Blog — Hawaiian style

Wow, this month turned out to be eventful as things opened up from COVID-19 restrictions. Especially with Merrie Monarch and Earth Day. While I still generally wear masks while out in the world, it was strange but nice to see friends' full faces again. First off, the Ka Ulu Lauhala O Kona weaving conference has been scheduled for September and registration packets became available. This year it will be held at the Outrigger in Keauhou a.k.a "the Old Kona Surf."  The hotel is on the verge of a much needed major renovation, but the pool has a slide. This year...

So... I wanted to make at least one more hīnaʻi lauhala for donation at the Hawaiian Church of Hawaiʻi Nei workshop to make kaula and hīnaʻi lauhala to help with the re-interment of Iwi Kupuna. I hoped to get three done but ended up with two. The one pictured above was made with 1 inch koana 12x12 mauʻu. The other one, that I forgot to take a picture of, was 10x10 mauʻu. I delivered them to the workshop at Huliheʻe Palace today. That's not the strange thing afoot though... I was recently surprised and "volun-told" for pāʻū committee involvement at the next Kona Kamehameha Celebration Floral Parade. I had always thought my...

Wow. January blew by!  I try to post something once a month but just realized it's already February!  So... Happy New Year and Kung Hei Fat Choi Happy Year of the Water Tiger 2022. Hope you and yours had a peaceful and pleasant holiday season. I haven't made any resolutions as mine tend to be forgotten by March. It's sometimes difficult deciding whether I should pull weeds or clean/process lauhala. The weather often decides for me. Although winter is our dry season, we thankfully still get occasional rain. Just not every day like in the summer. Wet soil after a good rain...

I stopped by Kimura's Lauhala Shop the other day to pick up our coffee. Yes, I buy our coffee from a lauhala store. We drink 100% Kona Coffee. It may be considered premium coffee, but it tastes great "black" and we love supporting local agriculture. Also, the natural caffeine levels in fresher coffee makes it more cost effective and convenient, IMHO, as one doesn't have to drink as much to get the same wake up kick in the morning. Kimura's prices are very reasonable. The coffee doesn't travel far from farm to roaster to their store. I digress... Stopped by for...

Māʻona Community Garden does a community imu three times a year: Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Reservations for turkey spaces are made online. One drops off their turkey in a covered roasting pan the afternoon before the holiday; Māʻona handles all the imu prep and loading and unloading; then the kālua turkeys are ready for pick up the next morning. All they ask for is a donation. I had seen flyers and announcements in the past but never considered it until talking to Chantal while at the garden this year. One of the things we talked about was the amount of single...