I am breaking up the Dhofar Redemption story by starting a new series covering my time at Det 175. Being an instructor has been an awesome experience so far, full of more twists and turns than I had ever expected. Exploring Hawai’i has been great, and working for and mentoring the next generation of Air Force officers is the best job in the Air Force. Support the authorial endeavors! Visit the shop!
After a shorter than expected tour at Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts, I was lucky enough to get selected for a tour as an Assistant Professor of Aerospace Studies (APAS) at Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) Detachment 175. Det 175 is the only AFROTC detachment in Hawai’i, and is the furthest West AFROTC detachment in the U.S.A. I didn’t know any of that when I boarded a Delta Airlines flight in Boston, nor did I know that Delta would cancel my connecting flight from Minneapolis to Honolulu while I was in the air. I was just excited to start a new chapter.
After landing in Minneapolis, I discovered that my original connecting flight had been canceled, and had to get on the phone to rebook my flights. My new flights took me from Minneapolis to a nine-hour layover in Los Angeles (one of my least favorite CONUS airports), then finally to Honolulu. I even had to change airlines at LAX, which meant I had to leave security, collect my bags, recheck my bags with the new airline, and then head through security again. I tried to get my long layover shifted to Minneapolis so I could spend time with my brother, but it apparently wasn’t an option.
LAX is usually a nightmare, and this nine-hour diversion was no different. This part of the world was still in the throes of COVID-19 and LAX was gripped by some sort of construction project. These factors combined with a broken down bus system meant I had to walk from one terminal to the other, dragging my three checked bags behind me and cursing California, Delta Airlines, LAX, that guy, her over there, those pigeons, sunny weather, and really whatever was happening at the moment. I settled into the American Airlines lounge after finally checking my bags and making it through security (again) and waited for the hours to pass before I finally could fly to my next assignment.
I landed in Honolulu late at night, where I was met by one of my new coworkers, and picked up my rental car to hold me over while I waited to pick up my truck from the port. It was pitch dark in Honolulu, but I was vaguely aware of the ocean and the mountains while I drove to our new house. Our friend Blaine from Hanscom had moved out to Honolulu a year earlier, and he and his better half, Bo, had helped us out buying our house. They had even run over to our house earlier to set up an air mattress for us to borrow while our real beds made the voyage over the Pacific Ocean. They even left us a nice housewarming gift of a loaned coffee machine, some snacks and wine, a couple coffee cups, and a bit of coffee on our kitchen island. A much appreciated gesture, especially after a hellacious travel day.
When I woke, the first order of business was coffee. Hawai’i is the only state in the U.S. that grows its own coffee, and Blaine and Bo left me a bag of a local roast. I made a pot while looking out my window at my new neighborhood. There was nobody in sight at that hour, except a couple ducks. I filled my cup and brought it outside to enjoy the warm Hawaiian sun and take in more of the paradise I found myself in.
Next on the docket was to get the shower flowing and the temperature up to snuff. The only tool I packed with me was my trusted Leatherman multi-tool that I acquired by cheating at a Christmas gift swap, but it wasn’t too much trouble to get the water heater cranked up and the shower steaming. A quick shower, then stark realization that what I thought was a towel in my luggage was actually a hand towel, and then it was off for my first of four trips to the local target to pick up some much needed supplies to clean our new home.
I didn’t have much to do, arriving as I did on a Friday evening, but made the best of my Saturday by exploring Oahu a little bit, heading over to the Windward Side for a couple beers with Blaine & Bo, and then wrapping up the night watching James Bond movies with my laptop on the kitchen counter while seated in a cheap folding chair. When the jet lag caught up to me, I grew tired of watching Sean Connery, and headed to my new bedroom to re-inflate the air mattress that was to be my bed for the next couple weeks.
Sunday, I was supposed to pick up our dogs, Calvin and Zander from the Honolulu Airport after Jenny shipped them to me from Boston. Bringing pets to Hawai’i is a huge pain in the ass, since Hawai’i is rabies free and trying to keep it that way. If an animal isn’t of a certain age and/or doesn’t have the proper certifications, they have to sit at a quarantine site for 120 days. We had gone through the incredible hassle of getting them tested, vaccinated, and registered to travel to Hawai’i in the hopes that Calvin and Zander would be allowed to bypass this quarantine, but the laboratory that was testing their blood for rabies was backlogged. Both of our boys had to go to doggy prison for three days while we waited for their paperwork to clear.
The animal quarantine facility wasn’t open on Sunday, so I spent the day at the beach, not relaxing, but watching Blaine & Bo tackle Hawai’i’s state sport: Outrigger Canoe Paddling. I assumed that surfing was Hawai’i’s state sport, and had only heard of outrigger canoes before. The canoes with the extra little canoe lashed to two poles sticking out of the side.
While I was new to the sport, it was easy to get caught up in the fanfare. I spent the day hanging out on the beach with food trucks, sunshine, and a bunch of people yelling and screaming while athletes paddled their heavy, wooden boats as fast as they could. What’s not to love? Blaine & Bo’s canoe club was in the running for the state finals, so the energy was pretty high, and several of their boat teams ended up earning a slot at the state finals later in the month. Most likely due to the excitement of my arrival on Oahu and the addition of a new fan.
After the outrigger canoe races, the jet lag hit me hard, so it was back to the house for another round of movies in the home theater. Then a quick dinner and it was time to crash out on the air mattress and get ready for my first day at the Det.
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