September 1, 2025
Installed rebar in the form for the concrete conter in the gazebo. Drilled into the columns at the side to anchor the rebar. Added a bit of fencing as the wire mesh reinforcing. Installed support braces under the forms. It is ready to pour.
At the corner of Palaoa Road and Amepela Road, I started a project yesterday to install a street sign similar to the one I created near the property at the end of Holowai Street. I had cut back the vegetation and dug a footing hole. Then I placed rocks around the top of the hole as a form for concrete to create a base for the sign post. Today, I loaded some sand and gravel into my truck along with some cement and my wheelbarrow and shovel. I drove over to this intersection and found that someone had taken all my rocks! There were a dozen or so ranging from the size of a grapefruit up to the size of a basketball – they were large rocks. Why would someone take these?
HMMMM –
So, I looked around and found other rocks to use and proceeded to mix my concrete and pour the base for the sign post with a metal pole embedded in the base.
Back at the property, I sorted the boards I had salvaged from the pallets into appropriate sizes. Then I used two broken pieces of 1 x and painted street signs for my street sign project.
September 2, 2025
I installed the street signs I had painted for the sign post at Palaoa road and Amepela Road.
I screened a large pile of the sand and gravel at the gate of the driveway and mixed concrete to grout the cells of the wall and the oven base at the gazebo.
And, I poured another step at the walkway to the entrance of the gazebo.
I added some brown color to the mix for this slab. Maybe a little too much brown color.
September 3, 2025
Went downtown this afternoon for propane, and to stop at the post office. I had ordered some canned food and potato chips. It is less expensive than buying these at the stores here. Then I went down to Honuapo and went swimming in the swimming pool in the lava.
The last three days have been overcast with light rain, consequently, my solar panels have not been able to keep the solar generator fully charged. It s below 50% today, so I take three 2 x 4’s over to the neighbor’s and use his electricity from his much larger system to rip these boards into three pieces. Two days ago, I had plugged my angle grinder in to my system to cut the rebar for the concrete counter. I did not pay attention to the power level when I did this and drained the system. Yesterday morning when I got up, the refrigerator in the gazebo was shut off and the system was at 0% It only got up to 29% all morning so I ran the propane powered generator to bring it up to 80%. Last night, I shut the system off before going to bed, and then got up at 4 AM to turn it on and run the refrigerator. Tonight it is at 66%.
September 4, 2025
Worked on the framing for the roof of the hose. Installed the ridge pole with a few rafters. The 2 x 4’s that I ripped yesterday were used to create two trusses – one at each end of the ridge pole. These two trusses support the ridge pole.
It was sunny this morning, but overcast all afternoon so the solar system is not up to 100%.
September 5, 2025
Work on roof – All the rafters in the center section are in place. I have cut the four hip rafters and installed them in place. It is beginning to look like a roof!
It was hot and sunny most of the day today. . . good for the solar systems.
September 6, 2025
Worked in the storage shed in the morning building dawers. I used the plastic soda trays I picked up at the convenience store the other day as the drawers, and I built shelves to accomodate them.
Took a shower at 12:30 PM. I had hot water from my PVC radiator system, but it still smells like PVC glue, and not a lot of pressure!
Filled the truck with empty water bottles and headed to downtown Na’alehu. I wanted to catch the 1 PM bus in to Kona and then return on the 5 PM bus. As I was pulling in to the parking lot across the street from the hardware store (an informal “park-n-ride” location), the bus drove past. Missed it by THAT much! I could drive to Oceanview and park at the park-n-ride location there, but I don’t trust that location! There might not be tires on the tuck when I returned. And maybe I’m just paranoid!
Drove to the trash transfer station in Waiohinu and filled my water bottles before returning to the property.
I took the concrete mixer out to the road where the sand/gravel piles are, and started the old generator (on the first pull) and mixed concrete for the counter in the kitchen gazebo. I used the sand/gravel that I had sifted the other day.
September 7, 2025
Woke up late – 9:30.
Woke up at 1:30 AM with leg cramps that lasted for at least for fifteen minutes that seemed like hours! Went back to sleep a little after 2 AM, but again woke up at 3:30 AM – don’t know why! Went back to sleep around 4 AM and woke up again at 5:30 AM. Went back to sleep around 6 AM and woke up at 9:30 AM. Strange night!
Gathered up my dirty clothes, removed blankets from bed and hung them on ropes tied between some trees to air out, removed sheets and changed pillowcases.. Took sheets, pillowcases, and dirty clothes to the laundromat in OceanView.
While I was there, a Samoan family brought their clothes in to be washed. They filled four $7.50 machines twice, and three $5.50 machines twice also. I would estimate that they spent over a hundred dollars doing laundry.
Another family came in with lots of clothes to wash. There was one $5.50 machine available. After filling this machine, they walked up and down the 3 rows of machines looking like vultures circling a dying man in the desert. I wonder what they expected the laundromat attendant to do, but they asked her to find them a machine. At this time, I was using only one machine, and the laundry lady pointed at it and asked, “Is that your machine?” I answered, “No. It’s your machine. I’m just using it for a while!”
Yeah, I’m a smart a$$! But it made her smile!
After the laundromat, I stopped at the grocery store. 3 two liter bottles of soda, 1 gallon of milk, and 1 pound of bacon – $38.00!
Back at the property, I took the blankets off the ropes between the trees and hung up the wet clothes. The cost of the driers at the landromat makes me just hang my clothes up to dry.
Then I cut two rafters – one for the center of each end of the roof. I removed the forms from the step I had poured the other day and reset them for another section.
September 8, 2025
Work on the roof structure continues with the cutting of the rafters to intersect the hip rafters. Using my cordless saw is slow – it bogs down because it has low power, and the batteries run out of power after a couple of cuts. I started up the generator (took two pulls this time) to use my mini saw. It barely cuts through 1 1/2″ material when making a straight cut, and does not reach all the way through when making a 45 degree angle cut. Also, the blade is a bit dull.
I go down to Na’alehu to the hardware store to buy a new blade for this saw. They do not have one this size (5 1/2″) so I buy a 7 1/2″ one to put on Scott’s worm drive skill saw. Stop off at the transfer station to fill water bottles. Tonight, there was a full moon.
September 9, 2025
I borrowed my neighbor Scott’s worm drive skilsaw. The cord is being held together with about six rolls of black electical tape. There is not an inch of this cord that is not wrapped in electrical tape. So, the other day when I was getting water at the tansfer station, I went in to the area where they collect the old, and broken, discaded appliances and removed the cord from an old washing machine.
I spent the morning replacing the cord on the skilsaw. As usual the screws were difficult to remove and two would not come out at all. But the handle came apart and the plastic posts inside where these two screws thread in are broken. So, I replaced the screws with stove bolts that go all the way through. Also, there is a lot of grease covering the wires from the switch and going into the motor. After replacing the cord, the saw shorted out on the second cut. It turned out that the grease on the wires was not grease, but melted insulation. I cleaned of the melted goop and wrapped the wires with black electrical tape. Eventually, these wires will need to be replaced, but that will require totally disassembling the saw. Got it put back together and cut four more rafters.
I poured another section of the sidewalk leading to the gazebo – the section I had set up the forms for the other day.
This time I did not add as much brown color.
The weather forecast is for a hurricane/tropical storm for yesterday, today and tomorrow. It has been mostly sunny today with a few scattered clouds – no rain. no wind. The full moon has passed and it is a bit smaller tonight, but it is still a big, bright moon in a clear, cloudless sky – with lots of stars!
September 10, 2025
The rain I was missing yesterday showed up today. Everything ws wet this morning, so it probably rained overnight. The sky is dark and overcast, and around 9 AM it started to rain – lightly – more than a mist or even a light sprinkle – but not a heavy downpour, just a slow, steady light rain. I tried to work in the rain, and I actually cut and installed three more rafters, but the rain was just too much.
I gathered up the empty water bottles – I always seem to have some empty ones around that didn’t get filled the last trip, or I have emptied since – and put them in the back of the truck for a trip to town.
i’m going in to Kona tomorrow, so I stopped at the gas station and got some gas in the truck and stopped at the post office.
Much to my surprise, the 2 1/2″ screws that I ordered the other day arrived. I didn’t expect then until the 18th. I could buy these at the local hardware store for $23, or at the lumber store in Kona for $22, but I order them online for $15. After filling the water bottles, I returned to the property.
After taking the water bottles out of the truck, I cut and installed two more rafters. Slow and steady wins the race!
TTFN
TropicalCastaway 