Aloha Oe

It's been a quiet week or two (or three) on this blog, mostly because it's been a busy week or three in the house. We've been finishing off our moving process over the last few days. Since Wednesday, we've mostly been getting ready to clear quarters. Most of you probably don't know what "clearing quarters" really means (and those who do have my respect and sympathy). The short version is that you get to clean the house to within an inch of your life. The longer version is that the military really does take the old expression "leave it better than you got it" seriously.

Actually, clearing quarters out here isn't as bad as it can be in other places. We did have to scrub the house from top to bottom, but we didn't have to do things like putty and paint all of the nail holes, or pull up any plants we put in. Still, it's a lot more work than is expected by most rental companies.

The manual labor involved gives you a lot of time to think - actually, if your hands weren't occupied the whole time, it would be great for blogging. Since we've been here six years, a lot of the thinking I did was about things that I'll miss out here. There's the beginnings of a short list (in no particular order) below the fold.

1. Friends. That's one's sort of a no brainer, and goes with every move. Still, I don't make friends all that easily, so leaving can get difficult.
2. Music. I usually like classic rock, but every now and then it's nice to be able to flip the car radio over to a station that plays nothing but Hawaiian music.
3. Tamashiro Market. An old school fish market of the finest kind. If you're in town, definitely worth a look - it's on King Street up in Kalihi.
4. Wallabies and other zoological oddities. They may bite and kick, but they're still cute little buggers.
5. Armchair Adventurer. Besides the blog, I like to build models and play wargames. A good hobby shop is priceless, and Glen runs the best. (See also 1, above.)
6. Directions, Hawaiian Style. Besides using mauka, makai, and landmarks (Ewa, Koko Head) instead of compass points, there's also the pure joy involved in route numbers that nobody uses and streets that change names four times in five miles while retaining that route number.
7. Giovanni's Shrimp Truck. So ono. First you eat the shrimp, then you lick your fingers. Then lick your fingers some more. The garlic can linger there for hours.
8. Coconut Island. Also known as the Hawai'i Institute for Marine Biology (HIMB). A quiet scientific sanctuary on an island in Kaneohe Bay. It's possible to go there for a three hour tour, but some people have been known to get stuck for longer.
9. The ocean. There's something that's just so peaceful about living within sight of the Pacific (no pun intended).
10. The climate. Always between the mid 60s and the low 90s. What more can you ask for?

More suggestions are, of course, welcome. More may get added to this list later.