Wednesday, November 23, 2011
A cabin in the snow
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Colors of the garden
Autumnl is definitely here in Hawai'i. As the temperatures fall to the 60s at night, the morning coolness and crispness is welcoming to the continued mid 80 degree temperatures of the afternoons.
Our coffee berries have been quietly attacked by an invisible invader. Opening the coffee beans reveals a black area, sometimes the entire bean being blackened. The Kona coffee beetle is in our very own yard. We had heard it was on the island last year. It is affecting so many coffee trees on our island, that we all worry about how to control it. So we will purchase our coffee again this year.
The papayas are ripening more quickly, so we gave some to the mail delivery people yesterday, and still have some for ourselves.
The macademia nut is one of the hardest shells I have ever experienced trying to open. We need a hammer and a cement or asphalt base, then must use the right amount of force to open the shell without crushing the delicate nut inside.
Well, yesterday I picked a few macademia nuts while waiting for a postal delivery and found, despite the extreme hardness of the shell, what vigorous growers these trees are. One nut had fallen onto the street, landed on top of a bit of dirt. In just that tiny bit of dirt, the nut opened up and sent down the main root with tiny sprouts on the side of the main root. Amazing. I picked it up, placed the root in a bit of water and hope to grow it into a tree.
That is how our giant avocado tree started out a few years ago. We ate an avocado, and from the pit, a massive tree grew, which now, blesses us with extremely large, buttery sweet, avocados.
I love to feed the different color finches and even doves that come to our feeder on the lanai. But walking beneath the lanai, I find small plants growing from these tiny seeds. I don't water the seeds or give them any special attention. They just ... grow!
If we slow down and take the time to really observe life around us, we see miraculous activities all around us. Breathe, exhale, listen, observe, and get read to be amazed.
Our coffee berries have been quietly attacked by an invisible invader. Opening the coffee beans reveals a black area, sometimes the entire bean being blackened. The Kona coffee beetle is in our very own yard. We had heard it was on the island last year. It is affecting so many coffee trees on our island, that we all worry about how to control it. So we will purchase our coffee again this year.
The papayas are ripening more quickly, so we gave some to the mail delivery people yesterday, and still have some for ourselves.
The macademia nut is one of the hardest shells I have ever experienced trying to open. We need a hammer and a cement or asphalt base, then must use the right amount of force to open the shell without crushing the delicate nut inside.
Well, yesterday I picked a few macademia nuts while waiting for a postal delivery and found, despite the extreme hardness of the shell, what vigorous growers these trees are. One nut had fallen onto the street, landed on top of a bit of dirt. In just that tiny bit of dirt, the nut opened up and sent down the main root with tiny sprouts on the side of the main root. Amazing. I picked it up, placed the root in a bit of water and hope to grow it into a tree.
That is how our giant avocado tree started out a few years ago. We ate an avocado, and from the pit, a massive tree grew, which now, blesses us with extremely large, buttery sweet, avocados.
I love to feed the different color finches and even doves that come to our feeder on the lanai. But walking beneath the lanai, I find small plants growing from these tiny seeds. I don't water the seeds or give them any special attention. They just ... grow!
If we slow down and take the time to really observe life around us, we see miraculous activities all around us. Breathe, exhale, listen, observe, and get read to be amazed.
Friday, November 4, 2011
A rainy 'fall' day in Hawai'i
It might be new to some people that we have a fall and spring, summer and winter here in Hawai'i. Our island, in particular, has a well, regular winter season.
Our island has two immense volcanoes - Mauna Kea which when measured from the ocean floor to its top, is even higher in elevation than Mt. Everest. Mauna Loa, with its incredibly large land mass, is the world's largest volcano. Both mountains can and do receive snowfall during the winter months (even in July last year) much to the delight of the keiki (children) who want to build snowmen and go sledding! It may be near or sub freezing up on top of the mountains, but it is usually in the 80s down here where the population lives. It is of utmost beauty to see the snow covered mountains on a clear day, especially when lying on a warm, sandy beach under the shade of swaying palm trees. Our home is unique beyond words.
Today was breezy and rainy at times, with Maui Island getting the force of the storm. The cracks of lightening and rumbling thunder woke us last night, and started the dogs barking through the neighborhood.
I picked the coffee beans that I could, but it appears that the Kona Coffee Borer Beetle has struck our yard, too. It has become a fast problem here. The beans were not salvageable. We will need to buy our 100% Kona coffee from Costco again. If you ever get to try Kona coffee, make sure it is 100% Kona. Any 'blends' are not worth it even though they are cheaper. The coffee that is accepted are not decimated by the beetle. We will cut back our trees, and try to stay better on top of this for next year.
I continue to work while in bed, learning and creating greeting cards for friends as I can. It brings such pleasure to my life, to create such little pieces of homemade art, then to give it away to our dearest friends, family, young ones and older ones, and see the smile that comes across their faces. There is surely 'more happiness in giving than in receiving.' Acts 20:35.
There are so many dear ones I want to send homemade things to, as well as to donate to our family in Ishinomaki, Japan, survivors of the devastating earthquake, tsunami, then fires of this year. Our town here in Hawai'i was hit from the tsunami, too, with a house floating away, many businesses and homes damaged. Thankfully, nothing near as bad as the northeastern coast of Honshu. I have to keep busy with my hands and mind so that we can have more to give to others.
And so our fall weather continues on. Here's to hoping the afternoons are not too hot :)
Aloha for now,
Rosy
Our island has two immense volcanoes - Mauna Kea which when measured from the ocean floor to its top, is even higher in elevation than Mt. Everest. Mauna Loa, with its incredibly large land mass, is the world's largest volcano. Both mountains can and do receive snowfall during the winter months (even in July last year) much to the delight of the keiki (children) who want to build snowmen and go sledding! It may be near or sub freezing up on top of the mountains, but it is usually in the 80s down here where the population lives. It is of utmost beauty to see the snow covered mountains on a clear day, especially when lying on a warm, sandy beach under the shade of swaying palm trees. Our home is unique beyond words.
Today was breezy and rainy at times, with Maui Island getting the force of the storm. The cracks of lightening and rumbling thunder woke us last night, and started the dogs barking through the neighborhood.
I picked the coffee beans that I could, but it appears that the Kona Coffee Borer Beetle has struck our yard, too. It has become a fast problem here. The beans were not salvageable. We will need to buy our 100% Kona coffee from Costco again. If you ever get to try Kona coffee, make sure it is 100% Kona. Any 'blends' are not worth it even though they are cheaper. The coffee that is accepted are not decimated by the beetle. We will cut back our trees, and try to stay better on top of this for next year.
I continue to work while in bed, learning and creating greeting cards for friends as I can. It brings such pleasure to my life, to create such little pieces of homemade art, then to give it away to our dearest friends, family, young ones and older ones, and see the smile that comes across their faces. There is surely 'more happiness in giving than in receiving.' Acts 20:35.
There are so many dear ones I want to send homemade things to, as well as to donate to our family in Ishinomaki, Japan, survivors of the devastating earthquake, tsunami, then fires of this year. Our town here in Hawai'i was hit from the tsunami, too, with a house floating away, many businesses and homes damaged. Thankfully, nothing near as bad as the northeastern coast of Honshu. I have to keep busy with my hands and mind so that we can have more to give to others.
And so our fall weather continues on. Here's to hoping the afternoons are not too hot :)
Aloha for now,
Rosy
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Welcome to my Periwinkle Corner
As I look outside our lanai, the sky is a beautiful periwinkle color. Thus the name for the corner of my world, Periwinkle Corner. The little wind chimes tinkle in glass and various metals, soothing the inside of my soul.
Birds of different colors visit our bird feeder, arousing the curious but intense attention of our two cats. Knowing the screen and glass keep them from the birds, the cats drift back to sleep upon our bed. I hear the rustle below the bed of our little white fluffy dog, as he tries another position to lie in.
This time of year, I can see that the coffee trees need picking, their berries hanging in clumps of deep ruby colors. The giant pointsettias below our window are turning deep red. To the right of the window and lanai, the papayas are shades of green. We picked four yesterday as they were turning a cantaloupe yellow; the rest are not ready for picking. Our bedroom is upstairs, about the same height as the papaya, banana, tangerine and palm trees. But the fruits lie just out of our reach. The extended fruit picker was a clever invention and appreciated by us.
The heavily laden tangerine tree will be ripe in a few months. The 'dwarf' banana trees just two years old now tower over our 2nd story roof. Someone had a twisted sense of humor to name them 'dwarf banana' when we bought the one gallon container. What was a clear view of the sunset over the ocean, is now a peek and boo game through the giant banana trees every evening as we glimpse the bright pinks and golds of the sun between huge green leaves, moving on in its journey to someone else's daylight.
Below all these trees and colors lie the mature plants of white pineapple. We have already picked the ripe ones for this year and once again, they are in their annual rest period. All that is left are the spikes of greens shooting upwards, adding to the endless shapes of plants in our yard.
Periwinkle is my favorite color. It is no surprise that my favorite flowers are hydrangeas, hyacinths, agapanthus - anything that has the periwinkle color, including its namesake, the periwinkle. Welcome to my periwinkle corner.
Birds of different colors visit our bird feeder, arousing the curious but intense attention of our two cats. Knowing the screen and glass keep them from the birds, the cats drift back to sleep upon our bed. I hear the rustle below the bed of our little white fluffy dog, as he tries another position to lie in.
This time of year, I can see that the coffee trees need picking, their berries hanging in clumps of deep ruby colors. The giant pointsettias below our window are turning deep red. To the right of the window and lanai, the papayas are shades of green. We picked four yesterday as they were turning a cantaloupe yellow; the rest are not ready for picking. Our bedroom is upstairs, about the same height as the papaya, banana, tangerine and palm trees. But the fruits lie just out of our reach. The extended fruit picker was a clever invention and appreciated by us.
The heavily laden tangerine tree will be ripe in a few months. The 'dwarf' banana trees just two years old now tower over our 2nd story roof. Someone had a twisted sense of humor to name them 'dwarf banana' when we bought the one gallon container. What was a clear view of the sunset over the ocean, is now a peek and boo game through the giant banana trees every evening as we glimpse the bright pinks and golds of the sun between huge green leaves, moving on in its journey to someone else's daylight.
Below all these trees and colors lie the mature plants of white pineapple. We have already picked the ripe ones for this year and once again, they are in their annual rest period. All that is left are the spikes of greens shooting upwards, adding to the endless shapes of plants in our yard.
Periwinkle is my favorite color. It is no surprise that my favorite flowers are hydrangeas, hyacinths, agapanthus - anything that has the periwinkle color, including its namesake, the periwinkle. Welcome to my periwinkle corner.
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