The mighty coconut!

I've decided to elaborate on the remaining title words from this blog- mostly because I've already talked about cats a few times so will add a little more variety for you! The words were chosen pretty randomly- the first 2 were a suggestion from Alicia and I definitely liked the alliteration. The last word I threw on since it seemed a very Hawaiian thing as well...although my understanding of the last word was clearly incorrect as you'll soon learn in the next post!

In the shade of the coconut palm tree

 On to coconuts! And I can think of no better intro than Monty Python...
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: Who goes there?
King Arthur: It is I, Arthur, son of Uther Pendragon, from the castle of Camelot. King of the Britons, defeater of the Saxons, Sovereign of all England!
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: Pull the other one!
King Arthur: I am, and this is my trusty servant Patsy. We have ridden the length and breadth of the land in search of knights who will join me in my court at Camelot. I must speak with your lord and master.
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: What? Ridden on a horse?
King Arthur: Yes!
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: You're using coconuts!
King Arthur: What?
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: You've got two empty halves of coconut and you're bangin' 'em together.
King Arthur: So? We have ridden since the snows of winter covered this land, through the kingdom of Mercia, through...
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: Where'd you get the coconuts?
King Arthur: We found them.
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: Found them? In Mercia? The coconut's tropical!
King Arthur: What do you mean?
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: Well, this is a temperate zone
King Arthur: The swallow may fly south with the sun or the house martin or the plover may seek warmer climes in winter, yet these are not strangers to our land?
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: Are you suggesting coconuts migrate?
King Arthur: Not at all. They could be carried.
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: What? A swallow carrying a coconut?
King Arthur: It could grip it by the husk!
1st soldier with a keen interest in birds: It's not a question of where he grips it! It's a simple question of weight ratios! A five ounce bird could not carry a one pound coconut.
King Arthur: Well, it doesn't matter. Will you go and tell your master that Arthur from the Court of Camelot is here? 

Well perhaps King Arthur was a little right...turns out that scientists believe that the coconut originated in South America. It's presence in other tropical locations is thought to be more from migration/exploration of new lands by explorers. The other theory of arrival on the islands in addition to being brought by boats, is that the coconut itself washed up on the shores from distant lands, then germinated and trees sprouted. Either theory is pretty plausible, and reinforced by the fact that you don't see coconut trees inland- only on the coastal margins of the islands. Apparently, true Hawaiians know that the coconut is not a native plant- even though it is probably one of the first things we think of when picturing the tropical island chain. School lessons here include teaching about native plants and animals (neat idea!), of which the coconut incorporated itself into several thousand years ago.

In addition to incorporating itself into the natural flora here, the coconut is a very important piece of Hawaiian culture. Originally believed to be some direct part of the Hawaiian god 'Ku'- only men were allowed to plant and eat the coconut. Women were allowed to use other parts of the plant though to make bowls, mats with the leaves, and other textiles/household items. One other neat thing I found was that the water/electrolyte/sugar balance in coconut water is similar to the current IV bags we use daily at the hospital. Apparently the internal coconut water is/was considered sterile until the husk is opened- so the water was and still can be used as an emergency IV solution for rehydration. It was reportedly even mixed with blood for transfusions at some point in history!  Who needs to order LRS on a tropical island anymore??!!  We'll just use coconuts. Maybe even offer a discount if people bring in a coconut with their pet...

Today, the coconut is still used as a food source- coconut water and meat being the components- eaten plain, made into the delicious haupia dessert already discussed or incorporated into several other recipes. The shell can be used to form various crafty items and of course somebody must have used it as a bra at some point- and the image has stuck for ages with a hula dancer wearing a grass skirt and coconut shell top. Couldn't find any 'historical documentation" on that one...sorry!

There is lots of research is being done on the coconut to look at it's potential health benefits. Thought to have several helpful properties including anti-cancer, anti-infectious, anti-inflammatory, promoting good metabolic/endocrine health (thyroid, pancreas, etc) and just a good source of essential fatty acids and minerals. Of course it has been used in traditional medicine for related purposes

Sunset through the coconut trees at a black sand beach on the Big Island

If you'd like to learn more about coconuts- plan to visit the annual coconut festival on the island of Kauai coming up this fall. Also in December, the tasty Baked Haupia Pie will make its seasonal return to McDonald's at a location near you...if you are in Hawaii...=)

Tsunami's

When I think of tsunami's- I prefer to think of the tasty sushi restaurant in Annapolis named after the natural disaster, rather than the natural disaster itself. But in Hawaii- there is sadly no such restaurant!

As most people are probably aware of, the earthquake in Japan triggered a massive tsunami pretty much throughout the Pacific Ocean. Japan, of course, suffered the worst of the tsunami, which was even more disastrous since they had just experienced one of the biggest earthquakes ever recorded. I read a story about an elderly couple that evacuated their house for the earthquake, then ran back when they heard a tsunami was coming to try and get something from the house. Of course- it made the news because they were at home when the tsunami hit and pretty much destroyed the house. The elderly man was able to climb on top of a section of roof as both the couple and house were swept out to sea. He was rescued 2 days later by helicopter, somehow still alive and afloat. Unfortunately his wife had not been found at the time of the story. Strange to think one natural disaster sent them fleeing and leaving everything behind, but the other they thought they could risk going to get something that seemed so valuable at the time. Of course the view from the outside and probably in hindsight for the man is that stuff just isn't that important.
Moving here, I parted with a lot of 'stuff'- albeit somewhat temporarily since it's all in storage on the East Coast. Bringing few things with me here, I would have thought that most of those things are very important to me, and that I would want to try and 'rescue' as much of that as possible from a situation where it was at risk of being lost. Not so much, as it turns out.
I was at work the evening of the earthquake, and scheduled to work till midnight. There is a technician scheduled from 10pm-7am to monitor the in-hospital patients and call me if there are any concerns or incoming emergencies. Around 7pm, we began getting the first warnings of the earthquake and impending tsunami watch, meaning a wave could be generated from the quake. This was shortly thereafter upgraded to a tsunami warning once a large wave had been identified in the ocean (technology, ay?!). The state of Hawaii issued an evacuation for coastal regions, which is pretty much a 2-3 block radius from the ocean for the perimeter of the island. You can see the area I live and work in at this site:
http://tsunami.csc.noaa.gov/map.html?mapname=O_AHU-KAILUA+TO+KANEOHE+BAY&submit1=Search+Island+Area

You can also see from that picture- that where I used to live, and where I work (in Kailua) the evac zone is much larger than in Kaneohe- where I have moved to, which was a great peace of mind through the whole event. Anyhow- the warning system sounds, which is series of sirens thru the island, so you can hear them pretty much anywhere. And then the phones rang like crazy! People who have to evacuate need cat carriers or want to leave a pet with us, people who have pets in the hospital want to know if they should come get them, a few clients even called to offer help evacuating the animals at the clinic. Luckily, the clinic is not in an evacuation zone, so the chaos of the latter two issues were avoided. However, and I wish I knew how to do the freeze screen thing to give you a close up visual on the evac map, the clinic is literally across the street from the pink line that separates evacuation zone, from non-evacuation zone. Now the clinic is part of a large, solid concrete building, so I doubt it would have been washed away, but could certainly take on a good bit of water with a big enough wave/surge. And I'm not the boss so it's not my call to evacuate or not, nor have I lived here long enough to understand the xyz's of island natural disasters. But I must say that I don't know who drew these pink lines and I'm pretty sure there is no pink line on the street that the water will stop at should it reach that point. I was very happy to see that my new home is several blocks away from the pink line, and a bit distraught to see how close the clinic was to said pink line. The evacuation system on the island worked fairly well overall, residents had about 4 hours to get out of the area and go to higher ground, many filled up on gas and food/water prior to leaving so lines at the supermarket and gas stations were profound. Fire trucks and police cars paroled the area to make sure everyone evacuated, announcing the warning via megaphone as they drove by.

So at midnight, I returned home and began getting a few things prepared in case of power loss (primarily several containers of water and a quick inventory of non-cook foodstuffs) as well as putting things in the car in case the evacuation zone grew larger (probably unneccessary if you could see where I live now, but it made me feel better to be doing something and be prepared!). I haven't previously mentioned my car on the island - which is a 2 door Honda civic...pretty tiny. Nor have I updated you on my new roommate (who was off-island for work during this event) and her large dog (who I am caring for while she is gone). So it ends up that in the trunk of the car, I put a small gym bag with a couple changes of clothes and toiletries, a large box of granola bars, half a case of bottled water, a sleeping bag and food for the dog and cat- pretty filling for the trunk. Inside the car- the cat carrier barely fits in the front seat, and planned for the dog to have the back seat. So there wasn't much room left in the car anyhow, but of all the other stuff in the house- the only thing I found myself looking for to pack was my passport. Both a form of ID, a nice recollection of the places I've been lucky enough to travel to, and a government document that is a pain in the ass to replace. And I think it's primarily for the latter reason that I was in search of this small booklet. Computer and camera? Nah, they're older anyway. GPS? When's the last time 'Charlie' (my gps) got me somewhere efficiently? Health records, ipod, tax information? Eh, can all be replaced. I searched for about 30 minutes for my passport, but never found it. I eventually gave up out of exhaustion from work and the excitement induced adrenaline rush that started several hours earlier. Although the tsunami was expected to hit at 3am, I pretty much crashed out at 2am- figuring that if anything changed- I would hear the whole condo complex waking up to evacuate, or get a phone call from the clinic or other friends to alert me of the change.
I slept fairly well till about 9am, then woke up to a sunny day that seemed to go on as normal in Hawaii, as if the night before had never happened. People were back in their houses already, minimal coastline damage had been encured, no injuries or loss of life. Several boats were battered from the surge of waves, but otherwise no major property damage. Just another day in Oahu, although everyone acknowledges that we were very lucky and that the warning system worked quite well. The Big Island had a bit more property damage, but still not too bad overall.

Anyhow, retrospectively I find the passport an odd item to search for and ensure safety of. But maybe that's the same frame of mind the elderly Japanese couple had- they just got fixated on one item they had to get from the house, maybe got caught searching for that item when the wave came. Hard to say what each of us would do in the heat of the moment and hard to think they acted foolishly when I potentially had some of the same impulses.
I'm definitely very thankful for everyone's thoughts and prayers throughout this event, and that overall things were pretty minor. I think the new house is really quite sheltered in location, so we'll have little to worry about even in future tsunami's. And if the clinic did choose to evacuate- I think I'd end up with a lot of animals transported here to the new house for safety- which would perhaps bring about it's own type of disaster!

Aloha

For the most part- I think everyone knows this is the Hawaiian word for both hello and good-bye.  It's interesting to me that the same word could mean either when they seem such separate events, but Italians (ciao) and French (salut) do the same.  The cool thing here is that 'aloha' runs a lot deeper...and speaking of running, today marks the longest distance I've ever run in my life- 8 miles!  This was for a local and very popular road race- The Great Aloha Run.  Hence, our topic for the day.

So aloha, in addition to it's basic use above, also connotates an expression of love or affection.  Hawaii is called the "aloha state", and it's not uncommon to hear the phrase 'treat someone/something with aloha'.  Exhibit A:

Looking a little deeper, I found this excerpt (copied below) about the 'spirit of aloha'- which is another common phrase here.  It's actually a subsection of law in the state- hoping to promote harmony and good will between those that reside here, and supposedly to remind government officials to make decisions based on care of and respect for their people.  So- rulers of the middle east countries, ripe with strife and riots- check your aloha.

"The spirit of Aloha"

The literal meaning of aloha is “the presence of breath” or “the breath of life.” It comes from “Alo,” meaning presence, front and face, and “ha,” meaning breath. Aloha is a way of living and treating each other with love and respect. Its deep meaning starts by teaching ourselves to love our own beings first and afterwards to spread the love to others.
According to the old kahunas (priests)*, being able to live the Spirit of Aloha was a way of reaching self-perfection and realization for our own body and soul. Aloha is sending and receiving a positive energy. Aloha is living in harmony. When you live the Spirit of Aloha, you create positive feelings and thoughts, which are never gone. They exist in space, multiply and spread over to others.
*topic will be explored at a later date, since I didn't realize it's definition before including it in my blog, but now feel obligated to learn more

The Great Aloha run featured 25,000 runners and walkers that completed the 8 mile course from Aloha Tower to Aloha Stadium.  It was relatively flat, but with that many people participating- you are almost swept away by the crowd the entire distance!  A very large contingent of military personnel run the race in formation as part of their training- so that was interesting to run alongside of.  In the spirit of aloha- there were several well wishers on the side lines, as well as several local bands to cheer us on.  Most of the bands were marching type bands from high schools and such, although there was a small group of drummer's dressed in very cultural attire and playing large kettle like drums.  I saw a few injured runners along the way as well- all of whom were surrounded or supported by others until medical help could be provided.  In the race with me were Jill, Tony and Jill's mom- who all ran a stellar race!  We were fortunate with good weather and no injuries to our immediate group.  So far afterwards, I can still walk although I'm having a hard time motivating myself to do anything else today...but since aloha starts with taking care of your own being first, I think I'll focus on that for today...=)

Strike 3, you're out....

For those of you that have met and/or lived with my big orange tabby, Miles, you know that he can be a handful.  He's young enough that he's still very curious and playful, big enough to cause mass destruction or knock the wind out of you if he jumps on your chest, and loud enough that people might wonder if a child is crying somewhere in the house.  Fortunately, he tends to listen fairly well, loves people and is very food motivated (helpful for training purposes).  Unfortunately, he still doesn't get along with other cats and we've encountered the first incident in Hawaii with the new cat housemate (and third overall cat interaction strike).  No external damages were inflicted as Ivy actually held her own fairly well.  She was a good bit sore afterwards though since she already has arthritis, and has since been reluctant to return past the point of incident in the house- fearing a sneak attack I suppose.
So it comes about that Miles and I will be taking up new residence at the end of this month at a townhome in Kaneohe.  I'm definitely bummed to leave Kailua, the amazing set-up at the house on the lake and my proximity to friends, beach and the quaint town of Kailua.  In that all things happen for a reason though, now I can check out more of Kaneohe, have already met a couple of new people in the moving process and we will get to see if Miles gets along with a dog (who belongs to the new roomie).  So far- Miles seems to enjoy Hawaii though- lots of birds to watch and sunshine to sleep in.  So here's hoping the next move works out better!

On a side note of funny stuff- there's been a recent influx of eye patches in life:
1) man at the bus stop wearing not one, but two eye patches and playing the ukulele
2) story about how acupuncture helps cure more lazy eye than wearing an eye patch over your good eye (sorry, Kris...didn't need to be a pirate after all...)
3) elderly couple driving (very large car, very slowly) in town- man driving, presumably his wife in the passenger seat.  Elderly man was wearing an eye patch, lady= two uncovered eyes.  I was actually a pedestrian when I noted this strange situation...and took two steps back further onto the sidewalk...just in case...

Ohh, NPR...

Two awesome things included on some NPR shows I listened to today- 1st is from Wait, Wait- talking about a new dating website for those who love the open water.  Primarily- this is to help you find the Sea Captain of your dreams...hilarious...
Sea Captain Date

Second, is a shout out to Tufts veterinary school on Car Talk- primarily to the wildlife center- which I thought was pretty awesome!  Some guy with bats in his garage who called Click and Clack to see if he could 'smoke them out' by leaving the cars running for a while in the garage.  Smartly, the Tappet brothers declined to approve such actions and recommended contacting the local animal department or our wildlife center.  Wonder if the guy ended up calling??!

On another note, and something I think will end up on NPR soon- Hawaii has decided to offer those who doubt our President's US birth/nationality a chance to buy a copy of the original birth documents from the state.  Each copy will cost $100, so better make sure you doubt a lot to cough that up!  The good news is that Hawaii could use the funds to offset the debt from some of their other decisions- such as spending about 3/4 million to rebuild a long stairway along a popular hike on the island, then deciding not to open the stairway back to the public since they don't want to be sued for anyone getting hurt on the hike.  Instead, they pay a guard to sit at the bottom of the stairway and turn hikers away from 8-5 every day.  Presumably those who hike outside of the 8-5 hours are less likely to sue?
Hawaii to offer Obama birth documents - UPI.com
Stairway to Heaven, Oahu

Thought for the day...

Words to live by...

 

A tropical family holiday

I was unable to go home for Christmas this year- but was lucky enough that part of my family could come here to enjoy a tropical holiday!  My parents came for just over a week before Christmas, and my sister and her boyfriend were able to stay through till New Years. 
My parents spent their first night at a hotel in Honolulu as it was also my last night at work- and with all the jet lag I figured they would just be sleeping anyway.  The week before their arrival- I ended up volunteering to hand out race packets for the Honolulu Marathon and learned that the race course would go right past my parent's hotel.  I informed them of this information and said they should look up what time it's coming by to go out and watch.  Little did I or they know that the race started at about 5am, their hotel was about 1 block from the starting line and it took over an hour for everyone to file past their hotel.  They found this out when suddenly awakened by screaming, bells ringing and bullhorns blaring as onlookers cheered for the next 1 plus hours outside their window!  Pretty cool experience none the less, depending on which parent you ask...=)

Our first few days on Oahu were spent exploring the island.  We spent some time at the Kailua beach park, snorkeled at Hanauma Bay, visited Pearl Harbor and I finally drove up to the North Shore one day.  All in all- each day had a nice slow start but plenty of activities to pass the time quickly once we got going.  Pictures are worth a thousand words- so here you go!

Honolulu Christmas decorations! 

Hiking to the lighthouse on the south point of Oahu



Kristen- queen of the self photo

At the end of the week, we took a trip down to the Big Island (aka Hawaii) .  Although only there for a few days, it was elected that we try to do all the well known things while there- including visiting the volcanoes on the opposite side of the island from where we are flying in/out.  Driving around the island in total takes about 5.5 hours- really not much by mainland standards but quite a hull by island standards.  So everyone that has lived here for some time was amazed that we were willing to drive that far in just a few days time.  The first king of Hawaii, King Kamehameha I, was born on the Big Island- so there are lots of historic sights along the way that have something corresponding to him.  This includes the original statue of him that was lost at sea for several years.  Its replacement stands in Honolulu, but the original was given to his home town when it was recovered.  It also includes the rock pictured below...we have no idea why this is significant, but thought it was hilarious.

That's a nice rock...

Cutest hula girls ever!  We were lucky enough to catch a hula performance by a local group on the day we visited the volcano park.  Apparently there are 3 locations in HI considered sacred ground where it is an honor to perform- and this is one of them!

In front of the only erupting volcano...why are we smiling?

Classic Hawaii....makes me laugh.  Clearly this sign is portable and can be removed when hiking is considered ok.  True though- duck tape fixes everything...

At the south east edge of the Big Island, a lava flow spilled over the road coursing around the outer perimeter of the island.  You can hike down the remaining part of the road and out onto the cooled lava flow (happened about a year ago I think?)  This ever so conveniently placed sign however is about 200 yards into the flow from the last piece of asphalt.  If you hadn't figured out that the road was closed by this point...I'm not really sure we can help you...

I was pretty happy to get back to Oahu though after the trip- not only was Miles waiting for us back in his new home of Oahu- but the Big Island has 5 active volcanoes- one of which is 10 years overdue for eruption.  So, although it was interesting to see another island, I think I'll go home now, thank you...=)