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A Long Time Ago #Storytime

JT Twissel 1 Comment

I guess it’s time to finish posting the story of Daniel and the three girls he takes under his wing on the mean streets of New York City. I’ve been dragging my feet because it’s hard to shift gears from paradise to the Bowery circa 1969 but, I try to finish everything I start, so here goes …

First to recap:

A woman named Sandy has been invited to an art exhibit/memorial for a childhood friend. Once there she’s told by the woman’s son that, although the two women had drifted apart, there was something in each of his mother’s final and very disturbing paintings that she specifically wanted Sandy to see, a face from long ago. October of 1969 to be precise.

Flashback to a rainy evening in October 1969. The scene is a service station in Manhattan’s notoriously dangerous Bowery. Three young women drive up to the pumps and, spotting a young man in the phone booth, plead with him for help. The young man, Daniel, is an enigma: an intelligent and well-educated young man but a drifter. Although he works at the station, he cannot help them because the owner has shut down the pumps and left for the night. Then he remembers he has a friend who, at one time lived not far away, in a place of relative safety. However, getting there proves to be a challenge when a “behemoth” drags one of the girls back into an alleyway. Daniel, who is half the man’s size, is powerless to stop him. The girl waves a crucifix in the man’s face which causes him to roar with laughter and lose his grip on her.

Finally they reach the street his friend once lived on. The rain has let up but they have one more obstacle.

Tomorrow Words Better Left Unsaid.

On a Fine Day

JT Twissel 7 Comments

To Carol – Happy Birthday!

On a fine day,
I took a walk in the hills with a friend.

Someone I’ve known for a long time and with whom
I’ve shared many ups and downs.

We even dated the same fellow and
worked at various times for each other
which is the true test of any friendship
and there were times, ah yes, many times. . .
I was sure our friendship was no more.

Offshore a storm was posed to strike
one rumored to slowly pass and drench the hills
and flood the coast.
But we did not talk about the weather.
Only of the silly things,
the frogs in a nearby pond frozen to silence
by the loudness of her laugh.
Frogs are shy, don’t you know?
The way horses read your feelings
(through your butt bones).
And our adventures with cannabis,
now that it is legal.

And we ended as we always do,
finding it hard to say goodbye.

Sunrise, sunset and farewells …

JT Twissel 28 Comments
Looking west from the southern coast of Kaua’i just before the sun was swallowed by the ocean.

As I flipped through my photos of sunrises and sunsets on Kauai, I realized there really is no doubt which is which.

In the morning the clouds seemed like mischievous spirits (ghosts, if you will) dancing on the horizon.

In the evening, the clouds flowed together … like the curtain closing on another day.

On our last day we drove to the west side of Kaua’i which is drier and less touristy.

As you can see, my map was beginning to show signs of wear and tear (abuse)

Port Allen is where most tours of the famous NaPali coast originate and Waimea is the gateway for Waimea Valley, the Grand Canyon of Kaua’i. It’s also the spot where Captain Cook first landed and “founded” Hawaii. But don’t expect to see any monuments to Cook here. At that time the Hawaiians had a feudal society and Cook challenged one of the great warlords so he had to go. Beaten, stabbed, the whole shebang.

The greatest of the warlords, King Kamehameha, landing in Waikiki.

Our objective, however, was to pay respects to my father who died while snorkeling off the beach below almost twenty years ago.

Salt Pond Beach (on the map, near the Port Allen airport)

As you can see, they’ve had to post a warning about strong currents. I suspect this sign was posted for tourists who, like my father, discovered a “local beach” (one frequented primarily by local residents) and wandered out beyond the reefs. It’s not a place I would advise tourists to visit – there are no cafes, food trucks, trinket shops, etc. Just the locals picnicking, listening to loud music on boom boxes and watching their children splash about. Just the way my dad would have liked it.

Aloha and Mahalo Kaua’i!

I ate this! #Kauai

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I am a picky eater; I really am. Gooey things make me squeamish.

But I tossed this gelatinous glob into my mouth and, per instructions, rolled it around with my tongue and then … bit down on the seed pod. I chewed a few crunchy bits and swallowed them before being warned by Mason: “You won’t get much sleep tonight but you will be regular as hell!”

I’d eaten the seeds of the cocoa plant; the things which are carefully fermented and ground into award winning cocoa powder. Mason was the Hawaiian botanist who, with all the charm, wit and energy of a young Robin Williams, kept a couple dozen chocoholics entertained for three hours.

Mason showing us the core of the cocoa pod with all those gooey globs of goodness.
Mature cacao plants wearing fruit.

Pods come in many shades of red-orange and banana-yellow. To ascertain which ones are ripe, they peel off a bit of the skin. Yellow inside is good-to-pick; green inside needs more time. Mason joked that the reason Hawaii produces so many good football players is that they grow up tossing cocoa pods. They’re about the same size as footballs and their skin is similar in texture.

Lydgate Farm is located at the base of the Makaleha Mountains near the end of Olohena Road (581). Besides the cocoa plants, they grow all kinds of native Hawaiian fruits, harvest honey from their own beehives, and, recently they’ve begun cultivating vanilla beans and producing their own vanilla extract. After you’ve heard the process for fertilizing vanilla plants, you’ll appreciate why real vanilla extract is so damn expensive! And always sold out. $65 dollars a bottle. Yikes!

I wouldn’t recommend this tour for everyone. It’s expensive and off the beaten track but for gardeners, cooks, and chocoholics it’s three hours of informative fun. Their chocolate is indescribably good, their honey is sublime and yes … I am still fighting the urge to buy the vanilla extract once it becomes available. God help me, I’m on the waiting list and I don’t even bake. Talk me down folks.

Next – I end with sunrises and sunsets. Let’s see if you can guess which is which! Aloha.

To the Lighthouse #Kauai

JT Twissel 13 Comments

Unless you’re a dedicated hiker, surfer, kayaker or boogie boarder … or you just like to sit in a bar and drink … there aren’t many tourist attractions on the north coast of Kauai which are still open in October.

However, I did want to see the Kilauea Lighthouse which sits on a lava peninsula about fifteen minutes from where we were staying. Even though the visitor’s center was closed (thanks to you-know-who and his over-botoxed band of barbies and bullies), the park ranger who collected a nominal fee for parking was cheerful and friendly. And the rain held off just long enough for us to walk out and look around.

View from the parking lot.
It’s an easy walk but work on the tower has been suspended and the area roped off. Nothing like a pair of porta potties to enhance the view, hey?
View to the east. The white specks on the cliffs are birds, thousands of birds: albatross, frigates, red-booted boobies and perhaps a few Nene geese.
The view to the west and Kanapea, the “Secret Beach.” It’s open to the public but there are no roads, parking lots, or facilities and the path to get to the beach is steep.

This photo is from Wiki.
Kanapea or The Secret Beach. What I wouldn’t give to have healthy ankles again!

Next time “The Willy Wonka of Kaua’i”

In the land called Hanalei #Kauai

JT Twissel 27 Comments

There are places on this earth whose beauty is impossible to capture in photographs. I’ve been told by an Indian friend that no place on earth could possibly compare to Kashmir. I’m sure that’s true but I doubt I’ll ever get there. My two places would be Hanalei on the northern tip of Kaua’i and Yosemite Valley. Neeta didn’t have a second place. It was hands down the Kashmir and no place else. How about you?

Presenting … a small slice of Hanalei

Before you reach the town, stop at the Nourish Cafe – a grass shack selling mostly smoothies and other healthy snacks. It’s at the end of a dead end road, hard to find but when you see the view, I think you’ll agree, worth the trouble.
Hanalei Valley – where kayaks can cruise up and down the river in a jungle like setting.
Hanalei Bay. Watching the shadows shift as the clouds passed over the mountains was like listening to a symphony.
Hanalei Beach and Pier – the sand wasn’t nearly as nice as Lumaha’i but the waters were a lot friendlier and the views – wow!
Rarely a day goes by without at least a bit of rain but when the weather is 81 degrees, who cares!
Of course, I did my share of cloud surfing.
The boy preferred the Hanalei River where he caught and released all kinds of fish.

I have no idea what kind of tree this once was but there’s a forest of her kind near the river.

Some are used as memorials.
If you’re lucky, you may get a peak at one of the many waterfalls.

I will admit, the town of Hanalei has gotten more touristy than it was the last time I was here. The bars are noisy and less quaint. Especially at this time of year. The Hawaiians really love Halloween.

Yikes! I do believe it’s possible to overdo things. Perhaps the crew had a few too many Mai Tais before the decorating began!

Next time: To the Lighthouse!

Do you recognize this beach? #Kauai

JT Twissel 13 Comments

This is one of the places I really wanted to see on the island of Kauai. Quite obviously, it is a beach. But why, at eleven in the morning on a sunny day (practically unheard of on the northern coast of that island) is it practically abandoned? Especially as a famous scene from a movie musical released way back in the late 1950s was filmed here.

I know, I know. Some of you weren’t even born back then and who cares about musicals? Well, having no television, I grew up on recordings of all the great musicals and, at one point, had all of the songs memorized! On snowy days, my sister and I often reenacted this scene in our drab living room, imagining we were on an island in the middle of the South Pacific so very far away.

As to the question of why this beach is practically abandoned, well, it isn’t easy to get to. The two lane coastal road leading from Hanalei to the Lumaha’i Beach is often washed out or in constant repair. There are many one lane bridges meaning you have to wait your turn (minding the Hawaiian rule of “five cars”). And, once you get there, the parking lot is a mud and boulder-filled pit only suitable for Jeeps and the off-shore currents are notoriously deadly.

I can’t imagine how they managed to get all the film crew and their equipment to this spot way back when. There’s got to be a story there!

Where do you want to go next? More beaches or back to the Bowery circa 1968?

A Sweet Review for Happy Hour and Other Sorrows

JT Twissel 7 Comments

Just a quick note as I am off to Hanalei, Kauai tomorrow morning. Hopefully. Wish me luck. If we do make it I’ll post lots of pictures of the Garden Isle. I’ve only been there once … unfortunately to assist my step-mother after my father’s unexpected death many years ago. No doubt it’s probably more crowded and touristy – isn’t everyplace?

This is an Oahu chicken but there are plenty on Kauai as well.

I leave you with a link to this lovely review of Happy Hour and Other Sorrows by a remarkable South African blogger, writer, artist and gifted photographer, Roberta Eaton Cheadle. I call her Robbie, I hope she doesn’t mind.

Roberta Writes – Book reviews: Miira (Innerscape #1) and Happy Hour and Other Sorrows #fiction #bookreviews #reading community

Okay – that’s all folks until next week. Aloha!

The Tenth Month

JT Twissel 18 Comments

Hard to believe, but we’ve made it to the tenth month of the year 2025.

In Japan it appears to be a quiet month with only the 13th (Sports Day) as a holiday. From what I’ve read online, a few years back the Japanese instituted Happy Mondays (second Monday of each month) as a way to alleviate the stress of returning to work. Not all Happy Mondays are national holidays but people are encouraged to celebrate them in some way or another.

This month’s flower is a complete mystery to me. The nearest match I could find was the Japanese WIndflower about to bloom.

This flower is classified as an anemone (from the Greek for the tears of Aphrodite as she mourned the loss of Adonis). Depending on which language of flowers you ascribe you, they can bring luck or protect against evil, portend rain or symbolize anticipation. Like many beautiful things, you don’t want to eat the darn things!

Can you see the woman in this cloud structure?

For me this portends to be a busy month. Oct 2, 11, 18, 24, 26 and 27 are birthdays that need to be remembered and celebrated (and I’m sure I forgot someone!) Next week we attempt a trip to Kauai and with luck, the Napali Coast. So I better get busy. Have a great month everyone!