May, 2020: Isolation Third Month

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Viewed: 4/24/2024	Page Views: 846
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Home improvements.

With my daughter's family in Arizona, which I was watching with increased concern as its Republican governor Doug Ducey was in lockstep with Trump, pretending that nothing was wrong while allowing people to not use masks or, indeed, take any precautions at all, Keith and I settled in to making use of the various resources on the property to make our living conditions more enjoyable. My left foot remained more swollen than usual but other than that I felt great, egetting tan and losing weight by virtue of actual, real-world exercise. But inside, germs were percolating.

Why didn't my H₂O₂ keep me safe? Given the timeline, it would appear that it actually did help. And, not knowing I was sick, I was on a low maintenance dose, not the therapeutic dose that might have cleared it out. Another reason may be that, due to the skin transplant related to my necrotizing fasciitis of 2022, my lymph nodes and capillaries never grew back properly and may be unable to carry the H₂O₂ to where the bacteria found a home.

But I wasn't thinking of that at the time

This Is The Way We Wash Our Clothes, Wash Our Clothes…

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/2/2020	Page Views: 684
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Doing laundry off the grid. No rivers or rocks were involved. Also, cows!

While Jenny and the kids were staying at a B&B in Pa'ia, Keith and I would do our laundry there while we bought groceries and supplies. But with Jenny back in Arizona, and no B&B, it was time to figure out how to work the washer and dryer Zach had previously bought for the purpose.

Sunset on Old Clothes

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/4/2020	Page Views: 715
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
On our supply run today Keith got himself some new clothes.

We waited in Arizona for three months after finding out we were moving to Maui, to actually make that move. In that time, it made no sense to buy new stuff because we knew shipping things here would be more expensive, in most cases, than re-buying after we arrived. So, that means that Keith, who needed new clothes anyway, really needed them by the time we arrived.

A Busy Day in Paradise

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/5/2020	Page Views: 710
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Did you ever wonder how people off the grid get rid of their garbage? Also, cows!

After spending a few days doing laundry (I didn't want to tax the solar-powered batteries too much until I knew what they could handle) and dealing with a lot of sporadic rain, I didn't expect we'd get much done today because more rain was predicted. However, that turned out to be wrong.

Boxes, and a Bath

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/6/2020	Page Views: 699
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
The past comes to find us.

When Keith and I were packing to leave Arizona, we boxed everything. But we knew we were going to be camping for a few months before moving into our bamboo hut (that we're still waiting for). So we marked the boxes as to when they were needed: right away, after awhile, sometime when we have extra time and money. It takes about 2-3 weeks to send something via "surface". So when Jenny told me she would be mailing the boxes, last week, I didn't expect them till mid-month at the earliest. However, accidentally, she sent them via Priority Mail. So they arrived today, or, at least, half of them did.

Solar Beginnings

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/10/2020	Page Views: 685
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui #SolarPower
Let there be lights!

My grandson, Zach, always intended for the property to be off the power grid, and to work with solar power exclusively. Today we achieved a step towards that goal: the framing of the panel array.

Exploring

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/14/2020	Page Views: 697
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
After all this time, I thought I'd check out our environment.

I arrived in Maui permanently March 17th, and I've been sheltering in our cabin here ever since, with rare trips into the nearest city to get supplies. That's almost two months, and I still hadn't explored the whole property, not to mention Hana, the nearest village. But over the past few days I did that, at least to some extent. And here are the receipts.

The Day We Got Running Water

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/15/2020	Page Views: 691
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
All I really care about is hot showers.

Today was the third Friday we hoped to see the arrival of the Water Guys to complete the running of hose to our cabin. They'd had to cancel the two previous appointments due to rain. But today promised to be a beauty, mostly sunny, so we hoped this would really be the day.

Hold On—It's My Hat!

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/16/2020	Page Views: 701
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Ball caps don't work well in Hawai'i.

Today I had to make an unplanned, weekend run into Kahului to pick up some medical prescriptions our Hana doctor didn't have in stock. As I've been really enjoying our solitude on the property, I don't look forward to the relative crowds, especially now that some restrictions have been lifted. And Saturdays have always been more crowded anyway, which is why I've learned to time our trips for Tuesdays.

Rub-A-Dub-Dub

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/17/2020	Page Views: 713
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Two men in a tub.

No expected rain today meant getting some property work done. I needed to do a load of wash; Zach asked for photos of the container interior; and I had determined to bring down the cowboy for our evening use. But first, let me explain our experiences with camp showers.

Hana Bay Beach Park

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/18/2020	Page Views: 701
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Checking out a newly-opened beach.

Today I took Keith to see the Hana Bay Beach Park, which re-opened a few days ago.

Pizza Day

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/22/2020	Page Views: 685
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Little things can bring great rewards.

We've been watching with interest and more than a little sadness at how people on the mainland are reacting to the restrictions meant to keep us all safer. But that doesn't mean I don't empathize with the desire to go out and do something "normal" even something as innocuous as going out for pizza.

A Little Or Nothing Each Day

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/24/2020	Page Views: 671
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Slow and steady wins the race. Or you can take a nap.

On 28 acres of Maui realness, there is no end of things that need doing. At this stage of our occupation, most of that involves cleanup of the trash remaining from previous projects (like building our cabin). On the other hand, unlike in every job I've ever had, there's no deadline or even schedule. So each morning I ask myself: Do I want to actually get anything done today, or should I just goof off?

Cowabunga

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/26/2020	Page Views: 708
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Exploring more of the property we share with cows.

After a couple of days of being mostly cooped up due to rain, I decided I wanted to go exploring parts of the property I hadn't yet seen, on the quad. Keith even agreed to come along! (I think my driving makes him nervous.)

Getting Wood

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/27/2020	Page Views: 689
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
What should have been a simple purchase becomes a nightmare in the time of Coronavirus.

My grandson asked me to pick up 85 boards at the hardware store, to be used to frame the interior of his shipping container, on its way to becoming an apartment. Or a rental. Or something. In any case, all I had to do was to run to a hardware store and pick it up, right? That may have been true prior to the coronvirus, but no more.

Beach Therapy

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/28/2020	Page Views: 677
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
After a little physical labor, there's nothing like an hour or so at the beach!

A noted earlier, some of the beaches on Maui, including our Hana Bay Beach Park, have re-opened, subject to social distancing rules. This morning was a clear one, and after Keith and I stacked Zach's lumber from yesterday, we were definitely ready for a cool-down.

The End of the Innocence

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/30/2020	Page Views: 691
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Don Henley saw it coming when it actually started: The Reagan misadministration.

Today we returned our rental Jeep to Hertz, which required another drive to Kahului. The last news we received before leaving the cabin was that there were riots on the mainland in response to the murder of George Floyd, an unarmed black man at the hands of white police officers in Minneapolis. But that seemed very far away from us in Maui.

The Innocents At Home

By: Paul S. Cilwa	Occurred: 5/31/2020	Page Views: 682
Topics: #Coronavirus #Maui
Another day spent fooling around with paradise.

Today it occurred to me that we are settling into our rustic digs. While the details of each day here are different, they boil down to the same thing: Up at dawn to feed the dogs and get a hint of the days weather (not whether it will rain, but how often and how much; breakfast around 9; then run around the property to see if anything's amiss; finally, do a few chores.

May, 2020: Isolation Third Month

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