This always happens after coming back from vacation. The temptation and ideas of moving. Being born and raised on an island, you don't get to see or experience what its like to "travel". Driving anywhere for more than 30 minutes is considered a commute. I was a Navy Brat and remember traveling all with my family. Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles, Anaheim, Dana Point, San Diego, and the Phillipines. All before I was 10 years old.
I remember riding on the back of my Dad's motorcycle when I was 9 years old in California. We'd ride for hours. From Santa Ana to Dana Point, to wherever the road took us. My dad told me, if I felt myself falling asleep, bang my helmet on his back. How could anyone fall asleep on the back of a motorcycle with all the sights to see. And, it was cold. I remember our one trip to Dana Point to overlook the beach was amazing. It was a long but beautiful ride. In California lane sharing is legal. It was scary at first riding between the cars and hoping no one would cut us off. But you got used to it and soon it was nothing to be in between cars in traffic.
The point of that story is that although I grew up here on Oahu, I did live with my Dad for a short time in Cali and after coming back home, I always missed those rides and drives. Driving up to Tahoe for a skiing trip was one of the most memorable road trips I've ever taken. We played with the radios and spoke to truckers on the way up. It was so much fun! Then you come back here, to the rock. Where you drive 4 hours, you can only go in one big circle. Life never changes here. It's the same shit different day. The ONE thing that changes is the growth and development on this small parcel of land that only creates more congestion.
I remember riding on the back of my Dad's motorcycle when I was 9 years old in California. We'd ride for hours. From Santa Ana to Dana Point, to wherever the road took us. My dad told me, if I felt myself falling asleep, bang my helmet on his back. How could anyone fall asleep on the back of a motorcycle with all the sights to see. And, it was cold. I remember our one trip to Dana Point to overlook the beach was amazing. It was a long but beautiful ride. In California lane sharing is legal. It was scary at first riding between the cars and hoping no one would cut us off. But you got used to it and soon it was nothing to be in between cars in traffic.
The point of that story is that although I grew up here on Oahu, I did live with my Dad for a short time in Cali and after coming back home, I always missed those rides and drives. Driving up to Tahoe for a skiing trip was one of the most memorable road trips I've ever taken. We played with the radios and spoke to truckers on the way up. It was so much fun! Then you come back here, to the rock. Where you drive 4 hours, you can only go in one big circle. Life never changes here. It's the same shit different day. The ONE thing that changes is the growth and development on this small parcel of land that only creates more congestion.
We have ONE main freeway the H1 and two other freeways that venture off to other sections of the island (H2 and H3). The one thing I love about the mainland is the ability to take other routes to go somewhere. You're not forced to sit in gridlock to get to point B because of lack of roadways. We continue to build more and more homes and never expanded our roadways for the growing population.
Then there's price. It's costs an arm, leg, butt, head, and face to live in Paradise where the weather is always around 80 degrees and the sun shines every day, even through rain drops. Space and land is at a premium. What we paid for our house here in Hawaii, we could've got a 5 bedroom mansion in Las Vegas or Texas even. So why do we stay? Because we want our kids to have the same experiences we did when we were growing up. Being 5 minutes away from a beautiful beach at any given time. Knowing the worst weather we'll ever experience is heavy downpours and even at that, it's rare. Being surrounded by family and knowing we can call for auntie and uncle any time of day or night and they'll be there no matter what.
The aloha spirit cannot be found in any other place than here in Hawaii. Here's an example:
When we go to the beach, we ALL watch out for each others kids, not just our own. If we see a baby walking towards the water or tumbling somewhere, we don't just stare and watch and go "oh my look at the baby." WE GET UP AND HELP. You won't see that anywhere else. You don't ever have to worry about being stranded somewhere with a flat tire. Cause there's always someone you can call or someone who is nice enough to pull over to help.
So, although I may gripe about the pitfalls of being stuck on an island, don't get it twisted. I do love living here and do appreciate being able to raise my family here. I can't say the same for many. Life may be slower, traffic will always suck, and there will always be drama (no matter where you go), but to know that I am at "home" is the best thing ever.
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