Homespun Honolulu

Welcome to Chapter 3 of the Carnival of Aloha. Sorry for the delay but our Roadrunner got his feathers wet last night and I couldn’t stay awake waiting for him to dry off and start working again. Since he decided to go play in the rain, I think he will be our guide on the safari. Mahalo to the Animal Photo Album for letting this little guy grace us with his presence. We’re going hunting for all things beautiful, magical and fun!

L.P. “NEENZ” FALEAFINE will start us off with OUR ROARING WEEKEND, posted at INFINITY saying that the, “LION KING BROADWAY SHOW has roared into Honolulu in an awesome way. The show captivated our childrens’ attention the entire time as if it were the first. And, all of the adults in our party were covered in ‘chicken skin’ and tears welled up as if we were anticipating the birth of “Simba” the past nine months! It’s playing until December, and absolutely recommended for anyone looking for quality entertainment!”

With that said, I have to also say that there are not many things more magical than a safari done Disney style! I’m glad we got a post in on this, thanks you guys! I haven’t been to the show myself but I’ve heard nothing but positive comments about it! What a great way to start a safari!

Skeet brings us some secret beauty at Secret cove posted at skeet’s stuff. Man that looks familiar. I’m sure I know that place. Once again, however, I am yet to see the honu live and in person in their natural habitat. Don’t worry, I believe you!

kuanyin is joining us for the first time and she brings us some Reflections on Maui posted at Who’s Yo Mama. Kuanyin tells us all about falling in love with Maui.

Angie shares some of that beauty on Maui through her post about Kepaniwai Park’s Heritage Gardens posted at her blog, True Aloha. Angie calls this sight a “hidden treasure.” Secrets and treasures, this is good!

Cheryl brings a little bit more magic our way when she tells us to Move This 2 1/2-ton Stone, and Rule Hawaii posted at Hawaii Vacation Gifts Blog - Hawaiian Blog. Another great story about historic Hawaii and the days of old!

Lynn Vasquez is the first to bring the magic of Christmas to the Carnival of Aloha as she shares her giving nature with us in her post entitled, 3RD Annual MWH Christmas Slippah Wish Project!! posted at Auntie Pupule, saying, “It’s dat time of year again! Wishes do come TRUE!” Thanks for the magic Auntie!

scorpy01 takes us to get something in our stomachs with Banana Joe | Marisa’s Dandelion Patch posted at Marisa’s Dandelion Patch, saying, “I know there are many wonderful places to go on Kauai. My visits there just wouldn’t be complete without several stops at Banana Joe’s, though.” We can add this to our list of places to visit on Kauai! I think the country look of Banana Joe fits right into our Safari theme!

Lika takes a little bit of the magic to Vegas in Ms I-Wanna Hula posted at Lika’s Log. I had to laugh when I read what Lika wrote… “Blogging: Proving the Las Vegas commercial wrong; what happens in LasVegas, ends up someones blog.” I guess it doesn’t just stay in Vega after all! Well, we’re glad it ended up on “someone’s” blog so that it could come home to us!

October kind of flew by and I never did make it to Morgan’s Corner (long story that I’ll talk about at another time) but Pua covered some spooky stuff for us with the Best Halloween in Hawaii in Lahaina on Maui posted at Best Hawaii Vacation with Hawaii Vacation Blog.

Evelyn (me) just wants to Congratulate, Compliment and Correct an error while sharing the Warriors’ good standing while hoping that our darling Honolulu Star Bulletin will perhaps correct their spelling in their online stories? Then they can go cover the Heisman. Then they need to go cover Auntie Pupule’s Slippah Wish Project!

That concludes this chapter. A huge “Mahalo!” to everyone for making this another great Carnival! Submit your blog article to the next “Chapter” of the Carnival of Aloha using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page. (Small reminder, please do remember to read the guidelines.)

Tagged.  Again.  With a double whammy this time.  Mike over at Port 16 decided to add me to the list of people who wouldn’t protest too loudly.  Actually, this is a relatively easy one.  Let’s see, first of all I’m supposed to list the three things that I wouldn’t live without or make it through the day without.  Hmmm… I guess I can’t live a day without:  

• My cell phone
• My computer
• My shower

Not necessarily in that order.

Then I’m supposed to comment on how “Our Players Don’t Lie.”  (No, not football players.)  While I could live a day with my iPod, I must say that this statement is pretty accurate; those players don’t lie.

I fell madly in love with the lyrics of Alicia Keys music. Although not my usual genre, I ended up buying two of her CD’s and putting them on my iPod.  My usual genre? I grew up looking for and loving Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris and various other country ladies whose lyrics and melodies could send me into emotional melt-down.

More recently, the pop stars have shifted to weepy ballads and I’m loving some of their lyrics. You can throw Alica Keys together with Shania Twain and sprinkle in some Faith Hill and I’m left wondering if they lived my life instead of me!  Josh Groban is my token male vocalist. Here’s a man with contemporary power, lyrics and melodies that yank at my heart strings. Some of his songs aren’t even in English but the melodies are enough.

My biggest shock to myself? Christina Aguilera. This young lady has just about stepped over the line of “decency” (by today’s social standards) with songs like, “Nasty Naughty Boy.” But, it’s on an iPod or on a car stereo with the windows rolled up, so who’s to hear it?  Hey, I never said that I stopped breathing!

When I need to snap out of it all, I switch to Shania Twain. Sassy woman with a lot of attitude — she’s always good for a snappy pick-me-up. 

What’s on my iPod does tell it all, now that I think about it. All that being said, this is the best I can do to let my iPod incriminate me.  I can’t list all the songs because for each artist there are several songs that have found their way into my heart for one reason or another. 

In no specific order:

• Alicia Keys
• Celine Dion
• Christine Lavin (you’re saying, “Who?” uh, contemporary folk music (oxymoron) but don’t worry, I’ll share some of her stuff down the road)
• Faith Hill
• Josh Groban
• Lorrie Morgan
• Reba McEntire
• Shania Twain
• Kelly Clarkson
• Christina Aguilera

Yep, much like everything I do, it’s a very eclectic list, and a peculiar mesh of genres, to say the least.

So now I’m supposed to tag some other poor, unsuspecting people.  I think I’ll bother the people that I have lost touch with recently:  Hart (who needs to watch his mail), Ilker (who’s probably almost ready for her finals again), Tom (who has been missing in action recently), Cheryl (whose personality I would love to “hear” more of) and Sheila (who I actually have been in contact with but I think she’ll find it fun).

Okay, I hope Mike is happy and, for the record, Matchbox 20?  Unwell is my theme song!  Okay, I used to tell people that through the drama of life, but that’s another one that would never have been on my list a few years ago, but it’s on my iPod now!