A couple of newcomers

[greywolf74]

Good idea Oink! I have their e-mail. They did let me know they have boarded up ther place pretty good. So we'll hope for the best, and that their place shall remain untouched by theives or vandles while they are away.

[missydog1]

welcome Tim and Dave.

Sounds like you have already connected with some folks of like values.

I would only caution, that if you really want to fit in and be a part of Hawai'i, that coming here with a sense that any particular value set is better than another is a form of being judgmental - even the value of preserving the forest.

You will find people who were born here who don't have the same eco-sensibility, who may even care less about having junk cars around, who may like to have a lawn, whatever.

And there are many locals here who DO want the American Dream, so that is something to understand as well, that you are still going to be alternative.

The single biggest trap I see people fall into (and this is my opinion only), is thinking that they are a different kind of mainlander because of coming over with a very green philosophy. That is still imposing your philosophy on people who don't want newbies coming over and changing the way of life.

So if you tread lightly in the arena of live and let live, as well as thinking of your footprint in the forest, it's a lot easier to get to know people. I am friends with my local neighbors, by learning their ways and how to talk to them and how they think. They don't really understand my world, so I look for whatever areas we have common ground and make the most of them, and minimize the differences.

There are all kinds of local viewpoints, from those who hate the bulldozers, to those who run the bulldozers. It's like anywhere else. It's not a Utopia here. There are some locals who like the counter culture and others who are totally bugged by it; there is tolerance and intolerance of it.

What I'm struggling to say is that you ask to be accepted because you want to save the forest. Well, that doesn't matter to everyone here. (not speaking for myself, but in general). What matters more is that you learn the ways here, learn to fit in, and learn to do your thing without pissing people off because you are so into your own ideas. That includes trying to "educate" people. It is not welcomed here for malihini to set themselves up as educators to people whose families have been here for generations.

The first thing a local will tell me is how long they have been here, how long their family has been here. To them, that is what establishes their connection to the island, not their philosophy. The longer you are here, the more respect you will get. There is a process of paying one's dues and proving one is here to stay, by staying, not talking.

In the interim, there are plenty of other transplants to welcome you, who don't care about such things.

I've been here seven years, and I am only starting to have enough longevity where I get a little respect, and it isn't automatic, but when I show that I understand pidgin, know the plants, know the weather, can pronounce the names, know something about this that and the other thing and have assimilated, I am treated far differently than I was back when I was new.

[oink]

Damn Kathy, you actually made good sense!

Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.

[missydog1]

LOL, oink, I think that makes two times? I'll have to watch out for that, don't want to hurt my rep here!

[oink]

Maybe all of that acid didn't hurt you too bad after all.

Pua`a
S. FL
Big Islander to be.

[missydog1]

[8D]
hey, I STOPPED taking acid FORTY years ago!
I don't know that it trashed too many brain cells. Test scores and IQ scores stayed about the same. Whereas going through puberty dropped my IQ more than 50 points. [] Seriously.

[JWFITZ]

I've only been here about 2 years, but I can't say I've experienced any "localism" personally at all. In fact, I've found people to be gracious and welcoming almost without exception, much much more so than many places I've been. If you're a white male you're at the top of the hate hill and you get the most of it and you just learn to live with all the blame for everything that every happened to anyone anywhere ever. Hawaii is very chill on that score. Still, people here are robust and if you're an ass to them, they're going to let you know about it. I have a suspicion that much if not most of what gets reported as "localism" is really just people full of themselves and used to throwing their weight around, perhaps in a polite but condescending manner--and then get called out on that. That's not localism, that's another issue entirely.

Just another take. Maybe I've just been lucky. Still, if you think Hilo is tough--try Butte, Montana, or some hellhole like that. Aloha is still here, it just may require a waiting period before it's extended.

[missydog1]

Jay,
I am not sure I've encountered localism either, not directly to me. I am in a little different situation in where I've lived here, in Hilo and in my current house, than a person would be in a fairly newly settled subdivision.

It sounds like Fern Forest is a good place for interesting ventures and forming a new kind of community.

[JWFITZ]

Hi Kathy,

Haven't heard from you in a while, hope your projects are coming alone and Gabe's staying as busy as he needs to be.

It's a pretty complicated scene. It's worked out well for me out here, but I doubt it's for everyone. Mind you, taxes BUT: no road maintenance, utilities IF you could possibly afford them, no police presence at all, no fire protection at all, and all the rest that comes from a self-sufficient lifestyle. It works for me. If cock fighting bothers you--it's not a good area and you're not going to fit in. I don't care for that but I'm capable of ignoring it.

They say, you fight those chickens, brah? I say "no, I keep them fat and stupid, because I'm going to eat them. They say, yeah, but he's big, that yellow one. I say, "Yeah, but he's noisy, so you know there's no fight in him." We laugh, We get along.

[missydog1]

[]

hey Jay
Gabe has been fairly busy ...,
We have four piglets tearing up the beautiful path you and he made.

I call it the very high end pig superhighway. [:p]

No roosters heah, plenty mongoose and pig.