November 14, 2003

Spread a Little Aloha

Well, I have tried to post a few times this week but have been real busy doing shop stuff and all that. However we have had some really interesting stuff go on here. I will tell this story but just like usual, Im not using real names, as this is a small island and the word gets around.

Over the weekend we had a run in with our wonderful NOT... Neighbors. Lets call them Mom and Dad BandPeople. He is a strange person. He doesn't work, but stays home and lets his wife support him and their now grown terrorist teenage sons, and their girlfriends, one of which in a rage ran her SUV through another neighbors rockwall fence causing huge damage, and nothing seems to be able to be done about it as far as we know as the girl is a blue tarp person (technically homeless). We hear "Dad " (I use the term loosely as he hates these boys and says often that he wishes that he had never had kids and that they are the cause of all of his misery. Maybe he should have thought of that before he kept siring them ) There are altercations constantly, yelling, cursing at the top of their lungs ( This man wins the contest we used to have as teens of how many times can you use the "F" word in a sentence...27 times is a row he said it one night...) " Dad" also is a locally well known musician who has his own band, and has been used to rehearsing them whenever he feels like it, all hours of the day and night. When we first moved in we protested this to the association who gave us the name of his land lord and the name of the owner of the house. He is a tenant and has been there from some time. The association contacted Dad and told him to get over and make peace with us as we were about to talk to the landlords. ( Turns out he had a running feud with the previous owners of our house who sold to get away from him, but didn't tell us that...Nice eh? Hows that for Aloha?) I think that there has been a lot of trouble there, but I am getting ahead of myself.

We did make peace. We said that we wouldn't go to anyone with out going to him first about anything that we thought was a problem...Dad agreed to make peace and not play on Sunday, our day at home, as we observe the Sabbath and try to both get that day off. He has 6 days a week until 6 pm to rock and roll. It has gone well for a year and a half or so I thought.

Woody and I were asleep when we were startled awake by the sound of grinding wheels near our bedroom window. This chick with the SUV has been staying next door and we thought that she was on the rampage. So we ran out and low and behold it was Dad, moving his decrepit van right next to our window...We its about 15 Ft but the 1 foot high wall and the palm trees were no protection or noise block. Woody was livid but calm, and watched as Dad sat there revving the engine pumping exhaust into our house swearing, grinding the locking wheels. Woody went up to him and asked him if he knew what time it was and did he realize that our bedroom window was right there. He started cussing Woody out saying that we were the biggest trouble makers and that we were trying to run the block and who are we to say that he cant do this or that... I was stunned. This guy went on to say that we had not not kept our part of the bargan that there had been all of these complaints, everything from the band to that they were raising chickens and pigs...pigs?I laughed, and said "no I don't think so, not pigs.. You can tell if someone has a pig by the smell"... He was going back to playing on Sunday. F__K us and whatever...He went on and on how we were the reason that he had all of these troubles and if we would just go back to the mainland where we belongah... There it is again.....He would be fine. Everything was fine till the house was built, but we have ruined it all...(the house was built in 1997 by other people, how can this be OUR fault and what does that have to do with this matter of 6am noise?) Woody could hardly get a word in as this madman ranted at us (quite like he rants at his sons, no wonder they are so angry?)

Woody told him he was sorry that he had all of these issues, but we were concerned about the girlfriend and her habit of turning walls into drive-thrus and didn't fancy her and her SUV as bedmates. Dad didn't hear anything but said we were liars and that we had broken our word, many times over and that he never had a problem with the neighbors until we came. Now for the last few years (we have been there less than two years but who's counting?) Hes had all of these complaints and its just us... At that point Woody said no that he had had to go to the police for another issue ( boy he really freaked out then "The Police! The Police! You went to the police about me. I knew it ! I knew it!!You lying fu--ing haoles(white people but he's white too, passing as a local Hawaiian)...No, we went as there is a peeping tom looking in our window....There was too, but that isn't the main reason we went to the Police. We were concerned that Dads kids were squatting in a house close to us using candles for light and the yard for a toilet...But we didn't say that.

Dad stopped ranting...and said " I knew it, that guy in the back, always cutting his trees, hes the one. Hes a peeping Tom." Im thinking "How does he know that? That house is an acre away, and Dads house is on stilts, way high. No one could look in. He's paranoid of everyone...he's certifiably crazy"

Woody said "Dad, when we gave our address, they said "oh you live next door to Dad and Mom BandPeople, we are always going out there for something," just like that. So things have been going on long before we got here and since we like the chickens (the wild chickens) and have worked out this arrangement with you about the band which has been fine with us, why would we mess that up and maybe there are other people that are not happy with the situation. We have never called the cops on you. So somebody must have.? We never filed a report on you the first time." He said he didn't believe us as he had had to come to us the first time and no one would have reported him and that we were the worst. Bad for the block which had always gotten along...(he ment put up with him) Woody said "How can we be bad for the block? We go to work, we come home, we go in the house, we stay in our house. No parties no groups of people comming over. We don't play loud music, have a noisy dog or burn our trash like a lot of people do around here. So why are we the bad ones? He said "Because you are neither patient or tolerant with anyone!" Like he is???? I cracked up laughing and walked away. But came back.

More cussing the sons. More apologies from us. Mom was out at this point. I waved at her way up on her balcony and said "Sorry to be meeting you like this...Hi" and she waved back. She started calling to her lunatic husband to come on... He started up about Sundays and she shook her head and called him again. It ended with Woody apologizing again, and he got Dad to shake his hand. So perhaps it did end on a good note

I worry that we will have a difficulty with Sundays now. I will just call the police and will report him to his landlord, telling the whole story. If he abides by the deal, I will hold my peace.

By the way his landlord is the same one that I have for the shop. Doesn't that make it easy. Will has dealt with me for a long time now and knows that I am neither a liar nor a troublemaker. These people are, but I feel sorry for the Mom.

And I think she feels for us, as Dad made gaff after gaff, she was helpless to stop it, just as we know that she cant stop the fighting with her sons and their father. What a shame it is. I feel badly for the sons... As bad as it was for us as we were growing up, my parents never never gave us any indication that we were not wanted. I said when Dad said that we were lucky to not have had kids, I said that I would have given anything to have had three sons like he had. That selfish bastard told me to take them. I wish that I could have years ago, to give them a proper home.

I was very worried about our house and the cats and all, but Woody the soul of reason in this situation was optimistic. Mom doesnt want the boat rocked and they are likely on the out with the Association due to the wall incident. Their youngest and Miss SUV were the squatters in the vacant house. After the row which resulted in the smashed wall they were told by the cops to get out and stay out. We saw the boy with his meager clothes walking dejectedly from the shack. The two older boys are one the Mainland now with family, Im sure that the youngest will join them soon.

Woody did good, really good. In fact I am so proud of him that the feeling has hung on the whole week. He was calm, and said and did everything that could be done to diffuse a very difficult situation.

It all really is about the people who are here hope that the people who come here like us, don't stay. We, the newcommers are the ones that ruin Hawaii. Well, its going to take a lot more than new faces to ruin East Hawaii. In fact, if ruining means the "Kaikodoization" of Hilo and all of the improvements that brings then bring it on. (restaurant Kaikodo is that beautiful restored building that I went to the meeting of Destination Hilo back in September, I know that I blogged about it)I know that the marginal people like Mom and Dad BandPeople fear that they will not be able to live here like the hippies they once were. (grow up for Petes sake...get real jobs or something...)

I want to write more about this idea that the locals want us to just give up and go home. Im not going. My life depends on staying and stay I will. Hawaii is my 'aina too.
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