Cupcake Experiment

If you want something done, give it to a busy person.  Not sure who first said this, but it is absolutely true (most of the time).  I am, by nature, a busy person.  Then we moved to the islands.  Living in Hawaii for a short period of time led to the decision not to get a job, since it would have only been for a couple of months (long, complicated, roller coaster story).  In lieu of paid employment, I've been diligent about finding productive ways of spending my time.  This is the first time I've been completely unemployed in about 20 years.  I don't like the feeling, but I have come to terms with it, taking the opportunity to learn, contribute, be creative, and happy in new ways.  The glass is full, yada, yada.

The Honolulu Zoo took me in with open arms.  From volunteering once a week in the keiki (kid) zoo to working at the summer weekly concerts to pitching in for the annual fundraising gala.  The initial project I was tasked with for the fundraiser was one part of a much larger whole of the silent auction.  Within a couple of weeks of involvement, I agreed to more and more pieces until the 10 days prior to the event when the zoo consumed my whole life.  Don't get me wrong; it was wonderful to be busy, adrenalin pumping, to-do lists all over the place, laundry piled up high, falling asleep before my head hit the pillow...though for a few days leading up to the event, the stress level was ridiculous, had to miss hula class, and I was completely disconnected from everything.

All of this is meant to paint a picture of what life was like in our house on Sunday evening the week of the Friday night event.  For some reason, at 9:15pm, I decided that there was no time like the present to make cupcakes.  Plus, cupcakes are meant to be shared, so I was planning to take some to the zoo office in an attempt to keep morale high during crunch time.

Our friend recently moved away from Hawaii and gave us a bag of grocery items, which included a can of frosting and cupcake papers.  I bought a box of Betty Crocker a couple of weeks ago so we could have a little cake treat some rainy day.  But, did I mention that we live in Hawaii?  Every day is a rainy day but never a rained-out day. Any day can be a cupcake day!

One other thing to share: our furnished, leased condo doesn't come with a muffin pan or any other baking dish, and oddly, I was too cheap to buy the $4.99 pan I saw at Wal-Mart.  Since our friend had also given us a huge roll of aluminum foil, I was sure I could finagle something to make cupcakes with and not spend any more money.  I believe this is relevant information because having cupcake papers while only living in a place for a few months, seems kind of odd (not that this post is odd or anything).  Just justifying why I had them.

The pictures below illustrate the steps I took to make cupcakes, which I would not recommend, mainly because there are other activities in life worth this effort.  It did present a new challenge and reason to get the camera out, plus a break from ironing polyester tote bags.

Yep, that's the bottom piece of a broiler pan.  We use it to make rolls, cinnamon rolls, and now, cupcakes.  Why isn't there a cookie sheet in this place???

Trial and error led me to cutting a strip of foil about 3 inches wide, folding it, and wrapping the piece around the cupcake paper container before dropping the single paper inside.

Had to use all the colors and make sure the colors didn't repeat too many times.

Kept the number manageable.  This is not the method one should use when making cupcakes for a large group or classroom, obviously.

 Golden, still the proper shape, fluffy...success!

 

It was too late to frost them all, so I just made two for Jeff and me to taste-test.

Very yummy.

I was surprised by how many people were happy to see cupcakes at the office, especially since there happened to be a chocolate cake and a cheesecake for a staff birthday.  All the cupcakes got eaten, receiving rave reviews.  Betty Crocker doesn't disappoint.

What was I saying about giving tasks to busy people?  I'm the kind of busy person that likes to add in a little sweetness to my otherwise overloaded plate.  There's always room for dessert.

Pele's Impressive Show

In the months leading up to our trip to the Big Island, I watched news reports of events happening at the Kilauea Volcano, which included lava lakes filling, oozing, falling and some lava flows into the ocean.  I also paid attention when all went quiet in the crater, outside of just plumes of billowing smoke.  This was all of interest since a long-time wish of mine has been to take a helicopter ride over a volcano to see lava flowing.  I certainly didn't want to pay a good chunk of money to fly over a smoking crater, knowing that active lava flows had not been noted in quite some time. 

I was more than thrilled when just weeks before our trip, reports of heightened activity at Kilauea debuted on the five o'clock news.  Lava had been spotted!  We went ahead and booked a helicopter ride, since the company allowed for cancellation within 24 hours.  I had researched reviews, finding that morning times were recommended due to low probability of thick clouds.  So, I requested a 9 am flight, even though it meant driving a couple of hours from the Kona side of the island to the Hilo side early in the day.

What a clear morning it was, the day we woke up prior to sunrise for our helicopter ride.  Stopping at Starbucks on the way made the drive a bit easier, but really, the sunrise over the mountain was gorgeous and kept my full attention for a while.  Jeff sipped his coffee while I rambled on.  I took over as driver at some point, and he dozed.  The trip was easy and took less than 2 hours, so we stopped at a scenic point and took in breathtaking scenery.

After checking in with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters, we crowded in a room with about 15 people to watch a safety video, get our pilot groupings, seat numbers, and flotation device belts.  I got placed in a window seat with Jeff right beside me, and a family of three joined us.  The whole group walked single file to the landing strip area where our chopper flew in, touched down, and parked for us to load. 

The beginning of the flight was pleasant, flying over a few waterfalls, quaint farms, tiny towns, and amongst pretty, puffy clouds.  But, eh hem, nice pilot guy, I'm here for the good stuff, so let's get to the volcano!  Ten or so minutes later, we finally started seeing black lava rock fields.  Seeing the line of where the flows took out trees, homes, and farms was quite astonishing.

A thin line of white smoke was rising out of the Pu'u O'o Crater as we neared.  I had ants in my pants, to say the least.  The pilot was preparing us for the worst, saying that nothing red had been seen in the past day or so.  Well, wow!  There was definitely red LAVA!  It was so amazing!  Not only were there little ponds of it, but there were narrow flows and a few bubbling spots. 

As we circled the crater, more shapes could be picked out where the red and black met.  Oh my gosh!  It was just the coolest experience.  I could've watched it all day, much like when a Zamboni is on the ice; it kind of mesmerizes you.

Pictures absolutely don't do it justice.  The stark contrast between the black and red and the shear size of it all is something that can only be appreciated in person, if then.  I really don't know that the awesomeness can be understandable or truly appreciated.  Too, too neat!

I think we circled the crater 3 or 4 times.  It's difficult to remember since I was paying attention to the birth of new land and couldn't take my eyes off the crater.  What a sad moment to fly away, letting the next helicopter in line take its turn, but we were more than satisfied with what we witnessed!

No kidding, my cheeks began to hurt from smiling so much.  Jeff and I were both so amazed and excited about something that really only lasted 10 minutes.  The pilot shared with us that the area was incredibly clear at the crater and that it's extremely rare for the conditions to be so good for viewing.  He explained that recently it had been filled with smoke, preventing any good views of the lake and flows inside.  Pele was in a good mood.

The final leg of the flight took us over macadamia nut farms and a beautiful coastline.  However, none of it would compete with the sight we'd just witnessed.  We continued to beam as we touched down and prepared to disembark.  The views from the humungous windows were fantastic, and the ride was quiet and comfortable.  The whole experience left us with a high for the rest of the day.

Sip in Paradise

While walking around Kailua-Kona on the Big Island, Jeff and I stopped into a touristy info stand to peruse the flyers and posters.  Naturally, Jeff started a conversation with the lady at the desk, who turned out to be interesting, truthful-seeming, and funny.  Her relocation-to-Hawaii story was one of the most unique I've heard.  She was a talent agent in NYC when she was laid off.  Having a chunk of money to burn (In this economy?) she did a bunch of traveling.  One of those places was the Big Island with some friends.  Of course, she fell in love with it.  After a bit more time situating herself in NYC, she packed up and changed her address to the Orchid Isle.  Wow, the Big Island is WAY, WAY slower than NYC.  Two years later, she's still thoroughly pleased with the decision. No kidding.

Once we'd asked her a couple of dozen questions about things to do on the island and with whom, best company for this...best place to grab a...had she been to...etc, Jeff wanted to know one of her favorite places to grab a drink and watch the sunset.  Her recommendation was the Four Seasons, roughly 15 minutes up the road.  At 5:30 and with messy beach hair, we valeted the car and checked out the grounds a bit at the Four Seasons Resort at Hualalai.  Holy mackerel!

Since sunset was nearing, we made our way to Beach Tree and were immediately impressed by its "barefoot elegance" and glorious views of the ocean.  I was so glad that there was an open table near the perimeter, so we would have an unobstructed view of the Pacific and sunset.  Jeff described our seating arrangement this way: "It's like we walked into a Pottery Barn catalog."  He was so right.  The beautiful wood patio furniture, blue and white cushions, dark metal lanterns, umbrellas, good-looking people all around...exactly like a full page spread in a catalog.  Funny enough, there is a picture of the beach, patio seating, and tree on the opening page of the Four Seasons' website that is either the table we sat at or one over from it.

Refocusing on choosing a drink to enjoy while the sky shifted colors, we glanced through the menu.  I'd recently discovered that I really like a classic daiquiri, not the typical frozen concoction, but a martini-style drink.  Since nothing on the Four Seasons menu screamed, "Drink Me," I went with what JFK and Hemingway ordered regularly, a classic daiquiri.  Jeff decided on his typical rum and Diet.  While waiting for our drinks, we stared at the pristine sand, long row of Adirondack chairs, and a tree (koa?) that appeared to have been expertly painted into the setting by an artist.  Nearby, kids in cute dresses and bows ran around, tumbling on the green lawn.  Several people posed for pictures and strolled by. We sipped.  We smiled.  We kicked back and took it all in.

Along with the tasty drinks came a bowl of mixed nuts, which I really enjoyed.  We talked about people sitting around us, trying to figure out what they did for a living and other random things.  It also came up, more than once, how amazing this and other experiences we've had in the past year have been.  I still think I see fairy dust on my shoulders sometimes.  I'm astounded that we've had far more than one once-in-a-lifetime experience in so many months.  Ridiculous.  Glorious.

Drained our glasses, took in the sights, including a breathtaking sunset of purples and pinks.  After dusk, we copied other folks we'd seen and strolled around the grounds, finding that the pools and lodging mimicked the feel of a magazine photo shoot, to say the least.  I was delighted to stumble upon a hammock, a must-have for our future house.  I mentioned to Jeff that I'd recently read an article about how to successfully and easily get onto a hammock.  Then, I proceeded to tip off, landing under the rope canopy, hard on my duff.  At least we got a good laugh out of the show, and I was thankful I was wearing a bathing suit instead of flashing my underwear.

Walking back toward the lobby and our car, we strayed off the path to the cool sand.  Lights from the bar reflected off the waves just a little bit.  The beach was empty.

Slow dancing on the sand to the sound of an ukulele in the distance and twinkling stars overhead was the highlight of the day.

Sweet Tooth, USA

Hilo, HI is a quaint, somewhat forgotten about town.  Before I ventured to the Big Island, I asked people around O'ahu what to be sure and check out while visiting, mentioning that I was going to have time to explore both sides of the island.  I am surprised, even more now having been there, that the impression of Hilo is so lukewarm.  First off, it was much larger than I anticipated, since everyone talks about and recommends the Kona side.  I figured the Kona area would be more bustling. It's not.  Also, the county seat of Hawaii County is on a calm, quiet bay (one of those rock walls protrudes a ways out to calm the waters for cruise ships and such) and is easily unnoticed when walking the streets checking out shops.

Besides some great restaurants (we loved Cafe Pesto), charming art shops, and interesting goods, there is the best candy shop I've ever been in.  I've probably loaded up small paper bags and the like in a half dozen or so candy shops.  OK, probably closer to a dozen.  Nonetheless, I do have some previous experiences to draw upon and put the Sugar Coast Candy shop at the top of the podium.

What colors!  Oh my, to be greeted by lollipops when opening the fire engine red door and then seeing the Oompa Loompa-size barrels of taffy lined up in the center of the store!  Though there were no actual kids in this candy store at the time, I am sure that all who pass under the door frame must lose at least a few decades when presented with nearly every kind of penny candy, individual chocolates, rock candy, taffy, and dried fruit along with cute cellophane bags and shiny twisty-ties to tote them in.  Strolling down the aisles on a black and white checkered floor was the icing on the cake...er, comic strip inside the Bazooka gum?

For those who will visit a candy store such as this in the future, a few tips:

         1. Walk slowly and look carefully.
         2. Scout out the offerings prior to touching anything.
         3. Look both ways when rounding corners, as the selection will look different from multiple
             vantage points.
         4. Avoid anything you can get at a local grocery store, as some of the magic is in the rarity of
             the pieces.
         5. Never mix chocolate and fruity pieces.  The same rule applies when mint is involved.  Keep
             like flavors together and separated from others.
         6. Shop with other people who find joy in such simple pleasures, so as not to be rushed.

I took my time scouting out the scene and taking pictures.  Jeff tried not to rush me, but it's somewhat in his nature.  He'd already picked a few favorites and a couple new things to try, such as chocolate dipped peanuts, white chocolate covered pretzels, and a couple of Tootsie Pops by the time I'd finished taking photos.  I grabbed a few pieces of dried papaya and pineapple, some licorice wheels, and dark chocolate cranberry clusters.  Amazing.

On our way back to the Kona side of the island, we sampled some of the picks and were not disappointed.  The only let down is that a return trip is incredibly difficult.  I will be sure to share my high opinion of Hilo when the opportunity arises, since it is definitely worth a few hours' visit and a stop in at the Sugar Coast Candy shop at the very least.