Homespun Honolulu

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 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.

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. 

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!

 The title of this post is not the oxymoron that you think it is.  National Novel Writing Month is upon us once again and there are organizers across the oceans who have organized ways for writing fanatics to write with reckless abandon!  

This year NaNoWriMo celebrates its 10th anniversary.  I know there are a lot of bloggers across the nation who are involved with this endeavor in one way or another.  Here in Honolulu, the bulk of participants seem to be made up of college students.  There are a lot of people in unexpected places as well. 

I failed NaNoWriMo miserably last year but I’m aiming to try again this year.  If I can pull it together this year, it may make me more capable of pounding out more blog posts more consistently.  More, more, more!  I’ve already decided whose life I’m going to mess up big time in my novel. Ha!  :) 

The beauty of this is that you’re jsut working for a draft at best, not a well-crafted, read to go to print manuscript. In other words, don’t worry about it, just write and let your writing take on a life of its own. I’ve read that people’s characters take on a life of their own and surprise even the author as things move along.  I like that idea!

Some people have been published in the months that followed NaNoWriMo, but don’t count on it.  The writing goes on at fever pitch for 30 days — not so much for literary genius but for putting passion down on paper.  That’s how I see it anyway (no surprise there I suppose).

Anyway, Happy Anniversary NaNoWriMo!  There’s a story in my head.  Isn’t there one in yours?  Sign up!  Hurry, the literary abandon starts November 1st!  There are write-ins going on all over the State of Hawaii and the rest of the country.  Starbucks, book stores and various restaurants have got to be looking forward to the coming month of November!  Coffee sales must go through the roof at times like this! 

Alexander & Baldwin rang the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) this morning.  From what I could gather, this was to recognize the movement of their stock from the Nasdaq to the NYSE.  Now when you go to look for their stock, you’ll be looking for them under the ticker symbol, AXB.  I didn’t even know they were traded on the Nasdaq.  Consequently I didn’t know about, or pay attention to, the news that they were moving over. 

That bell on the news this morning triggered this post.  This is now a perfect time for me to talk about Matson!  I’ve been wondering for several days just how I would start talking about Matson.  I have mentioned them before, I have realized how important they are to the State of Hawaii and I have apparently added them to my internal list of companies to watch, endorse and respect.  Their owner?  You got it — Alexander & Baldwin!  I had no idea A&B owned Matson, until I did a little research.  Boy did I feel dumb!  I should have known that.

Let me give you a short recap.  First, I was so concerned about the Falls of Clyde being sunk and then I got excited when I heard that the Friends of the Falls of Clyde was stepping forward to keep the ship from going to a briny grave.  The next worry was money.  I wrote a post about sending emails to Matson, appealing, suggesting, okay begging, for their help.  Of course the Alexander & Baldwin Foundation is their charitable arm.  Like I said, I felt pretty stupid.     

Anyway, a very nice gentleman in Matson’s mainland office not only took the time to forward my emails to A&B, but he actually took the time to call me on the phone and let me know they were not ignoring me.  Suffice it to say, I was amazed and pleasantly surprised to find that an officer of such a large corporation was so patient and quite personable!

The sound of the horn on this Matson ship was so loud it made me jump right out of my skin!  It also made me jump up and grab my camera!  Just to give you some idea of the physical size of this thing, those little figures just off to the left of the middle of the ship’s deck are people.  This thing is huge!

My groceries are on that boat — maybe even Thanksgiving dinner!  :)    I did remind the gentleman from Matson to not forget our Christmas trees this year.  He chuckled and said they wouldn’t forget.  So every time you hear bells ringing this holiday season, think of Matson and the Falls of Clyde. 

Soon they will be moving the Falls of Clyde from her current location (next to the Hawaii Maritime Center adjacent to Aloha Tower) and taking her to dry land.  The intent is to repair the ship and eventually restore her back to the water for all to enjoy.  Maybe our Matson giant above will welcome the Falls of Clyde back into the water with a blast of its large horn.  Wouldn’t that be fun?!?  It wouldn’t exactly be bells but it would certainly leave our ears ringing!   

Before I knew the historic significance of the Falls of Clyde, I just thought of it as an old pirate ship, if I even thought about it at all.  A year and a half ago, the emotional and intellectual impact made on me by the Hawaii Maritime Center started my adoration of this ship.  I bought a copy of Bob Krauss’ book that he wrote about the Falls of Clyde and came to understand and appreciate its significance even more.  In fact, one of my favorite posts was the one I wrote about just that — the Hawaii Maritime Center adjacent to Aloha Tower.

Recently, I was devastated to hear that they actually wanted to toss it, to dispose of it — to sink the Falls of Clyde!  First of all, I don’t know how they could bring themselves to do such a thing.  I understand that money is a huge issue and that neither the Maritime Center nor Bishop Museum can afford the needed repairs but the Falls of Clyde was declared a national historic landmark by the National Park Service of the United States Department of the Interior in 1989.  Doesn’t that mean anything?  Doesn’t that mean that it’s supposed to be “protected” and preserved?  Did they not seek funding assistance from the Federal government?

It was a concern to me back in March of 2007, when it was already closed for safety reasons.  People were no longer allowed on board to check out the vessel’s design and make-up.  As you can see by the picture below, they had already removed most of the rigging.

Suddenly, a ray of hope came forward for this 125-year-old remnant of our history.  On September 30th, just last week, Bishop Museum made the news as it transferred ownership of the vessel to the Friends of the Falls of Clyde!  I’m not sure if the rigging was removed for the planned sinking or for the planned repairs that will be made to the vessel somewhere in dry dock.  It doesn’t matter.  What matters is that an organization has stepped forward to bring this ship back to its old, tourist-attracting self!

For the record, Bruce McEwan, the president of Friends of the Falls of Clyde, told the Honolulu Advertiser that the restoration may turn into a community project as people have already begun to step forward and join forces with the new organization.  As you can see, I am not the only crazy person around here!  Bob Krauss acknowledged in his book, “The Indestructible Square-Rigger Falls of Clyde 324 Voyages Under Sail,” that he understood how people might scratch their heads and wonder about our seemingly-odd fascination with the Falls of Clyde.  Perhaps the following paragraph, written by another icon of our local history, can shed a little light on the emotions that push this conservation endeavor forward.

“First, on a global level, her iron hull and four towering masts mark the Falls of Clyde as an important step in the evolution of western sailing ship design, a culmination of refinement as sail gave way to steam. She is the only surviving full-rigged, four-masted ship in the world.  That’s not all.  This vessel represents a unique experiment in the global transportation of oil.  The Falls of Clyde is the only surviving sail-driven oil tanker.  Second, on a local level, she is as authentic a symbol of Hawaiian history as hula or surfing.  The ship is the only surviving original member of the century-old Matson fleet that still plays a vital role in Hawai’i’s economy.”

The Friends of the Falls of Clyde, has already applied for its non-profit status.  When I read that I started thinking.  I was grasping at straws and I thought of Matson.  I have mentioned Matson in this blog several times over the last several months.  It was Matson that brought this sea-going darling to our shores.  Yeah, I couldn’t help myself; I’ve already sent an email asking them about their corporate giving program.  Hey, you never know, maybe they can offer some support.  Maybe they will want to offer some support.

As the sun sets over Honolulu this October evening, Homespun Honolulu sends a huge “Mahalo!” to the Friends of the Falls of Clyde for stepping up to save a tangible piece of our maritime history!  Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, the sun will rise again on the Falls of Clyde as it is returned to the water in all its historic glory.  You can bet this blogger will be there, with camera ready!

The Honolulu Academy of Arts did the “green” thing this past Sunday for its Family Sunday. Assuming this was in anticipation of yesterday’s Earth Day, I would say they did a great job.

For those who drive down Beretania Street and pass the Academy on a regular basis, like me, you’re familiar with the colorful banners in front of the Academy that are blowing in the wind as you drive by.

These banners, as festive and alluring as they are, have nothing to do with Earth Day. These are part of the motif that continues on the inside and is the current exhibit visiting the Academy.

The sacred arts of Bhutan are currently this featured display at the Academy of Arts. The full display of this attraction is on the second floor.

We did not venture up to see the display but it was definitely the topic of conversation while we were there. “The Dragon’s Gift,” as this exhibit is titled, is an attraction which focuses on the “Himalayan kingdom’s Buddhist art and culture.”

This exhibit represents an unusual opportunity to learn about a culture we don’t hear about very often. In addition to the educational aspect, it is definitely a visual feast of very colorful arts, sacred ritual dance, and rich textiles.

Those colorful banners we mentioned, the ones pictured above, are actually covered in writings that you would only see if you were standing next to them. While the writings are not in English, the quality and detail involved with such labor still makes quite an impact.

So, just what was going on for Earth Day? Well, there were a lot of things to make you think about protecting our environment and a lot of hands-on activities for the keiki (children).

Here we’ve got some terrariums being made to further educate the youngsters. I was surprised to see just how little parking was available and how many young children were there. The Academy is not usually a place where you find young children. Its focus is more on the arts of various World cultures. Bishop Museum is a more common place to see the kids.

It certainly made for some creativity and quality time for families. Happy Tamanaha, seen below, was showing people of varying ages the art of basket weaving from simple coconut leaves.

While the push has always been to plant more flora than concrete, the other, more-recent focus for our planet is to recycle products that may otherwise end up in the landfills.

Local sculptor, Mark Chai, has the right idea and shares those ideas with attendees. Pictured above, left, we see a conversational mood light created from a waste basket. In the center we have a decorative light made out of an x-ray film carton that would have otherwise been discarded. The item on the right is a wastebasket made from corrugated tin roof and, get this, old cafeteria trays.

This one is my favorite. The backing of this piece is actually the backing of a street lamp that Mr. Chai found at the dump. He has made a useful creation that, while maybe not suitable for your living room, would certainly make great shelf space on the lanai or in the garage. What’s the Aloha sign? Nothing more than thick cardboard. Imagine that — attractive, functional and Earth-friendly!

The Academy is not done with the green of the past Family Sunday. For their Art after Dark celebration on April 25th (held from 6 - 9:00 PM on the last Friday of the month) attendees will enjoy more live presentations for uses of recycled materials, some organic cuisine and drinks, a variety of entertainment, and a final chance to see The Dragon’s Gift exhibit.

Honolulu Academy of Arts
900 Beretania Street
Honolulu, Hawai’i 96814
Phone: (808) 532-8700

Technorati Tags: Earth Day, Honolulu Academy of Arts, Bhutan

I know people are looking for this. I talked about it last year but didn’t think to get on it quickly enough this year. Here is the link to the Kamehameha Schools 2008 Song Contest live broadcast where you can pick your software version for viewing. This is their 88th Annual Song Contest and KGMB is going to show it live this evening!

It’s already on — there’s a pre-show information running right now that gives some of the background of the school and the ongoing preservation of the Hawaiian language! It makes me proud to hear them and makes me want to cry. There is a short interview segment with Keali’i Reichel and that put my tears over the edge.  (Don’t ask… I don’t understand it either.) 

Mahalo to Kamehameha Schools for the preservation of this tradition and the continued protection of our island culture. Mahalo to KGMB Channel 9 for bringing it to us live!

The best part is that, even if you miss it, you can order a copy of it this year! I don’t think they made it available last year. If they did, I certainly didn’t know about it!

Technorati Tags: Kamehameha Schools

Last year (2006), in anticipation of starting a blog, I managed to swallow my fear, step outside my personal safety zone and get some pictures of this annual, newsworthy event. I was a nervous wreck, but I did it! The problem was that, aside from this personal achievement, it was over a month before the idea of blogging came to fruition. By the time Homespun Honolulu became a reality, the Toys for Tots story was too dated for me to talk about.

Street Bikers United Hawaii in cooperation with the United States Marine Corp Reserve hosted the 33rd Annual Street Bikers United Toy Run Parade. Anywhere from 4,000 to 5,000 bikers come together bringing toys for children for Christmas. They ride from Magic Island, through Waikiki and over to Kapiolani Community College. Once at KCC, bikers surrender their festive passengers to the military trucks waiting to carry them on to youngsters who will soon give these toys or games a home. Read the rest of this entry »