Hey guys! How are you?
I have been going back and forth between Hawaii and the mainland. And I am on the mainland right now for business.
One thing that my husband and I have to work on to be able to stay in Hawaii is the financial situation. As many people say and experience, the work situation in Hawaii is really limited.
We would like to be able to work from home and we are working towards that. So that we do not have to travel like this anymore. lol
It is our goal 2017. We work from home!
What is your goal in 2017?
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Thursday, October 13, 2016
Pros and Cons of Moving to Hawaii - Cons
Hey guys,
Now I would like to talk about cons of moving to Hawaii. Ready to hear it? Again, this is solely based on my three-month personal experience on Oahu.
1. Bugs Are Annoying.
Really. We try to keep our kitchen very clean, spotless, and shiny. We keep all the seasonings and food in the fridge. Especially the ones that attract bugs, we don't leave them on the kitchen counter or tables. They go straight in the fridge. But still, we get ants. They come to our sink. I don't understand! What are they looking for? And we get spiders, lizards, and flies. Roaches are HUGE! I have seen a big roach in Florida, but Hawaiian roaches are bigger than that. :x
2. Have to Put Sunblock All the Time.
The sun in Hawaii is incredible. I have lived in Los Angeles which also has the strong sun, but the sun in Hawaii is much stronger. I keep a bottle of sunblock in my purse at all times. We like to walk on the beach, but we do it in the evening only. I have been trying to put sunblock on my skin all the time, but my skin is turning brown already:(
3. Humid
I was not used to humidity. Southern California gets super hot (over 110F), but it is always dry. But in Hawaii, even though the temperature is just around 80 - 82, it feels like we are in spa. So humid that we do not want to move. And we are sweating all the time. When the trade wind dies,,, it is terrible.
4. Less Variety of Produce
We would like to eat healthy and in California healthy organic choices were largely available. Now we are in Hawaii, we are having a hard time finding good sourdough bread, organic vegetables, sheep or goat's milk products, and organic meat. We shop at Down to Earth, Whole Foods, and farmers' market, and we cannot find organic cucumbers, mushroom, oranges anywhere. We have to adjust what we eat here.
5. No IKEA, No CB2
We literally brought nothing but some clothes, shoes, and our car with us. Based on our research, people were saying the shipping cost is very expensive, and it is better to buy furniture on Oahu. And we took the advise and tried to buy everything on Oahu. Looking for furniture was a huge challenge for us. There is no IKEA. There is no CB2. Furniture on Oahu you can find is either cheaply made or super expensive. We ended up ordering some furniture at IKEA on the mainland. I will want to put the information later in a separate entry.
A lot of people say that living in Hawaii is expensive, but I found it pretty much the same as living in West Los Angeles. Traffic as I mentioned in pros is not bad at all for us. It all depends on where you are coming from. I have not got island fever. I don't think I will as I am from Japan which is a very small country. For me the list above is the things that I do not like or I have get used to about Hawaii.
What do you not like about living in Hawaii?
Have a nice day~!
Now I would like to talk about cons of moving to Hawaii. Ready to hear it? Again, this is solely based on my three-month personal experience on Oahu.
1. Bugs Are Annoying.
Really. We try to keep our kitchen very clean, spotless, and shiny. We keep all the seasonings and food in the fridge. Especially the ones that attract bugs, we don't leave them on the kitchen counter or tables. They go straight in the fridge. But still, we get ants. They come to our sink. I don't understand! What are they looking for? And we get spiders, lizards, and flies. Roaches are HUGE! I have seen a big roach in Florida, but Hawaiian roaches are bigger than that. :x
2. Have to Put Sunblock All the Time.
The sun in Hawaii is incredible. I have lived in Los Angeles which also has the strong sun, but the sun in Hawaii is much stronger. I keep a bottle of sunblock in my purse at all times. We like to walk on the beach, but we do it in the evening only. I have been trying to put sunblock on my skin all the time, but my skin is turning brown already:(
3. Humid
I was not used to humidity. Southern California gets super hot (over 110F), but it is always dry. But in Hawaii, even though the temperature is just around 80 - 82, it feels like we are in spa. So humid that we do not want to move. And we are sweating all the time. When the trade wind dies,,, it is terrible.
4. Less Variety of Produce
We would like to eat healthy and in California healthy organic choices were largely available. Now we are in Hawaii, we are having a hard time finding good sourdough bread, organic vegetables, sheep or goat's milk products, and organic meat. We shop at Down to Earth, Whole Foods, and farmers' market, and we cannot find organic cucumbers, mushroom, oranges anywhere. We have to adjust what we eat here.
5. No IKEA, No CB2
We literally brought nothing but some clothes, shoes, and our car with us. Based on our research, people were saying the shipping cost is very expensive, and it is better to buy furniture on Oahu. And we took the advise and tried to buy everything on Oahu. Looking for furniture was a huge challenge for us. There is no IKEA. There is no CB2. Furniture on Oahu you can find is either cheaply made or super expensive. We ended up ordering some furniture at IKEA on the mainland. I will want to put the information later in a separate entry.
A lot of people say that living in Hawaii is expensive, but I found it pretty much the same as living in West Los Angeles. Traffic as I mentioned in pros is not bad at all for us. It all depends on where you are coming from. I have not got island fever. I don't think I will as I am from Japan which is a very small country. For me the list above is the things that I do not like or I have get used to about Hawaii.
What do you not like about living in Hawaii?
Have a nice day~!
Sunday, September 18, 2016
Pros and Cons of Moving to Hawaii - Pros
Hey guys!
It has been cooled down a bit in Hawaii. It was hot and humid in July, so right now the weather is much better for us.
It has been almost three months since my hubby and I moved to Hawaii. I am pretty sure my opinions will change as we stay here longer, but I want to list the pros of moving to Hawaii, based on my "three-month experience."
1. Less stress
I definitely feel less stress now. I do have some worries, and some pressure just like other people do but my stress level is much lower. I think it is because people are more relaxed here.
2. Peaceful driving
This would be depending on where you are coming from. We came from Los Angeles where the traffic is insane. Driving in Hawaii is so peaceful. No one beeps at you, cuts you off, and says F words at you.
3. Beautiful beaches
Self explanatory;)
4. Less racial discrimination for minorities
I do not get treated like I do on the Mainland US. My hubby says the same thing. Hawaii is a nice place for minorities.
5. Awesome foods
As I am Japanese and my hubby loves Japanese food, we are happy that we can get great Japanese food on Oahu. We love Hawaiian food too. There are many good but cheap restaurants here.
What are the reasons why you want to move to Hawaii?
Thank you for visiting my blog;)
Have a nice day!
It has been cooled down a bit in Hawaii. It was hot and humid in July, so right now the weather is much better for us.
It has been almost three months since my hubby and I moved to Hawaii. I am pretty sure my opinions will change as we stay here longer, but I want to list the pros of moving to Hawaii, based on my "three-month experience."
1. Less stress
I definitely feel less stress now. I do have some worries, and some pressure just like other people do but my stress level is much lower. I think it is because people are more relaxed here.
2. Peaceful driving
This would be depending on where you are coming from. We came from Los Angeles where the traffic is insane. Driving in Hawaii is so peaceful. No one beeps at you, cuts you off, and says F words at you.
3. Beautiful beaches
Self explanatory;)
4. Less racial discrimination for minorities
I do not get treated like I do on the Mainland US. My hubby says the same thing. Hawaii is a nice place for minorities.
5. Awesome foods
As I am Japanese and my hubby loves Japanese food, we are happy that we can get great Japanese food on Oahu. We love Hawaiian food too. There are many good but cheap restaurants here.
What are the reasons why you want to move to Hawaii?
Thank you for visiting my blog;)
Have a nice day!
Friday, September 16, 2016
New Items - Farmers Market 2nd Week of September 2
Here are the items that we bought at the second farmers market we went to.
Almond dip. Nutty by Nature, Chipotle. $8. (Gluten free, vegan, paleo)
This is good with veggie sticks or chips.
Taro on the left, apple custard at the top and goya (bitter melon) on the right. $6.60 total
I have never cooked taro. I have to google a recipe. Do you know apple custard? Me neither. Will show you when I eat it. There seem to be two kinds of goya (bitter melon): light green with smooth skin, or dark green with rough surface (this one above). We called this dark green ones "Godzilla". Don't they look like it? lol
Egg fruit on the left, star fruit, garlic chive (nira) and pink guava. $6 total.
Egg fruit is supposed to have an aquired taste. Hoping that we will like it. Garlic chive is very garlicy. I love to make soup and sauteed with it. And we bought more pink guavas. I cannot get enough of them.
We bought new veggies and fruit that we have never had before. I have to google to find out how to eat / cook them;)
Thank you for visiting my blog.
Have a nice day!
I am writing a blog in Japanese too.
My Japanese blog
ハワイライフ始めました♪
This is good with veggie sticks or chips.
I have never cooked taro. I have to google a recipe. Do you know apple custard? Me neither. Will show you when I eat it. There seem to be two kinds of goya (bitter melon): light green with smooth skin, or dark green with rough surface (this one above). We called this dark green ones "Godzilla". Don't they look like it? lol
Egg fruit is supposed to have an aquired taste. Hoping that we will like it. Garlic chive is very garlicy. I love to make soup and sauteed with it. And we bought more pink guavas. I cannot get enough of them.
We bought new veggies and fruit that we have never had before. I have to google to find out how to eat / cook them;)
Thank you for visiting my blog.
Have a nice day!
I am writing a blog in Japanese too.
My Japanese blog
ハワイライフ始めました♪
Thursday, September 15, 2016
Guavas!! - Farmers Market 2nd Week of Sept 1
Hey guys!
Guava season has arrived! Guava is one of my most favorite fruits. I was so excited to see them.
We went to two farmers market this week. At the first one we bought:
Pink guavas $1.50 (not certified organic, but they do not use chemicals)
The skin is yellow but it is pink inside. Items from here are all organic.
A pineapple. Do you know how to pick ripe ones? When you can pull off a leaf at the top easily, that means the pineapple is ripe. This pineapple is white inside and very sweet and sour at the same time. It is kind of sticky (gooy) and dense.
1 dozen of pasture raised eggs. Do you know pasture raised eggs are better than free range? Free range chickens are fed soy and still live in a limited space. Pasture raised chickens can go outside freely and they forage for their own food. Meaning no soy in their diet;) We got a mix of green and brown eggs.
A bag of kale and billimba. It was our first time seeing billimba. It is supposed to be gut healing. It needs to be cooked. We later sauteed it with salt and pepper. It was sour and little sweet. Nice and refreshing. Pineapple, eggs, kale, billimba, and a bag of sunflower sprouts (forgot to take a picture of them), it was $25 all together.
I will write about what we bought at the second farmers market in my next entry. Thank you for visiting my blog! Have a nice day;)
Guava season has arrived! Guava is one of my most favorite fruits. I was so excited to see them.
We went to two farmers market this week. At the first one we bought:
The skin is yellow but it is pink inside. Items from here are all organic.
A bag of kale and billimba. It was our first time seeing billimba. It is supposed to be gut healing. It needs to be cooked. We later sauteed it with salt and pepper. It was sour and little sweet. Nice and refreshing. Pineapple, eggs, kale, billimba, and a bag of sunflower sprouts (forgot to take a picture of them), it was $25 all together.
I will write about what we bought at the second farmers market in my next entry. Thank you for visiting my blog! Have a nice day;)
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Fresh Produce We Bought at Odori Festival
So these are the produce we bought at Odori Festival at Honbushin International Center in Mililani. Though they use regular fertilizer, they do not use pesticides.
Japanese daikon radish $2. Green onion $1. So cheap right? I just wanted to check out their produce, but when I saw the prices, I had to buy them. Daikon is very useful in Japanese cooking. I can make miso soup, stew, salad, sautee, and many other dishes. Daikon is one of the vegetables I always have in my fridge. Green onion is used as garnish for almost any dish in Japanese cooking. Miso soup, omelet, fried rice, yakisoba, udon, ramen, sushi roll, soba,,, I can go on forever;) This is a must item for Japanese.
Kiriboshi daikon $3. This is made of daikon and it is shredded and dried. When some vegetables or fruit get dried, they become more healthy to eat because of the high content of vitamines and minerals. Kiriboshi daikon is one of them. You want to soak it before using it, sautee with carrots and aburaage (fried tofu), and season with soy sauce and dashi (Japanese bonito fish and seaweed broth). I am excited to use this;)
When I checked their website, I found out that they do "Daikon Festival" and "Mochitsuki (rice cake-making) Festival" too. I can't wait to go there for the events.
Thank you for visiting my blog! Have a nice day-.
I am writing a blog in Japanese too.
My Japanese blog
ハワイライフ始めました♪
Japanese daikon radish $2. Green onion $1. So cheap right? I just wanted to check out their produce, but when I saw the prices, I had to buy them. Daikon is very useful in Japanese cooking. I can make miso soup, stew, salad, sautee, and many other dishes. Daikon is one of the vegetables I always have in my fridge. Green onion is used as garnish for almost any dish in Japanese cooking. Miso soup, omelet, fried rice, yakisoba, udon, ramen, sushi roll, soba,,, I can go on forever;) This is a must item for Japanese.
Kiriboshi daikon $3. This is made of daikon and it is shredded and dried. When some vegetables or fruit get dried, they become more healthy to eat because of the high content of vitamines and minerals. Kiriboshi daikon is one of them. You want to soak it before using it, sautee with carrots and aburaage (fried tofu), and season with soy sauce and dashi (Japanese bonito fish and seaweed broth). I am excited to use this;)
When I checked their website, I found out that they do "Daikon Festival" and "Mochitsuki (rice cake-making) Festival" too. I can't wait to go there for the events.
Thank you for visiting my blog! Have a nice day-.
I am writing a blog in Japanese too.
My Japanese blog
ハワイライフ始めました♪
Monday, September 12, 2016
Japanese Odori Festival in Mililani
We went to Odori Festival in Mililani on Saturday 9/10. Odori means dance in Japanese. Japanese have dance nights in summer called "bon odori" to pray for dead. Since Hawaii has a large population of Japanese, there are a lot of bon odori festivals in the state.
This Odori Festival at Honbushin International Center was pretty big. I have gone to several Japanese summer festivals and bon odoris in Los Angeles, but this one in Hawaii was bigger than these.
We decided to eat dinner here. We bought two orders each of BBQ beef, onigiri (rice ball), banana doughnut and mango doughnut. It was $12 all together.
After eating these quickly, we joined the dance line. Since I am Japanese and I am used to Japanese dancing, I was able to follow the dancing. My husband on the other hand was having a hard time keeping up and kept saying "I don't get it." He is very very good at dancing, but Japanese rhythm might have thrown him off. It is pretty different right?
We had such a fun time here. Before leaving, I wanted to check their fresh produce. They were selling a lot of Japanese and Hawaiian vegetables and fruit, grown in Honbushin center garden. They said that they use regular fertilizer, but they do not use pesticides. The prices were really cheap and we bought a few items.
I will put the pictures of what we bought there in my next entry. I don't know why but I cannot put more pictures here:(
After eating these quickly, we joined the dance line. Since I am Japanese and I am used to Japanese dancing, I was able to follow the dancing. My husband on the other hand was having a hard time keeping up and kept saying "I don't get it." He is very very good at dancing, but Japanese rhythm might have thrown him off. It is pretty different right?
We had such a fun time here. Before leaving, I wanted to check their fresh produce. They were selling a lot of Japanese and Hawaiian vegetables and fruit, grown in Honbushin center garden. They said that they use regular fertilizer, but they do not use pesticides. The prices were really cheap and we bought a few items.
Thank you for visiting my blog.
Have a nice day-!!
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