Category Archives: Hearth

Aunty would much rather spend all day weeding and planting than cleaning, cooking, or ironing. Here are bits of both home, house and garden tips.

FPJ – Fermented Plant Juice

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It has been a LONG year or two and this post is way overdue (sorry, Cleta!)

Fermented Plant Juice (FPJ) is food for plants. The best candidates are leaves from strong robust plants that already have beneficial health benefits such as comfrey, portulaca, sweet potato, and mugwort to name a few. If you use fruits rather than leaves, it becomes Fermented Fruit Juice (FFJ).

Here is how to make it:

Go out early just before the sun rises (or you can be lazy like me and go out when you wake up) and pick leafy tips of your chosen plant that still have the morning dew on the leaves. (Actually, it has been so hot that I don’t think we have morning dew anymore.). Pick clean ones because you will not be rinsing them. Only use one type of plant per batch of FPJ.

Trim the stems to 2″ or so and pile them in a bowl. Add equal parts of brown sugar and massage gently until they soften. It feels delicious.

Compress and put the mixture in a wide mouth glass jar or container, leaving about an inch or so of space on top. Sprinkle brown sugar to cap the top. Cover with a cloth or breathable cover for 5-7 days.

Use a filter and pour the liquid into a bottle. Discard the plant material. You have made a bottle of FPJ! Cover with a breathable cover. I like to use a small square of cotton secured on the bottle with a rubber band.

FPJ is used in many Korean Natural Farming recipes. It is even good for human consumption – we can benefit from the nutritional qualities of the plants that we use. Comfrey is great for healing and is known as a bone knitter. Mugwort can pull toxins out. Portulaca (aka purslane) is high in nitrogen.

Here is a gallery, step by step:

  • Pick tops of vigorous plants and trim to 2″. This example is purslane, aka portulaca and/or pigs weed.
  • Add in equal parts of brown sugar and massage.
  • Put this delicious concoction in a glass jar, leaving space on the top.
  • Cover with a breathable lid, label with type of plant and date.
  • Liquid will form after a week.
  • I waited a bit too long so mold grew on top, but it is still salvageable.
  • Strain out the solid material.
  • Store in a jar with a breathable lid. Label type and date.

That’s it! Rather easy, and very delicious. When used in Korean Natural Farming plant recipes, it is diluted to a 1:500 ratio.

Plant Maintenance Solution and Seed Soak Solution

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Both Chris Trump and Drake of PureKNF talk about a Plant Maintenance Solution (though they don’t call it PMS, lol) that they use as a spray on a weekly basis for their crops and plants.

It is a simple formula based on 2 parts Food (FPJ – Fermented Plant Juice), 2 parts Cleanser (BRV – Brown Rice Vinegar), 1 part Medicine (OHN – Oriental Herbal Nutrient), and Drake also adds 1 part Structure (WCP – Water Soluble Calcium Phosphate – a formula that will I will post about later).

The dilution is 1:500 for both BRV and FPJ and 1:1000 for OHN and WCP. To make a small scale mixture, this would equate to 12 oz of non chlorinated water (rain water or let tap water sit for a day or so). Actually, regarding tap water, Drake says that one could fill a bucket with tap water and by simply swishing your hand in, the chlorine dissipates the water and is good to go. To this 12 oz of water, add a tad less than 1/5 tsp of BRV and FPJ, and a tad less than 1/10 tsp of OHN and WCP. An easier measuring system would be to use 60 oz of water (about a half gallon) and 1 tsp of BRV and FPJ, and 1/2 tsp of OHN and WCP. Put in a spray bottle and mist leaves and stems in the early morning or early evening once a week.

This formula can be stored with a sealed lid if not used up because it is diluted. It is very important to follow the formula and not put more of any one component. More is not better in Korean Natural Farming, but it is tempting for beginners. I can attest to that because I killed a young avocado tree with too strong a solution.

Seed Soak Solution

They don’t really refer to this as SSS – not sure why – BUT it is actually the same as the Plant Maintenance Solution, minus the WCP (Calcium Phosphate). It is good to have a bottle around because one never knows when the growing mood comes upon me and I use the solution quite often when transplanting, feeding, or sticking seeds in pots or ground.

I make a half gallon because I save those Govinda fresh squeezed orange juice bottles that are just the right size and they have a handy handle. SSS = 1 tsp each of BRV (Brown Rice Vinegar), FPJ (Fermented Plant Juice), and 1/2 tsp of OHN (Oriental Herbal Nutrient). I put my seeds on a thin handkerchief and in a bowl. Then I pour some Seed Soak Solution in the bowl and let the seeds bask in the liquid. The smaller the seed, the less time it basks. The bigger harder seeds can soak for at least an hour, sometimes even overnight. Soybeans are large but the skin of the seed is like paper so 10 minutes will do. Take the handkerchief out of the bowl and let the seeds dry naturally.

What this soak does is coat the seed with nutrients and protection. You are giving it everything it needs to start and continue growing.

Poke holes in the prepared garden bed or pot of soil and sprinkle seeds in as dense or sparse as you think. Cover the holes with the seeds, water, and watch for little shoots to emerge. Don’t be surprised if these emerge faster than predicted. You have given the seedlings their best chance of survival and growth.

Ideally your soil bed has been prepared with LAB to clean it up. After a few days, sprinkle IMO4 (that post will be coming) on the surface and water. Poke a hole in the prepped soil, add a little IMO4, then drop in the seed(s). Cover and water.

The formula for potted plants is 30% Leaf soil · 30% IMO4 · 30% Cinder · 10% Biochar. What is leaf soil? I really am not sure so I chop up dead dry leaves. I also add garden soil into this mixture. Make a little hole, drop in the seed(s), and then water.

Great even in existing pots

This post is almost the cart before the horse since I haven’t covered IMO4 or Fermented Plant Juice (FPJ) yet but even without it, the PMS/SSS will work. It will also work on regular soil and mixtures for your plants.

And please make sure you do NOT use coffee grounds unless you want to kill your plants. The only ones in my garden that can tolerate or benefit from coffee grounds are citrus trees and roses. For my other plants, it was the kiss of death. I feel bad for my orchids, gingers, avocado tree, pikake, golden dewberry, staghorn fern and others. I think it also killed my poor compost worms. Sob!

OHN – Oriental Herbal Nutrient

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This is the hardest formula to make because it has many steps, uses many bottles, and takes a long time to complete. This is also one of the most important formulas and is used in many of the solutions such as IMO3, Plant Maintenance Spray, Seed Soak Solution, etc. This is medicine for soil, plants, animals and people. It aids in digestion and metabolization, creating environments for pathogenic reduction. It prevents disease and improves beneficial microbes – for our garden as well as for us humans.

Here is a video done by Chris Trump that demonstrates the beginning of the process using dried angelica, licorice, cinnamon, ginger, and garlic:

This might be fun for some people to do but it was just too much work for me. Stirring, adding, subtracting, and storing separately until the end would not be fun at all for this aunty.

So, what did I do? I checked out Chris Trump’s shop (best deal at 32 oz for $64.95) but haven’t been able to get any because it has been out of stock for weeks now. So I shopped on Etsy and found a couple of sellers that sold OHN in 8 oz bottles for quite a bit more BUT I had to have OHN to continue on in my solution and IMO making processes, so I bit the bullet and ordered it. I am hoping to be able to buy some locally – there are some avid KNF people on the Big Island that could be a resource for me, but for now, I have enough to last because OHN is used at a 1:1000 ratio in the plant formulas which works out to 2 ml per half gallon of water or 4 ml per gallon. 4ml is a little less than a teaspoon.

In addition to using it for my soil and plants, I put some in a small tincture bottle and add one drop to our old dog’s water every day. I also put a drop in water and drink it myself when I remember.

If any of you do decide to make this and have a lot of extra, please let me know and I’ll be your customer!

Biochar is like a sponge for the soil

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Biochar is charcoal-like organic material such as wood that has been burned in oxygen limited conditions. I found a big bag at Koolau Farms – one cubic foot – for $55! This will probably be the most expensive purchase for me in my journey into Korean Natural Farming (I shall use the abbreviation KNF), and a little will go a long way because I will not use it in the traditional way of adding cups to potted plant soil, but will use it sparingly along with the other formulas of KNF. Its effectiveness in the soil lasts for years and years.

Biochar under a microscope looks like pockets of pocketed caverns. It is very light, porous and can last for thousands of years. Its structure is ideal for storing water, nutrients and housing for microorganisms – the bedrock of Korean Natural Farming. It lets plants grow to their full potential.

It is different from charcoal that you use to grill with because of the way it is made. Instead of releasing carbon into the atmosphere, it is stored as a carbon negative energy. It is easy to make yourself, but not recommended because you could start a neighborhood fire if you are not careful, and probably illegal to do so given our strict county laws.

Biochar is the easiest “ingredient” without any processes, mixing, or waiting, except going to the store and buying it (or having a friend share it with you). Master Cho (originator of KNF) has been teaching and practicing KNF around the world. He took a parcel of land in the Gobi desert in Mongolia and put 4 pieces of biochar and IMO4 per tree planting, and the previously barren area now has trees that can survive the severe habitat of high winds and sparse rainfall.

Here is a TedXHilo talk by Josiah Hunt of Pacific Biochar, a biochar enthusiast. An early goal of his was to save the world and get paid for it.

Stay tuned for more “episodes” on Korean Natural Farming with Aunty!

LAB – Lactic Acid Bacteria in KNF

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This one is for Cleta – because she is so nice and interested in the goings on in my garden since I started doing Korean Natural Farming. I first posted about KNF back in January and haven’t posted since. Meanwhile, Cleta came over three times with fish, food, and an unreal quiche that I never knew could taste so good.

LAB is one of the easiest formulas to make, using rice water, milk, and brown sugar. It is called the protector and corrector and used when soil or plants have problems. It is also considered to be like hungry emergency workers so it should not be overused or it can restrict IMOs (Indigenous Micro Organisms – the bedrock of KNF). It increases vitality and resilience of the micro and macro in flora, fauna, and animals. It clears out the bad stuff, brings in oxygen, and decomposes animal waste.

Korean Natural Farming is very simple but also easy to make booboos. My first LAB solution smelled bad and I might have killed some plants with it (by mistake). One of the most common beginner’s errors is to make the solution too strong. More is NOT better, so please use the dilutions recommended even if they seem too wimpy.

Making LAB

Step 1

Start by washing white rice in a rice pot. The first rinse is cloudy and we normally throw this out and keep rinsing several more times. However, to make LAB, pour this cloudy first rinse water into a wide mouth jar and set it on your counter in a cool area. Cover lightly or not at all because you will be collecting lacto out of the air.

Step 2

After one day, check on the rice water by smelling it. It should smell slightly sweet and almost like bread. It takes anywhere from a day to a week (if the weather is cold), and a slight film begins to form on the surface of the liquid and residue on the bottom. Siphon out the liquid part avoiding the sediment on the bottom and put in a clean glass jar with wide mouth. You will only need about 2 cups of liquid. Leave a lot of space in the jar because you will now add milk (any kind of milk) at a ratio of 1:3. The recommended ratio is 1:10 but I don’t like to waste milk so I go with the 3 times rate. To the 2 cups of fermented rice water, add 6 cups of milk. Cover with a paper towel and secure with rubber bands so it can breathe. Leave on your countertop in a cool shady dry area.

Check it every few days. It usually takes about 5 days but it could be more or less. The milk starts to separate from the clear liquid and a curd begins to form on the top part of the solution. It should smell slightly sour, some KNF people say it should smell like an old shoebox.

Step 3, and pau!

Remove the curd/cheese part. This can be fed to dogs, left on plants or made into cheese but I haven’t done any of that. It feels weird, like really firm tofu. Strain the rest of the liquid (I use a coffee filter) into a clean jar. This is whey – which is LAB! It should be stored in the refrigerator and will keep for months (make sure you label it) OR mix the whey with equal parts of brown sugar, stirring in a clockwise direction and thinking happy thoughts. Brown sugar will stabilize the LAB so you don’t have to keep it cold. LAB does need to breathe, so cover with a cloth or paper towel and secure with a rubber band in a cool, dark area along with the rest of the KNF formulas.

Using LAB

Some people swear by drinking this formula – it helps their digestion, great for diarrhea, good for their general health. One ounce in a glass of water does it for them. It has been know to promote a strong immune system and is friendly to mammals (us). It can be used to control smells.

When using it in the garden, LAB must be diluted in a 1:1000 ratio or 1 TBS per gallon of water. It can be used as a soil drench or soil/foliar spray. I use it as a soil drench about a week before I add IMO4 (the bedrock). It helps to correct and ventilate the soil.

LAB can be used anytime from start to growth but do NOT use it before harvesting because it makes the fruit less sweet. It helps to develop the root systems and produces bigger, thicker, shiny leaves.

This really is one of the easiest formulas to make, and even if you don’t try anything else in Korean Natural Farming, I hope you try making this. LAB can be a stand alone great addition for your garden and health regimes.

  • Collect first rinse of rice water
  • Cover loosely to allow air flow
  • Skum and sediment form
  • Experimenting with 3:1 and 10:1 milk to liquid
  • Results of experiment same so 3:1 milk is my go-to now.
  • Curd looks like Martian tofu.
  • Remove curd and strain liquid
  • Store with breathable cover in refrigerator.
  • Or mix with equal parts of brown sugar, cover with breathable lid, and store in cool dark place

Here is a video with Chris Trump making LAB. He does it a little differently from me, but same results:

Korean Natural Farming (KNF)

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After I watched David Wong’s Waianae farm interview, I ordered his moringa oil and started using it on my face and arm to see if it lightens my dark age spots. It had a very green smell which I liked but after a week’s trial, I don’t think it helped my age spots. Perhaps it needs more time but I like a simple morning routine of just applying my daughter-in-law’s olive oil mixture on my face and a dab of sunscreen and be done so I have given up on moringa for that purpose but do believe that it makes a great herbal supplement for good health so I am putting a drop under my tongue every morning.

I was very interested in the “microbe dust” that he used with great success in growing moringa as well as other crops. He does not sell the microbe dust, but for $1300, I could get a 4’x4’x2′ box with the microbial soil and instruction to grow awesome crops of my own, delivered. A bit too steep for me as well as too big for my existing small yard.

Since I was sick with a terrible terrible cold (not Covid), I had hours and hours to look into whatever “microbe dust” was and Korean Natural farming in general. It was like diving into Alice in Wonderland’s rabbit hole and hardly coming up for air. In Hawaii, it began when Hilo doctor Hoon Park (pediatrician) went to Korea to learn from Master Cho Han-kyu about pig farming, which led to learning about indigenous micro organisms (IMO). These IMOs are the bedrock of Korean Natural Farming techniques and SO different from what we normally do to grow our plants. No chemicals, no store bought fertilizers, no soil tilling, nothing harmful, and very cheap because the ingredients are common things such as rice, milk, brown sugar, sea water, etc.

Master Cho is a cute man who does not speak English but he takes great joy in teaching the world his techniques to improve soil conditions anywhere and everywhere. He once went to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia and, using biochar and IMO (the bedrock of KNF), planted tree saplings that usually had no chance to survive because of its high wind and low rainfall conditions. Lo and behold, there now exists an area with trees that have grown and continues to grow. He has come to Hawaii (mostly the Big Island) to visit and teach, using an interpreter. In one of the videos of his visit to Chris Trump’s macadamia nut farm, both he and Chris were over taken with emotion because of their love and respect for each other. Very sweet to see grown men crying.

KNF is so different from conventional ways of planting and maintenance. In conventional farming for a tree or plant, a hole is dug and fertilizer and compost are put in the hole. The plant is inserted in the hole and watered regularly. The plant will do well for a couple of years but when its root system goes past the fertilizer and compost, it hits compacted dirt and more sterile conditions and the plant reaches a peak, and then gets weak and stagnates or dies. A constant application of fertilizer and care is necessary for the tree to survive.

KNF (Korean Natural Farming) does not focus on what the tree needs, but on how to make the soil vibrant and living so plants can thrive. It is long lasting, sustainable, and shockingly CHEAP!

So, what IS Korean Natural Farming?

It is using the natural resources of your own land in your own locale, and growing great plants because those resources are returned to the earth to enrich and continue nourishing your soil, going deeper and deeper. It uses indigenous (your area) micro organisms collected and preserved in sugar (!), fruits, leaves and plants from your area to make “fermented juices”, and simple techniques that big time and small time farmers can use to grow healthy vibrant clean crops. David Wong spoke about using KNF for human health. What Korean Natural Farming does is produce nutrient dense foods without the use of fertilizers, pesticides, chemicals, etc. When we eat nutrient dense foods, we get the benefits of food that is good for us, which we all need for good health.

There are several specific formulas, each serving a specific purpose. This is a case where more is not better and a small bottle of formula can last a long time, since the dilution ratio is usually 1:500, or 1:1000 in water.

Several farmers on the Big Island are sharing their knowledge with YouTube videos and online classes. Of note are Chris Trump (not related to the orange man), and Drake. Chris Trump has since moved to Idaho but still teaches workshops around the country as well as online classes. Drake does weekly q&a Zoom meetings that he calls “Office Hours” and has many videos online of Master Cho’s visits to the islands as well as videos on his classes. Spicy Moustache is a young man living in London who shares lessons for planting in the city and several KNF videos. I love his French accent and his tattoos. JohnKNF is a young man with a small farm living in California with video lessons on KNF that he learned at either a Chris Trump or Drake workshop here. He’s cute. Bare Mountain Farm is another grower who is learning and applying KNF theories and he does a good job of explaining the processes with his wife as the camerawoman.

The journey begins

I will be sharing my experiences with Korean Natural Farming. I do things a little differently because I do not have acres of farmland and only a few trees in my small yard. KNF was developed for vast farmland and crops. Most of my plants are in pots and a few vegetables are in a small planter bed or planter boxes. I have small bottles that I store it in, and my bottles all fit in a plastic basket with handle (from Daiso). Some formulas (such as FAA – Fish Amino Acid) takes 6 months to age and some formulas are very easy to do and have benefits beyond gardening. I will share how to make these formulas in upcoming posts.

The bottles are getting used

One of the positives of my diving into this is that my stash of bottles (I just can’t throw away good bottles) is getting used. I am also beginning to make little ceramic jar/jugs at Hawaii Potters Guild to house the IMO2 formulas (more on IMOs to come). It is an exciting time delving into new territory. I tend to go overboard and over spend when I find something that I focus on but this time the only drawback will be an excess of material produced from very inexpensive materials such as brown sugar and brown rice vinegar. The solution to that is to share with friends. And that, in the words of Martha Stewart, is a good thing.

Shorting out Short Term Rentals?

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section of map showing current unpermitted short term rental units in the Kapahulu area

It is with mixed feelings that Aunty reports the passing of both Bills 85 and 89 at Monday’s City Council meeting.  Bill 85 would have been the one to pass to totally stop the illegal short term rentals with strict enforcement and fines.  Bill 89 allows for homeowners to apply for permits allowing them to rent out 2 rooms in their homes on short term basis.  Everything else will be penalized and fined if they get caught.  The Mayor will probably nix Bill 85 and pass Bill 89 because it is more in line with what he first proposed this year to allow more short term rentals.

The hundreds of testimonies of those who wanted to have all short term rentals legalized and permitted would admit to having unpermitted short term rental businesses and justify it by how great they are by supplying what tourists wanted and paying their taxes.  Some of them were very brazen, some were humble.  All were breaking the law.

How many of them, and how big a deal is it to them?  Check out melekomo808.com for one of the illegal whole house rental units currently banking it.  It is a drop dead gorgeous place on the beach in Kailua and looks like a high end Maui resort hotel.  Rates are $5,000 per night with 6 night minimum stay ($30,000 for 6 nights).  That kind of money motivates the push for legalizing short term rentals and encourages more investors to bid up our island properties out of reach for local families to buy and live in.  Hopefully, when Bill 89 passes, enforcement and fines kick in – big time, and their profit motivation disappears.   Otherwise it will be business as usual as the players in this field flaunt their illegal activity because civil action becomes a non event as it has in the past.

How invasive is our current situation?  Check out airdna.co for a map of what is currently available as short term rentals through Airbnb and Vrbo rental sites.  Enter “Honolulu” or whatever area you are interested.  A map of the area will show purple, blue, or green dots indicating whole house, room, or shared room rentals.  Most of the sites listed are for whole house rentals (purple dot).  Each dot can be clicked on for details about nightly rates, but addresses are not listed, though you could do a guess on which house it is by the location on the map.

Just in the city area of Honolulu from Hawaii Kai to the airport, there are 7,527 active rentals, 86% of them are entire home rentals.  The rental growth chart shows a history of the expansion ~ 2,500 units in 2016, and has grown to 7,527 units today in less than 3 years time.  Some are legal because they exist in Waikiki, with special district status.  All others are illegal.

These numbers are current to Airbnb and HomeAway rental sites.  There are more sites that do not report to this market minding overview, so actual numbers are higher than shown.  For example, right around the corner from Aunty is a short term rental house with tourists staying for a few days, coming and going constantly.  This house is not listed on the map.  A property on the next block with 2 big ornate houses that occasionally have large groups staying for a week or so are also not listed on the map.  These might be listed on Craigslist or other rental sites that airdna does not track.

Aunty testified that the expansion of illegal short term rentals was not only because of investors’ motive for profit, but also because of the non-enforcement of our existing laws and piddly consequences.

Slowly, and insidiously, our residential neighborhoods have been invaded.  They are not as obvious as monster houses, but they are just as, or more detrimental to our local lifestyle.  Hopefully, with the passing of Bill 89 and proper enforcement that follows, we can protect our neighborhoods from unwanted changes.

***Want to protect our neighborhoods on the State level?  Governor Ige has before him a Senate Bill – SB1292 – which will undermine our city county laws and recognize renting platforms such as Airbnb as registered agents of Hawaii, giving more legitimacy to illegal rentals by collecting taxes.  Attached are 3 ways to reach Governor Ige.  Aunty just did the second option and sent a comment to Governor Ige.  He responded (a robo response but still informative) immediately.  He has until June 24 to send in a notice of intent to veto, and then until July 9 to veto.  Please ask him to veto SB1292!

FIRST – Phone GOVERNOR IGE’s office IMMEDIATELY [(808) 586-0034] before his voice mailbox fills up. Ask him to VETO SB1292 and tell him why. Let his office know that you are a voter, a taxpayer, and are upset that SB1292 might become law.  Remind him of his 2016 veto message (attached)

SECOND – Send the governor your online opinion right now. Ask him to VETO SB1292. Click Comment to Governor Ige to be directed to his website.  Remind him of his 2016 veto message (attached)

THIRD – Phone GOVERNOR IGE’s office [(808) 586-0034] again in by Friday. Ask him to VETO SB1292 and tell him why.

Monster House Update and Victory!

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A 3 story monster with 2 entrances and multiple electrical meters in Foster Village

Wednesday was a GREAT day for us monster house opponents because the Honolulu City Council unanimously passed the 3rd reading of Bill 79, which made major changes to the LUO (land use ordinance) for Oahu.  In short, house sizes for our average 5,000 square foot lots or smaller are limited to 60-70% of floor area ratio to lot size, wet bars (which monster people would convert to illegal kitchens) are limited to 1, laundry rooms are limited to 1, electric meters are limited to 1, and number of bathrooms are limited to 4 1/2. Adequate parking must be provided, and at least 25% of the lot cannot be impervious (concrete or asphalt).  The bigger lots allow for more wet bars, bathrooms, etc. but size limits will still be in place, and inspections will be allowed for a year after occupancy to check that the house has not been altered.

Aunty and fellow members of HiGoodNeighbor.com testified along with others in support and thanks.  A pleasant surprise was that even representatives of Hawaii’s building industry showed support for the bill.  Prior to, they voiced strong opposition to any changes and instead blamed the Department of Planning and Permitting for not clamping down on (mostly foreign) builders who found ways to build huge – legally.  These foreign builders would then alter, subdivide, rent illegally, sell and repeat, all the while not get caught or stopped. This was a case of a few bad apples spoiling the face of our island neighborhoods for profit, so hopefully those bad apples go away.

But not soon enough

It had been a mission for Aunty for about 2 years ever since seeing and reading the news about monster houses coming up in Palolo Valley and Kaimuki.  Unscrupulous builders were buying up old houses, knocking them down along with all the wonderful trees, and putting up structures with the most bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchens that they could fit without any regard to their neighbors, parking, or communities.  One of the most heartbreaking stories was that of Missy Mai’i, who bought a little house with a great view of the city and ocean a few years ago.  A monster builder put up a multi-level house on a slope next to her and totally took away her view.

Just recently, the same thing is beginning to happen to Aunty.  The property just behind Aunty was purchased by a contractor a few years ago and he received a permit soon after.  He did nothing for years but rented out the dilapidated 2 story house and cottage on the lot to several renters who came and went.  It was filled with weeds and random plantings and looked like a dump but Aunty could still look out her back windows and see sunrises over Maunalua Bay and Koko Head, about a half inch of ocean, and the charming rooftops of Kaimuki houses.

The bad apple seed is sprouting

This shows half of the total foundation, which continues after the 8′ concrete divide in mirror image to the street beyond

In October, Joey, a young local contractor working under the owner builder contractor began to demo the old houses and everything else on the lot.  The owner builder is foreign but at least he hired Joey.  A huge old mango tree, banana trees, moringa, and avocado trees were ripped out, laying bare the entire lot.  Slowly more work was done, hollow tile walls erected around the property, trenches dug out, rebars laid in, and truckloads of gravel dumped, filled, and leveled into semi-erected walls.

It was at this point, neighbors began to gather and would speak to the owner who occasionally came to view the progress.  Each person had a different story of what they heard would happen from him.  We organized a meeting with the owner so we could all get the same picture directly from his mouth.  He brought his wife who acted like she couldn’t speak English and his pretty young daughter.  He seemed like a nice person and would agree to remedy our concerns about water overflow if it rained heavily, making sure the contractor waters the site twice a day to cut down on dirt flying into our houses, and maintaining green spaces.  His wife suddenly could speak English and assured us that she and her family would start a garden.  They would live in the back house and their other daughter would come back from the mainland to live in the front house.

Construction continued, hollow tile foundation walls got taller, more fill came in and plumbing pipes were laid in and buried, a massive wall of concrete blocks grew right down the middle of the property.  The site was never watered down, water overflow concerns were not passed on to the grading contractor.  At this point, Aunty viewed a set of building plans from DPP (Department of Planning and Permitting) which is available to the public.  The 2 houses were only divided by a common wall and massive – each one were mirror images of each other and 2 stories high.  Two full kitchens, 2 wet bars, 9 bathrooms, 2 dens, 12 bedrooms.  7,386 square feet under roof for a 7,500 square foot lot.  120 linear feet of house with 12 windows on the 2nd floor looming over Aunty.  Yuck, yuck, yuck.

For now, Aunty still has a view and is taking as many photos at different times of the day and plans to paint the view as it is now.  Soon, it will be lost and blocked out by the 2 houses.   It will be like having a 30′ high fence, 5 feet away as Aunty’s new back view.  Hopefully this will be the last of the monsters, and that Aunty can get used to her soon to be altered reality.

Orchid Eating Bird Pest

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One of Aunty’s favorite pastimes is gardening.  Every plant in the yard has a little story – where it was bought, who gave it, etc.  Lizards run around, bees buzz, and birds perch and poop.  One unwelcome bird pooper is the Bulbul –  an invasive species that was released in Hawaii, probably by a bird lover who let their illegal pets into the Islands. They are black with red butts.  These birds feed on fruits, vegetables, and flower buds – Aunty’s orchid flower buds in particular.

Aunty would stick orchid plants into the stone wall up front and they would do okay, a few buds here and there but not too many flowers because the Bulbuls would find the new shoots and eat them before they bloomed.

This year, Aunty’s orchid plants became profuse with orchid spikes and buds. The Bulbuls seemed to be leaving them alone!  Each day would bring more buds and these slowly grew larger until a few of them started to bloom. Happy happy joy joy!!! until petals seemed to fall off, so Aunty gave it some organic fertilizer to boost the plants. However, it wasn’t the health of the plant causing the petals to break off.  Buds were also being nipped off.  The dang Bulbuls had found Aunty’s trove of orchids and began to feast.

Google searching brought up several solutions and Aunty wrapped either thin wire or fishing line around CDs and hung them from the low hanging tree branches above the flower sprays. They sway hither and thither with the wind and reflect mirror-like light.

Aunty also bought some reflective pinwheels to stick into nearby plants as extra precaution. They aren’t pretty in the tropical garden setting, but they are better than eaten up flowers and destroyed orchid buds.  So far, so good.  Bulbuls are leaving the petals and buds alone.  Orchids are happy.  So is Aunty.

Aunty’s too many tansus solution

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Pal Cookie is currently on tansu hunting missions whenever she goes to Japan.  And she goes to Japan a lot.  Aunty understands this behavior because she is guilty and vulnerable of buying tansus at the collectible shows here as well as at Robyn Buntin Gallery‘s annual 40% off sales.

A couple of years ago, Aunty decided to bring all of her wooden treasures out and display them together as a collection.  It was a wonderful creative and workable transformation of a blah wall.

BUT, at the last March Wiki Wiki show, Aunty found and had to have 3 more little tansus, without enough room on her shelves.  Her existing layout of tansus spanned 60″ over 2 short bookcases that were bought at City Mill, and the new tansus weren’t going to fit without awkward stacking, finding and purchasing perfect sized new bookcases, or major elimination of existing wonderful tansus.  After careful measuring and juxtaposing new with old, Aunty needed a 67″ base on which to add her new tansus to her old over the existing pair of bookcases.

Alex, Aunty, and Gary

The Solution

Min Plastics to the rescue!  Aunty has used Min Plastics in the past, for furniture toppers to protect wood surfaces such as dining tables or as connective “bridges” between desk and shelves with great success, so Aunty called in the order to Alex and picked it up the next day from Gary.  (808) 847-1511.

Aunty ordered a 67″ x 12″ x 3/8″ clear piece with rounded corners, flame polish.  This is quite thick, almost invisible, and pure functional perfection.

The staff there is really helpful and nice, even when Aunty later placed a dinky order of a couple of smaller table toppers in the 1/100″ thickness, with slightly rounded corners and sanded.  City Mill has this type of sheet plexiglass and can also cut, but Min Plastic has a wider selection of sizes and the price difference is only slightly higher with better attention to detail.

The result makes Aunty very happy.  So happy, that maybe Aunty will stop buying little tansus.

Maybe.