At the end of Chapter 1, Sunny reports:  “I became an EMT in NY, and worked in very cold weather and carried very heavy patients day and night. But my wage was only $7 per hour.

After two years, I was watching the Travel Channel having Crazy Horse Beer and baby carrots.  The show was showing the paradise of Waikiki, Hawaii.   Mr. White Shiny Tooth Diving Instructor was showing off his diving skills with his brightest teeth and taking beautiful ladies into crystal clear water.

I was so envious about Mr. Shiny Tooth compared with my life at the moment.  Don’t get me wrong, EMT is a great job but it was not forever for me in N.Y. . .

The Miracle Oddessy continues. . .

So, a week after the TV show, I arrived in Waikiki.  But it rained heavily.  Dark sky and thunder all day.  I went out to one of the traditional Japanese restaurants for Japanese sake, beer and food.   I asked the waitress at the restaurant “Is the weather always like this in Hawaii?  Where is the sun?”  She said, “Waikiki has lots of rainy days.  You should go to Maui, if you want sunshine”.

Next day, I was on Maui.  It was a Sunday sunshine morning– very quiet and peaceful.   I bought a Sunday newspaper and I was just checking what was happening on Maui.  I almost always start reading from the classified section to find good deals, even if I don’t need anything.  But somehow, I was interested to check out people living life in Paradise.  Then I started calling apartment rentals.

It was Sunday morning and nobody was answering calls.  But one guy answered and said “Super Great Deal!  First come first served, because I have to leave in an hour”.      I told him my situation and asked him if I could just look his unit.  I was still paying rent in NY.  He said, “O.K., just come here and you can stay here for a week just by paying $500”.  I had only $500 cash in my pocket.  When I got to his condo in Ma’alaea, I saw his luggage right next to door.  His name was Steve (he was like a Danny DeVito character).  Steve said, “Pay me $500 and you can stay for a week”.   I thought it was a great deal but I couldn’t spend all of my budget.  I asked him, “How about $200?”.  He said, “Deal!”,  shook hands and left with his luggage.

So, my first day on Maui, I got a new ocean front apartment for a week with only $200 cash.  But it was such a filthy room–every single piece of furniture was smelly– bed, sofa, dishes and two tons of rubbish.  I cleaned from corner to corner.  It took me four days to make that room like a five-star hotel room.

On the fifth day,  a lady knocked at my door.  She told me, “I’m the owner of this unit.  Who are you?  Where is Steve?” I explained everything that happened and then I found out Steve hadn’t paid the rent.  He was 8 months behind.  She asked me to leave right away but I showed my N.Y. EMT I.D. and promised her to leave in a week, but I felt I had already made the place like my home and had been living forever.  So I stayed there after that week.

I found my first job with a diving company.  I worked 7 days a week for two years. Then I started translating English menus, brochures, signs and web pages into Japanese.

Today I live in a condo practically on the beach with my lovely wife and baby dog.  We believe Maui is the miracle island.  We have decided live on Maui forever.
Sunny K– Maui, Hawaii

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