My drug of choice...

 

Sad, but true. I love Kirkland Natural Peanut Butter. I can eat it by the spoonfuls right out of the jar - well, and you can see that I have. I mix it in with my plain Greek yogurt, and dip chocolate (sugar free, of course) right in there. So...in order to control my addiction, I can't buy anymore of this. Maybe I'll get a jar for Christmas. My life has come to this - I can't be trusted with peanut butter.

Greenhouse work

 

Yesterday I spent some time at the university greenhouse since Eric is helping me out with a group of students tomorrow. It's actually really nice in there since it's temperature controlled. We did some planting, I took pictures, and then some friends came by and joined us. It really was nice to be outside (well, in another building besides my office) getting dirty.

Primrose

 

Geranium

 

Hyacinth

 

Cherry tomato plant...OK, I'm just guessing

 

Tomato plant, I think.

 

Just goofing with the camera

 

Greenhouse Buddy

 

Eric brought Sherpa, too, so that he wouldn't be lonely at home.

Eric planting something...

 

Here's E. planting - I can't read what the package says.

Guess what's in the bag...

 

As I stepped into the greenhouse I got a waft of something...well, dead. I asked Eric if he had used fertilizer. He replied no, but that the stench was emanating from the garbage bag sitting atop one of the tables. Guess what was in the bag.

Goose Skull

 

The source of the horrid smell was the goose skull which was slowly being eaten away by beatles. Once the flesh is cleared away, Eric will use the skeleton for class lectures.

Happy to be planting?

 

The first worker...

 

Avi and her mom were walking past the greenhouse when I spotted them. They came in to take a look and next thing you know, Avi was working. Later the other two girls came by to help, too.

The workers

 

Getting the pots ready

 

Sherpa Kisses

 

Still working

 

Eric and Adrienne work on planting seeds. I love this shot - Anna Lise took this one.

The Result

 

We planted a good variety: sugar peas, carrots, corn, watermelon, jalapenos, and some other stuff - I can't remember.

Spring Break in Paradise (2009)

 

So this spring I took a small class to Hawaii. The course was on Hawaiian people and culture and we had to cram a lot into a week. Here's what the schedule looked like:

Day 1: Arrive in Honolulu - settle in
Day 2: Morning class, Polynesian Cultural Center
Day 3: Kamehameha Middle School, Hawaiian Heritage Center, Chapel tour
Day 4: Taro Field work in Hau'ula, afternoon at Kekela Beach, Hawaiian dinner at a friend's home
Day 5: Samuel Kamakau Hawaiian Immersion School visit, Hanauma Bay in the afternoon
Day 6: Free Day for students - 2 students went for a hike at the Pali Lookout, 1 student went on a skydive
Day 7: Free Day for students - 4 students went on a shark dive, leave Honolulu

While there were two free days, I spent my time running around getting stuff done. Nonetheless, it was a good trip and I hope we can do it again next year. Take a look at the pics below.

Kamehameha Middle School

 

On one of the days we went to visit the Kamehameha Middle School. We were fortunate to observe several different classes: social studies, Hawaiian language class (2), and a hula & oli class. We learned so much. We even got to eat in the cafeteria. After our middle school visit, we headed up to the Hawaiian Heritage Center for a tour. Beautiful campus and the students learned a lot.

Taro Field Work

 

Day 3 was spent working in a taro field. The group drove out to Hau'ula and met with our guide. It was absolutely stunning - we drove into a valley where we encountered the taro field. After our 'work', we cleaned off in a stream, and then had lunch. Here's the taro field we spent most of our time in. Our job: to stomp on most of the weeds in this fieldWhile I've never been a big fan of poi, I have to say that it never tasted better than it did that night when we dined on Hawaiian food.

The tutorial

 

Here's our guide, Keoki, showing us what we have to do. Of course when he does it, it looks simple.

Looking suspiciously at the field...

 

By this time, everyone else had gotten into the field. I was hesitating...

Stomping the lo'i

 

So part of our work in the taro field was to stomp on the weeds and then pile mounds of mud around the taro stalk. While it sounds easy, the ground wasn't level so you had to be careful not to fall. This turned out to be harder than it looked.