Do you have a mortgage?

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Many people of Aunty’s age have paid off their home mortgage.  Those are the smart and sensible ones.  I, on the other hand, have kept on refinancing and will be 90 years old by the time my mortgages are paid off.

Aunty’s real estate investment in the Ala Moana Hotel isn’t doing so hot because tourism has dried up to a trickle and may drop to even less than that if our State’s newest thinking of putting ankle bracelets on all incoming visitors to monitor their movements comes to pass.  Meanwhile, tenants can’t pay their rents if their livelihood is based on tourism.

Dismal 

Ahhhhh.  For sure.

Financial gurus are screaming about safe havens and putting your money in gold IF you were smart enough to pull your money out of the stock market in time.  Aunty almost always makes the wrong decisions in the stock market and is a forever optimist who gets smashed.

However, because of the current virus pandemic and disruption to all things financial, unprecedented opportunities are being offered to offset the worse case scenario of defaults, bankruptcies, and homelessness.  Small business can apply for loans that may be forgiven if funds are used to pay payroll, rent, etc.  The government is sending out free money to individuals and married couples.  Unemployment benefits will get a boost of $600 per week – which means you might even get more being unemployed rather than while you were employed.

Silver lining for Aunty

My mortgage lender is Provident Funding.  It is a a no-frills lender with easy log in.  I can view my loans all in one place and get as much info on them that I need.  Recently, they added COVID-19 financial assistance relief applications to their website.  I read their FAQs, and then clicked on the application link.  It was a super simple form asking if I wanted temporary (6 months) or permanent relief, and the reason for any hardship.  Click and submit.  That was last night, and this morning, I got a notice to check the status online.

I got a “Forebearance Plan Offer – Suspended payment for 6 months” for my loans!  This can be rescinded at anytime by me.  The only negatives are that it will hit my credit score and that I will be 90 and a half years old when it is all paid off.  A small price to pay for a current 6 months of freedom from the biggest bill each month.

Everyone is helping

I have 2 friends who are totally in the stay-at-home mode.  I call them the Rapunzels.  They have adjusted to this well because their sons do all their grocery shopping and errands for them and maintain the 6 feet rule and stay out of their house.

There seems to be more kindness going around nowadays.  At first, young people seemed angry and big trucks would swoosh by Aunty’s car as if they were pissed at me, a little old lady who caused their lives to change.

Recently though, people are more patient and considerate, and I think they are smiling but hard to say because we all have masks on.

It is such a strange and defining moment in our lives the way 9-11 was.  Maybe we will all be better for it after it is over and learn to value the simpler and slower way of living.  I needed this in my previously hectic helter skelter life of incomplete projects and too many things to do.  I wake up without looking at a clock and read the newspaper from cover to cover daily.  When the all clear is given I hope to continue this peaceful stressless lifestyle.

And, for 6 months, I can pretend that I was wise enough to pay off my mortgage already.

Masks Tasks

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Quite a tongue twister, but that is what Aunty has been up to.  Our Hawaii Stitchery and Fibre Arts Guild President – Aileen Kaneshiro – has been busy keeping us up to date with members tips and updates.  Some of the masks that I tried out were from her, some from blogging pal Kay of Musings.

The first masks I made (top row) were from a modified pattern of the Olson mask.  It is rather labor intensive with a lot of cutting, interfacing fusing, topstitching and turning.  It was a bit too small on my son-in-law and a bit too wide on my daughter, but it fit me fine.  Elastic tie fitting was the most difficult part of the process and I tried ponytail rings as well as tied elastic straps and cords.

I kept searching and saw a Vietnamese mask that looked easy and reminded me of origami.  Thoan makes it look easy but she also has a power sewing machine that can barrel over thick spots.  I tried it but my Janome machine couldn’t handle the second to the last step making the casing for the elastic to go through so I busted out my old Bernina for the job.

Now it is like a production line of speed cutting the rectangle pattern, marking sewing lines, sewing straight, turning, ironing, and defining the shapes with simple folds – just like origami.  The problem again becomes elastic ties and fit.

“Best Fit Face Mask Tutorial” by Brittany Bailey was full of great tips to solve many of my elastic problems.  Her pattern is more structural and must have a wire for the nose bridge.  I haven’t tried to make this one because I am currently enamored with the simpler origami mask pattern.  However, Brittany’s suggestions for using coffee bag ties or making your own with electrical wire and tape for the nose clip is ingenious.  Her alternate suggestion for elastic ties include 1″ wide strips of tshirt or legging material on the horizontal or using paracord or shoestrings with a craft bead is super useful.  The craft bead acts as a sizing agent to make the elastic loop smaller or bigger, depending on the wearer’s preference.  Brilliant!

Getting elastic has been a problem.  Orders on Amazon are delayed for weeks because of an overload of requests.  Aunty has found that ebay.com has faster shipping times, though the prices are quite high and many sellers are selling in 10 yard lengths.

It is now back to the sewing room for me.  This corona virus quarantine and mask imperative has actually been good for Aunty.  It made me clear out a sewing space in my messy messy craft room and help me to use up fabric and feel useful.  Days blend together without any commitments or schedules other than rubbish days.

I hope you all are doing well.  This is a most unusual and momentous time in everyone’s life.  It is both good and bad, a blessing or a curse.  It is also temporary – and the world will have more masks than it knows what to do with when it is all over.

Masks to help us all

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Pal Jalna shared a video about wearing masks – presented by a young girl in the Czech Republic.

Aunty must admit to going on errands and not wearing a mask but after getting coughed on by a clueless girl who didn’t heed the 6 feet apart rule and was coughing without regard, I started wearing a mask and spraying my hands with sanitizer each time I touched something outside of the house.

Then, after watching this video, I will always wear a mask when I go out. Not just for my sake, but for all of us. Then we can get back to normal sooner, with an appreciation for what normal is (was).

Here is a video done by a surgeon teaching us how to make a mask: https://www.drstreicher.com/dr-streicher-blog/2020/3/a-surgeon-sewing-a-surgical-mask

Here is one that Kay of Musings shared and liked:  https://www.craftpassion.com/face-mask-sewing-pattern/ This one looks rather easy (the 1st one by Dr. Streicher is the easiest) but when you click on your pattern choice, do NOT click on anything that looks like a green box with “START” on it.  This will take you to another place – it is a link to an advertiser.  I don’t like that, but the patterns are good.

And here is another one that Kay shared and liked better because of the fit: https://www.unitypoint.org/filesimages/COVID-19/UnityPointHealth-OlsonMask-Instructions.pdf

Here is a no sew mask with a large handkerchief and 2 hair ties: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBVtkX0yJ4Y&feature=youtu.be  Very easy and actually brilliant!  This version and the first version with Dr. Streicher was shared by our president of the Hawaii Stitchery and Fibre Arts Guild.  Mahalo, Aileen!

Best wishes to all, and may the force be with you!

Hand Sanitizer recipe and virus update

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Aunty’s Seattle based daughter sent an easy hand sanitizer recipe that she and her chemist PhD pal (Marcy Kang) made.

8 ounces (1 cup) of 91% Isopropyl Alcohol

2 ounces of distilled water

10 drops of your favorite essential oil

Mix in a bowl, pour into 2 oz. spray bottles and label them. (makes 4 bottles)

Easy!  Right?  Well, with this coronavirus craze going on, finding isopropyl alcohol was very difficult because most stores were sold out.  The only place I could find it was at the Pillbox Pharmacy in Kaimuki.  It was much more expensive there and I also ended up buying a pint of their awesome Oregon strawberry ice cream but both, imo, were well worth it.  You could use the more normal 60% isopropyl alcohol but it won’t evaporate as quickly.

How did it turn out?  Quite nice, with a strong alcohol after smell, which is rather comforting in this day of coronavirus paranoia.

Speaking of which

Dr. Edwin Endo sent an email about this virus and what to do.

Here is the text:

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT – A simple but good to know guide on Coronavirus

1. If you have a runny nose and sputum, you have a common cold

2. Coronavirus pneumonia is a dry cough with no runny nose.

3. This new virus is not heat-resistant and will be killed by a temperature of just 26/27 degrees (82-85*F). It hates the Sun.

4. If someone sneezes with it, it takes about 10 feet before it drops to the ground and is no longer airborne.

5. If it drops on a metal surface it will live for at least 12 hours – so if you come into contact with any metal surface – wash your hands as soon as you can with a bacterial soap.

6. On fabric it can survive for 6-12 hours. normal laundry detergent will kill it.

7. Drinking warm water is effective for all viruses. Try not to drink liquids with ice.

8. Wash your hands frequently as the virus can only live on your hands for 5-10 minutes, but – a lot can happen during that time – you can rub your eyes, pick your nose unwittingly and so on.

9. You should also gargle as a prevention. A simple solution of salt in warm water will suffice.

10. Can’t emphasize enough – drink plenty of water!

THE SYMPTOMS

1. It will first infect the throat, so you’ll have a sore throat lasting 3/4 days 2. The virus then blends into a nasal fluid that enters the trachea and then the lungs, causing pneumonia. This takes about 5/6 days further.

3. With the pneumonia comes high fever and difficulty in breathing.

4. The nasal congestion is not like the normal kind. You feel like you’re drowning. It’s imperative you then seek immediate attention.

Overkill and hype

It is better to be overly cautious but keeping our hands off of our face and clean are the 2 best ways to stop this virus from invading us.  In this day and age of internet news and reports, we sometimes have too much information and this can spread fear and survival behavior out of perspective.

Financially, it is killing the stock market and will affect Hawaii as a tourist destination, which will hurt us for a while.  We can’t do much about that but we won’t run out of toilet paper and water.

A year from now we will look back and breathe a sigh of relief.  For now, please keep on washing hands and don’t panic.

Bitcoin in your Retirement Account

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Aunty might be considered weird because I do things differently.  I think I was different from birth, much to the chagrin of my poor oriental traditional mother who struggled with the stigma of being a divorcee (at a time when no one was divorced) and worked hard to support her family of 4.  She was strong, independent, and strict.  I was spoiled, lackadaisical, and lazy.

She never chased a hot stock tip, would only play Keno in casinos, voted Republican, and believed in being debt free while keeping her money safe and sound in bank accounts and solid stocks.  I, on the other hand, spent like there was no tomorrow, got into a mountain of debt in my 20’s, jump from investing guru to guru, went all in on options (just before the 1987 crash), love the craps table, vote for Independents, and occasionally bounce checks without feeling too terrible.

I am NOT a person to follow.  However, if you have the belief that money is just a tool and not some special commodity that has to be protected, then use it to invest depending on your risk tolerance.  Cash flowing real estate is for conservatives that want to grow a solid class of asset that can be passed down, exchanged, and give peace of mind.  The problem with real estate is that it takes a substantial amount of money to get started.

A gift from our government

Aunty’s number one advice to anyone – young or old – is to have a Roth IRA.  It is a gift from our government, allowing us to put money away for our golden years with unlimited growth and ZERO taxes throughout.  If you have enough in your Roth IRA to purchase cash flowing real estate, you could set yourself up for monthly rental income that can be drawn out without penalties or taxes after age 59 1/2.  There are rules that must be followed to maintain the sanctity of the IRA but it is well worth the effort, imo.  If you don’t have enough to do that, then please consider investing some of it in crypto currencies, i.e. Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.

The reason I suggest using a Roth IRA (or regular IRA) for bitcoin investing is because you don’t have to file a tax return or pay taxes on the investment.  The IRS rules for reporting gains and losses on cryptocurrencies are evolving because it is so new.  In an IRA, you can buy, sell, make a profit, take a loss, exchange between currencies and build up a war chest for your future, without reporting it.  Perfect for a cruiser like Aunty.

Aunty used to use BitcoinIRA.com for that purpose.  However, they required at least $50,000 to open an account.  I couldn’t open my kids accounts with them because of that [they may have lowered the minimum opening amount].  Their trading fees of 10% per transaction were super high, though they were very professional. They had a break up with their custodian, Kingdom Trust.  It was rather nasty and I just rode along and by default ended up with Kingdom Trust.

Thus, I now use Kingdom Trust for bitcoin investing in my Roth IRA.  It turned out to be a good default.  $500 is the minimum opening!  This is great because the kids can now have IRA accounts there.  Transaction fees are a flat $150 – big savings on large buy/sell orders but steep for small orders.  Instead of having fees taken from IRA account balances, you can set up an outside bank account or credit card, which is much better  because IRA funds are precious.  IRS rules on IRAs allow this – another gift from our government!

If you do open an account with Kingdom Trust, use it to buy crypto currency rather than letting it sit.  Monthly fees are charged so just using it to park your IRA funds is not a good idea.  It will take some getting used to filling out docusign forms to deposit, withdraw, buy, sell, etc. but the folks at Kingdom Trust are very nice – and many times I get the same person helping me on the phone, which is also nice.

What is Bitcoin?  Truth is, Aunty doesn’t really know

Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are difficult to define and many people think they are a sham.  There is nothing that backs them up in value, so they are considered fiat currencies.  Did you know that all “real” currencies such as the US dollar, Euros, yen, etc are also fiat currencies?  Their value is based on nothing but faith in a government.

Aunty doesn’t really understand blockchain technology and the basis for bitcoin but does believe in using it as a tool for potential explosive growth.  Proponents liken it to when the internet first appeared back in the 90’s with the World Wide Web. This was before Amazon, Google, Apple, etc.  No one understood it in the beginning and now it is part of our daily lives.

Safe or sorry?

My mom (also known as Granny) would probably not have invested in bitcoin if she were still alive today.  It isn’t for most people because of the great unknown associated with it, but I would strongly recommend it to everyone, in a Roth IRA, with Kingdom Trust using just 10% of available assets.  Because the possible potential is gnormous.  The downside would be a 10% loss in your portfolio.

I have an extreme fear of heights and avoid crossing bridges over freeways or hiking and climbing cliffs.  I also have a fear of missing out on winning big.  With cryptocurrency, the greatest fear that I have is choosing the wrong cryptocurrency so I stick with the more traditional ones such as Bitcoin BTC, Ethereum ETH, Ripple XRP, and now Ethereum Classic ETC.  To follow the prices and keep up with the news, I use Coindesk.com.  I also use the Blockfolio app on my phone to get a picture of the holdings that I currently have.

The biggest mistake I have made in this venture is getting too greedy.  Set a “sell” target and stick to it.  Two years ago, Ripple (XRP) went from 17¢ to $3.30.  It has since returned to a range near 20¢.  If only I had sold the 200,000 coins that cost a bit over $3,000 and sold at its peak, I would be sitting pretty today.  Ah well.  I did eventually sell as the price of Ripple slid down much too quickly and made enough profit on the trade to cash out and withdraw the initial investment, but the “if only” continues to haunt as a good lesson about when to sell.

Aunty is also afraid of riding roller coasters and bitcoin investing is like being on a roller coaster with feet on the ground and a computer screen in front. I also tend to buy at the wrong time but the prices move up and down so much, it works out well enough.

Ready, Fire, Aim

That is the name of a book by Michael Masterson, a guru that Aunty admires.  Perhaps I need to learn to aim before I fire.  I am working on it but not with much priority.  I do believe, whatever order we do things, or the choices we make, we need to fire – sooner, rather than too late.

Embracing Auntyhood?

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An anonymous reader posting recently as “Aunty” had this suggestion for me:

Just a thought….
Why don’t you start writing about yourself in the first person..
For the new year!
Embrace the fact of auntyhood!

 

So now, Aunty (I) is wondering – should I (Aunty) post as “I” or “Me” in the new year?  It is easier to post in the first person but not sure if that takes away the Honolulu Auntyness.

What do you think?

Update:

Mahalo for peoples’ comments about this – it really is good to hear from you all.  N has a very valid viewpoint, and Snoksred also.  “I” not “she” is a really good suggestion, Gigi!

So, now Aunty will post as Aunty in the third person sometimes, and most times in the I, first person.  It will be easier to write and read while still preserving the branding of Honolulu Aunty.  Why is branding important to me?  Not really sure, to tell you the truth.  I love being called “Aunty” and whenever my hairdresser Mai greets me, it is always as “Aunty Honolulu!” and when I order at Starbucks and they ask for my name, I tell them it is “Aunty” and some of them chuckle and some look at me strangely.

Aunty, I am!  Happy New Year to all and looking forward to another year of blogging while embracing auntyhood and being myself at the same time.

The Best is Soon Gone

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Aunty’s favorite art gallery, Robyn Buntin of Honolulu Gallery, is closing.

Very sad.  Aunty will miss them and their fantastic selection of art, jewelry, and treasures.  They are always so nice and never seemed to mind Aunty coming in just to look and ooh and aaah.

Aunty did purchase a really cool old looking vase that resembles concrete but is a wheel thrown ceramic piece from the Silla Dynasty for a really good price.  Do you know the Silla Dynasty?  Hmmm?  Well, you would if you watch Korean dramas such as Queen Seondeok and stories about the Three Kingdoms of Korea.  This all happened over a thousand years ago.  This vase was part of John Young’s collection of tribal and ancient cultures.

Everything is on sale.  Everything.  The have the yummiest gorgeous jade pieces and a huge selection of Japanese woodblock prints in pristine condition.

Just wanted to give you all a heads up to check them out before they are out of there on Sunday.  Aunty will miss the best of the best.  Time and change march on, but some things, like a Silla vase endures and will continue to give joy for a long time to come.

 

Aunty’s Silla treasure – about 10″ tall and exceptional in its simplicity and balance.

Ashland in the Fall

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A small glimpse of Lithia Park

Last month, Aunty went to a 5 day clothing seminar with pal Diane Ericson co-teaching with Carol Lee Shanks in Ashland, Oregon.

What did Aunty make?  Ha!  Not much because having so many techniques, twists, and possibilities presented got rusty gears in Aunty’s head turning and moving again and Aunty’s hands didn’t know where to start.

The greatest message that Diane gave to us was to use the things you love the most.

Aunty is a hoarder of fabric, beads, and whatevers.  Because of this, there isn’t much room to create in, much less have a working display board for ideas, treasures and pinups of parts.  As soon as Aunty came home, a purging began, sort of Mari Kondo style.  The message was to use the things we love the most and clear enough space to work.  In the process of purging, the hidden treasures are coming to the surface again, and one of these days, Aunty will begin to create fabric masterpieces with the best of her hoard – though after the purge is done.  (This may take awhile.)

A wonderful place to be

Ashland in the fall is a delight.  It is a small town with everything you would want.  Aunty had the absolute best facial at Waterstone Spa, connected to the Ashland Springs Hotel, a historic classy hotel where classes were held and accommodations for students were arranged.  Each day was crisp and sunny with trees everywhere displaying the reds, golds, and greens of fall.  Everyday, Aunty ate fresh salads and yummy soups, either at Lark’s in the hotel or walking down to the Ashland Co-op.

Cars stopped for pedestrians at every corner – which made Aunty remember a wannabe crossing pedestrian in Kapahulu who flipped Aunty the bird for not stopping for him as he approached the curb.  He must have been from Ashland, lol.

Lithia Park is huge and drop dead gorgeous.  Walking through it made me wish Jalna could see it.  So many trees, set against even more trees, with bridges over a lively stream.  Duck ponds with benches all around made for peaceful resting places.

Home with fresh eyes

It made Aunty sad to return to Honolulu with its high rises getting higher, way too much concrete and not enough trees.  Our island paradise is losing its identity and roots to progress that isn’t always welcome.  Auwe.

Sorry to be a downer.  Hawaii is still beautiful with wonderful warm winters.  Aunty will be concentrating on making her home a sanctuary and place to create.  We each need to find our own space of contentment.  Aunty will try to ignore the dang concrete and glass invasion.  Maybe Aunty needs a shot of obliviousness.

 

 

The new iPhone 11 first thoughts

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Way back when, AT&T used to give the newest Apple iPhone free for each line, every 2 years.  Not sure how they did it but it was such a deal and opportunity, and Aunty used to have the newest phone until the free phone offers disappeared.  After that, Aunty would make do with older models.

Aunty recently went to the Apple Store and bought herself a brand new wonderful iPhone XS and was happy as a bumblebee (are bumblebees happy?) until Apple revealed the debut of the iPhone 11 with 3 different models.  Whaaaaa???  Suddenly, this bumblebee wasn’t happy, but the nice folks at the Apple Store assured Aunty that she could return her iPhone XS for a full refund if done within 14 days.  Or, give Aunty a “rebate” of $100 because of the timing of the new product release.

AT&T makes the deal

Meanwhile, while google searching if the iPhone 11 was superior to the iPhone X, Aunty discovered that AT&T (our family plan) was offering a BOGO – Buy a new phone and get one free (up to $700 in value).  Whoa Nellie, that sounded awesomesauce!

But it had a catch.  The free phone offer was only if a new line was purchased, or a number ported over from a different carrier.  NO problem!  Brand new son-in-law’s Verizon phone line got ported over to Aunty’s family plan (welcome to the family, Jack!) and Aunty got her beautiful silver iPhone 11 Pro, and son-in-law got his new space grey iPhone 11 Pro that he graciously gave up to his brand new wife.

Big deal

The iPhone 11 Pro is really big compared to Aunty’s old iPhone 6SE.  And much heavier.  Much.  It is also slipperier because of its rounded edges and thinner profile.  So slippery, in fact, that it flew out of Aunty’s hands at the AT&T store, crashed on the tile floor to the gasp and intake of breath of everyone there – without a scratch, shatter, or damage!  So, it passed the almost indestructible test with flying silver colors.

It does take getting used to swiping instead of pushing.  And apps got a bit messed up because of the temporary storage in the iCloud such as Aunty’s Starbucks app which had to be re-enrolled on the new phone which Aunty realized after ordering an iced caramel ribbon crunch frappuccino at the drive through so she could get bonus points.  It asked for user name and password and after several wrong guesses, Aunty was defeated and paid as a non member.  Ah well.  It is all good now once the super important secret notebook at home was consulted and user name and password entered correctly.

The camera to shoot for

This phone looks strange with 3 lenses.  Aunty has no clue how to use it – yet.  However, the camera is the reason that Aunty decided to go through the hassle of returning her brand new wonderful iPhone XS and going without a phone for a week.  That, and the extra long battery life – 5 hours more than the previous model and wireless charging!

A picture taken indoor at night from 10 feet away was quite good.  Surprisingly good, actually.  The selfie above was taken at night with an auto flash that didn’t really flash.  Pretty good and sharp, even with the mirror flip camera option, dontcha think?

Crushing candies

Candy Crush is more fun because the screen is so much bigger.  It also seems smoother to play, with the explosions and falling rows of candy moving faster and with less jerk.  Aunty is careful to limit her playing time because it really is a waste of time, just as Korean dramas are.

Ah, Korean dramas.  Something that Aunty can do on her new phone because of the bigger screen.

Hmmm.  Aunty thinks this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.