Hippies for Breakfast

Saturday morning we drove to the Huelo smoothie and crepe stand for
breakfast. No crepes for us, but we each got a smoothie with banana,
pineapple, coconut, strawberries, and acai. I also had a coconut - the
girl working the stand hacked it open with a machete and stuck a straw
in the top so i could suck out the coconut water then removed the
husk, chopped up the flesh, and stuck it in a ziplock for me Oh you
coco goddess, was it good. Easily one of the best breakfasts I've had
so far. Coconut is really good for you, I hear. Since my breakfast of
health all my wrinkles have dissapeared, I lost 15 lbs, and sunshine
now sprouts from my smile.

Oh, and when we were leaving, a bunch of hippies drove up. You know I
got a picture of that.

And now with pictures

This is only a test

Dudes,

Trying to figure out the mobile blogging thing since I'm still without
Internet and won't be making it to starbucks for a few days. If this
works, I'll continue with regular posting - if not.......I'll be back.

Sent from my iPhone

New Skill Set

This week has been all about hanging out and relaxing. I don't think I've EVER been as relaxed as I am right now. I didn't know it was possible. We have a place to live and are just waiting to move in. We are trying to live financially lean right now, since you know, we have to pay for the new apartment, deposit, and oh yeah, our house in Boise that STILL hasn't rented. In light of the lean times, I have been staying close to camp this week (gas is mucho $$). There's not a whole lot to do in the area, but dang if it's not super beautiful, and that's enough for me.

Here's a typical (week) day right now:

• Wake up around 6:30 and see Brant off to work.

• Drive to the Pukalani Starbucks, drink grande Pike Place coffee, use free WiFi, buy breakfast and lunch for the day at the connected grocery store, get coffee refill and take back to Brant.

• Straighten up our little casa. Hang towels on the line to dry. Sweep.

• Talk awhile with John (the handyman adding a bathroom onto our place) about how he used to work for George Harrison.

• Sit on a plastic ice chest in the shade, with the dogs, and read facebook messages on my iphone. Or talk to my mom on the phone. 

• Throw the tennis ball for the dogs. Amuse myself (but not them) by taking multiple stupid self portraits. Try to get the dogs in a photo with me. Mostly fail.

• Eat lunch with Brant (mostly tuna and crackers)

•  Sit in the garden swing and read.

• Around 3:30, slather myself in bug spray and go for a run. The hills here are awesome.

• Stretch, shower.

• Sit in the garden swing again, with the dogs, and read, write, or just listen to music. Stare at the clouds till Brant gets off work. 

• Throw the dogs in the car and drive to Makawao with Brant for dinner. We usually go to the general store - they have the best homemade chili. 

• Bed. Sweet, sweet, bed.

See? Relaxing. I used to always have to have a project or be doing something productive to feel worthwhile. Yeah......not so much anymore.

On Monday, while using the WiFi at Starbucks I haphazardly sent out a slew of resumes. I have an interview next monday. So this relaxation will inevitably end, but man, I am enjoying it while it's here. 

The Only Title I Can Think of is Whiny.

Ugh.   Blerg.   Krmmpft.   Blech.

Those are my words this morning, as I feel like I should still be in bed, nestled down in a marshmallow of a blanket, dreaming dreams of lollipops and teddy bears.

Instead, I sit at the Bucks, slurping black coffee. Thank you Lord for coffee.

Also, thank you for this guy:

 

And the fact that Maddie rides in the car like this:

And Lucy every now and then looks peaceful instead of forlorn.

I'm off to Foodland to buy fruit for the day, garbage bags, and toilet paper. It is rainy outside. A great day to sit in the covered garden swing and read a book. 

Lava

We drove to La Perouse Bay this weekend. At La Perouse you can see where lava from past Haleakala eruptions meet the ocean. It's not a beach to lay out and work on your tan, but the contrast of sharp, dark, lava rock and deep blue ocean is spectacular.

It took awhile to get there from our side of the island.

 

We turned off of main roads and onto the narrow road running down the coast. Finally we saw some ocean.

But we were not there yet. More driving. We drove past peoples homes bordering this ocean. Blows my mind. Can't imagine living there.

Then the road went up into lava fields and the ocean disappeared. 

 

Lava everywhere. 

 

And then, finally, the ocean again.

 

Hands in the dirt

Yesterday was one of the most fun, relaxing days I've experienced here so far. After running errands and doing laundry in the morning, I got to spend the late afternoon gardening. The place we are crashing at is an old Japanese house and garden. The garden area has been neglected, but it's got good bones and with a little love could be beautiful again. I weeded a large portion of one of the flower beds (uncovered a strawberry patch!) and pruned a couple of shrubs. The breeze was blowing, the dogs chilled in the shade, and it was super peaceful.

There is a bamboo hedge on one side of the house. Apparently it is a rare kind of Japanese black bamboo that was planted there 50+ years ago by the family who built the home. So cool! I'll post pics soon.

When Brant got off work we hung out with a few guys from his shop and then drove into Paia for dinner.

We had Mahi Mahi curry and my belly was very happy. Brant even liked it.

We got the house!

I'd show you my excited face, but blogger is being a booger and won't upload my photos.

Anyways, I've very excited and relieved to have found a place. We are in the process of signing the lease and paying the deposit. We will move in on April 1st. It's pseudo camping like we have been till then.

So excited to be able to cook again!
So excited to decorate and go garage sale shopping for household stuff!

The place we are renting is the lower portion of a home. Our landlords are a very cool couple with a kid and a dog. We all get along great. We have our own private entrance and patio area. It has lots of counter space in the kitchen, cute tile floor, and is very clean. I'll post pics when we move in.

The thing I've learned about living here, is that no matter where you live, unless you have money like Oprah you are going to be living with people. Like, in very close proximity to other people, other families. You are stacked on top of one another in a condo units. None of the homes are 'single family' units. They all have portions that are rented out (ohanas). The ohana may be detatched, attached, upstairs, or downstairs, but 99% of the time, there is an ohana. Homes are expensive and having an ohana to rent out makes the mortgage payments easier/doable.

I've always been such an introvert. I still am. I need time to myself and my own space. But what I am realizing is that it is next to impossible to live over here without being around people a lot more than I am used to. You live right next to each other! With thin walls! Personal privacy is very different here. Where we live now, we can hear when the people in the main house go to the bathroom or cook in the kitchen. I shower at a (somewhat enclosed) outdoor shower with the handyman John working nearby. No, he can't see me, but it's still so..........open. 

Bottom line though, I love it. I love it here. And I will get used to whatever I don't love.

Can't be an introvert forever, I guess. :)

Loitering (Day 8)

I'm pretty sure Starbucks is going to kick me out.

I'm in here twice a day, ordering the cheapest thing possible (tall drip coffee $1.70) and then taking up one of the six tables for hours. Hours, people. But these are the things you do when you can't be at the place you are crashing because the handyman is there building a bathroom, and you need internet access to find you and your lovies a home. A home that you can kick back in and feel comfortable in and not have to leave.

Today I put my big girl panties on and drove myself and the dogs to Kihei to look at condos for rent. This is a big deal for me, since Kihei is on the other side of the island and has a lot of traffic. And I didn't know where I was going. Turns out, I am not a complete moron and figured out how to use google maps on my phone. I just punched those little addresses in and drove right over to the rentals. I saw this one house that I swear should just be torn down and put out of it's misery instead of rented. Holy jeez, and they wanted $1000 plus utilities! During all of this I managed to almost cause 1 traffic accident, sweated profusely, almost cried a little, and oh, my turn signal handle thingy fell off. It was awesome.

However, as I sat on the side of the road at the end of the day sweating, my phone rang and it was the lady from an upcountry rental I was really hoping would work out. She wants Brant and I and the dogs to come by tonight to meet her boyfriend, son, and dog. She wants to make sure it would be a good fit. She said she had 27 or so applications, but kept coming back to us.

So? Who knows?

I hope it works out. It is in a great location (upcountry, where it is cooler and close to Brant's work) and is super cute.

Anyway, all in all it was a good day. An adventure for sure. I'm starting to be able to find my way around better, and get a better feel for where I'd like to be on the island.

I haven't washed my hair in almost a week.

Earlier today I couldn't remember the name of my doctor in Boise.

I've got serious tan lines.

Bug spray is my new best friend.

If you stay underwater for a minute you can hear the whales making their whale noises. For reals.





I'll let you know if we get the place, and then you can start packing your bags.

Weekend Edition (Days 5 & 6)

Somewhere over by Haiku.

We spent the weekend exploring the island and looking for a place to live.

View from breakfast at the Gazebo.

Went snorkeling and got some sun at Blackrock on Sunday.

Haven't found a place to rent yet, but have a couple promising leads.

But, I did find this guy at a Lowes garden center:

Who is this?

It's a shoot out of a Hapu'u live log.

Apparently you can just plant a log around here and it grows?

All I know is that it's little furry, curled up plant head is killing me with it's cuteness.

Selfish to Serious and Psuedo Preachy - Day Four

Day four began with a tsunami.

Now, minus the devastation in Japan from the earthquake and tsunami, and minus the devastation in southern California and other areas affected by tsunami surges (because, HELLO, of course that is awful, and please don't take my words to mean that I don't care about those suffering right now, because dudes, this is definately a more tongue in cheek reaction to the days events), I have to say.......it was kind of exciting.

(And there you have a record long run-on sentence with probably multiple grammar errors. I was an English major, thank you very much).

Anyway, it was exciting. In the sense that hey, on our 4th day of our life here on Maui there was a tsunami warning, some surges, and some damage. It was exciting because I was not in danger and could lean against the fence in the Pukalani Foodland parking lot and look out over the skinny part of the island and see the waves coming in. There were quite a few of us there gawking this morning. A guy I met there told me how to read the waves and tell if they were regular waves crashing on the reef or if it was a surge. And that was kind of cool. In a selfish way.

But for so many, today was anything but cool and exciting.

I can't imagine the terror and devastation they have experienced.

And the trouble and difficulty they may continue to experience as the mess from all this gets cleaned up.


I'm not one to push my beliefs on anyone. I try not to anyway. But if you ask me (which you didn't, but it's my blog so neener, neener), these are serious times my friends. Not grab-your-food-supply-and-head-to-the-hills kind of times, but serious times nonetheless. Birth pangs, the Bible calls them. Times for reflection and softening and reality checks. I know people always say crap like that when terrible things happen. Remember how so many people prayed and called out to God after 911? And remember how that lasted for like, a week or two? Devistation brings us to our knees. We feel small.

And I believe we are.

Anyway, I do think all the disasters happening with increasing frequency are directly related to Bible stuff. I can't quote you a verse, I don't go to church, I don't have any answers. I just know what I know, and what I know for certain is that we are not alone. Even when waves sweep us away and the earth crumbles.



Wow, so in the span of this post I've gone from selfish excitement to pseudo Bible quotes.

Sorry if my opinions alienate you. But I gotta call it like I see it, you know?

Anyway, thank you to everyone who texted and facebooked us to warn us of potential danger. I'm thankful we weren't camping on the beach and didn't have to pick up our tent and run :).

Aloha.

Runs, Hills, and Day Three

Okay, so I never made it to the beach yesterday. Brant realized he had no money and no food for lunch, so I had to drive back up the hill with food for him. By the time I got that done, there was no time to make it to the beach and back before our appointment to see a rental. No worries though, we plan to hit the west side beaches this weekend.

The rental we saw was interesting. Well, the place itself was spectacular. It was further up the hill from where we are now and had amazing views. I think we would have rented it in a heartbeat, except for the fact that our car barely made it out of the neighborhood. The roads were one lane, winding, and hilly. Sometimes they were grass and sometimes pavement. I really can't even describe how hilly they are. I've never seen roads like this. You'd go up this crazy steep hill, get to the top and not be able to see the downhill till you were already 1/2 down and then BAM there would be this huge bump in the road - kind of like monster tree roots had grown under the pavement and pushed it up into a crazy inverted V shape. Now I understand why so many people here drive lifted 4x4's. Holy crap. We made it to the rental okay, but on the way out we nearly bottomed out on one of the crazy bumps. Took 6 or 7 tries to finally make it over and the coupe just scraped along, making the most horrid noise.

So yeah, I don't think we will live there. We'd have to sell our car.

Anyway, here's a shot of where we are staying now.

We use an outside shower and toilet a few yards away.

Outside showers are pretty invigorating.


I went for my first run here this morning. Holy hills. It was awesome. My last run in Boise was a flat, fast 5 miles. This morning I did a hilly 2 miles and thought about dying. But in a good, OMG sort of way. Definitely going to need trail running shoes.

Alright, I'm off to continue the rental search and buy an apple banana.

Aloha.

The Beach is That Way (Day Two)

Here are a few pictures from our new neighborhood as we walked to get coffee this morning. We live next door to the shop Brant is working at, and directly across the street is this little restaurant that sells coffee, french pastries, and pizza.

View from the coffee shop

See the ocean in the distance?

One side of the street. The shop is on the left.

And the other side. Excuse the shadow.

Brant went off to work after coffee, and I again grabbed the dogs and drove down into Kahului. It kinds sucks right now because I can't leave the dogs at our house since there is a guy that comes everyday to continue construction on the bathroom. So the dogs and I are joined at the hip. Kinda limits what I can do (I haven't even gone on a run yet!?!) but I know it's only temporary, so whatever, you know?

I'm currently sitting outside of Whole Foods again, stealing wifi. Plans for today include stopping by Ross to get another blanket (it gets cold at night upcountry!), stocking up on water and sunscreen, and then finding my way to the beach. These white legs of mine need some sun, yo.

Day One

Even though I arrived yesterday afternoon, today is my first full day on Maui, and so it shall be known as Day One.

When I arrived yesterday, it was rainy. And 81 degrees.

We picked the dogs up from the cargo facility (they did great on the flight!) and went to unload all of our stuff at the new place we are staying. I'll post pictures of it later - but it is a little ohana in the back of Brant's bosses house. It is perfect for us right now, and we will stay there as we look for a more permanent apartment to rent.

 

Then we went to Costco, bought an airbed, towels, and shampoo. And THEN we took Maddie and Lucy to see the ocean for the first time (not gonna lie, I really wanted to feel the sand between my toes too).

 

I had thought they might be scared of the waves, but they jumped right in. Swallowed a bit of salt water too. :)

This morning I did my first scary thing. Brant went to work (he works next door to where we are staying) and I jumped in the coupe and drove down the mountain to Kahului. It was scary to me because I have never driven the coupe before, I have no idea where I am going here, and some of the roads are really narrow and very winding. But I decided before moving here that once I got here, I wouldn't back down from doing anything - even if it was scary. So......here I am sitting in the Whole Foods in Kahului. Here in just a sec I'm going to pack up and head over to Ross to buy sheets for our airbed. The dogs are kicking it in the car, so I'll probably take them on a walk and we'll just hang out till it is time to drive back up to Kula.

In Transit

I am in Portland.

Last day on the mainland.

Spending time with my family the past few days has been infinitely wonderful.

The dogs are expert travelers.

Portland is gluten-free friendly, fun, but gray and gloomy.

I've got my slippahs ready, and I'm getting on that plane tomorrow morning.

Peace.