Tag: vacation

Hawaii Trip

We are headed to Hawaii this week! OMFG I am sooo excited. We’re going for the obvious reasons and to see my buddy Rick who moved back home from SF a couple years ago. He (and his partner Jeremy)  graciously offered to put us up at his place so we are saving money as well. Win, win!  I’m also looking forward to meeting Bubbles, his version of Cooper. She is a brindle and white bully and looks ever so sassy! I can’t wait to meet her. Sadly, I can’t bring Cooper. He is too old to fly, even inside the plane. And I’d never forgive myself if something happened to him.

I’ve only been to Hawaii once and it was back when I was a wee lad at 18. I was invited along by a guy I was dating at the time. All I remember is the visit to the lava and booze. [1]I drank way more before I turned 21 lol  We also went to one of the smaller islands. This time, we are headed to the Kona on the big island. I’m really looking forward to the trip. The closer it gets the less focus I seem to have. hehehe

Shawn surprised me with my very own Nintendo Switch this week. He also managed to get me hooked on the new Legend of Zelda gama. hehehe  I’m usually not a Nintendo fan; however, I admit to enjoying the game. I don’t want to bash Nintendo as a console, but they are usually pretty basic. The switch is pretty polished and nails the potability factor hands down. I’ve yet to play any online games so can’t really review the process so far. It’s a tad more basic in design and graphics than Xone or PS4 games; however, Zelda also clocks in a roughly 80-hour game time. That’s pretty damn good for one game. It should keep us busy on the loooong plane rides to and from. And I’m always flattered and appreciative of Shawn’s kindness.

I’ll try to remember to take pics while I’m gone. I’m horrible about taking pics on vacation. Ironically, being on IG this past year may help me to remember. heehee For you folks that have been to the big island, feel free to send tips or great places to see/do.

References

References
↑1 I drank way more before I turned 21 lol

Fortune

I’m back from PHX and it’s been a busy couple weeks. I spent the last two weeks prepping for my move into my new assignment at work.

Anyway, we had a nice vacation and more importantly, Cooper had an awesome time. He also behaved way better than I expected. It was his first really big road trip since I rescued him. He adapted pretty well. On the drive from SF to LA he fought to stay awake because he just knew every time the car slowed or breaked, “we were there.” hehehe About 3 hours in he finally gave up and crashed in the back seat.

He got to meet Duplo while in LA. I was a bit fearful they wouldn’t get a long but it worked out quite well. After a little bit of angst, they were fine together. Not besties at all but they tolerated each other quite well. Considering Cooper was invading Duplo’s private space, I was really surprised they did so well. Even when we left them alone, they got along ok. Or, at least there were no tell-tale signs of drama while we were out. Cooper was only moderately anxious. We brought his bed and blankie to help him feel ‘at home’ and it really seemed to helps. Having his familiar things seemed to put him more at ease over time.

On the trip from LA to PHX, he quickly passed out. He figured he was in for another long day and didn’t fight it much at all. He would only get up with the daddy’s stopped for gas/bathroom breaks. Once in PHX, he got a little anxious the first time we left him in the condo alone. We took him for a quick ride around town while we were out and then the next time we left, he did much better. Again, he was only anxious the first night then seems to settle in ok.

The only rough spot was when we met up with Shawn’s parents. They had a cat that was so not amused at a strange dog invading his space. Cooper gets along with cats after a while but he initially will ‘rush’ them and cats that don’t no better freak out over that. Of course, once he gets next to the cat, he just sniffs and looks on bewildered. The new cat didn’t know that obviously and in one round managed to knick his nose a tiny bit. It was a very minor injury and did nothing to deter Cooper’s interest in the roaming kitty. We had to keep him on a leash with a firm hand till the evening was over. Luckily, the lunch spot was very dog friendly and we didn’t have to leave him locked in a room.

On the way back to LA and then SF, he quickly went right to sleep each time. He was an old hat it by then and knew it was a long ride. hehehe  His Daddy and Pappa had a good time but won’t be doing the drive again anytime soon though. Even split up over days, it was rough.

Cruise

I’m leaving for vacation tomorrow. My first real trip away in almost 4 years. I got to go see my brother a while back but I was also on a work trip so I couldn’t really do much or stay long. And let’s face it, doing family visits is not a vacation. hahaha

Anyway, I’m doing the Atlantis cruise to Puerto Vallarta and Cabo for 5 days. My two besties from back home are going as well. It promises to be an event. I hope those homos can survive the three of us together for 5 whole days in one place! Those two dirty snatches are just evil and I’m the only sane one in the bunch. [1]You totes believe that right?  And I finally get to use my passport for something other than a 2nd form of ID.

I’ve been planning this trip since last year and I must admit I am excited, part of me is anyway. Finances were a mess last year and I honestly wasn’t sure if it was wise to plan such a costly trip. But, it all worked out thankfully. My finances are still a bear but I’m well on top of them and even got a consolidation loan recently to tie everything together. I’ve worked OT off/on for the last few months to help pay for the cost so it won’t dent my normal budget at all.

Part of me is a tad sad because The Pup can’t go. I could have gotten him a ticket (half price even) but with his transfer being so fresh and moving into the holiday season, he just couldn’t get the time off. I’d tinkered with the idea of canceling but he forbade me from doing so. Now that it’s here, I’m glad he did. I’m excited to get away but I’m also excited to see my friends. I haven’t seen either of them in years and I truly miss their dirty snatches. I wish they both could move and live here with me. [2]Though I doubt SF would survive the event.  I’m also very happy to have a partner who doesn’t me doing it w/o him.  He is perfectly fine with me going. Besides, we’ve been inseparable since he got here, he probably wants a break. hehehe That said, I still wish he was coming along. He’s become my best friend and I just hate doing it w/o him. But as he says, there is always the next trip. And yes is right,  we’ll have plenty of time to gallivant around together over the years ahead.

I have scheduled a few random posts to go live while I’m gone. No, I will not be live blogging from the cruise. The Internet ain’t cheap and the roaming for cell service is truly astronomical. I find it ironic Tmo did away with roaming from within other countries but while on a boat I’m still hit with heavy fees. I can use my cell and data from Cabo or PV w/zero extra cost but let me connect to cellular on the boat and my goose is cooked! Anyway, I’m sure I’ll have plenty of stories and pics when I get back.

Cooper isn’t going either I’m afraid. Don’t think I didn’t look into it. No, he’ll be staying home as well. The Pup and my roomie are both around to take care of him so I don’t have to worry. Luckily, even if they weren’t around I have enough local friends I could have left him with. I would not have kenneled him. He’s come a long way since I rescued him but the idea of him thinking I abandoned him would have ruined the entire trip for me. No, he’ll be home lounging for days before he knows I’m gone. Ok, not really but I’d like to think so. hehehe He’ll miss his daddy but be in excellent hands while I’m gone.

While a tiny bit sad, I am still very excited! I’m eagerly awaiting the trip and the experience!

References

References
↑1 You totes believe that right?
↑2 Though I doubt SF would survive the event.

Return

Well, it’s been a week of fun and mayhem with Trev and Mikey. Now it’s Monday and time to return to reality. lol It was great seeing both of them. We had a blast! The picture links to an album that includes a few shots I took over the course of our week together.

Pride was fun. The boys arrived the day before. I didn’t snap that many pics as I had forgotten to charge my phone battery the night before and was running low on juice. The boys opted for stadium seating but even then we could only sit still for a couple hours before moving on to the fair. Pride night we went to a Tea dance party at Ruby Skye. I’d never been inside and the place was gorgeous. The music was pretty good as well. [1]Dance music with actual words!  They opted for another later party but Mr Moby was tuckered out and headed home. I’m such a lightweight.

Having not ever been here together before, the boys wanted to do the typical tourist stuff (The things I do for friends. lol j/k). As much as I usually hate doing touristy stuff, I had fun. It was very bearable mostly because we did everything during the week when most folks are working. 

Alcatraz was our first stop during the week of post Pride festivities. I hadn’t been since right after I moved to SF and it was totally different. I guess over the years they’ve changed how the tours go. I thought I was gonna be bored but to my surprise, I wasn’t at all. The gardens were in full bloom and the weather was warm w/o being hot.

Next on our journey was Muir Woods (the big redwood trees). I never get tired of seeing the redwoods. Such massive trees and so few left. We snapped a few pics to show the sheer size of the enormous plants. We took a tour bus group up. The driver driveled on constantly with tedious details but we tuned him out. lol Naturally, we sat in the back of the bus! The weather was warm and sunny so it was a very nice trip. On the way back we stopped off in Sausalito. We took the opportunity to grab a quick bite to eat while the rest of the tour group was sight-seeing. We had fish & chips at a place on the strip. 

The next day was a slow unscripted trip to the Wharf on Pier 39. This place is tourist central and I usually avoid it like the plague. Again, being the middle of the week helped. We did the whole experience and took the cable car from the hood all the way down. I figured it we were gonna be tourists might as well go whole-hog. We saw the seals, checked the shops, had some delicious clam chowder, and just walked the area. We had considered taking the trolley car home but the line was easily an hour wait. No thanks.

Our last big day of planned festivities was a trip up to Napa to visit wine country and partake in some wine-tasting. Again the weather was great albeit a tiny bit on the hot side. Napa is gorgeous this time of year. Our tour included 4 vineyards with a tour and wine-tasting session at each. In a nutshell, the Robert Mondovi Vineyard was the best. The Andretti Vineyard [2]yes, the same as the race car driver was the worst. The staff  were rude, snobbish, and the wines were awful. I do not recommend it at all. The Ménage a Trios Vineyard gets a special mention for having the best wines.  Needless to say, we got a little tipsy. The pic above was taken at the Franciscan, our last stop on the tour before heading home.

We also went out a few nights during the week for cocktails. lol We got totally sloshed at 440 one night. The bartender knew me and kept giving us drinks and shots. Needless to say, we had fun. Of course, we had have some late night pizza slices to soak up all the booze. Lord, I’ll need to invest in some cardio for a couple weeks.

So it was a good vacation. It was good to see the boys and having them here really cheered me up. I didn’t realize how much I missed them. We all promised to not let it go so long next time before we see each other. On a side note, Cooper loved all the extra attention. Sadly, he started peeing on the carpet again. We had a couple come-to-jesus conversations and he is back on the path. Today, it’s back to gym and work. After all, one can only avoid reality for so long. lol

References

References
↑1 Dance music with actual words!
↑2 yes, the same as the race car driver