Maui is an island in the Pacific Ocean and extremely warm, a fact I discovered too late to change my vacation plans as the plane was already in the air. I knew from experience that requests to divert to a colder locale would go unheeded by the staff of the aircraft. Serves me right for flying commercial!

Maui is a gentle island full of gentle people who drive rusty pickups with bumper stickers everywhere but the bumper. It’s the Oklahoma of the Pacific! Even though 99% of American voters couldn’t find it on a map with red arrows pointing to it, let us give thanks that Hawai’i voluntarily joined is part of the U.S.A.!