still there?
Hey travis did you know I was stationed in San Antonio in the 70's??? I LOVED the river walk.

Ello - Ellen Oh said...

My muse is with you in Hawaii. I think I need to make a trip there to get her back.

ORION said...

For all of you with cold muses...um...let me rephrase that...

Michelle H. said...

You know, I've just been so blogged down that I haven't had the chance to crawl out my dark corner to read any good books yet this year.

Do you have any suggestions???LOL