11-16-2007, 05:51 AM
I can wax poetic about Puna for hours - just ask the Mainland friends I'm staying with right now 
I came from West Oakland - major 'hood, lotsa gangs, gunfire nightly... so that may shed a bit of light onto my 'favorite things':
* I can look any stranger in meet on the street in the eye, smile and say "hello" . The smile is always returned. In my old neighboorhood, it was "what you looking at B*ch".
* when I go to the store, the person helping me looks me in the eye and says hello or aloha. I haven't had anyone ring me up while talking to their friends on a cell phone or completely ignoring me when I ask how they are doing.
* no road rage, people cutting me off, honking or obscene jestures. Folks stop to let me cross the street or pull out into traffic. I haven't been tailgated at 75 mph because I'm going too slow.
* i know my neighboors, their kids, dogs, cats, what's going on in their lives. We wave or stop & chat on our evening dog walks.
* folks I've met here know how to slow down and relax. There isn't the urgent "I'm missing something - must DO, must GO GO GO" mentality...folks here can just hang out on the deck and talk story & know it's true quality time.
* peaceful quiet (apoligies to all those plagued by helicopters and frogs). I'll take a coqui over a gunshot any night. No buses, bart, jets, planes, trains, sirens or open-piped motorcycles at all hours of the night.
* the sound of the ocean while I sleep.
* I see something new every time I snorkel in the tide pools.
* oh the beautiful stars! I can see the milky way.
* egads, lava. and jungle. Sunrise on Mauna Kea.
* we don't have Kona traffic
* City of Refuge gives me chicken skin. OK, that's Kona side, but still.
* i can snorkel every day. I can fish. I can hike (R.I.P. open access to Green Mountain)
* a walk around the neighboorhood (or into the back yard) for bananas, guava, pineapple, avos, mangos.
* Mother nature waters my garden
* I can read the local paper every morning without seeing a new murder or violent crime.
* I'm not a 'whacko' if I want to live off grid in a shipping container & grow my own food.
* choosing which shoes to wear consists of color-coordinating my slippahs to my sarong.
* moonrise at the hotponds with friends & a cold beer. The sunrise hot pond lap-swimming excersize crowd.
* folks throwing chakas driving down the road.
* it's warm, even when it's cold
Edited by - hooligal on 11/16/2007 09:53:11
I came from West Oakland - major 'hood, lotsa gangs, gunfire nightly... so that may shed a bit of light onto my 'favorite things':
* I can look any stranger in meet on the street in the eye, smile and say "hello" . The smile is always returned. In my old neighboorhood, it was "what you looking at B*ch".
* when I go to the store, the person helping me looks me in the eye and says hello or aloha. I haven't had anyone ring me up while talking to their friends on a cell phone or completely ignoring me when I ask how they are doing.
* no road rage, people cutting me off, honking or obscene jestures. Folks stop to let me cross the street or pull out into traffic. I haven't been tailgated at 75 mph because I'm going too slow.
* i know my neighboors, their kids, dogs, cats, what's going on in their lives. We wave or stop & chat on our evening dog walks.
* folks I've met here know how to slow down and relax. There isn't the urgent "I'm missing something - must DO, must GO GO GO" mentality...folks here can just hang out on the deck and talk story & know it's true quality time.
* peaceful quiet (apoligies to all those plagued by helicopters and frogs). I'll take a coqui over a gunshot any night. No buses, bart, jets, planes, trains, sirens or open-piped motorcycles at all hours of the night.
* the sound of the ocean while I sleep.
* I see something new every time I snorkel in the tide pools.
* oh the beautiful stars! I can see the milky way.
* egads, lava. and jungle. Sunrise on Mauna Kea.
* we don't have Kona traffic
* City of Refuge gives me chicken skin. OK, that's Kona side, but still.
* i can snorkel every day. I can fish. I can hike (R.I.P. open access to Green Mountain)
* a walk around the neighboorhood (or into the back yard) for bananas, guava, pineapple, avos, mangos.
* Mother nature waters my garden
* I can read the local paper every morning without seeing a new murder or violent crime.
* I'm not a 'whacko' if I want to live off grid in a shipping container & grow my own food.
* choosing which shoes to wear consists of color-coordinating my slippahs to my sarong.
* moonrise at the hotponds with friends & a cold beer. The sunrise hot pond lap-swimming excersize crowd.
* folks throwing chakas driving down the road.
* it's warm, even when it's cold
Edited by - hooligal on 11/16/2007 09:53:11
* I'd rather fail at happiness than succeed at misery *