Hi Friends,
Aloha from Ka’anapali in Maui. Surprised? Not as much as I am. I did not have a trip to Hawai’i on any bingo card, nor did I plan to miss one of the most stunning Peak Foliage months in recent memory.
But my husband (aka Grooves from the Gunks aka Mr. Gunks), when he isn’t writing this newsletter’s enthusiastic and grammatically dubious music column, is kind of a really big deal and speaks at conferences all over the place. This year the place is Maui.
It was not an easy decision to come here, the expense and 11 hours of flight time aside. To be very blunt, Hawai’i is unspeakably beautiful and close to completely fucked by a combination of colonialism, economic extraction and tourism. Millions of visitors come to Hawai’i every year and spend a lot of money with businesses owned by billionaires far, far away. I mean, there’s a Louis Vuitton store on the beach here. Please congratulate me for not launching my 100% Kona coffee at the girlies taking selfies in front of it.
We’re lucky that the majority of the hotels and hospitality businesses in the Hudson Valley are locally and independently owned. Shoutout to Mirbeau, Foster Hospitality, and the Smiley Family of Mohonk Mountain House, etc. And yet, we (me, hi) still rail against the tourists, citiots, and total dumbasses who leave their trash at swimming holes.*
Residents of both the Hudson Valley and Hawai’i have solid footing to say “don’t come here.” It’s also unlikely to get traction when up against really well-funded tourism and economic development organizations. This is where organizers look for the Judo flip, or what Naomi Klein called the denoument. Try to stop that much momentum and you will be flattened. Redirect it, and you can end up on top.
Following the Maui wildfires and Hurricane Lowell, Hawaiian elected officials are largely doing so with a strong “yes, and.” Yes, please visit AND patronize small, local business. AND be patient with things that aren’t fully open. AND keep our wild spaces beautiful by picking up after yourself AND leave the charismatic megafauna alone!!
Regardless of how late-stage we may be in capitalism, we’re still in it. It doesn’t serve the hard working, creative people running small businesses to tell everyone to stay home (where they’re going to shop on Amazon, speaking of billionaires siphoning money). What we can do is be as thoughtful as we can about where our money, time and energy goes. Be vocal about making choices that are participatory and additive, not extractive, until the seed gets planted with your friends and family. Even if it’s inconvenient and imperfect, it’s worth doing.
When this conference is over we’re staying at the bed and breakfast attached to a locally owned restaurant (Mama’s Fish House iykyk) and then heading to Kauai to another independent hotel that was hit hard by Lowell. Denying this Westin my $13 for an acai bowl would not have made a difference, but when we get out of here I hope the money, time and attention we’re dedicating to dozens of other small businesses will. Yes, and.
*This is the bitching of the local population - not the native population. M&L’s readership is not sufficiently comprised of this region’s indigenous people, and believe me I’ve got a lot to work on there. I will not speak for New York’s indigenous populations but I imagine their critique of Hudson Valley tourism is both broader and more pointed.
Editors Note: Next week will be our first hiatus in the 30-something week history of M&L. You can check out our October Guide to get you through. Gunks Grooves will be on hiatus for the rest of October. Mr. Gunks’ skilled hands are busy!
Fresh, pasture-raised turkeys are available for preorder from Yundwell Pastured Poultry. If you do eat animals and have a specific need for turkey around the end of November please please please purchase from local farms like this one. As Anthony Bourdan said, “they have one bad day.”
Tickets are on sale for the eighth annual Kingston Design Showhouse, a midcentury stone house in Saugerties open Oct 17 through Nov 1. It's $38, and the money goes to Circulary, which keeps building materials out of landfills.
Harana Market in Accord needs two experienced front of house people on Saturday 10/17 from noon to 6pm (rain date is Sunday 10/18). $200 plus travel and tips. DM them or email [email protected].
Lone Wolf in Kingston closes for good Nov 15. That gives you one month to work through the Cambodian menu and the rum list, and maybe squeeze in one last Hot Pot Sunday.
Thursday, October 15