Life Unraveled

I had to wait until I was around 24 years old to get my first pet.  Her name was Molly, and she was a gift from a visiting fraternity brother to my roommate Tom and I back in the late 90s.  I know, some visitors just buy you dinner, maybe a bottle of wine or case of beer, and call it quits.  But not Mike.  He was staying for about two weeks or so, and he wanted company while we were away at work.  And besides, Tom and I had been scouting dogs for awhile.  We both wanted one, and with the social scene for twenty-something guys in Atlanta seeming to involve having a dog and parading her all over town, it just made sense for us to scour the pound in search of the perfect pup.  Mike agreed, and next thing you know, Molly was ours. Molly was a mutt in every sense.  She had a beagle face, complete with the soft floppy ears and big brown eyes of that particular breed, but with a long shepherd-like ...

Aloha Fear: I have been thinking about you alot lately.  Last weekend during the 9/11 anniversary, I made the dubious decision to watch a short video online which documented all of the events that took place on that most sorrowful day.  I watched in horror once again, as towers collapsed,  people ran for their lives, and everything changed forever.  I immediately felt your hideous presence, Fear, and recalled how your dark and ominous shadow was cast over the world in a matter of minutes.  I felt it,  all of it .  And it was nearly as sickening and disturbing as the first time I saw it all happen on live television 10 years ago.  When I was done watching it, I sat there stunned.  It was really all I could do.  I quickly decided that watching this whole debacle again was unnecessary and yes, was probably even motivated by you.  I marveled at your ability to suck the life right out of me, Fear....

I was so excited to get off this island for even a couple of days and to return to Maui for the first time in a long while, that I spent most of last week leading up to my vacation in complete stress-out mode.  And for no reason, really.  I just wanted out .  Out of the daily grind, and out of my habitual routine that lately has consisted entirely of working and getting up far too early every day, and not much else.  I think I just needed a change of scenery or something.  But instead of relaxing into it, knowing that as each day passed I was getting closer and closer to freedom, I did the exact opposite .  The pressure built steadily all week, until I was in full hand-wringing stressball mode by the time I left work and headed for the airport with Melody on Friday morning.  And speaking of Mel, she herself had experienced a rough week leading up to this little getaway.  In the car on the way to the airport,...

"It's happening." This is all Melody needs to say as she opens the passenger side door to our rental car, and I know it's go-time.  I look out over the horizon.  She's right.  The pitch-blackness has indeed turned a shade lighter, and is now almost a dark purple.  This is why we got up at 2:55am, left our comfy cabin halfway up this enormous (and still potentially active) volcano, and began trekking nearly an hour up to the summit of Haleakala crater.    This is why we are here in fact, the raison d'etre for this trip in the first place.   A few months back, the thought that I must see the sunrise from this vantage point came to me one day like a bolt of lightning across the night summer sky. I had heard so many opinions, so many stories of people just like me who ventured up the zig-zagging roads that slowly lead to the top.  Some ended up disappointed and some were ecstatic, depen...