It is with great sadness I have to announce the potential passing of my beloved computer Albert 7.2. There is a potential that he might be resurrected (new parts are on their way) but it’s taken some degree of surgical precision to even make the attempt! Posts might be a bit erratic while I try and get thing up and running. Here is look at the grey screen non-boot trouble!
If you know anything about my wife, you know she has a deep passion for tea. I don’t know exactly how it started or the explicit stages of its evolution (though I have witnessed a LOT of stages), but I know when I travel anywhere known for tea…I am going to have a special order placed often with precise details as to which places to visit and exactly which blend to purchase. I once walked 5 miles (probably more since I was lost) in Koyto, Japan trying to find the Ippodo shop to pickup a special Matcha. Needless to say, when we went to the Big Island of Hawaii in February of this year, we HAD to visit some of the tea plantations. I will say, in all my travels, Big Island Tea has some of the most beautiful (and extremely tasty) tea I have seen.
Happy Memorial Day!
If you have been watching the news, you have probably heard of the havoc Pele is making on the Big Island of Hawaii. There is of course nothing we can all do but sit back and watch her awesome power consume. Pamela and I were just on the Big Island back in April and I took this photo from my iPhone. This is shot from the Jagger Museum at Volcanoes National Park. The park is current closed to visitors while the change of eruption is so high. Our heart goes out to all the folks we met, those we did not and all of our friends on the Island! Stay safe!
This photo was a precursor really. I was trying to find this particular location on Cannon Beach that I ended up having to run to (anything for a shot right). This silhouette of the shoreline came out pretty nice as well from Ecola State Park.
On my last trip to Washington, I visit the small town of Astoria, Oregon. You might not know it at first, but it’s streets and buildings will forever be in your mind if you grew up in the 80’s. Astoria, OR is one of the main locations where the film Goonies was made. Overlooking the town is a sight called the Astoria Column. It’s a slightly odd sight on a fantastic location overlooking the gorgeous Pacific North West. It is also the source of a lot of local pride. The folks at the monument were also very knowledgable and super helpful in relaying the history of the town. If you find yourself in the area, absolutely make a trip!
I kind of love photos where you have a hard time determining where you are or what time period you are seeing. It’s sort of like a puzzle to me I guess and things I don’t immediately understand often spark my interest. The other thing I loved about this is the reminder that there are tumbleweeds blowing across the highway in Washington and Oregon!
Happy Birthday to ME! It’s also time for an Instagram Favorites post. Since I have not been traveling as much, these posts are fewer and further between, but I just got back from The Big Island of Hawaii, so if you missed them, enjoy!
Having just left Hawaii I can’t help but think about it constantly. It was warm and full of adventure and time with my favorite person in the world…what’s not to love! This last trip was my 9th to the Hawaiian Islands, and my next will mark a very momentous occasion. When you enter Hawaii, the State of Hawaii ask you to fill out a declaration form on the plane. On the back is an optional demographic survey and they ask how many times you have been to Hawaii. I know this is coming and I always have to count my trips there. This next time (though I will still count one last time) should be the point I hit 10 or more and no longer have to prepare! That is probably a silly goal, but the one I will share today…I just might have others.
I have seen the Lehua all over Hawaii. It is often a pretty common site, but up until a recent trip to the Big Island I did not know the Legend of Ohia and Lehua and how they were forever joined on the islands.
I have visited this location many times. Every time I go, I visit this tree on my hike. I have always loved this spot…it’s one of my favorite places in the world. That has to do more with how it makes me feel than anything. It’s part of my ritual, I get up early and drive down a “road” no car should ever go down. I laugh and curse the whole way. I sit alone on a small beach. I hike.
Hawaii and the ocean make me contemplate the cycle of life; of impermanence. You can hardly help but notice, the whole place is a giant battle. Birth, life and death.
Here you have the sea, peaceful.
One day comes fire and pain and birth.
Slowly the sea calms the fire, but it has torn a hole in her.
She patiently spends eons breaking back down the scar the fire left.
Eventually, the sea will win, but few will remember.
I haven’t been back recently and I fear my tree is now gone. Everything returns to the sea.
