A Triple Anniversary and Three Dead Oxfarts

 8/29/20

Aloha Everybody.....

Whew!  By our sluggish standards this was a very busy week.  My eyeball exam last Saturday went great!  No injection needed as the new drug seems to be working its magic again – I’ll go back in 6 weeks to have another checkup, and by then I bet I’ll need another shot when the magic wears off. Even more good news this week, though was that the approval to cover the cost was extended until February!  Gee, I sure hope no one messes with Medicare.....

On Tuesday we celebrated the first of our three anniversaries this week – our 53rd wedding anniversary and the two days each of us didn’t have to return to our respective teaching jobs (this year we’re especially thankful not to return).  We couldn’t really do anything super-special on Tuesday, but did manage to go snorkeling (only me, though, because Karen had a swollen lip from a minor gardening mishap), then lunch at a shoreline restaurant, and finally some champagne at sunset.  We had more champagne for each of the other two celebrations but that was about it, though we did reflect on the challenges facing those who are trying to return to the classroom this year.

On Thursday we both had our teeth cleaned back-to-back by the same hygenist– normally not a event worth reporting but these days it is a very big deal. And on Friday Karen went through the ordeal of having her driver’s license renewed.  She’s on the geezerette short cycle of having to renew every two years. I’ll go on that cycle when mine expires in 2022.  Hawaii is very strict on documentation, even if you’re just renewing: Proof of Hawaii residence and legal presence,, Social Security number, and proof of name identity.  For women this can be a bit difficult if they have changed their name, and most go with a bundle of stuff including their marriage certificate.  For Hawaii residence you have to show recent statements from a bank or utility company, which can be very difficult in this day of electronic statements that aren’t really mailed to a physical address.  Also, even though most of our accounts are in both of our names, the statements most always appear to be mailed to just me.  Anyway, it all worked out and Karen is set for two years and even has the Gold Star thingy.  By the way, registering to vote here requires much the same documentation.  Mail-in ballots (all of Hawaii now votes by mail) are sent only to registered voters who have all this recent documentation.  Our signature-verified ballots can be tracked by voters online to make sure they were delivered and counted. Our recent primaries went very smoothly and results were made available in a day. Sorry DT, no fraud or delivery issues here.

On Thursday our 2003 Miata had to go in for service. Turned out to be a faulty ignition coil, which my trusty mechanic replaced and also replaced the sparkplugs and ignition wires.  Runs like a champ now, even for being 17 years old!

We have a very nice fig tree in our yard that has delicious fruit.  But just when the fruit is getting ripe it has been disappearing.  From past experience we suspected rats were stealing the figs at night. As I explain in my blog “How To Kill An Oxfart” we’re believers in using the most humane methods of control possible, in this case an electronic trap that renders them unconscious immediately and stops their heart.  This is arguably the best technique other than the good old snap trap, which is also instantly fatal. Anyway, the rain we’ve been having has prevented setting the electronic trap – until once last week and two nights this week.  Bingo, three dead rats.  I suspect there may be another one though because so far all the casualties have been female. I doubt there will be more than four – the maturing figs will be the evidence.  Unfortunately, then we will have to beat off the birds, who also find these figs tasty and will try to get to them first. Another tribulation of our stressful lives......

The Covid 19 upsurge is continuing and Oahu’s medical facilities are near capacity.  Here on our island we have nearly 100 active cases as of yesterday, nearly all on the east side of the island.  It is just a matter of time before our side is seeing cases though, because so many people from Hilo area and south commute to work in Kona.  Here’s my response to those who think this is a hoax or that because they are young and healthy they shouldn’t be required to wear a mask: Ok, but we know that even asymptomatic people (estimated to be about 40% of those who are infected) spread the virus to those who will be ill enough to need hospital care.  Now imagine you or your loved ones are in an accident, have a heart attack, or some other health crisis and need to be treated at one of the facilities that your selfish behavior has led to being overwhelmed.  By wearing a mask you may be saving your own or your loved ones’ life.

Ok, enough.  Off to Farmers’ Market, beach breakfast and our weekly workout.  Then home for a much-needed nap.

Eyeballs, Photons, and Mean Microbes

8/22/20

Aloha All!

Quiet here, thankfully.  I may have health news later today, as I have an eye doctor appointment around lunchtime.  Things seem good, but the tests will tell the true story.  It has been just a month since the last injection, and my experience with this new drug (Eylea) so far has been that I might be able to go another month without one.  That would be good news, of course, but over five years of this problem I’ve learned that we need to keep a low threshold for treating the edema, otherwise it can quickly get worse.  As long as my health insurance (Medicare + Aetna) covers the cost of the new drug, I’m more than willing to endure the treatment, which sounds worse than it is – i.e., a needle stuck in your eyeball.

All of the rain we’ve been getting has really invigorated the garden...and the weeds.  As I’ve said before, gardening and landscaping here consists mainly of near constant aggressive pruning and keeping stuff under control.  Our gardener, who comes once every two weeks, helps with this in the front area, but we still do a lot more there and in the other areas.  Every time he visits he loads up a truckload of green waste.  Things do slow down in the “winter” but we never have a period of total shut down like we did in Ohio.  Another price of living in paradise.

Covid 19 continues to surge on Oahu and the Governor has pushed back the visitor quarantine waiver until October.  In the meantime here on our island our new cases continue to creep up, though so far they haven’t overwhelmed our meager hospital resources.  This week 4 more people were arrested for quarantine violations, all in Hilo. Two were residents returning from the mainland, and two were visitors.  To me this isn’t about rights, but about responsible behavior — a concept some people seem to have difficulty with.  Also in Hilo there are 8 new cases this week in a school that had just reopened. Disturbing. Anyway, so far there haven’t been any additional restrictions on our island, though there have on Oahu, but many of us are getting a bit nervous.  We have about 45 active cases now, and of course they are isolated and no longer spreading the virus, but that means there are a number of asymptomatic people around who are contagious and don’t know they are spreading it bigly.

We had less rain this week and a bit more sun.  We finished our solar month just a smidge in the red, so we definitely picked up some extra photons.  The gain was despite the fact that we used our bedroom a.c. a couple of nights this week.  I’ve calculated that our new unit is very, very efficient, and overall a good investment.

Ok, off for our usual routine, though we will have to get back in time for me to go to the eye doctor.  I plan on a nice nap when that’s over with.  Take care everyone.  Stay healthy and help other people do the same......

Dick

Mainland Missive: An Ark, A Haircut, and A Parka

Note to Snow Crash Readers:  Just a reminder that the Mainland Missive Series is based on weekly emails I send to my family on the mainland.  They can be a little rough and personal.

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8/15/20

Aloha All!                                   

Big news this week has been the dramatic rise of Covid 19 cases on Oahu, with the accompanying strain on the health care system. There could not be a clearer experiment showing (a) the contagiousness of this thing and (b) how effective responsible behavior can be to contain it (an unmasked biker rally of 250k doesn’t qualify as responsible, IMHO).  Oahu went from having the pandemic nearly completely under control to record-breaking numbers that are outstripping ICU and hospital facilities in just few weeks. Some of this is due to large cluster outbreaks in prisons and military installations, but mostly it is because loosening restrictions in early July led to large gatherings and unmasked close contact.  Come on people, get a grip!  This isn’t a hoax – it *really* does cost lives and money in terms of expensive hospitalizations and lost business.

In more mundane news, our wet and cool weather is getting ridiculous.  On Tuesday night it rained 1.4" at our house, then another .7" on Wednesday night, and on Thursday night yet another .6" .  Notice I said “night.”  This almost always begins in late afternoon and continues into evening – our days start with beautiful mornings and then clouds move in later. And living at 800' on the Kona coast we frequently are able to watch a colorful sunset even while it is dumping rain. We had a couple of really sunny days last week and my solar pv system was able to nearly wipe out the month’s deficit, but then the cloudy pattern returned and we are back to being in the red, though not that deep.  Our meters are read on the 20th, so we could still get enough to break even if we get a bit more sun.

In addition to being wet, our cool temps are continuing – on Thursday night it got down to 67! Break out the parka! In a house that can’t be closed up entirely and has no insulation or heat, that can feel pretty chilly.  Usually at this time of year the low might be around 72-74.  Strange times we live in, right?

Three pleasant things happened this week.  I got my hair cut again (what a treat, despite all the precautions), so I’m ready for another lockdown if it comes.  On Wednesday Karen & I worked out at PF (only about 10 other people, all masked) then had a Vietnamese Lemon Grass Chicken sandwich from one of our favorite restaurants (Bale), which we took to a beach park near the airport.  Weather was gorgeous – until we got back home.  Finally, my handy man came on Thursday and we finished repairing the lanai railing I’ve been working on.  Always a good feeling to finish a project....until you realize there are 6 more waiting.

Ok, that’s it.  Off the market, breakfast picnic, and then our PF workout.  Take care everybody, stay comfy, safe, and as sane as you can.

ZZ Reports from Earth: Group 2

The following reports were received as a single burst transmission from relay station Alpha 3z26. Apparently Zork sent each message on a different date but the relay buffer stored them for later forwarding as a group. 

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Encrypted Transmission #003 Agent ZZ to IEC Local Date 11.10.19

Puzzled. Earlier reports said this country is a “democracy” yet most eligible citizens don’t vote and current leader didn’t get most votes. Translation data base wrong? Plz advise.

Encrypted Transmission #004 Agent ZZ to IEC Local Date 11.12.19

Zork here. Note to Planning Council – humans put great importance on imaginary lines between political units. Will die to defend them, kill others to keep them from crossing to same side. We can use this weakness! 

Encrypted Transmission #005 Agent ZZ to IEC Local Date 11.17.19

Current American leader prime example of regressive trend outlined in report. Seems to view all other political units as enemies and as threats. All criticism is personal and "fake." Thrives on internal strife and divisiveness. If he finds out I'm an alien I'll be a puddle of protoplasm...

 End of Transmission from relay station. Complete as sent. Acknowledge Receipt .

 

Mainland Missive: Techno-Toy Turnaround

 8/8/20

Aloha Everybody!                    

This was a very quiet week – same same but different as we ride out the pandemic here in paradise.

On Wednesday Karen played golf and made it fairly dry until the last hole, then got rather drenched.  That day was cloudy at home, too, but the rain held off until later in the day.  I went to Planet Fitness while Karen was playing golf and was pleased there weren’t very many people. Gyms are of course one of the highest risk places because of the huffing and puffing going on.  As I mentioned before, we are monitoring the situation there closely and will stop going if we think it is too risky.  But now that everybody is wearing masks the whole time, this particular gym seems ok – lots of room with machines spread out, and all the huffers and puffers faced away from those machines we use.  Also, we have been going when few people were there working out, and if it ever seemed too busy we’d leave.

Hawai’i is having a real upsurge in CV cases, as you may have heard.  This is mainly on Oahu, but we have also seen an increase.  On Oahu there have been several days of record-breaking new cases, and the ICU availability is getting tight.  The analysis seems to be that if we have a week of triple digit increases this will soon overwhelm the health care system.  The Governor has warned that things may have to be locked down again unless people start behaving responsibly, namely by wearing masks and avoiding large groups, even groups of friends and family.  This week interisland travel restrictions started again, but with a twist. If you go from here (or one of the other neighbor islands)  to Oahu you won’t have to quarantine, but when you return you will. Many of us on the other islands who are watching the big upsurge on Oahu are thinking this is a good idea. Still, a big bummer.

In other news, here’s further evidence of my weirdness.  On Thursday I my new techno-toy computer was delivered and on Friday I returned it to the local Costco.  As I mentioned, this toy had all the bells, whistles, and firepower I was looking for, except that the solid state drive was too small.  The plan was to swap out the smaller one with a larger 1tb drive I bought online.  I’ve done this before and assumed I could do it with this model.  Before I even fired up the new computer for the first time, I checked inside to assure myself that I could do the job.  Whoa!  This was like the difference between looking under the hood of an old Chevy and under the hood of a Ferrari.  I couldn’t even FIND the SSD drive!  Getting to it would require some serious dismantling of the innards, unlike the procedure I’ve done before.  So back it went.  Costco’s return policy was a godsend here – no questions asked, though I did explain it to the clerk.  Back down the internet rabbit hole to find another one.

Ok.  I hope you are all well and comfy there.  Carpe Diem!
 

Mainland Missive: A Viral Birthday

7/18/20

Another Week, Another Year Older

Aloha Everyone –

Hope you’re staying cool.  Mainland weather seems a bit toasty.  We’re still in the sunny-morning-then–cloudy-with-late-afternoon-showers pattern that doesn’t seem to want to go away.  High temps at our elevation top out about 85.  It has been warm a couple of nights (and muggy with all the rain) so we’ve actually tried our new bedroom a.c. that we had installed last spring.  So far so good, though we’re still tuning it for fan speed and direction.  I don’t like a.c. in general, but I really don’t like it when it blows directly on you.

Karen played golf again on Monday and lucked out with only light mist instead of the out-and-out rain she has encountered the last few times.  On Wednesday we went for a hike instead of going to Planet Fitness.  This was in honor of my birthday, which was pretty good actually.  I had wanted to hike a trail on the side of Hualalai that is not far from the golf course where Karen usually plays.  It is a very interesting trail through the cloud forest at about 4k feet elevation. I like it because a lot of the vegetation is native and it’s not too challenging. There are also quite a few native birds that are hard to spot but easy to hear. However, when we got to the trailhead it was starting to rain (!) so we decided to go further north to find something drier.  On the way we stopped at the Makalei golf course parking lot so I could pet a resident cat there, and that was a nice present for the cat-lover in me.

We wound up doing a 3.5 mile hike through an Ohia forest at the base of a cinder cone called Pu’u Wa’a Wa’a (note – 6 vowels and 3 consonants).  We have done this before, but it seemed long and tiring this time since we haven’ been hiking in almost a year. We were also stiff and sore the next day, which means that must have been using muscles in a different way than at Planet Fitness. After the hike we had a picnic lunch at one of our favorite spots along the shore, an historic site that was once a large Hawaiian settlement.  After some shopping at Walmart on the way home, my final present was a nice long nap! 

I was supposed to see my retina doc yesterday but it was re-scheduled for today.  Good chance I may need an injection – my acuity in my bad eyes seems to be slipping again.  I’ll let you know.

House projects include the usual whacking back stuff, and I’m starting to repair some rotten slats I discovered on one section of lanai railing.  I’m trying to redesign it so the slats will be more maintenance-free, probably with plastic lattice work.  As with most house projects, it’s often both a mental and a physical challenge.

Ok, that’s it for now.  Off to Farmers’ Market, our usual beach breakfast picnic, then a session at Planet Fitness followed by my eyeball appointment.  Take care.  Stay cool, healthy, and sane........

Introducing Zork Zynt, Intergalactic Field Agent (Spy)

Zork's official bio for the Directory of Intergalactic Field Agents is reproduced here:

Zork Zynt  Cultural Analyst, Supreme Intergalactic Expeditionary Council. Transmorgified on planet xv406.98 ("Earth"), local date 11.4.2019 to follow up earlier reports regarding suitability of local species for exploitation. Unfortunately Zork could not adapt to local conditions and had to be recalled prematurely.  Currently under neurological treatment and rehabilitation on Xyborg 6 for extreme stress and disorientation.

While on earth Zork sent sporadic reports about his observations of earthlings in a political unit called "America." Due to the primitive local infrastructure and extreme distance of transmission, the reports were very short and were often received in clusters of 2-3 at a time.  They will be released in the same manner, beginning with those reproduce below.

As his assignment progressed Zork became more and more deranged by his contact with earth culture and eventually had to be removed for his own well-being. His reports are a cautionary tale to be considered carefully in expeditionary planning.

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Encrypted Transmission #001 Agent ZZ to IEC Local Date Nov72019

Zork here on Earth. Transmorgification went ok, but still not used to this human body. Leaks all the time and requires energy inputs that just pass through. Also the more palatable the inputs the greater damage they do. Getting very fond of something called “Krispy Kremes.”

Encrypted Transmission #002 Agent ZZ to IEC Local Date Nov72019

Materialized in a place called “America.” Past recon agents must have been high on gorxinger worms. Very dangerous. Weapons for waging war everywhere and easy for anyone to obtain. Send a Level 4 Neutralizer to replace my current Level 1. Hope I survive this...

End of Transmission. Complete as sent. Acknowledge Receipt .

Mainland Missive: Dodging Dougie and Going Down A Rabbit Hole

7/31/20

Aloha Everybody!

Well, Dougie missed – just barely for some islands.  The hurricane passed north of our island far enough that we got nada, zip, zilch.  As it went further east it edged closer to each island, and for a while it looked like it might hit Kaua’i dead on.  However, even that island got spared because the eyewall stayed about 30 miles offshore.  They got buckets of rain, but that’s not at all unusual for them, even without a hurricane. Ok, that’s all the good news.  The sobering part is that Dougie held together as it went by all the islands, staying a Category 1 hurricane even as it passed over northern waters.  These waters have been warming over the last several years (leading to some coral bleaching, unfortunately), and so the storm’s energy wasn’t sapped as much as it might have been in earlier years.  If this continues it doesn't bode well for future storms that come our way.  Stay tuned.
                               
My 8-year old desktop computer started giving me problems this week, and this prompted a deep dive down the internet rabbit hole to research new ones.  A problem living in Hawai’i is that warranty service and returns may be 2000 miles away.  We also have very few options of in-store buying.  Many of us have found that Costco is our best bet, because they automatically extend the warranty and you can easily return something to the local store if it breaks, doesn’t work, or you just don’t like it – even if you bought it at Costco.com and had it shipped here.  I have settled on a big bad boy (HP All-In-One) from Costco that has *almost* all the features I want.  The exception is that the SSD drive isn’t as large as I think it should be.  My solution is to buy a larger drive online and then swap out the old one.  I’ve done this twice before, once on a laptop and once on the desktop, so I think I can do it with this one (with the help of You Tube, of course).  I’ll let you know.

Our rainy and cloudy weather continues, and we locals are getting very tired of it.  Evidence that this is unusual comes from my water bill (lowest in 2 years) and from my pv system – in the red for 5 of the last 6 months, which has never happened since it was activated 6 years ago.  This summer has been the coolest and wettest we can remember.  Good thing we haven’t had a lot of  tourists because they would be very unhappy.

Oahu is getting record numbers of new Covid cases, but the other islands (us included) have stayed level.  We want to keep it that way, and we were glad when the Governor extended the traveler quarantine order until September.  Big debate now is over reopening schools.  I think this could be done safely on our island but Oahu has to get it under control.  The Oahu outbreak is attributed to greater population density and to bad behavior during the July 4th weekend.

Ok, that’s it for this week.  Off to Farmers’ Market, breakfast picnic, and Planet Fitness.  Take care, Stay cool, safe, and sane.