A Check-In, with a Two Plagues Return and our New BFF
Hey… you! (This is the awkward bit where it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other, we have to dance around whether we really remember each other’s names.) I know it’s been a long time, but I’ve got some cool stuff coming up, so I wanted to drop in and say hey. Just a quick check-in, so here are some long-time-no-see conversational FAQs. 🌧️ How’s the weather? 🏔️ (That’s what everyone with snow wants to know.) A hot and dry January that left everyone’s water catchment tanks parched has transitioned into a wetter and cooler February. How cool? Our Read more…
Two Plagues Upon our House (or, Why I’m Asleep with my Eyes Open)
I am. So. Tired. Seriously. Not quite face-plant on the keyboard, but in the neighborhood. Why? you ask. You may recall that our bad-ass Ninja Kitty passed away in early 2022, followed a month later by our beloved canine companion Fred. Hubs and I joked that Ninja’s rat-wrangling mojo reached from beyond the grave. That is, until we hit his one year death anniversary, and rat signs began appearing in the carport. They escalated to gnawing soap in the outdoor shower, then made it inside, scritch-scrabbling overhead while we tried to sleep. I swear, they were building skyscrapers above my Read more…
Postcard from Puna, Hawaii: Feral Chicken Eggs are as Radiant as the Sun
You may recall that I live off the grid in East Hawaii. That means only solar power (with an occasional generator top-up of the batteries in dire emergencies) and catchment water (gathering rain from the roof). I shower outside unless it’s too cold or raining sideways. What qualifies as too cold in Hawaii? We’re not at elevation, but during the “winter” it can easily drop into the fifties at night. Those mornings I ask myself, do I really want to be fully exposed to the elements right now? We’ve had a few chilly mornings lately, but I haven’t yet taken Read more…
Your Friendly Neighborhood Mystery Writer is Still Here
I counted 21 open flowers on this orchid, another 14 buds, and even more nubbins that promise to be buds that promise to be flowers. Talk about an over-achiever! Yes, it’s been… let’s just say a while since I’ve posted. But I’m still kicking and, per my lovely photographic evidence, still doing it in East Hawaii. Don’t get me wrong—I’ve written a bunch of brilliant blog entries, usually in the shower or in bed at night when I can’t sleep. Of course, you’ll have to take my word for them being brilliant since they never made it from the ether Read more…
Postcard from Puna, Where Pork Might be Back on This Vegetarian’s Menu
Aloha, my daydreaming snowbound friends! Last post, I shared a bit of the reality of living in East Hawaii with you, specifically that we received (there’s that deceptively grateful word again) 17.5 FEET of rain last year. Seriously. Well, in true contrarian fashion, our normally rainy January has been quite dry. So dry that I’ve started regularly (dysfunctionally?) laying a hand against our catchment tank to check the water level when I feed the fish in the evening. (Don’t worry—we still have plenty of water; I just like to be reassured that we still have plenty of water.) It has Read more…
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