Back in Ninole, where life is good. I finally have Internet connectivity (thanks to a Verizon card), which helps a lot. Still no kitchen, though, or potable water, so I still drive to Hilo in the morning.

Work on the house is slower even than feared. There are a few drywalls in, the staircase down is closer to final, and the inspector had only three things to complain about:

1. The bannisters of the main lanai were spaced too far apart (but he's essentially complaining that the building code is too lax in the matter)
2. The master bathroom has no ventilation (which then turned into not enough ventilation)
3. The windows of the master bedroom are too low and it's too easy to fall out. He requires screens to be mounted and screwed in place to prevent a fall

That's all good. The mountain is still white in snow, the weather is dreadful (cool and cloudy) and the storms that have been hitting California lately are not going to leave this place alone. There was even a dam break in Kaua`i that killed a few people.

Meanwhile, I am sitting at the Starbucks, typing on my computer, waiting until it reaches 100% load and working with folks in Menlo Park. Right now, my morning is their lunch time and I am waiting for them to come back.

Speaking of which: the mosquitoes are back, too. Ferocious as ever. Thank goodness I found an enormous tent for sale at Walmart (12x10, about three times the size of my current affair) and life is easier in it.