On a recent trip to Oahu, I learned that it would cost a minimum of $92 for a car rental and more since we would be needing the car a few hours beyond the 24 hour period. So let's say that the cost is about $125 for the time on Oahu. Then the hotel charges $20 for parking, tip for the valet, and street parking charges say $5. This brings the total to $150 for the convenience of having a car. Add to this amount, the stress of trying to remember which off and onramps are the best for getting where you want to go...the total is a whole lot of money and stress.
We ended up settling for some alternatives. Upon our arrival, we decided to catch the speedishuttle to our hotel. To catch a shuttle bus, check the SpeediShuttle kiosk by the baggage claim area. For the two of us, it cost $29.10 and we were the first to be dropped off at the Ala Moana Hotel. We gave the driver a $2 tip. We walked to the Ala Moana Shopping Center so it was convenient for whatever shopping we wanted to do. We could have purchased a round trip on the shuttle bus but wanted to keep our return trip flexible so only purchased a one way ticket.
On the ride back to the airport, we decided to catch a cab from the Ala Moana Hotel. Since we had some slack time between checkout and our flight time, we checked our bags at the bell desk and walked back to the shopping mall and took our time looking around, watching people, having a cup of coffee, and meandering. Before we knew it, it was time to hele on. We walked back to the hotel and caught the cab. We rode on TheCab which hasn't raised its prices like Charley's and Independent. Drop off at the Hawaiian Airlines curb cost $31.10 plus a $5 tip.
We saved money and saved ourselves a whole lot of stress in driving!! We also walked a lot to and from the hotel and the various stores in the shopping center and that is a good thing. I think that the rent a car businesses may be pricing themselves out of business if they don't wise up. Consider alternatives while in Honolulu...you might learn something!!
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Overstuffed Plate? One Spoonful at a Time
Ain't it funny how sometimes you might feel like a SuperPower ready to take on the World!! It is a delusion, a hallucination to be sure because you cannot do everything for everybody! Yet there are times when you fail to listen to reason and obey the prodding of Pride.And what does that get you? A whole lot of stress...that's what!
Having survived a semester with nine credits in art, an internship for 126 hours, and sewing my 'elemu off for the 50th Merrie Monarch Festival...I'll have to say that I am a maniac for taking on all of that in the first place! But things are winding down and I now can comment on the three things I learned this semester.
1. Tackle one thing at a time and when it is completed, mark it off the list with a wide marking pen.
2. Work forward rather than working to catch up.
3. Take time to relax, even if it is only for 10-15 minutes. (Sharpen your ax, you can cut a whole lot of wood with a sharp ax!)
If ever, you hear me talking like a lunatic again, remind me that I am a crazy fool and hopefully, I'll listen to you.
Monday, January 14, 2013
Planning for one's demise
It is often a burden, thinking about the end of one's life. We all don't want to do it. We all don't want to think about it...for ourselves and our loved ones. But it has to be done, some time.
Not wanting to burden our children, we made up our minds to take care of the situation by going to a mortuary to purchase a funeral plan. I thought that the funeral cost would be exorbitant judging from what I knew about other people's experiences...$500 for a cardboard casket for cremation?
So we talked things over and opted for a simple process - cremation, services at our church, and scattering of our ashes. The cost was $1500 to be paid over 10 years at $12 a month. Now is that a deal or what?
Since we were on the train of thought, we decided to document our Demise Party Plans. We both wanted to have the gathering a celebration rather than a sorrowful event marking our demise. We jotted down our thoughts, listed the hymns to be sung, noted the specific details we wanted done. We emailed our plans to our kids and that was that.
After all of that, it is amazing how liberated we feel. Just one more thing done on our endless checklist of things.
Not wanting to burden our children, we made up our minds to take care of the situation by going to a mortuary to purchase a funeral plan. I thought that the funeral cost would be exorbitant judging from what I knew about other people's experiences...$500 for a cardboard casket for cremation?
So we talked things over and opted for a simple process - cremation, services at our church, and scattering of our ashes. The cost was $1500 to be paid over 10 years at $12 a month. Now is that a deal or what?
Since we were on the train of thought, we decided to document our Demise Party Plans. We both wanted to have the gathering a celebration rather than a sorrowful event marking our demise. We jotted down our thoughts, listed the hymns to be sung, noted the specific details we wanted done. We emailed our plans to our kids and that was that.
After all of that, it is amazing how liberated we feel. Just one more thing done on our endless checklist of things.
Friday, November 2, 2012
The Grass is Always Greener
We have about 22 acres of pastureland on our property. My husband Don fenced off about a quarter of an acre since we have a couple of fruit trees in that area. He put an electric fence to keep the cows out. Well, the calves found this place where the grass is chest high. Then, their mothers followed them into the fenced area.
I am always wondering why they need to get into this area when they have acres and acres to forage in on the ranch. Perhaps it says a little about how we too often want what is fenced off and inaccessible to us. There is no difference in the grass between the various locations and I suspect what is offlimits to us is also the same as what we can get our hands on. Yet we are driven by desire and yearning.
Then once we get what was offlimits, we learn that it's not such a big deal after all. People are sometimes, crazy stupid. The most important lesson to learn is to realize that we can be stupid and so should try to wise up to avoid total obtuseness.
I am always wondering why they need to get into this area when they have acres and acres to forage in on the ranch. Perhaps it says a little about how we too often want what is fenced off and inaccessible to us. There is no difference in the grass between the various locations and I suspect what is offlimits to us is also the same as what we can get our hands on. Yet we are driven by desire and yearning.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Gingery Ironies
It is ginger season in Puna Ma Uka. As one travels the Volcano Highway, the scent of wild white and yellow ginger drifts into the car. Other varieties of ginger can be seen in bloom such as the shampoo ginger and the blue ginger. Up in Volcano, the kahili ginger and coral ginger are also blossoming.
I remember my childhood in Lahaina. In the back of our house, there was a concrete basin which we used to wash our feet before going into the house. The muddy water from our dirty feet flowed into a patch of white ginger, an anomaly in hot and dry Lahaina. We had gone to Hana which in childhood days seemed hundreds of miles away and dug up the ginger roots. My mom planted the ginger near our wash feet sink and made sure that the plants received a lot of water. The mango tree gave the perfect amount of shade to help the ginger to flourish. I loved picking the blossoms and putting them in my hair, waiting for the breezes to blow the fragrance past my face.
Living in Glenwood means we are living in ground zero for ginger. The yellow ginger plants along the highway grow to over 10 feet tall. If you want to pick ginger in the ditches outside of our yard, you need a second person who is standing on the road or a tree stump to direct you to where the flowers are. When we first moved to our ranch property, our yard was choked with ginger. Using much physical labor, we dug the ginger out, corm by corm. We mowed the lawn, bit by bit, encouraging the grass to grow. We pulled out the keiki or young plants. Finally grass triumphed and our lawn was complete. Yet right outside of our heavy fence strong enough to keep out marauding wild pigs, ginger plants crowd around trying to get back into the yard.
I still love the fragrance of ginger. I love the feathery ginger leis made by my friend, Eva. I love the paradox of the plant: fragile and wispy blossoms which grow on aggressive and sturdy stalks. But I don't like ginger in my yard. Let them grow freely along the highway, they don't take well to captive environments.
I remember my childhood in Lahaina. In the back of our house, there was a concrete basin which we used to wash our feet before going into the house. The muddy water from our dirty feet flowed into a patch of white ginger, an anomaly in hot and dry Lahaina. We had gone to Hana which in childhood days seemed hundreds of miles away and dug up the ginger roots. My mom planted the ginger near our wash feet sink and made sure that the plants received a lot of water. The mango tree gave the perfect amount of shade to help the ginger to flourish. I loved picking the blossoms and putting them in my hair, waiting for the breezes to blow the fragrance past my face.
Living in Glenwood means we are living in ground zero for ginger. The yellow ginger plants along the highway grow to over 10 feet tall. If you want to pick ginger in the ditches outside of our yard, you need a second person who is standing on the road or a tree stump to direct you to where the flowers are. When we first moved to our ranch property, our yard was choked with ginger. Using much physical labor, we dug the ginger out, corm by corm. We mowed the lawn, bit by bit, encouraging the grass to grow. We pulled out the keiki or young plants. Finally grass triumphed and our lawn was complete. Yet right outside of our heavy fence strong enough to keep out marauding wild pigs, ginger plants crowd around trying to get back into the yard.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Who'd a thunk I'd be a Mathematician?
In August, 2012, there was a huge hula event called an 'uniki or graduation for one of the students. Part of the ceremony called for a luau or feast with traditional Hawaiian foods like laulau, lomi salmon, poke, squid luau, chicken long rice, poi, sweet potatoes, pineapples, desserts, fruit breads and sweet potato pudding. About 110 people were expected but food was prepared for 150 people.
Throughout the preparation period, the continual question was...what portion should each person get? What is the necessary total amount needed to feed everyone and have some extra? Some people measured by ounces per person. Some people measured by cups or parts of a cup. And then some people measured by the gallon. In the end, the discussion kept going on and on and a calculator was put into service.
What did we learn from it? We prepared way too much food. We could have served at least 200 people. One cannot be too stingy when serving Hawaiian food!!
Glossary
lomi salmon - salad made of salted salmon, tomatoes, sweet onions, and green onions
poke - cubes of raw fish (ahi) seasoned with limu kohu (a seaweed), Hawaiian salt, and inamona
or roasted kukui nuts. Seasoning and ingredients are varied
squid luau - taro leaves, coconut milk, and squid simmered
chicken long rice - chicken with rice noodles, garlic, lots of ginger and green onions
poi - cooked taro that is mashed into a thin paste
Throughout the preparation period, the continual question was...what portion should each person get? What is the necessary total amount needed to feed everyone and have some extra? Some people measured by ounces per person. Some people measured by cups or parts of a cup. And then some people measured by the gallon. In the end, the discussion kept going on and on and a calculator was put into service.
What did we learn from it? We prepared way too much food. We could have served at least 200 people. One cannot be too stingy when serving Hawaiian food!!
Glossary
- packets of seasoned beef, pork, codfish wrapped with taro leaves
- packets of taro, sweet potato, onion, carrots wrapped with taro leaves
- cubes of corned beef wrapped with taro leaves
lomi salmon - salad made of salted salmon, tomatoes, sweet onions, and green onions
poke - cubes of raw fish (ahi) seasoned with limu kohu (a seaweed), Hawaiian salt, and inamona
or roasted kukui nuts. Seasoning and ingredients are varied
squid luau - taro leaves, coconut milk, and squid simmered
chicken long rice - chicken with rice noodles, garlic, lots of ginger and green onions
poi - cooked taro that is mashed into a thin paste
Monday, July 16, 2012
Gratitude from Adversity
Our daughter Sunny and her husband are hard working parents of three little boys, 7, 6, and 1. Byron works two jobs and Sunny works full time and is taking courses to improve her work options. Last Monday, a fire in their condominium in Wailuku, Maui turned their world upside down. But instead of cursing their predicament, Sunny is filled with gratitude and is praising God for his presence in their lives. What? Gratitude and Praise for a fire?
There are no random coincidences in life. Things happen as part of God's plan for our lives. The fire flared up after Sunny and Byron were at work. The two older boys were at their summer program. The baby was at the sitter's house. Their downstairs neighbor noticed the fire and called the fire department. By 8:30 am when Sunny got a call, the fire and police departments were already at the house.
Had the fire occurred in the evening or early morning hours, this family might have been trapped as the fire was in the kitchen which is next to the front door. They live on the second floor and did not have ladders to safely transport all three boys down. His timing was impeccable and the safety of the family was assured.
Now what is left is for the family to go through the rubble to salvage whatever is possible. Loving family members, and friends have offered help to this family. Many people are praying that the aftermath of the fire with the insurance and paperwork will be favorable to them. What else can one do but be grateful. It is funny how things in life do turn out. E mililani kakou! Let's all give thanks and praise to God.
There are no random coincidences in life. Things happen as part of God's plan for our lives. The fire flared up after Sunny and Byron were at work. The two older boys were at their summer program. The baby was at the sitter's house. Their downstairs neighbor noticed the fire and called the fire department. By 8:30 am when Sunny got a call, the fire and police departments were already at the house.
Had the fire occurred in the evening or early morning hours, this family might have been trapped as the fire was in the kitchen which is next to the front door. They live on the second floor and did not have ladders to safely transport all three boys down. His timing was impeccable and the safety of the family was assured.
Now what is left is for the family to go through the rubble to salvage whatever is possible. Loving family members, and friends have offered help to this family. Many people are praying that the aftermath of the fire with the insurance and paperwork will be favorable to them. What else can one do but be grateful. It is funny how things in life do turn out. E mililani kakou! Let's all give thanks and praise to God.
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