Mountains and Islands

Today was positively spectacular.  It was just how paradise is suppose to be.  I got up early to shop the Volcano Village farmers' market. If you don't get there by 7:30 or 8:00, a lot of the most ono grinds are sold out.  On my way, I stopped to drop off some trash and recycling at the transfer station.  That's how we do it here.  No garbage service.  Just chuck your smelly bags into the trunk of your car and off to the dump.  It's not bad really.  Regardless of which way you're headed, there's a transfer station on your way.  When I arrived at the Volcano station, I backed up to the dumpster as usual.  When I got out to open the back of the truck, I noticed a mommy kitty and two babies curled up on a rock nearby.  "Ah," I heard myself say out loud .  No matter.  They were the only ones who could hear me.  Mommy looked asleep, but I think she was watching me through squinted eyes, the way cats do.  I lifted two bags out of the truck and flung them in...

Hilo now has what may be the weirdest radio station in the known universe. KHBC is actually a pretty old station, but was previously broadcast only on the AM dial. Now, it's comes into my car via FM signal. Better yet, Kahikina and Lyman, two of my faves from KAPA (and two of the most well known radio personalities on the island), recently defected from their old digs and are now part of the evening drive time, Pau Hana Party show on KHBC . They share the mics with a gal named Pohai . Initially, I wasn't too keen on Pohai , thinking Lyman (formerly one of the boloheads on KAPA) and Kahikina (aka Tommy Ching , the Polynesian Pirate) could handle the show quite nicely on their own. Now, however, I see that she really adds zaniness. In fact, she's hilarious. Pohai has the perfect female radio voice, deep, a little raspy yet uniquely feminine. I like her. KHBC is strange because the station's musical offerings are all over the map. They might play a classi...

I was saddened yesterday to learn of the passing of Tim Russert. With the sorry state of mainstream journalism today, we can ill afford to lose one as brilliant and dedicated as Tim. I can only hope that those he mentored will carry the torch for us all. What a brilliant, yet extremely cool guy. It's funny. Russert was always amazed that he, a simple (albeit genius) boy from Buffalo, was able to hold court with presidents and popes. There are plenty of people out there lucky to have held court with him, too. I would love to have spent just half an hour with him over a beer and some wings at the Anchor Bar. Kudos to NBC for their fantastic tribute to their friend, mentor and colleague last night. After hearing that news, plus the stories of the boy scouts killed by a tornado, yesterday morning was a real tear jerker. I think about my dad, who loved politics, and I think about Tim Russert, who was the voice of American politics, and I feel badly that they are going to miss the ...

I went to the doctor on Monday. Not because I'm really sick or anything. I just finally found one to take me, so went in for an initial checkup and to schedule a physical down the road. Ironically, I did come down with my second cold in as many months last Friday and am still fighting the clog. But I had made the appointment several weeks ago, so I went anyway, even though I was taking a risk that my new doctor would think I had actually come in for a cold. Who goes to the doctor with a cold? What do I look like, a total weenie? Anyway, so what did I learn? (Channel you inner Michael Jackson now....) I learned I'm fat, I'm fat, I'm really really fat, you know I'm fat, I'm fat, you know it..... Ah but my blood pressure is a screemin ' amazin ' 110 over 70. Alrighty then. I'll take that any day. I'm going for a blood test, maybe tomorrow morning, to check my thyroid and a few other things. Seems that's something women of a certain ...

Ron has a cold. The poor guy is miserable. This his morning, he called in sick - to himself, of course - and chose to stay in bed. Abby and I have taken over his office. We're blogging, getting chin scratches and watching our local morning show rather than streaming stock prices and CNBC . Abby sits on the desk blocking about half my view of the screen. I don't mind. He's a sweet boy. So it seems the local boy will be democratic nominee for president. He's over-the-top popular here, and there are plenty of testimonials from people who say they always knew he was destined for greatness. I wonder if he speaks any pidgin. Anybody born and raised here should. It would be totally cool if, instead of addressing a crowd as "fellow Americans," he would come out with an enthusiastic, " Howzit ! How you stay? Da polls goin ' be choke fo vote da local boy, yeah?" I've been called in to work a bunch more hours at the winery this week and ne...

I'd like to dedicate a portion of this blog to the late, great Harvey Korman . He was one of my favorite comedians, one of the few humans who could make me laugh uncontrollably. He is also the man who uttered one of my favorite movie lines ever. In fact, I shamelessly steal and use it frequently in everyday conversation: "Now go do that voodoo that you do so well..." ( Hedley Lamarr , Blazing Saddles). Thanks, Harvey, for all those hilarious skits on the Carol Burnett Show. Thanks too for being such a perfect straight man to Tim Conway over the years (who is also so funny exposure could result in serious bodily in injury, like strained face muscles, aching diaphragm and actually slipping on the puddle you made when you wet your pants from laughing so hard). Thanks for being Hedley Lamarr , Professor Balls in the Pink Panther movies, voice of The Great Gazoo on the Flintstones and all the other goofy characters. What great joy you brought to us all. Cheers!! Th...

Ah, simple pleasures. Whenever Crawford manages to poop outside, we are elated. "Crawford had a peepee and a poopoo outside this morning, daddy!" "She's a good girl, mommy!" (Somewhere along the way, when it comes to the pets, we began to converse like Nancy and Ronnie Reagan.) Crawford can't really feel when the poopies are coming out, but walking around in the grass for awhile at certain times of the day helps to ensure "love dumps" as we call them in the grass , not on the rug . It helps , but there really are no guarantees. Still, she's a good girl and we love her and it's only poop. Shit. Everyone poops. With our acid rain here in windward Hawaii, we have learned that it is unwise to drink our catchment water. The acid comes from Pele, as she spews forth noxious chemicals from her volcanic bowels. Those chemical then rain down and flow into our tank. The water must also be treated with very small amounts of chlorine to kill...

How cool is this little brave? We went to the annual Hilo Inter tribal Pow Wow yesterday, taking place this weekend and Wailoa State Park. It's just the third time they've held this event, but it's quite popular. It's an inter-cultural exchange between American Indians and Hawaiians, to which everyone is invited. You could buy Navajo flat bread and shave ice at the same event. You really don't see that everyday. You also don't often see monkeypod trees in bloom like this one to the right. Today has been just about as lazy as they come, highlighted by a long nap this afternoon. I planted some tomato and basil seeds into small pots. I know the basil will grow and I suspect the tomatoes will not, but I'm going to try.... again. I have recently learned some of the details of my first residency for school this summer in Alaska. This is going to be a lot of work, to be sure. We're scheduled from 8:45 every morning 'til 10 every night for 12 da...

The slacker has returned! Today was fantastic. It was one of those days that could trick me into thinking this must be paradise. Over the past week, we've struggled with vog . It hasn't been so bad at the house. OK, it's been kinda bad. But not as bad as elsewhere. We had a few bouts of thick haze, but it was intermittent . The haze has been everywhere. Even O'ahu and Maui have had their landmarks, like Diamond Head and Hale'akala , shrouded in volcanic spew. They closed the volcano viewing station for a few days because the wind was blowing toxic gas and fine glass particles in the direction of where the visitors would be standing. Apparently it's not good for one's health to breath fine glass particles and toxic gas. The trade winds died away, causing all of this nastiness. Today, however, a light northeasterly breeze returned, palm trees began to sway and rustle, the sun shone brightly, the sky was blue and all was right with our little world...

The common cold has transformed itself into acute bronchitis. I don't need a doctor's diagnosis to know this. It happens every time I get a cold. It has been happening to me for as long as I can remember. It's how I know I'm a genius. I missed several weeks of school every year when I was young with bouts of bronchitis and occasionally pneumonia and still got pretty good grades. See? Genius. Just sailed on through. I was less sickly in high school and didn't miss so much class then. I rarely miss work as an adult. So taking two days off this week was a big deal for me. I plan to hack my way back to the wine factory today. I'm sure the tourists will love that. Speaking of the winery, even in my isolation here in the rain forest hovel, I've learned that yet another of my comrades has given notice. I do like the job, but it's frustrating when all these people I so enjoy working with leave. Months ago, one colleague left to return to school full t...

I have a cold. I don't like being sick. I've been bragging lately, mostly to myself, that I have not had so much as a sniffle in close to three years. Look at me, the picture of health. Well, all good things come to an end. A bug has infiltrated and I am not happy about it at all. I know exactly where I got it. The woman sitting next to me from Phoenix to Honolulu had some obvious congestion. She was where I was yesterday. I enjoyed chatting with her, actually. She was a marketing executive for the Princeville Resort on Kaua'i . She told me they will be closing for seven months to remodel the place, which is spectacular if a bit over the top with victorian glitze . She said they're going for a more understated form of elegance, reflective of their Hawaii location. That location is probably the best in all the islands. The place could be a total dump and command great prices just for the view. We talked story, then went our separate ways within our limit...

My nose is finally thanking me after so much of torture. After several days in the semi-arid climate of springtime Gunnison followed by a night in bone-dry Phoenix, the bleeding has finally stopped. As I sit here at a communal computer terminal killing time in the Honolulu airport (at 20 cents per minute, no less), the warm, humid air is healing the surface membranes and soothing my sinuses. Aaaaaaaah ! Is it possible to claim two hometowns? I'm sure I'm not the first to try. I suppose you can claim as many as you wish, depending on the size of the carbon footprint you are willing to stomp on the earth. I claim both Gunnison and Hilo as mine. They are wildly different places, yet have some stiking similarities. In Gunnison , of course, you say, "howdy" or "how's it goin '?" to passers by. In Hilo it's, "aloha" or " Howzit ? How you stay?" In Gunnison , my hair is a little wavy, but mostly straight. In hilo , it's bor...

Greetings from Colorado, the forest green Subaru capital of the world. I'm here, rattling around in my cabin with only a small table, two chairs and a futon mattress for furniture. Still, it's good to be back in my old stomping grounds. The spring wind is trying hard to suck the rain forest moisture from my every pore. Too late. California already did that. It's been good to spend time with my BFFs in CA. They've all been great support. The weather's actually borderline balmy here in Gunnison . It was a brutal winter for folks here. I think I'm glad I missed that, although I guess the powder on the mountain was epic. Now that the snow is melting and the mercury is rising, people act a little like they've just been let out of prison after a long sentence. The cabin is a little worse for the wear. The snow bent the iron railing that frames the front porch and the north fence is sagging in the moisture laden pasture. Otherwise, it's all good. ...

Ron claimed to have tried Sombat's on a trip he made here before we actually moved. He said it was, "terrible." Yet all I've heard from locals here was that it was ono, excellent and according to some, "da bes'" Thai food in town. My neighbor Kathy and I ventured down there for lunch today and I must say, it was pretty ding dang good, gun funnit. Ron admits he might have been thinking of another place. He says now he doesn't think he actually ate there. He's da kine lolo l'dat. Kathy and I enjoyed a shrimp veggie dish with peanut sauce and something they call "coco soup," which is a coconut milk-based taste treat, loaded with fresh veggies, curry seasoning and in our case, chicken. We also each indulged in a Thai iced tea. Not so good for the cholesterol count, but yummy. The weather has turned back to.... you guessed it. Rain. Go figure. Right here. In the rainforest. Who'da thunk? What's the world coming to? ...

Whenever I embark upon a project, I envision how it's going to go long before I begin. When I actually start, it never goes exactly how I imagined. It's alway way more challenging and time consuming than I expected. Still, projects can be satisfying, especially if each little milestone toward completion is appreciated and savored. So it is with my long overdue plan to spiff up my kitchen. It began Sunday with painting the ceiling. That has to be done before anything else. So up the ladder I climbed. The cottage here is plantation style, with horizontal slats spanning large, vertical wood beams. The wood beams are dark brown; the slats are white. A long handled roller won't do. The work must be done up close, by hand. I started with the white. The iPod was acting up a little, so my inspiration was the local classic rock radio station. Each section between beams took about two hours. I managed to finish three. Only seven sections to go.... I think I got nearly ...

It's high drama at the winery these days. Business is down, so hours are being cut and pennies pinched. It's partly because of the recession and the fact that we've lost two air carriers to Hawaii in the past week. It's also because of Halema'uma'u . That's the crater in Volcanoes National Park that's been billowing volcanic gases. While Pu'u O'o vent sends lava to the ocean, Halema'uma'u is belching big time, rumbling like a freight train and generally acting like a volcano about to blow. It's unlikely to explode ala Mt. Saint Helens . It has, however, been spewing ash that resembles glass shavings into the air with such force as to travel through the air to Pahala , 20 miles away. People are leaving more offerings to Pele than she's seen in decades. I may head up there tomorrow and leave a head of cabbage and a Corona. Hey, those are two of my favorites.... (By the way, I stole this photo from images provided on the...

It's back to life as usual here on Hawaii island. Today, we made a pilgrimage to Costco for toilet paper and other sundries. We also bought ourselves a Christmas present. Better late than never.... Ron and I have been living with a tiny, 20" set with a grainy, slightly off-color picture forever. So today, we bought ourselves a new T.V. Funny. It didn't look so big in the store. Now that it's here, however, it seems enormous. We're going to have to re-arrange the furniture in our tiny hovel so that we can sit a little further away from it. It's awesome! For the last couple of weeks, I have been eating as though I possess the metabolism of a teenage boy. When my dad was in the hospital, I actually forgot to eat. Now, I can't seem to stop. It's very comforting, but it's also fattening. Starting tomorrow, I must find something else satisfying to do. Writing this blog is one such activity. It's been a bit crazy around here, what with t...

It's been several weeks since my last blog entry. I've just returned from a sad and somewhat harrowing three weeks in Oregon. My father passed away. It all began about a month earlier, when he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He learned shortly thereafter that his cancer was advanced and had metastasized to his bones and lymph nodes. His doctor told him he might buy a little time with chemotherapy, but his prognosis was poor. Dad tried to convince himself and us that he had a great chance of beating the odds and would be around to harass us for a several years to come. Deep down, however, I believe he knew better than the doctors themselves just how very sick he was. On the morning of Wednesday, March 12, he was on his way to his first chemotherapy treatment. He had, of course, insisted on driving himself to the appointment. En-route, he suffered a major stroke, which paralyzed his entire left side. His brain was unable to send signals to the rest of his body, preventi...

Saturday was a great day! My co-worker/friend Robin and I toured Kailua Chocolate Factory and The Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory cacao plantation. Too cool. This, after a Thursday night class teaching us the finer points of tasting chocolate. I will never look at a Hershey bar the same way again. I think, in fact, I shall become even more of a chocolate snob than I am a wine snob. This photo (left) shows a cacao pod, from which the elixir of life that is chocolate eventually flows. The second photo depicts the contents of a pod spilled out onto the table. The seeds or beans are coated in white, fruity, sticky stuff. If you pop one of these slimy white segments into your mouth, it tastes like sweet citrus. As you can see, the gecko likes it, too. The white stuff is fermented off, leaving the seed, which is dark purple, brown or even brown with a white center. The beans are dried, their parchment or husk removed. The inside of the bean is ground into either a paste or ...

The other day, a man walked into the winery. I had never met him, yet I felt I somehow knew him. He wore a white stetson and a shirt with snaps instead of buttons. The man looked to be in his sixties, with a slightly weathered face, a warm smile and sparkly blue eyes. When he approached the bar with his party, I made some sort of joke to which he responded, "Yer kind of a smart alec , aren't ya?" "Yep," I smiled. He winked and grinned back at me. We'd never met before and yet, I knew him. He was a rancher from Montana, but he might just as well have been from Wyoming or Utah or Nevada or Colorado. This man was an honest to goodness cowboy. Not the George Bush variety, mind you, but the real deal. Here was an honorable, chivalrous, hardworking cattleman. The Code of the West is real. These guys live it. It was nice to hang with the fellow and his family for while. It was a little like being home. I also enjoyed a couple that came in yesterday. ...