Livvy’s Adventures in Hawaii

Hello everyone;

There are a lot of people out there who I have not been able to contact in quite a while. So I thought I’d post this blog and let everyone know how exciting my adventures (and sometimes misadventures) in Hawaii have been going.

The fun began back in June when I was looking on the net for roommates. Since Josh has to stay in Washington for four more months completing his degree, I figured I’d find roommates to live with for a few months that way I could save money and not be alone. I met this girl on the net who said she was the “site manager” of a three bedroom townhouse. She said “come over and the room is yours.”

When I arrived in Hawaii, fortunately I already knew someone over here. Amy (who was my best friend Jackie’s college roommate) was born and raised in Honolulu, and moved back here when she finished her degree. She generously offered me her family’s couch. Which I ended up sleeping on for 6 nights because the girl who offered me the room decided to “give it to someone else” the day after Amy generously drove me out to the townhouse. She also told me on the phone “I just don’t think our personalities would be compatible.” I thought “duh,” because she looked like a living version of Malibu Barbie (which would have blended oh-so-well with my R.E.I. gypsy look). But I could have handled living with them for a few months until Josh got here.

Things worked out alright in the end. Amy contacted her friends asking for advice, and one (who lives within walking distance of my school) sympathized and offered me a room in his townhouse for a ridiculously low amount of money per month. Don, who works at the same school as Amy, is very nice and DOES not resemble anything associated with Malibu Barbie or her sensibilities. So while my plans to uphold propriety and live with females (since I’m a married woman) were shattered, at the very least I am living with someone who shares the same interests and values as people I would normally hang around.

The most colorful aspect of my life has been the bus system, which is my prime mode of transportation. If I were to sum up the Honolulu bus system in two words, they would be: 1) manic, and 2) depressive. When they’re happy, they’re REALLY happy and on time. When they’re depressive, their busses are run by deranged monkies who have never heard of a “time table,” “route schedule,” or even “planet earth.” The “crazies” who ride the busses here are also more crazy than the ones we’ve got back in Spokane. For instance, yesterday I rode the bus down to what is roughly the University area to do research on mopeds (test driving those was FUN). On the way down, I was sitting next to a man who either had Tourrets syndrome or schizophrenia (or god knows what else). He was rocking his body and mumbling, but he looked like a “normal” college aged person. I wasn’t paying much attention at first, and thought he had headphones on and was just “rocking out.” Well, gradually I realized he was making vulgar commentary on people getting on the bus. The kicker happened right before my stop: he looked up to a woman getting on who had a small box in her hands, and he said (loudly): “I don’t know what the F— that is but it had better be edible.” Yah, that was where Livvy got off. Later that same day, I was waiting at the Kahala mall for the #58 bus which goes right up Lunalilo and drops me off right at my residence. A once again “normal” looking man walks up, cracks open a beer and proceeds to start a conversation with me like I’m an old high school buddy of his. I don’t doubt that I didn’t hide the look of disgust on my face well enough, because he proceeded to comment on “why do people get so f—-ing freaked out about drinking beer in public?” After I politely chewed him out for his attitude, he did back down and decided to strike up a conversation with the girl next to me about how he’s got a friend who’s faking a mental illness and sucking up all our tax dollars. I thought: “gee, you’re probably upset because you DO have a mental illness and he’s getting more $ than you faking one.” Given that it appeared to be a “deranged monkey schedule” day for the #58 (they were pushing 10 minutes late and the guy was still rambling about mental illnesses) I decided to race across the street and catch the #1 express bus that ends at the bottom of my hill, which leaves me still waiting for the #58, but in closer vicinty of where I live. Don says that I should expect to see at least one “token” crazy person if I’m going to ride the bus out of this neighborhood on the weekends. Needless to say, I’m really looking forward to shipping my car up.

The good news is that my job in this new school is like a dream come true. I mean it’s not perfect, but we do have a strong PTSA and the teachers tend to mesh better than other schools i’ve seen where only certain people were on “speaking terms” with each other. I’ve been in over 2/3 of the classrooms doing get-to-know-you and guidance activities with the kids, and the majority of the teachers are helpful and sympathetic to my “brand new” status. In fact, the worst problem we’ve got at the school are parents who are too lenient with their kids. We’ve got a handful of parents who say “ok” when their child says “I don’t feel like going to school today.” Which is almost a complete 180 from my last school, where we had to worry about kids who weren’t going to school because their parents wanted them to stay home and take care of the younger ones while they went off to the bars or elsewhere.

The rest of my school counselor duties so far have included: assessments, one-on-one counseling, training meetings, team meetings, and coordinating with other people in charge of different programs.

So, that’s my life in Hawaii so far. This place is beautiful and scary at the same time–mostly depending on which area you go to. Josh will be visiting me in 9 days, and then he will be moving up in December. I will be returning to Washington for my fall break during the first week of October. Anyone wanting a free place to stay while they check out Honolulu is more than welcome to come AFTER January, because by then Josh and I should have a place all set up for people to come visit.

Take care, and let me know how your lives are all going.