In a Week's Notice

From the book 'Out of Antarctica: reflections on the origins of people' - pg. 45 - "A song, called the Song of Kahu-koka, indicates the precise route that needed to be taken to reach Antarctica from the islands:

Now do I direct the bow of my canoe 
To the opening whense arises the sun-god, 
Let me not deviate from the course 
But sail direct to the land, the Homeland.
Blow, blow, of Tawhiri-matea, God of the Winds! 
Arouse thy westerly wind to waft us direct 
By the sea road to the Homeland, to Hawaiki. 
Close, close thine eye that looks to the south, 
That thy southerly wind may sleep. 
Allow us to sail o'er the Sea of Maui, 
And impede us not on our course. 
She stirs, she moves, she sails! 
Ah, now shall speed Tane-kaha, 
The gallant canoe of Kahu-koka, 
Back to the bays of Hawaiki-nut; And so to Home. 

Photo by One Ocean Expeditions

 

Have knife, will cook, so goes the way of my gypsyfied cookworks over the last four years. I'm always the on the edge for a new adventure and a way to help protect the wild. Here I ride, weaving together the Earth's energy at a time when it's most needed. As the shamans of Peru have told me - you cannot plan everything, but you can prepare.


A sustainable-minded kitchen crew on a vessel sailing through the Drake passage of Antarctica that delivers eco-tourists via an off board drop-in by sea kayak to a colony of penguins is my mission. Mission impossible made possible. Under immigration laws I cannot work while in Canada until I am granted residency, thus I must leave and find work beyond the borders to help provide those physical necessities - food, water, shelter. I am building a house for the stars to enter.


Save the Krill. Shoulda, woulda, coulda brought my essential cookbooks with my knife bag. Oh well, hopefully my memory and Googling recipes will be enough. ETD - Dec. 10th. Travel plan - Toronto to somewhere in Central America to Argentina to Antarctica. See you on the flip side.

Skurf's Up - 180

Another needle in the thread weaving together the Earth's energy, I am. This wave of life I ride is unforgiving and never-ending, but alas I leave the island of teachings to return home in the light of a new awakening. Within 10 days on Kauai I wrote a script of sustainable living through my teachings from the locals and trees and brought those thoughts to action. Sleeping on the beach next to a sacred tree, under shooting stars and the crescent moon brought me back to the womb - deep into the Earth. The tree of life showed me how to connect to Earth spirit worldwide, no matter where I am. After all, we do all live on the same planet. Everything is connected. So, now, I travel North. May I have the strength to incorporate these lessons of simple sustainability into the workings of the urban environment.

My last takes of Kauai for 2012.

Every morning I'd awake in Anahola, a traditionally sacred beach for the native Hawaiins, to crashing of waves and migratory birds. Granola on the sand. Bathe in the waves. This was the view from the back of the truck.

The local dogs.

The street I lived on for two weeks. No street name, just a street to the beach.

The front yard.

The patio.

Yoga n meditation. Introspection. Reflection. I am.

Fisherlady. She was catching her breakfast at the break of dawn every day.

How to fix a Ford bumper 101. Everything on this truck could be snapped back together. It was a killer Leggo project.

Anahola can be tough for a Hale like me, but I'm as native as they get.

Lunch out of the lunch trunk. Pineapple grilled cheese and teriyaki Hawaiin brown rice.

Let's go skurf. Water skiing + surfboard = skurf.

It ain't a peach, it's def. a lemon.

Sup, dude. Catching much fish?

On the the Kilauea river. My last day to ride...

Through the jungle.

For skurfing all you need is a hand line, boat and surfboard. It's tricky to get up, but once you up it's like gliding on ice.

Mike showed me the ropes.

Paddle boarding.

It took me five tries to get up and once up I couldn't go down. I was hooked on this skurf.

Spirit of Hawaii, I thank you for this journey and please, call again in the near future.

Old Man Hawaii Trees.

That's the skurf.

Woke up the next morning, sold my truck to a kind guy and jumped on a plane back to the big land. My face feels like I was hit hard in a boxing match from all the skurfing face plants. Having fun ain't easy sometimes, but it sure is worth it. Make some time to have some raw fun today! Get outside. Run. Bike. Jump. Dance. Enjoy the sun, snow, whatever nature has for you. Be healthy. Be happy. This is the meaning of life - to love and live, in peace and happiness. With your heart open, you shall walk a very lucky path - all material things will come to you as needed. Take care of your body - you only have it once. Don't be afraid to try something new and always give respect to the old. Just be. We are. I am. One.

My junk truck on a sweet beach...

Aloha kakahiaka! 

Crawled out of the back of the truck this mornin before sunrise and made my way through a gathering of nocturnal feral cats. For a couple nights I've noticed these quick and silent moving black shadows running around the car... not chickens, lizards or raccoons... but mini cats.

I watched the moon settle behind the mountains and the sun rise over the seas horizon. Feeling hungry I grabbed an avocado and banana that were picked from trees nearby the beach. I mashed them together, with a dash of saltwater, in a 50 cent pottery bowl from the thrift shop. If only I had a lime, orange and some shredded coconut this 'just invented' Hawaiin guacamole would be a big hit for the locals.

Breakfast for surfers. One buck.

Reused bowl and wooden spoon. One buck.

I arrived on Friday of last week and spent a few nights camping on Haena beach. Each night was a ceremony under the stars and I let my prayers and intentions fly in sacred tobacco smoke. Come Sunday I was like, alright, dudes and dudets, I'm going to do this. I'm going to shine. I'm going to find a job, house, car and use all my lessons I've gathered over the many years abroad and kick start a rooted life here on the island on Kauai.

Sunday - no truck, no house, no job - pretty much nothing except my heart and backpacks. Sunday night I visited a friend at the Hanalei crystal shop and was drawn to a moonstone necklace. Looking for guidance. Moonstone is known to enhance intuition and help with the start of new beginnings. It's a stone of inner strength. It vibrates with the crown chakra and that's where I'm in need of... asking sky world helpers to help guide me through this. Looking for anything that will channel good luck and safety from above.

I want to be like these folks when I grow old...

Since my arrival I've sent out my resume to a dozen or so employers offering kitchen and/or farm work. I've made a few connections and without the Starbucks WiFi I would probably still be half naked on a beach this very minute wondering if I should have picked up that job in Antarctica, again. Being homeless and unemployed on a beach is the best place to be that way!

Monday morning I received an email from a guy with an island car looking to sell it cheap ASAP. The catchphrases.... craigslist + island car + cheap + ASAP = Danger, Will Robinson! Island car specifies a car that may or may not run, has lots of sea spray corrosion, might be legal, might no be legal, usually looks like it's hot out of the junk yard... 20,000 leagues under the sea. I would spend around $28/day for rental car + $30/night for cheapest room = $1740 bucks for a month of living. For $650 I can just buy a truck that I can sleep in for a month till I get enough money to buy my own sublet or temporary room. Food grows on trees here and water runs fresh from the rivers, makes it easy to eat and drink local organics (:

Within two hours after receiving the $650 island car email I had a brand new piece of junk with four wheels on my hands. He told me to water it like you'd water a garden on a hot day and pointed out 20 things that should be fixed. Since then I've found about 20 more things that need to be fixed. Two hours after that I was at the BMV getting it registered and an hour later had the thing insured. Only thing I have to do is get the safety checked... hmm... that should be a fun one. Safety first! Drive as slow as you can go :)

Taking a breather to check out the newsstand. Not a single thing on the elections. Who's running anyway? Did they really just legalize pot and gay marriage? I like how the front page the island newspaper is "Major league sports help overcome barriers to sustainability"

Tuesday morning on Anahola beach. Teeth brushing next to the sea. Smiling big time. I have a truck and a 6x4 foot room now. Next on the list is to find a full-time permanent job that's fun and healthy, and get the truck fixed a bit.

I met a few kids from Oregon that were trying to spot this monster white goat on the mountain that can only be seen at sunrise. Not sure if it's a goat ghost or what, but I saw it, and they say none of the island hunters have been able to get it. It's a goat sasquatch.

My Xplorer chill pad. Coolest thing about the truck, is the Blaupunkt stereo!

The front yard...

The front door... have to open it from the outside.

The leaky roof... patched it last night with a waterproof deck sealant.

Truck to the left, sea to the right.

Tuesday afternoon a young mama holding her big baby dropped off this next to my laptop. Check it out... just give to your local community! 5 days into a new life here and I am meeting so many new faces. Everyone is open and giving. I took my truck to Mike the mechanic last night and it turned into a three hour internship on how to repair Ford's and raising horses.

After receiving the guerilla gift I took the truck to Mike's and wound up hitch hiking while it was being looked at. The native kid that picked me up in his truck told me about his life here on the island and the work he was looking for. I gave him my story and he told me to check out Papaya's Natural Foods and Cafe.  Sure. Walking to the entrance of Papaya's I saw a sign asking for Kitchen Help. I asked for the kitchen manager and of all things holy - an hour later, had the 'natural foods chef' job at the cafe. Mahalo nui loa!

I start work in four hours and am digesting all the changes that have happened over the last couple days. Somehow, I have three chef knives, three vegetarian cookbooks and a chef coat in my backpack. I guess my intuitive side saw this coming when I packed my bags two months ago in Ohio. Intentions are magnetic and my intentions are to serve healthy food to the masses to help connect humans with Mother Earth. For years I've been feeding clients heart disease, diabetes, cancers and obesity... I am sorry for serving fats and sugars and processed ickies. Unhealthy karma serving unhealthy food. You are what you serve shamans and chefs. Serve the light of creation! 

All I need now is a place to call home that's sheltered from rain and cats... a yurt, hut, cottage, apartment, whatever. Sleeping in the truck is cool, but I can see it getting a bit much when it gets wet here with rain in a month.

Time to get the chef face on and brush off the sand.
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