Travel day is here...

Our trip is coming to an end. We are packing up out room and check out in a little over an hour. Ten we have about 10 hours until our flight leaves Honolulu. Just 18 hours later, we are scheduled to arrive in frigid Bemidji. Just in time for supper a quick family Christmas and bed...

The last couple days have really seemed to drag on. I am not complaining because the weather has been great and we've been having fun, but sitting in a gym for 8-10 hours each day, staying up late just to eat supper (last night was midnight) and knowing that travel is head and made us both think that its time to be home. I'd change the warm weather to be with my fam any day of the year.

I guess I should update you on yesterday's activities. We slept in a bit and had the cheap breakfast at Keoni's again. Then I came back to the hotel to catch up on the blog and get ready for the games, while dad went for a walk on the beach. I guess he ran into some sort of a church service in the palms in his adventures. It actually rained a bit. Nothing major, just come cold sprinkles. We then met at Duke's for lunch. It was good. There is just something about sitting on the beach having a burger. I quickly remembered why that is my favorite place in Honolulu. While we were there we saw the SMU football team's cheerleaders all in uniform taking photos on the beach. They are here for the Aloha Bowl Christmas Eve.

After lunch I came back here to meet up with Mari, Rick and Greg to head over to the gym for our longest day of the year...three games. That's nothing to compared to some years when we've done 6, but it was enough for this year. Dad stayed back to take in some extra sun and watch the vikings game. Our original plan was foiled when they changed the game time to 8:20 at home and 3:20 here. Normally we would have gotten up early and had breakfast brunch buffet and one of the sports bars and watch the vikings game. I still got up and laid in bed and watched Cincy and the 49ers for a bit. It's weird to think we could have been up and taken in a early football game and still been to church in time for the late service...

The games we a little rough, but we got them all in without any major snags. For the most par the games were pretty compeditive which was nice. I have to admit I saw couple firsts. For one thing, the team that forgot their uniforms the other day, when they had a player accidentally put on the wrong jersey so in the program she was No. 34 and she wore 31. Seems impossible to do, but it happened. The game was about 5 minutes old when we noticed. The team got a technical and she changed her jersey. That was also the game that George Fox, last year's D-III national champs, opened the game on a 16-0 run in the first 5:27 and then Chaminade scored the next 17 points to take a one-point lead into halftime. GFU missed their last 26 shots in the final 14:33 of the half. Weird to say the least.

After we packed up the gym for another year and said our goodbyes to Sam, the greatest gym manager ever (He is a local guy that speaks sort of broken English and would take a bullet for anyone.), we went to the Yardhouse for dinner. We think it may have been the only place that was still serving food. Anyway dad claims to have had the best chicken strips ever and I had a really good Roast Beef dipper that Lisa and I had a couple years ago. Really good food and a good time with Rick and his fam and Greg and his girlfriend Danielle. It was lights out after that. I think we left there at like midnight. We got there around 10:45 I suppose.

That's it for now. I'll keep you updated as I have time on our travels home. We leave here at 10:30 p.m. and head to Salt Lake City...notice how Seattle isn't in the mix this year...the after two hours in SLC, we are off to Minneapolis and then at about 3 p.m. we board a plane headed for Bemidji. We should be on the ground at home at about 4:30.

I have to finish packing, check out and then hit the beach for some last rays. We plan to check our bags ant the front desk and then come back after supper to shower up in the hospitality room.

See you all soon...