Sometimes it takes an outsider's perspective to remind me of how blessed I am to call Oahu home. Having been born and raised on the mainland, I met my wife out here while I was in the Navy, and I never left. I forget how nice it is to drive along the coast, viewing the vast sprawl of the Pacific every day on my way to work. It's so easy to take for granted how everything out here is on "Hawaiian time," and the urgency of things seems to be dialed down a few notches. Mahalo for helping me to appreciate my surroundings just a bit more today.
Isn’t Oahu wonderful? My husband was born and raised there and we’ve been going annually since 1992, with a brief break during the shutdown. It’s so underrated; most vacationers favoring the other islands, but that’s ok with me. Mahalo for sharing your Oahu themed newsletter, I very much enjoyed it. 🤙🌈
Thanks for reminding me that someday I'll travel "first class" again. My kids are 5 and 3 and we just got back to PA on a red eye from SF and it's going to take days to recover. I do not want to wish away my time, but having experiences is simply exhausting right now!
Yeah you’re still in The Sh*t. It’ll get better. Go easy!! “It goes fast,” everyone says, and you’re like, “I wish it’d go a little faster!” Then you turn around and go, “oh.”
How were the acoustics in the shower? LOL. Sunday is our local Uke fest. I've been dreaming about another trip to the islands for months and last night began puzzling out when to go. Thanks for letting your enthusiasm for that beautiful place give me the next push toward setting dates and booking all the things.
Thank you Austin for sharing y’all’s vacation. You reminded me of our time there in 2003-ish? We stayed on the North Shore & I absolutely LOVED IT. My husband rented a motorcycle & I had the convertible. A lot of history in Hawaii. There was an incredible burger place I cannot recall the name of on Oahu. Delicious. We also located a glider plane to go up in. Magical views & a beautiful rainbow. Appreciate it. Also: I enjoyed the pictures.
The North Shore is amazing. I've been to Hawaii twice, both times as week-long business trips to Honolulu in the mid-1980s. The first time I was booked into one of the large Honolulu hotels and spent nearly all of my time in that area, not really knowing any better. (Clown paintings, anyone?) For the next trip the following year, I personally booked myself into small lodgings on the north shore and left the north only to satisfy my daytime business obligations. What a difference! Something that I found fascinating was the incremental weather: it would be sunny in both the north and the south, but almost always raining as I commuted across the mountains between the two.
I read SHOAL OF TIME in January - on my way to getting married on O'ahu on the windward coast :) (My husband and I are LOVING your playlist!)
You didn't ask for a review AND -- here's mine. SHOAL OF TIME is a good and detailed history and I learned a lot. The history of white settlement is just wild; so many waves of different people; at one point, there were tons of Russian and German settlers in Hawai'i also. It seemed like a fluke that it ended up American. It's incredibly frustrating that Hawai'i is just not somehow a state yet??? However, SHOAL OF TIME starts with white settlement and Captain Cook, which feels cringe to me, and it was written in the ~50s, so it's not like egregiously bad but just a little odd in places in terms of wording choices, etc.
Over fifty-five years ago I spent a dissolute summer on Oahu, where my dad was stationed. I had just finished my first year at UC Riverside, and spent my days pumping gas at the Hickam Air Force Base service station and my evenings partying on the North Shore with friends. Such larks! Now a retired design college Humanities teacher, I'm having fewer larks living in north Texas, and only occasionally escaping on camping trips to the west coat. But thanks for reviving memories of those halcyon days of my distant youth (I'm now 76). To prolong the nostalgia, I'm about to grab Roughing It off my Twain shelf and then maybe pop on down to the local BadAss Coffee shop for a cuppa Kona. Sigh.
I enjoy watching the movie Princess Kaiulani after my visit to Hawaii. I recently ran into O’Keeffe’s paintings she made in Hawaii in her visit to create something for Dole- the fruit company. They didn’t like the results!
Ukulele is super easy to learn! Only four strings, and you only need one finger to play a C chord or an A minor chord. Look into the Austin Ukulele Society on YouTube if you’re not from Austin (or join us in person if you are) and you can play along!
Absolutely awesome that you managed to escape the Austin inferno for a time; and what a way to do it! If you get a chance, and haven’t already, check out The Curse of Lono by HST/Steadman…a different take on the island, it’s history, and hardcore Gonzo bad behavior.
Shoal of Time is a good read but starts as many western books about Hawaii do with the arrival of James Cook. I would recommend Noenoe K. Silva’s Aloha Betrayed for a native Hawaiian perspective on other histories written about Hawaii, and Martha Beckwith’s Hawaiian Mythology for stories of ancient Hawaiian beliefs & rituals. I haven’t read any of these straight through but dipping in and out of them (the mythology especially) has been wonderful. I also want to recommend Hawaiian Public Radio next time you’re there; I discovered a great band called Kalapana while driving around Kauai. Great 70s Hawaiian vibe!
Sometimes it takes an outsider's perspective to remind me of how blessed I am to call Oahu home. Having been born and raised on the mainland, I met my wife out here while I was in the Navy, and I never left. I forget how nice it is to drive along the coast, viewing the vast sprawl of the Pacific every day on my way to work. It's so easy to take for granted how everything out here is on "Hawaiian time," and the urgency of things seems to be dialed down a few notches. Mahalo for helping me to appreciate my surroundings just a bit more today.
Yes!! I always love when people visit Austin because I get to see it through their eyes and remember what's special about it.
Hi Austin,
It was so fun to read about your North Shore vacation.
I grew up in Hawaii and lived on the North Shore for years with my husband who built surfboards.
I wanted to share a little story about Paul McCartney’s ukulele. My best friend Mo, when we were
in the 7th (ish) grade traded her ukulele with Paul for his autograph. This was when the Beatles
came to Hawaii in the 60’s and stayed in Kailua, near Mo’s house on the beach. Pretty exciting times!
Also, fyi, Kui Lee, wrote I’ll Remember You.
Thanks, I love reading your newsletter.
I live on the Big Island now. We think it’s the best island, though, in 2018 the lava erupted in our
neighborhood and also destroyed our surf spot. Except for that, we think it is the best place to live
on the planet. As good as the north shore (except for the lost surf spot!) but way less traffic.
Aloha,
Terry
Amazing!
Isn’t Oahu wonderful? My husband was born and raised there and we’ve been going annually since 1992, with a brief break during the shutdown. It’s so underrated; most vacationers favoring the other islands, but that’s ok with me. Mahalo for sharing your Oahu themed newsletter, I very much enjoyed it. 🤙🌈
It seems like there’s something for everyone there if you explore
Another reading rec: Volcanoes, Palm Trees, and Privilege: Essays on Hawai'i by Liz Prato. It's funny, informational and really eye-opening. https://overcupbooks.com/products/volcanoes-palm-trees-and-privilege-essays-on-hawaii
Love this, Spongebob, and all the book recs. Can I also add Shark Dialogues by Kiana Davenport? It’s historical fiction 🌈🤙
Thanks for reminding me that someday I'll travel "first class" again. My kids are 5 and 3 and we just got back to PA on a red eye from SF and it's going to take days to recover. I do not want to wish away my time, but having experiences is simply exhausting right now!
Yeah you’re still in The Sh*t. It’ll get better. Go easy!! “It goes fast,” everyone says, and you’re like, “I wish it’d go a little faster!” Then you turn around and go, “oh.”
Clearly you had a wonderful vacation! I love the exuberance of this list. Mahalo!
How were the acoustics in the shower? LOL. Sunday is our local Uke fest. I've been dreaming about another trip to the islands for months and last night began puzzling out when to go. Thanks for letting your enthusiasm for that beautiful place give me the next push toward setting dates and booking all the things.
All home recorders know how excellent bathrooms are for acoustics — Lindsey Buckingham, Paul McCartney... LOL https://austinkleon.com/2023/07/18/mccartney-on-not-knowing-and-doing-it-now/
Thank you Austin for sharing y’all’s vacation. You reminded me of our time there in 2003-ish? We stayed on the North Shore & I absolutely LOVED IT. My husband rented a motorcycle & I had the convertible. A lot of history in Hawaii. There was an incredible burger place I cannot recall the name of on Oahu. Delicious. We also located a glider plane to go up in. Magical views & a beautiful rainbow. Appreciate it. Also: I enjoyed the pictures.
The North Shore is amazing. I've been to Hawaii twice, both times as week-long business trips to Honolulu in the mid-1980s. The first time I was booked into one of the large Honolulu hotels and spent nearly all of my time in that area, not really knowing any better. (Clown paintings, anyone?) For the next trip the following year, I personally booked myself into small lodgings on the north shore and left the north only to satisfy my daytime business obligations. What a difference! Something that I found fascinating was the incremental weather: it would be sunny in both the north and the south, but almost always raining as I commuted across the mountains between the two.
Yes! Microclimates are so fascinating to me, especially as a Texan...
I read SHOAL OF TIME in January - on my way to getting married on O'ahu on the windward coast :) (My husband and I are LOVING your playlist!)
You didn't ask for a review AND -- here's mine. SHOAL OF TIME is a good and detailed history and I learned a lot. The history of white settlement is just wild; so many waves of different people; at one point, there were tons of Russian and German settlers in Hawai'i also. It seemed like a fluke that it ended up American. It's incredibly frustrating that Hawai'i is just not somehow a state yet??? However, SHOAL OF TIME starts with white settlement and Captain Cook, which feels cringe to me, and it was written in the ~50s, so it's not like egregiously bad but just a little odd in places in terms of wording choices, etc.
I wanted to read more about the Polynesians in particular after finishing. (I had found that negative review of UNFAMILIAR FISHES while researching so didn't read that one, so can't compare!) I found CAPTIVE PARADISE (https://www.amazon.com/Captive-Paradise-James-L-Haley/dp/1250070392) and WE THE NAVIGATORS (https://www.amazon.com/We-Navigators-Ancient-Landfinding-Pacific/dp/0824815823), neither of which I have read yet :) Also bought one of Daws' later books, with a collaborator, LAND AND POWER IN HAWAI'I (https://www.amazon.com/Land-Power-Hawaii-Democratic-Years/dp/0824813030).
I can't imagine a more beautiful place to get married — congrats, and thanks for all this :)
Over fifty-five years ago I spent a dissolute summer on Oahu, where my dad was stationed. I had just finished my first year at UC Riverside, and spent my days pumping gas at the Hickam Air Force Base service station and my evenings partying on the North Shore with friends. Such larks! Now a retired design college Humanities teacher, I'm having fewer larks living in north Texas, and only occasionally escaping on camping trips to the west coat. But thanks for reviving memories of those halcyon days of my distant youth (I'm now 76). To prolong the nostalgia, I'm about to grab Roughing It off my Twain shelf and then maybe pop on down to the local BadAss Coffee shop for a cuppa Kona. Sigh.
Really appreciated the memoir article…thank you for sharing it!
Wonderful vacation! I wish I could play ukulele!
I enjoy watching the movie Princess Kaiulani after my visit to Hawaii. I recently ran into O’Keeffe’s paintings she made in Hawaii in her visit to create something for Dole- the fruit company. They didn’t like the results!
Thanks for sharing!
I only realized in hindsight that we took two O’Keefe vacations this summer: New Mexico and Hawaii
Ukulele is super easy to learn! Only four strings, and you only need one finger to play a C chord or an A minor chord. Look into the Austin Ukulele Society on YouTube if you’re not from Austin (or join us in person if you are) and you can play along!
Absolutely awesome that you managed to escape the Austin inferno for a time; and what a way to do it! If you get a chance, and haven’t already, check out The Curse of Lono by HST/Steadman…a different take on the island, it’s history, and hardcore Gonzo bad behavior.
Shoal of Time is a good read but starts as many western books about Hawaii do with the arrival of James Cook. I would recommend Noenoe K. Silva’s Aloha Betrayed for a native Hawaiian perspective on other histories written about Hawaii, and Martha Beckwith’s Hawaiian Mythology for stories of ancient Hawaiian beliefs & rituals. I haven’t read any of these straight through but dipping in and out of them (the mythology especially) has been wonderful. I also want to recommend Hawaiian Public Radio next time you’re there; I discovered a great band called Kalapana while driving around Kauai. Great 70s Hawaiian vibe!