When we broke ground on our new house late in January this year, our contractor Bob Kirk promised us a move-in date by Christmas, 2014. With only three weeks left to December 24, it's looking very good for us to be sleeping in our own house for the holidays! No pressure, Bob, just keep the pressure on the subs that stand between us and moving in!
The construction site was a beehive of activity yesterday. Bob and his remaining carpenter Ramon were there along with 7 guys from Zen Woodworking installing the cabinets and countertops, and the plumber came by to set up his next day's work, too. After some questions about whether the cabinets would hold everyone else up, Miles, the owner of Zen, got us back on track. You'll see how nice they all look in their not quite finished state in the photos below.
All three bathroom tiles are pretty much done, and should be completed today. I had to make a last minute decision not to use the floor tiles for the two guest room showers. The material Robert Welsch and I picked detracted from the warmth and elegance of the Italian wall tiles. We are going to have Bob Kirk do a half-inch cement pour and try to match the finish of the acid-stained cement lanai decks that he did earlier in the project for us. It's better to decide now to make the change than to live with something you don't like for a long, long time!
Remaining to be done is the final hookup and testing of the solar system and backup propane generator; plumbing including installing the toilets, faucets and other fixtures; setup and testing of the water purification system (more on that in a future blog-we're completely off grid for water and electricity) and the final electrical work. Now it's the custom-made hand distressed copper sconces and pendant lights that are late arriving from Bali. We didn't really understand that they were custom and would take this long when we ordered them from a catalogue. But they're in Honolulu on their way here to Pahoa now, and with luck, they'll arrive in time for installation by Christmas!
This evening I pick my husband Robert up at the airport. He's staying for three months and can't wait to see the progress in person.
Today's travelogue and video are photos of my latest houseguest Joe Crea's and my outing with our friend and guide Paul and his friend Joseph to visit the tidal pools, then the mermaid ponds, near us in Kapoho. The tidal pools are accessible only with permission from the owner of the private land we traversed to get to them. The owner Carl built himself a typical beach shack where he lives right by the crashing of the waves on the Kapoho shore. His property looks like a Hollywood set for an abandoned home in post-apocalyptic Earth. The natural beauty of the coast and the tidal pools and ponds is spectacular, especially in the "magic hour" for photography when we visited (right before sunset). Oh, one more thing. Note that like most places we visit in the Puna area where we live, we're the only ones there. It's rural and desolate out here-please don't tell anyone how beautiful it is or it will become like Honolulu!
Here's a link to the video in case the one above doesn't show up on your mobile device
http://tinyurl.com/tidalpoolsinWaWa
Lastly, a little bit about the "June 27 lava flow". The flow that was threatening our village of Pahoa stopped magically 170 yards above the main street. After a quiet couple of weeks, a new river of lava is barreling down the mountain. We can smell the smoke many days, and see it in the distance. The lava is about 2.3 miles above our village. It's not an immediate threat, yet, but it's headed directly toward the Malama Shopping Center as of now.
Aloha!
River of lava flowing toward Pahoa?
Kitchen and bathroom cabinets crew.
Miles Sakane, the owner of Zen Cabinetry in Hilo, on our job.
Guest shower 1 of 2 before grout goes on. After that? I am Grout!
View into master hale/bedroom and bathroom in back.
Kitchen and bathroom cabinet installation in next set of pictures.
Kitchen cabinets going in.
Granite kitchen countertop
Plumber cradling a toilet to install.
Vireya, tropical rhododendron.
Double orchid blooming on our land today, just in time to greet Robert!
Tropical azalea
Next pictures are from our visit to the tidal pools and mermaid ponds in Wawa, Hawaii.
That's the owner's beachfront shack/home in blue ahead.
Joe at the tidal pools
Mermaid ponds at sunset
Tidal pools
Say "turtling" makes them laugh every time! Joe Crea, my houseguest.
Sometime last month, I switched from thinking about our new place as a construction site. I now see it as our soon-to-be Hawaii home. It's looking very livable, and it's easy to slip into the reverie of Robert and me sitting on the lanai with a glass of wine, watching the sunset. What I noticed today (Sunday as I write this) is the serene quiet that comes from living on 11 acres. I can hear the Pacific waves crashing sometimes, and birdsong fills the jungle.
One major accomplishment since the last blog is the custom barn doors and screens are completed and installed on both the main house and the master suite. Eric (the lead carpenter) and Ramon are rightfully proud of their work. I told them that the doors are so fine they look like a piece of furniture! Eric even added a custom Sapele wood cover over the rails from which they hang.
The electricians completed everything they can do until the kitchen cabinets are in, which is scheduled for this week. Their next big job is to hang the handmade sconces and pendant lights...once the shipment arrives from Bali. Silly me, I thought since I saw them in a catalog that they would be available "off the shelf". Without them installed, we can't get our final inspection, and I am betting they will hold us up!
Assuming that our solar installation guy Jeremiah completes his work in a couple weeks, the next blog will focus on living "off the grid". We have solar panels and batteries with no connection at all to the local grid. We get our water the old-fashioned way, by collecting and then purifying rainwater.
PS The fire, smoke and threat of the lava has subsided for a bit (the lava flow stopped a scant 170 yards above Pahoa Village Road after burning just one house-it may be temporary but we are enjoying it!).
TRAVELOGUE
It's amazing just how magical the island of Hawaii can be. Last week friends visited from L.A. We went out on a night snorkeling trip where we floated off a diving platform while enormous, 8-14' wingspan manta rays swam within a few feet of us. Once I got over the shock of their proximity, and convinced myself that those enormous mouths only eat plankton, not 60 year old guys, I relaxed and opened myself up to the experience. It became just the manta rays and me while I floated mesmerized, almost hypnotized by the majestic grace of these huge creatures-I highly recommend you give this a try when in Hawaii!
Even better is what happened twice this week. Every morning I hike to the ocean, then swim in the 81 degree water off Kehena Beach. On Sunday before my friends Dan and Phil arrived for a few days, I was able to swim out and play for a long time with wild dolphins right off Kehena Beach. Monday and Tuesday, we were all on the lookout, but no dolphins came by. Wednesday, the last morning my friends were in town, a large pod of 30-50 dolphins swam near Kehena again. We donned mask and flippers and swam out to be greeted by playful spinner dolphins. They pinged us with their sonar while swimming circles around and then underneath us. Just like with the mantas, the proximity of these wild, beautiful mammals gives you pause for a few moments. Then you realize that the dolphins just want to play, and they seem as delighted to be around us as we are to be with them.
After these magical swims, you have a huge smile the rest of the day. As a French woman friend put it when I told her how wonderful I felt, she said, "yes, you feel like giggles all day long!".
Custom made pocket door pickled to match walls-come on in!
Custom made screen doors in Sapele wood
Stefano climbing and cutting coconuts
No can openers were available so Stefano resorted to a trusty, rusty machete to open a coconut. The juice is incredibly refreshing...and I make a mean "Puna Colada" with it!
This guy had fallen from a tree and was happily blooming on the ground last week.
Bathroom tiles going up!
The Hale LaLaLa crew checking out one of our 400 coconut palms
Ricky peeling an orange from our fruit grove
Jonathan during his visit
The electricians finished almost all the lighting and wiring this week
Custom-made doors from afar
Balinese Capiz shell doors in master suite
Look at the play of light on the lanai ceiling and the doors, wow!
Balinese Capiz shell doors with custom made Sapele wood frames and screens in main house suite
Acacia wood floor marries well with the Sapele of the door frame
Dan at Uncle Robert's Beach
Phil at Uncle Robert's Beach
Dan and Phil touring the house and gardens
Dan is a landscape architect. He was inspired by the tropical gardens he saw!
Myself, Michael Barton and David Rubin after the snorkel trip-Elation all around!
Tadeya and friend, and David Rubin, Michael Barton and me before the manta swim
Manta pics from our boat crew. I had an underwater camera but was so taken with the experience that I didn't want to interrupt with fumbling with a camera! By the way, note the markings distinct to each manta. Local researchers have catalogued and named all of the over 230 mantas of the Kona coast.
