The Coqui Episode

So, we've been in Hawaii for two weeks or so now and maybe you're wondering what we're up to. The answer is, pretty much what you think we're doing here. Beach-going and all the activities associated of course, Rosetta Stone Spanish lessons, reading, spending time with the fam, Christmas hullabaloo, and lots of little errands to get ready for our departure.
So, let me tell you a little story about something you haven't thought about us doing over here. It has to do with coqui frogs, or shall I say a coqui frog. Let me explain... there is an invasive species of treefrog that has made it's way to the Big Island. This frog is mostly found in Hilo (the wet side of the island) as it likes wet and cool environments, however, they are making their way to the Kona side now. People don't like them because they make a loud mating call at night which is unrelenting and the county doesn't like them for a ton more reasons. So, lucky us, a coqui frog decides to make it's home in our hibiscus hedge. My dad called the county to figure out how he could get rid of the frog and they informed him that there is a team in charge of killing the frogs, the "Coqui Control Team." They even have uniforms which say "Coqui Control" on the back...yeah. So we got an appointment with the coqui control. They only work at night when the frogs make noise. They came from Hilo (two hours away) and show up at our house in a huge diesel truck pulling a big tank behind the truck full of frog killer... for our ONE frog. That's right, they drove two hours and spent who knows how much of the county's money on gas for our ONE frog. In Hilo, they're used to dealing with hundreds of frogs at once, so when my dad begins to refer to the frog as a single entity, the coqui control man says, "you have ONE frog" and looks at my dad as if he is a crazy old man with too much time on his hands. AND of course, Murphy's law, the frog decided to stop chirping right before the coqui people showed up. So not only is my dad crazy, but quite possibly a liar at this point in their eyes. (Mind you, this is me and David's first night in Kona and I'm starting to wonder myself what happened to my dad over the past few months). Not to worry though, these coqui people are professionals of course and have practiced a whistle which makes the frogs start chirping. So, we're all sitting in the dark while the coqui man whistles trying to get our frog to make noise (stifling laughter at this point of course). Five minutes pass, ten minutes pass, finally, almost fifteen minutes later the frog chirps. Headlights come on and the coqui guys go in for the kill. Our one frog is toast. The coqui man caught him alive and threw him in the tank of frog killer (which is actually just citric acid). "Yaaaayyyy!" shout the Stewarts. Oh, but the story doesn't end here. Just to make sure that the coqui didn't leave behind any offspring or companions, my dad requests they spray the area with citric acid from their tank. Seems like a simple request and they agree of course. So, from inside the house David and I watch as a firehose looking apparatus is uncoiled and the back half of the hibiscus hedge blasted with gallons and gallons of citric acid. And let me remind you, this entire episode happened for ONE frog (which measures slightly bigger than a quarter). Yup. Welcome back to Kona, where ONE frog is big news.