Day 3

YouTube link: Day 3 Making Progress

Nov. 8, 2017
Woke up at 8am
I made it to the land around 9:12 am today and started clearing some more brush. About two hours into the work my tool broke on some downed branches, and I realized that I would definitely need a chainsaw in order to finish clearing the land. So I  went to Home Depot to retrieve one and came back to the site, only to realize that I didn’t buy any lubricating oil to go with it. This meant I had to drive 27 minutes all the way back to THD(The Home Depot) and 27 minutes back to the site. While there, I picked up some weed and grass killer to spray on the area where the driveway will be. Not sure if this is going to work, but it’s worth a try. Once I returned, I got straight to work on cutting down the big logs on the ground as well as the small trees and branches that were in my way.

The people here seem to be very friendly, but at the same time, something doesn’t feel quite right with things.  Three people stopped to talk to me while I was clearing the lot. Nothing out of the ordinary, until they get to the goodbye part. The first one sounded a lot like the guy from all the Adam Sandler movies. The one no one can understand and he always gets misunderstood. His street name was Froggy. He was showing me how to find the metal stake markers that mark the plot lines and offered his services for tree trimming and excavating.

The second guy, Jason, is a contractor builder and is currently building his ninth home just down the street from us. He had very helpful advice on which plants to avoid and bugs to look out for. He also let me know to be wary of my step because the ground is cracked and he ended up with a twisted ankle one time by not checking under the brush before stepping. But the most important, it is best to avoid these cracks altogether, as some might lead to a potential lava tube, and if you fell into one of those… well you get the idea. He also offered up his assistance and services. Only this time he asked if I needed a project manager to show me how to get the project done. This would have been helpful, had my prior occupation not have been me doing just that. Only on a much larger scale. Let’s just say it was like building a home in Hawaii, by yourself without ever stepping on the land and seeing the site first, times 50. So I kindly declined his offer and he sped away on his Vespa.

The third guy, Hank, seemed like a really cool guy. He showed me how to identify the Ohai trees, and highly recommended I do not cut down any of them, as there are beetles and fungi currently wiping them out. We talked about many things from work to politics and set up a time to grab some dinner and drinks tomorrow night. He was born on the island and knows it like the back of his hand. This will prove vital for the days to come. I see him as a potential candidate to watch over our place while we are back on the mainland. With a lot more vetting of course. The plan for tomorrow will be to cut as many trees as I can with the chainsaw. I am charging all the batteries tonight, so I should have plenty of juice. I have five 20v batteries and one 60v flex battery. This means I can go a long time without having to recharge while clearing the lot.