Summer Solstice at the Royal Hawaiian

One benefit of living in Hawaii is that all our squadron mandatory fun events are at glamorous old hotels in Waikiki.

And we get to enjoy it with lovely friends, acquaintance, and frenemies.

One of the junior officers started lobbing rolls. Now here’s a stupid human trick I have—I have surprisingly good aim. So I grabbed a roll and beaned him in the shoulder from across the lawn and two tables away while he was still protesting his involvement in original throw. I know, real mature. But the shock on his face was priceless. I guess you can take the aviators out of Pensacola but you can’t take the Pensacola out of the aviators (that is of course a reference to the hillbilly “throwed rolls” place near the Florida panhandle or across the state line into Alabama or something).

Then JOPA shows their video poking fun at all the department heads and we laugh and sometimes people get mad and debate whether the JOs went too far. Classic!

Of course everyone goes out afterwards and it’s fun to see everyone dancing and having a good time, or at least pretending to have a good time while clearly wondering if we’ve put in enough time to go home without looking like an old fart.

There are some aspects of squadron life I sure won’t mind leaving behind, but getting together like this is the fun part.