Thursday, May 6, 2010

Things You Don't See in My PNW Neighborhood

If you only saw Oahu from the airport
to Waikiki Beach,
you might want to jump back on your airplane.

This area is....
umm....
interesting.....
and boasts of things not seen in my PNW neighborhood.

 
 The homeless seemed very comfortable
 in this beautiful city park.
This guy even has a wicker table.

 
This is not a camping spot. 
This is a city park.
This guy even has multi-colored tarps
and a cooler.

I guess they aren't chased out in this neighborhood.

 
Laundry is frequently seen hanging on balconies,
in garages, along fences.
They are honestly green,
not just boasting,
but taking action. 

Many of our housing areas forbid hanging laundry.



 I guess sleeping on the beaches is fine, too.

The rules in this island neighborhood are different, too.
Riding without helmets is legal.

 I was a little worried about these kids.
I understand why laws are created to protect people.

 This run down bus  was one of many
that really sell food. 
On the other side there were
picnic tables full of feasting people.
I don't think this neighborhood has a Health Department
that inspects these "kitchens."

 I would love to find these yogurts
in my neighborhood.
The flavors were amazing!

 My 7-11 doesn't sell these snacks.
Some were good,
some were interesting,

some were disgusting.

We read the fine print and found out
IKA is squid.
Not the jerky we buy
in our PNW neighborhood.

 My sickly philodendron is in a pot
the size of this leaf.

This is a gun range.
Yep, right next to the highway.

My kids were jealous to see these kids chasing birds on the beach.


Once, we were almost kicked out of a museum because
one of my kids, along with a few guests from Paraguay,
chased a pigeon.

The museum employee threatened us by yelling,
"It's HIS home!"

Another time, a child of mine was yelled at by several PNW moms,
for chasing ducks at the beach. 
OK, he also threw a football,
while chasing the ducks away from our lunch,
but  he did miss by a mile.

I always thought it tragic that they valued the duck's well-being,
more than my son's.
He wasn't scarred for life,
but I was.

Even though there were interesting things
that made me thankful for my PNW home,
Hawaii is still
Hawaii.

And,
you don't see this sight,
in my PNW neighborhood.

4 comments:

  1. Oh, the memories are just great! That is a very funny picture of your daughter. I do have to agree with you that the trees are just so facinating that you have to take a picture. When I was in Southern California this fall, it was the trees, especially the palm trees and the joshua trees that facinated me the most (and the 90 mile per hour speed).

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  2. Beautiful, and what fun. I would have made the same face had I been eating squid.

    It is true, there is no place like home. But if I could move a palm tree and maybe the ocean to Iowa I might give it a shot!

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  3. It is great that every place on earth is different! Else it would be so boring.
    Hawaii always sounds so glamourous from this side of the world.

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  4. I like the homeless people on the beach. Takes the glam out of it for me. Different cultures...

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