Happy Turkey-Day

I feel like I've told this story too many times already, but it's a winner so let's document it for the ages:

My younger sister came up with the idea of having my older sister, her family, and me and Scott fly down to the Big Island for Thanksgiving as a surprise for my dad. So we flew into Hilo on Wednesday. My sister found a really great deal and her whole family was staying in a beautiful two bedroom condo in Waikoloa. I stayed at Scott's family one bedroom studio in Waimea. I flew straight after work so I was exhausted and went to bed at four in the afternoon.

My younger siblings, Genesis and Jordan, were driving dad to Waikoloa. They told him they were taking him to A-bay, he hates that beach so he wasn't really thrilled but they were really going to drive him to Cassandra's unit. So, I woke up at four in the morning after 12 hours of glorious sleep...oh, and freezing my butt off by the way. It gets into the fifties during the night in Waimea and Hawaiian houses offer no resistance at all to cold and do nothing in the ways of retaining heat. I proceeded to drive to Waikoloa at around seven thirty on Thanksgiving morning on the high road (there's two ways from Waimea to Kona, the low road and the high road).

I'm cruising along at 55 mph along the rolling hills through Parker Ranch with nothing but pasture-painted slopes when I spot a lone wild turkey sitting on the side of the road. I ponder whether I should turn around and try to find my camera in the trunk. I mean, it was a picture perfect postcard...almost like he was trying to get into the thanksgiving spirit as well. About five minutes later on the same road, this time I see a group of three turkeys on the left side of the road and two on the right...hmmm, I hope none of them try ...
NO, DON'T DO THAT".

I see one of the turkeys on the right decided it was time to cross the road, he started to dash across the road right in front of my car. I tried to slow down and veer but it was too late...I clipped him and he tumbled...onto my hood...over my windshield...I could hear him rolling on my hood towards the back...whoa.

Thankfully, as I looked in my rear view mirror, I saw him scampering across the road as he finished his cross. Turkeys are tough birds. So, yes, I almost hammered a turkey with the front end of my car on Thanksgiving. Happy Turkey Day!!! What irony.

Here are some pics of the fun we had. More pics and stories to come soon.
What was the highlight of your thanksgiving?

(my dad holding his youngest grand-daughter, Chayne)

(my younger sister, Genesis, teaching our niece, Lauren, how to fly