Home From Maui, Back to EuroBall Service

Weds.-Thurs., Feb. 16-17, 2022

It was over, seemingly as soon as it started. Our Adventure in the Paradise that is Maui was finished but with lots of good family memories to bring home.

Our Alaska Airlines flight back to Los Angeles left right on time at 1:30 p.m. Hawaiian time.

ALOHA Maui

Laurie took a couple of good

photos from her window seat

We arrived at Los Angeles International Airport, the world's worst airport in my opinion, after a smooth, uneventful five hour flight.

Our son Michael picked us up at LAX and voilà, an hour later we were back in our Camarillo abode none the worse for wear.

On Thursday, it was back to work starting with our second Zoom coaching clinic meeting with EuroBall coaches.

It was time for another 90 minute

clinic with American football

coaches in Serbia

Our sport is growing in the

Balkan countries

There are seven clubs in

Serbia's top league

Go Serbia GO!

I thought that it went well again today. We are already committed to another clinic next Thursday.

We were also greeted upon our return home with a request for another  30 jerseys and 30 pants to be shipped overseas, this time to a new American football club in Italy, the Siena Lupi.

We are closing in quickly to the magical 1,000 mark in shipped jerseys and pants since last September.

Reading Is FUNdamental!

Another good yarn with lots

of old Nazi undertones

More like overtones actually.

Last Full Day in Maui

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

 As usual, I was up early and out the door to get my morning dose of exercise before any of the others awakened.

For the second straight day I headed north hoping to once again catch lightning in a bottle at . . .

. . . the usually insanely busy

Kihei Caffe

If you'll look closely on the right, there was no one in line to go in and order their food, except for me!

Of course I went for it!

The Kihei Caffe's 2-2-2 breakfast plus a cappuccino were the perfect way to start a busy day.

With my energy stores now fully stocked, I headed across the street into Kihei's beachfront Kalama Park to do some reading while others frolicked in the surf.

Some day an outrigger experience

will sound like a good idea

But not today.

 

Not happening today either

I was content to watch others

paddle board surfing between

chapters of my book

The Pacific Ocean's surf had a

tranquilizing effect on me

RIDE THAT WAVE!

So peaceful 

When I got back to the condo, everyone was awake and raring to hit the beach for an hour or two.

Who was I to argue?

After some solid beach time we headed back to the condo and changed. We were headed to the northeast shore and the Upcountry to do a little sightseeing and enjoy a late lunch and a favorite haunt.

Our first stop was just East of the town of Paia at . . .

. . . Ho'okipa Beach Park known for

its great surf and turtles

The water was beautiful but

untamed and a tad dangerous

if you ask me

There were LOTS of turtles

in their protected area for us

to observe

Whether they were sunning themselves

or half buried in the sand, the were

all living the idyllic Hawaiian turtle life!

REALLY riding a wave!!!

The gang seemed to be having fun

KICK IT!

There were lots of wild surfers too

The overriding feeling was one of hunger so we piled back into our van and headed Upcountry to the town of . . .

. . . Kula

Kula's interesting

Worcester Glassworks

There it was, the famed

Kula Bistro

Laurie and I were dining here for the second time on this vacation.

For Andrew, Jenn and Kevin, it was their first visit to our favorite dining spot on Maui.

The Morihara Store,

established in 1948

This little "Mom and Pop" market is located across the street from the Kula Bistro. These two businesses have a symbiotic relationship as it turns out.

The Kula Bistro does not have a liquor license while the Morihara Store sells all sorts of beers, wines and spirits.

Under Hawaiian law, it is legal for customers to bring their own alcoholic beverages from home or, perhaps the Morihara Store, into the Kula Bistro and pair it with their dining choices.

Although we have used Morihara's on other occasions, today we only bought a Ring Pop candy for Kevin after our late lunch.

Go figure.

Table for five, please

Luciano's Seafood Pasta

In a stunning upset, I did not order this today but Laurie and Andrew did.

The kalua pork panini was a perfect change of pace for me.

I must say that Jenn's Pasta Bolognese looked awfully good as well.

After another great dining experience at the Kula Bistro, the boys headed next door to . . .

. . . this quaint little neighborhood

gym that had just opened its doors

after the local schools called it a day

It was an OLD gym

It first opened its doors in April of 1939.

As Andrew mentioned, it was

the town of Kula's answer to the

movie "Hoosiers"

The backboard support system

could survive a hurricane

Actually, I'm sure it already has several times during the gym's long, 83 year history.

It was another good family bonding day in Maui to end what has been a relaxing, memorable vacation.

ALOHA!

Valentine's Day in Artsy Lahaina

 

Monday, February 14, 2022

Our current stay in Maui is sadly nearing its conclusion but we still had a GREAT day as it was . . .

Valentine's Day!

We have been told that this is a special day for those not in the cult of Groundhog Day.

Andrew and Jenn. while not in our cult, understand its significance. We understood their need to celebrate today as well.

This proud moment from

University of Washington Husky football

It was a nice Facebook tribute to the three Huskies that were a part of the Los Angeles Rams winning Super Bowl XVI effort on Sunday.

The three Huskies were FS Taylor Rapp, DL Greg Gaines and OL Coleman Shelton.

As has happened every day in paradise, I was up first in the morning and opted for yet another sunrise stroll. For the first time, I ventured North up the shoreline when I left the condo complex.

I just do not tire of these Maui

seashore views

Some paddle boarders were WAY

more enthusiastic about physical

fitness at sun up than I was

The famed Kihei Caffe

This is a marvelous spot on Maui for breakfast.

Usually the line to order goes all the way across the building you see here, then turns when it hits the parking lot and extends for another 15 to 25 yards depending on the time of day.

My eyes registers that something was amiss, but what?

I needed a closer look.

What did I find upon

further review?

Well, first that my subconscious mind was still fully functioning.

There were only TWO people in line!

Make that three people in line now.

The Kihei Caffe's Waffle of the Day

and Coffee of the Day were

AWESOME!

Dynamically and unexpectedly refueled, I continued my morning stroll.

Good looking, low hanging fruit

in a park

The same park has some nice artwork

decorating its restrooms

The walk back to the condo

was highlighted by even more

paddle boarders in the water

This mature lady looked like a

complete veteran on this little wave

After returning to the condo bearing two Kihei Cafe cinnamon rolls for the troops, some of us headed down to the beach for a morning dip in the Pacific while others opted to stay in the condo and catch up on their reading.

We had agreed to celebrate Valentine's Day with a waterfront lunch in beautiful Lahaina, about a 30 minute drive northwest of Kihei.

It was a perfect day for a visit

Front Street in artsy Lahaina

Proof that it was artsy

If I saw this fish while snorkeling,

I'd get out of the water

I believe that is the island

of Lanai in the distance

Art extending to Lahaina's beach

Another artist's palette

The tools of the art

More shore, more art

Another view of the island of Lanai

We all enjoyed a wonderful lunch overlooking the water at the Lahaina Fish Company and then spent the next few hours bolstering the sagging local economy ridding ourselves of our disposable income at various clothing, jewelry and art bazaars.

It was a GREAT day in Lahaina!

Even the Mutant Ninja Turtles

would agree!

When we got back to Kihei in the late afternoon, there was only one thing to do . . .

HIT THE BEACH AGAIN!

In news from the Wonderful World

of EuroBall . . .

Bart Iaccarino's Barcelona Dragons

announced their 2022

European League of Football schedule

With expansion in year two for Europe's super league, the ELF will be composed of 12 teams in five countries this season.

The ELF will be divided into three conferences.

NORTHERN CONFERENCE

Berlin Thunder - Germany

Hamburg Sea Devils - Germany

Leipzig Kings - Germany

Wroclaw Panthers - Poland

CENTRAL CONFERENCE

Frankfurt Galaxy - Germany

Raiders Tirol - Austria

Stuttgart Surge - Germany

Vienna Vikings - Austria

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE

Barcelona Dragons - Spain

Cologne Centurions - Germany

Istanbul Rams - Turkey

Rhein Fire - Germany

By European standards, the ELF's 12 game regular season schedule is daunting to say the least.

By comparison, our beloved Varese Skorpions will only be asked the play in six contests during the 2022 Italian Division II regular season.

Good luck Dragons!

All in all, it was a good Valentine's Day.

What will tomorrow hold for us in our final full day of our current Adventure in Paradise?