Thursday, July 20, 2006

Mahalo, Haniakuluiau.

We are finally getting some halfway decent rain here in Phoenix. It doesn't happen all that often, even with our talk of "monsoon" season. The Phoenix Valley is a little bit of an odd place when it comes to the rain. Whenever we get a grey, cloudy, rainy day, people are actually very happy. Maybe it's because it's such a relatively unusual event for us. I mean, other places I've lived, when it starts to rain people get depressed and they mope around. Here, you will see people walking around in the rain with their heads tipped back just a bit so the rain falls on their faces. I will freely admit that I am one of these people. Thinking about it, the lack of rain is probably the thing I dislike the most about living in Arizona (and, yes, I am aware of the fact that I frequently rant about the heat, but that's really a secondary thing). Don't get me wrong, I actually have come to really love living here. The desert has a unique beauty to it that cannot be found elsewhere. And I'm not too sorry to be rid of the three feet of snow you sometimes get in Colorado. But I do miss the rain.

Everywhere else I've lived, it rained on at least a semi-regular basis. In Colorado, during the summer, you could watch the thunderheads build and boil over the front range through the early afternoon and we would often get these absolutely amazing thunderstorms in the early evening and into the night. I lived just outside Seattle for a few years as a small child, and we all know how much it rains there in the winter (despite popular opinion, it does not rain all year - just for between half and three-quarters of it). Hawai'i, where my dad's family is from, is pictured as this sunny paradise - which much of it is. But where we're from, it's rain forest. You get both the strong down pours and the long, light drizzles. It rains in Waimea (Big Island, not Kaua'i) probably between 3 and 5 days a week on the dry side of town. The wet side, it's 5 to 7 days a week. I also spend some time living in Swansea, Wales, which could give Scotland a run for its money when it comes to rain - at least, during the winter it could. It doesn't rain that much in the summer. So, Arizona is really the first place I've lived without at least some rain. It means that I take special pleasure in days like this when we do get some.

Of course, in time I spent writing this, the rain has stopped. sigh.
And before anyone asks, Haniakuluiau is the Hawai'ian goddess of rain.

8 comments:

Theodore Trumblebunks, I, Esq. said...

Hawaiian goddess of rain? Are you worshipping pagans now? Rogue Historian, don't you realize America is built on Christian values?

Why do you hate America?

-Theodore Trumblebunks, I, Esq.

RogueHistorian said...

"Worshipping pagans?" Unless you mean my girlfriend, who is a pagan and who I do worship (love you, babe!), no. I'm simply worshipping the gods of my ancestors. And remember, one of America's founding ideas was freedom of religion!

Theodore Trumblebunks, I, Esq. said...

I'm not buying your west-coast, liberal elite revisionist history.

Why do you hate America?

-Theodore Trumblebunks, I, Esq.

Journey said...

If simply mentioning the name of a goddess is enough to make you hate American, than the whole country is doomed. Look at the origin of the word "Friday".

Come to think of it, it seems like a lot of my co-workers worship Fridays. ;)

Anonymous said...

From his comments and journal, Theodore Trumblebunks I, Esq. is almost certainly a persona created for satirical purposes.

Theodore Trumblebunks, I, Esq. said...

Satirical purposes? Hardly! I'm simply out to save America, and rogue historian and I have had quite a few run-ins on this issue already. Other than being a member of the west-coast, liberal elite, on his way to being a liberal professor, I still haven't quite figured out why he hates America.

-Theodore Trumblebunks, I, Esq.

jbwritergirl said...

Hawaiian Goddess? Oh you shouldn't worship me in such a public way.

Okay...I'm not Hawaiian, but I've been there several times. Does that count for anything?

JB

RogueHistorian said...

Hello, Shiftercat, and welcome. I'm afraid it's not my place to say what trumblebunks's reasons for writing the way he does, but I can say that there are some people who (for reasons only the gods know) take him quite seriously. And yes, we have had a few run-ins already, and I'm sure there will be more.

JB - good to hear from you! And don't worry about not being Hawai'ian. Anyone who shares a love for the 'aina (the land, specifically the Hawai'ian land) is entitled to share in it.