There's a new sushi bar in town! Yay! We'll go tomorrow night, so I'll report my review next blog. I've been thinking that Hilo could easily support another sushi joint, especially considering that the the largest segment of the population is Japanese.
Today was a short one for me at ye ol' wine factory. Most days are borderline crazy with visitors. Today, however, business was painfully, boringly slow, so one of us was asked to volunteer to go home. Both of my co-workers said they would prefer to stay, so I gratefully (and I think gracefully) skadoodled. Or is that skeedaddled?
I'm sitting here watching the news and see that some researchers have attached transmitters to a bunch of adolescent honu (turtles). The green sea turtle, which is endangered and protected in Hawaiian waters, is the subject of their study. The transmitters can send a signal from under the ocean surface to a satellite orbiting the earth. They'll track patterns of movement to learn more about honu behavior. They hope to see them return to local shores in about 25 years to lay nests. Very cool.
Even though the Green Sea Turtle is endangered, it's not uncommon to see them here. I also see nene geese (pronounced naynay) quite often, the state bird of Hawaii. I see them at work, on the grounds of the winery. There is also a group that frequents the Volcano Golf Club, right down the street from the winery. They look very much like Canada geese, but a little smaller with stripes on their necks rather than solid black. It is believed that thousands of years ago, ancient ancestors of the Canada goose were blown off course and found their way to Hawaii. They then evolved over the centuries, adapting to this environment. They thrive on the barren lava fields of the Ka'u desert. They also do much more walking than they do swimming, so they have lost the webbing between their toes. The nene, like all of Hawaii's native birds, existed on these islands for thousands of years before humans or other predators arrived. So they have no natural defenses against them. That's why most of them are endangered now.
For the honu, the biggest enemy in decades and centuries past was humans picking them up off the beach or grabbing them out of the water. Today, the honu's main nemesis it still humans. The turtles get entangled in gill nets or abandoned fishing tackle, cannot surface and eventually die. That's what happens regularly to Hawaiian monk seals too, the only seal indigenous to Hawaii.
I heard today from my tea plant contact that my cuttings will be available soon. I'm anxious to plant the tea alongside the coffee. You can never have too many antioxidants in your yard.
I ran five miles on the treadmill yesterday. I did it in 57:08. I actually lasted an entire hour on the machine. That's blazing for me. My legs were a bit like rubber when I dismounted the contraption. Still, I guess I'm pleased and amazed this middle-aged woman with chubby, short legs could accomplish such a feat. You'd think that, with all this running, I'd have lost bunches of weight. Nope. Not an ounce. And you'd also think that, given all this exercise, I could eat anything I want. Nope again. I apparently have the world's slowest metabolism.
That's all the news I have for today. A hui hou. Aloha!
Today was a short one for me at ye ol' wine factory. Most days are borderline crazy with visitors. Today, however, business was painfully, boringly slow, so one of us was asked to volunteer to go home. Both of my co-workers said they would prefer to stay, so I gratefully (and I think gracefully) skadoodled. Or is that skeedaddled?
I'm sitting here watching the news and see that some researchers have attached transmitters to a bunch of adolescent honu (turtles). The green sea turtle, which is endangered and protected in Hawaiian waters, is the subject of their study. The transmitters can send a signal from under the ocean surface to a satellite orbiting the earth. They'll track patterns of movement to learn more about honu behavior. They hope to see them return to local shores in about 25 years to lay nests. Very cool.
Even though the Green Sea Turtle is endangered, it's not uncommon to see them here. I also see nene geese (pronounced naynay) quite often, the state bird of Hawaii. I see them at work, on the grounds of the winery. There is also a group that frequents the Volcano Golf Club, right down the street from the winery. They look very much like Canada geese, but a little smaller with stripes on their necks rather than solid black. It is believed that thousands of years ago, ancient ancestors of the Canada goose were blown off course and found their way to Hawaii. They then evolved over the centuries, adapting to this environment. They thrive on the barren lava fields of the Ka'u desert. They also do much more walking than they do swimming, so they have lost the webbing between their toes. The nene, like all of Hawaii's native birds, existed on these islands for thousands of years before humans or other predators arrived. So they have no natural defenses against them. That's why most of them are endangered now.
For the honu, the biggest enemy in decades and centuries past was humans picking them up off the beach or grabbing them out of the water. Today, the honu's main nemesis it still humans. The turtles get entangled in gill nets or abandoned fishing tackle, cannot surface and eventually die. That's what happens regularly to Hawaiian monk seals too, the only seal indigenous to Hawaii.
I heard today from my tea plant contact that my cuttings will be available soon. I'm anxious to plant the tea alongside the coffee. You can never have too many antioxidants in your yard.
I ran five miles on the treadmill yesterday. I did it in 57:08. I actually lasted an entire hour on the machine. That's blazing for me. My legs were a bit like rubber when I dismounted the contraption. Still, I guess I'm pleased and amazed this middle-aged woman with chubby, short legs could accomplish such a feat. You'd think that, with all this running, I'd have lost bunches of weight. Nope. Not an ounce. And you'd also think that, given all this exercise, I could eat anything I want. Nope again. I apparently have the world's slowest metabolism.
That's all the news I have for today. A hui hou. Aloha!
Comments