Our first Maui "woo-woo" experience

Okay, so we attended a workshop on biodynamic farming today - seemed like a good way to learn about organic farming.  Learned if you catch the insects eating your plants, fry them and make a spray around your garden the bugs stay away.  Interesting concept.  Learned basic composting with manure, green and drying vegetation and fish parts - looked like a good way to create good soil; although Linda nearly lost her cookies when they added the fish parts.  The last hour was spent stirring cow manure in water for a FULL hour and that was just a little over the top.  I brought the magic concoction home just in case - I did a little home experiment - just to validate the scientific basis for this practice...............Just don't tell anyone that we really did stir cow poo for an hour. 

Sacred Space

Something about flowers really does it for Linda.  She in three weeks time has acquired about 40 orchids, 15 anthurium and 40 ginger (most were free - the rest cheap).  She is busy creating organic growing space using Maui cinder rocks and macadamia shells for air and drainage.  We planted five papaya's, seven pineapples (all you do is cut off the top and stick it in the ground), five banana's, papaya seeds, hot chili plants, a plumeria start, about 12 hibiscus cuttings and macadamia seeds.  The orchids just love it here - totally low maintenance as opposed to high maintenance in Colorado. 

We met our neighbor today - Junior Lee - 81 years young and looks early 60's.  Great energy and good "talk story".  He feeds the feral cats and gets rid of some of those dang blasted chickens and roosters.  He is growing a cashew tree and had good advise about bananas.  His mother turns 100 this year - he credits the Maui trade winds - a welcome breeze that is usually present and makes for an appreciated coolness. I am insisting on a trade wind window for the cat house - Curt disagrees - but I am holding strong in this matter - mo bettah with da wind cooling off da cats. 

Check this out - we have FIVE avocado trees - what are we going to do with hundreds of avocados!

Moo

It is official - we have two cows.  Our paniolo (cowboy) Billy had a laugh when he saw the corral.  Luckily we had wood to do some quick patchwork to keep them in.  You would think Linda would know something about cows growing up in Greeley - Billy had to tell her to stop talking to them as it made them more nervous.  Green acres is the place to be!

Black Mold

Learned an important lesson today - never leave a mattress on the floor in Hawaii.  Our house sitter let us use her floor mattress until we got a bed - it was on the floor for about three months.  A week after being here Linda developed nasty asthma with a tight chest and wicked cough.  We finally got bed springs and a frame today - when we took the bed up it was covered with black mold - Yuck!   That bed is gone and the new one is perched high on box springs and a frame.  So there is one yucky thing about Hawaii. 
All that rain and humidity has some draw backs. 

We are fixing the fence and the cow pen in preparation for our two steers coming soon.  Curt is really handy - thank goodness because Linda is clueless about fixing fences and taking care of cattle.  

Red Dirt

Important lesson today - when you work in the garden you get covered in red clay dirt that sticks like glue. You have to scrub it off with a washcloth.  Your clothes are permanently stained red so "work clothes" have to be selected and segregated from all other's when you wash.  Rumor has it that OxyClean is the only product that gets red dirt out.

Interesting discovery in the flower bed today - two large snails - each about 2 1/2 inches stretched out - thought about some fine escargot - didn't have the nerve to take that chance and sent them on their way. 
(Aren't snails like mushrooms - some of them poisonous?)

Discovered our third avocado tree - we will have hundreds of avocados soon so make that plane reservation to come eat guacamole.   Found a second enormous macadamia tree and a box full of nuts are drying in the garage.  The gulch is full of wild raspberries - no wonder we have a herd of deer that frequent the pasture every night.  Observed the wild chickens this morning - one mom with six chicks in tow.  Saw the dang rooster strutting his stuff.  What is with roosters anyway - I hear them as early as 3:00
am. Daylight is hours away and the rest of the world is asleep.  Come evening time, not a crow can be
heard.  We are getting accustomed to the early am ruckus and even slept until 7:00am today.


Put up five quarts of guava jam today - Linda's first fruit canning - Curt is a pro.  We barely touched the amount of guava we have in the back two acres.  Soon we will have the famous Hale Mauka honey again to go with the guava jam and lilikoi butter. Life is bountiful on Maui.

Rain and more rain and rainbows and it is raining again

You have to smile - we are on #7 RAINBOW in Hawaii.  The joke is - gosh is is raining again - LOL - 10th time today - flurry's that pass through and leave wonderful rainbows - yes a blessing indeed..........

Creating a new dream on Maui

Welcome to the story of our new lives on the Island of Maui.  We were blessed with five acres and a 60 year old plantation home.  We arrived July 4th, 2011.  The past two weeks have been filled with creating a household as we came here with only our clothing, a truck, camera, computers and a few personal items.
As most of you know, we lost everything we owned with the exception of our pets in the Boulder Four-Mile fire in September of 2010.  We decided this was the time to fulfill our dream of living in Hawaii.

Our new home is only 720 square feet - plus a porch, garage and laundry room so we easily filled it with furniture from garage and moving sales.  Linda was quite pleased to find an authentic oak antique dresser.  She also was thrilled with finding new art to make the house "home".  We have learned to watch the roadside for local fishermen - they sell the fresh catch of the day from the side of the road.  We bought a five pound yellow fin tuna and cooked in on the grill with fresh pineapple - yummy!