Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Less Than a Month!

The countdown calendar has begun! And I thought I wouldn't feel that time was running out until we turned the page of our wall calendar to September! Lots more sorting and packing around here, and actually, I've done just about all I can do ahead of time. So for the past week I've switched gears temporarily and have been spending a little time doing the things I enjoy most around here: gardening, playing with grandson Jimmy, fishing and boating with Mike, and going up into the mountains.

I had a lovely day last Friday with Jimmy, now 3, here all day while mom Katie held a yardsale. It is such a joy to my heart to have this little guy around. Even when I'm just listening in on his imaginative play it brings back such a comforting feeling; I always enjoyed hearing my kids at play with some elaborate set-up of blocks, cars, horse models, 'schoolbus people', etc. And having conversations with a 3-year-old is pure delight (unless you're in a hurry!). I am definitely going to miss being able to have him over so often, and I intend to take full advantage of our proximity while we're still here.

We have finally found homes for our fur-babies! Blessings on Kim who wants to adopt all 5 for her 10-acre farm. Kerry and I will be delivering Edward and Orion tomorrow, the rest a few at a time. We couldn't wish for a more perfect place for these kitties; they'll have run of the horse stalls, pastures, yard, garden, and hay barn... kittycat heaven! Kim loves cats but her husband says not inside, so it's a perfect fit for our outdoor pets. Thank goodness.

We've been getting the Blazer ready for shipping by buying all 4 new tires, and replacing the windshield. Wow! I forgot how clear the view could be up ahead! We didn't have any cracks - well, not until Mike pushed on it! - but there were plenty of rock chips. The transport companies tell you that the windshield must be completely intact before they'll ship it. So that's done now. Our pages of lists are slowly getting checked off as we get closer to Moving Day - September 25th.

Oh, by the way, our Hawaii house is just fine. The Hurricane That Wasn't wasn't a problem, the earthquakes only knocked a few things over, and the lava is still miles away.


Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Going into the Great Unknown

Hurricane Flossie is heading for the Big Island, expected to hit early this afternoon (Hawaii time) bringing high winds, torrential rains, and flash floods. We're safe from flooding in our area, but high winds could possibly do some damage. I love a good storm, but it's sure hard to just be watching it all from a distance.

So while we're worrying from here about our house and our friends over there, a 5.4 earthquake struck the isalnd! The epicenter (in Kalapana) is just about in our area (Pahoa). We heard the quake shook for 10 seconds in Hilo which is about 25 miles away. That's enough to do damage, but we haven't heard any more news yet.

And we know that the volcano has been sending lava from a whole new area! That's been going on for a couple weeks now, very exciting but not for us to worry about - so far. We keep monitoring this through the Hawaii Volcano Observatory website: http://volcano.wr.usgs.gov/hvostatus.php

I wonder: will we even have a house to move into?

Sure we wanted a change of pace, but really, this may be going a bit too far!

Thursday, August 2, 2007

We've Got Our One-Way Tickets!

Hope everyone is enjoying this glorious summertime! Even when the days are over 100*, we are finding ways to appreciate the abundance of the season. As long as I keep it watered, my garden grows like mad and provides us with loads of delicious vegies, beautiful flowers, and wonderful herbs. I'm drying a year's worth of herbs to take with us and keep us well-stocked in that department. We just eat up the vegies; no canning or freezing produce this year! And the flowers are loved both indoors and out.

Here's our Big News:
We bought our one-way tickets! Moving Day, when we say good-bye to our Idaho home, is September 25. So I guess this adventure is really going to happen!

Here's the plan:
1. We load up a UHaul trailer, our luggage and ourselves and drive to the Spokane Airport (2-1/2 hours away). K gets dropped off there (with her two pieces of luggage) - she is greatly looking forward to a long week with her cousins in San Jose before heading out to the middle of the ocean.
2. Meanwhile, Mike & I continue the drive across eastern Washington and over the Cascades to the Port of Seattle to send off our boxes and the Blazer.
3. We will also need a rental car for the actual transfer day, and a hotel for a couple nights.
4. Then, on the 27th, off we go! It's a straight shot to Honolulu. And, after a brief layover, on to Hilo.
5. After gathering up our luggage, another rental car awaits us and we drive to our house, arriving by evening.
6. K joins us a week later!
7. Our crates and car will take 2-3 weeks to arrive; they get to go by ship to Honolulu, then barge to Hilo. The books are travelling via Media Mail - it's the cheapest way to get them there, though it does take about a month.

We aren't really bringing much stuff with us. Our Hawaii house is already fully furnished since we've been renting it out as a vacation rental. But there are some things we've been unable to find on the island - like a decent nut-chopper! - and other items we 'have' to have with us. Then there are the tools and kitchen equipment and so on that we already have and can't really afford to buy again. We'll be building the ohana right away and then moving into that, so we will need to outfit it. But it'll be small and won't require much - simple island living, you know.

Meanwhile, I've been going through every box and bin, every drawer and shelf, every closet and all the outbuildings, paring down 32 years of accumulation on this farm. It's an overwhelming job at times, so I try to do at least a little each day. I had my second big yard sale of the summer last weekend, and it was a huge success! Got rid of lots of good stuff. It feels so good to lighten our load!

Some of the preparations are not so exhilirating though: Snape, the 7'-long red-tailed boa, has already found a good home with his original owners who were overjoyed to have him back. That felt good. However, it's much harder bearing to part with our furry friends. We're working on finding loving people to adopt our kitties. Got some leads and some maybes, but so far we still have all 5 cats. I don't think the chickens will be quite so agonizing to part with, although they are really sweet girls and we will sure miss the fresh eggs - until I get new hens, which is high on my to-do list once we're settled in.

I'll keep you posted as things progress.