When I made the reservations for my flight to Hawaii last year, I had thought we would spend a good part of our vacation furnishing the house and furniture shopping. As it turned out, we didn't. However, I did manage to buy a dining room table, which you see pictured here. The tenants, who are moving back into my house today, don't want it stored in the garage because they don't want to be responsible for it.At least that's their story and they're sticking to it. They could be holding wild sex parties in the garage for all I know. Selling drugs out of that spare refrigerator.For those of you who have followed my stories on Big Island, I'm leaving the island today. But hey, I have a new island to hang out on. A place where I won't be tempted to buy dining room tables that I have no place... 01/03/2017

The only thing more disturbing about trying to turn on an appliance and finding out it doesn't work is having the thing explode on the spot. Although in some ways, an exploding appliance could be a very comforting thing because the solution to the dilemma would be immediately and very clearly presented. You could just buy a new whatever.Well, unless you're in Hawaii on vacation and it's New Year's Day. Even the laundromats were closed in Kailua-Kona when my washer broke.The thing is anybody who knows me knows I am a solution-oriented individual. I welcome challenges, even if they are frustrating, irritating and annoying. You can read more about tips for fixing appliances in my personal blog today at this link: How to Fix the Problem When an LG Washer Doesn't Start. 01/02/2017

I felt like I visited my very own New Year's Eve party after going to the movies in Hawaii yesterday to see Office Christmas Party. It seems like almost every December 31st of my 20's to mid-40's was spent at New Year's Eve parties, waiting for that magical moment of midnight to appear and to smooch with whomever was around. Spittooey. That just doesn't hold any interest for me anymore. I'll see the same person in the mirror when I wake up that I went to sleep with, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Sitting here on my lanai in Hawaii, watching the sun slowly creep over our house, listening to sounds of exotic island birds calling to each other. You can see more in my personal blog today and read my thoughts at this link: Review of Office Christmas Party in Kona. 01/01/2017

We had a light sprinkling of rain yesterday afternoon for about 15 minutes, but fortunately, most of the rain in Kailua-Kona has stopped. The first 3 weeks of December were unusually wet for this time of year. Not surprising, climate changes are happening everywhere. It's common to get a lot of rain over on the Hilo side but for Kona, which is usually sunny in December, this amount of rain is abnormal.My husband came up with an idea of something fun we could do over several afternoons, which morphed into an obsession of epic proportions. You can read more about this in my personal blog today at this link: A Cat Jigsaw Puzzle for Those Rainy Day Hawaiian Blues. 12/29/2016

Hard to say if it was the excellent company (having my husband join me in Hawaii for Christmas) or the location on the ocean, or the marvelous food or my glass of pinot that made dinner so delightful. Or maybe just the fact I found a suitable parking place and didn't have to circle the area over and over like a hamster on a wheel. I especially enjoyed not fussing with myself to go out to dinner. We women tend to fusss too much. There is the hair I did not brush, the makeup I did not wear, and the dress with a hole in it that I dug out of the laundry basket. But, hey, I did slip on pearls. You can read more and see all of the photogaphs in my personal blog today at this link: Mi's Waterfront Bistro Has More Than Location Going For It. 12/27/2016

You can't swing a dead cat in Hawaii without hitting a ukulele player. Oh, where did that expression come from anyway, it's such a horrible thing to say. But I use it because it's amusing, not because I would ever throw a dead cat much less want to watch somebody else do it. The point is the ukulele is a popular instrument, and almost everywhere I go in Hawaii, I hear a musician playing this instrument.Fat, skinny; old, young; male, female; doesn't matter. Every ukulele is different. Tones and pitch varies. You can pay $100 or $10,000 or more. Go ahead, you can read more and see more photographs in my personal blog today at this link: Just Ukes Offers Wide Variety of Ukuleles in Kona. 12/26/2016

Now, if you ask my husband, he will say the drive down from the Mauna Kea Summit was the most terrifying, but that's because he wasn't driving. He was putting his foot on the imaginery brake and reminding me about approaching curves. He also brought up the time I drove down the mountainside in Colorado in my 1974 CJ5 Jeep and asked me please not to repeat that episode.On the other hand, I would say that driving up was more frightening, if it's scary, and it sorta was. But that's part of the excitement of driving up to the snowy Summit, you know, it's the whole package. You can see all of the fabulous photographs and read more about my adventure in my personal blog today at this link: Road to Mauna Kea Summit Opens Before Christmas. 12/24/2016

Part of the fun of being on vacation in Hawaii is sampling different restaurants. Last year I spent 3 weeks at the Marriott Waikola and even with walking over to the Kings Shops, I still did not have enough variety. That is not a problem in Kailua-Kona. Lots of tourists stay in this area, although I never have until we bought a house here, so this is a new experience.I also picked out gifts for my team members at my one of my favorite Hawaiian stores, Na Hoku, down by Ali'i Drive. Jackie Rey's is off Kuakini, not far from there. Oh, and I managed to take a new listing in Elk Grove yesterday. More about that tomorrow. For now, you can read more about our latest dinner adventure and see all the photographs in my personal blog today at this link: Hanging Out at Jackie Rey's Ohana Grill in ... 12/22/2016

We woke up yesterday morning fully intending to take advantage of the break in the rain at our vacation house in Hawaii and drive up to the Mauna Kea Summit. I rented a jeep specifically for this purpose. However, due to all of the unusual amount of rain on Big Island this month, which turns to snow on the mountain, the road was closed. Never fear. There are plenty of interesting things to do in Kona. Even my husband, who was resistant to the idea, enjoyed our visit to the seahorse farm. Plus, I got to hold a seahorse! I have a photo of that experience. You can read more and see all the photographs in my personal blog today at this link: Seahorse Farm in Kona Lets Visitors Hold a Seahorse. 12/21/2016

All of our previous trips to Big Island have been to resorts. We've stayed at Four Seasons, The Fairmont, Hapuna Prince and Marriott Waiklola, and a great B and B on the Hilo side in Honomu. As such, most of our dining experiences have been at or near resorts. Now that we have our own vacation house, it's either go grocery shopping, which for some reason my husband does not seem interested in, or go out for dinner.It's at least a half hour up the coast to the resorts and we are only a mile from Ali'i Drive and some of the other dining spots in Kona. The service is more casual, the food more basic, thus far, but I am keeping an open mind. With a place like Huggos Restaurant, it's more about the location than the food or service, I suspect.You can read more in my personal blog today and s... 12/20/2016

When I tell people that Rocket J. Squirrel is in this Hawaiian orchid oil painting and that once you see him, you can't unsee him, I am informed they do not see it. So my husband, who happens to be the person who first spotted Rocky, came up with this nifty little caption to show you. This is very similar to the cattleya that was once hanging on my wall until the tenants carted it away. Not only do I tremendously love orchids, they are my favorite flower, but there is a lot of emotional pull in this artist's work. I tracked down this former Volcano resident myself in the States. You can read more about this and see all of his artwork selections in my personal blog today at this link: Which is Your Favorite Hawaiian Orchid Oil Painting? 12/19/2016

Strand woven bamboo is not a type of bamboo that I have been familiar with. I have the lighter natural bamboo in my bedrooms in California, the type of bamboo with knuckles. It's soft. Shows impact from high heels, so I can only wear flat shoes or else tiptoe around, LOL. However, when it came to choosing flooring for the bedrooms in our house in Hawaii, bamboo was not first on the list. I was leaning toward engineered hardwood.But then I stopped to consider that termites love hardwood and I pay for pest control spraying every 3 months.Strand woven bamboo is very durable. Termites don't like the glue, and it is a grass, not a hardwood. It can be refinished, too, which I did not know. It comes with a 50-year warranty. It looks like hardwood. Many colors. Relatively affordable, between $4... 12/18/2016

This photo is of Alex, my painter in Kona, who just finished repairing and painting all of the ceilings in our vacation house in Hawaii. Amazingly, the big 6.7 earthquake of 2006 caused little damage to the walls in the house. Most of the damage and cracks occurred in the ceilings and cement slabs. But then this home was built in 1990, so it fared better than some of the older structures in town.We have several small earthquakes every day. According to Kailua-Kona Earthquake tracker, precisely 100 earthquakes over the past 30 days. Plate tectonics and hot spot, you know. I thought about insurance and called my agent on Oahu. The State Farm office could not answer my questions about rates for earthquake insurance and whether I needed flood insurance. Actually, I think flood insurance is ... 12/17/2016

I could show you the big pile of plastic that hangs from every wall and covers every flat surface in my house in Hawaii but that's not nearly as attractive as this cute little saffron finch. They are all over my front yard, and I think they have built a nest in my neighbor's tree. As I look around at the chaos in this house, it makes me think about tax deductions. If a person were renting her house and wanted to fall within the two-week usage rule for tax purposes -- I  am asking for a friend -- and this person had to live in chaos to finish home improvements on behalf of the rental, I wonder if that would be considered just supervising an improvement project because it's not really a vacation. Perhaps the only vacation would be the 9 days following after everything was finished, and ma... 12/15/2016

Above is a photo I shot a few days ago before the SuperMoon in Hawaii, just as the sun settled into the sky in Kailua-Kona. That ubiquitous "they" say you are either a sunset person or a sunrise person. I like both, actually, but if I had to choose just one, let's just say I'm glad my back yard faces West, and I get this view from my kitchen. Which is pretty much where I've been relegated to work in Hawaii (in the kitchen), as the home improvement projects go on and I continue to balance my real estate clients in Sacramento with the demands of finishing up projects. You can read more in my personal blog today and see the photo of a sandpiper at this link: Clients Win by Listening to Their Sacramento Agent. 12/13/2016

Because at some point my tenants (who are living elsewhere while I am here) will either buy a new house or go back to Canada, I have to find us a gardener. Fortunately, the HOA tends to the front yard, but my side and back yard don't take care of themselves. Everything grows like crazy.I had a guy come over yesterday to give me a bid. He asked how much I wanted to pay. Well, I dunno, the guy next door hired a gardener for $40 a month, I pointed out. He said, "I'll do it for $60." What? What? You can read more in my personal blog today and see the photographs of my garden at this link: Poinsettias and Pineapple Love Tropical Gardens in Hawaii. 12/12/2016

I am not a person who enjoys getting a manicure, much less in Hawaii, but I do appreciate pretty nails. Which means wherever I travel, I need to find nail salons. I've been to so many all over the world that I've become an expert at picking out a salon among the hundreds offered in any given location.You can read reviews online like, oh, say, Yelp, but you need to know how to decipher those reviews. You know, did somebody post a nasty review, like saying the salon cuts your cuticles so they bleed -- which probably means they once dated the owner and got dumped or they were trying to text in the middle of the manicure. There are lots of idiots and spiteful people. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: Hot Nails Salon is the Place for a Manicure in Kailua-Kona. 12/11/2016

My neighbors at our house in Hawaii and friends in California all seem to hold the same view of contractors in Hawaii, and that view is typically unfavorable. They've been warning me to expect "Hawaii time" and lax attitudes, and that has not been my experience. In fact, I believe you can say the same thing about contractors in general. It is not specific to Hawaii.You know the joke, right? What 3 things do you want in a contractor? A good price, good work and punctuality, pick any two. Like with any business, Sacramento real estate included, there are great professionals and losers. The trick is not to hire the losers. You can read more and see all of the photographs in my personal blog today at this link: Take a Peek at My Hawaii Home Improvement Projects. 12/10/2016

For years, I have taken my laptop with me during my wor-cations. OK, I did not take it to Cuba but that was one destination where I had to buy internet minutes, about $10 for an hour, and the WiFi did not always work, so I used my cellphone instead. And only for 2 hours during the 2 weeks we were there. It was a terrible connection, and you had to stand in one spot at the hotel.Plus I figured I was more likely to have my laptop confiscated than to actually use it, so I left it at home. But a laptop is essential for my wor-cations. I can't type on an iPad. Breaking my laptop would result in the Apocalypse. You can read more in my personal blog today at this link: What Happens When You Drop a Laptop? 12/08/2016

My Hawaii house was built in 1991 and because of that has had much stuff replaced. I'm doing even more improvements as we speak. My husband would just unpack and not change a thing. But houses don't speak to him like they do to me. I develop likes and dislikes easily of certain home features, and my kitchen faucet was a big dislike from the moment I laid eyes on it last week. My old faucet is pictured here. Look at how it hangs its sorry face into the sink and does not latch onto its connection. It's discolored. Past its prime.It's gotta go. Besides, wait until you see what I replaced it with. I recommend this type of kitchen faucet to my clients, too. It's the one thing you can do to a kitchen without spending a lot of money that really makes an impression afterward. You can see all th... 12/07/2016