Ohhhhhhh the fins got their workout yesterday. Went snorkeling with some friends down at Two Step which is the snorkel bay near O Honaunau National Park. It's a beautiful area full of native fish, pretty almost transparent blue eels, turtles, baby barracuda and dolphins. It also has some of the most proliferant coral to see. All colors and some of what they call cauliflower coral.(Yes it looks just like big heads cauliflower) It's also only about 2 miles from our new place. I was able to swim out much farther than I usually do as I had partners to swim with (didn't use a swim belt). After looking around we came up and 'wow' we were out past the Zodiac boats. The Zodiac boat boats bring tourist/snorkel trips from downtown and the cruise ships to this area. Back on shore at the picnic table I found out I'd also been snorkeling with a RedHatter. I put on my RedHat birthday present(the bathing suit cover up with the slim figure and Maui skirt and lei)and got some laughs. So now I am invited to go to the nearby orchid farm with them next Tue. Luckily I brought along one red hat and I now have a purple aloha dress I had been wearing to work. Although I have not been working the last couple of weeks, my choice, I guess I will go back in and do some final restocking of coffee for them as I told them they need to get someone else in as soon I will have my own coffee to merchandise. And yes, Rich, I stopped at the Macadamia Nut Factory on my way back from Two Step and picked up a pound of macnuts for you. As soon I as I get my coffee I'll put it together and send it to you. My brother has reminded me that I need to send supplies to the UP. In the evening we went to my favorite restaurant here, 'Jackie Rey's' for dinner. BTW I only was able to stay up last nite for part of the lunar eclipse. I saw the beginning at 11:20pm so I laid down to rest when Ron awoke at about 1:10 and it was at it closing so I never did get to see the orange glow of the total eclipe which probably happened between 12-12:30am. Guess, I'll have to do that next time in 2010.

Birthday presents

Ron said 'how would you like a new paddle for your birthday" and off we went to the Polynesian Paddling store to get my birthday present. They have the most beautiful paddles there (I will take pictures). Always all wood. The expert was out training for her next reace and they didn't seem to have my size there. The other owner said he could cut one down for me but we decided to wait until the expert was in to make sure of the right size. The length of the paddle to your arms is very important as you twist a little with you shoulder while you reach out and then dig that paddle in and quickly pull back with the other arm. So if the paddle is not the right length you do not get the right power. If it's too short you will lean forward too much and tire you back/not good when going 6 miles. If it's too long you will go too deep in the water which is inefficient. So no paddle yet, but still 2 days before birthday. I am going snorkeling with some friends on Tues. and my fins did not fit me right so we stopped at the snorkel shop on the beach and got some new fins. I also want a new water jogging belt as the one I have seems too big and ends up rubbing against my arm. I saw a very small one and debated, but looks like I am going back as I believe I can also wear it snorkeling. I have never worn a flotation device for snorkeling but most of our friends here are great swimmers, which I am not, and after awhile I get tired and can't keep up. I think the flotation belt will come in handy for those times and I will be able to stay out longer.
Ron ran 16 miles this a.m. and wanted to get a big breakfast at his favorite place, Aloha Cafe. That's on the way down to the Keei area and we could drive by the land. At the Cafe you get to have breakfast with the geckos. The are all over here but at the cafe one came up on the top of the railing next to our table and crawled right up on Ron's shoulder and looked at him, begging for a treat. So we did our usual, opened up a apple jelly packet on the rail and the whole fam damily came for breakfast. (Have to write nicely, my grandkids read this blog.) The couples in the tables next to us were so tickled I think they took dozens of pictures. Just like we did when we first came. Whoops, will have to send some when I find them. The geckos are easy to spot. They look just like that little guy on TV! They are bright green with blue eyes and a splash of red on their backs now and then, usually anywhere from 2-5 in. long. They seems to take care of the bug and jelly population around. Once while out on the lanai I spotted a pretty spider. It was black and yellow stiped with some blue in the center. When I went around to the other side to take a picture the spider saw me an moved quickly and boom out of nowhere the gecko jumped. Spider gone.

WOW!!!

We did it, we signed the papers today!! We will have our coffee farm!! We are very excited so here are only a few details. It's on Painted Church Rd. near Honaunau, Two Step snorkel area. At an elevation of about 800 ft. with a view of the prettiest bay in Kona from the lanai. Has 7 acres of coffee with a pulper and a drying area. It also has a established coffee label and business. Almost too much to believe isn't it. The house is small but so much better than many of the others we looked at. (I wanted small). It's 2 bdrm, 2 bath what more do I need!! They tell us that it takes long to close (like 3-5 months) but the sellers are great and they offered to let us come and work with them to see how the farm and business runs while we are waiting. Seven acres of coffee will sure keep Ron out of my hair :>)

So who wants to buy a 2003 Saturn Vue, like new condition, new brakes and new tires just installed before we left. Been parked in my daughters garage in Michigan. That will be only one of many, many things that will need to be sold. That part sounds daunting but will be totally worth it. If we can figure out what to bring and what not to bring, that is the question!! So much to figure out. But it will all come together.

So coffee picking time is from Aug- Nov, don't be shy, sign up for the 2008 season now!!!

Lava Delta Fell

http://starbulletin.com/2007/08/19/news/story03.html
The above story tells about the recent fall of 44 acres into the ocean and contains a couple nice pictures.

Pono

Oh btw 'pono' means 'goodness, the best, all good things, etc' in Hawaii. So I am sending you all the best things from Hawaii not porno!!!!!

The Market

After paddling with the dolphins this am, Ron & I headed up to the Keauhou outdoor market. Came back with tomatoes, red sugar lettuce, papaya, bananas, lilikoi bars, mac nut choco raisin snack mix, and our favorite, Lychee. I had heard of lychee nuts before and I'm not sure how they are alike because here you are warned not to eat the nut inside. They are only available from about June-August and now are bigger than the first we tried. Actually, now they look like big strawberries. You rub your thumb on the outer shell and peel it off. Inside is a wonderful sweet grapelike fruit which you pop in you mouth and then spit the seed out. Yummy.

Coffee trees (cherry not ripe yet)

Coffee

Well, coffee picking season has arrived. The trees are lush and green and filled with cherry. Cherry is was the fruit is called when it ripens. It doesn't ripen all at once so you only pick the red cherry and leave the green on as they will ripen soon. Trees need a first, then second and usually a third picking. We looked at a farm today that had a pulper and a drying area. The pulp is immediately rinsed and washed off to get the bean out. Since the pulp is sweet you can imagine the smell in the heat. Some like it, the bees sure do, some don't. I find it a bit like an overripe fruit market smells on a very hot day. Bearable, but not my favorite smell. Once the beans are out of the pulper you just spread them out on a drying area and rake them over a couple times a day and let them dry for a few days. You then have green beans or parchment coffee beans that can be put in 100 lb bags and store until you are ready to roast and bag it. It is seeming pretty busy in the coffee picking farmland areas as they bring pickers in to pick all the farms. Ron tried it one day last week. He needed to see for himself how much he could pick. He picked about 70-80 lbs but said it didn't pay enought for him to do it except on his own farm. Everyone hires Mexican, Costa Rican and such laborers around here. They seem to like the work and are also very good at it. Soon the small towns down the roads will be smelling of roasting coffee. Now that is a wonderful smell to behold!!!

Ocean

Two trips to the ocean this week. I love this ocean (the Pacific). Wed. after the hurricane passed I went to the pier to do my water jogging. No cruise ship, no snorkel boat, no tourist/party boats (they were still up in the marina hiding) and the bay was calm and clear. So clear that it was, as I call it, Tidy Bowl blue all the way out to the 1/2 mile bouy. I was introduced to new marine life. A vonna? urchin in the sand near shore was making his way back out to sea. They tell me those are the only unchins that sting if you step on them. On our way out the bright yellow tangs where swimming with us and you could see bottom all the way. On our way back one of Hawaii's sea turtles was swimming right near us. As he came up for air and faced us it looked like he nodded his head and said 'hello' just before he swam off. This a.m. I took off with the Keauhou paddlers on a double hulled outrigger canoe and paddled out a couple miles into some small swells. I only say this because I have been paddling for about a month now and it's always been very smooth, sometimes almost glasslike, as is common for the summer. So these baby swells are only a touch of things to come. Members say that in the winter we will be surfing the waves with the outrigger. Quite a thrill I think I will need to build up to as the fall months come. But our reward today was the dolphins swimming right with us while we paddled. Also need to mention a third ocean wonder of the week. Ron & I walked up to the rocks near the Sheraton a few nights ago to see the manta rays. Ron was a little sceptical until a couple swam in to say hi. In fact one came in right up to the rocks, tipped it's wing up and delighted everyone .

This is serenity

Hurricane Flossie

8/16/07: Wow, me blogging, this should be a real experience!!!! I am trying this out and learning as I go. Hopefully the pictures will post as and the info will go out. I will try doing it this way instead of sending it out in an email. Please comment on how you like this. I may get better as time goes on. Who knows!?!?! The pictures here at from the evening that Hurricane Flossie passed by. We were lucky to not have to deal with here but she gave us a spectacular sunset. No wind, no rain, no high surf. I'll take the sunset anytime.

Hurricane Flossie

8/16/07: What a new aspiration this is going to be. Me learning how to really blog instead of sending out all the stuff in emails. This will sure be a trial and error endeavor but I think if I have patience it will be a better way to send info out. Hopefully I will also tend to get to it more often. Here is the latest. As Flossie, the hurricane, was passing south of here I took these pictures right off Keauhou Bay here where we live. It was a very spectacular sunset. Also most surprisingly there was no wind, no rain, and no high surf anywhere near us. We were spared. I tried to attach the referenced pics to this blog. Again, new at this so hope it works. (I wrote this first, then lost it. So posting anyway) remember a new learning curve for me. Then I figured how to get the pictures on. Whoa, can I hold all this info until next time? "Only the 'Shadow' Knows...............................