Island Fever?

I have heard the term many times and didn't really think it exsisted. "Oh, I couldn't live in Hawaii, I would get island fever." people would say. Who coined this term anyway?

Do I have the first symptoms of this mysterious ailment? This week Travis has been working more than not and the newness and excitment of living in Kauai has started to wear off. I can't pretend like I'm on vacation anymore and real life has caught up with me. I don't have my usual vices I always turned to when Travis was working long hours. Namely, my best friends whose husbands also work all the time - Amber and Chanel. Other vices I miss - Rubios, my favorite place to dine with the girls when Travis was working so I wouldn't have to cook (fish tacos, chips, refried beans, and a Vanilla Coke, I would pay $50 for this meal right now), and the awesome Redlands parks. Another one is the Citrus Plaza shopping center in Redlands, home of Target, World Market, DSW shoe store, Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Kohls, Michaels, 3 Starbucks, Chick-Fil-A, Barnes and Noble and more. I am getting a lump in my throat just thinking about it. Kauai has very limited resources. It's Walmart, Kmart, Macy's (a very tiny one), and Costco. No, I'm not kidding. Oh - I forgot Long's drugs. Seriously. As far as dining goes we have Taco Bell, McDonalds, Burger King, Subway, and a number of local joints. Then there are the really expensive fancy tourist places (I hope to try one of those eventually).

Besides the limited retail and dining resources I think the fact that I don't have one single friend is starting to get to me. I guess I felt stranded in many ways this week. On a day when Travis was working 50 hours straight I felt like I had nowhere to go, nothing to do, and no one to turn to. I certainly couldn't hop in the car and drive to Vegas to see family, something I did often while living in Redlands.

"Why not just go to the beach?" You say. We have had consistent torrential rain for a week straight. Apparently this is normal for this time of year. Our winter is the rainy season so we just need to keep the raincoats and umbrellas handy until about...oh sometime around February or March.

Another downer is that Veda's school is not working out and this will probably be her last month in preschool. There are no other preschools with openings. So now I am faced with keeping both the kids home full time - on my own most of the time. I worry about my sanity, honestly!

Here I am in paradise, right? What am I complaining about? Is it island fever, or just normal adjustments and emotions that are part of the package of a big move? Give me some therapy ladies.