Advice from others.

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from kevin in regards to islands in the Pacific:

“you better get your ass on a steamer and explore the samoas/hebrides etc. that was one of my cooler trips. i once had something to the effect of 300,000 miles and I spent 90K of them dotting the pacific for four weeks. i took slow boats too! must be done. eating cold canned food on hot nights in moon’lit pacific minor islands where there IS NO HOTEL so you sleep on the beach (island had 100 people) and you just got on the next boat two day later. view 13 galaxies with the naked eye everynight.”

from Joseph in regards to the Hawaii’s Big Island:

“kiholo bay beach-also need a 4×4 to access unless you want to hike. this was just south of our resort. super beautiful, clear shallow water. basically it’s a beach that connects to a peninsula. you can walk across the water since it’s so shallow, no more than neck deep. sea turtles everywhere. and the area is fed by a freshwater spring, so you can feel the cold freshwater on top and the warm sea water on your feet. plus if you have goggles, you can see underwater where the fresh and salt waters separate, which looks like a mirror. finally there are two SICK mansions on the beach (of course on private property). one is the paul mitchell house (the cheesy bearded guy who sells hairspray), whose house looks like something out of the video game MYST. and the other is owned by the guy who invented the pacemaker; its ginormous.”

from Sarah a beautiful photo:

http://smartmagazine.blogspot.com/2008/10/lookout-weekend.html


Rollin Homey

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This isn’t my car but I wouldn’t mind if it was. It look likes Mystik stickers from the 80’s.

This past weekend I drove to Koko Marina to meet Sarah for an amazing Bikram class. Manny didn’t disappoint. I got into such a zone that by the end I wasn’t breathing heavy, even though I worked so hard and I looked like someone dunked me in a tank. But that’s not the news.

I. drove. myself. there. Granted it took me 45 minutes, but I got there in one piece. It’s the longest and farthest I’ve ever driven by myself. Though I didn’t think about that until after the fact. I just knew that I wanted to get there and I didn’t want K to have to drive me after working so hard this past week.

It turned out to be fun. I have a feeling that I secretly love driving. We’ll find out soon because Ken reserved a car for me today at Alamo-National. We decided to go with renting a car rather than buying because we’re only here for another 7 months or so. To have to cope with getting rid of two cars seems silly. Also, they gave us the kama’aina rate which was awesome. There are slim pickings when it comes to compact rentals. This article helped me decide on the Toyota Yaris.


Happenings…real and imagined.

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Sarah invited me to work with her and some great people that have created a presenting organization called Interisland Terminal. I haven’t attended one of their weekly meetings yet but I’m looking forward to it. In the meantime their second program Turn it Up to 11! Rock N’ Roll Cinema Weekend opens this Friday.

Back home Mary is getting ready for her S/S 2010 Fashion Week presentation for Slow and Steady Wins the Race. I’ve been trying to work with her from afar. I don’t know how useful I’ve been but it keeps me from feeling so far away. She has a great roster of contributors to The Still Life:

Last year I believed that I video taped a ghost . This year ghosts are not really an issue but having distance from it has made me curious about what really happened.  I was talking to Julie about it and she suggested that I have a session with this woman that does ‘clearings’.  I think I’d like to ask her about my tape.

Finally I’m trying a new recipe tonight. Kat introduced me to the recipe for Zuni Chicken which has become something I cook almost every other week. I asked her to recommend another recipe just to have more than one chicken dish in my repertoire. She didn’t have one but she steered me towards one of her favorites: Mark Bittman. Here’s how the Butter Chicken (as we’re calling it) turned out:


Relax Relate Release

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After a week of long late hours working, K is home again.
The best part of this week was when Bethany stayed over to keep me company. She showed up early Friday evening with three seasons of The Office on DVD and half of a Baskin Robbins birthday cake. Can one ask for anything better??? We heard a loud bump on the lanai and Gabi the cat appeared–gave me a fright.

After arming the security system, we fell asleep in the living room on our respective couches, laptops close by and season 2 on the TV.

Speaking of which K and I accidentally set off the alarm this morning and 2 police cars showed up–one was an SUV! I was so embarrassed yet impressed at the same time. I had to show them ID and they looked all around the house before leaving.


Full Moony

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Julie called in through the window tonight while I was making myself dinner and asked me if I wanted to go see the full moon. I was in my pajamas and had settled in for the night so I wasn’t really apt to go. But I said yes because I like her and thought it would be nice to get to know her better. I’m so glad that I went. Three different people, prior to this, had told me that I had to check out the full moon. I didn’t really understand. Now I do.

It was getting dark as we got to the beach and the moon was growing brighter and brighter. We walked the entire length of the beach glancing up at the moon every now and again. It was more beautiful than any picture or painting of Lanikai I’ve ever seen. The moon was hanging low between the Mokes and the sky was charged with deep blues, purples, and pink. The beach was so quiet but there were pockets of neighbors talking with each other, some of them letting their dogs run and play in the sand.

Julie said that full moon nights remind her of the air in the South of France. I don’t know about that because I’ve never been but it certainly felt like being in a completely different place, country… even planet.


Wine and Dine

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Sarah and Steve came over for dinner tonight–great company and great conversation. Hopefully they don’t get tired of the fact that almost all of our after dinner conversations are dominated by my curiosity about Hawaiian issues and the politics of statehood, sovereignty, etc.

Right before they arrived my friend Curtis sent me this YouTube video titled The Other Hawaii which touches on some of the struggles and contradictions that lie beneath the surface.

Sarah mentioned a couple of films that are being programmed this year at HIFF that sound really interesting: State of Aloha and The Last Princess, the latter sparking controversy among a number of Hawaiian groups.

As an Asian American, I feel a very instinctive connection to Hawaii. I feel like I don’t have enough time to understand the nuances of these issues and the politics surrounding them. My conversations with Sarah and Steve really help.

On a lighter note they brought tonight’s dessert which was RAD. Sorbet and gelato from a place called La Gelateria. The flavors they brought were Hazelnut Frangelico and Dragonfruit. The tagline is Made in Hawaii since 1981. They said it isn’t really a store, that they provide gelato to restaurants on the island but sell pints from their location. Steve said it doesn’t even look like a storefront–you walk in and there’s a desk and a fax machine.
Delicious.




Inbetween Days

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K started work this week.
And with that, I’m left with a finite number of days to make the most of my time in this beautiful place and be useful in the process.

In two weeks, I start hula classes. Everyone back home laughs when I mention this.  Our  idea of hula is such a bastardization of how beautiful and intense it is.  I’ve come to understand  that it’s  key to understanding Hawaiian culture and history.  It’s funny because I get very serious and righteous when people laugh even though I don’t really know anything yet. I’m going to Michelle’s teacher and I’m excited about it even though it feels intimidating. There’s a list of things I have to bring on the first day including a three ring binder. I feel like buying a trapper keeper.

In other news Beth came over for lunch today. I told her the other day that our blogs are like sisters. She’s kindred.

A little house in the sky.

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It happened.
We moved this past weekend.
I was instantly more comfortable in this house than places I’ve lived for years and years. Normally when I’m alone, I have to manage all kinds of irrational fears–including those of the supernatural realm. I spend most of my time looking over my shoulder… mulling over unfamiliar noises. I like to blast the TV to drown out any potentially alarming sounds. When K was here in Hawaii and I was back in NY, I went to bed every night with the TV turned up high. Every morning I would drag myself bleary-eyed into work at the museum with a venti coffee. I was so tired that many times I contemplated buying two ventis at once.

Revelation!

This house is free of bad feelings–free of dark corners or suspicious sounds. I was describing it to a friend and came up with a good metaphor. The house is like a labrador retriever: golden, warm, and solid. It’s like a big dog that embraces anyone entrusted to its care. When we’re out, I’m excited to come home. And when we’re home I’m constantly discovering new things. The other day, bringing in groceries, I peered into a giant pot which I thought was just a pot. Inside it was filled with water and tiny lily pads. Beneath the water I could see movement and when I focused I saw schools of tiny fish and tadpoles. In the morning a lotus blooms and emerges from underneath. As the day goes on it disappears only to come back the next day.


I love it here. All other places have dissipated.


Whoa doggie

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K and I started our Lanakila Meals on Wheels route again yesterday. We took over a route that a woman named Rashan had been doing for a year. She did the route with us so that she could say goodbye and introduce us to the seniors. In contrast to how I’ve delivered meals, Rashan really took her time and did alot of talk story. I was touched by how gentle and genuine she was with each of them even though I got tired part way through and let K go on without me.

I never knew my grandparents. Before this, I wasn’t really curious about seniors and had no affinity for them. But my best friend Ruth, who passed away last December, was 75, Technically a senior, Ruth was younger than me in spirit and my favorite person in the world to talk to. I never saw her as any age until she got sick.

Spending time with her in hospice showed me that little things can make a huge difference to someone that can’t do everything for themselves anymore. Being able to do this route means alot to me…mainly a chance not to be a mainland boor.


Made in Hawaii

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Last Sunday we caught the last two hours of the Made in Hawaii Festival. We’d been moving all weekend and almost forgot it was happening. Our new landlady sent us an email reminding us about the festival. We dashed over there before it closed down and walked through the whole thing.

It was pretty much how I imagined it would be. If there was more time and a little less people I really would have liked to explore each booth. There were so many great things like pidgin t-shirts, roasting pan cozies, straw hats, koa wood jewelry boxes, Hawaiian christmas ornaments, local fruit jams, and on and on.

At first I was dashing around grabbing every business card that I could. And then I realized there’s probably a roster of vendors on their site. Even though we won’t be here for next year’s festival, I figure I’ll look up individual companies and explore their wares over the course of this year. There were lots of people there and it seemed like a lot of the popular vendors had sold out. Like the Made in Hawaii Foods mochi strawberries.

It’s a really great event. We came home with a clay coaster that absorbs water ‘magically’, a Hawaiian crest key chain, and poha jam.