Category Archives: Series

Buddy, can you spare a tire

A spare tire on a car in Hawaii

I saw this tire on a car parked outside the local Costco Tire Center. In the U.S., this kind of tire is known as a donut, a temporary tire intended to get the car to the nearest garage for a proper fix. Those labels on the wheel explain, in four languages, the limitations of this spare tire together with the speed that should not be exceeded.

Judging from the state of the tire, I suspect the driver didn’t pay too much attention to those warnings.

Black and white, some in color

Black and white cars in Kailua Kona in Hawaii
I was photographing the building, but realized later that all the vehicles were white except for the one black one. What are the chances?

This week’s Sunday Stills color challenge theme is ‘Black (and/or) Black-and-White.’ See more responses here.

Black straw-filled tubes in Hawaii
A writhing mass of straw-filled sausages, used to prevent runoff from a building site.
Black and white image of clouds over Upolu Airport in Hawaii
Clouds over Upolu Airport.
Black and white image of a large tree in Hawaii
Tree branches towering overhead.
Tires stacked in a shipping container in Hawaii
Tires in a shipping container.
Black and white image of a fan in Hawaii
A building fan.
Black and white image of the Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea in Hawaii
The Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea.

Window gazing

The historic Aloha Theatre in Kainaliu.
A broken window at Spencer Beach Park, Hawaii
A window in an abandoned building at Spencer Beach Park.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Windows.’ See more responses here.

Also posted for Monday Window. See more here.

Windows at the Hapuna Westin Resort, Hawaii
Windows at the Westin Hapuna Beach Resort.
Windows at the Hapuna Westin Resort, Hawaii
The full array of windows at the Westin Hapuna Beach Resort.
Buildings at the old Coastguard Station in North Kohala, HawaiiBuildings at the old Coastguard Station in North Kohala, Hawaii
Buildings at the old Coastguard station in North Kohala, one boarded up, the other refurbished.

The Numbers Game #88

A green turtle swims in the waters of the Big Island of Hawaii.
A Green Turtle swimming by, taken from shore while waiting for a tour boat.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 210. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

Citrus Swallowtail Butterfly.
A Java Sparrow giving me the look.
A warning sign even though there are no wild donkeys here anymore.
Surf breaks at Mahukona in North Kohala.
High surf at Mahukona.
A crescent moon and palms in black and white
Crescent moon and palms.
Unloading a barge at Kawaihae harbor.

Trouble boiling?

A sign at Boiling Pots in Hilo, Hawaii

I was in Hilo yesterday, and I visited a few places I hadn’t been to in a while. One was Boiling Pots, part of Hilo’s Wailuku River State Park. It’s a beautiful spot, but the river can be dangerous when it’s roaring, so it’s plastered with warning signs.

As you can see, the signs don’t impress everyone. In truth, this group was probably perfectly safe. The river was as low as I’ve seen it. It’s been dry all over the island and the forecast for the day was more of the same. But it’s not the rain in Hilo that causes the river to run, it’s what’s happening on the slopes of Mauna Kea. And while the forecast was good, forecasts can be wrong, as I think we’ve all experienced. But people will be people.

Frankly, the signs at Boiling Pots are something of an eyesore, but the county has to try and cover itself. If those folks did get swept away, their next of kin would likely lawyer up and hold responsible anyone and everyone, except for those who should have known better.