Well Hello!

well, no pics in this one because i am on a public computer, but this wandering soul who currently resides in Kihei, Maui, Hawaii is coming home for a visit to the beautiful city of San Francisco! and nothing would please me more than to spread myself as thin as possible in order to see as many of my wonderful friends as i can...hell, i only work two days a week in Maui (I know you're jealous), so i can come back here and relax when i'm done! Hee he!

Anyway, this post is just to say hello to everyone, to say that i hope you are well, and that i will try to post pics soon so you can see my bright and shining face instead of just looking at this stupid computer type :)

Can i see you sometime between Oct 3-6 or the 9th-13? Are u going to LoveFest or Decompression? Can u have a beer with me @ the Cheiftan or perhaps ribs @ Oola or maybe some tacos @the Blue Light? can u stay up til all hours of the night, talking and laughing and partying? Can u have breakfast @ Dots, or perhaps a 4am burrito @ some taqueria in the Mission? Whatever fits your schedule, let's make it happen! Besides work will be there tomorrow...hee he.

If you want to write back, the best way is andriamiller50@yahoo.com or call me! Counting the days and hours and minutes...hope you are healthy and happy and loved.

Missing you!
Andi

Ok, so it's been over a month since I've posted...

...and i'm sorry, i've just been super busy moving into my new place on the other side of the island.

No photos yet (i'm working on it), but here's the scoop (very condensed) of what has happpened since i last wrote (for those of you who care)...

Left Hana, Maui (eastern side of the island), moved to Kihei (southside near Wailea), got two bartending/serving jobs, found a fantastic roommate (Stephanie), landed a cool condo with a lanai that has a view of the ocean and a comfy couch, paid an outrageous sum of money to have my electricity turned on (mind-blowing, seriously), live about 300 yards from the beach, have an awesome scooter to get me around, have started paddling outrigger canoe for the Kihei Canoe Club, and am just wondering how I can still visit Hana and SF as much as possible.

I really miss Hana.

I really miss San Francisco.

Wishing i could write more, but can't keep my eyes open...just worked 11 days in a row, partly to cover for people who were stranded on the mainland from the Aloha and ATA airline shutdowns...so tired.

Miss you so much. Please write or call. It would make my day.

Pics coming soon...

Aloha!

Little Update...

Hey y'all....

this is the beautiful Venus Pool/Waioka... a great time of day to be there...and notice, it's not raining!

so, things have been much better since i last wrote. Thanks to all of you who emailed, called, and sent messages, I can feel your friendship and love for me, and i know that you are all pulling for me as i plan this new venture here in Maui. I spent four days last week getting ready to move to the other side of the island (Kihei area, above Wailea is southwest Maui), gave out a bunch of resumes, had about four interviews, and am looking at two possible apartments and three possible jobs. i found a roommate, a really cool girl named Stephanie, who is from San Diego but who used to live in Kihei and is moving back. I need to have a certification test from the Maui Liquor commision to serve or bartend on the island, and i missed the cut-off last week (oooh, frustrating, but that's another story...i might already be working, but oh well, everything happens for a reason, right?). So i am taking that test tomorrow morning, which i will hopefully pass and then go and tell all the employers i talked to that i am available and ready to work. I will also be meeting with my prospective roommate and looking at another apt, and hopefully we will figure something out before she comes back on the 8th of March with all her stuff (she is here right now, and then will fly back to SD and then turn around and fly right back to Maui). i am hoping to work at this really cool place called LuLu's, which is all open air and a fun atmosphere and seems like cool people, but first things first, I've gotta pass that test! Pray for me!

Among other interesting news, the sun came out for a week straight...it was literally cloudless...A-MAZING (Ananda, that's for you), and all i wanted to do was go to the beach...it was insanely gorgeous, which did wonders for my perspective. I also got a scooter and have been running around all over the place now that i have wheels...Maui feels like a new place! Man, so cool (Rachel, that's for you)...oh, and for those of you who know your famous big-wave surfers, I also met this guy...

woo hoo, Laird Hamilton! I actually had another picture with him but i was so nervous after i took it that i shut my phone without saving it and f***ing erased it! So my hand is shaking in this one because i had to ask if I could take ANOTHER picture with him--I'm retarded. But it was pretty cool...he was really nice and friendly.

welp, that's about it...please keep me in your thoughts, and prayers, and call or email if you get a chance, i love hearing from you...

Pictures, Pictures, and more Pictures...

Aloha!



Alrighty then...



Let's get down to business...this post is for those of you who only want to see pictures and never read the blog anyway...(i've actually been going through quite a rough patch, but if you really want to hear about it, just email me...kind of depressing, and not as fun as pictures)...



So here goes...


my dearest and best friend in Maui, Ananda, recently packed up herself and her dog and drove across country with her friend Eric (pictured) to move back to Portland, Maine...about as far away in the US from me that she could possibly be...i miss her terribly. We used to go over to the other side of the island and eat pizza...

...and go to Big Beach...

and visit her friends, Jared & Kitty, who are engaged and live in Kihei...

...and the one nice thing about rain is it brings rainbows...

...this is from my cabin...

...and when it was dry out, I would go running...i have a little loop down to the airport, and one day...

...i met this Austrian guy named Hans. He's great. He and his partner own a small glider plane called an ultralite...and one day...

...they gave me a ride up in the sky. Tiny, tiny plane. Lots of wind. Mildly scary take-off and landing...

...but the views...

...were definitely...

...worth it. Amazing. And it wasn't raining!

These clouds came out after one long, long, long day of rain...

...but the pictures don't do them justice. They were like a painting. It was incredible.

But alas, they don't call it rainy season for nothing, and after about THREE WEEKS of not seeing the sun...

...or blue sky...or even having a break...(it rained for nine days straight without a break...like, all day, and all night, without end)...

...I was about ready to put myself on a minor suicide watch. Seriously, it looks like fog in the pictures, but that's just how hard it was raining. I was going stir-crazy, to put it mildly...

But FINALLY, after I thought of just quitting my job and buying a plane ticket home, the sun finally broke through...and what an awesome day it was. i had just finished a long day of baking and could see blue sky, when a friend from the other side of the island stopped by with their dad and rescued me.

We drove around, jumped in the water......and laughed til our insides hurt.

it was probably the best therapy i've ever had in my life.

The scenery didn't really hurt either.

It was an absolutely fantastic day, and it was good for me to remember...

...that you don't get waterfalls like these without the rain.

my friend gave me this sand dollar before i left the city, and it reminds me of some great times.

And even though I live in a place where i can go to beautiful, amazing beaches like this, even those don't make up for the fact that i just lost my best friend here and my housing arrangement and my job, and now i have to start all over...

...my favorite candy is NERDS, and sometimes it cheers me up (I can never get them in Hana, so this was a rare occasion that i found some at the gas station). But not much is going well, so if you feel like sending me a big box full of NERDS, or maybe just a picture or a letter or an email or a phone call, that would probably help me tremedously. i am moving out of my cabin this afternoon, so wish me luck!

Love you all, and Mahalo for your love for me....i know this is all gonna work out somehow, and i'm looking forward to the results....

Chasing the Sun...

Ah, the feel of the sun on your back...



Especially when it's been freakin' raining for 3 1/2 weeks straight, and you decide to make a run for it to the other side of the island while you have two days off...oh yeah, baby, in search of the sunlit lands...



So, this weekend, Ananda and I and her friend Eric made a break for it to "the Other Side" as we call it here. We got a bit of a late start on Sat morning (Eric made sushi for breakfast and you just can't rush something like that), but made it to Paia (the first real town past Hana, about an hour and a half drive--at least) around 1-ish.



We headed straight for the beach, and after basking in the sun for a couple hours, made our way to this place called the Flatbread Company, which makes awesome pizza. Yum. No plate lunches for us today! We then headed around to the southwest side of the island toward Kihei and Wailea to hang out with some of Ananda's friends, Jared and Kat.



After crashing at their place for the night, Sunday morning we went to a place called Big Beach in Makena, just south of Wailea, and planted our tushes on the largest stretch of naturally occuring white sand beach in the world (or something like that...it's HUGE).



ALL DAY LONG.



I mean, yeah, we went to Kihei Cafe for breakfast, but then it was straight to the beach, and it was great. Really great. Just lay in the sand all day long, swim in the amazingly clear turquoise water, and wonder how you got so lucky to have absolutely no agenda but this.


This is me, still smiling at 11 at night, all salty and sandy and sunned from a fantastic weekend in the sunshine. Hooray. (oh, and I cut my hair).



This is the newest addition to the farm...a puppy! That is Paul holding our new little girl who doesn't have a name yet. She is absurdly cute. I can't take it.



Um, not much else, trying to stay dry and mud-free (today was actually really beautiful and I spent the entire day at the beach, but at this moment it is currently raining). I got an awesome package from my friend the other day (my first package in Hana!) and he sent me homemade marshmallows--can you say AMAZING? Yup, it was great...and I got this fantastic card from my So-Cal photographer friend Troy with a picture of him and his two boys in their Santa hats and red Rudolph noses...so cute. So it was definitely a good day at the post office with 2--count 'em, 2!--pieces of personal mail. Woo hoo!



Welp, miss you all, hope you are well, and drop me a line if you get a second...

Floods, Phones, and a New Year

I wish that this picture was true...(that's my toes at Red Sand Beach)



Unfortunately, it just started raining as I write this...the rain has been insane since I returned from the mainland. There is a reason they call it "the rainy season" here in the jungle...it freakin' rains all the time. Hana averages about 200" of rain a year, and LaHaina (on the other side of the island) averages like single digits of rain...it's crazy here.


On New Year's Eve, I had been baking all day, and the rain had been so intense for the last three days that the dry creek bed on the property had become a raging stream. It also happens to go under the driveway, and it had flooded and was going over the driveway and was threatening to go down the drive and flood the area where the banana bread stand sits. For a while, they couldn't get the truck back up the hill, and I was literally stranded at the top of the hill. Just me and the dog, flooded out on New Years--nice.



Luckily, they were able to dig some trenches and clear away some debris to redirect the stream to it's bed, but the driveway is completely trashed. We have all pretty much given up on our flip-flops (or slippahs as we call them here) and have resorted to knee-high rubber boots, which is about the only thing that helps with the endless mud. It also prevents any kind of outdoor projects or gardening, so as soon as it clears up, there will be lots of outdoor work to be done. The only thing is, it probably won't "clear up" until the end of February!



The upside of all this rain is the regular occurence of some beautiful rainbows (which I can actually see from the window right now over the water...so amazing), but it's really not helping with my tan :)



I just lost my phone on Christmas Eve (see last blog), but luckily, I am getting my new one...TOMORROW! Yippee...my friend told me I was addicted to my phone and this was a good way for me to chill out for a while, but I disagree. First of all, people don't just have house phones anymore, and some don't even have that, so a cell phone becomes a necessary means of communication (oh, great, it just started raining really hard again...nice.) Secondly, I live on a tiny rock in the middle of the Pacific, which makes me feel isolated enough already, so a cell phone is a means of attachment to the rest of the world. Thirdly, it housed all my pictures (well, a lot of them anyway), and those also are used to share parts of my life with people...not that I am all that interesting, but it's nice to be able to show someone a crazy three-horned chameleon or a spider instead of just telling them about it. And lastly, that's just life...I don't just have the post office and a landline anymore...I have email, cell phones, video messaging, text messaging, picture messaging, a high-speed internet connection, AND a landline, all of which I use to keep in touch and the loss of one is...well, i'm not going to tell you how tragic it is because you are probably already sick of my excuses about how much I adore my cell phone--my phone can beat up your phone! Ha!

Just kidding.

I'm a big dork.

So, New Year's was fun, we went to a party at a friends house with food, a fire, some champagne, and surf movies outside on the big screen, and then we went over the the Hana-Maui Hotel to watch some fireworks and toast to the New Year...the subdivision near town looked like a war zone with all the kids lighting firecrackers in the street, and you heard loud pops all day and night long, into the next day, and I even heard some today! The hotel is the only thing in town open past 7:30pm, and it also employs most of the town, so any big holidays are sure to bring a crowd of locals there, so it was very festive and fun, and luckily I didn't have to work until 2 the next afternoon, so I got to sleep in...

Um, I think that's about it for now, I sent out some banana bread today to a few people, so some lucky bums should have yummy bread in a couple days :)

I performed an amazing trick of brains-over-brawn tonight when, going stir-crazy from the rain, I came up to the cabin to say hello to everyone and there was a shot glass stuck in a jam jar that looked permanently embedded in there (it supposedly got stuck in there during a rough washing machine experience). Marty said it had been there forever and was impossible to remove, and I had it out in about 30 seconds-woot! Ha ha, it was our diversion for the evening, and I got rewarded with the shot glass filled up with tequila...not a bad day's work :) I mean, I am a bartender after all, I had to uphold my rep :)...anyway, it was pretty funny...

Oh, I also cut my hair ridiculously short (actually my friend Mo, who is in some of the pictures on the bottom cut it--yeah, not a stylist, but it didn't turn out too bad), so I will try to put up some pics when I get my new phone tomorrow, yea!

Anyway, Hope you all had a fun New Year's celebration, I hope you told some people how much you love them, and I hope you are only making resolutions you can keep--Ha!

Write, call, email, or send me some cool stuff...or come visit...well, maybe after the rainy season :) Miss you and love you!

Merry Christmas (Mele Kalikimaka)

Disclaimer: This blog is supposed to be all about pictures. I took pictures of my friends, I took pics of my family, I took pics of food, signs, Christmas lights, In-N-Out, my house, my sister's dog, and then some awesome, really amazing pics of this beautiful rainbow when I got back here. Problem is, after I took the pics of the rainbow, I somehow lost my phone. These are the only pics that got sent to my online album, so if you aren't in here, you should be, and if you are, you're just lucky that I had an afternoon on the couch with some time to kill (and I love you-he he). Trust me, I'm way more bummed out than you are, I had some fantastic pictures on that phone...gone forever. Crap. Don't get me started. So, now, on to the blog...

No, this is not Hana, Maui, in Hawaii.

This is the cold weather of San Francisco, CA, where I went to take a vacation from Maui (i'm sure there is a law somewhere against saying what I just said, but ignorance is bliss, right?)...yes, you read that correctly, I left the lovely warm beaches of Maui and headed to the cold of Northern Cali for two weeks, and guess what?

IT WAS AWESOME!

I. loved. every. single. minute. Even if I was bored, I wasn't bored. I had people everywhere, places to go and things to do, beers to drink, food to eat, people watching, and despite all the hustle and bustle that people hate around the holidays, I had real moments with real people and the connection was there, no matter how busy and crazy SF can be. I had a great time, and it reminded me again that no matter how amazing the place you live is (heh-hmm...um, Hello! Maui!), it is still the people that you love that make that place great and make it feel like home (and having beer on tap is a definite plus).

Jason (Also mistaken for Neo in this pic): You are the best ever. Thank you for letting me stay at your place and eat your food and drink your booze and spend your money and make you laugh. Thanks for putting up with my endless shenanigans. I hope that I can somehow return the favor, hopefully by hosting you at my lovely jungle cabin...oh, and the coffee is on the way!

Ron and Nika: how do I love thee? Let me count the ways...One thing I know with you two--I will never be bored! I had so much fun with you, and I love your spare bedroom, and the Blue Light (Taco Tuesdays baby!) and all the great adventures we have. Thanks for paying my bar tab (and leaving me with one! :), thanks for dragging me to new places, and for being great friends to me. Keep up the good work with the dogs, they looked GREAT in Macy's!

Keith: The best beer rep EVER What else can I say? I owe you buddy. Let's party.

Robert: So much fun hanging out at Local, thanks for keeping in touch.

Damon: Thanks for coming out my last night in town, it made my night. Vegas baby, Vegas.

Aussie Mark: Constantly challenging me to new heights of beer drinking..."one for the ditch."

And to all my friends in the city and all my Chieftan compatriats: I only lived there six months before I moved to Maui, and I was wondering if all the friends I had made were only a dream. Thanks for overwhelmingly proving me wrong, and making me feel so loved...wish your pic was up here, and wish I could show you some good times in Maui...hurry up and come visit already! And thanks for all the Don Julio!

I am desperately sad that I lost some ridiculously cute pics of my family and also of my sister's two Boston Terriers, with whom I spent an awesome afternoon snuggling with on the couch and watching movies. Those puppies are ridiculously cute Rach. --insert pic here--

I had a great time seeing my family, I got to see both my cousins, and I actually even forgot to give my brother his Christmas present that I bought here and brought with me to the Mainland, and it is now somehow back here in my cabin--I'm a genius. Oops. Sorry Brian. I love you all and miss you terribly.

Now I'm back in Hana, and apparently it has been raining since I left for SF, so I came back to grey clouds and lots of baking. Christmas Eve was actually spent in the kitchen from 9:30 in the morning til 8 at night--you guessed it. Baking. Lots and lots of banana bread...luckily that meant no baking today, Christmas day, and I got to sleep in, go paddling, have brunch with friends, go to the beach and watch some sick waves, and then go to a friend's house for dinner and surf movies outside on the big screen. An excellent end to the day. I have to admit, I feel isolated already in this tiny town on a rock in the Pacific, losing my phone really intensified that feeling (no phone numbers either), and it did not feel like Christmas at all today(no family or close friends), so it was a very weird, oddly lonely day, but some great people welcomed me in and cheered me up, so it ended well. Weird, but fun and good.

I hope that whatever your Christmas was, you got to see people you love and who love you. Send me an email if you get a chance, I'd love to hear from you, and I will let you know as soon as I get my phone replaced.

I have passed the way of all tired-ness (like my friend Josh)...goodnight!

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm coming Home!

Hello all...Finally got a chance to sit down in front of the computer with more than five minutes...it has been a busy week with work and the holidays...I have to say, everything feels weird out here when there isn't really a change in weather (except more rain) to signify the change in seasons. When I think of Fall at home, I think of fires and grey skies and changing leaves and a drop in temperature...here, you use a blanket at night instead of just a sheet and it rains more.

Thanksgiving day, I was on the ocean paddling a canoe at 6:30 in the morning and later that day we hiked out over the cliffs to this place called Venus Pool (Waioka) and went swimming...that doesn't sound like a Fall day to me, or anything close to the holiday that precedes the biggest shopping day ever.
(That isn't me in the pic, but we did take some pics when we were there which I will hopefully get back soon...but that is Waioka. That was my Thanksgiving day...amazing, huh?)

A group of us later trooped on over to our friend's house who just built a new lanai (read porch) around their yurt (house, cabin, living space) and they had room for like 60 people, so that was really great too...tons of food, lots of leftovers. The only ufortunate part of my day was that I had to get up at 5:30AM the next morning to bake bread because we were closed for Thanksgiving and I had to bake a LOT of bread the next morning...that was a wicked long day.

But my most exciting news is that I'M COMING HOME!!!!!!!!! for two weeks, from the 3rd-18th of Dec...part of my time will be spent in the city and part will be spent with my family, and I am so EXCITED! People, streetlights, no bugs, sidewalks, cell phone reception, people, restaurants, bars, oh yeah, and apparently, COLD WEATHER. That is the part I'm not ready for...yikes, 40 degrees in SF? I don't think I remember what that feels like...as I trot out the door for the beach...hee he. I guess the joke's on me when i get there...bleh.

So, our washing machine has been broken for like THREE WEEKS, which in jungle time means--FOREVER! Washing clothing, bedding, etc...out here is mandatory, and when you can't, it means some seriously stinky, moldy times, so we were all really stoked when the Sears repair guy showed up this morning.

Paddling has been my new obsession lately...Tues. and Thurs. mornings at 6AM, my alarm clock goes off and I struggle into a swimsuit and a sweatshirt and head for the beach...the sky starts to lighten on my way there, and by the time we get the huge six-person canoe into the water, the sun has started to crack the horizon, the sky is on fire, and I get to start my day in the ocean with five other awesome girls...it has been one of the most amazing things that I have done since I have been in Maui, and it is so amazing, it might actually keep me here. I think that's the way people feel about surfing...worth being anyplace that gives you that feeling.

It has been a perfectly beautiful cloudless day, and unfortunately I spent it in the kitchen baking...boo. However, I did manage to make the most perfect banana bread ever today...I left Paul (my boss) speechless (which was the best compliment ever) and it even caused my manager Ananda to buy an entire loaf (which she hardly ever does)--woot!. Seriously, it was amazing...wish you could've eaten some...

Well, off to do laundry for my trip, and then hopefully jump in the water...can't wait to see you!

Internetless...

So, we have been without internet for the last couple of days...you think this would happen more often out here, but luckily it is a rare occurence...nice to feel connected with the world again though. Things have been going well here, and while we have had some rain, the early afternoons have still been great for beach days, which I have been trying to take full advantange of. I just changed my schedule so I will be working only five days instead of six, and i will have my weekends off! Yippeeeee! This has been a major sticking point for me lately, so I am so glad we were able to hire a new girl to cover my weekend shifts...very happy about that.

So, the latest thing in my cabin has been mice and rats. WARNING: if you are easily grossed out, STOP reading. So, we have like seven cats on the property, and lately, almost every other morning, I wake up to find entrails on my kitchen floor from rats or mice that the cats have killed...not a nice way to wake up, let me tell ya. The other day, I was carrying my hamper into my room and I couldn't figure out why the cat wouldn't stop meowing...and then I stepped on the dead mouse that it was trying to show me (which I didn't see because i was carrying the hamper in front of me)--yeah, talk about a freakout session....i. just. stepped. on. a. dead. mouse. GROSS. And then, the very next morning, I had to make an early phone call to the East coast and as I'm sitting there at 6:30 in the morning, talking to this woman on the phone, the cat comes and drops and dead mouse at my feet. Oh, if she could have only seen me on the other end of the line...then it proceeded to start playing with it, and I high-tailed it out of there. I guess the cats provide an excellent service by keeping my cabin mouse and rat-free, but I have to tell ya, it can be a bit disturbing sometimes. Thankfully, I have never had any gross things in my actual bedroom, just a friendly spider and some geckos (which eat bugs, hallelujah), so at least i can feel pretty comfortable sleeping...

I got sick yesterday, and my head feels like it is stuffed with cottonballs and I can't breathe...I hate sinus infections. I have been sleeping most of the afternoon, and I just had ate some soup and am planning on going back to bed--always the best option when you're sick, right? Hopefully I will get over this quickly, I hate being sick, especially when you have to take care of yourself...

Thanksgiving is coming up, and I think I am spending it with Ananda, probably going to a family's home that she knows and having a big spread...I will terribly miss Thanksgiving with my family, it is always one of my favorite holidays, everyone lounging around the house, the kitchen smelling fantastic, and just hanging out with family and friends.

After that, it is one week more and I am back in the city baby, yeah! I am so looking forward to some time with friends and family...can't wait. Thanks for the comments on the blog, and the emails, it gets pretty quiet and isolated out here, so it is always nice to hear from you, even if it's quick. Love and miss you!

In a Funk...

so, i can't decide if i'm in a funk because i'm obsessing about something, or if i just miss home...

I think i just miss home.

i wish i had a car. or a moped. or public transportation...

I wish there were restaurants and concert venues and pool halls and art galleries and stoplights and taxis and bars and lights....

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to leave. I should hopefully be getting a moped soon (like this week), and I might even get to have a different place to live (some possibilities are in the works), and I love, love, love the beaches and the mountains and the oceans and the waterfalls and the hikes and the people and it is amazing...maybe i'm just restless for a taste of home, then i can feel more at ease.

oh wait, that's happening in less than a month...sweet. thank God.

I need some civilization.

and beaches.

both. just a little of each.

oh well, just missing you, i guess, that's all...

Maui

Click on photo for the link to my Maui pics, hosted on Photobucket...

Photobucket Album

Come to Maui...

So, here's the thing about living in Maui, especially in Hana...

When the sun

hits the water,

there's nothing I can compare it to

to explain how clear it is,

so clear you can see your toes

fish

coral

rocks

turtles

sand.

Running is so much better here

when the sun

is going down and the clouds look like

mountains.

Huge

giant

ethereal

mountains of white and gold and pink,

and the prehistoric

teradactyl-looking

birds

are silhouetted

against the white.

Swimming at sunset,

the water rippling and glassy and warm,

the clouds awash with color,

friends on the beach

talking

laughing

living.

Rain, pounding on the roof of a tiny cabin,

so hard that

no

other

sound

exists.

Jungle oustide

shaking, trembling, bearing

the onslaught of wind and water

while

I,

safe and dry inside,

revel in the eye of the storm.

Ha, that's me waxing poetic about the joys of living in such a beautiful place...there really is no way to describe with words or pictures or video how amazing it feels...the smell after the rain, the sound of the birds, the water and sun on your skin, the taste of the fresh fruit picked right off the tree, the look of the sunset over the water (that I can see right now from my computer). It might be rainy season, but it is still so awesome to live here, and I hope that you get to come see it with your own eyes.

I can't wait to see SF and my friends and family with my own eyes in Dec when I come back to visit....

October Madness

Have you ever heard people say that weird things happen around the time of the full moon? Or that everyone seems a little off, and circumstances seem to spin wildly out of control? Bad drivers, weird work days, and general unease?

Well, it seems like in a place like this, it really shouldn't happen like that, but it seems to be just the same here as anywhere else. I saw someone slid/crashed off the road and into the jungle, police everywhere (which is two for Hana), on the same corner that I went over on. Some guy endangered me and Ananda on the Hana Hwy on Sunday because he wouldn't pull over, blocked both lanes of traffic, and then stopped in the middle of the road on a blind corner and got out of his car and started screaming at us. Nice.

Everyone's dogs have been sick lately, and our friends Athena and Glen just found out that their dog will have to be put to sleep, just as they thought she was recovering after two days at the vet. She is only one year old and their baby. Our other friend is house/dog(s) sitting for his buddy who is in Nor Cal, and this morning found one of the younger puppies dead, probably of pneumonia (all the wet weather and the cold nights in that area make it a big danger). The other two puppies are also sick.

And our friend Rebekah has been over on the other side for some kidney problems, has been in the hospital for two days with stones in her kidney, and the doctors also told her that she seems to have some kind of toxicity in her blood that is causing other problems. She is staying in the hospital again tonight and is on antibiotics and heavy meds.

wow.

It's been a rough day. I know all these people, and they are loving and friendly and beautiful and kind and going through some rough times, so if you think of us in Hana, send up some prayers and love for them please. Thanks for reading this, and I should have some good happy stories from Halloween...just a rough week, I guess. Hope you are well, and shoot me an email or comment if you have time, I'd love to hear from you.

Bread, Bread, Bread

I have been baking A LOT of banana bread...A LOT. So that's the story here really...lots and lots of bread.

I have been learning a lot about plants, and there are so many freakin' cool plants on the property. My friend Jason is getting ready to start his own nursery, so yesterday he took me on an abbreviated tour of some of the plants on the 7 acres here, and there is some amazing stuff. I would definitely be interested in learning more about the plant life around here, and who knows?, maybe it would lead to being part of my work here. I will try to put up some pics soon so you can get an idea of how much amazing plant life resides in my back yard.

We had a great week of sun last week, and I spent yesterday in denial, hoping the sun would remain for this week, but instead I sat at Red Sand beach and got rained on until we got tired of hiding under the trees and ended up leaving. So much for laying on the beach and reading. And today was gorgeous, but the stand was busy and I ended up baking until 2 o'clock, so I missed most of the sun...boo. It's so hard to work when it's nice out, especially since you never know when you will be blessed with sun. The rainy season is fickle, and rain usually governs the day, so when it's sunny in Oct and Nov, you tend to put everything aside for a few hours of sun on your skin.

I should be going to the Other Side on Sunday with Ananda, and we will indulge ourselves as much as possible in food, shopping, and entertainment. I haven't been to the theatre since Aug., so we are going to try and see a movie, which should be nice...

I am planning a trip home in Dec for about two weeks, so I should be in the city for about a week, and I can't wait. Paradise takes on a little bit different perspective when it never stops raining (sounds like SF), and it's even worse with the mud and the bugs. Thankfully, the southwest part of the island (Makena, Wailea) only get about 10 inches of rain a year (compared to our 200 inches!), so sometimes you just have to go to the Other side and get some sun. I can't wait to come back and visit though. It will be nice to have sidewalks, restaurants, bars, and stores within walking distance, and I won't have to use four-wheel drive just to get up my driveway.

If anyone know of any good flight deals, please post a comment or shoot me an email....flights are crazy expensive and I'd like to be able to buy myself a pint when I get to the mainland :)
Cheers!

Want to Live in Maui?

REASONS TO LIVE IN MAUI (The Rainy Season Version):

*You get to have cool creatures like this Jackson Chameleon as a pet (I only kept him for two days, but it was good times).

*You don't have to sit in a cubicle/office or be endlessly surrounded by ringing phones and beeping computers and other office equipment.

*You can see the ocean and the jungle from the porch of your cabin.

*You wake up to the sound of jungle birds, rain, and barking dogs instead of traffic.

*You get to see a rainbow almost everyday.

*You live according to "Hana time," which means the strict guidelines of being "on time" or "being somewhere" are kind of overlooked.

*You can hear (or see) the rain coming a couple minutes before it gets there, allowing you to run like mad for your cabin or a nearby tree.

*You can go to beaches and pools that look like they belong in a movie or fairy tale--EVERY DAY!

*You can fly to any of the other beautiful Hawaiian islands in about 25 minutes (flight time, not including the drive on the Hana Highway).

*Your view includes lush jungle and amazing plants and flowers instead of a bum begging for change and high rises that block the sunshine.

*The only restaurant in town is a 5-star hotel that serves amazing food and supports local fishermen and farmers.

*The spirit of Aloha begins to effect your perspective and life seems to take on a more laid-back approach.

*You drink more beer (Hana consumes more beer per capita than almost any state in the nation).

*You can see the stars at night.

*You can be in one of the most remote spots in Hawaii and still have Netflix and internet access.

*You can work as much or little as you like depending on how simply you can live.

*You see papayas the size of a watermelon growing in your backyard.

*Prawhnee's Thai Food--'nuff said. Thank God for Sundays and Mondays.

*You get to be a part of a community that is welcoming and friendly and makes you want to give back to the people and the land.

*There are no snakes and no poison oak/ivy.

*You can hitchhike almost anywhere.

*The hardest part of my day is deciding how many batches of banana bread I have to bake.

*You live in a literal paradise of natural beauty.

REASONS TO NOT LIVE IN MAUI:

*Mosquitos, mosquitos, mosquitos.

*Bugs, ant, spiders, rats, centipedes, and huge cockroaches live in your clothes, your cabin, your vehicle (roaches scatter everytime I open the door of the truck, especially at night), and pretty much everywhere.

*You get around 200 inches of rain a year and this means CONSTANT mud during the rainy season (think not being able to walk around anywhere without galoshes--I just bought a pair).

*The more rain, the more MOSQUITOS (this year has been abnormally high rainfall--boo).

*There is only one way in and out of Hana and it is the Hana Highway, which is famous for its 700+ turns, 1,000-ft cliffs and 54 single lane bridges and includes a drive time of almost 2-hours, one-way.

*You get to drink more beer (Hana has one of the poorest health profiles in Hawai'i and is federally designated as a medically under-served community. It also has one of the highest per capita consumption rates of beer in the nation, which is an indicator of the extent of the social problems that exist within the community. In the age group of 13-25, it is estimated that 14.8% use some form of illicit drug and 33.8% participate in binge consumption).

*Hana is one of only a handful of places in the country that does not have overnight mail service. You can't do it, you just have to wait.

*The bank is open from 3-4:30 in the afternoon, M-F.

*The jungle is constantly encroaching. Not only do things easily grow, but they easily grow. This means constant maintenance of lawn, vines, branches, weeds, and anything else you are trying to keep from taking over. You are literally beating back the jungle daily.

*You can never leave your dishes in the sink or any food out. Ever. (at least not in my cabin!). --some would argue this is a good thing--I say it's kind of a pain in the ass. I mean, you're practically fighting with the ants for the last of your sandwich.

*Did I mention the mud? I mean, as much as I hate the mosquitos, they have currently been demoted from immediate crisis to chronic annoyance and MUD has taken the top spot.

*There are two general stores in town, a single gas station, and the Hotel Hana-Maui. Not a whole lot of action going on.

*Gas is $4.14 a gallon, and if you forget to get gas before the station closes (@6:30PM!), you are stuck for the night.

*The intellectual, artistic, and political climate here leaves something to be desired, and some people have never been out of Hana.

*Did I mention mosquitos?

*Everything gets muddy and moldy. It so constantly wet here that I had to buy plastic bins for all my clothes to keep them from molding and dehumidifiers for my cabinets to keep my books, papers, and camera from getting ruined.

*The tap water here has unbelievably high levels of mercury and heavy metals, thus the need for bottled water.

*It. Is. Constantly. Raining. --like right now.

As you can see, Hana is not for everyone. If shopping at the mall at least once a week, catching the lastest movie, or always having cell phone reception are really important to you, this is probably not your kind of place. But if you can see past the rough jungle living and appreciate the amazing (and almost completely commercially untouched) beauty of Hana, you can live with almost anything.

Yesterday was a rare day of sunshine (bright, warm sun all day with few clouds and no rain until about 3:30) for this time of year, and I was practically beating my head against the wall because I had to work. I had Friday and Sat day off work and it just rained the whole time, and then the day I have to work, it's a rare gorgeous day in the rainy season--boo. Yup, that's what I'm complaining about; pretty sick right?

Well, despite missing a couple of blissful hours soaking up the rays, I still managed to have an amazing day and went cliff jumping at this awesome secluded pool called Waioka pond (Venus Pool), one of my favorite spots.

Much baking today (made 14 batches=12 loaves/batch=A LOT of bread), and then played around on the computer and went for a run...it is raining right now (suprising, huh?), and will probably do so for the rest of the night, so it sounds like movie night...

I'm loving Hana (despite the MUD), and missing my friends and family...thanks for reading, and know that I'm thinkin' of you....

so, I finally figured out how to put up some pics