More Hana Pictures

These photos, as well as the ones from yesterday, were all taken when we took a trip to Hana last Sunday. Originally we were planning on living in Hana when we came to Maui, and I'm sure you can see why based on some of the pictures. It is one of the least developed places in the Hawaiian islands, still retaining much of its picturesque rain forest beauty. The diversity of the plant life is breathtaking. And beaches vary in color from black to red to pristine white. The drive to Hana is its own adventure, taking many twists and turns as it winds its way along the scenic coastline... Listen to me, I sound like a travel brochure, but seriously, it's amazing. Nature at its finest, without a doubt.

Pictures from Hana

Alanna's First Job (post college)

I never thought, in all my years as a theater student, that the problem I would face post college would be one of, 'which job offer do I accept?' as opposed to, 'why can't I find work!' But wouldn't you know it, here I am with three different paths I can choose to walk down. As much a surprise to me as being offered jobs is the fact that I am finding myself drawn to teaching. Maybe its the 'Teaching Artists Training Program' that I am about to begin, or just a want to bring more kids into the theater, but somehow teaching is appealing to me in a way it never has before. I think there is definitely truth in what my mother has told me from her experiences, 'you learn so much when you are teaching.' I know that, even with college behind me, my quest for knowledge will not be leaving me anytime soon. I think the experience of learning while working in my chosen field will be a thrilling and rewarding one, and I look forward to being able to share more of my experiences as I have them. Thanks to all of you who cheered me on through the years! Looks like little Lani's career path is starting to carve itself out. Hooray!

On the Move!

Well friends, it's been a while since I last updated you on what is going on in the fabulous and crazy lives of Alanna and Evan on the island. Thanks for your patience! So much has happened, as seems to be the norm so far for our little adventure. I'll try to keep the recap concise...

After a few weeks of, "Holy crap, that didn't work, well what the hell do we do now?!?!" we were set to move into the property we had originally intended to live in. The landlord came out, and fixed a few of the major issues, and we thought we could take it from there. However, when we arrived at the property, braced as we were for some intense cleaning and home-making, we still found ourselves feeling ill-at-ease. You know that gut feeling that modern society often teaches us to ignore; that little voice in the back of your head that keeps nagging at you, getting louder and louder with each wimpy justification? Yeah, well those voices/feelings were on "hyperactive" mode from the moment we set foot in the place...again.

After hours of cleaning, and trying to reassure ourselves and each other, we found ourselves lying on the bed (our one piece of furniture) wondering if we had made a grave error. The place felt dirty and dangerous, though there wasn't anything obvious enough to make us feel justified in saying, "OK, let's get the ---- outta here!" It was just that feeling in the pit of our stomach. Something wasn't right. So after 48 hours, with no contact to the outside world, we decided that our sixth senses were acting up for a reason. We bid farewell to the house, not sure if that adieu would be temporary or permanent. As is often the case with couples I think that each of us was waiting, hoping the other would speak up first and say, "Enough, I'm out!"

Less than 12 hours after we'd left the property, in a little town about 90 minutes away, we serendipitously came upon a real estate listing in the window of a realtor's office. The house in question? You guessed it, our humble, jungle abode that gave us such bad vibes. So much for full disclosure- and "hooray" we finally saw that we had made the right decision. Chalk that one up to lessons learned (and hopefully never to be learned again!)

"So now what?" we thought, relieved and frustrated, not sure which way was up. Our close friends, Rory and Lisa, who moved to Maui only a few months before we did, happened to be looking for a new living situation as well. We thought with our resources combined maybe we'd stumble upon a really great property, and after being somewhat cut off from all our friends and family, the idea of having roommates that were also friends sounded like a small piece of heaven. So we began the search for a home again, for the third time in as many weeks. And this time, luck was definitely on our side...

After less than 24 hours of being on the house hunt, we stumbled upon a beautiful, relatively inexpensive, mid-century masterpiece. Okay, maybe masterpiece is a bit of an overstatement, but after the two places we'd lived so far on Maui, I think the overstatement is justified. Lisa, being an interior designer and architect-in-training was immediately captivated by the wall of windows, hardwood beams and stone wall that are some of the beautiful architectural features of the house. I think the rest of us were pretty taken with it as well. Not to mention the almost unheard of 1100+ square footage (our old abodes were 600 and 250 sq. ft., respectively). And the price? Affordable! It seemed like a dream, and the four of us immediately began the application process.

But as fate would have it, nothing is as easy as it seems. This seems to be a theme in our Maui learning experience. Lisa and Rory, after much consideration and struggle, came to the conclusion that, with the economy in shambles, life on Maui is too expensive and uncertain right now. Lord knows, Evan and I cannot argue with that. And with budding careers in good fields , it makes all the sense in the world that they should be in places where they can get their careers off and rolling. All the best to them!

So where did that leave Evan and I? Well, as you can imagine, the safety net that had been created by finding a couple to share the cost of living with was gone. And initially (I thought) the beautiful house was gone too. But with Evan's steady optimism, and a better look at our finances, we thought, "why does this have to be out of reach?" Even on our own, the monthly dues could be met, and with employment looming on the horizon, we felt confident that we could still make it work.

So here we are, in our beautiful new home, finally reconnected with the inordinate amount of possessions we had sent our way and beginning to feel, after four long weeks, that Maui is our new home. And wouldn't you know it, Rory and Lisa decided that they would love to spend their remaining days on Maui in the lovely house, so we'll get to have friends around after all! Hooray!

As for the inordinate amount of stuff... Being two only children, and both having come by our pack-rat tendencies honestly, it makes a little sense why we find ourselves having amassed a LUDICROUS amount of possessions in such a short time. We received our pallet of things from Portland two days ago, and already there are boxes of things that we are preparing to sell at a future garage sale! Ridiculous, but hey, at least we are learning to curb our hoarding tendencies early enough in life that maybe our children will have a fighting chance!

So friends, with all the anxiety, worry and doubt finally receding from our shoulders, we are able to look at the beautiful scenery with fresh, youthful energy- keeping our eyes fixed on the wonder of the place we find ourselves in, and the excitement of what each new day may bring. The sounds of the birds in the morning, and the crickets in the evening; the colors of the plants, the ocean and the sky- all of these things seem brighter, and more radiant with every day that passes. I think I will never cease to be amazed at the bounty of Maui's beauty. I hope that in the months and years to come you, our friends and families, may be able to come share in the beauty and spirit of aloha that we are becoming a steady part of.

Until that day, Evan and I wish all of you much love and peace, and hope that your days are full and happy. We just booked a visit back home for the middle of March, so everyone beware we'll be looking for some rendezvous time when we get back in town! In the meantime, we hope that the weather in PDX improves a little, and we'll keep sending warm trade wind thoughts your way. Be well, everyone, and we look forward to keeping you updated in the weeks to come! Oh, and enjoy the little pictures of our new place!

Much love,
a&e

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

We have a home! A permanent one, well, the permanent one really. After many emails, phone conversations and a few harsh words (mainly on our part, sorry Bill!) we are going to be moving into our newly remodeled jungle dwelling. The place, as we first saw it, definitely needed some TLC, and next we knew our landlord was dropping everything in Massachusetts to fly out here and fix everything up. What a guy, huh?

So, all things being considered, man am I glad that we didn't let fear and whatnot carry us away from Nahiku (where our residence is) and into another abode, which would no doubt be less affordable, and much less awe-inspiring. For all of you who know me (Alanna), you probably would be proud to know that with as much instability and anxiety as I've had the last two weeks, I managed to remain patient enough to let this all work itself out in time. Not bad for a chronic worrier, if you ask me. And Evan, of course gets much of the credit for keeping me from going off the deep end, as usual. He's a good anchor for me, and I think I am for him. Awe, now idn't that cute? Marriage does have it's perks after all! Who knew? (Kidding, guys, only kidding.)

So today, with plans firmly in place for the first time since we've been here, what will we do with ourselves? Go to da beach! I mean come on, after all this stressing and huffing and puffing, what else would you have us do? Paia beach, the one photo included, will be our home for today, as we hang out with friends and swim in the beautiful blue pacific. I hope the weather back home isn't too abysmal, and as always we are sending warm thoughts your way.

Oh yeah, one other thing! Now that we have a two bedroom house, it's GAME ON, for all of you that were wanting to come visit. Little rainforest getaway, anyone?

As always, much love and aloha to all our friends and family. We miss you like crazy! a & e

Tidbits...

Wow-wee Maui

Ah, kava, the ancient form of relaxation and spiritual enlightenment. Yesterday Evan and I made are way into Kahului, to Wow-wee Maui's Kava Bar and Grill, which is one of very few places in the US that serves Kava. I was first introduced to Kava by an acupuncturist in Portland who thought it might help me to get rid of some anxiety and help me sleep. And oh how right she was. For those of you not entirely familiar with kava, here's the nickel tour, as it were: Kava is made from the root of the Kava kava plant, which is indigenous to the Pacific Rim Islands, such as Hawaii, Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, etc. It grows on the slopes of mountains or hills, in sort of a stalk. When the plant is pulled out of the ground, the roots of the kava kava plant are chewed (typically by the youth of the village, in ancient times) or pulverized (today) and the serum/liquid that is thus extracted is then strained in water, creating the potent sedative. Depending on where you are in the world, kava can be used as a tool for relaxation, religious enlightenment and/or social interaction. The strength or potency also varies greatly from location to location, with Vanuatu kava being, in my humble opinion, the strongest, and Hawaiian kava probably on the weaker end of the scale. Basically, it's another social lubricant, but one that does not carry with it the dangers or stigmas of alcohol, nicotine or tranquilizers. Because of its use in traditional medicine, doctors around the world are beginning to use kava in conjunction with other things to help treat a myriad of illnesses, such as depression, headaches, severe menstrual cramps and anxiety in children... Neat, yeah? Well I thought so, and I also thought that going to an actual kava bar was pretty cool. The people were very friendly and the food was good too. Definitely worth the thirty minute drive. And for all you wondering, no, Alanna didn't imbibe so much kava that Evan had to drag her back to the car. Actually, two shell-fulls left me feeling happy and at peace, a much needed departure from that morning. So bottom line? I like kava, and am happy Wow-wee Maui's is there. Much love and Aloha to you all!