Last Lei—Christmas 2024 

Note--I think I included Last Lei and Preparation because Syd was wearing all things Grinch.  Her earrings are grinches and her sweatshirt was a grinch. She had even accidentally ordered a  30 inch Grinch figurine. I just like the picture because she had taken it herself. This actually was  the last lei I ever purchased for her.  

Preparation Is Everything-- 

Spencer was around eight years old when, in the middle of doing a school project, he was  overwhelmed by deadlines. Syd and I walked him to the calendar to show him that, not only did  he have plenty of time, he also still could do all of his activities including, Aikido, Capoeira and  Sailing. He then had a mini crisis realizing that at some point in his life, he would need to be  able to operate a calendar. My response was epic. In my line of work you see all types of  families. Usually one parent is in charge of the calendar, (almost universally, the mom). In some  families, no one is in charge of the calendar and chaos ensues from week to week. I told  Spencer point blank, he was from a family where both his mom and his dad knew how to work a  calendar and he would be set for life with this skill--It is one of the first steps in goal setting.  

Fast forward to now--Syd has all of her appointments set for the next three months. I have  always been aware of how well we were taken care of but this will highlight the details. Not only  did she set me up with a therapy dog (who has one paw over my leg as I write this). She also  knew that the more stressed I get, the more I lose my keys, wallet and phone. Anyone who has  ever worked with me knows this to be true even if, some of the time, it was not my fault. Will  Arnest once confessed he used to hide my keys. Jesse Andrews once discovered my keys had  made it all the way over the Pali, resting on his back bumper, after a long regatta. To help me  with this problem, Syd has set me up with blue tooth tracking tiles as part of my Christmas gift. I  will program them as soon as I find them. 

She also purchased sets of of portable car battery jump starter kits for each car. Additionally  each car has a portable tire inflator. I remember thinking that was pretty amazing and yet, how  often would I really use them. Cut to one of the most stressful weeks of my life. For whatever  reason, Syd's car battery decided to die during her last week in hospice. My Mother In Law,  Carolyn, and Sister In Law, Lisa, were using Syd's car, which allowed me to be flexible and go  check on work at least a couple of hours a day. Just to make Lisa's last day eventful, the battery  (which had never had issues) decided to fizzle. I was able go jump it right away with our handy  mini kit. Later, it died again and Lisa had to uber to the airport. When I arrived, at Syd's Hospice  Care, I used my favorite new phrase, "That is a problem for later." Fast forward to the end of the  day when it was actually much later and the sun had long since set. I told Carolyn I would get  her car started while she spent a few moments alone with Syd. In my mind, the whole project  would take me about 15 minutes--I was a tad bit off.  

I got all set up, I had the kit out, got the hood open, and removed the protective plastic things.  The lighting was low so I used my cell phone flashlight to light the battery. I was very clear with  myself and told myself under no circumstances should I drop the phone into the engine--so I of  course immediately knocked it into the engine. No problem. It probably fell all the way through.  Nope. Solid nope. No one gets to be that lucky. It was safely on a ledge just out of reach of my  fingers. Luckily, I had Syd's phone so I could light the scene even better. I went to my truck and  found a tiller extension that was long enough to just barely caress the phone, but, in no way  flick it over the ledge it was on. I worked on this for about 20 minutes when I realized I had 

better admit defeat and call Carolyn before my phone light turned off, and, or, before Syd's  phone died. Carolyn has tiny hands but she was only able to get within a half inch.  

I came up with a new plan (already an hour into this). Not only is necessity the mother of  invention, but a lifetime of sailing teaches you that the solutions are always there, you just don't  know it yet. Also, the solution (in sailing) usually involves duct tape. I had a roll in my truck and I  attached a wad to the bottom of my tiller extension.  

That is when I taught my Mother in Law an important tradition that Syd and I had. If it worked,  we would both have to loudly exclaim, "Guy, you are an F'ing Genius" (and ignore the fact that I  had caused the problem in the first place). It worked on the first try. (Actually about the 60th try if  you count the first hour--Which I have elected not to count).