Homespun Honolulu

The parcel of land once known to all of us as Hawaii Raceway Park is scheduled to go on the auction block on Tuesday, February 2, 2010.  Once upon a time, (in years before 2006) hearts raced to the sounds of revving motors .  There will be no more of that kind of excitement near Campbell Industrial.

Some time ago I mentioned that it was a hard thing to lose Hawaii Raceway Park and that it affected a lot of people.  As dangerous as car racing is, Hawaii Raceway Park kept a lot of our youth in a legal racing environment, it kept them busy, and it kept them off the streets!  It was a passion they could share with others and it even provided potential career training for the automotive devotees.

I know that, at one time, there were people who blamed the closure of the Park for some of the motor vehicle accidents plaguing our streets.  We had a rash of racing on Honolulu’s roadways as young racing enthusiasts seemed to like using the public roadways and the H-1 freeway as outlets for their racing abandon.

Kapolei Raceway LLC had all of the intentions of restoring the park to its former glory, maybe better, but was apparently not able to manage the financial needs of this endeavor.  Despite all of the lobbying that fans did for its support.

Foreclosure is an ugly word for all but particularly for Honolulu’s racing community right now. This story seals it!  Sigh.  So many memories, so many stories.  The location has slid backwards in recent years with the loss of this and the feed lot.   I just know our beef tasted better back then.

Is Anybody Listening?

Meanwhile, Lt. Governor, Duke Aiona wants to talk about a Hawaii Sports commission.  Let’s see, race car driving is a sport.  Ya think?  Let me tell you where to be with Aunty Linda’s wallet on Tuesday!  Are you listening?!?

We should get that baby up and running again just in time to join in with Disney’s newest project, Aulani and… yeah baby!   Yo, Hawaii Tourism Authority, are you listening?   Keep the streets safer, bring the racing enthusiasts down here from the mainland for events, and put the burning rubber where it belongs — earning money instead of burning taxpayer dollars!

“Is anybody listening?  Let us know!”

…you’re probably dead!”  That statement is not necessarily my point of view but I will share it here nonetheless.

This slogan appears on the up and coming website of one of Kapolei’s new businesses — Momentum Tattoo.  Saturday, December 12, 2009 was their grand opening and I’m happy to be one of the first to welcome them to O’ahu’s second city.

This was good timing to follow the Toys for Tots motorcycle run!  Well, sort of.  It was even better timing for this grand opening that took place on the same day that Kapolei Shopping Center was having a sidewalk sale.  Momentum Tattoo is a full-service location, that offers a full spectrum of tattoos including tribals, sleeves, and whatever else you may ask for, in either color or black and white.

Being the usual cootie-phobic, personal-hygiene fuss budget that I am, I looked at their darling girl behind the counter and one of the first questions out of my mouth was, “Are you clean?”  Blunt.  While that may not be the nicest question to ask a new shop, I’m pretty sure that, considering their line of business, they expect to eventually have that one thrown at them — more than once!

The answer was yes, they are.  In fact, they just got their “stamp of approval” from the Board of Health!  Beyond that, the shop is fresh, clean, and off to a very good start.  As I was informed with a smile, this is the only one of its kind in Kapolei.

Only open for a few hours at this point, curiosity had already peaked the interest of shoppers in the Kapolei Shopping Center, self included.  Such pretty colors!  I did have to close my eyes to some of the designs but such is the nature of this kind of body art.

This may be just a temporary sign but it provided all of the necessary information!  Kudos and thank you, Sunny, for fielding my pointed questions and for keeping such a positive attitude.  That added personal comfort and the warm greetings that met us at the door will take this business a long way for sure!

If you’re skin is screaming for decoration, go check ‘em out!  “No shame” ask about their equipment and sanitation practices either — they will answer you.

Momentum Tattoo (Custom Tattoos)
Kapolei Shopping Center (a little ways West from Blockbuster)
808-674-9851

We’ll start this circle of dots with Matson and its lovely containers — bringing us food, building materials, and Christmas trees!

Matson, bless its heart, recently lowered shipping rates before it was required to do so.  I’m sorry, I have to give them brownie points for that; I thought that was pretty fantastic news!

The USS Missouri (affectionately known as the “Mighty Mo”) represents a circle all its own.  The Arizona marks the spot where the United States was goaded into WWII and the USS Missouri represents, in the mind of many, the end of that horrible war.  The Mighty Mo has recently moved into drydock for maintenance and preservation work for the first time in over eleven years.  She’ll be back in the water come January, 2010.

As we’re preserving historic artifacts, still my heart aches as my darling boat, the Falls of Clyde, hangs on at Pier 7 while it too waits for a spot at drydock, as well as more funds to help with its restoration.

As the Falls of Clyde clings to existence we connect right back with Matson who built that boat oh so many years ago.  Trust me I’ve tried to impress on them that any charitable funding would be preserving part of their own history as well!

These are all news tidbits but where they will go and what will happen next remains to be seen.

You can go here for more detail about Honolulu’s maritime darling.

For those naysayers out there, I offer this quote from the Friends of the Falls of Clyde’s website:

Some members of the board of FoFOC [Friends of the Falls of Clyde] were fortunate enough to meet with Mori Flapan and his wife, who were in Hawaii on holiday. Mori has been a big supporter of the efforts of FoFOC even from afar. He has had a long career in the Australian maritime industry and has been intimately involved in historic ship preservation. He provided some recommendations for making our efforts successful. His work with the ship James Craig spanned a period of 20 years, but was very successful. He told us that we are well ahead of many restoration projects because Falls of Clyde is in much better shape than other ships that have been fully restored. We are greatly bolstered by this knowledge.

I’m gonna go with being “bolstered” by that too!

With the Falls we bring this blog post full circle back to Matson.  The Falls is the only remaining member of a Matson fleet of ships from more than a century ago!

I know I’ve talked about this place elsewhere, but not here.  Tsk!  This little post has been sitting in draft form for quite some time.

We were having lunch at Zippy’s in the Koko Marina Shopping Center and the name of this cute little store caught our attention. Of course the big “SALE” sign in red lettering was helpful too!

When we were done eating we decided to be nosy and go check it out.  I’m glad we did because I have a passion for wood grain and there was a lot of it inside!

Brian Ikeda, the store’s owner, is seen here sharing information about the store, telling visitors about the products, and talking about the numerous buying trips taken to Indonesia to purchase all of the merchandise that this little store has to offer.

There were some unusual items that, while somewhat familiar, had a different overall ambiance to them than what we’re used to.  There was an uncanny similarity to what one might associate with the Philippines.  But then there was a sense of made in Hawaii there too.  The best part was that all items are made in Indonesia, hence the name Bali Pacific Trading.

While just simple wood is a definite draw for me, the quality of the wood furnishings we found was very apparent and the different pieces of furniture were very attractive.

I thought this guy on the right was fun and Mr. Ikeda said that the kids love him too.  I’ve never seen a surfer quite like that one. 

I got a kick out of it with the straw skirt and hair to match.  Like I said, you would think we would find something like that right here in Honolulu but I’ll be darned if this charming fellow wasn’t made in Indonesia as well!  What a crack up!  He looks a little ticked off – like he just missed his wave.

If you stop by the store on a Sunday, give my best to Brian and have fun checking out the textures of all of those home and garden products.  The prices are very reasonable and it’s safe to say that you will be pleasantly surprised.

Bali-Pacific Trading Co.
Koko Marina Shopping Center
Suite G-102A
Honolulu, Hawai’i
Phone: (808) 396-9959

I didn’t know it had a special day.  I just always thought it was a fundamental right that was established many, many years ago.  But then, I’m spoiled-rotten.  I’m an American and for us it is a rudimentary kind of ingredient, or the foundation even, of our media as we know it today — both written and televised. 

Bloggers Unite!  So, why are we talking about it?  We want all journalists to have that same spoiled-rotten, power-of-the-pen that we have, no matter where they are in the World!

Here’s the goal:

Objective:
World Press Freedom Day is annually observed on May 3 to inform the international community that freedom of the press and freedom of expression are fundamental

The United Nations General Assembly declared 3 May to be World Press Freedom Day[1][2] to raise awareness of the importance of freedom of the press and remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression enshrined under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and marking the anniversary of the Declaration of Windhoek, a statement of free press principles put together by African newspaper journalists in 1991.

Did you guys know that this was celebrated every May 3rd?  I didn’t know that.  We’re supposed to know this stuff.  I wasn’t paying attention.  The rest of the World is supposed to know it too!  Freedom of the press and freedom of expression is a human rights issue — we’ve got it and we’re not giving it up!

I wouldn’t want it any other way and I want to “feel” what journalists, bloggers, and the literary wizards of the World are trying to share.  To clip a writer’s wings is just wrong.  Happy World Press Freedom Day!  Let’s keep it that way.

Oh the grief of getting a flat tire!  Oh the grief of getting a flat tire on a Sunday after 12 noon!

“NO!  Where am I going to go?!?  I’ve got enough air to get a couple of miles, maybe 10, and then I have to add more air.  Pick a direction.  Which way?  Who’s open?  Head for the mechanics and tire places that know your car!  Go!”

Okay, let’s head for an area where Sam’s Club and Lex Brodie’s are a stone’s throw away from each other.  Get the number for Lex Brodie’s, punch the number into the phone, and head on out!

“You’re open until 3:00?!?  I’m on my way, I’ll be right there!”

Sure enough.  They were there, they were willing to either fix my tire or sell me a new one.  They patched the hole, more like a gash, tested the tire for leaks, and it was good to go!

Yes, they’ve got gas, but they have a lot more.  They’ve got staff — real people that can actually help you!  On Sunday!

You’ll notice from the pictures that it was getting very late in the afternoon.  As I waited for them to print up my bill and receipt, I promised them that my next set of new tires will come from there. They have got service! I’ve got gratitude.

Lex Brodie’s
701 Queen Street
Honolulu, HI 96813
Phone: 808-536-9381

Sometimes, patience is a virtue.  Sometimes falling behind in your blogging can be a blessing.  Check this out, back in January I started to write this post and then, for some reason, I thought better of it, saved it, and held off publishing it.

This is how I started:

“You have GOT to be kidding me!  What kind of a court master would recommend such a thing?  No, I’m not the only one who is reacting this way.   You’ve got to love the Honolulu Advertiser for letting people leave comments and share their opinion!

“For those who don’t know what all of the hollering is about, you might want to check out Samuel King and Randall Roth’s book, Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement, And Political Manipulation at America’s Largest Charitable Trust.  See, the corruption that all of us remember so vividly resurfaces whenever something as preposterous as this makes the headlines.  This horrible story made headlines across the Nation about ten or eleven years ago. 

“Let’s put it this way, Bernice Pauahi would have thrown up her hands in horror if she had witnessed these now-historical events.  Of course, she also would have thrown up her hands in horror when they removed the Bishop name from the name of the school.  So great a love should not have been dealt such a horrible blow.  Perhaps we’ll talk about that at a later date.”

As luck would have it, my blogger muse held off pursuing this story, right at that moment.  Part of what held me back was a secret hope that the trustees would do something exactly like what they’ve done!

After the courts approved their raise, the trustees opted to take a 10% cut instead.  I’m serious — they cut their own pay!

In short, the answer to the question in the title of this post is, “No, there are no hairline cracks.  The Trust was mended some time ago and the trust of the people was restored.”

What did they say about it?

“The trustees are committed to the keiki our trust exists to serve, and to the careful management of resources that will allow Kamehameha Schools to educate native Hawaiians in perpetuity.”

A historical resource like this one needs to be protected and it sounds like the trustees are taking their fiscal and fiduciary responsibilities seriously.  Mahalo and kudos to the Kamehameha Schools trustees. 

Kamehameha Schools is a fine institution that produces some very fine graduates.  The students learn the subjects that all the schools teach, of course, but they also learn the history and culture of Hawai’i to a greater degree than most.  The trustees protect and preserve the trust and its ability to educate while the students leave with the benefit and ability to protect and preserve the culture.

I have other stories that I’ve held back on and I’ll share my initial, knee-jerk reaction with you guys and then tell you why I’m glad that I held back.  Yeah, this one could have been two blog posts but I have no desire to cut people down — until I find out that I’m justified in doing so.  I did not say that I would stop being a b*tch if I’m pretty darn sure that I’m right. 

On Wednesday, January 28th, I was surprised to see these balloons sitting in the middle of the Jamba store in downtown Honolulu.  A place that coworkers and I visit frequently, this location is very convenient for us and quite popular.  I remember when they opened; I just didn’t realize that it was so long ago.  Nine years sounds like such a long time but it has certainly gone by quickly!

And, yes, that is a Jamba surf board hanging on the wall next to those balloons! 

PB n’ Jamba is my favorite.  If you’re avoiding dairy products, you can ask them to skip the yogurt and add more of one of the other ingredients if you like.

Jamba’s website describes this particular drink like this:

“The Chunky PB ‘n Jamba is blended with soymilk, vanilla yogurt, peanut butter, strawberries, blueberries and organic granola into a thick smoothie and then topped with whole blueberries.”

I never knew blueberries tasted so good until I got to taste them fresh like this.

Jamba Juice
Financial Plaza
130 Merchant Street #110
Honolulu, Hawai’i  96813
Phone: 808-585-8359

Why am I writing this?  I have no idea.  Well, I had all of these pictures to start a blog post or two and I just have to talk about things that annoy me.  I have to admit, this all took some thinking on my part because the series and sequence of events all blended together at some point.  Let’s go back a few weeks and take it from the start.  Back on December 26th, Oahu’s power lines were hit by lightening.  They say lightening doesn’t strike twice but Hawaiian Electric Company took it in the electrical wires five (5), yes five times that day.

HECO Finds the Cause

I’m glad that Hawaiian Electric Company was able to pinpoint just how this calamity happened.  I will agree that nobody likes a company that sends them bills in the mail.  But, oddly enough, I’ve felt the need to jump in and back HECO up on this.  Mother Nature does what Mother Nature wants and I’m afraid HECO was outflanked this time.  Most people were out of power for something over 12 hours — it was 20+ hours for us.  I have no problem being without power for a while but I really hate throwing away all of that food.  Ugh!  In spite of it all, HECO still offered to provide financial restitution to those who apply for it.

Mother Nature the Terrorist

We’ve been through a sufficient amount of natural disasters recently that have left some areas a little shell-shocked.  there have been heavy rains causing some very damaging flooding, we’ve had high winds taking the roofs off houses, and there have been combination storms that have kept us in the dark for several hours.  Now that these events are over and we’re sufficiently on edge, what happens when the weather service warns of a windy storm on its way?  State officials and the Department of Education decide to close all public schools.  “They what?!?” They never did that when I was in school!  We always braved the wind, rain, waves, mud, etc.  It did not take long for the private and charter schools to follow suit.  Fine, whatever.

Wait, it gets better.  All State and City & County offices are closed!  “You have GOT to be kidding me!”  Let’s see, Monday is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day so the general consensus was that they all wanted a four-day weekend.  Fine, whatever. What happened on that Friday?  Nothing.  No hurricane.  Maybe a drizzle, maybe not.  Traffic was a lot lighter.

A Trashy Day Off

Absolutely amazing.  Road work?  It’s a holiday; what are they talking about?  Who put that sign there?  I’m nosy, I need to know.  I don’t see any road work, they must have forgotten to pick the sign up during the week — maybe they left in there on Friday when they were suddenly closed for the day.

Surprise!  They were indeed on the road side, on a holiday, picking up somebody’s opala (trash) that was dumped unceremoniously on the side of the road.

This stuff fries me!  It’s bad enough when people dump garbage and abandon vehicles in obscure locations, but when they dump it on the side of the road in a residential area, especially a rural relief area (that’s what I call them) that exists so very close to the city but is still so very peaceful and simple, it absolutely makes my blood boil!  Dump it in your own damn yard, you slobs!  Grrrr!

When I saw what was going on and successfully checked my temper, I realized that I needed to talk about this.  It took me all of about thirty seconds to turn my car around and head back to take these photos.  Doing so rattled the City & County workers.  Does that make me the terrorist?  :)  I think I’ve mentioned before that people are afraid of cameras.  But, when they heard my snarky reaction to the whole thing, they happily joined my rant and understood the intent.

This is what was left after they filled their trucks the first time.  They reassured me they would be back for the rest but this gives you some idea of just what a big pile it was.  A comment was also made that citizens like us hire people to do a job, pay to have the trash hauled away, and this is where it ends up.  It’s hauled away alright but I’m sure the homeowner did not have this kind of disposal in mind!

You know, if you’re doing a job that requires this kind of heavy hauling and disposal and you do not want to pay the fees at the dump, I suggest that you find some other line of work.  Those fees are part of the cost of doing business.  They are a legitimate, tax-deductible, business expense.  But then again, maybe you don’t pay your taxes either?  There was something else that troubled me — there seemed to be more than one line of business here.  There was a lot of flooring debris making up this pile but there were also several cans of paint.  Those paint cans do look old.  Alright, I suppose a homeowner could have done this themselves.  Auwe!

The City & County workers were the ones who pointed out that I “should see what’s over the wall.”  The river is right below this and we wonder why there are so many signs about dumping and cautions about contaminated water?

For the record, later that same day I saw a State employee leaving the Capitol and I said, “Don’t tell me you guys are working?”

“Yep, only half-day though. Since we had Friday off we came in to work half-day.”

Aha!  So they guilted themselves into working on the Monday holiday to make up for what didn’t happen on Friday.  Okay, you guys are forgiven.

There may have been a storm but this is where it really went.  The only real evidence of any storm that I saw was the kicking shore breaks on the west side of Oahu, a nice 30+ miles away from where the City & County was taking away all of that trash.  The water looked so inviting but the warning signs and little orange flags kept everyone out of the water.  Just watching the water and smelling the salt air is enough to make us forget the problems and focus on the beauty that is our home. Why did I write this?  I don’t remember.

We all know how to find someone to help us repair things and we can figure out pretty easily how to get various materials — a piece of wood, a sheet of drywall, some sheet rock, a roll of screen, etc., etc.  But, where do you get a piece of glass that’s not for your car?

Mom’s tenants messed up her house pretty badly. One thing they did was remove the air conditioner and leave a gaping hole in the window, with no covering whatsoever. Okay, we’ll just cover that with a piece of glass.  That sounds good, don’t you think?  Good luck!

I know the size I need.  “No it’s not for my car. I just need a piece of glass. Do you have any?”

“No, we don’t do that.”

“Can you cut this to fit?”

“No, we don’t do that anymore, we got rid of that equipment.”

Auto glass? Yes. Shower doors? Yes. Jalousie windows? Sure. A piece of glass cut to the size I want? Hell no! “But it’s such a small thing; why won’t anybody help me?!? Aaargh!”

Breathe. Pearl City Glass Shop to the rescue! Hooray!  A huge “Mahalo!” goes out to Ace Auto Glass on Ward Avenue for that recommendation!

The sound of breaking glass makes me cringe and the sight of broken glass is not much better — I hear danger and see pain. When I take bottles or cans to a recycling location I can’t stand the sound of the beer bottles being dropped off. I stand back and wait for that person to be done and for the sound to stop. Clearly, glass and I are not the best of friends.  I love to look at it but I don’t like to mess with it.  Glass belongs stationary or framed in some way. I also prefer keeping my blood on the inside of my veins. If there’s a way for me to cut myself, trust me, I will find it!

The staff at Pearl City Glass Shop is very comfortable and skilled at working with this stuff. No matter the size or the reason, if you need glass and you need it cut to fit, Pearl City Glass Shop is there to help.  Oh, and if you think you’re stuck with whatever size mirror you are able to find in the department stores, think again — Pearl City Glass Shop can cut one any size you want!

They’re located in one of those places that you pass all the time but never really see, or try not to.  You can find them at 659 Kamehameha Hwy in Pearl City, between the Sears Distribution Center and Leeward Community College.  If you still can’t find it, call them and they’ll tell you how to get there!

Something so small was so stressful.  Did I mention that Mom’s house is about 33 miles outside of town and gas prices hadn’t gone down yet?  “Ka-ching!”  One more huge “Mahalo!” goes out to Pearl City Glass Shop for saving the day and for solving an otherwise impossible problem.  Thanks you guys!

Pearl City Glass Shop, Inc.
659 Kamehameha Hwy
Pearl City, HI 96782

Phone: 808-456-4502