let's begin at the end, shall we?

As i begin to post the Hawaii pictures i need to tell you a story about a lovely $5 Goodwill skirt and the only bad thing that happened on my trip because it has some bearing on the posts.
When i travel i like to have a few things/place/restaurants/goals picked out to visit or accomplish, but i leave the rest of the time open for adventure.
 Generally, the day before i leave is my "clean up" day to hit anything still on the list and to take pictures that i need for my scrapbook or for specific blog posts. I was checking out of my hotel on Saturday, flying out at midnight, flying through the night and getting home in the morning on Sunday, so i had almost 12 hours for "clean up" and planned the day to the max:
-get up at 8
-breakfast at Eggs and Things
-take Waikiki street shots and buy souvenirs during the 1.5 hour wait for breakfast
-check out between 11 and 11:30
-pics of Waikiki Aquarium and Honolulu Zoo
-pics of Honolulu public art and mountainside neighborhoods
-head north to find the Crouching Lion formation
-spend the afternoon exploring the Polynesian Cultural Center villages including going to the specific shows and lessons, until they close for the evening luaus
-dinner someplace on the way back to Honolulu
-pictures of the city at night
-return rental car at 9pm
-shuttle to the airport and change into warmer travel clothes
Doesn't that sound like a great day?
Knowing that there would be a lot of pictures and that many of the pictures of me in Hawaii up to that point had been taken when i looked like crappy (totally happy, but tired and salty with sketchy hair) i saved the cutest outfit for last. I found this red and white knee-length floral skirt at Goodwill just days before i left. It is cotton and too light to wear in Maryland in October, but perfect for Hawaii. It was to be paired with a white V-neck t-shirt and long, vintage red and gold beads.
 Lovely, if i must say so myself.
And the perfect yes-i'm-a-tourist-but-i'm-not-the-fannypack-crowd outfit.
Ahhhhh... the best laid plans...
Friday night between the luau and the show (separate post), i was going over everything in my head for "clean up" day - firming up the estimated times, planning the most efficient driving routes, deciding what to pack that night and what to leave for the morning, etc - when i started to have a little doubt.
 I'd made the plane reservations one day sitting at my desk with my boss in the guest chair, talking about flying over a bunch of timezones. I'd intentionally picked flying overnight so that i could sleep. But now that i was in Hawaii and understood the time difference, the travel times just didn't add up. It is a 5 hour flight across the ocean and then another 5 hours across the country, plus layover time to switch planes. Add crossing 6 time zones to the east and the journey appears to take almost an entire day. How was i supposed to leave at midnight and get in at 7am? Somehow i must have messed up and be getting in at 7pm, losing Sunday in the process.
Once i got back to the hotel i checked my reservations.
Yes, i got into BWI at 7am.
Yes, i left Honolulu at midnight - 12:30pm to be precise.
Wait.
12:30pm...
Wait...
12:30 pm is NOON, not MIDNIGHT!
waaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!
No "clean up" day.
 No Eggs and Things.
No Crouching Lion.
No PCC, even though i had already paid for the tickets.
 No final pictures for the scrapbook or the blog.
 No opportunity to wear my super cute i'm-in-Hawaii outfit.
CURSES!
Soooooooo... i managed to get souvenirs bought and pictures of the King Kamehameha statue before sitting through rush hour traffic to return my car and get to the airport by 10am.
sigh
That is why several of the posts following over the next few days will say imagine pictures here and why there is a picture of my pretty Goodwill skirt, since i can't wear it until probably April.
Phooey.
Oh well, crap happens, right?
Anyhoo, the trip was great otherwise and i'll try to get a few posts up each day to share the adventure with you.