I took a rest day today to relax, sleep in, clean the house, and start my graduate school application statement of purpose essays. Right now I'm considering three schools for a Master's degree: Oregon State University, where I'd work with my advisor from last summer and continue my senior thesis project (a Marine Geology degree in the Oceanography department), and either the University of Oregon or the University of Hawaii-Manoa grad programs, where I'd be working toward a Physical Volcanology degree.
This is pretty exciting, because I remember in Jr. High I was really interested in Oceanography and Volcanology, so it's nice to actually realize that dream. Then again, I also wanted to be the first female President...
All three applications are due at the beginning of January, so I have to apply while I'm still volunteering. I'm not too stressed right now because I think I have a pretty good head start on the process, but the time passes so quickly here. If anyone has advice about the grad school application process, I'd love to hear it!
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Richardson's Beach
We took last Sunday to get groceries in Hilo and use the government car to get to Richardson's beach - one of the best beaches in Hilo (doesn't compare to Kona beaches, but it'll do). We played Hana fuda while sitting in the sand, and Katie and I lost 6 times in a row against Reid, Fred, Kevin, and David. I still haven't won a game - there's not even a strategy involved! It's supposed to be just luck!
I spent some time trying to pick out the pretty green olivine crystals, but laying down in the gravelly-sand is not the best idea:
The exciting part of the day was seeing this turtle swim its way through a channel to the open water. I love turtles!
After the beach we went to see Public Enemies at the $1 theater in Hilo. My next plan: buy a ukulele in Hilo sometime...
I spent some time trying to pick out the pretty green olivine crystals, but laying down in the gravelly-sand is not the best idea:
The exciting part of the day was seeing this turtle swim its way through a channel to the open water. I love turtles!After the beach we went to see Public Enemies at the $1 theater in Hilo. My next plan: buy a ukulele in Hilo sometime...
The Lu`au Aftermath
The lu`au was a tremendous success. The temperature in the imu was measured at 194 degrees using a thermocouple (the tool that you use to probe lava), and a pig is supposed to be sanitary at 170 degrees. It was the MOST delicious pulled pork I've ever tasted. Here's me between the pig under the tarp and the sheep on the spit (I really liked that hat):
Once the pig came out, a friend of Jack Lockwood's used the shoulder bone to mash the meat and the fat together in order to maximize the flavor. I was surprised that the pig came out falling apart, but it smelled really good!
Here's Katie and I sampling Frank's infamous homemade beer - the best homebrew ever!
It was raining on and off all day, so Loren, Kevin, the drummer named Jeremy, and Reid jammed out under the tent.
And we got to take a huge plate of food home, which we're still working through.
Once the pig came out, a friend of Jack Lockwood's used the shoulder bone to mash the meat and the fat together in order to maximize the flavor. I was surprised that the pig came out falling apart, but it smelled really good!
Here's Katie and I sampling Frank's infamous homemade beer - the best homebrew ever!
It was raining on and off all day, so Loren, Kevin, the drummer named Jeremy, and Reid jammed out under the tent.
And we got to take a huge plate of food home, which we're still working through.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
A Bona Fide Lu`au
I can now add to the number of eccentric older famous geologist celebrities that I've met. Yesterday, Jack Lockwood (a friend of Walter Alvarez, so Jack was excited to meet other Carleton graduates) invited us volunteers to a special lu`au celebrating the release of his new volcanology textbook, as long as we helped dig the imu oven and prepare the pig. It seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so most of us jumped at the opportunity. This wasn't some fake lu`au organized for tourists where they aren't allowed to give the tourists the roasted pig meat and there are hula dancers everywhere. This is bona fide.
We drove out to rural Volcano to a huge, sprawling and messy farm where they killed the pig (I set up the tables so I didn't have to watch the slaughter and become a vegetarian) and we helped to set up the oven. It was basically a big pit under a tin shack where we piled `ohi`a tree wood high and covered it with stones. I didn't post any graphic pictures of the pig.
These are the materials - a pit, rocks, banana stumps, tea leaves, `ohi`a wood, and dirt.
Here's Katie and the pit pre-wood...
We piled the kindling on, but apparently it wasn't enough for the giant pig, so we had to take all of the rocks and larger pieces of wood off and start again. This time we did Pele proud. I've also learned that volcanologists tend to be pyromaniacs.
We were at the farm from 10-3 for this stage of the process. At 6 pm they lit the fire, and we returned at midnight to help put the pig on the rocks. We definitely earned our invitation!
At midnight we smashed the banana stumps to cover the glowing rocks (the wood had all burned away), and we carried the 100-lb pig to the pit using hooks thrust through the lower legs. Frank (an HVO geologist who was in charge of the whole process) cut pockets in the shoulders and rump of the pig, and we put thin round glowing rocks inside the pockets and belly to facilitate the cooking. The entire pig was smoking, but it didn't really smell like bacon.
The final stages included covering the remaining glowing rocks with the squashed banana stumps, wrapping the pig in tin foil and wire like a giant hot pocket, and covering the pig with banana leaves, tea leaves, wet burlap sacks, a tarp, and finally piling dirt back on top. It was extremely smoky due to the rocks in the pig as well as the burning wood.
We'll see how it turned out soon! We start eating the pig at 2 pm. I'll post more pictures and let you know how it went later today.
We drove out to rural Volcano to a huge, sprawling and messy farm where they killed the pig (I set up the tables so I didn't have to watch the slaughter and become a vegetarian) and we helped to set up the oven. It was basically a big pit under a tin shack where we piled `ohi`a tree wood high and covered it with stones. I didn't post any graphic pictures of the pig.
These are the materials - a pit, rocks, banana stumps, tea leaves, `ohi`a wood, and dirt.Here's Katie and the pit pre-wood...
We piled the kindling on, but apparently it wasn't enough for the giant pig, so we had to take all of the rocks and larger pieces of wood off and start again. This time we did Pele proud. I've also learned that volcanologists tend to be pyromaniacs.
We were at the farm from 10-3 for this stage of the process. At 6 pm they lit the fire, and we returned at midnight to help put the pig on the rocks. We definitely earned our invitation!
At midnight we smashed the banana stumps to cover the glowing rocks (the wood had all burned away), and we carried the 100-lb pig to the pit using hooks thrust through the lower legs. Frank (an HVO geologist who was in charge of the whole process) cut pockets in the shoulders and rump of the pig, and we put thin round glowing rocks inside the pockets and belly to facilitate the cooking. The entire pig was smoking, but it didn't really smell like bacon.
The final stages included covering the remaining glowing rocks with the squashed banana stumps, wrapping the pig in tin foil and wire like a giant hot pocket, and covering the pig with banana leaves, tea leaves, wet burlap sacks, a tarp, and finally piling dirt back on top. It was extremely smoky due to the rocks in the pig as well as the burning wood.
We'll see how it turned out soon! We start eating the pig at 2 pm. I'll post more pictures and let you know how it went later today.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Musings
On Friday afternoon during lunch I had a great conversation with Ken, Kevan, and Loren (all older HVO employees) about life, marriage, kids, and being ready to make big decisions. Ken offered a really wise statement, which was "The only difference between energy that drains you and energy that invigorates you is your own attitude." It was really great listening to those guys, both for feeling part of the HVO community as well as hearing life advice from men rather than women. It was interesting to get a different point of view. It seemed like both Kevan and Loren weren't ready for kids, especially since Kevan isn't ready for a second dog, and Loren was weighing kids versus waxing his surfboard. Funny guys.
Also, during work I was logging articles into the HVO's huge abstract database, and I came across an article from EARTH journal about the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain and the possibility of hotspot movement (the topic of my senior thesis at Carleton). It quoted Anthony (my advisor from last summer at OSU), and mentioned that he was going back to the Louisville seamount chain to get more data. If I choose to work with him next year in graduate school - which he really wants, apparently - then I'd be going on that data cruise, too, most likely. I thought that was pretty exciting. The project is definitely on the forefront of marine geology!
One final exciting find - I was thinking about entering my AGU abstract from last fall into the database because it relates to the Hawaiian seamount chain, but when I searched for it in the database it was already there! Anyone want an autograph?
Also, during work I was logging articles into the HVO's huge abstract database, and I came across an article from EARTH journal about the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain and the possibility of hotspot movement (the topic of my senior thesis at Carleton). It quoted Anthony (my advisor from last summer at OSU), and mentioned that he was going back to the Louisville seamount chain to get more data. If I choose to work with him next year in graduate school - which he really wants, apparently - then I'd be going on that data cruise, too, most likely. I thought that was pretty exciting. The project is definitely on the forefront of marine geology!
One final exciting find - I was thinking about entering my AGU abstract from last fall into the database because it relates to the Hawaiian seamount chain, but when I searched for it in the database it was already there! Anyone want an autograph?
Waikupanaha the Sequel
On Thursday night myself, Katie, David D., Matt P., and Dave S. went to the Kalapana Cafe before heading to the touristy Waikupanaha overlook. You may recognize photos of the ocean entry from lava day, but I'm pretty sure that at that point I didn't know the official Hawaiian name. It's a little confusing because the ocean entry plume is called Waikupanaha, but the original vent that is sourcing the lava tube is called Kupaianaha. Crazy fun Hawaiian words...
The Kalanapa Cafe is a small outdoors local restaurant that serves "high-brow" plate lunches and really great hamburgers. I don't know if there's a place with a great hamburger reputation (like pizza in Chicago/New York, beer in Germany, etc.), but Hawai`i should be it.
As we were eating outside in the garden/picnic-style tables, there was a banjo player who started playing "Wagon Wheel" by O.C.M.S., which was the Carleton geology campfire anthem for a number of years. Good memories!
The plume was much more exciting this time around, although we weren't nearly as close. Luckily, David D., another volunteer, had the great idea of bringing his gigantic binoculars, so we could actually see the lava streaming out the tube (occasionally), and small bits of lava bursting out of the littoral explosions.
I also love the reactions and comments of tourists whenever they start talking about the geology, because in 99.9% of situations they say something ridiculous or downright wrong. A few classic and hilarious questions that have been asked and are quoted frequently include, "When will the volcano evaporate?", "Where's the ocean in the crater?", and "I heard the volcano is supposed to erupt today - do you know what time?" As we were walking to the lookout point, a woman was saying that Mauna Loa hasn't erupted in hundreds of years (it erupted in 1984), and Kohala was just declared dormant (it's the oldest volcano on the island and hasn't been active for ~120,000 years). Once we got there, another woman loudly exclaimed, "You brought me here for this?! I can't see anything!"
This is a video of the activity that I recorded through the binoculars!
The Kalanapa Cafe is a small outdoors local restaurant that serves "high-brow" plate lunches and really great hamburgers. I don't know if there's a place with a great hamburger reputation (like pizza in Chicago/New York, beer in Germany, etc.), but Hawai`i should be it.As we were eating outside in the garden/picnic-style tables, there was a banjo player who started playing "Wagon Wheel" by O.C.M.S., which was the Carleton geology campfire anthem for a number of years. Good memories!
The plume was much more exciting this time around, although we weren't nearly as close. Luckily, David D., another volunteer, had the great idea of bringing his gigantic binoculars, so we could actually see the lava streaming out the tube (occasionally), and small bits of lava bursting out of the littoral explosions.
I also love the reactions and comments of tourists whenever they start talking about the geology, because in 99.9% of situations they say something ridiculous or downright wrong. A few classic and hilarious questions that have been asked and are quoted frequently include, "When will the volcano evaporate?", "Where's the ocean in the crater?", and "I heard the volcano is supposed to erupt today - do you know what time?" As we were walking to the lookout point, a woman was saying that Mauna Loa hasn't erupted in hundreds of years (it erupted in 1984), and Kohala was just declared dormant (it's the oldest volcano on the island and hasn't been active for ~120,000 years). Once we got there, another woman loudly exclaimed, "You brought me here for this?! I can't see anything!"
This is a video of the activity that I recorded through the binoculars!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
The Butterfly Princess Palace
A quick photo of the three Butterfly Princess Palace princesses (Katie, Fred, me) on our balcony with our new gaudy jewelry!
The Hike to `Apua Point (aka The Hike That Lacked Turtles)
Monday afternoon was surprisingly spontaneous, as I ended up leaving work early to pack for an overnight trip to `Apua Point. The 'Turtle People,' as we affectionately call the group who lives nearby and monitors turtles all summer, reported a recent Hawksbill turtle hatching at the beach. I wanted to see for myself, and another HVO volunteer wanted to hike out there, so we packed up sleeping bags and food to spend the night looking for turtles.
The hike was 6.6 miles one way, and since we started after work, we barely got to the beach before the sun set around 7:15 pm. I was exhausted after the hike - I'm still not quite acclimated to the intense heat and the lack of shade on the lava flow fields, so 6.6 miles on a flow field seems like a longer trek than 6.6 miles in a Minnesotan forest trail.
We met a pair of turtle people at the beach, so they showed us where the turtle nests were, and were generous enough to offer two of their cots for us to use. Here's the turtle nest (picture taken the next morning; no baby turtle tracks, unfortunately):
The horizontal lines are drawn in the sand by the Turtle People, to track the movement of the turtles. They woke up each hour until 2 am to check if the turtles hatched, and they stay on the beach for 6 nights in a row. The beach was very beautiful, but I don't think I could handle that much time sitting around. I think turtles are fascinating, especially because of their long nesting journeys. According to a reliable source, the chances of a baby Hawksbill sea turtle's survival is about 1 in 3,000. I wonder what the human population would be if we had that survival rate... What do you think?
After sunset, the sky was completely clear and the stars were glorious (I write about the night sky a lot, but it's so spectacular that it takes me by surprise every time). It stayed clear all night, so when I woke up at various moments I tried to pick out how the constellations moved throughout the night. There were also huge waves that crashed rhythmically all night - it was the ultimate soothing soundtrack. We slept under a palm tree, and asked the Turtle People to wake us up if they saw any turtles:
Hilina Pali is in the background, for a reference point. We had to be back at the HVO for work before noon, so we started hiking at 7:30 am. I knew it was going to be a rough hike when I was sweating before we even started. Apparently the wind is supposed to be strong along the coast, but on Monday the wind was taking a day off, and the heat intensified.
We reached the car at 10 am, after I consumed ~4 liters of water and thought I was never going to make it. My hikes in Israel, Italy, Haiti, Ireland (on a hot day) could not compare to this hike. Even after sitting in the car and cooling down, I could still feel the sweat dripping. I won't go into any more detail, but you get the picture - I was disgusting. Unfortunately, we didn't have a key to the house, so we went back to the HVO and back to work in our sweaty clothes for the rest of the day. Ewwww...
And we didn't see any turtles.
The hike was 6.6 miles one way, and since we started after work, we barely got to the beach before the sun set around 7:15 pm. I was exhausted after the hike - I'm still not quite acclimated to the intense heat and the lack of shade on the lava flow fields, so 6.6 miles on a flow field seems like a longer trek than 6.6 miles in a Minnesotan forest trail.
We met a pair of turtle people at the beach, so they showed us where the turtle nests were, and were generous enough to offer two of their cots for us to use. Here's the turtle nest (picture taken the next morning; no baby turtle tracks, unfortunately):
The horizontal lines are drawn in the sand by the Turtle People, to track the movement of the turtles. They woke up each hour until 2 am to check if the turtles hatched, and they stay on the beach for 6 nights in a row. The beach was very beautiful, but I don't think I could handle that much time sitting around. I think turtles are fascinating, especially because of their long nesting journeys. According to a reliable source, the chances of a baby Hawksbill sea turtle's survival is about 1 in 3,000. I wonder what the human population would be if we had that survival rate... What do you think?After sunset, the sky was completely clear and the stars were glorious (I write about the night sky a lot, but it's so spectacular that it takes me by surprise every time). It stayed clear all night, so when I woke up at various moments I tried to pick out how the constellations moved throughout the night. There were also huge waves that crashed rhythmically all night - it was the ultimate soothing soundtrack. We slept under a palm tree, and asked the Turtle People to wake us up if they saw any turtles:
Hilina Pali is in the background, for a reference point. We had to be back at the HVO for work before noon, so we started hiking at 7:30 am. I knew it was going to be a rough hike when I was sweating before we even started. Apparently the wind is supposed to be strong along the coast, but on Monday the wind was taking a day off, and the heat intensified.We reached the car at 10 am, after I consumed ~4 liters of water and thought I was never going to make it. My hikes in Israel, Italy, Haiti, Ireland (on a hot day) could not compare to this hike. Even after sitting in the car and cooling down, I could still feel the sweat dripping. I won't go into any more detail, but you get the picture - I was disgusting. Unfortunately, we didn't have a key to the house, so we went back to the HVO and back to work in our sweaty clothes for the rest of the day. Ewwww...
And we didn't see any turtles.
Friday, August 14, 2009
The Lava Strikes Back
And the font color goes back to red, in honor of the slowly-rising lava lake level in Halema`uma`u crater. Last night I was invited to enter the caldera with two of the HVO scientists who wanted to check out the glow close up. And I survived!
This is a picture from the crater overlook, slightly to the east of the big vent, so you can see the different colors of the crater walls (the slope in the distance is where the HVO and Jaggar museum are). All photos and video in this post are property of USGS. The wall of the big vent is just barely in the bottom left hand corner...
This is the 180 degree view from the picture above, so you can see the thick plume, and Matt (a USGS volcanologist) is using a thermal camera to image through the plume. There are now two 'hot spots' within the vent where the lava can be observed using this camera.
Before I entered the caldera, I never really thought about what a volcano would sound like on a regular, relatively non-active basis. When I was looking over the ledge, down into the vent with the smelly plume in my face (I was wearing a respirator, don't worry), and my eyes burning, I heard the near-constant huffing of the released gas and a few ominously invisible, and rather loud, rockfalls. Basically, it sounded as though some frustrated creature was hurling glass China plates against a wall. Janet, another scientist, was trying to record these sounds with a fancy new microphone, although I'm not sure how successful it was.
Finally, here's a short video I took of the plume activity and the surrounding environment. We stayed until it started to get dark, in order to observe the glow. Unfortunately Matt and Janet weren't too impressed, but I thought it was great. Apparently, two months ago they could stand where we were and see the surface of the lava lake through the plume. Hopefully Pele will be generous again within the next few months!
This is a picture from the crater overlook, slightly to the east of the big vent, so you can see the different colors of the crater walls (the slope in the distance is where the HVO and Jaggar museum are). All photos and video in this post are property of USGS. The wall of the big vent is just barely in the bottom left hand corner...
This is the 180 degree view from the picture above, so you can see the thick plume, and Matt (a USGS volcanologist) is using a thermal camera to image through the plume. There are now two 'hot spots' within the vent where the lava can be observed using this camera.
Before I entered the caldera, I never really thought about what a volcano would sound like on a regular, relatively non-active basis. When I was looking over the ledge, down into the vent with the smelly plume in my face (I was wearing a respirator, don't worry), and my eyes burning, I heard the near-constant huffing of the released gas and a few ominously invisible, and rather loud, rockfalls. Basically, it sounded as though some frustrated creature was hurling glass China plates against a wall. Janet, another scientist, was trying to record these sounds with a fancy new microphone, although I'm not sure how successful it was.Finally, here's a short video I took of the plume activity and the surrounding environment. We stayed until it started to get dark, in order to observe the glow. Unfortunately Matt and Janet weren't too impressed, but I thought it was great. Apparently, two months ago they could stand where we were and see the surface of the lava lake through the plume. Hopefully Pele will be generous again within the next few months!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
It Glows in the Dark!
The most recent news from Halema`uma`u crater is the return of the glow! The lava pond level has risen to the point where there is a soft, warm glow from the vent that is visible at night. Of course, a higher lava level doesn't mean an imminent eruption, so don't worry. On Monday night, a few dorm kids and I drove to the crater overlook near the Jaggar museum to enjoy the glow. Check out the lava pond on June 3rd. This churning a few months ago was preceded by a glow, so we're hoping to see more churning soon!
The most beautiful aspect of Monday night was, in my perspective, the contrast between the crisp and clear star-lit sky to the northeast and the amorphous glow through the plume and clouds in the crater to the southwest. It was too dark to get a picture that any of you would appreciate, but take my word for it - the night was gorgeous. The residents of Hilo purposely dim their lights every night to make the astronomers on Mauna Kea happy. You can imagine the result: shooting stars galore.
Fun fact: Did you know that, to the ancient Egyptians, Vega was the North Star?
In other news, today was my third work day in the HVO library, and I'm thoroughly enjoying myself. Every Monday there's a meeting with the entire staff to go over the previous week's volcanic activity, so at the meeting for this week my boss introduced me to everyone. It's a close-knit community here, and I already feel like I'm part of it (well, almost). At lunch some of the staff play a spirited Japanese card game called Hana Fuda, and they get so worked up over it that I'm really tempted to join in sometime.
My favorite part of working at the HVO is the conversations I have with my library boss, Jane. She's already such a mentor to me - yesterday I asked her for advice about my grad school situation, and today she said she wished her son would find a girl with a personality similar to mine (but don't worry, Kevin! She knows I'm taken). Today we had a hour-long talk about different styles of cooking, and sometime she's going to introduce me to a world-famous bookbinder who lives in Hawai`i.
It's fantastic to be in an environment where she just tells me what she wants me to do and then trusts that I can do it well. I also really enjoy feeling like my book-repairing skills are needed.
Yesterday I passed the breathing test required to wear a respirator and enter the caldera! It was a little nerve-wracking beforehand because I was thinking "If I don't pass this test, how can I hope to work as a volcanologist?" I've been worried this entire time that my asthma would act up due to the elevated SO2 levels and would ruin my chances of researching (and living, I guess). Apparently my lungs are just as good as anyone else's!
If any of you make it to the end of this post, here's my mailing address at the HVO:
Lauren Colwell
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
P.O. Box 51
Hawai`i National Park, HI 96718
I love snail mail (I'm not sure about larger packages, though). Do it.
The most beautiful aspect of Monday night was, in my perspective, the contrast between the crisp and clear star-lit sky to the northeast and the amorphous glow through the plume and clouds in the crater to the southwest. It was too dark to get a picture that any of you would appreciate, but take my word for it - the night was gorgeous. The residents of Hilo purposely dim their lights every night to make the astronomers on Mauna Kea happy. You can imagine the result: shooting stars galore.
Fun fact: Did you know that, to the ancient Egyptians, Vega was the North Star?
In other news, today was my third work day in the HVO library, and I'm thoroughly enjoying myself. Every Monday there's a meeting with the entire staff to go over the previous week's volcanic activity, so at the meeting for this week my boss introduced me to everyone. It's a close-knit community here, and I already feel like I'm part of it (well, almost). At lunch some of the staff play a spirited Japanese card game called Hana Fuda, and they get so worked up over it that I'm really tempted to join in sometime.
My favorite part of working at the HVO is the conversations I have with my library boss, Jane. She's already such a mentor to me - yesterday I asked her for advice about my grad school situation, and today she said she wished her son would find a girl with a personality similar to mine (but don't worry, Kevin! She knows I'm taken). Today we had a hour-long talk about different styles of cooking, and sometime she's going to introduce me to a world-famous bookbinder who lives in Hawai`i.
It's fantastic to be in an environment where she just tells me what she wants me to do and then trusts that I can do it well. I also really enjoy feeling like my book-repairing skills are needed.
Yesterday I passed the breathing test required to wear a respirator and enter the caldera! It was a little nerve-wracking beforehand because I was thinking "If I don't pass this test, how can I hope to work as a volcanologist?" I've been worried this entire time that my asthma would act up due to the elevated SO2 levels and would ruin my chances of researching (and living, I guess). Apparently my lungs are just as good as anyone else's!
If any of you make it to the end of this post, here's my mailing address at the HVO:
Lauren Colwell
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
P.O. Box 51
Hawai`i National Park, HI 96718
I love snail mail (I'm not sure about larger packages, though). Do it.
Pikos and Petroglyphs
Last Sunday, Fred, Katie and I drove down the Chain of Craters Road to see the Pu'u Loa petroglyphs. These drawings were carved into the 400-700 year-old lava flow by generations of Hawaiians. Pu'u Loa means "hill of long life," and it was the destination of many Hawaiian families when they introduced a new baby to the land. Some of the petroglyphs represent men, but the most common drawings were circles or small holes.
When a baby was born, the family carved a hole (puka) into the land and placed the baby's piko, or umbilical cord, into the hole and covered it with a small rock. The parent's hope was that the mana (spiritual guiding energy) of Pu`u Loa would bless that child with a long and prosperous life, and root them to their ancestral lands.
Nearby the petroglyphs is the Holei sea arch. It was pretty cool, too.
I'll update tomorrow about my library adventures thus far. It's been a hectic day!
When a baby was born, the family carved a hole (puka) into the land and placed the baby's piko, or umbilical cord, into the hole and covered it with a small rock. The parent's hope was that the mana (spiritual guiding energy) of Pu`u Loa would bless that child with a long and prosperous life, and root them to their ancestral lands.
Nearby the petroglyphs is the Holei sea arch. It was pretty cool, too.
I'll update tomorrow about my library adventures thus far. It's been a hectic day!
Tropical Storm Felicia
...was more than just a little disappointing. It turns out that Madame Pele intimidated Felicia so much that she decided to change directions and hit the northerly islands instead. Our new friends who just arrived from Maui (aka the other two volunteers Reid and Tyler) report that there was only horizontal rain for about 10 minutes (enough to make the tourists retreat indoors). It's misty here right now, but that's about it. No harsh rain, no gusting winds.
Here's hoping that a more courageous Tropical Storm comes around sometime before December.
Here's hoping that a more courageous Tropical Storm comes around sometime before December.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Volunteering: It Doesn't Pay
For anyone who enjoys the title of this blog post, you should check out Busted Tees. I'd recommend entertaining yourself with this website for short periods of time. After that, you just get too overwhelmed with the hilarity. Make sure to hover your mouse over each one for the commentary...And feel free to share which one is your favorite!
See, I'm distracted even writing about it - what I meant to write was that so far, living in the USGS dorm is pretty great. The house has two floors: the men live in the downstairs part that they deemed the "Mancave," and the women live upstairs in the "Butterfly Princess Palace." Katie and I are sharing a room upstairs, near the living room (with a table, a couch, some chairs, lots of books and games, and a TV) and the kitchen (complete with two refrigerators and an ant infestation in the cupboards - they almost claimed my peanut butter last night).
Here are the pictures, so that I don't have to spend time describing everything:
This is the outside of the house - there's a picnic table, clothesline, and a hammock out back (no geologist's home would be complete without a hammock).
This is part of the living room - you can see the image of Tropical Storm Felicia on the computer screen. It looks like the eye of the storm is almost larger than the Big Island, and it's headed straight for us. It'll be a helluva ride on Monday/Tuesday!
This is the other part of the living room, complete with a futon (I feel so at home!) and volcano posters. You can see into my room from this view...
And, finally, here's my bed (and the end of Katie's bed). I know, it's not that exciting, but at least I won't hit my head anymore, and I like the Hawaiian topographic poster from USGS...
So that's the grand tour (the basement looks like men live there, just take my word for it). As for the people, so far we've met Fred (a girl from just north of Paris), and Kevin, who's from British Columbia and plays really good music from the speaker system at all times. This morning Katie and Fred went to the farmer's market, and later today I think Fred, Katie, and I will drive around the park and hopefully see some features that we haven't seen already. Then we start work tomorrow!
P.S. If any of you want postcards, email me your address and I'll do my best. Email: lecolwell@gmail.com.
See, I'm distracted even writing about it - what I meant to write was that so far, living in the USGS dorm is pretty great. The house has two floors: the men live in the downstairs part that they deemed the "Mancave," and the women live upstairs in the "Butterfly Princess Palace." Katie and I are sharing a room upstairs, near the living room (with a table, a couch, some chairs, lots of books and games, and a TV) and the kitchen (complete with two refrigerators and an ant infestation in the cupboards - they almost claimed my peanut butter last night).
Here are the pictures, so that I don't have to spend time describing everything:
This is the outside of the house - there's a picnic table, clothesline, and a hammock out back (no geologist's home would be complete without a hammock).
This is part of the living room - you can see the image of Tropical Storm Felicia on the computer screen. It looks like the eye of the storm is almost larger than the Big Island, and it's headed straight for us. It'll be a helluva ride on Monday/Tuesday!
This is the other part of the living room, complete with a futon (I feel so at home!) and volcano posters. You can see into my room from this view...
And, finally, here's my bed (and the end of Katie's bed). I know, it's not that exciting, but at least I won't hit my head anymore, and I like the Hawaiian topographic poster from USGS...
So that's the grand tour (the basement looks like men live there, just take my word for it). As for the people, so far we've met Fred (a girl from just north of Paris), and Kevin, who's from British Columbia and plays really good music from the speaker system at all times. This morning Katie and Fred went to the farmer's market, and later today I think Fred, Katie, and I will drive around the park and hopefully see some features that we haven't seen already. Then we start work tomorrow!P.S. If any of you want postcards, email me your address and I'll do my best. Email: lecolwell@gmail.com.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
The End of CSAV
Today Katie and I make the transition to the HVO guest house to begin our volunteering adventure, and the last of the other CSAV students leave for the airport. To mark this occasion, I thought I'd wrap up the past few weeks by posting photos that most of you haven't seen yet.
This is the Holo Holo In driveway - you can get a sense of the wild vegetation.
My bottom bunk (I've hit my head so many times - you don't even want to know).
This is the KOEC classroom down the street from the Holo Holo.
My charred burrito on lava day! I am so excited to eat this thing...
Our professor Chris setting up the seismograph on lava day. We didn't really get any high frequency events like we thought we would. There were probably too many helicopters messing up the signal.
Lava bon bons! Imagine rolling a snowball...except with hot, mushy lava.
Philippe and I after figuring out how to set up our static GPS station. We were so proud!
Annie and Dr. Don Thomas taking a gas sample from Sulfur Banks in the National Park. If we had inhaled the gas (poisonous amounts of CO2, SO2, and H2S) near the vent, we probably would have collapsed. I was the only one who had a gas mask (in case of an emergency), so I wore it only to scare the tourist's children. It was a fun time.
Katie, Karen and I in our touristy Hawaiian dresses!
Okay, that's it for now. If anyone wants to stay somewhere in Volcano, I highly recommend the Holo Holo In!
This is the Holo Holo In driveway - you can get a sense of the wild vegetation.
My bottom bunk (I've hit my head so many times - you don't even want to know).
This is the KOEC classroom down the street from the Holo Holo.
My charred burrito on lava day! I am so excited to eat this thing...
Our professor Chris setting up the seismograph on lava day. We didn't really get any high frequency events like we thought we would. There were probably too many helicopters messing up the signal.
Lava bon bons! Imagine rolling a snowball...except with hot, mushy lava.
Philippe and I after figuring out how to set up our static GPS station. We were so proud!
Annie and Dr. Don Thomas taking a gas sample from Sulfur Banks in the National Park. If we had inhaled the gas (poisonous amounts of CO2, SO2, and H2S) near the vent, we probably would have collapsed. I was the only one who had a gas mask (in case of an emergency), so I wore it only to scare the tourist's children. It was a fun time.
Katie, Karen and I in our touristy Hawaiian dresses!
Okay, that's it for now. If anyone wants to stay somewhere in Volcano, I highly recommend the Holo Holo In!
Monday, August 3, 2009
The 'Paradise' side of the Big Island
This past Saturday, a small group of budding volcanologists drove across to Kona, away from the comfort of Kilauea's fumes and toward the hot, crowded, beautiful, surfable tourist beaches. In any other situation I hate being the obvious tourist who doesn't belong, but in Kona, the natives stand out while the tourists swarm the landscape in cliche Hawaiian shirts and sundresses. That being said, it was wonderful to be so conspicuous!
We started the day at Punalu'u beach near South Point. We didn't stay long, but right before we left two sea turtles managed to make their way onto the shore. The closest we could get was 5 or 6 feet away. They didn't seem to mind us.
From there we continued the drive to Kona, and we arrived around lunchtime. We wandered in the dry heat for a while (it was definitely the stereotypical Hawaiian destination) and finally found a cafe place named "Bongo Ben's" where we had lunch (and all different kinds of tropical colorful drinks!)
After lunch we stopped at a classic ABC store - apparently there's one every few blocks in Honolulu - and Katie and I bought Hawaiian print sundresses to blend in with the tourists. There are all kinds of interesting and cheap souvenirs in those stores...which some of you may or may not receive...
Our destination then became Hapuna beach, a fine-grained, shallowly sloping, white sands beach about 20 minutes from Kona. We got there around 4ish, hoping that the tourists and small children would leave to eat dinner, and the beach cleared out within the hour. The waves were huge - at least, the largest I've ever experienced - at 4 to 6 feet tall. They were powerful enough to pull you under briefly into the sand if you didn't jump high enough or were trying to bodysurf.
This is a movie to illustrate both the height of the waves, Philippe's hilarious last-minute jumping, and Shaun's spectacular bodysurfing abilities (he's the one with long hair at the end that looks like seaweed).
And...after a few hours at the beach, finally, the sunset is gorgeous. From left to right: (top) Anson, Shaun, Josh, Philippe; (bottom) Karen, Katie, and me.
But, the adventure wasn't over. We spontaneously decided to drive all the way to the Mauna Kea Observatory Visitor's Center at an elevation of 9,200 ft, near the summit of Mauna Kea. It was freezing at the top, but we were courageous enough to stand in the wind to see a double star in the Big Dipper. Unfortunately the moon was bright and it was a little cloudy, otherwise we might have driven to the summit.
The big kick we got outta this stop was this sign that was posted near the door. Invisible cows...umm...what?
The drive was somewhat epic, in that we drove from sea level to 9,200 ft, back down to sea level in Hilo (we stopped at a 24-hr pancake house for snacks at 11 pm), and then back to 4,000 ft in Volcano. I must have been feeling better, because my ears tolerated the extreme altitude changes well. So there, Mom.
We started the day at Punalu'u beach near South Point. We didn't stay long, but right before we left two sea turtles managed to make their way onto the shore. The closest we could get was 5 or 6 feet away. They didn't seem to mind us. 
From there we continued the drive to Kona, and we arrived around lunchtime. We wandered in the dry heat for a while (it was definitely the stereotypical Hawaiian destination) and finally found a cafe place named "Bongo Ben's" where we had lunch (and all different kinds of tropical colorful drinks!)
After lunch we stopped at a classic ABC store - apparently there's one every few blocks in Honolulu - and Katie and I bought Hawaiian print sundresses to blend in with the tourists. There are all kinds of interesting and cheap souvenirs in those stores...which some of you may or may not receive...Our destination then became Hapuna beach, a fine-grained, shallowly sloping, white sands beach about 20 minutes from Kona. We got there around 4ish, hoping that the tourists and small children would leave to eat dinner, and the beach cleared out within the hour. The waves were huge - at least, the largest I've ever experienced - at 4 to 6 feet tall. They were powerful enough to pull you under briefly into the sand if you didn't jump high enough or were trying to bodysurf.
This is a movie to illustrate both the height of the waves, Philippe's hilarious last-minute jumping, and Shaun's spectacular bodysurfing abilities (he's the one with long hair at the end that looks like seaweed).
And...after a few hours at the beach, finally, the sunset is gorgeous. From left to right: (top) Anson, Shaun, Josh, Philippe; (bottom) Karen, Katie, and me.
But, the adventure wasn't over. We spontaneously decided to drive all the way to the Mauna Kea Observatory Visitor's Center at an elevation of 9,200 ft, near the summit of Mauna Kea. It was freezing at the top, but we were courageous enough to stand in the wind to see a double star in the Big Dipper. Unfortunately the moon was bright and it was a little cloudy, otherwise we might have driven to the summit. The big kick we got outta this stop was this sign that was posted near the door. Invisible cows...umm...what?
The drive was somewhat epic, in that we drove from sea level to 9,200 ft, back down to sea level in Hilo (we stopped at a 24-hr pancake house for snacks at 11 pm), and then back to 4,000 ft in Volcano. I must have been feeling better, because my ears tolerated the extreme altitude changes well. So there, Mom.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)