Fanning the Breezes

Last night the rain came again. Hard. Loud. Enough to wake us up, and it continued into morning. Now the birds are chirping their curious language, perhaps discussing the morning's find of uncovered seeds. A cacophony of birdsong. According to what I've read, the centipedes come alive when it's wet, seeking moisture. We humans try our best to stay dry.

The rain was somewhat shocking since we were under the impression, based on local comments and a couple of dry weeks, that summer had arrived.

We purchased two ceiling fans for our condo which did not have a single permanent fan when we moved in. There was a portable fan in our two bedroom closets. This seemed odd because the place is about 40 years old and most everyone tells us they keep their overhead fans going 'round the clock, not only for cooling but also to keep air circulating inside and help prevent dampness and mold.

We thought we would pick up a couple of ceiling fans at Costco or Home Depot and that would be it. Hardly. First we consulted with a local electrician referred to us by a trusted island source. During our consultation with Richard the Electrician we learned that there's more to a fan than spinning blades. He referred us to Kilohana Lighting in Lihue that specializes in lights and fans, essentially calling what you find at Home Depot accelerated planned obsolescence.

Kilohana Lighting turned out to be a gold mine, featuring room-after-room of indoor-and-outdoor lamps and ceiling fans. This is where the subject of ceiling fans becomes a puzzle of options and features. You learn about drop lines, ceiling mounts, energy use, remote features, blade shapes,  sizes of blades, reverse flow, ratio of fan size to room size and, of course, wobble. You want to avoid wobble in a ceiling fan unless you're going for the very primitive island look, for example a hidden tavern in the jungle that Hemingway might have frequented.

We made two visits to Kilohana Lighting, by which time we had met the entire friendly staff, and took one last look at Home Depot for comparison -- as well as reading several online reviews of fans purchased there. The reviews helped to seal the deal at Kilohana and made Richard the Electrician sound like a guru. We decided on a sleek three-bladed 60-inch ceiling fan that resembled a nostalgic airplane propeller for our high-ceiling living area.

We went to purchase and pick up our chosen fan, only to change our mind and decide on a different fan altogether. The three blades on this fan resemble pods from a palm tree. We found a second fan for our bedroom that happened to be on sale for a price much lower than anything we found at Home Depot. "I don't know why the owner would sell this fan at that low price," said Susan the sales person.

This morning we are stoked and feel lucky to have fans sweeping air around our little island refuge.

We fell in love with our condo because of it's location which includes being in the path of the prevailing trade winds. The "trades" are the saving grace of the islands, nature's way of tempering the heat and humidity. Our lanai faces Northwest, the direction from which the trades blow. Nice. We can only imagine what direction a hurricane might come from, but let's not go there. Our complex, Puamana, survived Hurricane Iniki which destroyed parts of the island in 1992.

We have met two women who were residing at Puamana at the time, one who claimed she remained in her condo during the tumultuous storm. "I felt safe," she said "These places are well built." As a former boss of mine used to say: "Your lips to God's ears."


The Baby Grandson

Barbara, Viva & Bryna (w/baby)

One reason we are here is to be close to our daughter who is overdue to give birth to her second child.   The baby is a boy. He is to be born at home. Listening to the heavy rain last night I couldn't help but wonder how the midwife could drive to our daughter's place in the blinding rain, should she go into labor. This morning we learned that contractions have begun, yet not so consistent that birthing has started. Our scattered family have been on alert for a couple of weeks, sending texts from the mainland: "Is he here yet?" The new mother's oldest sister sent the message: "He must be very comfortable where he is."