MARCH COLLAGE OF CRAZY THINGS

I found one of my Barbie Spellbinders in a tree in Angela's backyard!

And here is a dismembered doll attached to a rusted shovel on AA's outdoor shower wall.

This morning I woke up from a cold spray of rain on my face.  It came through the slits between the jealousies.  That's how hard the rain beat on the windows.

Mango season runs June to September.  Something strange is happening with the mangoes here.  They started ripening in February!!!  We're eating fresh mangoes now!!!  Global warming?  What?  Is it only so in Hawaii?  Where else is this happening?

 Makaha mangoes in February

On letting go:
One: Last week someone in a white car rammed into the right rear bumper of our Subaru while I was working out in the gym.  They left a big dent and no note.  
Two: I'm devastated at learning that a close and dear friend of mine is leaving the islands for a better living and working situation.  This one is not so easy to let go of.  I should be happy for my friend, but I'm not there yet.  I just feel bereft.

The water heater stopped working, so no hot water.  I had to wash up with cold water like in the olden days when we lived in a cold-water flat in The Hague, Netherlands.  We were allowed one warm bath a week.

Fortunately Waialae Plumbing sent over a plumber right away to tackle the big job.  Just getting to the water heater is a problem.  The heater is wedged in the corner between the dish washer and the oven range.  To get to it, you have to move the oven range out of the way first.  As you can see, our kitchen does not have a lot of space to maneuver in.

The plumber told us that the water heater was 20 years old, was loaded with sediment, that the wiring was broken and had become a serious fire hazard.  Whoa, good thing it stopped working.

The hole after the old water heater was removed

Bless our our brand new water heater!

Earlier this morning Jason, our downstairs neighbor, called to ask if I knew who had jumped over the wall onto his lanai.  His papyrus plants and beautiful blooming orchid got trashed.  I had noticed the sad state of those plants earlier and wondered what had happened, but did not hear or see anyone trespassing.

Here's the view from our lanai down onto Jason's.  

You can see the broken papyrus stalks sticking out of his pond.

I went to the dentist to have some old fillings replaced.  The dental assistant suddenly did not feel well and almost fainted.  I don’t think it was from seeing my teeth.  I was told that she’s pregnant.  All kinds of things can happen when you're pregnant.  With both my kids I was overcome with sleepiness.  If I could have slept nine months, I would have.  So glad, I passed that phase long time ago.

Soon after the dentist gave me the shots to numb me, I got the shakes and felt like I was going to pass out too.  Another dental assistant then launched into a tale about when she had her wisdom tooth pulled and her whole face got paralyzed from the shots and how they had to keep shooting her up because she kept on feeling in spite of the numbing.  It made me feel so much better because my face was not completely paralyzed.

And what’s with “The Artist” running away with four Oscars?  That made no sense whatsoever.  In my opinion “Hugo” should have won Best Film.

Last Saturday when the sun still shone in Waikiki, a young man in a Santa suit played Christmas songs on his violin, because “each day in Hawaii is Christmas.”

I also met Rico Davis who tandem-played the drums with his monkey friend.

 
As I visited with Rico, a guy swung himself up onto the roof of the structure at the end of the pier and got ready to dive off from it.  Not jump, DIVE.  Crazy nuts and dangerous.  The water is so shallow here. 

I was told that he was a professional diver and that I would have to pay for taking his picture.  I promptly put my camera away and continued visiting with Rico.  When I heard a big splash behind me, I knew I had missed seeing him dive.  But that was okay.  I did not care to encourage him and have him put bad ideas into kids' minds. It's bad enough that they're jumping off the pier.

Last Friday I came to the gym to find some trainers having fun doing aerials.

 

Continuing my series of doctors' offices, here is my dentist's office after he had finished working on me:

 Pregnant dental assistant and Dr. Bogdan Rosala

And here is a photo of my gynecologist's barren office at Kapiolani Hospital  It has just been remodeled, so no pictures on the wall yet of women's reproductive organs or various birth control methods.

Somehow it seems appropriate to end with AA's statue of Kwan Yin wearing a halo of lights.

Quote from Cheryl Strayed who writes the column "Dear Sugar" at The Rumpus:

“Writing is hard for every last one of us—straight white men included. Coal mining is harder. Do you think miners stand around all day talking about how hard it is to mine for coal? They do not. They simply dig.” 

Let’s dig the shit out of whatever project you're working on.