Affordable Paradise
H. Skip Thomsen (Reviewed by The Editor - Rebecca Brown)
2003 Oregon Wordworks
ISBN: 0971918503 Paperback - Amazon's price: $12.99
Amazon's book prices can change without notice
The Secrets of an Affordable Life in Hawaii Second Revised Edition.
Skip Thomsen writes about a popular Island pastime called “talk story,” when a neighbor drops in, life comes to a halt, as you prepare a cuppa, & sit down for their visit. Affordable Paradise is like that, Skip has dropped by to tell you about life on the Big Island, & in particular the Windward side & Hilo.
Sit, sit & listen to his “talk stories” about a wonderful part of our world. If you have ever considered relocating to a calmer, more “laid back” way of living, where business often takes a back seat to company, where the weather is unimaginable to most to us, where multi-ethnicity is the norm, where people “see” who you really are without you knowing, where pleasure is a community pastime, then Affordable Paradise is a good “dreaming” read.
Skip Thomsen tells of The People, which of The Realities of Hawaii might turn you off -- remember when packing your bags for Paradise, you have a trunkload of invisible baggage that you'll bring along with you -- all your Mainland attitudes, expectations & habits.
I've seen a lot of that here in the Pacific Northwest -- people will arrive from East of the Cascades, East of the Rockies, East of the Mississippi, with all their flaws & foibles flying. They complain about our provinciality, our casual attitude toward “serious” subjects, our obsession with Nature, family & privacy. They'll come talking loudly, driving fast, eating hurriedly, ready to bring “citification & civilization” to our neck of the woods.
Back to Skip Thomsen & his Affordable Paradise: in the beginning he talks a little about a lot -- The Dream, The Realities, Finding Your Own Special Place & The Choices.
In Chapter 4 he gives us a Virtual Tour -- a tour de force from someone who has obviously reclaimed his paradise. Here, at last is a map of The Big Island. As you follow your tour guide you can flip back & see where he's taking you to. Since the Island is a volcano top & is “round(ish)”, using the points of the compass to describe where you're going doesn't work, so Islanders devised a way to describe directions -- toward the Mountain, uphill -- mauka, & toward the Sea, downhill -- makai; off we go from Hilo, clockwise around that “round(ish)” island, rising from an immense stretch of ocean, in a climate most everyone dreams of.
Your Tour Guide takes you to every nook & cranny, every market & park, every housing estate & rural community, all the while giving you the financial details of the costs of homes & land, & other worthy details.
So now you're primed for Making the Big Move -- Skip Thomsen tells you about Arranging Shipping; the things to bring & the things to leave behind; what about your car, your pets? What about your kids & school? Your Tour Guide will tell.
While Skip Thomsen takes you Shopping, he explains why “American” food items are expensive (just as they are in Alaska), & where to find the cheaper local produce, far away from the tourist traps.
He doesn't forget those of us who must still “make a living,” & talks about Income Opportunities, as well as Retirement Opportunities.
In his Final Thoughts, Skip Thomsen recaps his “talk story” & philosophies, & then offers a Resource Guide, a Bio, & an Index.
If you have ever heard the call of paradise, know that Skip Thomsen & his entire “Ohana” will be waiting, within the covers of his pocket-sized book, to tell you that such a paradise is affordable.
Obviously Affordable Paradise is a labor of love, as much about meeting the author & his passion, as thinking about relocating where you can reclaim your own passion & paradise.
A pleasure to read, with lots of useful information & honest perspectives.
RebeccasiReads.com
