In a break from what I usually post up, I'm writing something I've had up on my mind since I've returned from my trip that I've just been putting off until now. As most of my friends and family have known I've recently took a trip to Washington that was nothing short of amazing.
Up to now, I never really gave anyone a really detailed reason as to why I did what I did so spontaneously towards the end of the year. I took a trip out to Washington because it was the only U.S. West Coast state I hadn't yet 'conquered'. As some of you may know I had gone to school in Southern California, and saw my sister graduate from Oregon State University and it was actually inevitable that I would go to visit Seattle one day and I thought to myself - "what better time than the present?" coupled with the fact that I had some money saved up and work at Dole right now is slow made this a no-brainer to 'take a vacation'. Washington had a lot of appeal as well, seeing as I have a good amount of family from my Mom's side as well as a few friends that live out there right now.
Seeing how I had a few connections, I decided to make an adventure out to the Pacific Northwest.
Seattle was such an amazing city, downtown alone reminded me a of a tremendously less busy New York. The vibe was less fast paced but there was so much to see, eat, buy, and document with photography. I took a few photos here and there with the phone and a few on the DSLR but we'll get to the camera fiasco shortly.. The family from my mothers side was very welcoming and felt very natural to be with. Needless to say we really took advantage of happy hour in the time I was there.
I also took a short day trip out to Vancouver B.C. as well and can honestly say Canada warrants more than a day to be out (pronounced "oat") there! On the way back, I had a little mishap on my return to Seattle regarding the fact that I may have been a little suspicious because honestly, who comes to Washington tanned, 'vacationing' from Hawaii, with a rental that has California license plates, and a very unusual name? (and that's just the short version).
As my days in Seattle were wrapping up, I ended up missing my flight back home but through patience and understanding from the SeaTac airport and the lady at the front desk managed to arrange an unexpected trip out to LAX and lost my Nikon DSLR camera! It was either lost, or fell out of my bag clip and never returned. Nonetheless I returned to LA where I met up with some old friends and definitely made the time count.
Long story short: I've done a lot this year. Traveled here and there, lost a job and got a new one, made a few mistakes and messed up a bit with some friends, made some memories, but most importantly, learned how to let go. If things are to work out the way they're supposed to, in time they will.
But don't ever wait. Keep busy! and most importantly, be good. Until then, Aloha.
