Hawaii

Sept 16 2007
Each morning I take Nellie and Bingo for an early walk-up H1- a main
highway. on the west side of the island. I carry a trash bag with me.
It is full in the first block--styrofoam, slurpy cups, beer bottles,
fast food containers etc. etc. I dump it in a can in the park and
fill it again. As we cross the little white bridge on the mauka
(mountain) side of the road I check to see what has been thrown in
the stream over night. One morning it was a dead pig-not a pretty
site in the tropics, today it is office furniture, a couch, cushions,
tarps and tires. The dump is only three miles away but every morning
there is something new and disgusting.

One of the main environmental threats in the islands are the feral
pigs (not to mention the mongoose and rats). These wild pigs destroy
habitat, nesting birds, native plants. But these other wild pigs-the
ones who empty their trucks in the darkness-they are trashing
paradise. Once again I find myself appalled by my species, angry and
hurt by the thoughtless sloth.

September 11 Oahu near Makaha
(look it up!)

I have had a great summer and am looking forward to hitting the road and visiting schools but first I have to write! That's why I am on this island dogsitting for a friend and finishing 3 books. If you are a serious writer (and I assume if you are reading this you are) then you have to make time for it and practice...yeah just like piano or surfing. So when I am in writing mode I work about 5 hours a day on my projects. Here in Hawaii I try and work for a couple hours before dawn-say 5-7 then I get up, do the doggy chores (I am taking care of 3 really old guy dogs and 1 fiesty female named Nellie.) After that I take a run while it is still cool enough, then a dip in the ocean then home for doggy breakfast, birdy breakfast and my breakfast then I settle down to write during the hottest part of the day inside.

I have 6 projects going, all in different stages. Two are final drafts, 1 is the first of a series, 1 is just an idea with notes and pictures, 1 is a memoir, 1 is a journal and the last is a picture book. I try and work on couple every day. Last year I wrote a book on Hawaii while I was in Alaska. Now I'm writing a book on Antarctica while I am in Hawaii. Weird.