The wife and I recently went all out for a vacation. The problem is that I’m a maximizer ( which I learned from The Paradox of Choice). If I care about something, I want to have the best version possible. When it comes to the car I drive, the clothes I wear, and the razor I shave with–I don’t care about the quality as long as they work. But when it comes to computers, morning espresso, and vacations–I want the best possible experience.
And this is where a definition of humor can be found. Ben plans big. Books a trip to Oahu. Sees the unreal scenery on Instagram and gets a head full of fantasies. There is the dream. Then comes the reality. Comedy comes from the contrast between expectations and reality. This is shown in the vacation video below.
Even though it rained almost all day for 6 of the 7 days we were in Oahu, it was still a fun trip.
Lessons learned from the Oahu vacation.
- Airbnb can be a great experience. It was our first time using it. I wanted an experience that would be more interesting than a hotel (not hard to top).
- There is a reason flights are much cheaper a certain time of year (it might be rainy season)
- Lack of self-awareness is most evident on airplanes. The touch screen on the back of my wife’s seat was a “poke screen” for the elderly woman behind her. On the flight back, a man in the row in front of me had the worst body odor I’ve ever encountered. Shortly into the flight, I couldn’t tell if the woman next to him was asleep or passed out from the rancid fumes.
- You can buy a window seat on an airplane that doesn’t actually have a window (definition of a first world problem).
- Hawaii has acai bowls. Minnesota does not. Acai bowls are amazing.
- Relaxing on the beach is nice and all, but you should do one thing on every vacation that makes you a little nervous. Hiking the first peak of Olomana was slightly terrifying. (Also, don’t Google [name of the trail + deaths] before going on a hike.)
- Fun and happiness are different. Hiking Olomana was brutal and awful in the moment, but one thing I’m happy that we did. It can be helpful to ask yourself “In a year, will I be happy that I did X?” If I had done that while at the top of Olomana, I would have put aside my fear of heights and put together my drone for what would have been the best video of the trip (assuming I didn’t lose the drone).
- Apple bananas taste way better than regular bananas.
- Rain or shine, Hawaii is more fun than Minnesota (ok, I already knew that).
