TropicalCastaway

Nine More Days

April 20, 2025

I leave for Hawaii in nine more days . . . or is it eight? I leave on the 29th at 6:30 AM, so does that day really count? What about today? Does today count towards the days until I leave? . . . Maybe I should say that my flight takes off in 212 hours!

Whatever!

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to go see the grandkids in South Carolina.

Actually, my son is buying a rental house and was asking me some building questions. I decided it would be easire to understand while looking at it, than describing it over the phone. I found a rather inexpensive fare into Atlanta, and booked a rental car to drive to South Carolina. There is an airport much closer to them, but for the same price as flying into this airport ($350 round trip), I could fly in to Atlanta and rent a car – $208 air fare and $160 car rental!

When I fly, I like to get a paper boarding pass so that when I get to TSA or to the gate, I don’t have to worry if my phone will die, or if I can figure out how to pull it up from some saved folder! I walk up to the ticket counter and give the agent my driver’s license and she asks, “So, where are we going today?”

“Kona!” I reply.

She starts pressing keys on the keyboard and says, “Hawaii! Sounds like fun!”

I smile and say, “Sorry, that’s next week! I’m going to South Carolina today!”

She smiles and pushes more keys on the keyboard and says, “There’s nothing here for you to South Carolina.”

“Oh, yeah!” I stammer. “Atlanta! I’m flying in to Atlanta!”

She looks at me as if to say, “Do you know where you are? Do you know who you are? Can you tell me how many fingers I’m holding up?”

But then she just smiles, her best customer service smile and says, “Ah, here it is. What can we do for you today?”

“I need a boarding pass.”

“Will you be checking any bags?”

“No”

She frowns at the computer and presses some more keys, then she turns to the agent next to her and says, “Could you print this boarding pass, this terminal does not want to cooperate.”

The other agent asks for the confirmation number, and then proceeds to print out the boarding pass. They hand it to me along with my driver’s license and the original agent asks, “Is there anything else I can do for you today?”

“Just point me towards the gate” I answer. I usually fly out of terminal 4, but this airline flys out of terminal 3, and I’m not real familiar with it!

When I get to the TSA security checkpoint, there are two lines, and of course, I pick the slow one! So it goes! But yet, all is good, and my large tube of toothpaste (5.7 ounces) goes right through! No problem!

My biggest problem was that my hat had gotten stuck in the conveyor and I didn’t realize it until after I had gone up the escalator. There is no down escalator! I had to find an elevator around the corner and go back down to the second level where the checkpint is located and retrieve my hat.

The flight to Atlanta is uneventful, except, as one of those passengers who paid the least, I board last, and my seat is 16 E – a dreaded middle seat. The guy in the aisle seat is a big guy, he does not spill over into my seat, but he does ccupy the armrest, as there is nowhere else for his arm to be. I’ve read that according to “airplane etiquette” the middle seat gets first dibs on the armrest, and it is rude to recline your seat!

Obviously, this guy knows no airplaine etiquette as he occupies the armrest AND he reclines his seat as soon as we have taken off! How rude! However, I think I will survive for the next three hours!

The car rentals are all at a nearby facility and they have a light rail train connecting it to the airport. My rental is simple and straightforward, and before too long, I am on the road heading to Greenville,South Carolina!

The road trip is easy, and the scenery is great – lots of tall trees, green grass – as I zip along the freeway. South Carolina welcomes me with the usual southern hospitality. Well, there is a sign that says, Welcome to South Carolina, so that counts!

I miss my exit for Boiling Springs and go to the next one. It is for the best as I needed to go to the gas station/convenience store for a bathroom stop and a drink.

After the rest stop, I see a sign on the road indicating the way to Boiling Springs – other than getting back on the interstate, and five minutes later, I’m on a very narrow country road in the back woods rural area of South Carolina. The speed limit is 35, I’m going 30, the guy on my bumper wants to go 55, and I think the road is only intended for traffic at 25! Then a car comes from the other direction and I am sure we’ll trade paint! I pull over at a driveway and the guy behind me zooms off!

I’m still out in the middle of nowhere, but I figure to just keep going, and maybe, it’ll be alright! All I can think of is what Bilbo told Frodo: “It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” -J.R.R.Tolkein

The road eventually takes me into Boiling Springs through the back way, and I find my way to the subdivision my son and his family live in!

There is nobody around when I pull into the driveway.

I didn’t tell them I was coming – I wanted to surprise them.

And they were. The kids were all at school, but my son and daughter-in-law were glad to see me! The first thing they said was, “Is Alanah with you?” Hmmmmmm! Maybe it’s not ME they are glad to see!

Jared had work meetings to attend to, so I had a good talk with Jackie – about the grandkids and what was happening with them. The she left to go pick up the girls from school, and I tackled a small maintenance problem in the laundry room.

As I was putting away the tools I had used, I heard the twins coming in the front door. One of them peeked around the corner and into the laundry room and asked, “Are YOU my grandpa?” I need to come see them more often!

Spent the afternoon with the girls as they jumped on the trampoline and made mudpies on the back patio! Their teenage brother came home and joined in – mainly doing what brothers do – teasing their little sisters!

After a good day with the grandkids, I made it an early night and went to the hotel I had booked. After traveling, I was tired!

The next day, Jared and I drove around and looked at the house he was contemplating buying. It has solar panels, the roof needs to be replaced, and he was concerned about how to go about doing this. We discussed the contract that the current owners have with the solar company and the issues that they do not want you to know until after you have signed the contract! Needless to say, solar panels on a house that are tied to the grid is not as simple and straightforward as the solar company wants you to beieve! It was good to be here to see first hand the way they were installed to be able to discuss possibilities for reroofing the house!

We dropped by the clubhouse for their HOA – he manages the HOA for the neighborhood – and looked at a few items he needed to fix.

Then back to the house, and spending time with the grandkids! I had Gavin, my grandson who is 15 – drive me over to the clubhouse. to fix the hinge on the sagging front door. He then drove me back to the house.

The next day, Saturday, they were having a community Easter egg hunt at the HOA clubhouse. All the kids in the neighborhood hunted for plastic eggs on the lawns and gardens at the clubhouse!

Dad provided directions,

While mom followed along

The older boys were not too interested in hunting for the plastic eggs.

The girls gathered their share

After everyone else had left, I had Gavin drive me back to their house in my rental car. A driving lesson not overshadowed by Dad, in a vehicle easier to drive than a large four door Toyota truck! His dad and mom followed along in their car and took a photo. I’ve asked for this photo to be sent to me, and I’ll add it when I get it!

It was time for me to leave – I was flying back to Arizona from Atlanta this afternoon and I had a three hour drive!

In spite of the map app on the phone, I still managed to get lost in Atlanta near the airport, but I still made it in time.

My return flight was more than half empty! I had three rows all to myself!

TTFN

Other Diversions

I will be going back to Hawaii on April 29.

I should say, that “we” will be going back, as Alanah will be going as well. She will be there for a long weekend, and returning to AZ, while I will be staying until July 24!

While Kilauea continues to erupt and subside, then erupt again, I am participating in other diversions besides golfing.

One of my favorite, is “contributing to the delinquency of minors” by going out to bars with my grandkids.

I met two of my teenaged grandkids at a bar in Tempe to watch the Arizona Wildcats play Duke in the NCAA semifinals.

The sports bar has multiple large screen televisions showing a variety of sporting events. The two closest televisions have the Arizona/Duke basketball game and the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball game!

While the Diamondbacks did beat the Cubs, unfortunately, the Wildcats lost to Duke.

A few days later, I went to the Diamondbacks game at the stadium instead of watching it at home or at a bar.

Today, the 11th, I decided I needed more diversions while I waited to return to Hawaii. So, I replaced the battery in my truck. $226.00

Then I repaired the weatherstripping in the car around the driver’s side window. It had come loose and was hanging down, so I went to the dollar store and got a tiny tube of super glue. After squeezing the super glue between the rubber weatherstripping and the metal door frame, I used a piece of rope to hold the weatherstripping in place until the glue dries. $1.25.

I hope that I can get the rope off after the glue dries, and more importantly, I hope the door will open after I shut it! I might need some super glue remover!

Then I replaced the brake pads on the front of the truck. $39.99

As a further diversion, we went to the Opera.

I can’t help but feel that we were scammed . . . again . . . by Arizona Opera.

A while ago, we went to see the Opera “Frankenstein” – it was a modern rendition of the story, all in American English, set in the modern era. The singing was nothing more than common conversation with a rhythm and a slight up lilt at the end of each setence. To say that their version did not translate to Americanism well would be an understatement. I wondered if any of the Italians had these same feelings about the early operas done in Italian – their native language!

Next, we went to Romeo and Juliet in Tucson at the Linda Rondstat Theater, and I fully expected Linda to appear in the middle of the performanc and demand that they take her name off the building!

This too was a modern rendition set in Los Angeles in the 1960’s. It appeared to be an elementary school, third grade drama performance of West Side Story! The scene where Juliet found that Romeo had drunk all the poison leaving none for her was truly comical, and her death scene was hilarious!

Tonight’s performance was called Aida.

Again, a modern opera about an Ethiopian slave in the service of the Princess of Egypt as Ethiopia attacked Egypt. The General leading the attack was the slave’s father, and the king of Ethiopia. The general leading the Egyptians was in love with the slave girl while the Princess of Egypt was in love with him. – On the surface, a typical Operatic confusion.

The stage was occupied by a chorus of over a hundred singers sitting on a tiered dias. When they stood to participate, they did not do it together, but in a staggered method, and it reminded me of doing the wave in the stadium while watching the Diamondbacks!

There was no scenery, but there was a combination of computer generated action scenes and still photos of what was supposedly modern day Ethiopia projected on a screen behind the stage while the opera singers did no acting, but only sang. I think that Harkins Movie Theater could have done a better job! Many of the Opera singers were fabulous, and it was an insult to their talent for there to be no director support from Arizona Opera!

Being a modern version, they had images of the tall, high tech windmills and solar panels producing electricity, but the princess used a rotary dialed telephone!

The first two acts were difficult to follow, and It wasn’t until the third act when there was some interaction between the actors that helped reinforce the plot being portrayed by the close captioned words at the top of the screen! But these attempts fell short due to the fact that there were no costumes and no scenary! I could not help but feel that nobody would get the same emotional uplift that Julia Robert’s character received in Pretty Woman when she saw her first opera!

I wonder if they are trying to disuade me from ever attending another opera!

And for now, Kilauea is quiet!

Excerpt from the daily update on April 15, 2025:

The ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption is paused; episode 17 ended at 9:45 a.m. HST on April 9 when low fountaining at the south vent stopped. Last night both the north and south vents were glowing strongly as seen in webcam images. Both vents continue to degas. If the eruptive activity reverts to pre-episode 17 behavior, data indicate that episode 18 is most likely to start today or tomorrow.

I have decided to seek another diversion of a different kind to occupy my time until I return to Hawaii. Perhaps, I will write about this at another time!

TTFN

Golf Diversion

March 25, 2025

While Kilauea is erupting on the Big Island, I’m on the mainland. So, I head over to my favorite 9 hole golf course in Mesa for a bit of golf!

Not quite Pebble Beach, but within my price range. I booked this course from an online website for $11.99 After the website fees and taxes, I paid about $16.50 for 9 holes.

The amenities are sparce, – no restaurant, the restroom is a port-a-potty, and the clubhouse is a portable trailer!

Behind the “clubhouse”/office there is a driving range. There IS grass where you hit the balls from, so it isn’t all bad!

They have recently added these electric golf carts. The course is so compact, that I would think the carts would be more of a nuisance! To each their own!

The first tee is elevated about fifteen feet above the fairway, and the green and flag are about 130 yards away. This is a par three hole, and I am glad when I can get a score of four on this hole. Rarely do I get par. One of the only two ball-wash stations is located here at the first tee. Right in front of the green, there is a depression that possibly once was a small sand trap in better days for this course.

The second fairway extends back in the opposite direction and right next to the fairway for the first hole. The tee is slightly elevated above the fairway and is a little longer than the first at 140 yards. There are two depressions about 20 yards apart right before the green that also might have been sand traps at some point in the past. A par three hole, and I typically score 4. . . many times five!

looking back at the third fairway from the fourth tee.

The third fairway is adjascent to the second and abuts the hotel property to the west of the golf course. The tee has two different elevated locations. The black (longer) tees (160 yards) are about ten or fifteen feet higher than the gold tees (120 yards). This hole is also a par three. I have had more success with a constant score of 4 on this hole than on either one, or two.

The first , second, and third fairways are oriented north and south. The fairway for the fourth hole is oriented from the south west corner of the golf course towards the east, and follows the fence line next to the rainwater retention / drainage canal that runs along the side of interstate 60. The fairway is a dogleg around a hill on the right,

with the end of the lake at the left of the green. The total distance for this hole is about 270 yards, and is listed as a par 4. It’s a good day if I can score a five.

looking back at the green for the fourth hole from the fifth tee.

The fifth hole and fairway is a 155 yard shot over the corner of the lake and is located in the south east corner of the property.

A shot too long would end up over the block fence behind this hole and into the traffic on a fairly well traveled major road. Thankfully, I cannot drive a golf ball that far.

There usially are a few waterfowlout on the course or in the lake. Today, there are two ducks.

The sixth hole is one of the shortest on the course,

It too goes over a portion of the lake, with a large net behind the hole that separates it from the driving range.

This is the only hole I have ever been under par. I have gotten a score of two on this hole with a birdie, but like most of these holes I am usually one over at 4.

The seventh hole is a straight shot back towards the clubhouse along side the driving range.

Playing eight, sends me back away from the clubhouse area and towards the far bend in the lake towards the fith hole across the lake. This one is shorter than seven at 140 yards.

It too is a straight shot down the fairway!

While it is not the longest fairway on the course, at 255 yards, it just seem to be – at least it does to me.

The tee is located on a sort of a peninsula protruding into the far bend of the lake. The tall trees between this hole and the eighth on the right seem to pull my ball into them.

I try to hit across and next to the edge of the lake and into the fairway that jogs off to the right towards the elevated green.

Like most of the greens on this course, the ninth is a patchwork of grass and dirt, creating difficult putting results.

Par for this course is listed as 29, but I have yet to be able to score anything under 40.

A few days later, I received an email from the USGS regarding Kiklauea. Eposide 15 of the current eruption has slowed to almost nothing. During the 15th episode, they had fountaining that reached 800 to 1,000 feet in the air above the floor of the caldera, and covered a good portion of the caldera with molten lava.

And I missed it!

April 2, 2025

Using the same website, I booked a different cource on the west side of the valley. The cost was $13.99 plus fees that brought it to around $18.00 As I have never been here before, I didn’t know what to expect.

The gofl course is a part of a rather large municipal park complex with a large lake in the park. The golf course is not on or around the lake.

The clubhouse is quite impressive, especially when compared to the clubhouse at the course in Mesa I usually play. The grounds are much greener and the greens are much better and smoother. While there are trees here, they do not over shadow much of the fairways like the huge gum trees at the course in Mesa.

The grounds are extremely green and well maintained with no visible dead or brown spots on the greens or the fairways. There are two courses here. One is an 18 hole course, and the one I have signed up for is a nine hole course comprised of all 3 par holes.

The first hole is a short 103 yard chip shot, at the edge of the golf course adjascent to the entry road on the left that separates the park from the golf course.

The second hole is also a straight shot – a bit longer than the 1st – of 174 yards.

If the flag were at the other end of the green, the third hole would have a slight dogleg to the right. It is listed as 91 yards.

Another relatively short and straight fairway is the forth at 118 yards.

The fifth comes back towards the first and second fairways and has a sand trap just before the green. I found a golfing buddy waiting for me on the 5th.

Possibly the shortest of all the holes, this one is only 66 yards.

The 6th is a straight line of 141 yards back in the direction of the 1st tee.

At 93 yards, 7 points us away from the clubhouse and the 1st tee, along side the 6th fairway.

Eight directs us back towards the clubhouse but at 88 yards, it only takes us a part of the way.

Running adjascent to the tee area for the driving range for 165 yards, and with the 1st and second fairways on the right, the 9th hole completes the circle and gets us back in the vicinity of the clubhouse.

Between the green for 9 and the fairway for 1, we find a small lake.

OK, maybe it is just a water hazard instead of a lake!

From the ninth hole, we can see the tees for the driving range.

The driving range is also well watered and has green grass.

And today, there were quite a few other golfer taking advantage of the range!

At par 3 for each hole, this course totals a par 27. My score was a little bit more at 37!

Meanwhile, back on the Big Island –

KILAUEA (VNUM #332010)
19°25’16” N 155°17’13” W, Summit Elevation 4091 ft (1247 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: WATCH
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE

Activity Summary:

Episode 17 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption began at 10:15 p.m. HST on April 7, 2025 with the start of lava overflowing from the south vent.

Episode 17 was preceded by glow from the south vent that increased at about 9:20 p.m. HST on April 7 indicating the gradual rise of lava in the vent prior to the start of the eruption. Lava continues to overflow the vent spreading across the floor of Halema’uma’u and is being fed by low spatter fountains 15-30 feet high (5-10 meters) as of 2:50 a.m. HST on April 8. Each of the prior 16 episodes ultimately involved significant lava fountaining, with the fountains of episode 16 exceeding 1,000 feet (305 meters) in height. High lava fountains are likely to follow the current low fountaining and lava flows.

TTFN

Kilauea

I have received some questions about the current volcano activity on the Big Island expressing concern for my property, so, here is some information.

This is from a news article from the Associated Press on March 25, 2025.

Lava began bubbling out of Hawaii’s most active volcano once again on Tuesday as Kilauea’s sporadic eruption resumed.

The eruption restarted at midday when molten rock began pouring out of a vent in Kilauea’s summit caldera, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said in a statement. The lava was contained within the caldera inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and wasn’t affecting any residential areas.

The volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii has been erupting on-and-off since Dec. 23. It’s shot tall fountains of lava high into the air and spilled molten rock across the caldera floor each time it’s come back to life. The spectacle is a popular attraction for tourists.

The current episode is the 15th of the current eruption. The shortest of the previous episodes lasted 13 hours while the longest went on for eight days. Pauses in between episodes have ranged between 24 hours to 12 days.

Kilauea is one of six active volcanoes in Hawaii, including one that is submerged underwater. The largest is Mauna Loa, which is also on the Big Island and which erupted in 2022. – end of qute from website.

As a refresher, the map above shows where the Volcano National Park is located. If you look closely, you will see the town of Na’aleu down near the southern end of the western portion which is over Mauna Loa. While the entire island is just one lava flow on top of another, and on top of another, etc., the area of the National Park only encompasses about 20% of the island, and the caldera is maybe 1% of the park,, Of course, we all know that 1% can shut down the economy of the entire world, but that is a different subject!

This is an enlarged map of the National Park on the Big Island – the areas within the green lines. The park does not encompass the entirety of either Kilauea, nor Mauna Loa, but it does include the most active areas of these two volcanoes.

This map above shows the caldera of Kilauea within the National Park, with the current lava flow area shown in pink, and the eruptive vents on the south wall shown in yellow.

The island of Hawai’i is divided into lava zones.

More info from the USGS (United States Geological Society)

USGS Lava Hazard Zone definitions

The lava flow hazard zones are based on location of eruptive vents, past lava coverage, and topography.

Zone 1 – Includes summits and rift zones of Kilauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes, where vents have been repeatedly active in historical time.
Zone 2 – Areas adjacent to and downslope of zone 1. 15-25% of zone 2 has been covered by lava since 1800, and 25-75% has been covered within the past 750 years. Relative hazard within zone 2 decreases gradually as one moves away from zone 1.
Zone 3 – Areas less hazardous than zone 2 because of greater distance from recently active vents and (or) because of topography. 1-5% of zone 3 has been covered since 1800, and 15-75% has been covered within the past 750 years.
Zone 4 – Includes all of Hualalai, where the frequency of eruptions is lower than that for Kilauea or Mauna Loa. Lava coverage is proportionally smaller, about 5% since 1800, and less than 15% within the past 750 years.
Zone 5 – Area on Kilauea currently protected by topography
Zone 6 – Two areas on Mauna Loa, both protected by topography
Zone 7 – Younger part of Mauna Kea volcano. 20% of this area was covered by lava in the past 10,000 years.
Zone 8 – Remaining part of Mauna Kea. Only a few percents of this area has been covered by lava in the past 10,000 years.
Zone 9 – Kohala Volcano, which last erupted over 60,000 years ago.

VOG

This is from the USGS website:

Best known for its spectacular lava fountains and flows, Kilauea also emits about 2,000 tons of irritating sulfur dioxide gas (SO₂) gas each day during periods of sustained eruption. . . The word “vog,” an abbreviation for volcanic smog, was coined to identify this form of air pollution, which unfortunately has become a part of everyday life for people in Hawai`i.

Vog is created when SO₂ and other volcanic gases combine and interact chemically in the atmosphere with oxygen, moisture, dust, and sunlight over periods of minutes to days. Vog is a visible haze consisting of gas plus a suspended mixture of tiny liquid and solid particles, called aerosol. The aerosol in vog is composed primarily of sulfuric acid and other sulfate compounds. Small amounts of several toxic metals, including selenium, mercury, arsenic, and iridium, have also been found in the volcanic air pollution coming from Kilauea. Far away from the volcano, such as along the Kona coast on the Island of Hawaii’s west side, aerosol particles dominate vog, but near Kilauea SO₂ gas is a major component of vog. – end of quote from website –

YIKES!!!!

Trade Winds on Hawai’i

The trade winds on Hawai’i come from the northeast, and flow across the island to the west coast. These are met by the Kona Winds coming from the south. The confluence of these two wind patterns in the area of my property, pushes the VOG emitted from Kilauea up the slope of Mauna Loa and over to the other side, where it falls downslope towards Kailua-Kona. Most of the negative effects from the VOG affect the residents on the west coast in ways that we escape.

In conclusion

So, when people express concern over my owning property on an active volcano, I point out that this activity is (currently) contained within the caldera (the volcano’s crater)of the volcano. And while the fountains reach heights of 600 to 700 feet high, they are still not above the lip of this crater! Of course, this was not the case with the town of Kapalana that was covered by 80 feet of molten lava in 1986,

or the homes, and farms in Leilani Estates destroyed by over 30 feet of lava in 2018, times when Kilauea erupted outside the caldera.

However, both of these areas were within lava zone 2, and my property is in lava zone 6, an area that is shielded from possible lava flow by the surrounding topography. In 2022, Mauna Loa erupted at the peak, and due to the topography of the mountain, it flowed to the north. Should Mauna Loa ever erupt on the south facing slope, all bets are off for my property, and I would expect that in the matter of a few hours, my property will be inundated!

And as for the air polution caused by the volcano,

– in spite of everything from the “climate change” alarmists (gasoline powered leaf blowers are more damaging than volcanos), volcanoes do in fact change the climate of the entire world! – we are in a location that again, due to the topography, spares us from the negative effects of the VOG.

Like everything in life, there is always a risk. And what it boils down to is, just how much risk are you willing to accept?

TTFN

Hmmmmmmm . . .

Timmy Hummingbird sat on the rope near the nest looking around him.

After spending the last month or so, confined within the small nest with his older sister Sally, it was great to be out where he could stetch.

He could preen his feathers, and clean his wings with ease out here. And, every once in a while, he could test out his wings while keeping a firm grip on the rope.

Sally, his older sister, had done this very same thing just two days ago, and now that she was gone, he was getting a bit lonely.

Not too lonely, Timmy thought. “Not as long as Momma was still around and she keeps bringing me something to eat.” he thought.

He was glad when Sally finally climbed out of the nest.

It was getting so crowded in there with the two of them. And with her now gone, he finally had a bedroom to himself!

They had tried to just sit on top of the nest, but that was crowded too.

A couple of days ago, they had gotten real scared. The humans were talking about how momma was going to push them out of the nest. He doubted that Momma would ever do that, but he still wondered. Sally told him that he was just being a worry wart. He wished that he could be as brave as she was! He had gotten so scared when she had gone out on the ropes. He was afraid she might fall. He was glad for the extra room in the nest, but he wished she would come back to the nest. It was so comforting to have her there next to him!

Then she started testing her wings. Holding onto the rope and flutterring. It was exciting to watch her, but a bit scary too! And then she let go. She fluttered around the nest a few times, then down to the evergreen bush by the corner of the carport.

Timmy thought she would land in the tree, but she just floated there for almost a minute. Then off she went! Zipping across the driveway over top the truck and the car! And she was gone!

Sally had gotten real perturbed at the humans. They kept looking at us, and Sally would say, “Stop looking at me! “Stop looking at me!” I would tell her to be quiet, and Momma told us to just sit real still and we will be alright. But it felt like we were in a fishbowl, with them staring at us all the time!

When we were real little, we hardly noticed them, Of course, that could be because we could barely see over the edge of the nest.

But now, it seemed like they watched our every move!

Sally was always talking about what was beyond the carport. She would ask momma when she came to feed us and to check on us, and momma would say, “When it is time, you’ll be able to find out!” Momma would caution us to be careful when we did go out there. To always be on our guard. To watch out for dangers. Danger like that mangy black cat that was aways hiding under the car in the driveway.

I could see it under there, always watching us, always waiting. Waiting for one of us to fall out of the nest.

Sometimes at night, I would hear it as it came up on top of the car in the carport, the car that the lady had covered with canvas when we were really small. Momma would clean out the nest and throw the waste out. Some of it would stick to the carport ceiling, the ceiling that protected us from the wind and the rain. But a lot of it would fall down on the car. I thought that the lady was going to knock down our nest when she first saw it. She didn’t like it falling on her car! But she covered the car instead.

Sally would just laugh at her, but I was hoping the lady didn’t hear her so she wouldn’t follow through and knock down the nest. I like it here. We are safe here, we are comfortable here. We are dry here and out of the weather. Sally can’t wait to get out and go exploring, . . .but I would be happy to just stay here. As long as momma keeps feeding me.

But I’m always hungry. Momma used to be able to feed both me and Sally in the same trip, but now when Momma comes, I’m still hungry after she feeds me everything she has brought. Maybe its because I’m so much bigger now.

I will admit though, it was getting a bit crowded in the nest. Even with Sally gone, I find it hard to fit back inside. And out here it smells so much different. And I can see so much more too. It’s scary, but it is a bit exciting as well.

“My wings are getting so much stronger now”, Timmy thought. “One of these times I’ll let go of the rope and try to just hang here in the air, just like Sally did.”

Then he did.

And it was so exciting.

He just couldn’t stop. He didn’t want to stop. This is so much fun . . . I’m flying!

Look at me, you stupid cat! You can’t reach me when I’m flying.

And away he went!

Marching Towards the Mainland

March 2, 2025

This morning was spent over at the neighbor’s property building a form on top of the gate column. I removed the 2 x 4’s from the second coumn that we were using as a guide, and used these as my form material and as legs to support the forms.

Then I removed the forms from the last wall caps I had poured yesterday. Yesterday morning, I caught the 6 am bus to Kona and went to the hardware/lumber store there and bought some straps to imbed into the concrete. I was a few short! After returning, I poured the caps on the last two corner walls.

Today, I built some short frame walls to go above the concrete/rock walls of the shower. There will be five sections of this semi-circular wall, and each section will be dominated by a window.

March 3, 2025

Back over at the neighbor’s property, Brian and I finished and supported the forms for the cap, and placed some rebar into the forms. We bent the upright rebar over to be imbedded into the concrete cap.

After pouring the concrete into the forms, we washed off the excess from the rocks along with any spilled concrete/cement. Then we loaded up the mixer to return it back to Hollowai!

In order to create a different look than plain grey cement, we added some concrete color to the concrete mix.

We also completed the rock work for the second gate column.

After cleaning up the mixer and putting everything away, we sat down to a great lunch.

Then back to Holowai to finish putting everything away.

March 4, 2025

Brian has removed the forms from the gate column cap.

Over at Ahi, I used the weed whacker and chopped down the grass at the top of the property next to the road. Then I removed the solar panels from the roof of the bungalow and secured the doors.

Back at Holowai, I wrapped up stacking the 4 foot long branches in a pile at the road to create a sort of a fence/wall. These are the larger branches that will not go through the chipper. I am using them to create a sort of a barrier or fence at the front of the property.

My single lone tomato is ripe, so I picked it and ate it. There are seven more little green tomatoes on the vines that will most likely die as I will not be here to continue to water them! Oh, well!

March 5, 2025

One last look from the ramp leading up to the plane at the Kona Airport. That is Hualalai Volcano behind the terminal!

And a look to the north/west at the airport control tower in the direction of Maui!

Good bye for now, Hawaii!

TTFN

February Draws to a Close

February 18, 2025

My dirty laundry is piling up, so it is time to do something about it.

I get out my two “washing machines” aka wheelbarrows. After putting in some water, I add laundry detergent to one of them and dump some shirts and socks into it. I agitate it with my hands and then scrub each article individually, before ringing out the soapy water. Then I throw it into the other wheel barrow to rinse it. After doing the shirts and socks and kitchen towels, I dump the wash water into the empty water bottles to use when mixing concrete, and add some detergent to what was the rinse wheel barrow. This now is my wash and with clean water in the other, it becomes my rinse for my shorts and my jeans.

A couple of ropes strung up between the trees becomes my clothes line.

This view looking to the east from on top of the bungalow at Ahi shows a rain storm down on the coast.

The view to the south also shows more rain. Maybe this wasn’t the best day to decide to do laundry!?

The view towards the ocean back at the Holowai property is totally obscured with clouds, and I think that rain storm I saw from Ahi has arrived!

February 19, 2025

On each side of the truck, there are running boards. Running boards are intended as a help to step up into high profile vehicles. This is not a high profile vehicle. While it IS a 4 wheel drive vehicle (even though the 4 wheel drive does not function), it is not high peofile and these running boards are more of a hindrance than a help. Couple that with the fact that they have beed damaged and are rusted beyond repair, Yhey are not only an eyesore, but are actually dangerous as someone could get injured by them. I have wanted to remove them, but have not made a concerted effort to do so. Today, I decided to do just that!

I removed them from both sides of the truck and discarded them in true Hawaiian fashion by throwing them over a rock wall to let the jungle grow up and take them!

Then I began to build forms for pouring a concrete cap on top of the four columns and the four corner walls of the house.

A trip downtown seemed like a good thing to do, along with a visit to the ocean front at Honuapo

I stop off to visit the “vegetable lady” a location where there is a tent with a local “farmer’s market” style stand is set up each Wednesday.

I get my lettuce and tomatoes here. Even though I suspect that most of the produce probably comes from the mainland.

Down at Honuapo, there is a natural rock bridge out at the ocean’s edge.

Today, the waves were crashing just right!

I could watch this all day!

February 20, 2025

Down the road from the Holowai property, someone has begun clearing the trees from the lot across the road from the neighbor.

Typically, a property owner hires someone with a bulldozer to clear the lot, and the bulldozer knocks down everything and pushes it into a big pile along the sides of the property – sometimes even onto the neighoring property. This is the way that they protect the environment – by first creating a different environment, one that they can maintain instead of the original environment.

This time, they have used a track hoe with an attachment that is like a very large weedeater – it chews up the vegetation. They have chewed up the trees along the side of the road back to the property line, and then cleared the lot behnd a row of trees that they have left. Progress!

Back at my property, I built forms over the walls in one corner of my “house”.

Over at Ahi, there are quite a few guavas beginning to ripen.

February 21, 2025

I have less than two weeks left until I return to the mainland, so I need to begin thinking about wrapping up any projects, putting things away, and securing the properties. I return to Arizona on March 5. My flight is at 10 am, so I will need to catch the 6 am bus to get to the airport in time. The 8am bus gets me there at 10:15 – too late! Gotta start thinking of the logistics!

First, I need some milk and eggs, so I go to the grocery store in Oceanview, about 10 miles away. Milk in Naalehu is $12.99 per gallon, so it is worth the trip.

Returning to Holowai, I need to work on the generator. It has been giving me problems and for the past two days, I could not get it to start.

After re-doing the connection to the spark plug and some cleaning fluid in the carburetor, and a few special words of encouragement, I got it started.

I mixed concrete for the shower wall. Then I built more forms on top of the house walls.

February 22, 2025

Once again, I raised the forms on the inside of the shower wall, and began stacking up rock on the outside.

The concete wall is looking just like what I wanted it to be.

It is tedious fitting the rocks together to contain the concrete I will pour into the wall.

I have been able to stack rock, add rebar, pour a bit of concrete, then stack more rock, pour concrete, stack rock, etc to get it almost up to where I want it.

As I build the wall, I try to wash the excess spilled concete off the rocks. But this is not always successful, so I have been spraying muriatic acid (pool acid) onto the rocks and them washing it off. I even have an old paint brush that I use on the stubborn spots.

Before pouring the final concrete on the wall, I cut some 2 x 4 templates for the wood frame walls that will be above the concrete. I need to use the templates so I know where to place anchor bolts in the wet concrete. These anchor bolts will hold the wood walls in place on top of the concrete/rock wall, and the templates will be the top plates of the wood wall that sits on the concrete/rock wall.

February 23, 2025

A couple of weeks ago, there was a guy at the corner flying a drone. A week later, Alanah found that the property on the corner had been listed for sale on a website, and it had pictures that were taken by a drone. The owner is asking $52K for a lot that is .38 of an acre and is 200 feet long along Palaoa road, and is less than 40 feet wide along Holowai. Additionally, the elevation of this corner lot drops dramatically from the elevation of the road. I am concerned that someone looking at the photos would think that the property extends from the corner, all the way to my driveway.

So, I decided to identify the corner of my lot so there cold be no mistakes. In the past, I had placed a pile of four or five rocks next to the road near the corner. These were not real obvious, and I want to make it obvious!

So, I cut the vegetation from my lot up to the other lot.

In doing so, I found two coconut palm trees that I had planted a couple of years ago. I had planted three but only two have survived.

And, I started to build a rock/concrete wall at the corner

February 24, 2025

The last segment of the concrete/rock portion of the shower wall is done.

Using the 2 x 4 templates I had cut, I was able to place anchor bolts in the wet concrete that will hold the frame walls.

I also poured concrete in the first two column caps, and imbedded some straps and bolts.

February 25, 2025

All of the forms have been re moved from inside the shower. This reveals the 8″ squares where I will install glass block as well as the rectangle soap/shampoo holder.

On the outside, I lined up the templates I had cut and used to place the bolts. I fine tuned the cuts and used these as templates for cutting the bottom plates, which I cut from some pressure treated brown 2 x 4’s.

February 26, 2025

I stripped the forms from all of the columns as well as the two corners where I had poured the caps.

Using the same material I used for the other forms, I built forms on the last two corner walls for concrete caps there.

Out on Holowai. I had piled up the branches I had cut from the corner of the property to build a rock corner wall. I started to drag them down to the chipper.

Then, I got the chipper started and proceeded to make wood chips out of them.

The road is cleaned up again.

February 28, 2025

The last of my metal straps have been placed in the forms on top of the last two corners. I need more straps!

My lone tomato on my tomato plants is getting ripe, as February comes to a close!

I go back to the mainland in five days!

TTFN

March Madness

In early spring, the birdies sing; and flowers are on the ground.

And young men’s fancies turns to what women have been thinking about . . . all year round! – basketball!

And so it begins again. The time of year when office productivity drops because everyone is watching NCAA basketball!

Selection Sunday has happened. The brackets have been announced. The Arizona Wildcats are in the East regional and will play in Seattle Washington on Friday against the Akron Zips.

How Seattle Washington can be considered the East Regional, is beyond me. But that’s NCAA basketball!

Let the Madness begin!

TTFN

Vacation is Over

February 8, 2025

My sister and her husband have left the big island for Oahu, so it is time for me to get back to work.

Alanah had arrived on the 6th for the weekend and I wanted her to paint the overhang of the bathroom. I had painted the boards prior to building it, and they had gotten scuffed and they have nail/screw holes and joints that need repair before repainting.

I caulked the joints with construction adhesive to help keep them together prior to this repaint.

Using a stiff putty knife, I filled all the nail/screw holes.

I borrowed some flexible form material from my neighbor to form the walls of the shower. He had used these to form the driveway we poured on the hillside leading up to his parents’ place. That’s how I knew he had them,

By stacking them in this fashion, I have created a half circle with a radius of almost 4 feet!

I imported a crew from the mainland for mixing the concrete and we got started.

February 9, 2025

Alanah painted the overhang on the bathroom

while I did some work inside the bathroom

February 10, 2025

Alanah returns to the mainland this afternoon so we went down to the ocean

The swimming pool is clear

and the ocean is calm. A good day!

February 11, 2025

This morning, I spent some time watching the birds. OK, I spent the entire morning doing that, but I don’t have to clock in anywhere, so . . .

These little green and orange and yellow birds that I think are Hawaiian Honeycreepers are quite intersting. They seem to show up in groups. When I notice only one at the feeder or the lanai, it isn’t long until there are six! Where, with the Red Headed Cardinals, it is usually only a pair, or maybe two pair. The Northern Red Cardinals usually show up one at a time, but when I see a bright red male, the dull brown female is not too far away.

Most of the time, they take turns going to the feeder, and they search around on the lanai around the feeder for any dropped crumbs while waiting their turn.

The HoneyCreepers seem to be the rare exception, where they often share the space in the feeder. That does not mean that they are always welcoming. Sometimes one of them will harass the others into leaving or not coming into the feeder. I think that this is a personality thing of a specific individual.

It could also be a “family” thing with birds of one clutch of eggs sticking together and protecting each other’s backs.

And it seems that the HoneyCreepers are not intimidated by the larger Northern Red Cardinal in the same way the Red Headed Cardinals are. Of course, this could be simply a matter of safety in numbers!

February 12, 2025

I had a load of sand and gravel delivered to the property at Holowai. Cost me $580. I will use this to mix concrete for my various projects. I will separate the larger rocks and use them to build up the path from the driveway to the house and as fill material around the block walls.

Up until now, I have been using the material I had moved back by the bathroom on my last trip for mixing concrete. It is all used now, so I will start using this from out by the road.

With the generator and mixer out by the pile, it is a simple matter of shoveling it into the mixer, and adding water and cement.

After it is mixed, I pour it from the mixer into a wheelbarrow and then shovel or dump it between the rocks I have piled up and the forms on the inside.

Now, I will ,let this setup and tomorrow I will remove the forms and reinstall them higher up.

February 13, 2025

A little mechanic truck work is the first order of the day today. I had ordered some new shock absorbers and they were delivered the other day, so now I need to install them. When I drive over a bump – which is constantly on these roads – I hear a hammering or a thump from under the right front corner of the truck, so I figure it probably is the shocks.

Another chore completed from the to-do list.

Afterwards, I gathered the guavas that were ready to pick.

There are six layers in my concrete form. By removing the lower four layers, the upper two will support the forms as I go higher. I start by moving the 1 x supports up to the top two layers. Then I remove the lower forms and reinstall them above the two that I left in place. This exposed the concrete wall I had poured, showing a little bit of honeycombing, but not too much!

With all six layers of form in place, I am ready to build the rock portion, add rebar, and pour another section of concrete.

On the outside, I need to stack up rock to form the outer side of the shower wall.

February 14, 2025

In order to provide some light in the lower section of the shower, I want to install some glass block in the shower wall. As I do not have them on hand, I will have to create the opening as I pour the walls and then install the glass block later.

So, I have made some styrofoam cubes that are 8″ square. After the walls are done, I can easily remove the styrofoam, leaving an 8″ square opening – at least that is what I hope for!

February 15, 2025

The only styrofoam I have is some odd shaped packing material I have picked up. I cut pieces from the styrofoam and tape it all together using clear packing tape to create the cubes.

It is very time consuming and very messy, with little beads of styrofoam flying around from when I cut it. I do this in the kitchen gazebo where I can sit down, and hopefully contain the small pieces of styrofoam.

The 8″ cubes will extend all the way through the wall. I have also made one that is 6″ wide and 12 ” tall and only 4 1/2″ deep. This one will create a cavity for a shelf for shampoo bottles and soap.

I fastened these to the forms with long screws to keep them from moving while I pour the concrete around them.

Once the boxes are in place, I stack up more rocks, and tie in some rebar. Now I’m ready to mix more concrete.

February 16, 2025

The truck has been making a kind of a humming/scraping sound coming from the front end. I needed to check the fluid level in the transfer case. The transmission has a dipstick to check the level in it, as well as a dipstick for checking the oil in the engine, but for the transfer case, you have to remove a plug from the side of the transfer case and visually check the level. The correct level is to have fluid up to the bottom of this plug. In order to remove the plug, I needed to lift the truck. A mechanic shop would put it on a lift or hoist to do this, but I do not have one of these, My neighbor Brian has some metal car ramps, so we used those to give me room to get under the truck.

After removing the plug, I added about 3/4 of a quart of transmission fluid to the transfer case before the fluid level was up to the bottom of the hole! The guys at the repair shop in Naalehu told me that the fluid could be either standard fluid or the newer synthetic type. You must use the same as is in the vehicle, and you cannot mix them. In order to find out which type, I had to call a ford dealer and have them look up the VIN umber. I called the Ford dealer in Honolulu and was on hold for over an hour waiting for the parts/service department to pick up the phone, so I called a Ford dealer in Scottsdale Arizona and got right through. They verified that my truck originally had standard fluids, not the synthetic type.

Everything I try to do is delayed by some minor glitch like trying to find out what type of fluid for the transfer case! This took most of the day!

February 17, 2025

Today, I helped Brian with the second rock gate column at his parents place.

This time, we installed some upright corner posts to give us a guide while stacking the rocks.

This column turned out just a little straighter than the first one on the other side of the gate.

TTFN

A Special Visit

2/27/2025

This is a “guest posting” from my sister Cathy.

Russ and I had such a fantastic visit with David and Alanah a couple of weeks ago while we were on the Big Island of Hawaii. In fact, seeing them was The reason we went to the island. We flew into Kona and then it’s about a 2 1/2 hour pleasant drive, along the coast, to their property near Naalehu. David gave us directions to his slice of paradise; it’s in a beautiful area on Holowai off the paved highway, surrounded by banana plants and palm trees.

After enjoying a refreshing drink of juice in fancy glass goblets, we were treated to a tour of David’s property as he explained his vision. He has done an incredible job clearing the land for his cinder-block structures. It’s amazing all that he has built- completely by hand! He has no water on the property; he hauls in water from the nearby town of Waiohinu… which is a major job just by itself!

In one bungalow he has a bed and even solar powered lights. He was currently working on the separate bathroom; pouring cement for the shower, and making doors and window frames from scratch. He even has special lantern-type solar lights outside the bathroom. Very nice! His attention to detail is evident by the particular patterned cement floors in the bungalows.

Of course, he put us to work shoveling gravel and moving rocks!

We then drove over to his other property on Ahi, where he’s working hard on the steep driveway. He’s built a gazebo plus another bungalow structure here as well. It’s all very tropical and lovely, and we had a gorgeous view of the ocean in the distance. We even enjoyed ripe guavas from some of his trees. It’s so hard to describe the amount of labor and love they have put into their Hawaiian dream.

We drove over to Punalulu Bakery/Store for lunch and ordered yummy sandwiches and malasada. It was gorgeous sunny weather as we sat outside under the palm trees and ate lunch.

David then showed us to the nearby black sand beach. The blue ocean waves, black sand, and large sea turtles were amazing! We can’t believe we’re actually here enjoying this beautiful tropical area. We then drove back to Kona, with the promise of meeting up with David & Alanah soon.

A couple days later, David & Alanah drove the 2 1/2 hour trip into Kona, then we piled into the rental car and drove north along the Kailua-Kona Coast. We had blue ocean views on one side of the road and large areas of black lava rock on the other side; it’s very unusual.

We drove to the Northernmost part of the Big Island, to Hawi, King Kamehameha’s birthplace.

We, of course, had to take pictures with statues of the King.

After pizza for lunch, we went looking for the Old Kohala Lighthouse on a very narrow, deeply rutted dirt road.

The road became a “path” surrounded by sugar cane, and David wisely stopped the car.

We walked the rest of the way, 1/2 mile, to a dramatic view of the ocean.

We found ourselves on the point of a peninsula, with views of the ocean in all directions,

but no lighthouse. It had been replaced by an observation tower pole.

It was a fun adventure. We drove back to Kona and sadly said good-bye to David and Alanah.

They were amazing tour guides and we enjoyed our days being tourists with them. Thank you so much for a marvelous Hawaiian time!