Summer in Hawaii

Crazy Day

2005-07-19T11:17:00.000-10:00

So I had the craziest day on Sunday, it is still hard to believe that it all happened. I will start at the beginning of the weekend because it started out very well.

On Saturday night we went to Haunama Bay to go snorkeling. Haunama Bay is a marine wildlife preserve and a beautiful beach. It is where Blue Hawaii was filmed with Elvis. But since the area is protected from fishing and collecting there are huge fish everywhere. We saw some beautiful parrotfish and I followed a juvenile loggerhead turtle around for awhile. It was really nice, but I got a little sunburned on my legs when I pulled my shorts up to lay on the beach and forgot to put suntan lotion on. It was still a nice day though.

On Sunday I went out with Greg from the lab and two of his friends to go SCUBA diving. We went on two dives at Waianae and they were very cool. I saw two more sea turtles and followed them around for awhile underwater.

When we came out after the second dive things got real good. We got out of the water to find that Greg's window had been smashed in. Somebody had probably seen us get into the water and knew we wouldn't been out for awhile and so robbed us. Two other cars had also been broken into right next to ours. They stole my cell phone and my wallet, the only two things I had brought with me. My wallet had all my money, ID and ways to get money on the island. Since I don't have a bank on the island I am in real trouble. Good thing Mel is back home to take care of cancelling everything and sending me some money to live on. The robbers also were smoking when they robbed us and so burned holes into Greg's seat.

We called the cops and someone came out to document the robbery. The first thing out of the cop's mouth was to look at me with disgust and say "Why would you bring your wallet with you" Like it was my fault that I got robbed, even though the thing was hidden under the seat. They still would have broken in a wrecked Greg's car either way, but that just pissed me off. I guess they have real problems on that side of the island with tweaked out beach bums.

So that was rough, but it gets even better. We dropped off Greg's two friends and Greg drove back to Coconut Island to drop me off. When we were about 200 yards away from the Coconut Island dock a car pulled over and we drove past it. The car wasn't actually pulling over I guess but pulling an illegal U-turn with out looking to see if anybody was driving behind them. So very suddenly a huge SUV smashed into my door as we were broadsided. At this point we couldn't believe what was happening. The woman even wanted to try and not get the insurance companies involved, but yeah right. So Greg and I were pretty much laughing because the day wasn't really making sense anymore, how does that sort of stuff happen. But the phone call to Greg's fiance was pretty hilarious and I am sure the insurance company was wondering what was going on with two sepearte calls. At that point it was so ridiculous that we were no longer that angry but laughing because we just couldn't believe it.

So that was how I got robbed and in a car accident on the same day. We are still trying to figure out who is more behind, me with my phone and everything stolen, or Greg with his broken window and smashed in door. He has to pay a 500 deductible for each claim because they were seperate events, which really sucks.

jabba-sad

2005-07-13T17:58:00.000-10:00

jabba-sad
Originally uploaded by mstars.

Lab

2005-07-09T12:37:00.000-10:00

Lab
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is what I am doing a lot of the time in the lab. That is my desk and I am looking for coral gametes.

Underwater

2005-07-09T12:36:00.000-10:00

Underwater
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Me turning the underwater camera around on myself.

What's New

2005-07-09T12:29:00.000-10:00

Sorry it has been so long since I lasted updated the blog. Nothing too exciting or out of the ordinary has happened within the last two weeks so I just have not made time to update. Tracy and I did go hiking on the 4th of July which was pretty fun. It was a short walk up to a waterfall, not much of a hike as the trail was well worn and only a little over a mile each way. The only problem was that there were tons of people on the trail. We probably saw 50-70 people over that two and a half miles. The rest of the weekend we just hung out with the grad students at their house on the island and drank and ate BBQ. The marine base had fireworks Fri-Mon so we watched those all four nights. On the 4th I had a little too much cheap whisky out of a plastic bottle (I gave into peer pressure) I didn't feel that good the next day. All the grad students are very cool though so it was a real good time.

This week I have just been in the lab all the time. Not much planned for this weekend except to sit in the lab and maybe watch War of the Worlds.

Jungle

2005-07-09T12:28:00.000-10:00

Falls Hike 001
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Coffee Plants

2005-07-09T12:27:00.001-10:00

Falls Hike 011
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Falls Hike 016

2005-07-09T12:27:00.000-10:00

Falls Hike 016
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Falls Hike

2005-07-09T12:23:00.000-10:00

Falls Hike 027
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Water Fall

2005-07-09T12:18:00.000-10:00

Falls Hike 057
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Weekend on the Northshore

2005-06-26T12:25:00.001-10:00

So all this last week I didn't do too much new with the research. I did go and collect corals one day at low tide and went to a live fish dealer to get some fish but otherwise I just hung around in the lab. If anyone is interested specifically in my research let me know. I can either post my whole research proposal on the blog (7 pages) or email it to whoever wants to see it.

This weekend I went up to the North Shore again to visit Jeremiah. Tracy went with me. Friday night we didn't really do anything but hang out with Jeremiah and Shinobu at their house. We did go to a horrible mexican restaurant I guess.

Saturday morning was fun though. We slept in, which was really nice, and then hit the beach. Jeremiah gave us lessons in waxing and riding surfboards and then through us in the water. Tracy had a hard time balancing because she had a smaller board and then started getting swept away by the current. Jeremiah went out and rescued her, it was kind of funny.

I had a nine foot board so I could paddle out on it and kind of ride a wave, but it was really tough. I was able to get to about a crouching posistion before I wiped out. I couldn't get the hang of placing my feet on the board. As soon as I stood up one of my feet would be off center and then all my wait would flip the board. It was still a blast though, albeit very tiring.

After surfing we headed in Haleiwa for Matsumoto's shaved ice and just to check it out. World famous shaved ice and a really cool town. Probably the most famous surf town in the world.

After Haleiwa we headed SE along the coast and went to Shark's Cove for snorkeling. The cove is a strong surge zone going into a lagoon, so it is pretty tough swimming. We saw some awesome fish and inverts though. It was a lot of fun.

After the cove we just headed back to Coconut, cooked up some pasta and watched Eddie Izzard.

Jeremiah and Shinobu's House

2005-06-26T12:25:00.000-10:00

Jeremiah and Shinobu's House
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

One half of the house, the other side is bedrooms and bathrooms.

Shinobu and Betty Lou

2005-06-26T12:24:00.001-10:00

Shinobu and Betty Lou
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

I got really lucky, I guess she barely ever smiles for the camera and this is one of the only smiling ones.

Surf at Haleiwa Beach

2005-06-26T12:24:00.000-10:00

Surf at Haleiwa Beach
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is where we went surfing. Tracy and I stuck to the little waves in the front Shinny and Jeremiah and their friends were catching the big ones in the back.

Shinny surfing

2005-06-26T12:23:00.000-10:00

Shinny surfing
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Shinobu surfing a wave

Busy Weekend

2005-06-20T17:05:00.001-10:00

I had a fun, but busy, weekend this last time around. Friday afternoon we had to go in to Honolulu for our all day workshop where we just presented our projects three times each and then had to criticize each other. I was by far the most critical and outspoken, nobody else there was very critical or had much to say really. Must be the philosophy background.

Friday night I had to drive out to the north shore and grab my diving and hiking stuff from Jeremiah which had been left out there since the pig hunt. Since we (Jessica and Tracy came with) could not get back in time for the last boat shuttle on to Coconut Island we ended up sleeping on the beach. Jeremiah fed us fresh papaya and lemons and then gave us a huge pile of wood. It was really cool until the fire went out and the incoming winds started making us real cold. So we went back and crashed in the van.

Saturday morining the whole program group went on a ridge walk up the manoa valley to the peak of one of the higher mountains on Oahu, Mt. Olympus. Although it was not as much work or very much like a jungle on this hike, the views were breath-taking. It took us about 5 hrs to go up and back.

Then Saturday night Tracy and I went back to Honolulu and went to karoke with our labs who were both there. That was quite a bit of fun although we got there late cause we hit bad traffic and got lost, and then couldn't find a place to park. It took us 1 1/2 hrs to go 35 mins worth of driving.

So then Sunday morning I went out freediving with my lab and we speared a bunch of fish. Well I didn't spear any because I didn't have enough weight on my belt and couldn't dive down very well, but Senifa is an absolute spear fishing phenom. He was as cool to watch as the reef itself. The reef was gorgeous with tons of fish and new inverts that are not over by Coconut Island.

And that was my typical Hawaii weekend.

Mountain Range taken from near Mt. Olympus

2005-06-20T17:05:00.000-10:00

Monoa Ridge Walk 039
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Peak of Mt. Olympus

2005-06-20T17:04:00.001-10:00

Monoa Ridge Walk 037
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is one of the higher mountains on the island and the one that we climbed to the top of

Other side of the Island (windward)

2005-06-20T17:04:00.000-10:00

Monoa Ridge Walk 031
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Off to the left in the bay you can see Coconut Island

Near the Summit

2005-06-20T17:03:00.001-10:00

Monoa Ridge Walk 026
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Tracy, Jessica, and John

2005-06-20T17:03:00.000-10:00

Monoa Ridge Walk 016
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Honolulu from the Mountain

2005-06-20T17:02:00.000-10:00

Monoa Ridge Walk 009
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Botanical Garden

2005-06-20T08:06:00.001-10:00

Sorry I havn't updated in awhile, I have been quite busy and away from the computer. These pictures are from a botanical garden we visited right outside of town. I have a lot more pictures but I can't post as many as I have been because of the limited amount I can upload.

Things have been good here though. I have started getting into my research quite a bit, and although I am very busy it is a lot of fun. I will try to write something a little more lengthier later today.

Botanical Garden 1

2005-06-20T08:06:00.000-10:00

DSC02738
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Botanical Garden 2

2005-06-20T08:03:00.001-10:00

DSC02755
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Botanical Garden 3

2005-06-20T08:03:00.000-10:00

DSC02763
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Pig Hunting

2005-06-14T23:50:00.000-10:00

So this last Saturday was King Kamehameha day. He was the king who pushed that army over the Pali cliff and united the Islands. It is a pretty big holiday over here. One of the things that goes on is an Island-wide pig hunt. Whoever brings back the biggest pig on the island gets 1500 dollars or something. So my brother Jeremiah asked if I wanted to go along with him, ny cousin Silas and some of his friends who were serious pig hunters. There was only one rule for hunting the pigs though you can only use a knife and some dogs.

So Friday night a little before midnight we all went over to Jeremiah's friend's house to follow them up the mountain. There were seven of us and eight bit-bull/bloodhound mix dogs. We drove to the bottom of a mountain and started the hike up at about 2:30 or so. We hiked through the dark in grass and sugarcane fields and finally got to the base of the mountain at a little after 4:30.

We then waited for dawn.

At dawn we let all the dogs go as it was their job to find the pigs and chase them. So the dogs are all running through the woods and we are chasing them with knives and 40lb packs. Mind you this wasn't your average Minnesota woods, this was the jungle and we were in the mountains. So we were going up and down through 6 inches of mud, through streams, in rain, through tangles of vine, up muddy slopes we had to crawl up because they were too steep to walk, and along cliff edges on foot wide paths that dropped off on one side 200 ft.

The dogs chased down two pigs during the day but were unable to stop them, so we never did get a pig. The scenery was beautiful though, we went through palm forests, eucalyptus forests, clove forests, up to the tops of mountains covered with ferns. It was breathtaking all day, not to mention the smells and the sounds. You can't imagine what is like to walk through a jungle of clove plants or eucalyptus trees.

We were up there for awhile though, when we got back to Jeremiah's it was 5:30. So we were up in the mountains for almost 15 hours hiking, needless to say I was a big tired, especially since we had only slept two hours the night before.

Wish I could have gotten more pictures but it was hard running through the jungle with anything in my hands let alone an expensive camera. I was only able to take it out when we made longer stops as I had to fish it out of my pack everytime. But here are a few for you anyway.

Enjoy

Jeremiah

2005-06-14T23:49:00.000-10:00

coconut 002
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is my brother Jeremiah standing next to two of the dogs at about 5:30 as the sun is beginning to rise.

Gary

2005-06-14T23:48:00.001-10:00

coconut 007
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is Gary the pig-hunting dog and his nice head wound he got from a pig.

Silas and Jeremiah

2005-06-14T23:48:00.000-10:00

coconut 009
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This was our very first stepping out of the jungle valleys. That is my cousin Silas and Jeremiah again.

Landscape

2005-06-14T23:45:00.001-10:00

coconut 014
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Another picure from the ridge top

Foilage

2005-06-14T23:45:00.000-10:00

coconut 017
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Some trees and such near the top of a mountain ridge.

Grassland

2005-06-14T23:44:00.000-10:00

coconut 022
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is about 1/3 the way up the mountain. This is on our way back down. Turtle Bay is in the background.

Coconut Adventure

2005-06-08T19:31:00.002-10:00

We went on a coconut adventure tonight, the five of us out at the island (Senifa, Tracy, Jessica, Sueann and myself). It was awesome, Senifa showed us all how to husk and open coconuts with a machete. We had two of them, the first was quite bitter because it was old, but the second was moderately sweet. I guess about as sweet as they naturally get.

Good Stuff.

Tracy grabbing a coconut

2005-06-08T19:31:00.001-10:00

DSC02661
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Senifa husking the coconut

2005-06-08T19:31:00.000-10:00

DSC02654
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Senifa is my roommate and is from Samoa. He was really good at getting into the coconuts, since he does it all the time.

Senifa

2005-06-08T19:30:00.000-10:00

DSC02665
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Senifa is eating the coconut meat with a tool he made out of the husk. He said that when he is out working they don't bring any food or water for lunch, they just eat coconut and drink coconut milk.

Me drinking coconut milk

2005-06-08T19:28:00.001-10:00

DSC02658
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Jessica tasting the coconut milk

2005-06-08T19:28:00.000-10:00

DSC02659
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This older one was a little bitter as you can see.

Fun Day

2005-06-07T22:26:00.000-10:00

So I had a really fun day today. I was cleaning out a filter that is used to clean incoming seawater when I started to get sharp needling pains in my back. It became so bad that I had to run back to my cabin and jump in the shower. I actually broke my shorts trying to get them off fast enough.

I had a very intense pain all over my back and arms that felt like somebody was rubbing poison ivy all over that was made out of fiberglass. Just a nasty chemical-like burn. So after 20 mins in a cold shower, and still doubling over in pain I hobbled back over to the lab and asked if someone could bring me to the hospital. There was one close by so we had the shuttle drop us off (myself and Rob). Well that one didn't have any urgent care and didnt take my insurance, so we had to walk about 6 blocks back to the car so we could go to another hospital. Then we got stuck in rush-hour traffic, the whole time I am almost in tears from the pain.

We finally got to the hospital, and went through the emergency room. They had no idea what it was that was causing the reaction, and I still have no clue. So they just gave me some vicodin and benedryl and sent me on my way.

Rob and his wife Carol then took me out for sushi. They are really, really nice people. Rob has taken me out for dinner/lunch multiple times now.

So here I am all doped up. What a fun day. The next best part is that I was supposed to drive 40 mins back to Honolulu tomorrow to dissect corals, but with the vicodin I probably won't be able to.

More Pictures

2005-06-06T21:58:00.000-10:00

Here are some more pictures for you guys.

More Oahu

2005-06-06T21:57:00.002-10:00

P1010004
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Coconut Island again

2005-06-06T21:57:00.001-10:00

P1010008
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

part of the beach

2005-06-06T21:57:00.000-10:00

P1010013
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

more Oahu

2005-06-06T21:56:00.001-10:00

P1010014
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

more flowers

2005-06-06T21:56:00.000-10:00

P1010019
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

flower

2005-06-06T21:55:00.001-10:00

P1010024
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Shark lagoon

2005-06-06T21:55:00.000-10:00

P1010035
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is another picture of the shark lagoon. That big fish in there got trapped in as a juvenile and is a schooling fish. It is the only one in the lagoon and so tries to school with the sharks, which the sharks don't really like. The fish is always next to one shark though.

flowers

2005-06-06T21:53:00.002-10:00

P1010040
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Another view of the cabin

2005-06-06T21:53:00.001-10:00

P1010049
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Medusa Worms

2005-06-06T21:53:00.000-10:00

P1010050
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

These guys are are all over the lagoon and they are 1-2 feet long. Very cool!

Wrong Information

2005-06-06T07:40:00.000-10:00

So I just found out that a lot of the information that I had been told about the island was slightly wrong. You can find the real story, along with a lot of other stuff about the island, here:

http://www.hawaii.edu/HIMB/

Coconut Island

2005-06-05T16:15:00.000-10:00

Finally got some pictures of the island, but there is more to see so I will have to post more later.

The island has a cool history which I will relay to you now.

The island was originally bought by the heirs to the Fleischmann yeast company. I guess the yeast industry has lots of money in it. They built a mansion, a pool area, hot tubs on the beach and had a zoo. In one area they had dolphins, sharks, etc and then on land they had tigers, elephants and giraffes. They would have other rich people and presidents and what not out to visit and show off their wealth.

I was told that they had little cabanas stationed all over the island so you could walk around and get ice at every one and never have you drink get cold.

the Fleichmann's eventually sold the island to five oil barons and then they were all bought out by one of them, a man by the name of Pauly. Pauly let the University have a back corner of the island for research as long as they weren't seen. The Paulys eventually sold the island to a Japanese Yakuza boss. The boss got in trouble with international law and wasn't allowed back into the U.S. so he sold it back to the Paulys for a 17 million dollar loss. The Paulys then gave the island and the 17 million to the Univ. and that is when the Hawaiian Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) got started. That was in the 70's or so.

THE END

Coconut Island from the shore

2005-06-05T16:13:00.001-10:00

coconut 002
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Cool tree on the main campus in Honolulu

2005-06-05T16:13:00.000-10:00

coconut 004
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Palm trees in Waikiki

2005-06-05T16:12:00.000-10:00

coconut 008
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

We walked around Waikiki last night after going to a BBQ and playing volleyball. Watching a bunch of science geeks play volleyball is awesome. We then went swimming and then just walked around the touristy commercial district. It was a nice time, but there are tourist shops everywhere. that is all there is.

We then went to the main campus and stayed in the dorms with the other MSRUF kids stuck there.

Lagoon right outside our door.

2005-06-05T15:59:00.001-10:00

coconut 011
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is pretty much me turning around from the next picture.

Front door of our cabin

2005-06-05T15:59:00.000-10:00

coconut 012
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

swimming pool

2005-06-05T15:58:00.000-10:00

coconut 015
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This was the swimming pool that the Fleishmanns built and closed off so that big fish could not get in. They hauled in a bunch of white sand and added a diving board and a beach house.

Historic light house lamp

2005-06-05T15:55:00.000-10:00

coconut 016
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This is where the first shots were fired on the attack on Pearl Harbor. some Japanese planes had gotten lost and came to the wrong side of the island and shot at a lighthouse out here with that lamp on it and then bombed the lagoon behind.

Oahu background with a palm tree

2005-06-05T15:53:00.000-10:00

coconut 017
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Cactus

2005-06-05T15:52:00.001-10:00

coconut 019
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Hot tubs

2005-06-05T15:52:00.000-10:00

coconut 021
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Another part of the Fleischmann mansion stuff. In the background are a bunch of hot tubs where they would sit with there rich guests.

Island

2005-06-05T15:48:00.000-10:00

coconut 022
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

that is a shark lagoon on the right and Oahu in the background.

Jungle shot

2005-06-05T15:47:00.001-10:00

coconut 024
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

White-tip reef shark

2005-06-05T15:47:00.000-10:00

coconut 034
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

There is a closed lagoon on the island that is full of sharks. It is very fun to go down there and watch them.

Dolphin pen

2005-06-05T15:46:00.001-10:00

coconut 036
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

That is the dolphin pen and then Oahu in the background.

Random jungle shot of a cool tree

2005-06-05T15:46:00.000-10:00

coconut 037
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Orchids

2005-06-05T15:45:00.001-10:00

coconut 040
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Just thought these looked nice, on my walk to take pictures.

Baby Hammerhead

2005-06-05T15:45:00.000-10:00

coconut 043
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

A baby shark that is kept in one of the research tanks. It is about 18 inches longa and fun to pet.

Cactus Tree

2005-06-05T15:44:00.000-10:00

coconut 044
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Just a cool tree out on the island. At night all the flowers open up and it is pretty cool. I will try and get a picture of it.

Tracy and Jessica

2005-06-05T15:43:00.001-10:00

coconut 039
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Two of the other MSURF students who are also staying out on the island.

Docks

2005-06-05T15:43:00.000-10:00

coconut 045
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Part of the Lagoon. The lab I am fixing up and working on it on the far end bottom level.

Construction Work

2005-06-03T19:46:00.000-10:00

So I havn't really been able to start much of my research yet. I have been working exlusivly on getting the wet lab up so I can do my research, which means construction so far. So fun!!!

Today we went back to Honolulu for another workshop meeting where we worked on our project proposals. I never got a definitive answer on mine as nobody knew quite what to do with it. I don't know if that is good or bad.

Tomorrow we have have a barbeque and volleyball game at the beach in Waikiki, so that should be fun. I will try to take some more pictures, especially of Coconut Island, if I have time.

Cliff from Pali lookout

2005-06-01T20:21:00.000-10:00

DayOne 044
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This and all the following pictures are from the Pali lookout where I stopped with Rob.

Cliff Wall

2005-06-01T20:20:00.001-10:00

DayOne 042
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

When it rains heavily all of those creases fills with a waterfall

Lookout over Kaneohe

2005-06-01T20:20:00.000-10:00

DayOne 041
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

The town down there is Kaneohe and that is Kaneohe bay. Coconut Island is the one in the bay there, and is where I am staying and writing this from.

Another peak off of Pali lookout

2005-06-01T20:18:00.000-10:00

DayOne 040
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Cliff Edge at Pali lookout

2005-06-01T20:17:00.000-10:00

DayOne 039
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

The king who united the Hawaiian islands fought a huge battle here. He was invading from Maui and backed the defenders to the edge of a cliff that I am standing on. He then pushed all of them off the edge and so conquered the island.

sweet tree

2005-06-01T20:08:00.000-10:00

DayOne 017
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

This tree was introduced from Pakistan. Almost everything in Hawaii was introduced in the last couple hundred of years. You can see the roots descending from the branches and when they touch a new trunk starts to form. There are some here that flow down the side of a mountain because the roots drop down. There is also a single tree in Pakistan that is 2 acres across, making it the biggest organism on the planet.

Aquarium at Waikiki

2005-06-01T20:05:00.001-10:00

DayOne 025
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Weedy Seadragon at Waikiki aquarium

2005-06-01T20:05:00.000-10:00

DayOne 036
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Kai Toonen

2005-06-01T20:03:00.000-10:00

DayOne 024
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

Mountain Peak

2005-06-01T20:02:00.000-10:00

DayOne 038
Originally uploaded by Regal Social Club.

A peak along the higway in Pali pass

2005-06-01T19:59:00.000-10:00

Feel free to still contact me if you want, my phone still works here. I am just five hours behind in time.

My First Hawaii entry

2005-06-01T19:40:00.000-10:00

So sorry about the lateness of my first entry. I have been kept very busy so far.

Right off the bat the trip started rocking as I got my own aisle for the flight to Las Vegas. Things didn't go well there as I had to sprint outside to another terminal in 90 degree weather in order to catch my connecting flight, so I was a sweaty mess. Then when I came into Honolulu I got picked up by my prof. Rob Toonen and I reeked. It was awesome.

We went and got some Chinese food and went to his house where I met his wife Carol and his 1 yr old son Kai. I slept over at his house that night.

Monday I went to the Waikiki aquarium with the Toonen family and the wife, daughter and niece of another proffesor. It was very cool, especially the trees around the place.

Oh and believe what you have heard about Hawaii, it is absolutely gorgeous everywhere.

Monday night I went out to Coconut Island where I am staying and got set-up. I also went snorkeling right outside my door.

Tuesday we just went back to Honolulu for orientation, campus tour (where I will never be), and a totally rocking 2hr video on lab safety. A good experiment is a safe experiment.

We got back late after grocery shopping and watched the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

Wednesday (today) I have been working on setting up my research. This involves constructing a wet lab to work in because the one here was in shambles, so for the first week I am actually just doing construction. Sweet!

Well that is a brief overview of my trip so far. I will post pictures when I get more, I have yet to get some of Coconut Is. I will also try to update more frequently, but they have me busy all the time.

Gizmo and Me

2005-05-27T13:06:00.000-10:00

Gizmo and Me
Originally uploaded by mstars.

Look at this totally sweet picture of me.

Gizmo and his Gross Sweater

2005-05-26T16:41:00.001-10:00

Gizmo and his Gross Sweater
Originally uploaded by mstars.

Mel and Jabba

2005-05-26T16:41:00.000-10:00

More Jabba
Originally uploaded by mstars.

First Post in My Fabulous New Blog

2005-05-26T16:11:00.000-10:00

I leave on Sunday for Hawaii. I'll be working with the MSURF program doing research on coral. I'll be updating this site as frequently as possible so that all of you are able to hear and see (photos) what I'm doing. I'll be in HI until August 6th so see you after then..suckas!