Farewell Friend

Making a lei for each of us -- lots of help.

"Blue, blue windows behind the stars
Yellow moon on the rise
Big birds flying across the sky
Throwing shadows on our eyes
Leave us  -- Helpless, helpless, helpless, helpless"

Dexter's Heiau

Anyone who has had a pet knows how hard the farewell is.  Yesterday, as we said our goodbyes to Dexter, he was in no pain and could hear our voices.  Dad found an beautiful deep, naturally formed "puka," for his burial, and Reba and Poko blessed his favorite blanket/shroud that is covered with spirit animals for his journey.

Early today, we built the heiau for him, and made four leis -- one for each member of our family.  His shrine is decorated with a big bone, his water dish, one of his favorite toys (Pink Squiddy) bells, and Ganesh prayer flags.

Finally, we celebrated his life with a wake  -- "Lightning in a Bottle"  -- a fabulous two-hours blues special from Radio City Music Hall with Buddy Guy, BB King, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Hendrix et al...and we danced, and sang and cried.  And, we discovered that "Poko" likes to dance too!  Yeah for us!


(Lovely corgi card art by Evie Anderson) 

Going With the Flow

NY Times Article on PAHOA

Wow, little Pahoa Village in the NY Times!  This is a good article (click on above link) on what life is like here in the Puna District of the Big Island of Hawaii.  The video helps with maps, aerial photography and interviews.  The Pahoa Village population is under 700, but the residents whose lives will be affected when the lava crosses Highway 130 numbers between 7-9000 residents.
(UPDATE: at the bottom)

Phil -- wearing his new LAVA T-shirt

It is difficult to explain to people who don't live here how lava has been flowing from the Pu'u O'o vent (off of Kilauea Crater) for over 30 years -- the longest flow in recorded history.  For 28 years, the unbroken lava flow was due south -- straight to the ocean -- until June two years ago when it began to change course, flowing northeast.

The video is only three minutes, but offers some good perspectives on the phrases "living on the edge" and "going with the flow;" here it is a literal reality.  The land is alive here in a way that invades your consciousness; it is also a source of inspiration and awe.   (UPDATE:  It appears, as of the end of March, the alert status will be down-graded, and we will not hear radio lava-related Civil Defense messages several times daily.  Life will go on, but the awareness of  the forces we live with remain ever present)

Long Live the Mouse!

Dead, Dumb and Blind Mouse Lives Again!

When we got our first laptop a few years back, Phil was frustrated with the flat keyboard, so we ran a USB cord from it to our old keyboard to help with the learning curve.  He also found the old monitor easier to read with his trifocals, so we ran yet another USB cord from the laptop to the old monitor as well.  Gradually, we got used to the new tech. 

Neither of us, however, has been able to make the switch from a remote mouse to the touch-pad – which of course identifies us as well over 50.  Then again, we don’t have a smart phone or smart tablet either and our computer does not talk to our TV.  Guess we’re just not very smart.

Consequently, when our mouse recently developed a case of blindness and wouldn’t respond to the touch, we were perplexed.  We changed the battery – but that didn’t help.  Since we live in tropical Hawaii we know that batteries don’t last very long so we broke open a brand new package and tried a second battery to no avail.  Next we removed the tracking ball – and no surprise, found a legion of mold growing inside which we cleaned thoroughly, using a Q-tip to gently swipe around the mouse’s tiny laser “eye.”  Phil even gently buffed the connectors for the battery since they do tend to corrode easily due to the dampness.  Alas, none of our efforts managed to resuscitate the mouse.

Using the touch pad was totally frustrating for both of us – the cursor kept jumping (like a mouse!) all over the place – two lines up – or into the email address line, or disappearing entirely.  We finally decried, “The mouse is dead!  Long live the mouse” and added a stop at Office Max to the Hilo-Day shopping list.

Neither one of us recalls exactly why we decided to give a THIRD battery one more try, but we did, and VOILA!!  THE MOUSE LIVES!  LONG LIVE THE MOUSE!

So Sad

Night shift for Nurse Reba

Reba is so worried about Dexter, her buddy.  We are too.  He has his new medication now, but he is likely to be pretty out of it for a week.  A few  hours he seems a little brighter (if unstable or disoriented.) It takes time to adjust..  Today he had breakfast, water, and a few hours out on the front yard and, for a few hours seemed awake, but not very alert.

Afternoon naps in the shade

He didn't want dinner tonight, so dad got out a can of Vienna Sausages, that he usually shares with Dexter so we managed to get his pills in and a nice drink of pumpkin water with a little diluted chicken broth.  Now he is tucked in for the night while we stand at the kitchen sink, to hold each other and cry, hoping for the best.

Reba girl seems to take after our first girl corgi who was named Abbey Ennis Puddinchin.  We called her Nurse Abbey because she was so tender when anyone felt bad or was sick.  When we adopted Reba Bo Beba, she inherited Abbey's blue and pink collar and has faithfully filled the vacancy that Abbey left. 

Dexter Dinkums Wigglesworth III

Dexter the puppy

Travel Papers in Order

About 10 years ago, we adopted our third corgi dog.  One evening we were perusing the dictionary for new words when Phil came across the word dexterous and declared, "Dexter" would be a good name."  But, further down the page, he also found Dinkum -- which is an Aussie term meaning genuine or authentic.  It was during the first few days in his new home that we discovered how VERY wiggly he was, and as pet names do, the full name morphed and emerged as -- "Dexter Dinkums Wigglesworth III."

Departure from Humboldt Dec 2012

Sadly, early in 2012, we lost both of our other, older corgi dogs, so it was Dexter who, after completing all his travel papers and packing his favorite toys, made the big move to our new retirement home in Puna on the Big Island of Hawaii.

We arrived on 12-12-12, but within a few weeks Dexter scared us all by having his first seizure -- not the best way to meet the new vet, but after a few weeks on his new medication, he recovered very well, and by the end of 2013, he wanted to know if he could have a brother or a sister.  (Actually we ended up getting two!)

A few days ago, after two years of no seizures at all, he surprised us once again and after conferring with our vet (Dr. Lyons at Maika'i Vet in Hilo LINK to VET ) we have increased his medication.  After a few days of disorientation and rest, we trust he will be doing well and stabilizing on his new dosage.

He, like us has aged and his sweet face and shoulder withers are laced with grey.  Our other two corgi dogs (Reba mom and Poko pup) treat Dexter with respect and are staying close during his recovery.

For those of us without human children, these are our "kids."

What Does an Apple Watch?

Big Island Whether Weather Report

Whether you want rain, rain and more rain, or whether you would like SNOW -- right now the Big Island has it all!

Big Island in RED!

The blue link  below provides  a unique four  webcam view of snow atop Mauna.
Watch this great snow video



The highest temperature in our house today was 68 degrees, and for the first time in a year, we have all the windows and doors closed!!  It was a great day for small house project, reading and art.


Following a seven week drought, we are now heading into our second full week of rain and snowfall on Mauna Kea has dropped the temperature in the lower elevations to match the chill of our old home -- Humboldt County.  We are certainly enjoying our hot tub in the evening, before we tuck in for the night.

Jade Vine Blooms!

#1 - Top the Tree and build base

#2 cut and paint 2x4's

Utilizing raw materials is part of the philosophy of Puna, here on the Big Island of Hawaii.  That's what we tried to do with a dead Ohia tree when we first moved in.  

We had seen a beautiful Jade Vine plant when we visited our next door neighbor, but he warned us that they are very aggressive growers and will easily take over a 30-40' tree.

]

 

  

 

#3  Install 2x4's

With the help of a friend, we designed a spiral framework structure made of left over  ends of 2x4's that were painted in colors to match the tree.  Holes were drilled at the ends of the boards through which we threaded a nylon rope (which you can't see in the third photo.) 
 

#4 Add plantings and wait two years

The grand idea was that the vine could grow around the spiral structure (that is wider at the top than the bottom) and the 36" long blossoms could then hang down on the outside to produce the effect of a colorful fountain. 

    

Purple & Blue 36" blossom

(While waiting, though, we had to repeatedly explain to people that the ugly structure around the tree was not, in fact, a clothes line.) 

We bought the vine early in 2013 and have waited TWO YEARS to see if our creative plan would even work.  Well, it did!  YEAH for us!

(Note to Walt:  Yes, these are the "real" colors.)

 

Say WHAT???

(an unexpected rant) Like most folks we tend to mute the commercials on TV and find that this sometimes leads to a degree of appreciation for the artistry/propaganda of advertisement.  Anyway, last evening during a muted commercial the following words appeared on the screen....

(It's just fk'ing air deodorizer!)

"SMELL LIKE THE LIFESTYLE YOU DESERVE"

What???  I was so flabbergasted, I actually had to turn on the sound to see if my ears and eyes could agree on what I just observed.  Unfortunately I was correct.  Apparently Procter & Gamble's sales of air freshener and laundry products are stagnant, so they have to reinvent how to sell these humble everyday products to us -- as though somehow room deodorizer and laundry soap have been elevated to the status of a aged bottle of scotch or some rare champagne.

Another ad is running concurrently where a woman, folding clothes, is really thinking the following: "I WANT MY YOGA PANTS TO SMELL LIKE I SWEAT MONEY."    Really!? I was so perplexed by this I actually found one of the images to share with you.   (Did I really just waste my time doing that?)

Of course there are undoubtedly more important things about which to rant, and yes, this one surprised me; it seemed to represent such a pitiful state of things.  Oh well, I'll get over it.