i thought maybe id give this a go..again

Hi friends. this blog is no longer directed or about my trip to hawaii. the trip is over and i am back in the twin cities. it has been over 2 months now since i was in hawaii. makes me sad because that really changed who i was and who i wanna be. it's a very hard thing coming home from a trip and readjusting. its been a real process for me. not necessarily a struggle but process.

however! a lot has changed since then and will forever change from this moment but all that really matters is now. lately, i've been going through a lot of changes. that's why this blog thing is so appealing because its just a space to do this: ahfaskghaksjlghasjgaljkg. that's feels soogood to do that. makes me cringe cause i realize i'm a computer generation but just slamming letters on a keyboard makes my frustration or amazement o anything feel better.m akghasghasghasjgkadg. again, it helps. i'm a much better typer than i am a writer. it comes more natural. that sounds like bullshit but it makes sense to me?

lots of things are really fucking awesome right now. i moved in with my best friend julia! she's great! hi julia! we're living in a very primo location for not a lot of money. its really cool. we're like 3 blocks off lyndale. i love it. also, its starting to be decorated cute. and i can shower when i'm home alone and not be totaally scared. thats a fear of mine. STUPID. also, we have really comfy chairs and its sooo nice after work to have my own space. its like a sleepover with julia and angela every night. its sooooo great. i LOVE it. which brings me to angela! she's my other roommate! i love her. shes from wayzata. julia and angela were friends in middle school and we needed a 3rd roommate soooo there ya go! its working out really well :)

i started americorps like 3...weeks ago? so september was a really busy month! i moved in and started this new job. its been really intense but not overwhelming but more than anything else super exciting! i'm working for this organization called youth farm and market project! here's the website: www.youthfarm.net and if you read this and you know me then you understand that this is like my dream position. i feel so lucky to have been given this opportunity. that sounds cheesy but its such valuable experience. i'm having to take on some major leadership and facilitator roles and i'm working with all people older than me but its an organziation promoting exactly what i believe. it couldn't be better. also, with my corps group (the host site to youth farm is my americorps headquaters and theres about 40 other people in this group and we get together every friday to talk about week at work) i'm meeting lots of amazing people. i thrive off that too. making new relationships and new friends. it just feels good. they are all really amazing people.

everybody is between the ages of 20-24 and sometimes a little older. i'm second youngest. its been a little intimidating but i can tell its already made me stronger. i really do feel like i deserve this and everyone in the corps group is supportive. its just intimidating when theyve all gone to fancy four year schools and had fancy internships and fancy study abroad things. but its also awesome and they are all a pleasure to be around. its a funny thing. college. i have this huge desire to go someday. but i'm also really enjoying the exploration of things. i have so many interests.

as far as americorps goes, i am feeling very very happy with it and lucky that i get to be a part of this.

nora left town last saturday :(. she was a good friend of mine. and that's all i have to say about that.

i'm madly in love with a boy and sometimes its confusing but in the end love topples everything. it also makes things a bit more difficult. but i love love and i'm very fortunate to have such a beautiful person in my life.

life really does take its course and kinda takes you for the ride. it sounds cheesy but it really truly does and i'm just trying to experience it with my hands up and my eyes wide open. everyday i try and look around me and realize the beauty of the day. there wasn't a day in hawaii where i didn't think that and it really helped my mindstate. its something ill never let go off. also, i try and challenge myself to do something different once a day. its a good brain exercise.

go give someone a hug. you never know how much they could use one.

goodnight. thanks for letting me write. ahgjakshgkalghajlkg.

Almost a month later..

aloha my loves. sorry for the delay. time here is non exsistant. it goes by without you even noticing it going by..

today is sunday and i have the day off. woo-hoo! lately we've had thursdays and sundays off. before that it use to be weds and sundays. always sunday. either way, i don't really care what day we get off because we got off work at 1pm everyday and thats so much time to explore. unless its a day off we usually only explore till 530 and come home to make dinner as a group. as a group we'll have a nice family dinner with lots of nice conversation. we drink beer. we groove. the evenings here are my favorite time of day. living here is very isolating and all i really know is the people i'm surrounding myself with and what they're doing. its not isolating in a bad way. ive learned to deal with it/its grown on me. its good for me. plus, the people i'm surrounded by are absolutely superb. everyone ive met here has my stay the most enjoyable experience ever. i'm truly lucky and greatful for that. tomorrow alex ( the wwoofer from france) leaves for the kona side to go work on his next farm. he's been great and i've had some wonderful adventures with him. i'm gonna try and post my favorite picture of him. okay it didn't work but whatever. ill miss him. he's a good travel buddy. we get a new wwoofer at the end of the week i do believe. i can't wait to be her friend!

as far as the experience goes that i've had so far i would say its been much more of a culture and communally living experience than a farming experience. i farm during the day but its a lot of weeding and the focus hasn't been on that. that's okay with me though. the farming part is still nice. the days and nights here are filled to the brim with stimulating conversation. not once, not never do we ever have a boring conversation. the people here are by far the most interesting people i have ever met in my life.

pineapple season has started and since theyre pretty well known for there pineapples we don't get many. HOLY SHIT I SEE LIVE BOARS WITHIN SIGHT RIGHT NOW. they're huge!! people are gonna start hunting them. baby ones too! anyways. sorry. they are just RIGHT THERE. but anyway. pineapples. theyre known for their white pineapple. the works or wwooofers..we only get the smashed up ones or the ones that don't sell at the fruit stand. but HOT DAMN! they are sooooooooooooooooo good. its white pineapple so it doesn't have the tartness of a yellow pineapple but it same the sweetness. its like candy. and they're fresh as hell. that probably helps. SO GOOD. mm. the juice just runs right down my lips onto my arms. i've been eating well here. working well to so its a good balance. i eat more now cos i work hard. all/most of the meals are communal and everyone here cooks fabulously. i still have yet to master grocery shopping and utilizing into meals and waht not. theres an art to it. ben and i realized we can't afford the natural foods store when we accidently spent 115 dollars!! woops. oh well. things here are also more exspensive because they have to import everything. it sucks. but we're dealing.

as far as swimming in the ocean goes there aren't many SANDY beaches anywhere. mostly rocky sandy beaches but its okay. i don't actually like the big waves because i get motion sickness and have to get out. there are mostly little ponds or tide pools. imagine all the rocks at lake superior and in between the rocks there are little salt water pools. they vary in size and depth but most of them are decent n size. within an hour walking there are about 2 of these types of places from my farm. if we don't go there we go to this huge pond called the champagne pond. its a huge salt water pond where waves come crashing. great great great place for snorkeling and its almost always secluded with just a couple locals. we have to hitch hike there. hitch hiking has become so natural. so natural yet still such a huge rush. its quite fun. most people will pick you up. everybody here has an interesting story to tell. and everyone wants to hear your story too.

the people of puna (the area i'm in. the people here call themselves punatics. i've also heard this area called punaverse..) look up puna. you'll read some intersesting things. the area i'm in is almost all natives. the white people that have come here are old hippies from the 70's that were trying to escape the life of the mainland. nobody here really talks fondly of the mainland. hawaii should be its own country. they talk about the mainland as though its a far and distant country. i definatlly don't feeel like i'm spending the summer in the states.

ben is lovely. he's a beautiful person. he's getting better and better at guitar everyday. we have regular jam sessions every nice and he's just thriving. i really do love him and its been such a thrill everyday to experience this with him. i'm gonna go see if theres any dinner happening now. spend some time with alex before he ships off.

ALOHA here means love, compassion, and mercy for all souls. and you really do feel it when people say it to you. its a real thing. no doubt. so ALOHA to all you people. i love and miss you all very much.

p.s. my friend andy. he climbs coconut trees. its truly a site to see!

i have an address!

here's my address if anyone wants to write me or ben a letter:

RR 2 Box 3362, 14-234 Papaya Farm Rd, Kapoho, HI‎

PLEASEEEEEEE

Late for dinner

I really need to keep up with this whole blog thing a lot better. I wish i wasn't in such a rush, but right now Jimmy is making some kind of dinner with Thai peanut sauce and I want to make sure I get some.

Since my last entry, I've seen some of the most beautiful glimpses of the Pacific Ocean that anybody has ever seen. Giant waves crash onto rocky shores and black sand. Near different beaches there are warm ponds that are fucking unreal. Some of the sights that I've seen are so awe inspiring and different from anything that I've ever known that it blows my mind that they're even part of the same Earth I've been walking around on for the past nineteen years.

One of the beaches that I've been to so far is Kohena. Kohena is a trip. Its a really far out seen with the same nude people drumming, praying, meditating, dancing, and smoking pot every Sunday. The day after experiencing the mindfuck that is Kohena, I heard drumming coming from close to the farm. The other wwoofers and I wandered over to see what was up and it turned out to be a really amazing live band performing at a party that was kind of like if you gave the town from the Andy Griffith show psychedelic mushrooms and put them in the middle of the jungle.

Not everything out here is that exciting, so don't worry, Mom and Dad. Most of the time here is spent doing normal farm stuff until we go to a beach or warm pond. When we get back we cook and eat dinner over Devendra Banhart music and drink Steinlager beer until everyone hits the sack.

I've got so much more to say but I really need to get my hands on whatever Jimmy is cooking right now. I love everyone back in the Twin Cities so much and I'll talk to you all soon.

Peace.

aloha!

aloha friends and family! i thought id write in here more because i haven't in a bit. sorry about that. we get off work at 2 everyday and usually head to some body of water after so i don't come and blog but i will try and update you on what i have been up to since last time.

i'm feeling a lot better about being here than when i last wrote. i have become much more comfortable and cool. i feel really close with the other wwoofers and i'm sad that they are leaving in a week! it went by so fast. we got a new wwoofer today. her name is natalie and she's from northern california. she's very californian and a surfer girl. super cool and super sweet. i'm pumped to spend the next few months with her! we have been doing lots of cool stuff lately! the work day here isn't bad at all. we start at 9 and are usually done by 1. piece of cake. we've been doing a lot of weeding the plants. since we're in the jungle everything grows like crazy here so weeding is a very necessary thing to do. so many weeds. ben just kissed my toe. i also have started working in the fruit trees and i really really like doing that work.

after work we have just spent our time exploring around and going to all the places people recommend to us. we went to this place called the mermaid ponds. they kind of remind me of lake superior where there are big rocks you climb in front of the lake but instead of the lake its the pacific ocean. its not a swimming spot but there little small pools you can wade in. its beautiifulll to sit on the rocks and watch the waves crash up onto the rocks. some big fucking waves i tell ya! to get to the mermaid ponds we have to walk through the mango groves. the mango groves is where its like this long path where all the mango trees are woven into each other and so its really shady and beautiful. i posted some pictures of it on facebook.

our day was a really fun adventure! we planned our day with the other wwoofer alex who is from france. i really like him. its been fascinating to learn all about his culture. anyways. we 3 left the farm at like 7:15 because we wanted to catch the bus in town, right? but to get to town we have to hitch. we got a ride into pahoa but not till late so we ended missing the first bus which just threw us off course for the rest of the day. the lady we were hitching with was stopping in pahoa but going on to the next town over before hilo (which was our final destination) so she said she'd drop us in the next town and we could hitch from there. that was a fun ride cause we sat in the back of her pickup truck on the highway! wicked!!! she dropped us off at the next town's dump haha so we had to stand in front of the driveway of the dump where people exit to try and hitch because otherwise people would have been going so fast. it took us like 30-40 minutes to get a ride from there but finally we got a ride to hilo from a nice couple. we sat in the back of their pickup truck too. nice breeze! anyways. we got to hilo! finally! and then we had to catch the bus to richardsons beach which is outside of hilo!! it took us so long to find the bus stop but finally a nice woman helped us. very friendly people here for the most part.

anyways, point being is we FINALLY got to richardsons beach and it was just a nice little beach where ben and alex could swim. i can't swim yet cause of this damn cut. anyways. then we went to coconut island where we could see sea turtles (like crush from finding nemo!) but we only saw one because so many people were around. that was a long day. it ended by us having dinner/lunch in hilo and catching the hilo to pahoa bus which was like an hour ride. kind of a jank bus but it was a nice time to reflect on our adventure. then we hitched back to the farm. such a fun day!!!! i like hitching. its an adventure. tis been all good experiences.

we went to pohiki which is a black sand beach and that was nice. that was yesterday? no the day before yesterday. pohiki is kindof a crazy family beach area. lots of beer and people picnicing with their families. the pier has the big cement blocks you can lay on above the water so i just laid there and tanned. it was nice and warm. then we went to the millionaires pond which is just a big thermal pool with black lava rock surrounding it. really warm and nice.

yesterday was my favorite hitching experience because me,kyle,michelle,julia,and ben all decided to hitch to town. except that is to big of a group to get a ride together so we split up. ben and i went ahead and they stayed behind. they got a ride before us!! lame. then we got a ride and drove past them where they got dropped off and then we got dropped off and they went past us and then we got another ride and met them there. we just kept passing eachother. then we got a ride back all together from the nicest guy who drove us ALL back to the farm!usually we get a ride most of the way and have to walk for like 20 minutes but he was nice and just dropped us off at our driveway. so outta his way but so nice. its been such an adventure hitching!!! i love it!! its a thrill.

anyways, i'm feeling good. living in the now. and enjoying the beautiful scenary and the people. there is some drama on the farm because its sacred land so alot of the locals don't like the owners (janelle and steve). so that's lame and there are some shady people always coming and going on the property that aren't suppose to. but right now i am feeling comfortable. tomorrow is our day off and we're going to kahena which is a party beach where they have drum circles and people drink and toke and go nude. it'll be a sight to see so thats why i'm going. and i should be able to get in the ocean finally!!

i am eating lots of tropical fruit for you all and thinking of you all everyday. love you all!!!!

Ben's first post

First of all, thanks for following this blog. It kicks ass to have some kind of connection to the rest of world while I'm out here in the middle of the jungle.

I'm going to start this blog by telling you about the bathrooms here. They're out by the wwoof house where we all cook and eat and shoot the shit together. The best part about the bathrooms is that people staying at the farms in the past have written beautiful words of wisdom all over the walls. Things like, "You are the one you seek," "There is no good and evil, only fear and acceptance," and "I like boobs."

Most of what we eat comes off the farm. We eat a lot of salad and veggies from the garden, super bomb exotic fruits that I didn't even know exist like eggfruit, and more mangos than we can handle. I'm not kidding about the mangos, they fall every few seconds and we spend hours a day picking them up.

Getting picked up from the airport was cool. I was playing some blues guitar and thinking about what I was getting into when we got picked up. I found out shortly when Tomash sparked a bowl on the way to the farm. Basically, this is the perfect kind of farm for me.

I'll leave you with something I wrote a few days ago. "Sarah is pretty in her sundress" is written right above this entry.

"Its even better than I expected. I woke up to roosters crowing today, fuck yeah.

People here talk about spirits and energies in a way that they don't in Minnesota. I have only been here for two days and I already think of (things) everything in a different way.

Keroak said the first thought is the best thought, but i felt it necessary to cross out (things) and write "everything" instead.

Everything that is, is beautiful. That being said, nowhere is more beautiful than here. That statement is true anywhere you are, but its impossible to ignore here."

In Hawaii

Hi all, we're in Hawaii. Sitting on Janelle and Steve's porch. In the Jungle. We arrived here 5 days ago and it's been one of hell of a ride since then. The flight was okay. I was pretty nervous the whole time about getting there but it all turned out okay. the computer isn't letting me post pictures right now but ill try and get it figured out asap.

let's see. where to start... i am living in the jungle. i don't really know what to say now that i'm here. our first night here was pretty good. getting to know everybody, where they are from and what. there are the wwoofers like ben and i and then there are residents. the residents could be here for any number of reasons. the wwoofers are: alex ( 20 years old and from france), kyle (21 and from new york), michelle (19, new jersey/vermont), and julia (19 from new jersey). julia and michelle came together. they are all very great i like them a whole lot. and it's nice that they are similar in the age group to us. that helps a whole lot. OH WAIT. there's also jimmy who is 37 and has been in hawaii for the past 5 or 6 months on a previous farm. he's got lots of experience so they give him more duties. he's very kind and nice. smiles a lot. i like that.

the residents are tomash from the czech republic, don from who knows where, he just kinda travels a lot. they are both like 50. smoke a lotta pot. both of em. more tomash. they have a liscence to grow it here so that gives you an idea of how lax marijuana is at this farm. quite lax. theres soffie and she's from the czech republic too and she's a scientist by trade so she's just kinda been here to study the natural and native hawaiian plants. are plot of land is really old and sacred. pretty cool.

i have been very overwhelemed since i've been here and it's hard for me to get it all out. ben will say more about what we've been doing and i will write more when i have a clear head. i am very sunburnt.

one conclusion since i've been here: i am and always will be a midwestern girl. and i love it. i miss the twin cities.

ben will write his own entry now. much love.

Seattle is cold and rainy but beautiful and green

Hello folks. I type this entry from Seattle, Washington. Stop 1 of 2 on our voyage to the island of Hawaii. We got into Seattle yesterday morning at like 10:15 after a 36 hour train ride. I almost just broke the table I am writing this on. Woops. Anyways, I love the train. It's a beautiful ride starting out in Minneosta (although we got on at 11 at night so kinda missed most of Minnesota landscape) and going through North Dakota where there are tons of beautiful animals to look and tons of flat space that goes on forever and ever. Kinda soothing to me to watch. I never did get bored staring out the window. After North Dakota we're pretty much in Montana for the rest of the time because Montana is a hugeeeee state. Montana is even more beautiful because it has amazing rolling hills and more texture to the landscape. Soooo greeen. Then we get to go through glacier park and it's amazing and we go right through the cascades and it's amazing. The mountains are magnificent. Really. Ben and I made some friends on the train. Alex and Kim. They were fun! Kim is going to a farm too. She just graduated from Macaalester and it turns out we had a billion St. Paul connections..of course. And Alex was from Madison and was our age and was taking a year off and he was just tight as hell. We all played bananagrams. It was sweet.

Yesterday we just hung out in Seattle. Hangin out with the grandparents and the auntie. We're at patty's now. Ben and I staying here. My grandma is doing better than I thought but still not very good. She can hold conversation pretty well..most of the time..kind of. My grandpa seems sad and depressed but I know it cheers him up to hear about our trip. Patty,Ben, and I went to the Pike street market because I love it done there. We tried like 1500 kinds of jam. Garlic-Jalapeno game, Pomegrante-Habanero jam. Beer jam! So delicious. We also had some delicious pico de galllo. Yum. Lots of things to see and Lots of interesting people to talk to down at the market. Seattle is a place where just watching people walk by is interesting because you'll see a nun, a guy with dreads, a yuppie, a hippie, a anything all within 5 minutes of eachother. I love the diversity. We went to a pho restaurant for dinner and it was a delicioso place.

So far it still kinad feels like just a trip to Seattle and not like we're leaving for Hawaii in 2 days. We'll see how it goes. Ben's in bed. I'm gonna go give him a hug. Good morning folks. I love you all.

Namaste.

P.s. julia, i love you!

WOOPS!

P.s. Hi Julia, I love you! :)

First post

Hello family and friends. I am starting a blog! I have never done anything quite like this before but it really appeals to me. As many of you all know, me and this guy <-- are heading off to Hawaii. We're going there to work on a farm for the summer ( so maybe it's dumb and lame that I'm only writing a blog for what some may say is a short trip but I kinda like the idea of also continuing it post this trip..these are exciting times in my life.) We'll be there from May 25th to August 5th.

In Hawaii, we will be working approx about 25/hours a week in exchange for a shack. I think we will also be receiving some food and access to all the tropical fruit we want. Yum-o. So, here I am. About to REALLY embark on something new and foreign. It's scary. It's thrilling. It's surreal. It's crazy. It's gonna be AWESOME and I really am working myself up a whole lot more than I have to but that's kinda the fun part. I didn't go away for school last fall and I have been home this whole year until now. This is my first big step. I'm ready. I'm also feeling incredibly estatic and happy that I get to share this experience with Ben because I love him very much. Hi Ben :).

I'm writing this blog just to help remind me that life is amazing and I'm doing amazing things. Life is exciting and I'm loving every minute of it. I want to remember this time of my life because as of right..I really just can't complain about much.

Anyways, this is my first post. The last night in my bed for awhile. I will be posting when I can and will be writing letters to all you lovely people when I can't blog. I will post my address in Hawaii as soon as I know it. I love you all and thanks for reading my blog..? That sounds nerdy.

Namaste.