Gone Fishin'

Lately I have been on this fishin' and crabbin' kick and feeling the urge to learn how to fish. So I have been boning up by watchin videos and readin up on the web. Well it turns out my 'ol friend Tony, who I went to High School with, is on island for a visit. He is one of the few friends I know who enjoys fishin and has been doing it for quite a while.
We hooked up after I got done with work then took a trip over to the store where we bought a rod and reel, a knife, a bucket, some hooks and bait. After we equipped ourselves we set out to the end of the jetty where we cast our line. We did alright, although we didn't catch anything really worth keeping. But it was still fun to actually get out there and do some fishin and get fish smell on your hands.m Here is what we caught:

A small kine eel with a ferocious set of chompers.


A little male Samoan crab


And a beautiful sunset!

Tonight we are going to Hanapepe Bridge with a crab ring and gonna try to pull in some big kine crabs for a weekend crab feast!

The End of Dirtbag Summer

Salt Pond Beach on the west side of Kauai

This Chongolian update comes to you from California. Yes I am back on the mainland for a couple weeks for my cousin Leah's wedding in Northern California and an art show at Forbidden Island in Alameda tomorrow. It has been another interesting few months over on the Garden Isle for me, with more housing changes, adventures with old friends and plenty of new experiences. I am still working at the silkscreen shop but now only part time for the most part and taking on more side projects as an illustrator and graphic designer. All the while still creating my own t-shirt designs, paintings and drawings. I printed the first batch of my "Moa Kane Coffee" t-shirts the day I left for California and have a box stuffed with t-shirts and artwork that I will be selling this Sunday. If interested you can read more at The Forbidden Island website.

In the middle of July I decided to move out of the house in Kapahi and have been living out of my office at the silkscreen shop over most the summer. It got to the point where I was going to have to find two new roommates in a house that I was already less than thrilled about staying in any longer. So I packed up all my stuff and set out to find a studio where I didn't have to deal with roommates any longer. It didn't take long to find a sweet ohana studio that I will be moving into once I return back to Kauai in a few weeks. My new place is located in an area called Omao, which is on the south side of Kauai near Poipu. I will have my own studio on a very private piece of property and I will be renting from a very cool and nice lady who lives in the main house. The studio has a kitchenette, but I will also have access too the full kitchen in the main house. I am really stoked, the property is tropical, quiet, private and in a really neat part of the island. Also, I already know several of my new neighbors from surfing at Kalapaki.

This summer was really memorable and I was treated to several visits from some of my best friends from different eras of my life; all the way from high school to college to the tiki scene. Each visit was a blast and I was able to share and enjoy the company of good friends while experiencing a few things on Kauai that I had not yet seen or done. I spent fourth of July and surfed with my ol buddy Rudy Drat who came out wih his wife Tika and their charmin' little girl Audrey. Our friend Lulu and her daughter Julia who live on Kauai, but had yet to connect with since I moved here, also joined us in the festivities. I also got to hang out with my buddy Dana a.k.a Feedback Black who became one of my best friends when I lived in Santa Barbara in the late eighties. We road tripped around the island, surfed the longest left break in the Hawaiian island chain called Pakalas, paddled Hanalei river on stand up paddle boards, took a cruise around the Hanalei bay in his friend's boat and I was introduced to a bunch of great folks who Dana knew from his home town of Newport Beach. It was really cool to surf with my bro's who I haven't seen in many years. Another friend of mine Crazy Al was out here too. Al is an insane artist I know form the tiki scene who was out here working on a tiki carving commission at an amazing house in Kiluea on the north shore. When he wasn't busy working on the tiki we were able to do some snorkeling at Tunnels beach, catch a killer jazz band in Princeville and knock back a few drinks and listen to more live music at the Tahiti Nui in Hanalei. Here is a link to a video on Youtube that I had put together of him carvin' away. I also had a wonderful dinner at Duke's in Lihue with The Mai Kai Gents's Iuka Grogg, The Mysterious Mrs. Mauna Loa and there beautiful baby daughter Talula. Later that night I was able to meet up with Mano from The Conga Lounge and have a beer by the poolside and meet his wife Carolyn and their boys.

Other awesome news... Thanks to the unbelievable generosity of my Grandma Nina, who I owe much of my creativity and inspiration too, I was able to purchase a new Macbook Pro Lap top and get back up to speed with my internet shenanigans. A lot of really cool stuff has emerged in the short time that I have been technologically challenged so I been wasting time (or keeping busy if you will) with checking out all the cool new social networking and just plain old fun web sites. Some of my recent favorites include:

Tumbler

Deviantart

Twitter

12seconds

flickaday

blip.fm

So if you have a penchant for maniacal monkeyism check me out on the intertubes.

I have also been giving a lot of thought to starting up my Coconut Wired episodes in a new format that utilizes some of the new technology that has emerged. If anybody is interested in sponsoring, contributing content or ideas let me know.

Well... it's gonna be a whole new trip for me once I return to the islands, I will be in a new home, aggressively pursuing my art and graphic design projects, surfing new breaks and continuing the exploration of my island home, so stay tuned for more pictures and updates as I get situated and dialed in on the south side.

Leila the dog next door

Leila (lay-la) is the dog from the cabinet shop next door to our shop. This pooch can smell chinese food a mile away and always comes by to see us right around lunch time.

Mackin' Hanalei Bay

Reports started filterin' in of whompin' 12-15+ waves hitting the north shore starting friday. I had not had a chance to spend much time in Hanalei, so I loaded up the van with cameras and boards, grabbed a bag of sunflower seeds and and went on a surfin' seed spittin excursion to get wet and explore a little more of beautiful Kauai. After talkin' with a few friends down at the beach they mentioned a spot called Donkey Beach would be a little less intense. It seemed a better plan than trying to go from 2-3 Kalapaki Beach rollers to huge outer reef crushers. So I made my first destination which I later found out has a bit of a spicy past as nude beach but has since been cleaned up and policed.

I took the alternate route that goes around Kapa'a and ended up at where I had thought the walk to Donkey Beach began. The spot is called Kealia and I was at a bonfire there once before. I asked a lady who had just got out of the water and what looked to me like windy choppy conditions. She let me know that it was not this beach where the path started but actually the next turnout up the hill where the path begins. Back in the car and a few miles later. I had found the parking area which looked clean and freshly built. Some dude pickin' up litter pointed me in the direction of the path. He didn't know much about the surfin' there.

A ten minute walk down a paved path brought me down to a stretch of beach. With exception of two hikers (with clothes on) over on the far side of the trail there was nobody else there. Nobody was in the water which as I had feared was windy and blown out.


I cruised out to the end of the beach where I had spotted a flotsam structure that somebody had built out on the tip of a lava rock point on the far side of the beach. After I walked around for a bit and taking a few more pics I headed back up the hill and started for Hanalei.



Twenty minutes later and several miles of gorgeous tropical scenery I found myself in the town of Hanalei. I drove through town to the other side of the bay and could see the jumbo style waves breakin' way outside. I drove back into town to get a better look at the dudes surfin' I didn't really know where the breaks were so I just picked a road that went the direction of the beach. I followed the road past some really cool houses right on the beach until it ended in a very congested parking area. Yeah... the word was definitely out about the swell and the beach was buzzin' with surf rats, locals, tourist all makin' the scene. Although wind had died down , the surf was way more mellower on the inside and looked like a lot of fun it was way to crowded for me to get excited about getting into.



I walked out to the end of the pier where kids were jumpin' off and people were fishin' from and watched all the whole party take place.

I was able to see the waves better from the pier but I really could of used some binoculars to get a better veiw of the guys surfin' those bombers. I got a few pics but you can barely make out the surfers.


After watchin' the surf action for awhile and the guys on jet Skis pulling dudes out of the impact zone I headed back torward Kapa'a where I was house sittin' over the holidays. On my way out of Hanalei I pulled over and snapped a few shots of the Taro and the loi (taro patch).


Although I didn'tget wet it was a pretty nice way to spend the day. Next time I go up to Hanbalei I think I will be leaving much earlier in the morning and will plan do some campin'.

Progress Shots of My New Tiki Room in Kauai

Here are some progress shots of my new Tiki Room that is being put together upstairs at the screenprintin' shop I am workin' and stayin' at here in Lihue. Up the stairs first door at the top on the right.

Reed fencing for the walls. These rolls came from Walmart of all places only 16.00 bucks a roll! Quite the deal.

Lookin' into the room which was previously a darkroom that was crammed with old equipment parts ink and junk. The slidin' door has been removed so a regular door can be installed.

Skipper muddin' the ceiling and walls. He also cut out and framed the window as well as insulated and sheet rocked the wall shown and another on the other side of the room partition.

Lookin' back out the door and at Skippydoo's elbow grease.


Keep Checkin' back more progress shots to uploaded soon!

Buddhist Bon Dance July 7, 2000

Lat night I was sittin' in the studio pretty much thinkin' I was in for the night when I got a call from a friend. She asked me if I wanted to meet up with her and some other friends who were going to check out a Buddhist Bon Dance in Kapa'a. I had no idea what it was all about but it sounded interesting so I jumped in the van and headed over to the Buddhist temple. When I got there it was quite a interesting scene. There was a bunch of people sitting around a circle and watching dancers of all ages and race in colorful kimonos as they danced around a wooden tower called a yagura. There were other people bangin on a giant drum and later a lady got on the top of the tower and sang a cool song in Japanese. I hung out for a bit and took some pictures that you can see on my Kauai Flickr Set. When I got home I Googled the Bon dance festival and learned about more about this interesting Japanese festival on the Wikipedia website. I am really glad I got over to check this out. This is the type of cultural stuff that has always intrigued me about island life and customs.

Ahi, ahi, ahi! (fire, fire, fire)

As my freind Tim and I headed into Kapa'a from Lihue to the Olympic cafe for a pitcher of beer and some Kalua pig quesadillas, we came across this firey scence just outside of Kapa'a. People were parked along side the road and watching this good sized fire burn it way just along side the highway. This is the second fire this week along that stretch of road. This fire was nothing compared to the one that was blazing in Maui over the weekend. Hard to believe that one of the wettest places on earth is suffering from a drought. Later that night, Tim and I pulled over along side a mountain road to watch helicopters dip giant buckets into the Waialua River to dump over the fire that was just about under control. Fortunately, the road was not shut down and I was able toget back into Lihue.

Driftwood Tiki

What do you do to keep yourself busy while hangin' out at the beach with no surfboard? You carve a tiki out of driftwood using fingernail clippers of course!

Affordable Housing?

I may have found another place, however it is small and pricey. Here is the ad and a pic:

Must See! $1000/Month. Cozy Studio available 6/1/07. Minimum 6 month lease, 1 month security deposit. Studio on the beach with ocean view. Rent does not include utilities (water, electricity & basic cable). Unfurnished, Mature, employed, clean, single or couple wanted to enjoy cozy studio. NO pets, drugs and smoking. Appointment required see studio. Rental application and references required.

Back to the beach

Everything seemed to be going smoothly, maybe too smooth. As it turns out I had to make an unexpected getaway from the wiggy roommate whom I had abruptly moved in with last week. Overnight the chick went from being a cool country girl to a hotbed of emotional weirdness. I still don't know exactly what happened, what I did or if It was even me at all. But whatever it was the vibes were prevelent and it was all to obvious that she did not want me to a part of the living situation there and I wasn't about to stick around to figure out why. My only guess is that she freaked out because suddenly there was a strange monkey boy living amongst her and her belongings who seemed to be at home all the time. It's not like I wasn't completely honest and upfront about my situation and temporary state of flux until my scene jelled and my belongings arrived. Two days of living there was all it took before I was completely over it. The house, although nice and close to the beach, was far from Lihue where I am working and it was also exceedingly hot with no air circulation. Top that off with bad juju and the recipe for "get out of Dodge" was complete. So now I am back to campin' and looking for housing.

The day before I packed up all the housewares that I had just bought along with my things I did bring, I already knew that I must find something new. So I had set up a meeting at Poipu beach with a couple who were in search of a roomate. The meeting went well and they seemed to be of the same mindset as myself and had a cool disposition about them. I left the beach with no solid answer and they told me they are taking their time to find and ideal roommate. So I will have to wait to see what happens with that scene. Later that night I drove over to Kapa'a to meet another woman about a room. Although she was nice enough I didn't feel we were on the same page or shared any common interests. The same day that I packed and split Kekaha I had relisted my housing wanted post on Craigslists. That night I got a call from a guy who had a room for rent near also near Poipu. After a tough time finding the place I finally located the place which was in a funky and sort of run down neighborhood near the town of Lawai. When I walked up to the door I was greeted with the thunderous sound of somebody playin' the drums. I waited for a break in the poundin' to knock on the door; the break never came. I them tried loudly knocking on the door which was answered with more crashin' cymbals and heavy metal drum fills. The door was open but I did not just want to just walk in, so I waited and waited occasionaly letting out a loud "Helloooo" which the neighbors answered with "He can't here you, he has earplugs in." Eventually, I was able to get his attention during a small pause in his practice. However, I already knew from the noise and the musty smell wafting from inside the house that I wasn't interested. I figured since I was already there, had nothing else to do and nowhere to go I would meet the dude and check out his story. The guy was cool and full of the energy but sort of quirky and talkin' a mile a minute as he showed me around the house which was completely devoid of furniture. The only thing that was in the living room was his drum kit which was surrounded by several mattress propped up and meant to muffle the drums which they obviously didn't. After seeing the shoddy room that was available and the bathroom which looked like it should be condemned rather than cleaned. I was sure I would be better off livin' out of my van or on rhw beach. I said good by to the drummer and thanked him for showin' me the house but let him know that I have other options. Afterwards, I drove up too Hanalei thinking to myself that I should of known things were falling into place too simply. I had to convince myself that I was still in good shape and made the right decision to move out here.

So after hangin out at the beach and talkin' story with a guy who had come off an ocean liner docked in Nawiliwili harbor, I am sitting in a Starbucks (a first for me) cooling off, killing time and catchin' up with some work and my internetting. Tomorrow I will be headin' back into the shop too work on some t-shirt art. Hopefully I will also check out some more housing options over the weekend.

Infinities

Da path
da beach
The dudes I had I met at Polihale had pointed out a hole in the guard rail along highway 50 when we were on our way back to Lihue last weekend. They told me there was a pretty good surf spot through the hole and down a dirt path. It was pretty close to the pad I was stayin' at in Kekaha, so I went back a few days later to check it out. A short jaunt down a tropical trail brought me to a long stretch of beach and to a fence with a sign attached that read "private property." On the beach side of the fence was lava rock path that stretched out into a small bay, past that was what looked like a pretty fun wave. I scaled the lava rock and saw several people loungin' on the grass on the beach side of the fence. It was kind hard to tell from the shore if the surfers in the water were all local or if there were some haoles out in the line up as well. As I walked down the beach I checked out the surf and collected a couple dried coconuts that I was going to attempt painting. On the way back towards the trail I spotted an older haole couple sitting on the grass. I walked up to them to ask a few questions about the break. I figured they might be a little more friendly and approachable than one of the group of locals hangin' out. I was mistaken.

Actually the very tan woman was cool and greeted me with an "aloha." I asked them if they would mind if I asked them a few questions about this beach and surf spot. The woman said "sure" and even offered me some of the smoked fish she was munchin' on. The weathered lookin' old guy looked at me and said nothing. I felt the vibe but still inquired what the break was called and if it was a heavy local spot or a friendly break. The dude answer my question with a grumpy reply "It's called Infinities and this is all private property" he paused a second then grumbled "except for the beach, the beach is public." He then went on to tell me it was a locals only break. I let him know that I did not cross the property but came down the path off the highway. He said nothing more and just acted indifferent. The friendly woman asked me where I was from, when I told her Santa Cruz we chatted a bit about one of the local pros who live in S.C. I mentioned that I just moved to Kauai and that I was looking to buy a longboard. When she heard that she told me the guy with her was the man to talk to. She went on to exclaim "That's Dick Brewer." Well I know a bit of surf history and had a pretty good idea of who I had been trying to milk info from. Brewer is a surfing and board shaping legend with a long history on the islands. At one point I had even owned one of his old seventies boards. But that don't mean a thing to me if you act like a crusty sand crab when a guy is just askin' a few harmless questions and tryin' to stay out of the locals cross hairs. After finding out who I was taIkin' with I simply said "well how about that" and thanked them for their time and went on my way. I wasn't about to goo and gah over him, fluff his head or stroke his ego after the way he was actin'. Later I spoke to several other people and they informed me that all kinds of folks surf out at Infinities not just the locals. Well, I don't think I will be hittin' ol Dicky boy up for a board anytime soon. Of all the people on the beach to walk up to and try to chat with I pick Dick Brewer and friend. Go figure.

Campin' at Polihale

The view of the Na Pali coast from Polihale
On Friday I sojourned to the remote west side of Kauai to the Polihale State Park to do some campin' and make myself feel like I had roughed it at least once during my transistion to livin' in Hawaii. I didn't really know where I was going and was basically just playing it by ear and seeing where the road would take me. I ended up on a really bumpy dirt road that was filled with pot holes and ruts. I later found out that my rental car agreement forbids me from driving out there. After the 5 mile drive on that bouncy road and getting the car stuck in the sand I figured out why. But I am not going to tell the rental car people about any of that. I got the car unstuck with a little diggin' and a helpful push from some folks passin' by who were also there to do some campin'.

After getting the car unstuck, I went down to the beach, leaned against a log, watched a guy surf some small waves, read the newspaper and sketched for a bit. I watched the sun set then I figured I better collect some wood and get a fire started. Easier said than done. Basically, I went out there completely unprepared with only a sandwich, a bag of carrots and some beer. The only wood to be found was from the invasive Kiawe which has thorny branches that were poking my hands and barefeet. The wood was wet from an earlier rain and I couldn't find my lighter. I borrowed a light from some near by campers and got a fire going, but it was short lived and went out when I went to the car to get my food and Uke. Fortunatly, some dudes walked by and invited me to chill by their fire

These two guys were quite the characters. They were out there with just their packs, a guitar and some peanut butter. They were students from the University of Hawaii on Oahu who were on summer break and had hitchhicked over from Lihue. Dan and Will told me stories of how they had come out too camp and fish for their food but had left their new mask in one of the rides they had caught. They went on to tell me of how they made a bamboo spear and tried to catch one of the wild chickens, that can be found all over the island, but their efforts were unsuccessful. Which is probably lucky for them because those birds don't seem like they would be the safest or cleanest things to put in your mouth. The two did manage to wrestle a few small opihi off the ocean rocks with a deer antler knife they had brought and cooked them over the fire on a grill they had found. They offered me one and I gave it a try. They were actually quite good and tasted like little smoked clams. I found the whole scene and their stories totally entertaining.
After watching the Moon and Venus, which were both casting a reflection of light in the ocean, set behind some off shore clouds, I went back up to my rental car to get some sleep. Unfortunately, that did not really go to well either.

The back seat of the car folded down easy enough, but it was all hard plastic with no padding. I laid out out all my clothes and did my best to make a mattress with my them. I laid down but didn't fall asleep for sometime. When I did finally nod off it was all too brief. The locals were racing their ATV up and down the sandy road where my car was parked. Then later another group of people showed up and parked about five yards from where I was. They were all partyin' loudly and listening to what I could only describe as sounds a broken toy would make . My mind started playin' tricks and I became paranoid that somebody may try to break into my car. I had a very uneasy sleep even after the party moved down to the beach and out of earshot.

The next mornin' I woke up very early and very sore from my restless night of sleep in the back of the rental. Will and Dan had asked me the night before if I would give them a ride into town. I was going that way and said "sure thing." Since they were already up we packed up and headed back towards Lihue. I dropped Dan off at a bus stop because he was going to stay with friend for a few days on Kauai. After we got some loco mokos for breakfast, I dropped Will off at the airport. Upon lookin' in his bag, Will discovered Dan's wallet was still in his pack. I could only laugh at the situation and the two guys carefree attitude. Since I could not help out, because I had to meet my new employer in a few minutes, I left Will at the airport while he was talkin' to Dan about how to get his wallet back to him. All in all it was a pretty intersting campin' trip and quite a memorable experience.

My new Hawaiian digs

The front of the house


The view down the street

Well I think Hawaii wants me to stay awhile! As I was checkin' out of the Kauai Palms Hotel I got a phone call from one of the ads for housing that I answered. We set up a time to meet later in the afternoon and I hung out at the beach until it was time to meet. The house is in Kehaka on the west side of Kauai and after a drive by before hand I was amping!
The house was awesome and less than a block away from the beach and about 20 minutes from Lihue where I will be working. The meeting with Jill went excellent. We both got a good vibe from one another and agreed to me moving in this Sunday! So less than three days on kauai and I landed a job in the creative field, picked up some illustration work and found an awesome house in an amazing location. I don't want to jinx myself but the tiki gods have been smilin' down on me since my arrival. Seriously, I could cry.

So long Kauai Palms Hotel

The view from my room at the Kauai Palms Hotel
Today I am checking out of the Kauai Palms Hotel and going to go campin' around the island until I can find housing. The Kauai Palms Hotel was a nice humble accommodation at with a very reasonable price and friendly staff. My $65.00 a night room was small and modest yet clean and comfortable. There was cable TV, a small fridge , coffee maker and ceiling fan to keep the room cool. There was no phone in the room but that didn't bother me because I have a cell phone. For the most part the place was quiet with the exception of the roosters that live all over the island and some street noise from being located on a small side street.

The hotel is about 5 minutes from the airport and downtown Lihue. Markets and shopping are all within walking distance too. My only complaint was that to get on the hotels wireless network I had to sit in the lobby which wasn't awful just inconvenient and distracting. I also had a big shiny cockroach in my room one morning but I have been told before I left the mainland that I better get used to them because they are everywhere.

With a very reasonable price, a amiable and helpful staff and central location, I would defintly recomend the Kauai Palms as a super place to stay when visiting Kauai.

So I am off to check out a potential room rental over on the westside in Kekaha, and explore that side of the island and do some camping. I also have some illustration work to do for the silkscreen shop that it looks like I will be working for in the near future. More post will come as I find time and wi-fi Hotspots.

The 30 day countdown has begun

Happy Primavera! Spring Blossom photo by Chongolio
It has been a very busy last couple of weeks for me but feeling like I am ready for the jump over to the islands. I bought one way tickets to Kauai last week and will be leaving, on Aloha Airlines flight 441 out of Oakland, for a new adventures on May 15 at 8:20 am. For some strange reason it took me three days of staring at the "purchase ticket" button before I could finally bring myself to click on it. I just stared at it wonderin' about how a little button has the ability to completely change my life just by the simple click of a mouse. The next big step is getting my van and things onto the boat in Oakland at the end of the month so they will be waitin' for me when I arrive. Days have started to really fly by now, but I feel I am right on schedule. There are a few more loose ends here and there but nothing I can't handle.

I have been emailing a lady in Lihue about renting a room and doing some yardwork in exchange for rent. However, nothing has been confirmed and I have not be given much details about the entire situation. I ended up not going with the Family over to Kauai because the timing just didn't work out. However, while my Mom was out there she did some recon for me and reports that there are plenty of rooms for rent and help wanted posts on the local bulletin boards. Mom even was trying to get me lined up with a job at an ATV tour outfit and brought me back a local paper filled with all types of housing and job oppurtunities. So I am not at all worried about it. What's gonna happen is gonna happen and I will be there when it does.

Hawaii Bound Update: The Yard sale

Dr. Tiki Mojo and Eva's car packed to the gills!

Whoosh!!!!.....
That was the sound of all my stuff being wisked away by friends, family, good neighbors and various strangers as the Chongolian Yardsale-O-Rama ran it's course last weekend. I got rid of just about everything that needed to find a new home and go to spend some time hangin' out a bit. Although it is a bit surreal watchin' as your a huge bulk of your possesions are loaded up into your friend's car and then driven away to a new home. I am OK with it though...Ok a few tears were shed but nobody saw them.

Saturday was super mellow, kinda grey and cold but a few friends came by to eat, peruse the goodies and relax. A special thanks to Margery for helpin' out and bringing over some beverages and the food the guys at Aloha Island Grille prepared. Also thanky to Jentiki for come over with the beers and cupcakes. One last big thanks to everybody who stopped by who took some stuff and "fed the Kitty." I really can tell you enough how much I appreciate your help, support and friendship.

Sunday was crazy go nutz! Just a few short minutes after hangin' up signs at the nearest intersection. Early birds started pouring in trying to buy my neighbors tools and going through my cupboards and trying to get at my half bags of trail mix, pistachios and cleaning supplies. A lot of people stopped by to look things over and essentially took away just about everything at a low low price. One lady, a neighbor who I had never met before, was so happy with her bargains she came back the next day with fresh monkey bread for me that was quite good.

This next week will be a busy one. I still have quite a bit of moving to do, a dump run to make and get the place cleaned up by next Sunday. For the most part I am now working out of a portable office I set up at my Mom's but with my workhorse computer is still in the studio plugged in because I still have a few projects that I am in the middle of working on.

One last thing, I am making a last minute decision to go to Kauai for a few days the second week in April to talk with a women about a room and a house sitting gig. I will also be carrying and packing as much stuff as I can carry to put into storage over there until I return some time in May.

Thanks to everyone who responds to my posts and emails. I try to get back to everybody but time is really getting tight now. I may be a bit scarce and hard to reach for a while until things settle down a bit. I will do my best to keep up with short notes and blog entries so you can all follow along as the real life adventures of Chongolio continue!

Movin to Hawaii Update

Things are moving forward at a leisurely pace but I expect to be runnin' full speed by the new year. I have been gathering lots of contacts for people already livin' in Hawaii, talking with everyone I can, gathering info about housing, work and life in general on the islands. It is still all very much up in the air as to what I will be doing for work and on which island. The departure date is still around March or April depending on how everything works out. I may postpone leaving for a month to watch a friends house while they are on vacation to help out, put a few more clams in my pocket and take the time too cross my I's and dot my T's. Of course if anything that can't be passed up comes about, I am ready to shift into high at anytime and accelerate.

I have set up Chongolio's Flea Market as an outlet for my art and the things I am willing to depart with. I have already started posting items with links to purchase through Paypal. I figure I will give my friends, family and Coconut Wired listeners a chance to help out and get first grabs at the stuff they might want. I am going to try and start posting a few more things every week. After some time passes and I still have there is no interest some things will go on the Bay Area craigslist. Whatever doesn't get sold will most likely go into storage or more likely get taken to Goodwill or given away.

Sorting through all my possesions will probably be one of my biggest and hardest challenges. I love my stuff and I have a lot of it. But my gut feeling is to break away from all the clutter and knick knacks I have accumulated and start again all fresh like. At this point, I want to keep and ship my computer, work station, plotter, tools, as well as some shop and art supplies. I think it would be a good move to have the ability to make some kind of side money with graphic design, vinyl graphics and decals once I get out there. I am also really leaning heavily torwards shipping my van too. The benfits of having transportation while trying to get established justify the cost, which is going to run about $1000.00. In a worst case scenario, I could always live out of it and rent some commercial space until I can settle into a comfortable living and working situation.

Alos, I have been keep a steady eye on Craigslist Hawaii for opportunity and I have also been lurking around on Hawaiithreads.com and Punaweb.org but have yet to post and introduce myself. Maybe after the holiday madness has ended I will come out of the shadows and start posting. Time still appears to be abundant but I know December is going to slip by liked greased bacon after that time is going to start wingin'. I still have lots to do and better keep up with my checklist.
Please feel free to comment, contact or share any of my info with anyone you know who might be able to help out with info, contacts or opportunities in Hawaii. Mahalo.