Aloha!

Things I love about the state of Hawaii:
*People actually say "howzit" to greet someone and say "yeah?" after every other sentence... e.g. "Howzit! You drivin the black truck today yeah?"
*No tailgating
*The food!
*I can drive all over the entire island in under 3 hours, unless it's rush hour in Honolulu (that alone takes about an hour)
*Aloha shirts
*Sunsets over the ocean
*Locals think it's really far if you have to drive over 30 minutes to get somewhere
*Rice is offered as a side for every single meal option
*No racism towards what most people back home would consider minorities, here it's just the white tourists who get looked down on
*Healthcare... every employer is required to provide a generous healthcare package to any employee working over 20 hours/week. In my case, this means free health and vision and only $10/month for dental. The plan pays 100% of costs with a very small or non-existent copay or deductible. It starts within one month of employment.

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There's a couple things I don't like (there's not much to dislike about this place)

Getting directions...

examples of actual directions I've received:
*Just go up a ways
*Head toward town
*Just go north, you'll run right into it
*Keep the mountain on the left, and you'll be good
*Is the sun in front of you? If it is, you're heading the right way
*Just head up the mountain, I'll meet you at the road
*It's just up the road, I don't know the exit number. We don't go by numbers
*I'll stand outside my house. Just look for me

I guess the locals don't use mileage. I'd be surprised if they even knew what an odometer is. No matter how many times I've asked "how many miles away is it? What's the street number?" I can't get a straight answer.

Potholes...

The roads here are horrible. I'm not sure if it's the amount of vehicle traffic across them or the softness of the ground underneath, but there are potholes everywhere. HUGE frakkin' potholes. Some of the roads have steel plates laid across them because the potholes are too big and just keep coming back.

Roaches...

Another thing that seems to be everywhere. The roaches here must be really resilient. They're big and light colored. I've seen them in gas stations, at nice restaurants, and every single place we've lived has had a problem with them. Perhaps I'm building up a resilience to them as well, because after the first few times I freaked out and stomped on them, they stopped "bugging" me. They've just become a part of island life. Even in the restaurant, where I should have been completely grossed out, I just laughed it off and turned it into a joke at the dinner table. We set out feeder traps and have sprayed in the apartment so we're not seeing them as often at least, but I know they're there... just waiting to help me finish off my cereal. (I put the cereal in air tight containers, just in case!) I actually had one climb up under my pants leg and crawl around on my calf while I was sitting on the couch. That was almost my undoing. After that, there's nothing here that can faze me.