January 27, 2011- Ready, Break!

     If you’ve been reading my blog regularly, you know that “island fever” has been setting in for me, and it’s time to get away for a bit.  After catching our breath from the sticker shock of how much it always costs to take a short trip away from the tropical paradise we call home, we have finally settled all plans and are ready to go in less than a week now. To give you an idea of how expensive “escaping” island life can be, here’s the breakdown. The flight from here to Hawaii does not change because there’s no competition, so it’s always around $1200-1500 per person, and then you have to try and find some good commercial deals to get past that set of islands and back to the mainland U.S., and depending on where you are going, you are usually in for another $500-$1000 bucks. Unfortunately, because of the combined costs of island hopping from here to HI, and then on, it can be quite pricy, especially if you are going for less than 2 weeks.
     For this short trip, it will just be my boyfriend and I, heading to check on some family as well as take a few days of much needed R & R after a long “fall” season full of hectic job schedules, moving into the house, and so forth.  Although I will miss my boys terribly, I know I’m ready to go because my patience has been running short lately, both at work and at home.  Even some of my co-workers said to me today, “You’re happy to be going on vacation, aren’t you?”  I couldn’t really say no as my smile at the mention of vacation would have betrayed any little white lies I attempted to tell anyway, so I said that I was ready for the break, but I would also miss everyone and be ready to come back too, especially to see my babies. I have found that the saying, “absence makes the heart grow fonder” is true for me with my children. Time away puts it all in perspective and helps me remember how much richer my life is because of them.
     It will be approximately two weeks total with travel days taking up more of that time than I care to admit, but any time away will be enough to pick my spirits up and erase whatever little irritations are getting to me now.  That’s always the case...so many residents pick up and leave permanently because they just can’t handle the disadvantages and the little annoyances of life here anymore only to realize later that they simply needed a vacation instead. I will not move away from the atoll without taking a vacation first, so I can verify if I am really leaving for the right reasons.  I’m sure as soon as the cold air of the northwest coast hits me, I’ll be crying for my island sunshine and shorts weather once again, but for now, I’ll relish the rare chance I’ve had over the last 14 years to see my breath in the night air, to bundle up with hot cocoa and my darling by a fireplace, and maybe even throw a snowball or two!