The story behind this bouquet of flowers in my window; or, just another day living in a Polynesian agroforest: My house happens to be near one of the heads of a local trail through the jungle. This afternoon one of my neighbors came by, saying he wanted to cut some flowers for his house, and he’d seen a whole bunch while walking home from the beach earlier in the day. Beer and pruning shears in hand, we went down into the jungle below my house. There, through a tangle of avocados, beyond the pig wallows and some massive old mango trees, but before the fallow papaya orchard, among guava trees, coconut palms, and mystery citrus, great drifts of these Heliconias were all in flower. We cut modestly, even in this abundance. (I did not think to bring my camera on this walk in the jungle, however.) Opihikao, Hawai'i. August 23, 2011.

Pop a Hibiscus flower lei over your head and pull on your grass skirt, Girlfriend it's time to throw a hula party! Your luau is bound to be a volcanic success when you serve your guests tossed salad with these gorgeous 10" handcarved teak serving pieces from the Seventies! These pieces are gorgeous! They look like they've been carefully stuffed in the back of some nice Grandma's buffet since Hawaii Five O went off the air back in the Seventies. You'll love these Polynesian beauties hanging on the wall in your retro Seventies kitchen.