Aloha to Oahu!

Just a quick post script from our 10-year anniversary trip to Hawaii. First, thanks to all the well-wishers. I used to think anniversaries really only needed to be acknowledged by the two principals, but then I realized I was probably only thinking that of my own, a likely a byproduct of my ingrained self-hatred and homophobia. It does take a village -- and society does "congratulate" and "applaud" couples who have stuck together -- so I will accept the well-wishes and fully embrace them.

Our trip got off to a rocky start when our connecting flight in Los Angeles was delayed by TWELVE hours. Things had started out so well too, with football player Dhani Jones (hubba hubba) and Andrew McCarthy on our flight! (Andrew looked pretty good, and his lookalike son and girl were adorable!) Michael tried to get some answers out of the gate agent -- is there another flight we can take? a food voucher? -- never swearing or making anything close to a threatening remark. the woman was unhelpful and dismissive, then promptly threatened to have him arrested after she refused to give him her name and he pulled out his phone and took a picture of her. (I beat it!) It was at this point she informed him he would "not be flying today," even though she had never bothered to so much as look at our boarding passes, much less ask our names. As it would happen, no one on that flight would be "flying today" -- it had been postponed from about 2 p.m. to 1 a.m. and then pushed back again to 2 a.m.

We decided to make the best of our time in L.A. -- not entirely sure we would be allowed to board in the wee hours anyway! -- so my best friend, Mark, came to rescue us, taking us out to eat at The Grove (where I got a French Dip at Magee's and mysteriously saw no celebrities!), then later for a stroll through West Hollywood. After doing some shopping, Mark dropped us off at the Hyatt Regency in Century City, where Michael's sister Rosie happened to be staying on business. After drinks and crashing a Perisan wedding, she kindly let us crash in her room (we had been up early in the morning, and I had barely slept a wink the night before). When we got back to the airport, we had no problem getting on once the (malfunctioning) plane arrived. (If the Delta bitch had tried to cockpit block us, she had failed miserably.)

Hawaii was everything I'd heard it would be. Gorgeous weather -- low 80s with no humidity -- beautiful beaches and scenery (and guys!), and lots of great restaurants and things to do. Although my family swears by Maui, we chose Oahu for our premiere visit because we are both city types, so we wanted to stay in the heart of the action, knowing we could easily get away from it as needed. Truth be told, I didn't really want to "do" much of anything. This was the reason I'd agreed to a non-urban vacation -- the original plan was Berlin, if you recall -- and after an exhausting year of starting a new job and battling chronic foot pain, the idea of lying on a beach doing next to nothing seemed just about right.

Two views of the USS Arizona memorial, featuring the names of the men killed on board.

But as is often the case, these things rarely turn out as planned. After losing a night with our plane debacle, we hit the ground running -- which didn't hurt as much as it usually does thanks to my new $500 orthotic inserts!! -- visiting the Honolulu Zoo (all the f**king animals were in hiding!), the Pearl Harbor Memorial (extremely moving -- a must-see), checking out Honolulu's nightlife (Duke's on the beach and Hula's, the gay bar where hot straight guys seem to hang out) and renting a car to see the more beautiful (and non-touristy) north shore (the Lanikai Shrimp Shack is to die for!).

After a bad-sushi-induced date with the toilet bowl on our first night, Michael got a hot dog!

From the Love of Shrimp Shack

While there, we stumbled upon Chris O'Donnell, who was apparently filming a crossover "NCIS: Los Angeles"/"Hawaii Five-O" episode (sadly, no Alex O’Loughlin sightings) and then rounded off the trip by sitting next to Steven Weber at the airport. I resisted a Sandpiper Air joke -- as well as telling him my heart belongs to Joe -- and he repaid me by accusing me of stealing his wallet on Twitter. (If you don't follow him, he's pretty funny.)

All in all, a spectacular getaway with a spectacular guy!

Beachy keen

Who you calling a Ho?

The view from our balcony of the red Har-Tru courts at the neighboring hotel. (That's where I'm staying next time!!!)

Postcard-ready Lanikai Beach

Oh, Daddy!

Waikiki Beach

The front was even better!

I arrived in Hawaii with a dark (spray) tan, and came home a paler shade of white!