Happy Aloha Friday: My Dad saved a sailboat

I really think very highly of my dad.

I've always been a daddy's girl, with a dad like mine it was hard not to be.

He's done everything for me. He worked SO hard to make sure we had what we needed. It is no secret we grew up poor but i never felt poor because damn, there was A LOT of love in our house. My dad went spear fishing everyday for a few months just so we could eat and ummm that was the best fish I've ever eaten in my life. No complaints from me.

Since the early 90's my dad has been Captain Tom. He's a fantastic boat captain and has worked for numerous companies on The Big Island of Hawaii. Yep, he's pretty freaking cool.

Due to his awesome captainess I grew up on boats. I grew up snorkeling with Dolphins and singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to humpback whales (I kid you not). Every year on my birthday I would get to hang out on a catamaran singing to my favorite humpback whales. Talk about a childhood to remember! I got open water certified with PADI when I was 15 and lucky for me my dad started working for a scuba company...So, I've gotten to dive in eel gardens, with manta rays at night, and have even kissed a moray eel...yep, I'm THAT girl.

My dad is 53 almost 54 years old and he still has the fun loving attitude of a 22 year old. How the man does this, I still don't know. He is ALWAYS happy, seriously. He is the complete embodiment of ALOHA. He still says aloha to random people while running errands, he's just that nice.

So, how did he save a sailboat you ask? The other day after they docked and had unloaded all of their passengers my dad was waiting to refuel the boat...well...apparently there was a gorgeous sail boat tied up at the fuel dock...ahem...it was supposed to be tied up...but for whatever reason it came untied and started ramming into the dock and another boat...my dad saw this just before it happend and jumped in to grab the rope and pull the boat back so it wouldn't get completely damaged. I have no clue where it's owners were but, of course, my dad is now BFF's with them. He says they're super nice people from Austria who are still in Kona waiting for a new part from France for their boat (no, they're not loaded or anything...i had to say it ha). Luckily my dad, with the help from a few coworkers, was able to minimalize damage for this lovely sailboat.

Anyways, this is the kind of guy my dad is. Jumping in harbor water (if you've ever seen it, it's gross even in Hawaii) to save a stranger's boat. He always picks up hitch hikers and drives them all the way to where they're going, even if it's an hour away from his destination and gives homeless people all the cash he has. I wish I was more like my dad.

Xo
J

Captian Tom!

Someone got a pic of him saving the sail boat!

I