Separate Paths

Several years back, I had a completely different life. I was an IT project manager working for a fortune 1000 company, making fairly good money, and feeling my soul slowly drip away. One of my saving graces was working for a woman named Joni who completely understood my creative side and supported me in so many ways. There were countless days when I would walk into her office, close the door and ask “What the hell am I doing with my life?”

So, while I was acting on the side,  Joni was pursuing a love of photography. She has an amazing ability to capture  a complete story in a face and also finds the juxtaposition between beauty and darkness But during our “what am I doing with my life” conversations when I would encouraged her to quit and pursue a different path, she would balk, explaining  she had three kids and I assume was making probably double what I made and didn’t know how she’d overcome that huge income gap  in a fledgling creative career.

When I finally came to her and told her I was quitting my  job to move to Chicago and pursue a career in acting and improv she could not have been more supportive. I like to think that my leaving  encouraged her to find a way to make photography her career. But the truth is, she’s such an amazing talent,  she had no choice.

So while I’m sitting in Hawaii enjoying the weather and the surreal life of living on a cruise ship. My friend Joni is in Ethiopia working with a medical team, photo journaling their work helping women with fistulas. Such an amazing woman. I wanted to introduce the four people who read my blog to her, please take the time to read a bit of her blog and be thankful for the life you lead.

http://www.jonikabana.com/blog/

Published:
February 24, 2010 – 5:49 pm
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By Deanna
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Friendly Faces

This past Saturday my friends Mike and Jill were in Honolulu visiting Mike’s bruddah David. It was great seeing faces from home and laughing and play catch up with their lives.

Jill and Mike enjoy the Honolulu sunshine

Jill and Mike enjoy the Honolulu sunshine

At one point when we were driving around we stumbled on a pink house with an odd design element of a Hello Kitty glitter heart and a Mickey Mouse bending over to show off his butt. We of course had to stop and get photos.

Kiss my what?

Kiss my what?

David then took us to a neighborhood health food eatery that is known locally for it’s Asai? Berry and granola bowls. I made a serious error in judgment by not ordering one. What was I thinking? I ordered a smoothie which was good but not the mana of the granola bowl.

We ended up at a fun hangout and had some drinks and more bits. At one point I asked Mike what he did for a living which started a train of questions from me when he responded a “soy bean trader”. He truied his best to break it down for me and basically how I understand it is that my friend Mike plays Pit for a living. Amazing.

Jill, David and Mike

Jill, David and Mike

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Published:
February 22, 2010 – 4:31 pm
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By Deanna
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Lost Again

I am the queen of losing stuff: My engagement ring, my phone and now this week it’s my camera. The great news is  that the phone and ring found their way back to me so maybe I’m more just the queen of temporarily losing things.

This past Monday after a fantastic day of whale watching, where I was able to catch a full grown adult whale breaching out of the water, I misplaced my camera somewhere on this ship. I remember coming back and showing Piero the great pictures…and then? Well then, I don’t remember what I did with it.  However, last night I got word that a server up in the Aloha Cafe has a camera belonging to someone in S*cond C!ty. I’m guessing she was able to come to that conclusion after looking at the photos.

Normally when crew finds something they are instructed to take it to the reception desk immediately. Which is where both Rance and I have checked over the past couple of days. For some reason that didn’t happen in this case; maybe she just wants to return it to me personally. I’m hoping I can figure out who this person is tonight and get  my camera back so I can post some of those great whale watching pictures real soon.

Published:
February 18, 2010 – 7:10 pm
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By Deanna
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Field and Steam

Last week Mike had a visitor on board whom none of us had met beforehand but turned out to be like a warm snuggie on a cold winter’s eve. Simply put, he was just great. On Tuesday of last week, Piero, Rance, Mike, Danny and I rented a car to visit the Volcano National Park. Jen and Larrance had done the tour a few weeks ago when her mom was onboard and didn’t need to do it again.

The boys in Hilo -- otherwise known as J Crew Catalogue

The boys in Hilo -- otherwise known as J Crew Catalogue

What we didn’t take into consideration is that Hilo is the day after our show and we were no longer anonymous. We also timed our visit perfectly with the excursion buses from the ship. They LOVED our show, it was a little overwhelming how effusive they were all week long. Especially on Hilo, as I had gotten up early that morning with Jen to teach the youth counselors some improv games they use with the kids.  It was just one of those days where I never really felt like I woke up.

At one point while the five of us where enjoying the view from an area called the Steam Field we hear the voice of a woman, gasp in wonderment we all look out over in the direction of the calderal to see what she’s seen only to hear her exclaim, “Oh look, it’s the S*cond C!ty!!” (Spelling is changed to protect the innocent) And then she makes a B-line directly for me and says “My friend loved you!! You were so great!” And sure enough as soon as she says that, the friend arrives.

Steaming Caldera of Lava pales in comparison to S*cond C!ty cast.

Steaming Caldera of Lava pales in comparison to S*cond C!ty cast.

“Oh my god, it’s you!! Can you make that face for me me? The one you do as the blow up doll? How do you do that? Did you have to train for a long time?” I want to take a picture of that face! Come on I’ll pay you, I think I have a nickle around her somewhere”

Now the truth is I DON’T want to do it.  I have about a million comebacks that I want to say but don’t, because of course she’s a guest and I know she’s just excited. I love the thought that I went to school to learn how to make a blow up doll face.  My mind is still in that foggy, not awake state and I don’t want to be mean, but I also don’t want to be forced into this photograph. But clearly she is not giving up. I finally relent knowing she isn’t going to take no for an answer, on the flip side she’ll probably never develop these photographs.  I do not recieve a nickle.

After that she asks for a photo of all of us, which really attracts a crowd and all of a sudden like monkeys at the zoo we have a mini-wall of paparazzi taking our photos. Fortunately I snapped a photo of them as well, just for a little proof.

They love us, they really love us.

They love us, they really love us.

Published:
February 16, 2010 – 7:19 pm
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By Deanna
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Chinese New Year Parade: Lions, and Children and Dragons OH MY!!

Last Honolulu after climbing to the summit of Diamond Head in a poor shoe choice, (see previous post) we met up with Rance and headed to Chinatown for the annual Chinese New Year Parade. Now, I’m not a huge fan of parades, normally they’re early in the morning and it’s cold outside and the band music is so loud. Geeze, I sound like I’m a 60 year old woman. But you can’t pass up a parade that doesn’t start until 3:30pm (now that’s Hawaii time) and with a limited number of bands and tons  of Chinese Dancing Lions and Dragons.

Is this the Groucho Marx of Chinese Dragons?

Is this the Groucho Marx of Chinese Dragons?

In this parade I would say in descending order of number of entrants it was Chinese Dancing Lions, Princesses riding in Corvettes, Chinese Dragons, Politicians, Martial Art Schools, Bands, Radio Stations, with Senior Center exercise groups being represented only once. I could have gone for more of that. The group would occasional stop their slow stroll on the parade route and show off their exercise routine that mainly consisted of low kicks with hands on hips.

The rare walking princess. What I didn't capture are 4"inch high heeled shoes she wore for the two hour parade. Amazing.

The rare walking princess. What I didn't capture are 4"inch high heeled shoes she wore for the two hour parade. Amazing.

Not in attendance were floats or horses which means there also was no horse poop which was a welcome relief, especially because the smells of Chinatown are sometimes all you need

I liked the Dancing Lions the most in part because there were so many people playing the support role. You can only be the butt of a lion for so long before your legs and back give out and someone else has to come in and switch out. I kept wondering if you worked your way up to be the head of a Lion after playing the part of the butt for a certain length of time, if so I’m hoping I can stop playing the butt part in my life and get to be the head of the lion soon.

It's tough to be a butt.

It's tough to be a butt.

.

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Published:
February 13, 2010 – 11:07 pm
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By Deanna
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Diamond Head: Not Necessarily a Girl’s Best Friend

We'll see if I'm still smiling on the way back down.

We'll see if I'm still smiling on the way back down.

Several years ago on a quick visit to Honolulu for a wedding I ventured out on my own and hiked to the top of Diamond Head. So you would think having done it before, given the opportunity to do it again, I would make the smart choice of appropriate footwear and plenty of sunscreen. You would be wrong on both accounts.

Last Saturday Piero, Jen, Larrance and I set out on adventure to get to the top of Diamond Head. Rance was busy doing headshots for some local actors and Mike was meeting a friend at the airport. Piero did some research and found a city bus that would take us to the turnoff to Diamond Head State Park and all we would have to do is walk about a 1/2 mile up the road to get to the entrance to the park itself. So instead of paying a huge sum of money for a taxi or rental car we paid $2.25 to the number 3 bus and enjoyed a 45 minute ride to take us six miles. Along the way we got to see bad neighborhoods, good neighborhoods and a guy who woke up out of a sound sleep so angry that he slammed his fist into the pole in front of him and yelled. Talk about night terrors!

I’ve gotten pretty comfortable walking around in flip-flops. They’re my shoe of choice on this itinerary, in fact it’s most people’s shoe of choice here in Hawaii. They’re for any occasion!! If you have foot issues this is not the place for you or you need to just get over it and get with the program.

Still hanging on to my flip-flops

Still hanging on to my flip-flops

But during the planning process for the day when I slipped on my wafer thin flip-flops with absolutely no foot support for a hike up 760 feet to the summit of an inactive volcano you could say I wasn’t thinking right.  I don’t think I whispered a voice of complaint during the very hot hike up, but I did realize quickly that the action of upward stepping really makes you grip tight with the little piggies to hold onto a useless shoe. Also, when the smooth paved surface gives way to rocky pathways with jutting rocks and craggy surfaces a little cushioning would be nice.

We made it to the top and took lots of pictures, did even more bits and I came home with bruises on the bottom of my feet and a sunburn on the back of my neck where sunscreen didn’t seem needed. Take it from me, I’ve learned my lesson this time around, I won’t need to go a third time.

Piero with the less fashion forward but smarter shoe choice.

Piero with the less fashion forward but smarter shoe choice.

View from the top

View from the top

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Published:
February 13, 2010 – 10:34 pm
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By Deanna
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Take It to the Bridge

The 2nd Officer on board this ship is multi-talented and sometimes (by choice) works backstage at our show. It’s so great, I mean here’s a guy who is basically fourth in command of the entire ship and during his limited downtime he offers to come work our show when the tech crew is short handed, because he says, “it’s fun.”

A few weeks ago during pre-show, I planted a seed and asked if it would be possible to get the cast up on the bridge. Sure enough, James asked the captain on what looked to be a week when there were few other guests and the captain graciously agreed to grant us access. It was really amazing to see the view of the Napali coast from up there. Tea was served, whales were spouting and breaching, and a good time was had be all.

James leaves for vacation this week, what a great gift he gave to all of us his last week on board. So, thanks James for the view, and the laughs backstage. You will be missed.

The cast minus Mike enjoy an afternoon af tea, whale watching and Napali Coast from the Bridge.

The cast minus Mike enjoy an afternoon af tea, whale watching and Napali Coast from the Bridge.

Rance walks the line...right over the ocean

Rance walks the line...right over the ocean

My favorite part of the coast.

My favorite part of the coast.

The cast enjoys the view.

The cast enjoys the view.

Published:
February 11, 2010 – 8:18 pm
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By Deanna
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Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is my dad’s birthday, I sent him a special birthday card and then called him as per usual. Normally our calls last about three minutes and we talk about the weather or fishing before he hands me to my step-mom for the real conversation. But today it was just me and him and he told me a story about when he was a young man in the Navy and they’d pull huge sea turtles out of the water, flip them on their backs and drag them up the beach. When they reached the top of the sand line, they’d flip them back over and take bets on whose turtle would make it back to the water first.

In all my years of knowing him, I’ve never heard that story. I wish I knew more stories about my dad, it was fun to picture him as a young handsome serviceman having fun on the beach with his buddies. I love you dad, and hope you had a great birthday.

Published:
February 3, 2010 – 8:16 pm
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By Deanna
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Whales Gone Wild!!

I’ve heard it since getting on the ship, winter is prime whale watching season. And yes, it’s true we’ve seen evidence of whales for the past month and a half. We even went out on a whale watching boat and were amazed at how close a whale came to the vessel. But today, today was something entirely different. Sitting in port at Hilo Bay with the back of the ship looking out over the water, we watched as some 20-30 whales were jumping, and and fin slapping, and diving, it was incredible! It is supposedly the time of the season that the momma whales start teaching the babies to breach (which is when they rise and break through the surface of the water head first) and school is in session!

I hope I can get some of this action on film, but today was all about taken it in first person.

Published:
February 2, 2010 – 9:47 pm
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By Deanna
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Lost in the “Lost” Premier

I’ve a great job, but one of the drawbacks is having a curfew. It’s kind of like being on house arrest, only this house has much better food, a good view from the living room and someone comes in and changes my sheets once a week. So, while I was so close to watching the premier of the final season of “Lost” on Queen’s beach in Honolulu I had to leave early to get new pillows and get my butt on board this ship. Even if I didn’t have to leave early I might have as the organizers had an episode of “Modern Family” planned before premiering “Lost”.

For all you “Lost” fans, here’s how the setup looked via video and photo perspective.

There's a lot of hot sweaty people packed on that beach

There's a lot of hot sweaty people packed on that beach

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Published:
January 31, 2010 – 8:11 pm
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By Deanna
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