Coronavirus Quarantine Week 5: April 12-18

EASTER SUNDAY! Easter Sunday in quarantine was a pretty quiet day. Makai found his basket hidden downstairs behind the couch. We played legos and a game of Smack It, which were two things he got in his basket.

Dallas made ham and I made scalloped potatoes.

Makai and I went for a walk in the neighborhood and saw some early sprint flowers.

We also saw some new murals being painted on an auto repair shop’s building. Makai thought he would look invisible!

Since all Easter Egg hunts were cancelled, some people were putting eggs in their windows and you could look for them when you walked around. Makai and I put these eggs in our window.

Cousins Noe and Mahea on Easter.

While I was “quaran-cleaning” I found this old Easter card I made for my parents! I don’t know what is going on with the creepy clown on the back.

Lori Lightfoot ain’t playin, even on Easter.

Maybe it was coincidental, but we seemed to have received this as a direct response of makai declaring that he does not Ike kimchi.
  Spotted a robin at our birdfeeder!
My hands are so sore from all the hand washing and hand sanitizer!

It was our neighbor Ali’s birthday and they shared a slice of their giant cake shipped from Milk Bar.

Found this Ben Folds Five post it cube while quaran-cleaning. I wonder how old it is.

Everyone watched Tiger King on Netflix. Most people are getting a stimulus check from the government. And then they announced that a tiger got coronavirus.

Makai was trying not to let me get a photo of him wearing a ponytail. Dallas bought a clippers the next day.

Everyone was afraid about the primary election. I debated even going to cast my vote. I got up super early before Dallas or Makai were up. Walked the block to vote. Came home and took a full shower. I was so scared. It took about 15 minutes all together. Other people I knew, like Sara, were election judges and had to deal with this fear all day. And then we saw that people were actually dying for it.

Apr 16 – This has to be a joke.

Ant Farm update.

Makai’s math class work – all the ways to make 10.

This cracked me up. Our bird feeding experiment ended after they covered our deck with seeds and shit. These grackles are the worst! Makai calls them “bully birds.”

Distance learning got more serious this week. Makai has to join a video conference 3 times per week and we have to email photos of his homework to his teacher.

I took a “mental health break” day off of work on Friday. There’s not enough going on, so our car battery died. We didn’t have anywhere to go so a week passed before I finally called roadside assistance to get it jumped. Makai and I then drove to the lakefront and back. We passed Belmont Snack Shop. I don’t know if they’ve always had their menu this way in the window, but it amused makai to read it when we while we were stopped.

Makai has OBSESSIVELY been watching gaming videos by some guy who goes by the name of Zebra.

Otis and his parents and his dog, Maggie, came over to visit, socially distanced. We stayed on or at our front porch and their family stayed on the sidewalk. The kids were so excited to see each other!

Makai has gotten really good at his scooter these last few weeks.

No one in the park, thankfully. The robins have overrun the grass and we’re not even flying away as makai walked around to check them out (and give them names).


Marty had to drop something off. It made me really nervous but I joked.

We watched the movie Doolittle. It wasn’t great but makai loved it and won’t stop talking about it. This was some kind of reenactment.

Watching Star Wars: A New Hope, Makai’s first Star Wars movie. He’s read a few books and has toys so he knows a lot about it.

I lost our Takashi Murakami cards in the house but then found them today. Great memento from Makai’s first art museum experience (he loved it!).

Time is a warp.

Makai’s virtual math class with Mrs. Benedict.

SO MANY VIRTUAL MEETUPS! These are from the past couple weeks. I’m on video conference all day for work and then it’s also the only way to see friends. It can be fun at times and exhausting at times. Sara, Stacy, Jess


Kelly, Todd, Liz, Josh, Sara, Brian (missing)

Mary Jo, Jason – Portage Park Neighborhood Watch Admins

Jessica, Sara, Stacy

Becky, Chris, Romi, George, Megan, Phil – McDonald’s friends

April 17 – It’s supposed to be 60 degrees outside tomorrow, but today we have fresh snow.


A message from Mrs. Benedict, Makai’s teacher, after they announced school would be remote for the rest of the school year.

Finished cross stitch.

Breakfast on the deck.

Hawaii 2019 Day 15: Family Dinner at Brick Oven Pizza

Caroline and Grace went over to George and Kathy’s house right away in the morning for breakfast. Before you knew it, they were getting manicures by one of our Korean aunties!

After breakfast, Dallas, Makai and I went to Salt Pond Beach, while Caroline and Jordan’s families both ended up at Poipu Beach. At both beaches we saw seals, but at Poipu they also saw a sea turtle! From the beach we went to Big Save to get groceries for the rental house.

We walked over to the family house and got to know our Korean relatives. We can’t really talk, but we shared a lot of photos. I showed them photos of Makai as a chubby baby and pictures of our house in Chicago. They showed me photos of their children and grandchildren.

On the way back from Poipu, Caroline bought manju and ensamadas from Aloha Sweet Delites in Kaumakani.

For dinner we all went to the pizza buffet at Brick Oven Pizza. I guess it’s not surprising but it’s hard to get good pizza in Korea. Everyone seemed to love it.

On the way home, we stopped for ice cream at Super Duper Two in Waimea. These guys, Makai and Gracie. They’re such good friends. I’m so sad every time they have to part ways!

At home Grace was being so snuggly right before bed. She’s so lovable and personable. She just climbed right up on me and went in!

After the kids went to bed I did an experiment. Our aunties from Korea brought a bunch of face masks for us! My face was dry and sunburned from the beach. After the mask, my skin was so soft and my sunburn was reduced a lot!

Hawaii 2019 Day 14: Family Reunion on Kauai

We had an early flight from Honolulu to Lihue. Caroline, Jose and Grace arrived on Kauai when we were on Oahu. Jordan, Liz and Mahea arrived on Kauai the day before us.

Makai was so happy to see his cousins, Grace and Mahea! Kathy hand-made plumeria leis and each of the kids got one.

Shortly after we arrived, Caroline, Jose, Grace, and Kathy went to pick up our relatives who were flying in from Korea! Kathy is the oldest sister. Her middle sister is Young Ok and her sister’s husband is Wi Do. Kathy’s youngest sister is Gum Ok. Kathy’s youngest brother is Sang Myoung and his wife is Youngmi.

 While they were at the airport, Jordan and George were golfing. Dallas, Liz, Mahea, Makai and I went and checked into our rental house. We got a place that was literally a walk through a yard from the family house. It was the historic Ishihara house, which was owned by the family that started the Ishihara Market. I heard that this house was originally in another location, but was moved up the hill quite some time ago.

We stayed at the house with Jordan’s family and Caroline’s family. So 9 people in a 3 bedroom house. It was not too bad, except that there was only one bathroom.

The house was really pretty and the views of the valley all the way to the ocean were AH MAHZ ING.

That night we had a pretty low-key barbecue, just to get to all see each other again and get to know each other. Dallas had not seen his Korean relatives since the 80s, which means that Liz, the kids, Jose, and I had never met them before. It was fun! One aunty kicked George off the grill. He was making bulgogi and she took over :).

Everyone enjoying the barbecue! Dallas, Caroline, Wi Do, Young Ok, Gum Ok, Liz, Youngmi, Sang Myoung.

Kathy’s brother-in-law brought soju from Korea and was really after me to drink it. It was terrible but every time I tried to abandon it, he’s hold it up like and say “soju!” There was a huge language barrier, but they knew a little English and Kathy translated a lot for us. As for the soju, I finally mixed it with POG to get it down! From Korea, they also brought us so many gifts! Hats, necklaces for the girls (Kathy translated that owl is good luck), bracelets and ginseng candy for the guys, and money for the kids (we put Makai’s in his college fund). So so generous!

Kathy and her sisters enjoying the view at the Ishihara House.

Hawaii 2019 Day 13: Kamehameha Schools Alumni Luau

In the morning we walked around Waikiki. I said hello to Duke, like I always do when in Waikiki. We also later said hi to Don Ho at International Marketplace, which is now SUPER fancy. It used to be all temporary looking stands and a few fast restaurants and now it’s a very high-end mall. Dallas really wanted to go to Quiksilver to get a new aloha shirt for the luau that night. While there, I also got a Hydro Flask water bottle and a Pura Vida wave ring. We stopped for coffee at Big Wave Dave, where we also started to look around for somewhere to eat lunch.

We ended up going to Tim Ho Wan at the Royal Hawaiian for dim sum, which was perfect. Just after we were seated and ordered, the 103rd Annual King Kamehameha Celebration Floral Parade began and went right past the windows where we were seated. What a treat for everyone at the restaurant! We could not have planned it better.

The dim sum at Tim Ho Wan was great. The bao was very interesting. It had like a flaky dough instead of the steamed white dough we’re used to.

Back at the hotel we showered and got ready for the luau, except for getting dressed. We brought our clothes along, so they wouldn’t get all sweaty! First we went to Vivian’s house in Moanalua to get Makai. We visited a bit and Vivian’s in-laws came over. They’re Japanese (Vivian is Korean – Kathy’s cousin’s daughter) and had just been to a Japanese market. They shared some treats with us. They said that they knew Dallas’s dad when he was young, like a kid!

Next we went to visit family very closeby in Moanalua Valley. Kiki and Duke have a house there and somewhat recently Quincy had an addition built on to make it a duplex. Actually the whole family was still helping with the renovations. Oddly, Dallas had not seen Kiki in so many years that I’d never even met her before, even though we stay in contact on Facebook. It was great to see Aunty Helen, Uncle Bob, Kiki, Duke, Quincy and Kala and catch up. Quincy was excited about his new place and has a great job with the government. Kala has a film degree and has been working on Hawaii Five O for years. We also got the update on Jessica, who moved from Brooklyn to Kansas City (I think!). Quincy also gave us two Hawaiian flags that he made out of wood (we gave one to Caroline later on). We could only stay for a while before we had to get ready and go to the luau!

We headed to the luau and first thing, Dallas had to go meet up to get his class photo taken. Above is how the photo turned out.

While Dallas was off getting his class photo taken, Makai and I came into the luau. We were immediately handed some fans (it was hot out!). We shopped around the marketplace a little bit. I bought a bangle with a Tahitian black pearl on it. I’ve always wanted one! Makai was hungry so I told him we could got to the pupu line and get some snacks. They literally put a fish cut in half on our plate, along with some other Hawaiian pupus like edamame, ahi poke, tako poke, smoked meat and a salad! Makai was SO mad and habut. I got him a Brudda Pop popsicle and also bought two packages of haole brownies (I shared with the family on Kauai later on!). He was still mad. I think very tired from his sleepover. I also got a bag of boiled peanuts for the table, since it would be a while til we got our dinner.

It was so great to see so many friends in our Kamehameha family (and it truly does feel like a family). Some I’ve known for many years, more than a decade now, and a couple I just met. Even when you just meet, there’s an immediate connection. It’s a great community and I’m so glad that Makai gets to spend time with them.

For dinner we had rice, kalua pig, chicken long rice, lomi salmon, squid luau, poi and poke. Makai loved the chicken long rice, the pork and the rice. For dessert there was pineapple, haole brownies, kulolo (made of taro, almost made Makai barf!), and haupia.

During dinner there was some talking on the stage. I honestly don’t remember what it was about. But then they announced the band was Mana’o Company and I could not believe it. They’re one of my favorite Hawaiian bands! And they were fantastic! Everyone knew all their songs.

Also after dinner, the pupu area turned into the dessert area, which Makai was much more interested in. I went to go to the bathroom and Dallas took Makai. They were serving haole brownies a la mode. Makai only wanted the ice cream, so he had two ice creams and Dallas had two brownies! When I got out of the bathroom, Makai wanted me to go back and get another ice cream for him!

Also, while I was in the building with the bathroom, I passed by the silent auction. It was in the final minutes so I took a look around and bid on a few items. I ended up winning a bracelet with a tahitian pearl! So I always wanted one, and now I had two!

At the end of the night, as is customary, the boarders took photos together on the same bench as always! Also, at the end of the night, someone told me I won another auction item. I had no idea! I went back in and I won a box of golf balls and a Kamehameha Schools dry fit Nike golf shirt!

On our way out of the luau, we got these pineapple gummies with such a sweet message on them.