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As deadly wildfires raged through Northern California, my husband, Don, tried desperately to stay in touch with his aunt, uncle and cousins, who have been growing grapes and making wine since 1970 in Sonoma County’s Alexander Valley.
His aunt had put her heart and soul into restoring the old wooden farmhouse that overlooked the vineyards and gardens the family planted. Their home was surrounded by beautiful native oaks that now posed a risk of igniting like torches.
“At least all we have to worry about is nuclear attack,” Don said, referring to North Korea’s tests of missiles that could theoretically reach our islands. The all-too-immediate and devastating California conflagrations put this and other more remote threats in perspective.
For many Hawaii residents, the volcano-spewn gases and particles known as vog bring asthma, coughing, headaches, skin rashes and irritated eyes, but our local haze was overshadowed by the thick, toxic black smoke that blackened California skies and rained ash as far south as San Francisco Bay.
We are, and should be, alarmed by the rise of rat lung disease, caused by a parasite that attacks the nervous system of people who ingest it. Thus far this year, 17 cases, one on Oahu, have been diagnosed in the state. However, the disease can be avoided by carefully inspecting and washing the leafy greens on which the slugs, snails and their larvae that carry the parasite are sometimes found. Infested or chewed leaves should be tossed; cooking greens thoroughly kills the parasite, but raw greens, such as lettuce in salad, pose more of a risk.
Because the disease carriers thrive in Hawaii’s warm, humid climate, some individuals, retailers and restaurants are choosing mainland rather than locally grown produce. But my husband keeps buying lettuce and greens from the farmers he’s been patronizing at the farmers market every week for eight years.
He buys locally grown because it’s fresher and tastes better, but most of all to support our local farmers and economy.
Many of the farmers have become friends, in this Saturday-morning community on the mauka side of Diamond Head Crater.
AT THE same time, below the crater’s makai rim, our surfer community gathers at Suis. Here the nuclear threat feels more clear and present because one of our regulars, Hal (not his real name), crews on the Sea-Based X-Band Radar, the 280-foot-tall floating sensor, nicknamed the “golf ball,” that is charged with detecting and intercepting ballistic missiles in midflight.
In the lineup, Hal seems unperturbed by his weighty job. He makes fun of his surfing mishaps and, like other surfers, gets home improvement and retirement-planning tips from Captain Cal, who retired eight years ago and calls Suis his office.
When Don and I go on vacation, the Captain, who lives across the street, walks the perimeter of our house every day to discourage burglars.
Francois, who lives behind us, collects our mail and feeds the cat.
Our next-door neighbor, a hedge-funder who retired at 45, sweeps the dead leaves from our carport.
It takes a neighborhood to be secure.
We’ll thank them with a dinner: grilled local veggies and grass-fed steaks, a local-lettuce salad and pie baked with local lilikoi and eggs.
Look at Puerto Rico, an island nation, where, after Hurricane Maria, 3.5 million people remain largely without power, food or clean water. That could happen to Hawaii — and hoarding isn’t the answer. We’ve got to support our local food system and protect our aquifers.
I’m happy to report that our California family not only survived a close brush with the wildfires, but picked and brought in their Cabernet sauvignon grapes on schedule. That’s something to toast at our next dinner with our neighbors.
“In the Lineup” features Hawaii’s oceangoers and their regular hangouts, from the beach to the deep blue sea. Reach Mindy Pennybacker at mpennybacker@staradvertiser.com or call 529-4772.
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