Not to be Outdone

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of activities, appointments, and goodbyes. Hubby has been "fare welled" no less than four times, received some awesome gifts, and the accolades abundant (well deserved). Big Sister had her graduation and the boys have had me driving to all of their favorite haunts.

My time to shine, right? Well, yesterday morning I had an early morning Okinawan humid run at 6:00am. I got back to our two room kitchenette suite just in time to touch base with Hubby before he headed out to take his replacement to a meeting. I figured I would throw a couple of waffles in the toaster for the kids and they could eat breakfast while I was taking a much needed shower. Everything was going smoothly. Big Sister was sitting down to her syrupy waffles and chocolate milk and I was preparing the next set of waffles for the Little Dudes. I was pouring their milk when I suddenly got a whiff of smoke, I turned around to see my waffle turning black. As I reached to unplug the toaster and retrieve the waffle, the smoke detector went to an immediate blaring BEEP! I tried fanning the detector and even tried to disconnect or reset the blasted thing. Nope, continuous blare and then the announcement on the loudspeaker stating "There is a fire on the first floor." At this moment, Big Sister is in a state of panic and the boys are holding their ears. I quickly call the front desk to alert them of the situation and the clerk responded with "Ok, just a toaster again." I figured at this point all was right and I would be able to continue on with breakfast. No such luck!

Next thing I know, they are alerting everyone via loudspeaker to please evacuate the building. I had the luxury of knowing it was not a full blown fire, so, I had my pajama clad children put on shoes and I grabbed our passports and tickets. Fortunately, it was almost 7:30 AM so, many of the military personnel were headed out the building on their way to work. Once I got outside, I quickly let everyone know it was a "toaster" and that I was to blame for the inconvenience. Everyone was understanding and had a good chuckle at my expense. I figured these people were either just arriving in Okinawa or departing very shortly, so, I would not be too stigmatized by claiming responsibility.

I quickly learned that the alarm had gone off the previous morning for the same reason. I had been warned by neighbors and friends that have had the pleasure of staying at the Westpac that the were subjected to inconvenient fire alarms (fortunately, false ones). The Westpac smoke detection system is extremely sensitive system (which I applaud); however, with almost daily visits from the fire department it seems like there has to be a more cost effective and less time consuming fix. I heard numerous stories as we were waiting for the fire trucks to arrive. Evidently, the toasters, burnt microwave popcorn (always a trying process), and even the heat of the hotel dryers are causes to set the alarm off. Just as I am feeling less embarrassed, Hubby drives up and unaware of my ability to evacuate a building, jokingly says "OK, what did you do?

Not to be outdone by my early morning escapade, I had two other moments where I had to check and make sure my hairdresser had dyed my gray roots brown. The Little Dudes were napping and it was time to pick up Big Sister. I decided to grab the keys to the car to start the air conditioning before waking them from their much needed slumber. I step outside the suite only to realize I left the room key inside. I am in a panic to get to the front desk for a duplicate and return to the room while still trying to pick up Big Sister on time. Fortunately, it was not crowded at the desk as it had been in prior visits and Big Sister was retrieved on time.

Last evening, I headed out to the Exchange moments before closing to pick up a few items. We are borrowing cars from our gracious neighbors, so, I still have to really think when I exit someplace to look for their car vice the one I just sold. I quickly locate the Pearl White Supercharger Toyota Minivan in the dark of the night and stepped inside. Once inside the smell immediately makes my nose curl, I then put my arm on the arm rest and the fabric just felt all wrong. It was only when I tried putting the key in the ignition that I realized I am in the wrong car. Granted, I should have been alerted from the beginning as I had locked the car prior to my shopping expedition. I quickly jumped out of the car before I was a suspect in a car jacking. I looked two spaces down the row to indeed find the correct "borrowed" car. Needless to say, upon my return, I decided to go to bed. I was not ready for another mishap.

Oh by the way, this morning I ran into a guy at the post office, and he truned to me and asked if I had used the toaster today? This island is just way too small!