I’m from Hawaii
That’s what I’ve been saying to people every time I become a tourist myself, and I hate it.
You know how you just begin talking to someone, and one of those things they ask you in the middle of the talk is “Where are you from?”. Let’s be honest, that question itself is a good conversation starter already, no doubt. It’s mostly Uber/Lyft drivers, and people you get to encounter along the way that get to ask these kind of stuff. Usually takes about 5-10 minutes, and you look forward to those type of conversations again with other people. It’s a never ending misery, until you actually fly home and come back to your regular routine, then you don’t have to deal with that kind of thing again.
Every time I travel and I get to be asked this kind of question, I always get this funny feeling inside of me. I don’t know if my fellow Hawaiians can attest to this but, don’t you just cringe at the thought of telling them where you’re really from? I won’t lie, but every time I say I’m from Hawaii, I may sound proud to actually live there but deep inside me, I feel bad because, what if that person you’re talking to hasn’t been to Hawaii and you have to end up telling them that it’s beautiful out there, the beaches and the views are gorgeous, or, “You should visit!” Like, yeah isn’t it obvi? Hawaii is basically everyone’s dream travel destination! Who doesn’t want to go here for real though?
I’m telling you, every conversation always goes like this:
“Where are you from?”
“I’m from Hawaii!”
“Ohhh, nice! Hawaii! Which island?”
“Oahu.”
“Do you like it there?”
“Yeah, I love it there. Just really hate paying for rent.”
And the rest goes on, and on, and on...
What’s worse? Here’s another example:
“No way, Hawaii?! Get outta here! Me? I’m from Arkansas. Really boring out there, trust me.”
Yep, that’s just exactly one of the reasons why I don’t like opening up to people where I’m from. I hate making people feel bad, and I hate awkward talks so much that it eats me up until the end of the day. It sucks.
Sometimes it would be like, “Oh yeah, I’ve been to Hawaii! It’s soooo beautiful there!” And you see their eyes start glimmering and they wouldn’t stop talking about how amazing that Hawaiian getaway they took was back then. Hearing these things coming from them makes me fake laugh most of the time. Like, right now.
Haha.
There was also this one time I was at New Orleans with my friend and we were craving for some cajun food. We ate at this restaurant and this server asked for my ID as we were ordering our cocktails:
“So, you’re from Hawaii.”
“Yep, I’m from there.”
“Why are you even here? It’s so humid in here.”
I laughed, but I also felt semi-insulted. Bruh, I’m only here to try something different and eat your delicious cajun goodies! Stop telling me where I’m supposed to be.
I love the Rainbow State, you guys. From the mountains to the shores. Everyone here is just so laid back and food and culture is just out of this world. It’s not like I’m ashamed of it or I’m trying to bring it down, but I think about other people living elsewhere but here. I tend to have this habit of thinking of others first and putting myself last in the equation. Hell yeah, I’m grateful to call the islands my home, I admit that, but living in paradise can sometimes be frustrating with all the bills and the sky-rocketing high rent we have to pay.
I guess a number of people move from the US mainland to the islands mainly because of the weather. You can’t get any snow in the islands except if you go up to Mauna Kea in the Big Island or Haleakala in Maui during the winter. It’s aaaaalways dry and wet season all year round. That’s also one of the reasons why we have a bigger population of the homeless. Yikes.
My point is, it’s not just because I live in Hawaii, I get to live my best carefree life. I’m not. I have endless stuff to pay and I’m still working on getting a house for my family here which is hard by the way. Mortgage is probably the biggest pain in the butt. You really have to earn enough in order for you to pay enough.
It’s my sixth year living in this beloved state with my mom and I’m glad we actually stayed here. We’re still working it out ourselves, and I always believe in perfect timing. Only God can tell when we will all be settled and debt-free.
Aloha.










