From Upcountry to Up The Mountain.

Candace and I have settled into our new home in Kula.

Haiku was nice, but we have moved higher up the mountain and we could not be happier. Our commutes are full of driving through clouds, not below them. We are about 2,500 feet above sea level here, on the side of Haleakalā and overlooking the city of Kihei. The sunset is beautiful here, showing off all the reds and oranges right before dusk.

Since we are pretty far off of the beaten path, at night our surroundings turn into a zoo. Spiders, cockroaches, toads and all manner of creatures are all around us. The cacophony is hugely entertaining if you can quiet your thoughts enough to hear it. When there is a cat fight, you know. When someone comes home, you hear their car for about thirty seconds before you see them roll up the driveway. If an animal trespasses on a dog's territory, the barking and growling goes on for minutes at a time. The birds are countless and come by all day. They will forage in front of our little house in the morning and sing in the trees all afternoon. The spiders spin intricate webs in one night, snaring whoever is unlucky to wake up first and run into them on the way to the bathroom or the outdoor shower.

Speaking of the bathroom, it isn't your normal toilet. It is a composting toilet that we have to pour peet moss in every day. Surprisingly, there is no smell to talk about as long as you don't forget the daily maintenance. You also have to go outside to another door to get to it. Usually that's fine but with all the animals about it can be a tiny bit harrowing at 3 a.m. when you need to use it.

The family who owns the land we live on is interesting, to say the least. The story goes that their father made a nice living but passed away last year, leaving a mess of paperwork for his wife and daughters to tend to. Both daughters moved back to Maui after going to college on the mainland to help their mother through this difficult transition. Now they have a fledgling painting business and half of their land here is being used for farming under the name Cosmos Acres. The fact that my e-mail moniker is KingofCosmos amused the matriarch of the place greatly, which I think earned us major serendipity points with her. There are two other people living here in another cottage up the property, staying here and helping with the farm. 

The main point we learned when we were talking to everyone before moving in was that everyone likes their space. The previous tenant would come up to the ladies' main house unannounced and invite himself in for dinner, which infuriated them. Maybe he was dumb, or lonely. But we assured them we won't be coming up unannounced unless something catastrophic breaks down here.

The kitchen here is fully decked out and the ladies have told us if we need any random kitchen tools they probably have some in their house somewhere. They seem to collect high quality pots and pans during their frequent thrift store trips and refurbish them to their former glory. I think we'll be using our two-burner propane stove a lot to make all the interesting foods we find on the island.

This entry has gone on a bit too long, so I'll cut it off here. This post was a little more informational on where we are and what we're doing, so I hope you don't mind. I will be back to the more existential thoughts like my other entry tonight soon.