A Few Fishies

I began my swim under sullen grey skies, but by the time I got back to shore it was yet another glorious, sunny day. Oh, and I saw a few fishies along the way.

No Real Art Here

Maui is one of those "artsy" places where every other person styles themself an "artist." Yet I seldom, if ever, see anything of artistic merit happening on our beaches. Most sandcastles are nothing more than piles of wet sand and, well, that's about it for beach art. Sad.

Which is why today I, and many others, stopped to watch this young lady scratching simple designs in the sand. Someone asked me what the big deal was, why everybody was watching her make this drawing, was she famous? Sadly, I had to admit that the only reason it meant anything was because it was the best Maui has to offer. 

Gulp of Air

Most of the Green Sea Turtles I encounter are in exactly this position, floating lazily on the surface, occasionally reaching their mouths up for a gulp of air. Not a bad life.

Which is Which

Some days (today, for instance) when I am not thrilled with any of the photographs I've taken, I'll snap shots of the flowers on the dining room table. Still not very interesting. So I'll play a little in Photoshop and come up with something which isn't totally boring. I hope it is obvious which photo is which. 

Welcome Back

 Wow, I really do have a magic x-ray camera. When I went to take the photo above, the water was so murky that the swimmers could not see me and I couldn't see them. I blindly pointed the camera in the right direction and hoped for the best. I am truly amazed that anything at all can be seen.

After the start the water quickly cleared up and all was smooth sailing from then on. I was truly happy to see Doug (and Christine, oh, and Ben and Sandy and, of course everyone else) back in the water again. Big grins and lots of laughs all around.

Click HERE for a few more photos from today's ocean swim.

Too Tired

 While we are not experiencing 40 foot waves here in South Maui, it is still entertaining to watch our surfers take on what does roll in. In fact they wisely skip even trying to catch the few larger sets.

Even though the waves were bigger and more consistent than earlier in the week, fewer surfers were in the lineup. I guess everyone is worn out.

New Used

Doug and I took our new (used) kayak on its maiden (with us) voyage this morning. We were more than a little startled when a whale unexpectedly surfaced a little too close. By the time I got my camera out all that was left to see was the disappearing tail. We will definitely have to head out again soon.

Fearless from Now On

 We had to search to find a beach with good swimming conditions this morning, but I'm really glad we did.

We saw lots and lots of friendly turtles and Rich got to try out his anti-shark device. Watch out, he's going to be absolutely fearless in the ocean from now on.

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

Lined Up

South Maui's west-facing shores only saw small surf today, but it didn't matter - surfers were lined up two deep waiting to catch whatever they could.

Really Really Hard

 I had to work really really hard to keep up with my buddies, Scott and Lynnie, this morning. Even then, the only way I got to spend time with them was by cutting corners while they were swimming along the cliffs.

But it was worth it for all the pretty fishies we got to see, plus all the great exercise.

Happy Agave

I cannot take a bad photograph of an agave plant.

And I am thankful for that fact. I was not inspired by anything I photographed on my walk this morning. As I looked over all of the images on my computer which I took today, I despaired of finding something for this blog post. Then I noticed a throw-away snapshot of an agave plant. I had actually turned around and gone back to take this photo because the light green area on the center of just one leaf caught my eye. Since I wasn't happy with any of the other photos, I decided to go ahead and process this one. And came up with another winner.

Which is strange, since every agave plants looks exactly like every other agave plant. Even so, I get inspired every time I shoot and process an agave photograph. And I think it shows in my final image.

One Minute Too Early

Janet, Patti and I swam out into deep water dragging our kayaks behind us in hope of being objects of curiosity for one or more Humpback Whales. 

Of course, as soon as we decided that we had swum far enough and climbed into our kayaks, that was the moment two whales appeared less than a hundred yards away. One minute too late. Next time...

Not Hiding

Most of our resorts and hotels try to hide their infrastructure by painting it dark green. I don't know why Hotel Wailea is bucking the trend with these cutoff valves, but they are.

Below is just a snapshot of one of the quiet streets I traverse on my morning walks around the neighborhood.

Small But Fun

 A small, but determined, band showed up for our weekly Sunday ocean swim this morning. I really do not know what happened to the old crew, they seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth.

Anyway, lots of fun was had and we're loving being serenaded by humpback whales once again.

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

No Fear

I am back to having great swims once again now that I've decided to change my attitude.

If I am feeling fearful of sharks, then I do not swim. If I decide to swim, then I do not let myself worry about sharks. 

Blind as a Bat

I was attracted by the bright colors of some Bitter Melon fruit hanging on a chain link fence during my walk this morning. I took this photo, then moved on to the other fruits because they were still and this one kept swaying back and forth. It wasn't until I got home and looked at the photos on my computer that I realized the reason this fruit kept moving...

Dorian Bill

 Another Chicago SMELT has made it to Maui and braved the frigid winter ocean waters. Bill even managed it without a wetsuit! But I guess our tropical waters seem warm to someone coming from the mainland.

The strangest thing is that even though we haven't seen each other in over twenty years, he looks exactly the same. There must be a portrait hidden away somewhere...

Wildly Wavy

We re-learned a secret this morning.

The water was wildly wavy and we were all swallowing way too much sea water. Plus we were getting tossed to and fro by the wind and waves.

So, what was the secret? As long as we stayed below the surface, everything was hunky dory. So the answer was to do the swim underwater. It sure is a good thing that we love wild water.

Click HERE for a few more photos from today's ocean swim.

Jumping for Joy

 Maui's Spinner Dolphins celebrated the first week of the new year by joining me on a brief ocean swim this morning.

They seemed happy to see me, jumping repeatedly out of the water and landing with big splashes.

Click HERE for a few more photos from today's swim.

Texas Potpourri

 I finally found a few moments today to look though all the photos I took over Christmas at my brother-in-law's Texas ranch.

Besides all the wonderful time with family, we got to entertain ourselves with the horses, with hunting for mulitcolored eggs in the chicken coop and without, with hunting for fossils, with fires both big and small, and with the menagerie of dogs, dogs and more dogs.

Wet With Friends

 What better way to start off a new year than by getting wet with good friends.

Turtles were encountered in abundance and my friend, Annie, even found a colorful lobster carapace.

This is going to be a great year.