How many farmers start contemplating their retirement when they are approaching Medicare age? That is my issue now, especially since my wife continues to fantasize about moving to Hawaii. It is probably responsible to do some research before moving.
For the second time in 3 years, we visited Hawaii during the winter. My wife, Cora, and I went to the same hotel, Moana Surfrider, on Oahu, as we did for our honeymoon in 2022. From our 3rd floor room, we could hear the surf on the beach. I highly recommend this historic hotel if you ever get the chance. Our balcony overlooked the courtyard and the historic Banyan tree, with a fantastic view of the ocean sunsets.
This visit we were able to snorkel twice, once in Hanauma Bay and again in the deep-water Turtle Canyon. We saw multiple whales while aboard a boat our captain said was the last one to escape the Lahaina Harbor during the catastrophic fire. We rented a scooter to visit Manoa Falls, the Diamond Head and Koko Head craters, and to scour some of the residential areas to see what houses were selling for.
It is well known/documented that it is very expensive to live and vacation in Hawaii. This time we rented a car for one day, so we could visit the entire island. The jeep we rented was a ridiculous bargain; it took us to the north shore where we watched surfers on some monstrous waves. We circled the island clockwise with multiple stops. One quick jaunt from the shore inland took us only about ½ mile before the terrain seemed to go straight up a mountain. When we returned to the main road from our dead-end, we watched wild pigs dart in front of our vehicle. I can now scratch seeing wild pigs from my bucket list. Giovanni’s shrimp truck did not disappoint, as well as a stroll on Kailua and Lanikai Beach. The Lanikai Pillbox Trail was grueling compared to our hikes to Waimea and Manoa falls.
I have determined that there would not be much of an opportunity for me to farm in Hawaii if we moved there. Farmland is expensive and coveted for the expansion of residences on the island since most of its land is too steep for anything else. I did find one opportunity for me since I do know a bit about wildlife. They appear to have a problem with skunks in Hawaii and need exterminators. We were sitting at our beachside café when skunk essence wafted over us several times. I noticed skunk odor on several trails and even walking on downtown sidewalks in Waikiki. I noticed skunk odor when exiting the Aquarium, Fort Derussy Military Museum and the Lucoral Museum.
If you do not get my skunk reference, you probably need to google the words, “skunk odor and marijuana.” Hawaii only allows marijuana legally with a medical card, but a recent law decriminalized it below a certain threshold. That is why I thought I smelled a skunk so many times, but never saw any.
Since I cannot move my farm to Hawaii and raise guava, papaya, pineapples (which take 18-months to mature and I am too old to wait that long) or coconuts (which I despise), the only logical solution is to grow marijuana.
Now back to the car rental. We paid $106 for a breakfast buffet for 2 at our hotel; pricey, but it was amazing. We paid $136 to rent a tiny scooter for 4 hours, $26 for 2 hotdogs from a poolside café, and the ridiculous amount of $25.13 for 2 shaved ices from a street vendor. The Jeep rental was only $84.02 for a full 24 hours; I cannot fathom why that was such a reasonable rate. I can truthfully admit I have no idea what marijuana would have cost, medical or black market. That is probably some research I should have conducted if I am truly considering growing this commodity, I mean medicine, wink-wink.
I guess I must return and continue my research. To be continued.
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