Monday, October 28, 2013
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Kona Ironman
The Kona Ironman was this past Saturday. The cycling part of the race was a 100-mile round trip from Kailua to Hawi (on the northern tip of the island). They closed the Queen Ka'ahumanu highway for the riders. All week I'd seen signs at the bottom of Ka'iminani (my main access road) warning that the highway would be closed at that junction.
So on Saturday morning, I drove to where Ka'iminani was barricaded and watched the cyclists as they went by.
I arrived early enough to see the last of the riders heading north and then stayed long enough to see the first of the riders as they came back. The leaders were at least 3 hours ahead of the tail-end riders.
Other locals watching the leading riders returning from Hawi:
The last rider as he headed north - several hours behind the leaders. He's probably old enough to be the grandfather of the lead rider:
The lead rider returning from the 100 mile trek - and he STILL has to run a marathon after this:
Aloha y'all!
So on Saturday morning, I drove to where Ka'iminani was barricaded and watched the cyclists as they went by.
I arrived early enough to see the last of the riders heading north and then stayed long enough to see the first of the riders as they came back. The leaders were at least 3 hours ahead of the tail-end riders.
Other locals watching the leading riders returning from Hawi:
The last rider as he headed north - several hours behind the leaders. He's probably old enough to be the grandfather of the lead rider:
The lead rider returning from the 100 mile trek - and he STILL has to run a marathon after this:
Aloha y'all!
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Here Come the Holidays!
Although the weather hasn't changed much here, summer is gone and Halloween is just around the corner. I'll have to learn to get myself into holiday mode without autumn leaves and cold nights to prompt me.
My calendar shows expected visitors in November (2 groups), December (2 groups), January, and February. I look forward to seeing all of you! You can expect warm weather and sunshine but, if you are lucky, we'll spend at least one afternoon sitting on the lanai and watching a tropical downpour. I LOVE it when it rains here!
Sophie and I both survived my trip to Austin in September. After non-stop playing for five days at Paws, Sophie slept for 72 hours when she returned home. She usually spends one day a week playing with all her dog friends, but I think five days was just too much fun for her. The best news is that she didn't seem to pine away for me that week, nor did she pretend not to know me when I picked her up at 7AM on Saturday (the moment they opened).
Sophie is now about 65 pounds, long enough to stretch most of the distance across a king-sized bed, and tall enough to stand with her paws on the lanai railing to finish off the breadcrumbs I put out for the birds.
Sophie supervises my ironing on a rainy Sunday...
Aloha y'all!
My calendar shows expected visitors in November (2 groups), December (2 groups), January, and February. I look forward to seeing all of you! You can expect warm weather and sunshine but, if you are lucky, we'll spend at least one afternoon sitting on the lanai and watching a tropical downpour. I LOVE it when it rains here!
Sophie and I both survived my trip to Austin in September. After non-stop playing for five days at Paws, Sophie slept for 72 hours when she returned home. She usually spends one day a week playing with all her dog friends, but I think five days was just too much fun for her. The best news is that she didn't seem to pine away for me that week, nor did she pretend not to know me when I picked her up at 7AM on Saturday (the moment they opened).
Sophie is now about 65 pounds, long enough to stretch most of the distance across a king-sized bed, and tall enough to stand with her paws on the lanai railing to finish off the breadcrumbs I put out for the birds.
Sophie supervises my ironing on a rainy Sunday...
Aloha y'all!
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Magical Geckos
A month ago, Sophie chased a gecko around my office until he sacrificed his tail to escape. The tail was still twitching as Sophie played with it and proudly gave it to me. Ewww.
Yesterday, that same gecko showed himself again, sprouting his stubby, newly grown tail. Ewww again. I guess the replacement tails don't get their normal green color for a while. About half the geckos I see in the garden are wearing a similar short pinkish regrown tail.
And yes, I still have geckos in my office. I frequently dedicate myself to chasing them out, but new ones seem to find their way in. At present, my office is home to both this recovering gecko and another with a full tail. I can only hope they are of the same gender.
A bit of gecko information: these lovely green geckos with the red spots are Madagascar geckos -- only one of many species of geckos on the island. These are the only non native species, and yet have become a symbol of Hawaii -- perhaps because they are by far the most attractive. I'll try to get pictures of the 'other' geckos for you. I've seen at least four other species in my yard.
Aloha y'all!
Yesterday, that same gecko showed himself again, sprouting his stubby, newly grown tail. Ewww again. I guess the replacement tails don't get their normal green color for a while. About half the geckos I see in the garden are wearing a similar short pinkish regrown tail.
And yes, I still have geckos in my office. I frequently dedicate myself to chasing them out, but new ones seem to find their way in. At present, my office is home to both this recovering gecko and another with a full tail. I can only hope they are of the same gender.
A bit of gecko information: these lovely green geckos with the red spots are Madagascar geckos -- only one of many species of geckos on the island. These are the only non native species, and yet have become a symbol of Hawaii -- perhaps because they are by far the most attractive. I'll try to get pictures of the 'other' geckos for you. I've seen at least four other species in my yard.
Aloha y'all!
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Daily Sunset Show
When you come for dinner, this is the show that we'll put on just for you! It's even better when you can smell the BBQ and feel the cooling trade winds. Chez Dana is open 7 days a week, with the sunset performance starting at 6PM all year round. Dress is island casual. Reservations are appreciated.
Aloha y'all!
Monday, August 19, 2013
Growing My Own Pineapples!
I started these plants by cutting off the tops of pineapples and rooting them in water (after an interesting "hang them upsidedown for a week" ritual). Some are the usual Maui gold variety, and some are a white variety that I got from my neighbor's plants. White pineapples are hard to find at the farmer's markets and impossible to find in the grocery stores.
They've been growing in pots on my lanai until this weekend when I finally made them a home in the ground. It was not terribly fun digging holes in this lava rubble, and I had to use a pick instead of a shovel. Hauling all that border rock and gravel was also not terribly fun, but it was good, productive, sweaty exercise. And seeing those little pineapples in the ground WAS lots of fun.
I've been slowly working my way around the perimeter of the backyard creating that boulder border for the newly planted podocarpus (that's the fuzzy plant between the pineapples). The podocarpus are 5 feet apart all around the yard (about 35 plants in all). Eventually they will create a tall, dense hedge, but for now I have lots of blank space for things like pineapples.
I have no idea how long they take to develop babies, but in the future I hope to always have fresh pineapples to share with you when you visit.
They've been growing in pots on my lanai until this weekend when I finally made them a home in the ground. It was not terribly fun digging holes in this lava rubble, and I had to use a pick instead of a shovel. Hauling all that border rock and gravel was also not terribly fun, but it was good, productive, sweaty exercise. And seeing those little pineapples in the ground WAS lots of fun.
I've been slowly working my way around the perimeter of the backyard creating that boulder border for the newly planted podocarpus (that's the fuzzy plant between the pineapples). The podocarpus are 5 feet apart all around the yard (about 35 plants in all). Eventually they will create a tall, dense hedge, but for now I have lots of blank space for things like pineapples.
I have no idea how long they take to develop babies, but in the future I hope to always have fresh pineapples to share with you when you visit.
Aloha y'all!
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Sophie is 8 Months Old Today
56 pounds and still growing. As anyone who has ever fallen asleep in that chair can attest, it's a HUGE chair. And she totally fills it.
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