Playful rest.

The wave is big and rolly as it comes through the mouth of Kahului Harbor. It's undulation takes a bit of getting used to, but it's longer runs, heavier water and steeper pitch provide a perfect playground for my next level of learning. I like the fact that it's eerily flat as a pancake between sets, because that way you can definitely see what's coming.

As I paddled out I chose the smallest break and validated my choice with a defensive response to an imaginary critic in my head, "Well I did grow up in the industrial North of England where we don't even go in the water" I said, feeling better for having spoken my piece to no one in particular. (With apologies for yet another Gopro self obsessed picture of myself ...I just can't help it)!

As luck would have it this 'am I received this (not so) self obsessed pic of my bro and realized that talking of water, there must have been something in it from our youth! Yorkshire folk, nowt like 'um-look at us, what a pair of bobby dazzlers!

Post playtime, I relaxed and nattered with my wonderful and lovely friend Cheyenne. Never under estimate the value of resting your paws while watching the world go by.

Talking of the world going by, as I've been living my life eagerly crossing things off my to-do list...

• Taxes delivered to accountant.
• Paint laundry room.
• Dish soap.
• Burn CD's for girls.
• Call Wendy.
• Take vac to office.

... nature has been busily doing her thing and growing creatively in my back garden, how groovy is that?!

Ahhhhhh, if you're not doing so already... rest your paws and have a moment, 'tis molto tranquillo.

Hot shots.

The old Paia Railway station building on Baldwin Avenue was awash with the afternoon light, flattering its already gorgeous color. It drew me in for a portrait, the results of which I was happy with, until I glimpsed myself in the window's reflection. Beginner mistake, now that's all I see!

The annual crab spider invasion continues. This one hitched a ride inside on my hair and when I pulled him off my follicles, I popped him on the keyboard (for later disposal) thinking he was dead. Imagine my post nap surprise when I flipped open my laptop (yes he had been sandwiched in hot plastic for a good 45 minutes), to find spiderman not only alive but suddenly repelling down the thesaurus on his own sticky life line, well done old chap! He won a return trip to the garden.

And talking of the garden, here's a visual tomato progress report and quick, quick, which is it............ a fruit or a vegetable?

Bloomin' cactus....... 

Oh happy day, after a month in the doldrums the wind came back for a quick visit, Lano.......keep your fingers crossed!

Growing pains.

I’m becoming mildly obsessed about the food I feed my body. Having just read Barbara Kingsolvers’ Animal, Vegetable, Miracle I couldn’t help but wake up to the tragedy that has become the American chemical plant that most of us consume and pretend is nutritional cuisine.

If you consider the amount of poisoned, genetically modified, and well travelled garbage we eat, it’s no wonder that in the West cases of ADHA, Alzheimer’s and Obesity are on the rise. Not to mention the fossil fuel consumption in transporting said poison and subsequent burdon on our health systems (personal and national). We are voluntarily polluting ourselves and our environment and for the most part we don’t even know it…..or even worse, we do know it and don’t care.

My Dad worked as a wholesale Fruit and Veg merchant his whole life so I’ve always had a fondness for markets, finding them a real hub of any village, town or city. At the end of each week he received a ‘goody bag’ of produce with the silent caveat “Just in case you were thinking of nicking something-here’s some free stuff so you don’t”! Therefore we were a vegetable rich family, though I confess to sometimes scoffing at mere receipt of free potatoes, carrots and onions….."where are the Uglis, Satsumas and the other really good stuff"? Clearly back then I was already missing the point, ungrateful for the staples and already lured by the imported exotics.

Despite my taking those veggies for granted I do remember they had real flavor, something that has been genetically removed these days in favor of shelf life. I guess with 7 billion people on the planet to feed I can understand the logic, but I for one am sick to death of eating dead tasteless veggies, which is why I started my own garden using seeds from Europe.

(Ooofff that was a tough paragraph. I'm still grappling with myself "should I put the 'U' back in flavour & favour?")

So today when I went to our local farmers market in Makawao I had that same giddy glee as when I used to opens Dad’s weekly goody bag. “What did we get, what’s in season and wtf is that”?! The relief I had in talking to local farmers who knew their product inside and out, the soil, the growing time, what they fed the chickens and the passion and pride they had in selling their produce was deeply satisfying. And cheap…….!

Look at lovely Andrea (aka Superagentatlarge) with her bountiful produce, Sistah, your Poha Berries were bloody delicious, proving a tiny point that you don't have to import exotic produce especially to a place like Hawaii. It all brings a whole new meaning to the term 'local'.

As for my own garden well, it’s a bit of a see-saw ride between gratification and disappointment. Look at this beautiful egg plant but there’s only one and its taken two months (at least) to show up. Plus wtf are those white lave looking things just waiting to bury themselves into the flesh of my dinner the day I harvest it? Still, when it is cut from its green umbilical cord I will no doubt require an audience and an enthusiastic round of applause, not dissimilar to that of parents at a crap school play.

It’s a humble start and I notice in these uncertain times I feel the desire to dig for victory and become mildly self sustaining. It sounds like a crazy notion but the idea of growing the main stay of my own vegetable intake (don’t worry I’m not going native) is absurdly appealing to me. Time will tell, in a few books from now will the inspiration of Barbara Kinsolvers quest to feed her family for a year have disappeared or properly taken root?

Feeling fruity.

I’ve adopted the Square Foot Gardening method of growing my own food and even though my harvest is small, it’s still ridiculously satisfying. Look at my baby water melons (as the actress said to the bishop)!

And talking of food, its mango season and this was my well deserved lunch after a great little surf sesh last week.

There are mango trees everywhere and evidently there’s quite an etiquette to poaching someone else’s fruit. It seems to go like this. If the tree hangs into no mans land (the road or pathway) then those mangoes are up for grabs. If the fruit is on private property then ask the owner nicely if you can pick some. Don’t be a greedy guts and take all his fruit and for goodness sake don’t be found at the swap meet by the owner selling his own harvest back to him!

I’ve just came home from a really fun beach BBQ, the excuse of which was Ulli’s birthday. What do you get the man who has everything? Well Darien & Lisa were the winners and here are said gifts modeled by the very non fruity Danny and the birthday boy himself. The only one to taste the cake was Ulli, as, in the good old tradition of custard pieing it was thrust into his face moments after it's arrival. Oh the revenge will be sweet and swift on this one!

Young ones.

So fast forward 15 years and this young dude brings over a hot date to meet the parents. Her eyes scan the home where her tasty new boyfriend grew up and come to rest on the family photograph table.

If she’s worthy this little snapshot will offer endless hours of mockery at the young studs expense! Bless.......so cute.

Yes, yes, yes, I know you’ve seen this Monarch Butterfly caterpillar before, but I found it whilst weeding today and couldn't resist another portrait.

And talking of finding things, how about this little fellow? I found him on my kitchen window the other day and he was just a tiny wee thing, no bigger than my thumb nail. Now I'm looking at this photo I realize this Praying Mantis looked a lot cuter in the flesh-in person....what's the right phrase? Guess you had to be there.....

G-Nome

I think there’s some unspoken rule that says if you see a garden gnome then you know the owner in question is serious gardener with a distinct lack of taste! Except in my case where I am now the official proud owner (thanks to Ulles and Meesh and their exceptional good taste) of a very distinguished ‘gotta take a poo’ gnome! Isn’t he lovely? 

Flower power.

There once was a lady from Leeds
Who swallowed a packet of seeds
Within a short hour
She pee’d a big flower
Giving pollen on tap for the bees.

My talents know no bounds!

In mint condition.

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OK-so it’s not exactly David Attenborough and Planet Earth, but I did manage to capture a little wild life action in my garden last week. These two were at it for so long I just weeded and planted around them and they weren't bothered a bit. Lucky me :-)

Water Lilies & Taro.

The blog is like having my own art gallery. So these two photos are just here for my own enjoyment. They were taken at the little water garden at Mama’s Fish House.

Proboscis hibiscus.

Not strictly its Latin name.......but it rhymes nicely!

Fruits of my labor.

Yahoo-it’s happening. In my on going quest for the perfect tomato, the seeds Giampaolo brought back from Italy are starting to germinate (I just love that word!).
And while this little fellow might not be the handsomest papaya of them all, he is mine! Breakfast of champions, along with a cuppa of course.

Beauty or beast?

These Kahili Ginger are actually native to India; they are stunning, large (note spify hand shot to prove my point!) & fragrant but it's actually an invasive species. I’m not sure (given its origins) why it has a Hawaiian name, perhaps because kahilis are the long ceremonial poles decorated with feathers and plumes used by Hawaiian royals. Anyway-this pest forms dense clumps in native forests, smothering young plants and preventing native seedlings from establishing. Bummer......

These are invading my garden right now and wild weed or not, I like’um!

Does two make a crop?

Well, not exactly a bumper harvest, but at least one looks like a carrot!

Gardenia jasminoides veitchii

I walked out onto my back deck this morning and hey presto; nature had conjured up another miracle, two blooming gardenias. My bedroom is now filled with their lovely fragrance (as well as mine!).

Euro Veg.

Yes, I'm showing off again, but with a disclaimer. There's no such thing as an English muffin in the UK (or for that matter a French fry), so I hesitate to claim this is Swiss chard.....

Late bloomer.

I liked this pici as the hibiscus is still on it's journey to full bloom-nice huh?

Peas time

I am deliriously proud of my garden. The latest tasty morsels to grow themselves my way are (drum roll please) The Peas (ta-da). Let your imagination wander and yes, the sweet flavor & crisp texture are just what your palate expected, but better, coz I helped a wee bit.