One item required me t ovisit a website and learn how to download data to my PC. For this "no brainer" I was rewarded with a gift card valued at $10. The small catch was that the cards value would be lost at the end of July. It works just like a credit card, but there were a couple of places that would not accept it. Still, I used most of the value and had $1.11 left on it.

I went into K-Mart today and saw they had index cards on sale for 44 cents each. Although I hated to do it, money is money and I whipped out "the card" and "charged" two packages of index cards on it. Although I still have a few dimes left, I can't bring myself to use the last bit. The stores will be paying more than I charge just to process the transaction.

I'm cheap, just not evil :-)

It appears as though Hawaii is safe from Hurricane Daniel, which is petering out over the pacific. Tracking maps were showing it headed towards us, but now is veering and wilting.

Such was NOT the case back on September 11th 1992, when Hurricane Iniki turned and directly hit Kauai, one of our neighbor islands near Honolulu.

It is interesting to see how the citizens handled such a bad hurricane (not bad, thank you). You can read all about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

A category 4 hit the islands and we only lost 6 people! When I say hit, I mean dead center. As it touched Poipu it had winds of 140 mph! Just a few miles away, Stephen Spielberg and 130 of his crew was just wrapping up filming of Jurassic Park.

I think the Wikipedia item and a few of the rest might give you pause as to whether you want to sit through a hurricane.

http://starbulletin.com/2002/...

Behind the scenes was Amateur (Ham) Radio operator. It is somewhat rare to see citizens use their own hobby skills in emergencies. These guys and gals help save lives and pass emergency traffic for the betterment of the community. Oftentimes they get messages out when no other means are available. A great story (although somewhat technical) can be found here: http://ronhashiro.htohananet....

Although I am not active much anymore, I too am a Ham and and have worked my part of a few minor events, but nore the size of this. I am proud that my brotherhood of Amateurs answered the call when needed.

As for me today, just enjoying what could have been a busy day prepapring fro a hurricane that now is but a memory.

And shouldn't they all?

Dad had sinus problems and used nasal sprays (what I considered excessively) and slept with the windows open. I don't use sprays but have found that I too sleep better with the windows open. Here it gets a bit too cool for me to do that but it seems that the cool air opens the nasal passages. When you breathe better you seem to have a tendency of snoring less also. It appears that if you can't breathe fully through your nose, you tend to want to make up for it by opening your mouth to gulp in more air.

I have noticed one thing and perhaps others have also. I sleep better on one side than the other. In my case, sleeping on my left side allows that part of my nose to open and I get more air. As I roll onto my right side, the left nasal passage closes some and I have trouble breathing as well. I would guess that by sleeping on my left side, I don't snore as much as when I sleep on the right. I also have less indigestion by sleeping on the left. All in all, I'm in pretty good health so don't let this convince you that I have all sorts of ills :-)

Another way to breathe better is to us an extract of the goldenseal plant. Often packaged with echinacea and used when you have a cold, the goldenseal opens up the nasal passages and I find I breathe better in as little as 20 minutes. A quick trip to Wikipedia.Org finds that goldenseal comes from the buttercup family, but the entry does not mention the effect on nasal passages or that the plant product somewhat raises blood pressure and should be taken with care by those who have high blood pressure.

A non medical way to breathe better is to use a product such as Breathe Right strips (http://www.breatheright.com) which are a special adhesive strip covering a springy plastic piece. You clean the oil off the outside of your nose and apply one like an adhesive bandage. It slightly pulls on the fleshy part of the nose to help open it. The first time I used one I felt stupid, yet slept a lot better. With my nose being held open a bit, I found I slept better and didn't snore as much. Some people tend to wake themselves up by snoring. I tried some generic strips which are of a different design and did not work quite as well. Still it is an alternative if a somewhat expensive one as strips can only be used once each. I found that I used them a few days in a row then had to stop for a few days as my nose gto a bit sore (as it would have from applying bandages each day over the same location). I also found that by constantly pulling open the nasal passage a bit, it seemed to stay open a while and perhaps my body got used to breathing through my nose more.

There are some people who take in extra oxygen by way of oxygen bars where they breathe the gas (sometimes mixed with other gasses and aromas) just to feel better.

Without oxygen (the major component of air), we would wither and die and thus the reason I remind you to just keep breathing :-)

It is open now and I just dropped off some green bans off at the roaster and they just called to say it is ready.

Gentlemen (and Ladies) Start your orders! :-)

I kept trying to sell my Camaro back in Atlanta but problems kept cropping up. To ensure it finally got listed, I decided to use some of my Delta Frequent Flier miles to go back and take care of things. After many hours looking online I found the only opportunity I had to go anytime soom was the niext night. I called Delta and worked with them. Although I wanted to just stay 2 weeks, my only two options to return were 1 week or 3 weeks from my departure date. I opted for the 3 week and started packing. I closed the online store, then worked out a watering system for my keiki (small coffee plants in the nursery/greenhouse).

Some friends kept my truck and I was off.

I tried to get bumped no no avail. The trip was familiarly long and thankfully, uneventful. I had a rental car waiting for me in Atlanta and at this point, only had one issue. I was unsure where I was going to be staying. My car was being stored at a friends house, but his wife was ill and did not want visitors. I started making calls, yet knowing that I would either have to sleep in the car overnight, or find a nearby inexpensive motel. I was not sure how long his wife would be “not taking visitors” so I prepared for the worst.

Luckily, while talking to a an old co-worker he offered that I could stay with him and his girlfriend. Although they were on the opposite side of town, this was the best offer I had (actually, the ONLY offer I had, and it was getting dark) so I jumped at it. It took an hour to get there but I was made welcome and comfortable. I helped out with some cleaning, shopping and even helped them move one apartment into the other.

While in Marietta I was able to visit my old office building (just like old times, but mostly empty of employees) and the new office building (still empty as people were transitioning from working at home to coming back into an office). As I passed one cubicle I saw people working to correct security errors. Since I used to send out these reports, I suggested a way to have them fixed. They made a genuine attempt to bribe me into sitting down and helping them fix them, but I declined. It was dinner time and I was not still on the clock!

Just like old times, I remembered the problem of living in the south. One day some friends and I went to lunch at an all-you-can-eat buffet, only to end up at another one the next night.

After a week at this one friends house, I was able to go stay where my car was; my friends wife having gotten better. I replaced the tailgate lift struts, checked the brakes and cleaned various parts of the car to take a few more photos. I called Safelite to replace the windshield which has had a crack in it for quite some time. I chatted with the repairman and I mentioned that I used to live nearby and had worked for Hewlett Packard. He said that he just hired an ex-HPer and told me his name. Turns out that “Elliot” and I had worked together for quite a while. I got his number and surprised him with a call. Just like old times!

I drove past my old house and stopped by to talk with my neighbors across the street. Not much has changed. The people who bought my house had cut down most of the trees in the front yard. While the pines could be a problem in the many storms Marietta gets, the trees also kept out the sun. It never ceases to amaze me that houses in the South seem not to have awnings or large overhangs to stop the brunt of the sun. Here in hawaii the houses are aligned along the path of the wind (harder to do on the mainland), but still, we take advantage of overhangs. A large overhanging part of the roof shades the house and keeps all but a sideways wind from blowing rain into the house. Many is the time I had to close all of the windows in the house (even on the second floor) before I went to work, just to be sure that there would not be a wet wall with event he lightest storm.

I was able to get the car listed in Froogle (a Google site), a few other free sites and in the Atlanta paper (the AJC) and on their website. So far, no sale, but I am hopeful. My asking price of $8800 seems reasonable based upon other cars being sold on collector sites for much more. A peek at the website http://OwnThisCamaro.Com should show you how nice my car looks. Note that the buyer will also get free coffee! :-) What a deal!

I could have stayed on the mainland a lot longer, visiting and traveling, but I needed to get back to Paradise. Besides, Atlanta's weather had cooled while I was there, but still, 95 degrees with 90% humidity is too much for this newly relocated “island boy”.

I bought a MP3 player (Iriver 5 gb) and stuffed it with music for the return trip. It has the ability to play Mps'3 and other formats, can store and show some photos, it can be used for dictation and has a built-in FM tuner. The tuner also can record to the internal disk so you can tune into a FM station, press record and set down the unit and go to sleep. In the morning you have another 8 hours of music to listen to. I think you can even set the timer to start recording on its own, but you would have to ensure the unit was in the right place to pick up the station clearly.

Arriving back in Kona I got my truck, made a few calls and headed home. I enjoyed the difference in the pace on the island and just like old times, fell into the island rhythm. All was as I left it and the plants did OK while I was gone. I need tons more, but at least I have a start. My canopies are destroyed because of the direct sun. Maybe the tarps are made from the same material as the awning in the south are made of, and thus don't stand up to bright sun?

A quick check of the refrigerator reminded me that I needed to head into town the next day and do some serious shopping.

I have touched base with a number of neighbors and am continuing to work on their websites. I seem to be doing more website shopping cart installs than I am doing growing. That could be a problem!

I am helping organize an event at a local shopping center where we will explain to visitors how we grow and process coffee. We will have some nice products to sell there too. There will be demos of coffee cherry, parchment, green and roasted coffee, plus roasting demonstrations.

I have a number of friends visiting the islands over the next few months, the weather is great and I am home.

Just like old times!