Up late/early here at Balticon. (www.Balticon.org) It was my first real Con 4 years ago and has a soft spot in my heart. 

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I’m still here. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, there has been a lot going on in my life personal and professional. There is a distinct inverse relationship between how busy my life is and how often I blog.

However, to add a little catching up:
November:   I had a major presentation with national and/or international groups every week.

December:   Spent a very sad month on the way back to Missouri to take our dog home for the last time.

January:   Was in New Orleans to present at the National Multicultural Summit and while there, took a few extra days off to enjoy the city.   (There’ll definitely be more on that as I discovered I ADORE New Orleans)

February:   Working to prepare for health care reform efforts this year.

March:   Putting the finishing touches on a feature-length script (although I still have some tinkering I want to do) for a local director.  Cross your fingers that we begin production in June!

Overall, life has been great. Some happy times and some sad, but always busy and always exciting. I’m somewhat better about updating my “professional” site at:   www.DayInWashington.com   Home of the Disability Policy Podcast

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Day 0

Whew!  After 23 hours in transit, we had mechanical problems with our plane that lead to significant delays and rearranging of flights, we finally arrived in Oahu at about 10pm.  That means it was about 4am in DC time.  Unfortunately, Renee’s luggage didn’t make it. 

We’re staying at the Wyland Waikiki Hotel. It looks pretty neat, but with the low ceilings and poor air circulation on account of being surrounded by other buildings, it is a bit warm. Although, let me just say, they have one of the MOST comfortable pull-out beds I have ever slept on.

Day 1

Today we visited the Iolani Palace.  The short and sweet description (summarized mostly from Wikipedia - because it is too late and I am too tired to write up my own detailed description) is:

Iolani Palace is the only royal palace used as an official residence by a reigning monarch in the United States.  The Iolani Palace structure that exists today is actually the second Iolani Palace to sit on thepalace grounds.  King David Kalakaua dreamed of a royal palace befitting of the sovereignty of a modern state such as Hawaii. He commissioned the construction of a ”new” Iolani Palace to become the official palace of the Hawaiian monarchy. The building was completed in 1882 and cost over $360,000. It had electricity and telephones at a time that such a thing was so rare and that many had never even heard of it.  And served as the official residence of the Hawaiian monarch until the kingdom was overthrown in 1893.

Iolani Palace

I have to admit, the inside looked very beautiful with a lot of decorative  woods and carvings.  And the building has an amazing history.  Just as a neat note - On April 30th of this year, the palace was “overtaken” by a group of native Hawaiians called the Hawaiian Kingdom Government to protest what they view as illegitimate rule by the United States.  Cool, eh?

This is us indulging in a limo to ride over to the palace.  Actually, the limo was the same price as a taxi.  Brenda was our driver and she absolutely rocked.  The other photo is of the state seal in the ceiling of the entrance to the Iolani Palace.

Judy, Ron, Don, me, Renee and Rhonda

State Seal at Iolani Palace

Waikiki at Sunset

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There isn’t much more to say than that.  Disgustingly, completely, snifflingly, bone-achingly, fatigue-filled, ill.  It is definitely the flu and having slept straight through two WHOLE days and now I’m hopefully coming out the other side.  Either that, or my fever’s broken for a little bit and I’ve got a sort while before it all goes to heck…again.  I’m so tired and there is so much to do.  Aaargh.  Whatever.  I don’t even have the energy to groan appropriately.

You’d think after thousands of years and all of our investments in medical technology and innovation we’d have something to combat things as common as the cold and the flu.

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