When my family and I decided to move to the Big Island, we thought we would only be here for one year. Due to the fact that we love it here, however, we have found deep friendships and have made business contacts so we can find employment, we have decided to stay. So, you ask, why the title of this post? Mixing it up.
The Big Island is a terrible place to live because:
1. You send pictures of what you did on the weekend to your friends on the mainland and they write things like, "I used to like you," "Stop, you're killing me!" "Can't you please keep it down?"
2. Once you stay on the Big Island for any length of time, you feel the energy of the land and the people. When you leave the island, you can't shake the feeling that you are missing a part of yourself.
3. You can't imagine going back to a major city center. I used to love going to big, fancy shopping malls, watching movies in big theaters with hundreds of fellow movie goers, and watching people wearing the latest fashions. Now, I can't imagine dealing with the traffic anymore. I can now show up five minutes late to a first run movie and get a good seat. Fashion does not own me anymore. I used to work to afford expensive shoes, the latest seasonal dress, and new suits. I wear sandals and flip flops, shorts, tank tops and on occasion a sundress. I don't spend much on clothes anymore, and with the extra time I have not working to afford it, I sit on a beach with my kids.
4. You have to drive slow. And let people in. You actually have to relax on the highway, because since many residents practice the Aloha Spirit while driving, there is very little, if any honking. Most people who ride people's bumpers, are from California on their way back to the airport.
5. You can't rest when it's a blue day. Since you always feel like you are on vacation, it's very difficult to look outside from your computer and not have the feeling that you should be out swimming. Or running. Or surfing. You feel the same way about laying around in your house with a book. You feel guilty that you are not out enjoying another day in paradise.
6. You can't get anything done when people come to visit. If someone came to visit us in the Bay Area, they usually had other family members or friends to visit. Or they would come for dinner and go about their trip. Here, they live next door to us for a week. And since we are the consummate lovers of adventure and travel on this island, we can't say no to taking friends and family to the best snorkeling spots, dining with a sunset view and sharing umbrella drinks, coffee farm tours or 4 wheeling to remote beaches. Nope, your days are shot.
7. You meet people who make you re-evaluate your diet. There are many organic farmers on the Big Island. They talk about pesticides, genetically modified seeds, and commercial farming and livestock handling and how that affects your health and your spirit. You don't realize it all at once, but you find yourself touring local farmers markets and giving tropical foods a try. You purchase island grass fed beef, no GMO dairy products from island dairy farmers, and you think about planting a garden yourself and growing vegetables. You find yourself blessing your food and really understanding where it came from. Isn't that crazy?
8. Sunscreen? Hats? Swim shirts? You better have plenty because you find yourself walking on sunny trails, strolling through bright outdoor markets, swimming in tide pools, reading on a beach, driving in a convertible, exploring a volcano or heaven forbid, hiking down into a sacred valley.
9. You can't wear big, fat, heavy coats. Or thick scarves. Or shovel snow out of your driveway. Or have your car skid on black ice. (caveat..unless you go up to Mauna Kea above the 9,000 foot visitors center. Then all bets are off on the above complaint)
10. You can not commiserate with your friends on Facebook or Twitter when they say things like, "It's going to be 114 degrees today in Scottsdale" and another says, "It's 112 here in Tucson" and then finally from Phoenix, "My car thermometer says it's 120. Please, kill me now." Nope, you can not jump into those conversations with a knowing statement. Conversely, you can only offer condolences when your friends send pictures of the four-foot snow drifts left by a recent blizzard.
11. And the last thing I have to say about why this island is a terrible place to live... you see people standing on the walk way outside of the hotels and resorts with their bags packed waiting to go home. And you feel sorry for them.
