Holiday Vacation Day 0 & 1: Travel to Florence

After a year and a half of planning, talking, strategizing, saving, and working, we're finally excited to start our trip to Italy for the holidays.  Thursday, after H had soccer camp, we finished packing and headed to the airport.  We had a bit of excitement catching the car to LAX (snafus with both Lyft and Uber meant that we ended up driving our own car), but once we were at the airport, everything went smooth.  We had an overnight flight to Munich, during which none of us slept (but I watched Soul, Bullet Train, and Where the Crawdads Sing - time well spent).  Our connection in the Munich airport was fine (though we were bleary and underslept.  

The last leg of the trip was a short hop to Florence, and outside we could see the Dolomites and a beautiful sunset.

Once we landed in Florence, we hopped in a cab to our airbnb near the Arno.  Along the way we passed a beautiful 55m tall ferris wheel.  H wanted to go on it, but our cabby said each ride was €15 and that the views were just as good from the Plaza Michelangelo.

We got to the airbnb just fine and met my folks and D & W (R was asleep).  Dad and I took a walk down a festive street for some pizza, and we all crawled into bed by 9pm.  

A Guide to Gift-Giving for Long-Distance Givers

Here in LA, most of us are transplants from elsewhere in the country. My family is in Virginia, and my wife’s is in Missouri and Washington State.  Every January, as the holidays wind down, I hear lots of stories about gift-giving gone awry due to the great distance (physical and psychological) between gifter and giftee.  Of course, the gifts are given with generosity of spirit and magnanimity of soul, but despite good intentions, the process of giving and receiving can often miss the mark and cause more stress.  I hope that I can mitigate some of that stress by compiling a small collection of guidelines for long-distance gift-giving.  Follow these guidelines, and the gift-giving-and-receiving process will be more focused on the spirit of the season and less on the stress of commerce and retail.

• If the recipient will be flying, avoid giving large gifts.  No microwaves, no cases of wine, no bulky sports equipment.  If you want to give something that’s sizable, consider giving them a photograph to open in person. My sister Denise suggests that if you want to give large gifts to travelers far from home, the giver should take responsibility for shipping the gift back to the recipient’s home. Think of the shipping postage as part of the expense of the gift.
• Unless you are absolutely sure of the recipient’s taste and size, make sure you give gifts that the recipient can return in THEIR hometown, not yours.  National chains (Macy’s, Target, etc.) allow you to buy at one store and return at another.  Or, perhaps there are local boutiques in your recipient’s hometown that you can shop via the internet?
• Even if the recipient is visiting you, restrain from buying from local boutique in your hometown. If the gift doesn’t work out, your recipient will need to spend time during their visit returning the gifts instead of spending time with you.
• Are you shipping a gift?  Confirm the shipping address with the recipient.  Many people have different addresses for receiving letters and packages, and if you send packages to a mailbox, they can often end up disappearing.
• Are you buying for children?  Bring the child’s parents into the conversation for great gift ideas.  Says pal Lael:  “Many of us are trying to give our kids the joy and excitement of presents while also balancing it with teaching the "true" meaning of this time. Perhaps you could take the kids on a special holiday outing instead - to see Santa, or ride a train - creating traditions and memories is how we'd like to teach our kids about this season.” Here are two great guides for kids via I Gave Up By Noon and Nourishing Minimalism 
• Make a donation.  It’s a terrific way to give something with meaning for more than just your recipient.  Says friend Katherine: “We're doing that for the adults on my side of the family this year, and we're having a lot of fun choosing a charity that will be personal to each family unit.”
• Give a membership. Meredith says that she and her sister “giving annual memberships or admission tickets to a museum or other local attractions.” It’s a gift that you can personalize and can be enjoyed for a whole year!
• Don’t give crap.  Are you sending your loved one a candy-cane filled with M&Ms?  A bobblehead Santa?  If so, please reconsider.  Nobody likes crap.
• Gift cards, gift certificates, and cash are always welcome, though some think they’re too impersonal.  You can make them less impersonal by buying a gift card for a specific store that’s local to the recipient.  Was there a boutique that you discovered the last time you visited your sister?  Buy her a gift card for that place, and when she calls to thank you for the gift, you can have a nice time remembering your trip.  See!  Much nicer than a boring sweater from Macy’s.

These guidelines are assembled from my experiences as a long-distance giver and receiver, and those of my friends.  If you’ve got any additional guidelines, feel free to comment, and next year, when I repost, I’ll try to include some of them!

A Guide to Gift-Giving for Long-Distance Givers

Here in LA, most of us are transplants from elsewhere in the country. My family is in Virginia, and my wife’s is in Missouri.  Every January, as the holidays wind down, I hear lots of stories about gift-giving gone awry due to the great distance (physical and psychological) between gifter and giftee.  Of course, the gifts are given with generosity of spirit and magnanimity of soul, but despite good intentions, the process of giving and receiving can often miss the mark and cause more stress.  I hope that I can mitigate some of that stress by compiling a small collection of guidelines for long-distance gift-giving.  Follow these guidelines, and the gift-giving-and-receiving process will be more focused on the spirit of the season and less on the stress of commerce and retail.

• If the recipient will be flying, avoid giving large gifts.  No microwaves, no cases of wine, no bulky sports equipment.  If you want to give something that’s sizable, consider giving them a photograph to open in person. My sister Denise suggests that if you want to give large gifts to travelers far from home, the giver should take responsibility for shipping the gift back to the recipient’s home. Think of the shipping postage as part of the expense of the gift.
• Unless you are absolutely sure of the recipient’s taste and size, make sure you give gifts that the recipient can return in THEIR hometown, not yours.  National chains (Macy’s, Target, etc.) allow you to buy at one store and return at another.  Or, perhaps there are local boutiques in your recipient’s hometown that you can shop via the internet?
• Even if the recipient is visiting you, restrain from buying from local boutique in your hometown. If the gift doesn’t work out, your recipient will need to spend time during their visit returning the gifts instead of spending time with you.
• Are you shipping a gift?  Confirm the shipping address with the recipient.  Many people have different addresses for receiving letters and packages, and if you send packages to a mailbox, they can often end up disappearing.
• Are you buying for children (grandkids, neices, nephews, etc.)?  Avoid the desire to buy every cute outfit and stuffed animal you see, and instead, focus on gifts that are meaningful.  Ask the child’s parents for great gift ideas.  Says pal Lael Logan:  “Many of us are trying to give our kids the joy and excitement of presents while also balancing it with teaching the "true" meaning of this time. Perhaps you could take the kids on a special holiday outing instead - to see Santa, or ride a train - creating traditions and memories is how we'd like to teach our kids about this season.”
• Make a donation.  It’s a terrific way to give something with meaning for more than just your recipient, and it’s very convenient for weary travelers.  Says friend Katherine Resch: “We're doing that for the adults on my side of the family this year, and we're having a lot of fun choosing a charity that will be personal to each family unit.”
• Give a membership. Pal Meredith Leonard Morton says that she and her sister “giving annual memberships or admission tickets to a museum or other local attractions.” It’s a gift that you can personalize and can be enjoyed for a whole year!
• Don’t give crap.  Are you sending your loved one a candy-cane filled with M&Ms?  A bobblehead Santa?  If so, consider just abandoning the gift altogether.  Maybe just send a card, or a gift certificate, which brings me to my last guideline:
• Gift cards, gift certificates, and cash are always welcome, though some think they’re too impersonal.  You can make them less impersonal by buying a gift card for a specific store that’s local to the recipient.  Was there a boutique that you discovered the last time you visited your sister?  Buy her a gift card for that place, and when she calls to thank you for the gift, you can have a nice time remembering your trip.  See!  Much nicer than a boring sweater from Macy’s.

These guidelines are assembled from my experiences as a long-distance giver and receiver, and those of my friends.  If you’ve got any additional guidelines, feel free to comment, and next year, when I repost, I’ll try to include some of them!

Holidays & Kona

It's the end of the year.  I dropped the ball on keeping up posts recently, but here's what's been happening.  Once classes ended, I had two weeks of steady work at home and the U. Grading papers, prepping for new classes, reviewing applications for the committee I'm chairing.  S had plenty of work to do for Glee, so we both stayed busy. We had a few holiday events to take part in (including seeing the LA Gay Men's Chorus's Holiday Show), but mostly, we worked and worked until we left LA on 23 December.

From LA, we flew to Virginia Beach, where we spent Christmas with my family. It was the first time in quite a few years where all of the kids of my generation were together, and we celebrated with a photo:

We had a terrific time seeing family and friends. S got to meet cousin J's girlfriend R, and on the night of the 26th, S, D, and I went to visit one of my great friends from when I was a kid.  K and his wife W threw us a nice dinner, and we got to see some of his family as well.  Was great!

On Thursday evening, S and I got back on a plane to fly back to LAX via ORD. Our flight before Christmas was uneventful, so we had built up some bad karma that came back to haunt us in ORD. At any rate, we landed at LAX two hours late (12.30am instead of 10.30pm). We hurried home to finish packing our new bags and get about 90 minutes of sleep before zipping back to LAX for a morning fight to Hawaii.  That flight was truly uneventful, and we're now spending our first of seven nights on the Big Island.

We flew into Kona today and picked up the rental car. A woman in the Avis line ahead of us was trying to find a rental car, but she hadn't made a reservation. No such luck. She was trying all of the car companies, but no one had a vehicle for her. Fortunately, we made reservations, so our car was waiting for us.

We were too early to check into the hotel, so we drove into Kona for lunch (pork sandwich, cheeseburger) and drinks (a mai tai for me), a bit of culture (the Governor's Palace in Kona), and some browsing (I might come home with a ukelele...). The Governor's Palace was small, but it was well-appointed with historical artifacts and attended by knowledgable docents. Our guide did an excellent job telling us all about the building and the people who lived in it and visited it.  Kona itself, at least the parts we saw, were very touristy and less exciting for me.  We found a neat farmer's market and have made some mental notes of things we want to bring home with us: musical instruments, mango tea, eucalyptus honey, volcanic sea salt.

We checked into the hotel late in the afternoon and spent the rest of the night chilling out and exploring the resort. The Sheraton resort is huge, with a massive pool structure, multiple restaurants, game room, spa, gym, tennis courts, basketball courts, manta-viewing platform, and a sports equipment shop. We grabbed a quick bite at one of the restaurants and were back in the hotel room by 9, pooped.

Tomorrow, we hope to catch up with a whale-watching tour. The tour was sold out, but the guide told us over the phone that the early tour usually has no-shows.  If that's the case, then we'll be able to jump on the tour and hopefully see some whales!  More tomorrow.