Microblog

Today I feel like a proud parent: my “Phlebotomy as a Third Language” student passed the written exam. We’ll continue with GED preparation.

It was a chilly walk over to Trader’s to buy fresh ingredients for comfort food: chicken and rice tonight, cauliflower cheese tomorrow night.

On our way to the airport, KOA, stopped to hike one more trail across ‘a’ā (stony, rough lava) at Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. At Honolulu HNL we’ll board an overnight nonstop flight home to MSP.

Hiked Pit Crater Trail, up to a tree-filled volcanic crater. The hike took us through miles of lush meadows, contrasting with our lava hikes this past week. The trail is a recent (2018) addition to Volcanoes National Park, and new to us.

It was a hot hike on pāhoehoe (smooth, ropy lava), Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Park.

Hiked down to the spot where Captain James Cook met his demise when he violently tried to induce ‘good behavior among the natives.’ Every time we hike this hot, dusty in-and-out trail it seems to get steeper. It’s one of those hikes you’re happy to start and grateful to finish.

Rest day. Stayed put.

In today’s ear worm, I’m Nellie, from rural Arkansas, in “South Pacific.” Wonder how I’d feelLivin’ on a hillside,Lookin’ on an ocean,Beautiful and still.…I’m a little hick. We’ve stayed in this B&B several times: we’re the only guests until Friday. The owner is the best.

One view today, standing at about 4,000 feet, front to back: —Ohia (native) trees; —Kilauea Iki (crater): we walked across the lava lake formed in 1959;—Kilauea, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, slowly erupting, volcanic gases rising; —Mauna Loa (mountain), 13,677 feet.

Eruption from Halemaʻumaʻu crater, with Venus looking on, from the Volcano House (Volcanoes National Park lodge) before stepping inside for dinner.

It was a good half-day hike from here (3,000 ft. above the Kona Coast), a continuous uphill walk to the top of this ~100,000 year-old volcanic cone, Puʻuwaʻaʻwaʻa. At the top we were comfortable in shorts and tees looking towards snow-capped Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa (13,000+ ft.).

Threw together lunch to eat back in our apartment with items from Safeway’s deli. The Spam musubi and steamed pork bun are definitely Hawaiian (tilting to Asia). The broccoli salad is more midwestern: cruciferous is appreciated. The Spam, from Austin, Minnesota, has gone native.

Watered our plants back in Minneapolis without getting out of bed in Kona.

Tiki shrine in our Kona rental. If Dwight sets up something similar in our Minneapolis home, I’ll call a neurologist.

Took an obligatory sunset shot.

Today, Dwight’s mom couldn’t find her recipe for lefse, a Christmas staple for Norwegian descendants. He forwarded a scan of the recipe she uses from our digital recipe book.