Barbara J. Hamby

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Another Day in Paradise

This is our seventh day on Maui and the only fly in our ointment is concern for my sister and brother-in-law and their friends and relatives in Southern California. We are fortunate to be able to receive email reports from her because they still have power. The smoke and ash are very bad in Oceanside, where they live, but they haven’t had to evacuate. Their weather is hot but she said the humidity has risen from 4 percent on Monday to 54 percent today by the ocean. Inland it is much lower. We continue to monitor the news and hope the winds will die down so the fires can be controlled.

We are gradually doing more sightseeing each day. When I get back, I’ll edit the journal and post it to my travel pages on the website.

Today we went to a local deli at Kehai on our way back from Big Beach. The face of a small brown man lit up as we walked in and he said to Floyd, “Long time no see,” grinning broadly. It had been five years since Floyd had been there, but the proprietor remembered him. The deli is a colorful establishment frequented mostly by locals, with good food and no frills. Unlike yesterday’s lunch, we didn’t get orchids on our plates, but there were fresh flowers on the tables. Bookshelves on one wall are crowded with books and junktiques. (Every once in a while, I get the urge to make up a word.)

We have just enough wind here to keep the high 80’s temperatures from being uncomfortable. Last night, the wind whistled outside the bedroom and blew my hair around through the open window, but it wasn’t cold.

I could sure get used to a steady diet of mangoes and papayas. The mangoes are out of season and expensive, but the papayas are plentiful, reasonable and ripen quickly.

I feel lucky to be able to store up some summer in late October. That and the fireplace should get us through the winter quite well.

It’s time for my daily dip in the pool. The water temperature is more like a hot tub, and it certainly keeps the wind chill factor down. Aloha for today!