Hello, everyone! I am happy as a lark right now. It is been a very good day.
We had class this morning, which was interesting as always… Karen, one of the professors, told us that we shouldn’t ever call women “girls” (even younger women like me, for example) because Americans have been socialized to believe women are inferior to men. All the girls (ha! Isaid it, Karen!) were really irritated. Annie, my roommate here in Hawai’i, was bold enough to say “why make a big deal out of this issue, causing hard feelings between men and women, if there is no offense felt on either side?” Karen just completely blew it off. Another kid asked about using the words “girlfriend” – should we stop saying that word too? Karen dismissed it, saying ”girlfriend” is a totally different word than “girl.” WHAT? I wanted to stand up and scream, “DON’T TELL ME WHAT TO BE OFFENDED BY! TAKE YOUR AGENDA SOMEWHERE ELSE OR NO WHERE AT ALL, PLEASE! THANK YOU VERY MUCH!” But I didn’t. Because I want a good grade. She doesn’t care about listening, so what’s the point? The whole class thinks she’s crazy anyway, so I don’t feel like I need to be a “voice of truth” or anything. Augh… so aggravating!
Anyway, moving on! After class, we went to the mall for lunch (I had a fantastic turkey pesto sandwhich, if you were wondering 
), then a beach I hadn’t been to yet (I forgot the name – sorry!). It was much better than Waikiki, in my opinion: white sand, quiet, not so tourism-focused, etc. It was nice!
I’m so frustrated with the sun here, though! I am seriously not getting any color whatsoever and I just don’t understand. I’m so close to the equator… how can I not be getting ANY color? It’s just weird because the sun is really, really hot here, like when it shines on you, it feels like it’s burning your skin right then and there. Yet, my skin’s hardly been affected at all… Oh well. I’m here for the class – not the tan. Right, Mom and Dad?
When we were at the beach, we saw a surfer paddling on her board with her dog. It was a funny sight:
Some of us girls went to Walmart tonight to get a few things. It was surreal because the last time I walked around a Walmart was in Myrtle Beach, SC, where tons of my friends worked. This time, though, there was no Steph in the meat department, Wierzba in Home & Garden, Tess in Toys, Tom in the electronics department, Drew Kirch or Gisler in Produce, etc., etc. It made me miss everyone from Project a lot!
After Walmart, we had to take a taxi home because there were no more busses going our way. Our taxi driver was hilarious! He told us about his iPod and how he has 7,000 songs on it, then he turned it on – hip hop – and my ears were filled with more swear words at once than I’ve ever heard in my life. The ride ended with the song “Yeah” (I forgot who sings it, but it’s in the movie “Hitch” if you remember) and him giving us his phone number. He said to call him for a ride the next time we “get wasted” and he’ll let us ride for free. Thanks, I guess?
Anyway, it was hilarious. We were laughing quite hard.
Now I’m back in my YWCA room, exhausted. We did a lot of walking today, which is great because I love walks, but it was definitely tiring.
Tomorrow, we’re going to the fish market in Chinatown. People have been saying fish markets smell absolutely horrible (and I believe it), so we’ll see how it goes. It’s definitely going to be different from my little Minnetonka/Bethel bubble, so I’m excited.
It’s almost 3 AM where you are, Minnesotans, so sleep well and sweet dreams. Lots of love coming your way from Honolulu tonight!
