"Tu Be or Not Tu Be"

New family: Dean & Mark

"To Be or Not To Be"...that was the question.

Our oldest corgi, "Reba" (also known as "B") became a grandma recently, when her daughter "I'I Lani" had her puppies.  "Reba" became "Tu-Tu-B" -- tu-tu being the commonly used name for grandma here in Hawaii.

But the answer to the question of keeping the puppy evolved into the Shakespearean quote -- "to be or not to be." And, much as we wanted to believe the answer was "yes" it seems there was another answer...and it wasn't just "no."

The "how" is less important than the choice we made to  just "let to" and trust. Yesterday we said our sad goodbyes to the puppy who has delighted us for eight weeks -- particularly in the aftermath of the election results.

We also decided what this sad world really needs is for everyone to just sit down on the grass and hold a puppy! We had no expectations from the new family on Oahu.  We said goodbye at 1:30 in the afternoon, and only eight hours later received these lovely photos from her new ohana. Looks like the puppy's got a pal already -- and her new family will keep us posted on her future adventures.

What the world needs now -- are PUPPIES and ALOHA!!

Blooms and Butterflies

For artists on the Big Island of Hawaii inspiration comes from so many places. Of course the island itself is amazing -- the volcanoes, lava, intense blue skies, big cloud formations, and all the patterns and colors of the ocean.

Just walking around the property is also inspiring. The other day Phil took the camera out to get just a FEW of the artful explosions happening and I created a montage of some of them.

He also got a photo of one of Hawaii's Monarch butterflies laying eggs on the purple Crown Flower -- which then inspired him to use a piece of koa wood to create a whimsical butterfly.

Salmon Surprise!

Yesterday morning was overcast and raining, so while we were sitting out on the lanai being pleasantly distracted by Ms. Tasha puppy (now six weeks old,) we looked toward the north boundary of our property and thought we saw salmon-colored blossoms on a young ohia tree.  Going out for a closer look, we were right -- it is a young tree that did not bloom last year at all.

We have written previously about the plight of our ohia tress on the island -- the blight/fungus that is killing so many. (here is the LINK to that blog:  Dying Ohia Trees

Nearly all trees have red blossoms. While there are yellow blossomed trees they are infrequent, and we have two. The salmon are the most rare, so we feel really lucky.

The legend of the Ohia tree and the Lehua blossom.  The legend says that one day Pele met a handsome warrior named Ohia and she asked him to marry her. Ohia, however, had already pledged his love to Lehua.  Pele was furious when Ohia turned down her marriage proposal, so she turned Ohia into a twisted tree.  Lehua was heartbroken, of course. As the gods took pity on Lehua and decided it was an injustice to have Ohia and Lehua separated, they turned Lehua into the  flower on the Ohia tree so that the two lovers would be forever joined together.  Hawaiian folklore says that if you pluck this flower you are separating the lovers, and that day it will rain.

Haysmers Living "LUANA" Style

Puna has an official international alien landing site -- so we painted an aloha welcome sign on our roof

Aloha from the district of PUNA on the BIG ISLAND of HAWAII! We are so excited to share this post with you! We have a friend who uses his drone to video properties for both real estate agents and property owners. In fact, we used one still shot as our Christmas/New Years card.

When we talk to friends who have not visited, they often have a mental picture of white sand beaches and palm trees, but our section of the Big Island also includes large swaths of ohia forest as well as dense jungle -- and sometimes a mix of both.

All streets on the island have Hawaiian names; ours is named "Luana."

LUANA means, To be at leisure; to enjoy pleasant surroundings, to enjoy associates, and to live in comfort and ease. 

When we moved in, the house was barely completed and there was no development of the surrounding property, no grass, just red volcanic cinder. The landscaping you see in the video, we have created. None of the lava you see was "brought in" -- just an inch or so down, we dug up all raw lava to create all the terraces and walls. Soil has to be trucked in because the "land" in Puna is very young land -- lava-land. Our friend, Clive (808 494-7686) was able to capture the "feel" of our property.   Just click on the link below:  ENJOY!

VIDEO OF OUR PROPERTY

New Year's PUPPY POLITICS???!!!

We have friends celebrating their New Year with a new member of the family -- but most are grandchildren. We are celebrating TWO new family members!

One is our new solar system (by SOLAR-SAINT mentioned at length a couple blog entries ago on DEC 11th.)  We are proud to participate in the Hawaii's Big Island solar/energy plans (wind, sea, solar and geothermal) toward energy independence.

And while that is exciting news....

NOTHING COMPARES WITH A PUPPY!!

So, we are beginning our year as GREAT grandparents. Our oldest corgi is Reba. Reba's 2-year old daughter, I'i Lani has a puppy named TASHA (thus, making us "great grandparents, see?) Today TASHA is five weeks old and well on her way to solid food (for which her mom is really grateful). Here she is sharing her morning breakfast (and later a nap) with her best pal...a stuffed toy Phil received.

New Year POLITICS !!

Well, now that there are FOUR girls in the household, Phil and Poko had their Boy Party's "convention" and have decided to become "Super Delegates."  Essentially they now have TWO votes each which they think will create a better balance for voting when it comes time for important decisions.   (HA!)