home improvement | They went west

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Regularly Scheduled Programming

January 25, 2015

Time flies in the tropics, that’s really the only way to explain the fact that They Went West has been MIA for the last two months. Ok, that’s not the only way, but it is certainly one of them. We’re not ones to make excuses, but with the holidays, visitors, new jobs, a big move, and frenzied dash to the finish line of getting the project house ready to list, a break from the blog was just what we needed.

Before we kick off a stellar year of tropical blogging (or at least semi-stellar year, we are occasional bloggers at best. . .) here’s the low-down on the last few months.

December: It’s hard to name all of the good things that December brought to R and I, but one of the best for sure was my successful thesis defense. I shouted this from the rooftops and every social media platform so most of you are well aware that after two and a half years, 10 courses, and one thesis I am a MASTER. Seems like a strange title doesn’t it? MASTER. Wow. It seems like the grad school + full time work years went all at once and dragged on forever at the same time. It was the hardest two years of my life and now, I can say that it is done, I did it, I passed, and I am pretty sure it helped me land a job in my field in Kauai. Friends and family here on the island tell me that it is not easy to find a job, especially one in your field of expertise, and that pays better (even if only slightly) than mainland jobs. Well, by some miracle, and a lot of hard work I was able to land a job that accomplished all three. If that was all December brought, it would have been more than enough.

But that wasn’t it! R and I got to experience our first island Christmas in December as well. There were things we loved about it and things we missed about CO desperately, but most of all we enjoyed spending it together. We kept some traditions from home (fondue on Christmas Eve – without a fondue pot, that was interesting!) Champagne on Christmas morning (With fresh squeezed OJ), and added some new ones (coconut waffles for breakfast, lounging on the beach even though it was windy and almost chilly!). Facetimed with our families to open presents and enjoy a beverage or two or three together and then just relaxed the day away. We didn’t run from house to house or party to party – we just relaxed. Something that neither R nor myself are very good at.

Now, let’s talk about ringing in the new year – island style. Our neighbors had warned us, islanders do it UP on NYE, and boy they weren’t lying. Fireworks are pretty much illegal in Colorado, and for good reason since the state has been torched every summer by pretty significant wildfires, but to our knowledge no ban exists in Kauai. I think there is a registration process when you buy fireworks here, or something like that, but it sure doesn’t seem regulated in anyway. Our neighbors had fireworks galore. . . big ones. I’m just going to come out with it and be honest. . . I hate fireworks. It’s true. I like them at Disney World or Fourth of July show, but in your neighbors backyard at 3:00 a.m. I’m not a fan. Our NYE revolved around homemade pizza, pajamas and Netflix and that was just perfect! Thankfully our neighbors were nice and didn’t carry on until 3:00 a.m., but that is mostly because the power went out island wide on New Year’s Eve and once all the works were lit, there was nothing else to do but go to bed and hope the power was back on by morning. Thankfully the lights did come back on and the rest of the holiday weekend was spent prepping for the first full week of work since I started the job in December.

January: Nothing like the start of a new year to kick things into high gear (I’m starting to think R and I don’t operate in anything but high gear), we got down to business, me at my new job, Richard frantically working to finish the lower house renovations and last odds and ends needed to get the project house listed. While that was going on, we were also simultaneously closing on our new house – YES!! – NEW HOUSE and getting ready to move. See what I mean, always operating in high gear, never a dull moment! The new house story is one for the next post, but last week we packed up a uhaul with everything we own (kind of nice that everything we own fits in one medium sized uhaul) and headed to the east side of Kauai to settle into the new place.

So, that’s where we are and where we have been for the last 2 months. Life on this little island is starting to feel normal. Not that I know what normal really is supposed to feel like at this point, or if it even really exists, but a routine is starting to take shape and regularly scheduled programming has resumed. The edge is starting to wear off and I’m finding things I really, really love about living in Kauai. New job, new house, new city, same island and it’s all starting to feel so good.

This year I hope to keep bringing you updates about what it is like to live and work in Kauai, How we care for and transform this new house into our home, and what happens with the project house as well. A deeper look at the culture we’ve encountered here and what we’re learning from it. So keep reading, and virtually visiting our little island through the blog. Until next time. . .
XO,
RT

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Workin’ It

November 3, 2014

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I think the closer you get to the equator, the faster time goes. I know that isn’t true, but it sure feels that way. How else could it be November already?! The last month has been an absolute whirlwind and we (ok, Richard) has made enormous improvements to this little house. Before we get to all those improvements here is a quick list of our October highs and lows –

High: I started working part time as a freelance marketing designer and thankfully I have been busy! I’ve been working with R’s sister and her dance studio to start some new communication efforts and recruit new students. So far results have been really great and I absolutely LOVE working this way! I am also two tests away from completing the research requirement for my M.A. and will spend all of the time I can in November wrapping up the final paper. I defend my thesis December 4th so if you don’t see any posts in November, just smile and send calming thoughts my way. However, working from home is starting to give me cabin fever a bit so I’ve decided to apply for outside jobs when I see them come up. I found a marketing position opening at a non-profit garden/education center and would appreciate any positive thoughts you have. It would be such a fun job! All I can hope for at this point is an interview but that would be fantastic!
Low: R made an unwilling and unknown sacrifice to the sea at the beginning of the month in the form of his wedding ring. It’s somewhere it the middle of Kalapaki beach. I hope it turns up in a fish or sunken treasure cove somewhere far away someday, but until then he is running around with a naked ring finger.
High: Best care packages EVER arrived from my family. First we got a HUMONGOUS box of goodies and belated birthday/anniversary gifts for Richard that included our favorites from Trader Joes and Colorado. We got copious amounts of green chile, cookie butter and my personal favorite – caramel apple candy corn (look it up it will change your life!) We also got some amazing home decor with the colorado flag on it and we love showing our CO pride. Then the unimaginable arrived, my sister and her BF overnighted us food from our FAVORITE restaurant at home. Seriously, it was SO GOOD, and tasted exactly like home. We must not get too used to these kinds of deliveries, but we sure appreciated them!
Low: Scorpions. No stings, but still, SCORPIONS. Do not let this deter you from visiting, they are small and they are outside, but they are gross. If I can handle them, you can definitely handle them.
High: New friends/visitors: We had our first non-family visitors stay with us this month. Some friends of friends were on island taking an extended honeymoon to backpack this beautiful little island and what do you know, Hurricane Ana also dropped by the same weekend they arrived. This meant we got to spend two rainy days with awesome new friends exploring our side of the island.
Low: Hurricane Ana – so far we have had 3 major hurricane scares since we have been here. I think Richard and attract bad weather. From 1,000 year floods to out of the ordinary hurricane patterns maybe you should stay away from us 😉
High and Low: We got our HI driver’s licenses, mine said I was a man. It was hilarious, but it also required three trips to the DMV. Yuck!

Ok, now for the stuff you really want to hear, all about dat house, bout dat house (Anyone else have that song constantly stuck in their heads? Well now you do, enjoy…)

I think that R is part transformer robot or at least half energizer bunny because he has worked constantly and tirelessly this last month and this house has seen enormous improvement. First, creepy apartment #1 has been turned into an amazing master suite that is multifunctional. Whoever owns this house after us will have unlimited uses for it. It could be an art studio, a rental, a workout room, you name it! An amazing bathroom has been added to this suite and it got a major facelift in the form of new paint, tile and trim. Additionally R fashioned the most incredible sliding doors for the bathroom and the lanai. They glide effortlessly and look big city apartment chic. This room went from being a bug-infested hot house to a beautiful, multifunctional apartment.

Creepy room number 2 that sits between our kitchen and the room formerly known as creepy apartment #1 is now a screened in Lanai. This room had a head start before we got here as our partners tore out the floor and shoddy shelving, but Richard has turned it into functional and most importantly livable space. In Hawaii people spend a lot of time outside. I mean, of course you do, it’s Hawaii, but really most of our neighbors have their TV’s out in their carports and use the carport as a functional living space. Our house didn’t have that space until now. Now the lanai is screened, tiled, painted, and ever so awesome! We bought a used patio table at a clearance sale at the local habitat for humanity thrift shop and now this room is the one we use the most in the house! We eat out there, work out there, enjoy the cool trade winds when the do show up out there and all in all just enjoy living in this space.

With the completion of these three rooms the improvements to the upper house are almost complete. No idea what we are doing with the super-creepy-under-the-house apartment thing, but that will change soon. R will also be able to start improvements to the lower house soon which means that we are closer and closer to getting another house and another project all the time. Check out some of these amazing rooms! And (shameless plug alert) if you know anyone that needs a contractor in HI, send them our way or at least to MCSquared Design Studio for more information.

Until next time

XO
RT

Ooooh look, pictures!

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A (New) New Chapter

September 25, 2014

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R and I are just past the 2 month mark of our move to Kauai – wow how time flies! We thought that living in Hawaii would slow us down a little bit, get us (ok mostly me) to relax a little, but so far that has not been the case. We did move here primarily for a work opportunity for Richard and to try living in a new place with a different culture than anything we were used to in Colorado. We wanted a little adventure in our life story and what better way to start a new chapter than with a move to a tropical oasis?

For R, this new chapter has brought on a lot of work with a lot more sweat. He is still a do-it-all and do-it-extremely well designer/contractor, but he has been spending anywhere from 6 to 10 hours per day, outside in the crazy heat and humidity crawling under and around this house, chasing electrical wire disasters, repairing shoddy plumbing and just generally fixing the janky additions to the main house. It is exhausting just watching him and a far cry from the basement remodels and kitchen finishes that he was used to in Colorado. It is amazing to see the transformation that this house has already gone through and I can’t wait to see the finished product and find out if we can sell it but more on that later.

The first two months here have been full of new things for me too. If you remember way back to the beginning of the blog I was graciously offered the opportunity to give remote work a try for my job in Colorado. It was a decent job (marketing for the University I went to for undergrad) and there were great days where I loved everything about it, but there were also days where all I wanted to do was run screaming from the building and never come back. Taking the offer to work remotely I thought that moving to this little green dot in the middle of the Pacific would help me find that initial joy I once had for the job and decrease the frequency of pull-out-my-hair-and-scream days, but those days were still there and still frequent. So when the terms of my full time employment were up at the end of August and I was supposed to move into a part time position, I decided that it was best if I declined the temporary work offer and tried to find something else new to fit into this little story about life.

It’s hard to walk away from something that has been part of how you introduce yourself for so long. “What do you do? I work for a university admissions office where I manage email marketing design and communication” is no longer part of my casual conversation and that is weird. I went to college for four years and worked at the university six, so 10 years of my 28 were shaped by that place and the people there. Even on the most frustrating days it was (and still is) so much a part of who I am and what I am capable of. For that I will always be thankful. So with the decision not to extend the position made final, I packed up my bags and headed to Honolulu for one final event as Tessa, Assistant Director of Communications and Marketing. It was a fitting way to end my position since the first event I ever did as an employee was of the same variety just in a different state.

What was really great about timing of everything and the presentation in Honolulu was that it gave Richard and I the chance to island hop and check out the big city for a few days. We stayed in Honolulu for a night and then stayed two nights at my aunt’s house in Kaneohe. We had a blast and fit in a crazy amount of tourist activities. We shopped, dined along Waikiki Beach, visited Pearl Harbor, Byodo-in Temple and the Polynesian Cultural Center, ate Round Table pizza (I was obsessed with this pizza the first time I visited Oahu. It’s good, but not as mind-bending as my 14 year old self remembers) kayaked the bay and had a little time at Kailua beach before catching our late flight back to Kauai. The trip was great but didn’t leave a lot of time to consider how I would answer the question, “What do you do?” now.

I’d love to say that I have a fabulous answer to that question now, but I’m not sure I do just yet. For now I’m spending the days working on my master’ thesis, (proposal is currently under review by my committee at a whopping 42 pages in length and that’s just the proposal!) working on a few freelance marketing projects and deciding if I want to make a go of this freelance situation full time and start my own LLC (shameless plug here. . . Have any marketing or design needs? I’m your gal!), and keeping an eye on job postings and tracking down contact information for people in places I’d like to work. Also trying to enjoy this little green dot in the Pacific just a little.

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