Homespun Honolulu

There is no event quite like this one to light a fire under me to start “talking” again.  I miss writing, I miss talking, and I so miss sharing!  We’ll talk about the New Year and early resolutions in a bit.  Right now, let’s talk about Christmas and one of the landmark events that signal that it is upon us.

Street Bikers United Hawaii joined forces with the United States Marine Corps Reserve, just as they do every year.  The fun part is that there are always new surprises and fun things to see.

Every year I wait for this event, just because.

Phenomenons like this one happen across the country.  Hawai’i is not the only State to see this happen.  Yes, I call it a phenomenon because our bikers just show up with little provocation.  I’m obviously not the only one who looks forward to this!

There is just something so delightful about a bunch of toy-carting bikers that is enough to make people’s hearts all warm and fuzzy.  Of course that’s after they’re done scratching their heads.

It’s an awesome sight; let me show you!

Since I need to get rid of my wheels (since I have four instead of only 2) before I venture out with my camera, I find a safe spot to get rid of them and go the rest of the way on foot to Magic Island where the event begins.

Many bikers get close to Magic Island but some stop for breakfast before continuing — including Santa and some of his elves.

When I first got there the parking lot was already starting to fill up.

It was amazing to watch the lot fill up and get more and more crowded.  Who would have thought that there were even that many bikes on Oahu?

The lot was filling with more bikes, more Santas, more toys, and more enthusiasm.  When all was said and done, there were over 6,500 bikes!

As they continued to file in, I kept thinking about just how perfect the weather was for a day like this.  It wasn’t too hot but the sun was out and being its usual bright self.  

It was a good thing that it wasn’t too hot because the volunteers directing the influx of bikers were being kept very busy!  The bikers dressed in Santa suits must have been baking up pretty nicely as well.

There were more people than bikes because a lot of the bikers had their ladies with them.

Here is Ralph and Wanda — these two go everywhere together!  I was looking for them because I really don’t know anybody else personally.  I found them!  These two are inseparable and theirs is a heartwarming relationship to watch.

Here’s a dad with his little lady.  This cutie got a lot of attention from those of us with cameras — you can tell by the shadows off to the right.  You can also tell that she was a little embarrassed by all of the attention.

There were a variety of other kinds of passengers too!

All of these characters riding with these ferocious bikers. Terrible, terrible! :)

Here is a favorite group of characters!  GEICO was there walking around and handing out bandannas.  In a feeble attempt to score a gecko scarf I said, “I don’t have a bike but my car is GEICO-insured!”

“It’s all good!” was the response.  Hmmm, that was not so feeble after all.  I ended up with a couple of crisply-folded bandannas tucked in at my waist — I was a walking advertisement!  Trust me, they didn’t mind.

The run/parade was supposed to start at 10:00 am but at 10:30 bikers were still filing into the park.

At the ultimate destination, Kapiolani Community College, the Marines collected the cargo from the bikers and still the smiles of participants and spectators continued to appear on faces old and young.

Here, Santa had the Grinch all tied up!

This Grinch was on the loose.

Lions, tigers, and bears, oh my!

At the end of the line the bikes are more spread out so you can see all of the polishing that went on before this event.

You can also see a few more oddities that we missed at the beginning of all this.  I’m guessing those are moose antlers but they do quite nicely as reindeer antlers.  It’s Christmas time and these “reindeer” can fly!  As always, they should fly safely.

Now that I’ve shared all of that, I have to say how happy I am to be sharing this fun event with everyone and I’m sorry that I have not been writing and sharing more recently.  The fire has been lit — thanks to Street Bikers United and our Marines!  I’m starting early with my resolutions.  I hereby resolve to post more often and try not to let a down time like this happen again!

I’ve got two weeks to whip this baby into shape!  

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.

Okay, December just went way too fast!  It was like watching water go down the drain — the last part just goes, “sluuuurp,” and then it’s all gone!   

The deadline for the first 2009 Carnival of Aloha was actually today, BUT, I’ve extended it until Friday the 2nd.  :)  I’m falling behind big time and, with the holiday season and all, I’m guessing that some of you guys are too!

Have a wonderful, safe and happy New Year celebration this evening and when you’re recovering from it all tomorrow, submit a post for the Carnival!  If you like, send in your favorite post of 2008 — just be sure to let me know that’s what you’re doing in the comments so I can make a note of it!

Mahalo to Richard Tajiri’s Christmas Hawaii for a picture-perfect tree that I almost didn’t want to decorate.  But, I did!  I’m hoping that I can be supportive of them at the start of the holiday season next year.

The annual drive for the Toys for Tots campaign officially kicked off with the “Bikes for Tykes” event in Downtown Honolulu.  I didn’t know about this event.  It’s the third year and I did not know about it.  I missed it.  I will make it a point to NOT miss it next year!

The Marine Toys for Tots Foundation is on my list of wonderful organizations and the local Marines in Kaneohe do them proud!  The Marines and the Hawaii Chapter of Street Bikers United join forces, once a year, to take toys to the keiki — via their motorcycles.  I love this event because it is a rare occasion that we get to see so many riders all together at the same time and, best of all, for a common cause.  Regular readers know how much I love this event.  Guess what?  I missed that too!  The worst part is that I promised you guys last year to get it done this year!

Here is the one photo that I was able to get for this year’s event.  That’s it.  That’s all I have.  Last year I suffered from an equipment failure when my camera decided to have a memory meltdown.  This year, I was severely slowed down in the morning and then the husband locked his keys in the car (with it running) so I missed the end of the run too!

Needless to say, I was not happy.  Again.  This event only happens once a year!  I swear, next year is mine!  I will get those pictures that I discovered I really can get if I have to die trying!  Okay, maybe I won’t go quite that far.

I Have an Attitude Problem

So often seen as the kind of people you don’t want to take home to meet your parents, these tattoo-sporting, bike-riding, beer-drinking hooligans are, for the most part, just the opposite — they’re sheep in wolves clothing! 

These horrible monsters are taking toys to children.  Gasp!  Oh the horror!  Yeah, I’m being a wise a** but cut me some slack.  For all the “bad boy” or “hoochie mama” notoriety they get (yes, women ride too!), they’re just like the rest of us — they are passionate about what they do.  I keep grilling this “they’re good people” stuff into the ground, I know, but I can’t help it.  I can relate to that passion, be it as a loaner or as part of a group.

Any bikers reading this will be thinking, “Yeah!  We’re good!”  Then they hate me because I continue to caution them about safety and helmets and the like.  I can’t help that either!

I did tell the new downtown Honda store that they need a couple of motorcycles in the window if they expect to draw people in.  “We have a location for that,” was the comment.

“I know that,” I quipped back, “so have them lend you guys a couple to draw people into the store and then you guys can sell them the other stuff.  You need bikes on the floor!”  We’ll see what they do.  Trust me, if it happens, you guys will hear about it as soon as it does!  Then again, nobody listens to me so don’t hold your breath.

Anyway, if you can swing it, bikes are always good Christmas gifts.  Big bikes, little bikes, big tykes, little tykes, boys and girls — it’s freedom for the free spirited.  Don’t forget the helmets, knee pads, elbow pads…

I will add a link to this post later that includes all of the pictures that I have from the 2006 event.  Again, I apologize.  I also have four or five other posts sitting here waiting to be written.  Off to work!

For those whose churches are on the Julian calendar (aka the old calendar), December 25th was actually celebrated on Monday, January 7th. It was nice to walk into the Moiliili 7-11 and still see little Christmas trees still on their counter.

The little trees were actually made out of LED lights. I have been admiring these lights for a long time. Unfortunately, the picture doesn’t even come close to how beautiful those little lights were sitting on the counter! I thanked them for still having them up. They think I’m crazy but, so what else is new?!?

Those lights are actually safer and more durable than the incandescent lights we’re used to. They also won’t break into sharp pieces of glass when your kitty decides to bite them. I’ve been most impressed by the other safety feature — they don’t get too hot. At least that way they won’t set dry trees on fire so easily!

In spite of the fact that they’re cooler to the touch, they’re still brighter than the kind we’re used to. Here’s a better example of what they really look like. The picture I took doesn’t show that brightness very well but do keep in mind that they were still beautiful, even in a fully lit 7-11 store! Those lights would be cool to line a walkway. Sometimes I wish I had a house just for reasons like this. I wouldn’t pound them with a hammer the way I saw someone doing on television — they’re not cheap — but I wouldn’t worry about driving over them in a driveway either!

Maybe the hallway at home would be an option… so we don’t step on something in the middle of the night. Of course if they’re that durable, it would hurt a lot to step on them in the middle of the night. I spoke too soon… we could get some of the rope light variety with “durable, flexible” plastic covering. I wonder how thick that plastic coating is. Of course if they’re lit, why would I step on them? I like the blue ones! They look so serene and restful. I would like to have that kind of color cast in the room and hallway overnight. They last longer and use less electricity too. I think they would pay for themselves in no time! Cool gift idea for anyone with a house — not only for the holidays but for added safety.

Last night we thought about going out and then we thought about just staying home and then we thought we might drive around. We just didn’t know what we were going to do or what we wanted to do.

At first we thought we would be going to Aloha Tower but we changed our minds. We ended up behind the Ilikai Hotel, by the lagoon behind the Hilton Hawaiian Village, to watch the fireworks.

We had a much better view than we had last year from Magic Island.

The fireworks were beautiful and we were glad we made it there to see them! We’ll try Aloha Tower next year.

There was quite a crowd of people and there were voices talking behind us saying, “Go Warriors!” Obviously we weren’t alone. I had my UH t-shirt on!

Hau’oli Makahiki Hou, Hawaii! May this new year be safe, happy and prosperous for us all!

I love that these lights let off some green smoke! Happy New Year and Go Warriors!

February 18, 2008! I’m excited! I love this event! I talked about the 2007 Great Aloha Run at the beginning of the year. My biggest problem is that I now compare every other running event to this one. That’s very unfair for me to do because the others pale in comparison.

I’ve already signed up. If you have n0t signed up yet and you want to participate, you’ve still got time to sign up — either online or by printing out the form and mailing it in. If you forget, you can always sign up at the Expo that will be at Neal Blaisdell Center on February 15th, 16th and 17th!

Active.com sends great emails if you sign up for them. They sent one recently with this neat little advertisement for personal reflectors, pouches to tie to your shoes, ID bracelets and all kinds of useful things. I have my eye on three of the items they have.

I thought about it and these would be great for anyone exercising in the evening or in the rain.

They’re good for runners and bicyclists as well! For the record, I checked with HPD and it’s okay to wear those little blue lights, as long as it’s not on your motor vehicle!

There’s nothing more heart warming than this wonderful scene. The morning sky is lighting up, we’re singing the Star Spangled Banner and the Honolulu Fire Boat is sending a watery salute to the participants of this much-anticipated, annual event. It’s all about the aloha!

FEES AND DEADLINES:

• Early Entry with Training T-shirt $35 until 12/2
• Regular Entry $35 until 1/19 then $40 until 2/2
• Register at GAR Expo, Feb. 15 – 17, NBC Exhibition Hall $45, Cash Only
• Keiki (5-12 yrs)/Seniors Entry $25
• Child under 5 yrs in Stroller Entry $5

Run, walk, it doesn’t matter! This is a community event like no other. (Okay, okay, I’ll give up that position to the UH Warriors, but aside from that…) Not into running or walking but still want to get involved? They’re looking for volunteers!

Come on you guys! It’ll be fun! Community participation was high last year and I’m sure it will be again!

I decided to step outside for a little bit for some fresh air the other day and I heard little voices singing. Then I saw all the signs of that group of keiki who find their way to the downtown area every year — a whole bunch of clothing for changes and a few teachers and chaperons (probably volunteer parents) fixing the clothes and straightening things up after the last series of changes.

The Manana Elementary School Children’s Choir, Na Keiki ‘O Manana, went Christmas caroling in downtown Honolulu last week and I was lucky enough to stumble right into the middle of it!

Still other parents were admiring the young performers and standing proudly by while business people and passers by enjoyed the music and pretty costumes.

Different children took part in little skits while the choir sang some traditional Christmas tunes and other tunes that had been written especially for them. Read the rest of this entry »

I have to admit that downtown Honolulu, at dusk, is a place where people start to watch their back as they move through the darkening streets on their way home or on the way to their cars or the bus.

At Christmas time, things change just a little. Bishop Square at 1001 Bishop Street is one of my favorite spots. As early as mid-October, there are people with trucks and mechanical lifts who start wrapping the trees in beautiful red, green and clear lights. After working all day and leaving for home around sunset, somehow the site of something quietly festive provides a sense of security. I can’t quite explain it, obviously.

Some of the trees remain lit the same color while others alternate between red and green making this simple-sounding display quite a sight once the evening shadows have started to fall.

The best part of it all is that the landscape of Bishop Square is sprinkled with a variety of man-made pools of standing water that reflect those beautiful lights and add even more to the magic and whimsicality of it all.

Maybe I’m just weird but I look forward to this little part of the annual Christmas displays that appear around Honolulu’s business and municipal districts every year. The businesses may still have staff who are working while others may be having their Christmas parties elsewhere. But, this little square is just peaceful to watch as the lights change colors and sparkle off the water just after sundown.

Welcome to Chapter 4 of the Carnival of Aloha!

Let’s take our festive canoe paddle and do the Carnival circuit via canoe this month. That way we can take a nice leisurely cruise as we enter into December.

We need to acknowledge Thanksgiving just because it’s a very important holiday for all of us. We have a lot to be thankful for and I want to take this time to thank all of the bloggers for wanting to participate in our monthly Carnival of Aloha and to thank all of the readers who want to join us and share a little touch of aloha! You guys are the ones who make this all possible!

While we’re giving thanks, let’s join Lynn as she shares a great Thanksgiving story with us…

Lynn Vasquez tells us all about “KauKau Wagon’s Annual Thanksgiving Saturday” when she shares, Many Came ~ Many Were Fed ~ All Were HAPPY!” posted at Auntie Pupule. It takes a certain kind of person with a good heart to get herself involved in these things on a regular basis. Thanks, Auntie, for reminding us, once again, just what sharing the aloha is all about.

There are other people who need to be a little thankful right about now…

Lika presents Racist, me? posted at Lika’s Log. Some people have a lot to be thankful for and I think Mr. Chapman should be thankful that this topic is no longer at the top of the media’s list! Nice job, Lika, of explaining just how we are about ethnic name dropping. We use it all the time and The Dog was right… it’s just how we talk! Although most of us do avoid the “N” word.

Aside from the Dog’s verbal slip, there have been many points of contention recently and none smaller than the Hawaii Superferry! Did anyone keep a diary? Um, a web log? Mel did!

Mel presents Mel’s Internet Universe Weblog with Superferry-specific posts posted at Mel’s Internet Universe Weblog, saying that this link, “covers recent posts I did on the Hawaii Superferry. By the time the Dec. Carnival of Aloha is published, the ferry should be up and running.” Thanks, Mel, for keeping track for us and for sharing it all here!

Let’s keep the sense of humor alive that Lika started…

L.P. “NEENZ” FALEAFINE presents LAUGHTER. posted at INFINITY., saying, “A sense of humor in Hawaii is as essential as suntan lotion.” I like that line — very true! Neenz is always thoughtful and this post is no exception.

Since Lika seems to be the key to keeping this canoe moving, and since she mentioned Waipahu in her post, let’s welcome Karin to the islands, to the Carnival and into our festive canoe as she also finds her way over to the Leeward side of Oahu…

Karin Gallagher presents Go Ahead And Get Your Coffee, This Here’s A Long One posted at Double Duty Diary: Twice the Angst in Half the Time. Karin lets us know that, “This is my first submission to the carnival of aloha” as she takes us to Hans L’Orange Field to enjoy our minor league baseball!

Now I’m thinking about those hot dogs that Karin told us about! I’m hungry so let’s go get some good sweets…

Sheila has some Hula Pie! Oh my! that she posted at her Hawaii Vacation Blog - GoVisitHawaii.com. I think we should get some of that! It must be good because Sheila says, “My mouth is watering just thinking back about this pie. As my dad would say in one of his old-timers, Southern sayings, ‘It tastes so good it will make your tongue slap your brains.’ :-)”

This pie is on Kaua’i… it is so decadent we need some exercise now! Let’s join Andy, our hiking enthusiast, on his camping trip…

Andy Kass presents Salt Pond Surprises posted at A Kaua’i Blog. Andy always gets the best pictures! It’s great to see one of our monk seals basking in the sun and enjoying a little peace and quiet. Okay, that’s not much exercise for us is it?

While we’re at it, let’s check in with our other endangered beach dweller…

Cheryl presents the Best Big Island Hawaii Beaches to See Turtles in Natural Environment posted at Hawaii Vacation Gifts Blog - Hawaiian Blog. Cheryl has a knack for finding the best links to compliment her posts. I strongly recommend following those links just to see what she saw while sharing her passion with us.

Okay, we’re island hopping again. We weren’t done with Kaua’i yet. Let’s head back to Kaua’i and stop at Maui on the way back. All of this canoe paddling is making me hungry again…

Jamie presents Cheap Eats in Maui posted at Go Maui Card Blog, saying, “A guide to cheap eats in Maui!” Cheap is good, I like cheap… almost as much as I like food!

We return to Kaua’i to paddle down the river…

Pua presents Best Things to Do on Kauai - Wailua River Tour posted at Best Hawaii Vacation with Hawaii Vacation Blog, saying, “Best Things to do on Kauai Vacation” I didn’t know about this river — that’s a lot of water!

We’ve given thanks and moved down the river and back out into the ocean where we are about to welcome winter, or at least our version of it…

Susan Johnston brings us back to Oahu at Go Oahu Travel Blog » Blog Archive » Winter Surfing on Oahu’s North Shore posted at Go Oahu Card Blog, telling us about the “Winter Surfing on Oahu’s North Shore.” How did we get winter and surfing into the same sentence? As we very often say around here when things don’t sound quite right, “Only in Hawaii!”

Let’s dry off and go enjoy some artistic creativity…

Skeet took the time to share A Day at the Theatre over at her blog, Skeet’s Stuff, and quite a day it was! The topic of grave diggers and bones has never been so charming! There’s just something about meeting other bloggers in person that can make a day great!

I’ve been lucky to meet two of our blogging ladies in person. Just before meeting up with Skeet to spend “a day at the theatre,” I dropped by Lynn’s Lair and was equally delighted to talk story and share thoughts and stories with her. I’m thankful for these meetings too!

For those of you with family or friends on the mainland, or for those of you on the mainland with family or friends over here, it might be helpful to keep track of the Christmas shipping dates…

Angie over at True Aloha has given us Key Mailing Dates from Hawaii. This is something useful to print and tack up on the refrigerator! We’re heading into the yuletide season gang!

Let’s wrap up these Carnival rides and our canoe excursion with the State of Hawaii’s best ride of the month…

Evelyn at Homespun Honolulu (that’s me) had to tell the World, just one more time, that They Did It! BCS! BCS! BCS! I’m sorry guys but all other blog posts that I might have pulled in for this Carnival had to take a back seat to the UH Warriors! I was going to share the shopping post but the greatest gift was the one given to all of us, and to the University of Hawaii, by the Warrior football team!

That’s it for Chapter 4 of the Carnival of Aloha. Be sure to submit your blog article for Chapter 5 of the Carnival of Aloha using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page. If you’re new, guidelines can be found here.