i made a million dollars and i spend it on girls and shoes

It's pretty hard to beat Hawaii in terms of vacation destinations, but I probably don't need to rub that in. Today continued to be idyllic - rather than eating the subpar/overpriced hotel breakfast, I ran across the street to pick up iced coffee and eggs at Starbucks. Then, I wrote for an hour, which was semi-productive - I feel like I'm slowly, slowly feeling my way into this story, which is great, but I'm also impatient and want to be in it *now*.

Then, I met Heather (aka dear respected madam) by the pool and hung out for a few hours. I didn't spend the whole day there because I feel like I'm perilously close to starting the burn phase - my skin is slightly prickly, and if I'm not careful, I'll tip over into lobster land. I know red is a traditional Christmas color, but I'd rather not be coated in it this week, so I'm trying to stay safe. But I did spend a few hours there this morning, and have a piña colada and a poke bowl, so I got the best of everything before escaping the killer afternoon heat.

Then I talked to my parents, who were in fine form. I also messed around a bit and generally relaxed until it was time for today's main event - Heather had booked tickets for a sunset catamaran cruise tonight, which left from the beach next to our hotel, so we did that together. It was pretty perfect - ninety minutes on the water + an open bar (which just meant mediocre-but-drinkable mai tais on tap) + a double rainbow over Waikiki. I felt vaguely seasick right after we boarded, but the dramamine I surreptitiously took before boarding + the fact that we got under way quickly saved me. The whole ride was v. pretty and the boat was fun, so it was definitely a worthwhile activity.

After we got back, we changed quickly and then successfully walked in to Taormina (a Sicilian Italian restaurant near the hotel). I had an excellent mushroom risotto, which is definitely not something I'm likely to get in Iowa unless I make it myself, so that was great. And then we came back to the hotel, after doing a bit of shopping, and now I really need to sleep. Tomorrow is my last day here and I leave tomorrow night, so I have many things to do + relaxing to accomplish in the morning. Goodnight!