Kalij Pheasant Family!

 

Haysmers' New 'woodshed' AKA WODEHOUSE

 

HOLIDAY JOY AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

 

Viking Moss??

 

Projects for a dry winter in Hawaii

Hawaii winter at 3500' elevation where we live, in the small community of Volcano, usually offers us lots of rain, but not this winter -- California got it all for over a month!  But, this dry spell offered a chance to tackle one of the final unfinished projects.

Inside Kilauea - September 29. 2021

 ooops, date of photo is not 2020, but NOW...

Phil Haysmer Art

500 sf of art space

Phil painting carved piece

When we moved into our new home in Volcano Village on the Big Island of Hawaii last year, our first priority was building an art studio where, during these winter months, we've been spending a lot of time.

The whole family hangs out in the art studio where we have huge windows for natural light, an energy efficient propane heater and Pandora tunes to sing along with. Our three corgi dogs also like to hang out with us in the studio.

Commission piece - Canoe of Women

Completed 'Alala - Hawaiian Crow
carved in Monkey Pod Wood

"click" on any photo to enlarge

Gluing support board to 'Alala piece

Since the outbreak of Covid19, we've been staying home more -- making more time for art. Here are some photos of Phil in his art space as well as some of the process that goes into his pieces.

Koa Wood - 'Alala

Phil has been having fun exploring relief work in a variety of local woods and has been selling his pieces, both through his galleries as well as through some commission pieces.

Hawaii Island conservation groups have been working to re-introduce the near-extinct Hawaiian Crow to it's native forests so two of Phil's latest pieces are of the 'Alala
 -- Learn more about the 'Alala

Christmas Birds (Cheap Entertainment)

Our house in the forest - Mauna Loa in the background

It's been winter here in Volcano on the Big Island and at 3500 feet elevation 'this' Hawaii differs greatly from most peoples' impression of white sand beaches along the ocean. Here we are surrounded by a true "cloud forest;" it has been drizzling for a few days. But just as we were wishing for SUN we woke up to blue skies and fluffy clouds breezing by.

This time of year is good for bird watching - one form of "cheep" forest entertainment. We have a wider variety of birds at this time of year: beautifully bright red Cardinals, eye-popping Saffron finches, South American Cardinals wearing their tuxedos, tiny speckled seed-eating Manniqins. This time of year the trees are filled with the invisible song of the honey creepers - Apapane' whose lovely songs you can hear but are not easy to spot***. Year round we have hawks, but our favorite "locals" are the Kalij pheasants.

It seems it is mating season for most of them, so even the traditional female Cardinals have a bright look to their feathers as do the Saffron Finches, but it is the Kalij who are fun to watch. Here's a couple photos of Kalij in our front yard taken last winter.


Today, three males hopped over the driveway gate and tactfully followed a lone female inside the yard, while one other paced frustrated outside the gate the others had just flown over. He paced back and forth at the gate sticking his head underneath rather than flying over. During the yard-courtship he paced back and forth and 15 minutes later finally flew over to join the party, during which one of the largest males offered a wonderful display of feather fluffing and flapping of wings. She never "engaged" and finally wandered off, followed closely by by the four unsatisfied but patient males.

Here's a link to the calls they make (click on link) -- especially when there is a cat patrolling the bird feeders. Male Kalij calls --- and the sweet song of the Apapane:  Apapane' Song

Hale Le'a - House of Gladness

Joe -- who lives around the corner!

Nona Lunel and Joe -- chanting

It's been a month since our last blog, but we have been super busy getting ready for our house blessing and helping to finish up all the building projects that have occupied the last 7-8 months thanks to some wonderful local builders.

A dear friend was conscripted to take photos so we could enjoy our 40+ guests, and two other friends took charge of the vast array of potluck foods and directing people to the self-guided tours of the house, yard and studio.

Mixing rain water and
 salt for blessing

There he is! Happy Guy

Joe Camacho conducted the blessing assisated by Nona Wilson, both of Hawaiian heritage. Much of Joe's blessing was done in the Hawaiian language and during the occasion, we were blessed with a short burst of rain that Joe used, with salt to bless the house and studio, as well as ourselves and guests. Joe and Nona helped Lunel struggle through a chant of thanksgiving Oli Mahalo

We encourage you to -- .listen to this beautiful chant!

These are just a FEW of the cutting we received

Photos above are of the blessing; it was a gathering where old friends and neighbors from Leilani Estates chatted with our new neighbors from our street and elsewhere in Volcano Village.

Not only were four tables full of food, of course people remember that our new yard would need cuttings!

This is an east facing window

Next week is Thanksgiving, and this week last year was when we received word that insurance was going to be paid AND that we had (through other dear friends) secured a place we would eventually call home. In fact, just this week, escrow has closed on our new home.

No, we don't "dive" in -- there are inside steps for us

Finally, we are including a couple photos of the beautiful new lanai, complete with deep cedar hot tub -- just in time for winter at 3500 -- which can be chilly. Although you might think this stained glass window is of Fissure 8 that ultimately destroy our house after it burned, this beautiful window was crafted by local Volcano artists over 20 years ago. We were fortunate to be able to purchase it from the previous owner of a local B&B. (The morning light makes rainbows on the hot tub.)

To Everything There Is A Season

One of the spacious carports -- beginning rock walls

...even for catching up our blog followers with the latest month of news. (Can't believe it's been over a month since our last blog update.)

From Ecclesiastics come the the words:
To everything there is a season...and
a time to every purpose under heaven..
a time to cast away stones, and
a time to gather stones together.

For over a year we've been "casting away stones"... from the lava/stones that changed our lives too suddenly and dramatically last year.

Now, both figuratively and literally, we are gathering stones together.

Things are moving quickly on the building projects and beginning landscaping. As our regular blog followers know, the art studio was completed many weeks ago; we are both spending happy times there.

Next came the carports: Completing both of the new carports meant also providing large spaces to work even if it is raining.

New table -- without the 3 leaves

Sheetrock done

The purchase of this house included all the furniture -- except a large dining room table. We've known what we wanted -- something solidly classic in wood, with leaves to expand space for dinner parties. We began what we expected would be a long search, but found the perfect table on our second stop!!

Work on the lanai (just off the back porch) began in earnest in September: framing in the space, exterior walls first, then windows, drywall inside, texture and painting. We have beautiful tiles for the floor and assembly has even begun on our new cedar hot tub.

Carving first on Monkeypod wood

Lanai walls textured and painted -
 Phil inspects the extra deep tub

Phil has been continuing his new art direction -- carving and painting -- similar to those we shared on our July 1st blog entry. The one pictured here is of the 'Apapane bird - an endemic Hawaiian honeycreeper who drinks the nectar from the lehua blossoms of our ohia tree forest that surrounds our home. They live in packs and their lovely songs echo in the forest. Their crimson feathers were once used to adorn capes, helmets and leis of the Hawaiian nobility.

Adding color

A time to gather stones together!!

Lunel still works on pages in her journals, but is spending more and more time in the yard; it's a whole new big canvas for her, but her approach this time will be tempered by wiser maintenance choices -- more trees and flowering shrubs -- less weeding.

One of her projects is utilizing the beautiful chunks of lava our excavator dug up for electricity and water to the art studio as well as clearing spaces for the two new carports.

During September we also sold and bought a different truck -- one day! Our contractor needed a new work truck and friends in Leilani just happened to be selling theirs. Even though we planned to eventually replace the older work truck -- we were pleasantly surprised when it all came together so easily.

Although cooler seasonal fall weather is slowing coming, we still have many bright sunny days with temperatures between 70-80 and we both are enjoying it. Nice that the lanai and hot tub will be done before winter season!
(yes, we DO have 'winter' here in Volcano, Hawaii -- at 3500 elevation)