Islandoftiki's Hawaiian adventure!

[Kylebeano]

Not enough reef pictures here! Very cool digs there in HI though, must be so neat out there on the tide pools.

The scorpions in the actinic aquarium lights are great.

Also, I feel you with the mini. Though you have a hand up in the DIY dept. I have an 09 JCW and its been nothing but mechanical trouble. Wastegate fail at 50.1k, thermostat at same time, clutch failed at 52k, oil under pressure came out at 59k, probably the timing chain tensioner bolt and internals flew off causing catastrophic internal damage.

[Sancho]

You are living the dream. Great thread. Keep the pics coming.

[SquishyFishy]

Sniff sniff.....my condolences for the great losses you have suffered John. Poor Betty....but probably in a better place on the reef with no end! I went to my favorite Betty video for solace....Betty meets the Batman light!

[FlowerMama]

ha. I'll have to watch again.

[SquishyFishy]

[Islandoftiki]

Hey Gang!

 

We've hardly had time to hit the ocean for pictures or video lately, but I'm hoping to in a couple weeks. This weekend is HawaiiCon and we're going to be attending in full costume. Myself going as my own version of the medic from Team Fortress 2, and Pamela is going as Wonder Woman with a seriously professional costume. I'll post pictures.

 

So, no marine life videos, but I did do a fairly long video of me searching for scorpions in the front yard and I hit pay dirt! Scorpions everywhere! Sorry the audio didn't turn out so great... I'll use an external mic next time.

 

 

Here's a picture of the one carrying babies on her back:

 

 

 

 

And a fun video of our dog Samson chasing the frisbee across the ravine.

 

 

 

What else? Our basil is growing like a weed! There's plenty more where this came from!

 

 

 

The little bargain basement rescue banana plant that Pamela got for me is now almost as tall as the pergola!

 

 

 

While Pamela was away in Philly for a week and a half, I finished painting her art studio in the garage. She was super excited to see it all done when she got home!

 

 

 

 

 

 

And on Sunday, I built her a workbench. One more is in the works.

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned for fun pictures from HawaiiCon!

 

 

Cheers!

[FlowerMama]

hmmm. Basil. Enjoy that. I grew some for the first time this year and really underestimated how much I'd get. I couldn't use it as fast as I was plucking. By now the last few wks it's turned yellow, it's done. And I don't enjoy pesto as much as I just love using the whole leaf as it is and chopping it up for use w/ ricotta in zucchini lasagna.

 

Here's an awesome recipe to use up 1/2 c. anyway. I just used a whole jar of sauce and a 16oz cube of whole milk mozzarella, it just melts better.

 

http://healthyrecipesblogs.com/2014/04/09/zucchini-lasagna/

[Islandoftiki]

So, this past weekend was HawaiiCon and holy cow it was fun!

 

Here's a few pictures of us at the event.

 

We took Pamela's best friend's daughter and her best friend. They had a total blast.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A change of costume for Pamela on day four.

 

 

 

So, on top of having a ton of fun, on Saturday, we entered the Cosplay contest. Since Pamela had someone else make her costume, she had to go into the Individual Performance category. That means she had to do a short performance on stage! She asked me to be her on-stage prop and we proceeded to have a short battle on stage in which she obviously won. The crowd LOVED it. Apparently we knocked it out of the park as the judges loved it just as much. Enough so to win her to win first place! FIRST PLACE!

 

Here are all of the winner on stage! Notice that with the 3" heels, she's about 6'4"! A proper amazon woman to play the role of Wonder Woman!

 

 

We exchanged information with someone who got our performance on video, so we're hoping that we can get a copy of it to share.

 

We also have a professional photographer who got a couple pictures of us. He's going to send them to us at the end of the week.

[SquishyFishy]

How fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Gosh John, you should go as Commander Data next year...quite a resemblance!

 

Are you Big Bang fans??

[Islandoftiki]

How fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Gosh John, you should go as Commander Data next year...quite a resemblance!

 

Are you Big Bang fans??

 

We haven't gotten to that series yet. It's on the list.

 

So, I'm strongly inclined to go as aquaman next year. I'm thinking a gold scale mail top would be pretty spectacular.

[Islandoftiki]

The thread is not dead!

 

I'm sorry gang, I cannot tell you how busy we've been since my last post. We're very busy getting our Ohana rental unit ready to go! AND... It's now listed on airbnb and VRBO! Our first reservation came in about 30 seconds after our listing went live on airbnb. We have since received six reservations in the past week. Insane! If it keeps up like this, we will be living mortgage-free soon.

 

Here are links to our listings!

 

airbnb: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/8537732?af=21215988&c=embedly&s=Rwohi_Uc

 

VRBO: http://www.vrbo.com/762965

 

And the video I made:

 

 

(I'm not trying to sell you all on staying here, just showing you the links with the pictures) Of course, if anyone from Nano-Reef wanted to visit The Big Island, there would totally be a substantial discount and plenty of personal hang-out time talking about nano-reefing. So, you'd have that going for you, which is nice.

 

So, there's that stuff, which is uber cool, but wait, there's more!

 

I guess, just like on the mainland, the Christmas crap comes out well before Halloween!

 

 

I'm thinking we need a flocked Christmas tree because they're both tacky and we have no snow (Except for on the top of the mountains) in Hawaii.

 

 

Our garage has (had) this really stupid unpermitted addition that completely prevented cars from being able to drive into it. We got that torn down! YES!

 

 

Bad addition! Go away!

 

Roof Gone!

 

Garage doors visible! Yes, they were still there and in tact. Very nice expensive roll-up doors, too.

 

 

 

 

You have to love the vintage glass block windows.

 

Here's the muscle that's going to bring down the cinder block walls.

 

 

Apparently this was almost 80 tonnes of concrete and cinder block! WTF? There's another addition on the back of the garage that needs to go eventually.

 

 

Free at last!

 

And the Mini gets to live where it belongs! Safe in the garage away from the nasty heat and UV radiation!

 

The Invisible Jet in it's hangar.

 

YAY!

 

 

Then, we got the lanai poured for the above mentioned Ohana rental unit!

 

 

 

The sun is now setting far enough South that we get to enjoy it again!

 

 

 

Janet, our female Jackson's chameleon got a massive cage upgrade. And yes, that's the stand for my 25 gallon saltwater tank It's only temporary.

 

 

 

She's molting again...

 

 

The awesome thing is that the new cage is window screen and I can just throw the crickets in there and she gets to hunt them herself. Trust me, she is VERY good at this.

 

 

 

There's so much much more going on, this is only skimming the surface. We have our friends coming (Our first official guests in the Ohana) in six days. I'm nailing down minor details that need to be finished. It's all small stuff now. Attaching the new bamboo headboard to the bed, adding some shelving and last minute cleaning.

 

Other than that, it's just been non-stop progress and a lot of work, but very rewarding.

 

I swear, some day soon, I will get a saltwater tank going! Okay, realistically, it's gonna be six months, but I assure it will be unusual, very different and extremely special. You will all learn a lot from it. That's my goal.

 

Aloha!

 

Islandoftiki

 

 

 

[jedimasterben]

 

MEEEDIIIIIIIIICCCC!

[FlowerMama]

Wow, you guys work fast. Got it going and now vrbo. Gee Whiz. You guys got this easy living down! How awesome, no mortgage!! All you have to do is enjoy your lifetime stay there. So excited and happy to hear of such a lovely story as yours. It's inspiring.

[Islandoftiki]

The concrete is set up on the lanai and the forms were removed. New lanai furniture assembled and bob's your uncle. I present you with the completed lanai for our guests!

 

 

The next step is landscaping. 90% of our landscaping is bare dirt, gravel, lava rock gravel or annoying buffalo grass. It's going to be a monumental task to get it up to par. But, like everything, we'll get it done.

 

We also need to paint the outside of the ohana. That should be fun!

 

Also this weekend, I got the wifi set up for the ohana. Since the building is detached from the rest of our structures, hardwiring it wasn't an option since digging a trench in the rocky lava soil here is about impossible. So, I set up a pair of outdoor CPE antennas and I can beam our entire 100 megabits of internet connection right to the ohana.

 

 

 

The CPE client at the ohana plugs into a router and that's set up with a guest network.

 

Aside from that, I anchored the new (used) bamboo headboard to the wall.

 

 

 

We hung some more artwork.

 

 

 

 

 

I installed a shelf and hanging rod for clothes (There isn't room for a closet).

 

 

 

Cleaned up the wiring for the television and internet equipment. Set up a second Netflix account and linked it to the television (We figured this would be much more useful than a DVD player since there's nowhere to rent DVD's around here.

 

 

 

Our first guests (Long time friends of ours) come to stay in the ohana in two days! I'm sure they'll enjoy it. Now we just need to get the rest of the house looking as nice as the rental unit!

 

I'm sure that while our friends are here, we'll get out and do some snorkeling, tidepooling and general fun marine stuff that I'll be able to share with you all!

 

 

[RollaJase]

Really nice renovations, nice transformation from a house to a home. You are really transforming this place, I really like the guest house.

[kimberbee]

I wanna come stay there!!!

 

Looks really nice and cozy!

[Islandoftiki]

Aloha gang! Well, again, it's been too long since my last update, but like always, we've been crazy busy.

 

Most of the business has been pushing to get our ohana rental building done in time for our first official paying guests who arrived last night! I didn't have time to take photos, so that will have to wait until Sunday after they leave. February is booked solid and November through January are filling up fast. Very exciting.

 

About two weeks ago, we got a load of 12 tons of cinder soil delivered.

 

 

And while I was busy working on projects in and around the ohana, Pamela managed to spread the entire 12 tons in five days! I don't call her the human backhoe for nothing.

 

 

 

Our chickens started producing eggs! They're small ones; about 2/3 the side of a store bought large egg. The chickens are an absolute joy. They're extremely interactive and friendly. We have yet to eat any of the eggs, but we're up to a total count of nine! Two of which were yesterday and two today. I think soon, we're going to have more eggs than we know what to do with. It's nice to know that your eggs are coming from very happy and well cared for chickens as opposed to the store bought ones where you know they're living in a production facility. I highly recommend keeping chickens for anyone who is considering it. They're much more fun than you'd expect.

 

 

As we head into winter (it was a balmy 85 degrees on the drive home in the convertible this evening), the sunsets are starting to get really spectacular. And, as of two weeks ago, the whales are here!

 

 

On top of all of that, our liliquoi (Passion fruit) vine has grown to be a monster and just started flowering. You know what that means? Fresh passion fruit margaritas will be on the menu at our place soon! The flowers, which are amazing, only last about a day or two before they start their transformation into fruit.

 

 

 

 

We discovered this tiny praying mantis the other day who has a abdomen shaped exactly like a leaf! S/he was moving in a way that looked like it was blowing in the breeze.

 

 

 

 

This past weekend, before our first guests arrived, we painted the main walls of the ohana with this beautiful olive green color.

 

 

 

 

I can't wait to show you all the inside of the ohana building. It's really come together and looks amazing.

 

Stay tuned!

[FlowerMama]

I'm renaming your home to Passion Fruit Paradise! I want to see the first picture of that margarita.

[SquishyFishy]

Don't you dare discount that, its cheap enough already!!!!

 

Just spectacular....and I'm expecting some photos of the Green Flash soon!!!!!! Maybe zoom in on those whales!!!

 

Don't forget fresh flowers for the Ohana! I love it!

 

Hope we can stay with you soon.

[Hammerstone]

I would love to stay there if I could afford it. It's beautiful. I love your chickens and the pictures of the eggs. How cute!!

[Islandoftiki]

Our first official paying guests in the ohana building have come and gone. They were super happy with it and will be leaving us an excellent review. I had cocktails on the lanai with them last night and we had a great time. They had two suggestions for things to add. A Brita pitcher in the fridge for cold filtered water and a blender for cocktails. I'll be adding those items on Monday.

 

You know that passion fruit flower that I shared a picture of just a couple days ago? Well, here it is now:

 

 

 

Geronimo came to visit me last night. Of course, I had carrots for him. He's also decided that ke likes apples now.

 

 

 

Yesterday, the chickens produced three eggs! And again today! They're really cranking them out! Time to make an omelet or four...

 

 

 

My projects for today: Finally unwrap the kayaks that we got shipped from REI on the mainland. Install a kayak hoist system to hang them from the ceiling. Install new LED shop lighting to replace all of the failed fluorescent fixtures. As you can see, the project went well...

 

 

I'm going to be cleaning the ohana building tomorrow in preparation for the next guests. I'll be taking updated photos of the unit and sharing them with you. You'll be surprised at all of the changes we've made in the past couple weeks. It's really epic now.

 

 

Oh, and here's a rainbow... I had to drive up to the hardware store in Waimea (20 minutes away). It was 92 degrees and sunny at our place. Waimea was 67 degrees and raining. 20 minutes away. Anyhow, rain=rainbows.

 

[Tamberav]

I am so jealous.... it's turning into winter here Everything looks so beautiful where you live! I love how you are growing herbs/food and have chickens! My dad has a huge garden and chickens there is nothing as tasty as producing your own produce. I pretty much raid the garden when I visit them.

 

I am sorry to hear about Betty I actually lost Ivy too to a bad molt that seemed to be taking too long, I am still bummed I did come across another peacock mantis female that is about 1.5 inches and had to take that one home. She is still nervous and punched me the other day.

 

I came across this on the internet: Molting is a dangerous undertaking for mantis shrimp and most other arthropods. First, molting itself is not a slam-dunk. Imagine trying to get out of a head-to-toe scuba suit when you've got a nasty sunburn, only worse. Arthropods shed not just their outer body covering, but their eye surfaces, the inner lining of their foregut and hindgut, and even the lining of the internal passageways leading to the respiratory system! It's all too easy for an arthropod to tear off an eyeball or leg, or to get stuck (leading to death) while shedding its armor.

 

Does not sound like an easy task for them.

 

I am excited to see what sort of aquarium you set up

[Islandoftiki]

I am so jealous.... it's turning into winter here Everything looks so beautiful where you live!

It's actually just starting to get nice here. We've had one of the hottest and most humid summers on record. It's been absolutely miserable at work. Soaked with sweat from head to toe for eight hours every day gets tiring. Now that we're heading into winter, there is some relief coming! It was windy at the house today, which was nice. Let's hope next summer is more normal.

 

Aquarium keeping is going to have its challenges here. There's only one LFS and they are very lightly stocked with basic necessities. Everything I need will have to be mail ordered. Hopefully through Amazon prime for heavy items like salt. Luckily, I have tons of equipment in boxes to get a system going... In particular, my chiller. That's going to be mandatory.

[FlowerMama]

Yep, my Gertie had the problem with her eye molt, took half of it off. Thankfully it grew back. Tamberav, you have a picture or thread of your tank? Have I missed it somehow?

[BulkRate]

You will never, ever enjoy a grocery store egg again once you get used to fresh. Just remember that the commercially packaged ones keep much longer... you'd best enjoy your harvest within 3-4 days.

 

There's a few households in the immediate area that sell their excess every now and then. Only time I really like eggs.

 

Keep up the updates! ... makes a nice change to read up on your adventures rather than focus on the 2 straight weeks of fall-temp drizzle we've been dealing with here.