Back to work and still having fun!

Aloha from this Hawaii based Fun Pig!

This week is going really quickly, what with getting my Ebay and Etsy stores going again. I have so much Vintage Costume Jewelry to list! Boy, I am still sorting all of the pieces that I bought along the way.

In fact, instead of putting the Vintage costume in Hawaiibeads.etsy.com, I am putting it all in a new store on etsy: misscecesjewels.etsy.com This seemed like a better way to do it there. But my Ebay store has everything! Both my handcrafted jewelry and my Vintage Costume jewelry.

Well, this lets you know what I was up to all week.

We have been enjoying our walk/swim over at Kanaha beach park in the mornings too. I can't let myself get parked in front of this computer too much!

Home from the Range~

Aloha from back home on Maui!
What a wonderful trip we had. We are happy to be home and have taken our walk/swim over at Kanaha Beach Park already this morning. We had the place all to ourselves. Delightful!
But it is time to get back to work now, so I will be reopening my Ebay and Etsy stores later today.


And a big Mahalo to family and friends, and new friends that we made along the way. Thank you for your hospitality!

Time to go home...

Aloha,
We are back here in Orange County, and flying home to Maui on Sunday. It has been a fabulous trip. Over 3,000 miles on the rent a car. Whew, no wonder we are pooped out!
Our last stop was Vegas, and I picked up something that has left me with no voice at all, a pleasure for Ken and Susan! LOL...

The drive back from Vegas was a bit strange with the sand storms around us. This was a first for me, even with all our trips through the desert over the years.


But there were clear times as well:



Off to pick up an extra suitcase to get all our great finds home with us. I am going to have loads of Vintage Jewelry to list on both Ebay and Etsy.

Aloha for now!

Viva Las Vegas!

Aloha from the desert! Visiting with an old friend today was both lovely and hard to do. The getting there is OK, but it is always hard to walk out the door at the end of the visit and say Goodbye. Aloha Lucie...dear and old friend, and Aloha Vern as you go on with your life today.

But the day went on, and we decided it was time to go to "The Strip". We went to the Luxor, and watched an IMAX Movie, Monsters of the Deep. It was Fabulous! Oh, and 3D! If you have not been to an IMAX Movie yet, you really should.
Here is the Luxor:


And, been to New York lately? We have! Kind of...

Leftovers...

Good Morning World!
After a great breakfast this morning, I think that I should share a few more photos from here and there...

Where have we been!?

Aloha from Henderson, Nevada! High atop the Sunset Station Hotel. Here is our view tonight:


We have had several days without internet, and have been enjoying nature at its Fall Season Best. Traveling from the West Coast of California, past Clear Lake, and over to Yosemite National Park. Even with lots of road work being done, and rain, it was a fabulous experience.

Aloha from the California Coast!

Aloha!
Here we are up in Fort Bragg, California. I can't believe that there are no clouds in the deep blue skies! I don't think I have ever seen so much sun in this part of the country before. It is always beautiful, but usually cold and gray.
Here are a few photos from the last few days. Some strange garden art up in Eureka:


The magnificent California Coast:


A blast from the past: A 1950 Oldsmobile car interior that Ken did way back in the New York days:

Fortuna, California Apple Festival!

Aloha! Here we are in Fortuna, California on the coast. We are lucking out on warm weather and sunny blue skies! We decided to spend an extra night here as we saw that there would be an Apple Festival and Street Fair! What luck to get to enjoy this. There were tractors pulling hay wagons up and down the streets of town. The fair day was celebrated in all different parts of the city.
Of course, many of the buildings and houses are beautiful here. All the old detailed architecture.
You can see how busy it was!

I did make some great vintage costume jewelry buys! Surprise! These will be in my ebay store when we return to Maui. But there are always a few things that I may keep for a while.

And, of course, excellent live music!

America The Beautiful!

Oh, we went through such beautiful country today. Huge trees, Redwood forests. And next turn, the Pacific Ocean. We relaxed and enjoyed the view!
Eureka, California Boat Harbor:

Want to buy anything? Cave Junction, Oregon:



Unusual art for your garden!

What beautiful Country!

BRRRRR...It is chilly this morning in Grant's Pass, Oregon! We are headed southwest to the California coast today. We were going to go farther yesterday, but got waylaid by several great thrift stores here. Plus, there was an indoor pool and spa here!
Somehow, we missed taking photos yesterday (I think we were too busy eating great food! (LOL I cannot blog without mentioning how good the food has been on this trip)!
Here are some great photos that did not make it into the blog earlier:
Port Angeles, Washington:


Heart O' the Hills:



A fabulous Signed Sherman Brooch! Found in Victoria, BC:

Aloha Canada, Back in the USA!

Today we said Bon Voyage to Victoria, British Columbia! We returned to the USA via Ferry to Port Angeles, Wa. Managed to find a bead store here and had a grand time buying beads and bead magazines.
This afternoon, a trip up to Heart O' the Hills: cold (32! and cloudy, but beautiful all the same).


And yes, Snow!



And Wildlife:


Where to next? Hmmmm maybe it is time for some sunshine.

Here is a great photo of the place we ate in Chinatown yesterday, since no note from me is done, unless I mention food!:

Finding Victoria, BC

Aloha!
Today was another wonderful day in Victoria. As you can see, we found Chinatown. And yesterday was a trip up the lower east coast to Sydney, stopping at lots of thrift stores finding sparkly things.
We will spend an extra night in Victoria. The only ferries to the US that take cars goes to Port Angeles, and tomorrows is booked up already. So we will have an extra day for more fun right here.



Some Sparklies:

Oh! Canada!

Aloha from Victoria, British Columbia! Yesterday was leaving the USA for foreign soil via a wonderful ferry ride from Port Angeles, WA to Victoria, BC. Just over an hour and showing my sparkling new Passport for the first time (gotta get a visa stamp!). We met up with our next door neighbor from back home on Maui yesterday evening, as he is here with his wife for a few months.
Today, a trip to the fabulous Butchart Gardens. We picked up some soup and a sandwich, and just as you drive in, there are picnic tables to eat your lunch. This is a great way to save a little money! And it was delicious.
The gardens sparkled with flamboyant color as the sun shone bright, then hid behind the clouds, only to come back out again! Only about 10 drops of rain in this place that is notorious for cloudy skies. Oh! right at the beginning there are umbrellas to use as you visit the park.

Aloha From Port Angeles, Washington!
After all days of blue skies and beautiful warm weather, we are now up at the peak of the state of Washington listening to the foghorns of the big ships as they pull out of the harbor. We will get on a ferry today and head off to Victoria, BC. Just a few photos for you to see today...Photos show Hood Canal, Port Angeles Harbor and Mount Shasta.

Travel up I-5 Day 1

Aloha! We spent an extra day with Susan (my sister) down in Orange County yesterday. She was having a scrapbooking party with a few friends. A couple of folks did work on their scrapbooks, one worked on a quilt, and I got out a needlepoint to work on. What fun! My friend Linda was there, and she helped me separate all of the colors of thread. Then Susan joined in to help figure out what color was what! It took us a couple of hours just to do that, and it was so much fun. I did get the piece started, it is about 16x16 of a fabulous orchid.
We hit the road about 9am today, and made it up to Lodi, California. This has to have been one of the most beautiful days I have seen here. Clear blue skies all the way here, with gray clouds on our left, but only got about 4 drops of rain. No smog even coming up through downtown LA. The mountains were just spectactular. Here are a couple of photos coming to the end of the hills and into the central valley:

Last minute packing. Loading up the ipod with podcasts recommended by great folks over on Etsy.com! And they taught me how to do this blog. Mahalo to all the kind friends there.
In the meantime, while my etsy and ebay shops are closed you can see some of my handcrafted jewelry and beadwork on my website:
Hawaii Beads

Hawaii Beads ~ My World

Welcome to My World! I live on the island of Maui in Hawaii. Life is an exciting transition from birth to well, you know...And I plan on enjoying all that I can. A little about me right up front. I lived in 9 places before I was 8 years old (Navy Brat). California, Hawaii and Tennessee. And now, back in Hawaii. I lived on a 28' Trimaran for a few years here on Maui. I lived 'off the grid' on a friends 12 acres in a 295sf cabin with a big screen porch and a bathroom down the path. And I share my life with Ken, who lets me get away with a lot!