A study has discovered GOLD! THERE’S GOLD IN THEM THAR HILLS! in lava that is, including lava in Hawaii.  Well, precious metals but gold could be in the lava too.  Stake your claim Punatics:

Researchers from Göttingen found tiny traces of the precious metal Ruthenium with an anomalous isotopic composition in lavas from Hawaii. The new findings prove that the Earth’s core is leaking metallic material, including gold and other precious metals.

https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/3240.html?id=7808

And I’ll include the hyperventilating version which as one commentator noted, only failed to include a mention of Diamond Head:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/scientists-st...11266.html

Given how full of it some of our members are, this should be easy money and they might learn something that is actually useful to the community.

The "Work-4-Water" course is offered virtually and you can do it all from home and mostly on your own schedule but there are a few zoom meetings to attend.

Upon completion of the course you earn a $250 stipend.  There will be a massive need for Big Islanders with this knowledge and the connections that can be gained.

Anyone 16 years or older who is legally allowed to work in The USA may apply.

Great for High School Students!

At a minimum, if you have a cesspool or are contemplating installing a septic system, this course is for you.

The next class begins June 4th.

https://www.waicleanwater.org/work4water

What is Work-4-Water?
The Work-4-Water (W4W) program provides access to workforce opportunities and builds career pipelines in the drinking water and wastewater utility sector. This online training prepares participants with the foundational knowledge and skills needed to successfully enter the workforce. Students will have access to career services and additional scholarships for On-the-Job Training opportunities. Graduates of this program will be better equipped for job opportunities and career advancement in Hawaiʻi’s water and wastewater industry.

This seven-week, entry-level curriculum provides a comprehensive introduction to the Hawaiʻi drinking water and wastewater utility sector, with a specific focus on decentralized wastewater systems. This course was designed and created collaboratively with an advisory board, consisting of certified industry professionals, to ensure relevancy and positive outcomes for job seekers.
During this course, students will gain a deeper understanding of the public health and environmental impacts of wastewater, learn about different types of drinking water and wastewater systems and how they operate, and related regulations and policies.

There are no fees or costs to apply for or participate in the program.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green says, "I saw The President a lot", and that his team "did protect him and obviously more than any of us um realized". One wonders what he either noticed or failed to notice in Lahaina.
  
Newsnation & The Hill are rated as some of the least biased news one can find.

https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/newsnation/
https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-hill/


They report:

'PROFOUND': Hawaii Gov. Josh Green | NEWSNATION

I am wondering if anyone knows a local Hawaiian who makes baby clothes.  I'm thinking of some Hawaiian style presents for friends overseas.
Mahalo in advance..

I have a strange and unique question that can only be possibly answered by Puna people.

Some mornings when I get up my little house smells bad - kind of a burning rubber smell.  I close my windows at night and the air conditioner goes on which keeps the humidity down. I go to my porch on the mornings when this happens and it smells clean and good outside. So I'm blaming the a/c.  But how can it be the a/c when I leave it on on hot days when I'm gone and when I come home, there's no smell?  It only happens overnight.

Could this be gas collecting in the house from the volcano?  Can it be the cesspool?  The smell seems to be stronger in the bathroom.

Please let me know if anything like this has happened to you.  I'm going to experiment by leaving the a/c off at night.  If the smell is there in the morning, then it seems like it's not the a/c.  
Thanks for any help or opinions.  What would you do?

Just when you think female visitors to Hawaii being detained, strip-searched, and deported was a one-off incident, it's happened again with very similar and indefensible details - almost like it's all intentional...

Australian woman, 25, urges travellers to avoid the United States after she was detained, stripped and forced to spend the night in a federal prison in Honolulu
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-up...9336bf6031
"A former NSW police officer has described the terrifying ordeal she faced after she was detained, jailed overnight and deported from the United States – despite travelling there legally on a tourist visa to visit her US military husband.

Nikki Saroukos from south-west Sydney says she was “treated like a criminal”, denied her rights and subjected to invasive searches, humiliating treatment and a night in federal prison – simply for trying to spend time with her American partner stationed in Hawaii." (much more at link about her deplorable treatment).

Pretty inexcusable, although I'm sure some will try to do so (again).

Do you have a favorite sweet potato recipe you can share here with your Punaweb Pals?

Sweet potatoes are becoming a permanent part of the menu in Hawaii Schools.


"While ʻuala has made special appearances on the school lunch trays in recent years, it will become part of the regular menu in cafeterias. The potato is prepared in a variety of forms, from steamed to mashed to yogurt to pie.
“I just love sweet potato. It’s something that I’ve always loved and always will love,” said Hilo Union School sixth grader Isabella-Marie Wells. “Every time my mom has sweet potato at home, that’s the first thing I grab and put on my plate. So, I got really excited. I’m like, asking everybody, ‘You know there’s sweet potato? You know there’s sweet potato?’ And they’re like, yeah.”

https://bigislandnow.com/2025/05/20/swee...c-schools/

You can help Puna keiki by volunteering at SPACE in Seaview which is one of he hubs this year.  The program feeds children and at the same time supports our local farmers.  Last year the program distributed food to 5070 keiki. This year it's expanding to feed 6,500 keiki which is almost a 30% increase over last year so they need more volunteers and farmers.

"Last summer, Vibrant Hawaiʻi distributed breakfast and lunch food supplies to an estimated 5,070 keiki from 33 sites across Hawaiʻi County during the six-week program.
This summers, food wlll be distributed to about 6,500 children per week at 31 sites, which include Vibrant Hawaiʻi resiliency hubs, organizations, schools and community centers.
According to its 2024 impact report, 401,604 meals were provided by 522 volunteers with their time valued at $188,955. The program also directed $287,900 to 18 local farms to provide food.
For more information about Kaukau 4 Keiki and program updates, please visit the Vibrant Hawaiʻi website, follow Vibrant Hawaiʻi on social media, or email k4k@vibranthawaii.org. 
To learn more about volunteers at a nearby resiliency hub, or elsewhere within Vibrant Hawaiʻi, email contact@vibranthawaii.org."

https://bigislandnow.com/2025/05/20/summ...ig-island/

After three decades, HawaiianMiles is on borrowed time. The program that once offered easy and relatively affordable travel for loyal flyers is being replaced from the ground up.

Starting in August 2025, all HawaiianMiles members will be moved to a new and unified loyalty system under Alaska Airlines. The new program hasn’t been given a name yet, but the message is clear: HawaiianMiles is over.

This shift has been anticipated ever since Alaska and Hawaiian announced their airline deal in December 2023, and we’ve revealed pieces of the changes as we’ve learned them. What wasn’t clear until now was the timing—and the fine print. The countdown has officially begun for Hawaii travelers, including us, who’ve built up years of miles, credit card perks, and habits.

What’s really ending in August.

The changeover becomes official in August 2025. No exact day has been announced when HawaiianMiles will fully retire, but travelers should expect the transition to happen sometime after mid-month. Once it begins, HawaiianMiles will no longer be a usable program. You won’t be able to earn or redeem miles under it, and the branding itself will disappear.

Your miles won’t vanish, but a different set of rules will govern them. All points will roll into the new Alaska Airlines loyalty program, which is expected to resemble Alaska’s current Mileage Plan closely. The transfer ratio is 1:1 with HawaiianMiles and is already live for those who link their accounts.

If you’ve been waiting to spend or transfer your miles before this happens, that window is now. After August, the opportunity to take advantage of any Hawaiian-specific perks will be gone for good.

One longtime reader Mark M. wrote, “I’ve been holding onto my HawaiianMiles hoping for another great redemption and trip, but after the Alaska merger and changes coming to the program, I’m wondering if I should just cash them out as soon as possible.”
That feeling is common as travelers decide whether to use their miles now or risk watching their value erode.

How to transfer HawaiianMiles to Alaska Mileage Plan.

Transferring HawaiianMiles to Alaska is quick, easy, and without cost. Just link your accounts online and you can move miles back and forth at a 1:1 rate. We’ve been doing that routinely to try to use miles as quickly and as prudently as possible. That all disappears once the new program takes over in August.

Once your accounts are linked, you can move miles back and forth as needed. That makes it easier to consolidate balances or redeem under whichever program gives you better value, at least for now. Don’t confuse this with true pooling, which neither program offers, but Hawaiian’s does if you have their branded credit card.

On the other hand, if you aren’t booking a trip before August rolls around, you can just let the automatic conversion happen. Either way, don’t wait too long—some redemption routes are already disappearing or becoming more expensive after the switchover.

Hawaiian Airlines credit card changes: What you need to know.

Hawaiian’s credit cards, issued by Barclays, will also be phased out. A formal sunset date hasn’t been confirmed, but applications will likely close in the next few months. When the cards are retired, we are unsure if holders will be migrated to Bank of America’s Alaska Airlines credit card products.

In a recent interview, Alaska Airlines’ Vice President of Loyalty, Alliances, and Sales, Brett Catlin, confirmed that “legacy Hawaiian Airlines cardmembers—the back book—will transfer over to the Alaska card.” However, he added there is “no immediacy for that to transition” and that it will “happen over a period of time.”

This marks the end of the only credit card program built around Hawaii travel. It also means companion fares and Hawaiian-specific redemption perks may no longer be available. Many of those have already been sunsetted. If you currently hold one of these cards, you may want to use any Hawaiian benefits soon before many expire in June.

Alaska has already announced a new, $395 per year, premium card is coming this summer. That card is expected to offer new elite benefits. However, it’s unknown whether Hawaiian cardholders will qualify for a bonus or whether the product will be available separately from Alaska’s existing cards. We are currently awaiting more details.

Say goodbye to Amex transfers.

June 30, 2025, is the final day American Express Membership Rewards points can be transferred to HawaiianMiles. Both Amex and Hawaiian have confirmed that the relationship is ending for good. After that date, Amex users will lose their only path to earning Hawaiian miles through credit card points.

Alaska Airlines does not partner with Amex. The only flexible points program supporting the Alaska Mileage Plan is Bilt Rewards, which lets renters earn points on rent payments and other everyday spending. Once HawaiianMiles shuts down, Amex users can no longer book awards on either airline using transferable points.

If you’ve been relying on Membership Rewards to top off your Hawaiian balance, now’s the time to act. After June 30, transfers will be permanently shut off.

Why this transition goes far beyond points.

For many Hawaii travelers, this shift hits deeper than rewards. HawaiianMiles wasn’t the most lucrative program but personal and Hawaii-centric. It was designed specifically around the needs of people who live in or regularly visit the islands. You could redeem for interisland flights, cheap first-class upgrades, or partner perks like Japan Airlines awards and Foodland gift cards. Most of those options disappear after June 30. It had quirks and was admittedly very limited, but they were island quirks.
All that will be replaced by a more polished, West Coast–centered loyalty program. Alaska’s Mileage Plan is efficient, global, and profit-driven. Some believe it was one of the key reasons Alaska bought Hawaiian in the first place. Loyalty programs now generate billions in revenue through credit cards and partnerships. Hawaiian’s system was limited and underperforming, and Alaska saw a big opportunity to turn it around for profits.

But something real is being lost in the process. The transition marks the end of a Hawaii-rooted program that felt connected to this place, not just to flights.

What you gain in the new Alaska Airlines loyalty program.

Alaska’s loyalty program offers more global partners, far more redemption paths, and greater flexibility than HawaiianMiles ever could. That includes the ability to earn elite status on partner flights, more varied redemptions, and access to routes on global airlines.

This is an upgrade for travelers based on the mainland or flying long-haul. It adds flexibility, improves value on specific routes, and simplifies international redemptions.

But if your flying is mostly interisland or flights tied closely to Hawaiian’s old network, there’s no guarantee the new program will feel like an improvement. Companion pass rules will change. Redemption minimums may continue to rise. And those small, Hawaii-only perks that many travelers loved are unlikely to be seen again.

What travelers should do right now.

If you haven’t already done so, link your HawaiianMiles and Alaska Mileage Plan accounts through either airline’s website. This will prepare your miles for the upcoming merger and ensure a smooth transition.
You should also consider reviewing your credit card benefits and using any outstanding perks before the Hawaiian cards are shut down. That includes if you have Amex points you’ve been planning to transfer, making your move before June 30. We plan to do that one last time towards the end of June, then decide if the final points should be transferred to Hawaiian or used in other ways.

This may also be a good time to consider how you’ll earn miles going forward. Once HawaiianMiles ends, the Alaska Mileage Plan ecosystem will be the only option, and it’s structured differently. It could be time to rethink credit card loyalty entirely.

https://beatofhawaii.com/hawaiianmiles-e...ld-do-now/

This sounds like a great idea.  Kill weeds with steam.  He changes $80 an hour:

Steam weeding is the process of using steam and hot water to heat the water within plant cells, causing them to burst and effectively cooking the plant from the inside. The method kills the plant, but also breaks down seeds in the soil, preventing future weed growth.

https://bigislandnow.com/2025/05/19/busi...erbicides/

(And cool, he uses a Japanese Kei truck, so relatively low carbon)