Floating, Makawao & Salad Recipe!

 Today on Maui seemed three days long!

Woke at 5:30 and worked for hours, thinking how much nicer it is to watch the morning light creep into the night sky on Maui than Seattle. Feeling like I accomplished something, I took a break for an hour to go for a run and there is something so wonderful about running on Maui compared to a treadmill at home. My goal was a beach called S turns and there, I went in the ocean in my clothes (shoes off) to cool off. It was glorious. The ocean here is so wonderful and lovely and rejuvenating. I floated around in my running clothes feeling grateful for having the energy and health to run, then grateful to find the ocean for dip with no one around because it was still early. With shoes in hand, I walked back to Lynn's street, sitting on a grassy spot at the top of the street and put the shoes back on so I could run up the driveway looking like the athlete I am. Lynn was impressed, so my brag goal was met.

We made a brunch of salads, fruit, fresh bakery bread and sat on the lanai eating while JoJo stared at us with his puppy dog eyes because, well, he's a dog. I gave in and fed him from the table because Lynn told me that's his kuleana (his thing). Even though I picked out this little rescue dog several years ago for Lynn at an adopt, don't shop event at the Maui Mall, JoJo doesn't remember me and is scared shootless of me. He has no memory of his first night with us when I took him to a hula show and held him like a baby in my arms daring the cocktail waitress to kick us out for having a newly adopted rescue dog. She let us keep him.

After my run, I grabbed the car keys and took off north to Kapalua to do a little snorkel but at 11 am, the beaches were already packed and parking was non-existent. Where did all the people come from? I drove down the road to Napili Surf to find the next public beach access spot and snagged the last parking spot with Lynn's car that has dents and a door barely hanging off the chassis. It's fun to see people's reactions to this old KIA as I drive by because it honestly looks like the person driving is semi-blind and has been in lots of accidents. I feel like a proper badass.

I walked through the beach access to Napili Bay and never having snorkeled there before, I had little to compare it to but, after realizing I brought the wrong snorkel mask to Maui and did not have the one with the vision corrector diopter built in, I decided to give it a go and see how compromised my vision was with no vision correction. I snorkeled around the bay cursing Climate Change and the lack of live coral, then headed into the beach and back to the car. It was a Wham Bam Thank You Snorkel and soon I was showering at the house to get ready to head "upcountry" with Lynn to cruise the shops of Makawao. Leaving JoJo at home for a few hours, we drove through Lahaina and over to Kahului and upcountry to the cowboy town of Makawao. It used to be you could shop and actually afford a piece of jewelry or a piece of clothing in this quaint town but the price tags were around $300 for a linen top from Italy and browsing was mostly what we did. It rained and we ran between shops, laughing and talking, then back to the car and through Paia to West Maui. 

At home, JoJo had waited for his mommy and pulling up, the awesome twosome, (Lynn and JoJo) took off immediately for his sunset beach walk while I reported to the fridge to make us a salad and to take on Happy Hour alone. 90 minutes later, we ate on the lanai, got into a discussion on diversity in the film industry over some drinks with Lynn's friend Bryant, and eventually called it a day. A wonderful day.

 Here's the salad I made to go with my Michelob Ultra Spiked Seltzer (no carbs!)

Low Carb MAUI Salad

Romaine lettuce - 1 head

Tomato - from Lynn's garden

Celery - chopped

Carrot - stuck in upright (just kidding, chopped or shaved)

Parsley - Lynn's garden

Avocado - Lynn's tree

20 Toasted Almonds

10 chopped Mac Nuts

Shaved Parmesan - a lot1

Beechers Just Jack Cheese cubes - Bought at SeaTac airport

Broccoli

Snow Peas - Lynn's garden

Green Pepper - Lynn's garden

2 Hard Boiled Eggs

Bacon bits

Chicken - Costco Roast Chicken cut in cubes, sautéed in garlic butter and salt

Full Fat Creamy Caesar Dressing with low carbs

KIM HORNSBY is a USA Today Bestselling Author of 15 novels as well as an award-winning screenwriter who has several movies in development with producers. She lives in the Seattle area where her office overlooks a tree-lined lake and has foot warming muses in the form of large, hairy rescue dogs.

Website: www.bit.ly/KimHornsby

Chocolate, Rejection & Mai Tais

Day 2 on Maui involved chocolate cake for breakfast!

Lynn practically forced me to have some by putting cream cheese icing on top so once I had my first cuppa Kona coffee, I knew I had to have a big slice of that cake calling me from the fridge.

I worked most of the day on a screenplay, taking breaks to walk in Lynn's garden where she was pulling weeds and harvesting oranges and snow peas. Things grow really easily here. No babying and tending and coddling plants--they just shoot up!

I drove Lynn to work at Kaanapali Beach Hotel where she's a cocktail waitress at the Tiki Bar and then took the doggy for a walk along the beach and boardwalk. It's law that every 200 ft or so, there has to be beach access for the public so there are these little parking spots at the major hotels for beach goers. I parked at the Hyatt, walked through and had a nice time with my buddy on a leash.

Thing was, once I took that 'lil stinker off the leash, JoJo would not let me within 20 feet of him. When it came time to take him for a sunset walk at 6:30, I couldn't get him in the car or close enough to leash him. He's a skittish rescue boy who lived on the streets of Hilo so his nature is understandable but I had plans to take him for drinks at the Tiki Bar to see his mom last night and he just wouldn't follow me to the car. Rejected by a fifteen pound dog who is mostly ears!



At the Tiki Bar, I had a Mai Tai and talked to the gentleman at the next table who'd brought his elderly mom and dad on the trip of a lifetime to Hawaii. The islands are full of people who never in their wildest dreams thought they would be able to afford such a trip but find it affordable in the winter if you do a package. Just when I'm crabbing about the island being too busy and crowded, I meet someone who is just so dang grateful to be here.

As I type this the doves are enjoying the morning sun on the rooftops across the street, chattering away, a lonely dog is moaning down the street, Molokai in the distance is now bathed in the morning sun and topped with a pink puffy cloud and I'm going to get another piece of chocolate cake.
Aloha Everyone!

KIM HORNSBY is the bestselling Amazon Author of The Dream Jumper's Promise, Book    1 in a Supernatural Suspense series. She lives in the Seattle area and writes stories for        women about overcoming tragedy, adversity and coming out the other end.

Find her on Amazon Books.

www.twitter.com/kimhornsby
  www.facebook.com/kimhornsbyauthor

Maui Bound!

I'm speaking at Barnes & Noble Lahaina, Maui next week. Yes, you heard that correctly.
I got a gig on Maui!

I feel squee-ful about this because 1. I love Maui 2. I was going anyhow 3. I love to hear myself talk 4. I can write off the trip 5. I might sell some books 6. I get to talk about writing THE DREAM JUMPER'S PROMISE 7. It's Barnes & Noble baby! 8. I'll brag shamelessly and photoshop in a huge crowd attending 9. I love Maui

There are more reasons to be excited but let me describe my feelings about flying on Thursday to Maui through this photo essay...

Me in the orange on a dive under Maala Wharf

We always go pool-hopping in Kaanapali

The road to the Iao Valley

Near the house, where I swim daily and snorkel

Not me

I will be speaking at Barnes and Noble at 2 pm in the shopping center across from Lahaina's Safeway. Part of my talk will touch on how to get started writing a novel. Who doesn't have a novel in their head just waiting for instructions on how to get out?

Come visit, introduce yourself and get free Hawaiian recipe cards!

No need to buy the book.

Kim Hornsby
The Dream Jumper's Promise
Recipient of Chanticleer Review's Best Paranormal Mystery/Thriller


Kim Hornsby is the Author of Award-Winning The Dream Jumper's Promise available on Amazon Books. She is a Bestselling Supernatural Suspense Author who lives in the Seattle area where she writes during the rainy months.