Swimming Costumes

That devil, Rene, not only remembered to wear a costume to this morning's ocean swim, she and Christine were the only ones to wear their costumes during the swim. Well done, you two!

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

Insurgent Monarchist

Just a sweet, innocent butterfly? Not even close.

This terrorist, insurgent monarchist kept disrupting play this morning by impersonating a tennis ball. It hovered around the net right in the "strike zone" halting a doubles match. In this photo it is rehydrating between sets.

Not Halloween - Real Life

Heads on pikes. That is what some of my friends who identify with the Tea Party would like to see again. They want to hearken back to simpler times when criminals were executed in public and their heads were cut off and put on display to deter others from committing crimes. Perhaps for such criminal behavior as serving lemon with tea (that is what the Tea Party is all about, right?)

So what I want to know is what did these fish do wrong? I saw lots of dried and rotting heads and tails of fish attached to a gate down at Maalaea harbor this morning. To what crime are they serving as a deterrent? Fish don't even drink tea, do they?

Whose Is It?

The Kingdom of Hawaii's flag is now used as our state flag. How wild is that? This state actually flies the official flag of a country forcefully overthrown by the U.S.

Even crazier is that the upper corner of the flag consists of the Union Flag of the United Kingdom. Yes, we fly the flag of Great Britain as well. Are there any other states which fly the flags of other countries as their own? I don't think so.

Click HERE for the brief Wikipedia article.

Disclaimer: the Kingdom of Hawaii flew other flags as well

Dave's Thing

My buddy, Coach Dave, has a thing for Reticulated Butterfly Fish (my thing? The ocean and all of her creatures). This morning's photo is for you, Dave.

Belly Flop

The wind was howling, the waves were rocking and one dolphin was jumping. Over and over and over again. The other nine Spinner Dolphins were quietly resting, but this one could not get enough air time. More, more, more.

I've often seen pink bellies on the dolphins flying through the air, but have never noticed pinkness when they are underwater. Aha! Belly Flops! Just like me, maybe their skin turns red when they land hard on the water. We're not so different after all.

Click HERE for more photos from this morning.

No Injuries for a Change

The insane Xterra World Championships were being held at our beach this morning. We had to move (since we didn't want to embarrass them by leaving them behind in the swim), so we decided to do our own not-so-sane swim. We hugged the shore along the old lava flow and explored lots of Sea Caves, Blowholes and underwater Arches. Strangely enough, there weren't any injuries this time. But there was lots and lots of laughter.

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

Paparazzi Averse

Bruce was basking in the sun on the beach this morning. He didn't even mind when I laid down next to him, but became unhappy when I started snapping photos. Celebrities! They are so sensitive and touchy.

Fishy Mojo

Who is this guy? The Pied Piper? He didn't have a flute, but he was carrying a conductor's baton.

The fish would not be distracted by anything, they were only interested in him. Even I don't get that kind of attention by the underwater critters. I'm jealous - I want some of his mojo.

Below is one of my favorite lava tubes. I have tried photographing it many times, today was the first time the photo actually came out.

Broken Test

I was stuck working all day, so you're stuck with still life subjects from around the yard. Above is a Pink Ginger flower. Below is a Sea Urchin test (shell) with a sneak peek inside. After urchins wash ashore, crabs break the test to eat the meat.

More and More and More

They emerged from the murk in groups of twenty or more until there were nearly one hundred Spinner Dolphins this morning. Wow.

My favorite part, as always, is when they swim right along side me and include me as a part of their group. Unfortunately, that means getting pooped on from time to time, but it is well worth the mess (why do you think I wear a swim cap?).

I had a glorious time. Click HERE for lots more photos from today's swim.

Camera Hog

This Spinner Dolphin is such a HAM. I had the camera perfectly lined up for a great photograph of three dolphins, when this guy zoomed within inches of me and blocked the shot. And here I thought Michael (of the Sunday Pink Cap Swimmers) was the worst camera hog - not even close.

A few snorkelers followed me out on my swim this morning and they were thrilled to be a part of the action when the dolphins swam up to check me out. They weren't the only ones, I think the dolphins were pretty happy to find people to play with too.

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

Sandy Swim

My buddy, Lynne, and I swim the same speed, so we spend a lot of time together on the Sunday swims. I think we see the most interesting stuff because we take our time and look around a lot. The photo to the left is of the "fast group" who were already on their way back while we were still heading out. Zoom zoom.

It was great swimming with Sandy this morning (photo to the right). She normally escorts us in her kayak, but she used the lame excuse of an injured back to actually have fun for a change. I hope this wasn't a one-time deal (except for the injury part) and that we'll be swimming with her more often. Click HERE for more photos from this morning's swim.

Perfume Pollution

Plumeria fragrance is almost overwhelming right now because the flowers are opening everywhere. A hint of sweetness wafting on a gentle breeze is mesmerizing, but not when they smell like they've been drenched in gallons of cheap cologne. Thank goodness for the trade winds otherwise I would be submerged in flower perfume hell.

Yeeccchhh

I didn't stop to ask them, but somehow I don't think these two Giant African Land Snails were just engaged in a fun wrestling match. Put this photo in the category of "things I really did not want to know."

Despair or Doom or Something

I swam to the Cliffs of Despair this morning (actually, they are called the Cliffs of Doom or something like that) and made it back feeling better with every stroke. I know, they don't look very intimidating here, but they are. This black lava wall rises straight up out of the water and keeps on going. Until you get close enough to be in its shadow, all you see is a featureless black mass looming higher and higher.

I was hoping to see big critters this morning - friends had seen a big school of Hammerhead Sharks here and big predator sharks are often caught by fishermen from the top of the cliffs - but no luck today. Maybe tomorrow...

The Snack That Wasn't

A big school of little Jacks kept circling under me this morning. Did they know something I didn't know? Were they waiting around to snack on leftovers after a nearby big shark was finished with me? Hmmmm. Or maybe they were picking up tips on swimming technique. Nope, definitely not that.

Run and Snap

The main purpose of this blog is to get me to take at least one photograph every single day which I am not ashamed to show to the world. OK, ok, I was desperate today and had to run out into the yard to snap the sunset. Sorry.

Unto Themselves

After getting severely stung last week, the swimmers were reveling in clear, warm(ish) ocean waters this morning.

We were so busy playing games with each other that we hardly noticed Bruce the shark and his visiting roommate, or any of the other ocean critters. Why bother? The Maui Pink Cap swimmers are a fun world unto themselves.

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

Flavored Bubbles

Haley & Jen were sweet enough to invite me to swim with them this morning. We had fun exploring nooks and crannies along the shore. But we had the most fun playing in scuba bubbles. The big challenge was avoiding the garlic (and other flavored) bubbles.

Click HERE for more photos from today's swim.

Nobody Got Hurt

Bruce the shark, who is normally shy and reclusive (like me), came out to play this morning. He never got so close that I had to push him away, but almost. Almost.

Just as he headed in for his closest pass, four Spotted Eagle Rays arrived and began swooping all around me. Self-preservation told me to concentrate on the shark, but I was so distracted that I didn't know which way was up. Fortunately, nobody got hurt and everybody seemed to have a good time. Let's do it again tomorrow.

Bring It On

I spend most of my days in an air conditioned office, so I had no idea how hot it has been recently. My body wilted on the way down to the beach this afternoon and was only barely refreshed by the warm water. This couple definitely had the right idea of letting the waves wash over their feet.

On the other hand, these desert flowers were quite contented with the warm weather. I heard them talking among themselves, "Bring it on!" they said.

Rubbing Shoulders

These guys were rubbing shoulders with me this morning. It felt great to be one of the gang.

Getting so close has required all of us to get over our fears of each other. In fact they seem more comfortable with me than I am with them - but I'm getting better.

Hanging

This is me. I haven't been getting out much recently, I've mostly been hanging in the same spot. Fortunately, I found this lizard hanging nearby for today's photo.

Helping Hand

Josh, you are our hero.

I noticed something floating out in the ocean on our swim this morning. What could it be? Well, Josh took the initiative to check it out and then to push the bucket of clothing and personal items all the way in to shore. Everyone else (including me) swam away and left Josh to deal with it on his own.

Thanks for being a good role model, Josh. And for helping make this world a better place in which to live.

Click HERE for more photos from this morning's swim.