Future Park Ranger?

I am drinking in the PBS Series "America's Best Idea" like a fine, fine wine! OK, truth be told, it has been on three nights, and I've caught no more than 30 minutes each night, but oh so inspiring! A lot of Tivo to catch up on. I also watched Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan on BookTV Saturday discussing the series and the companion book. The episodes run this week and again in January for, as they clearly state, folks to watch when they are deciding where to go on their next vacation. No kidding! One look at Arcadia in Maine and I'd want to hop on a plane next summer for sure. Here's our own future parks lover (just like the Grandpa he's named for), in full, goofy kid form at Yellowstone this summer. This was after he ran through the boardwalk surrounding the nearby thermal pools. Note the dusty knees from when he stopped to get a closer look.

Poolside fun

We crashed the ongoing party at KoOlina last weekend. We went over for the morning to be with friends and hung out in and around the fabulous property pools. We barely got Robbie out. Even while we had lunch he just sat there, similar to the shot attached. This week I went out and bought him a pair of goggles. We are hoping that the pool experience makes him more comfortable in water and if he has goggles on, he'll experiment more with his face in the water. Initial test runs in the bath tub went OK. Baby steps!

Arizona Memorial replica

Last of the can art display from the mall. Here's a replica of the Arizona Memorial. My favorite! Somewhat easy to stack yet nice touch with the soft curving of the top edges. And a nod for the best use of bottled water. I had to laugh recently - friends were visiting last week and went to Pearl Harbor. They asked about Noel's various jobs as a Marine and whether or not he ever drove the boat that ferries visitors over to the Memorial. No, he wore a lot of hats as a JAG, but never that one!
In a related note, read in the paper over the weekend that the Arizona Memorial Visitor's Center was hosting a special 45 minute preview of Ken Burns' latest PBS project, "America's Best Idea." (Hours and hours - in HD - on the history and geography of the national parks? I can barely breathe thinking about it!) Wasn't able to make it to the sneak peek, but I'm anxiously awaiting the series starting next Monday. They aired a shorter preview on the local PBS station two weeks ago and it looks amazing.

My runner-up in the canned art display

Here's my second-favorite display: Shave ice! And my favorite flavor, too. Red! Yes, sadly a color and not an actual flavor. Cherry and strawberry are pretty much interchangeable in all that sugary, thick syrup, and they taste the same to me. To achieve the deep red color for the display, they wrapped each can in red cellophane. Coincidentally, we went to Matsumoto's on the North Shore yesterday with friends in town. I think it will be my last for a while. Either that or I try Aoki's next door. I ordered cherry and lime, and the lime was a yellow-green color, very unappetizing to the eye. And it didn't taste that great either. My friend sat down right outside when open seats became available before I had time to warn her about the smell. Each time I've been there it stinks of a sewage backup. Yes, right out front. Gross. My kids were a little restless so I didn't make a fuss and move but thinking back that wasn't one of my best decisions.

Canned food drive with an artistic twist

We rarely plan our mall outings around shopping; normally we plan a monorail ride and then walk around a bit while we're there. (The monorail connects two areas of a sprawling shopping complex that costs $0.50 per adult, one way, lasts just a few minutes, and offers a unique view of Pearl Harbor. But it's really just the ride the boys like.) Late last month we stumbled upon a large art installation timed in conjunction with a canned food drive. Here's Robbie's favorite. I like the use of white balloons to complete the replica of a steam train. Pretty clever.

Pizza night!

Sometime back in February or March zpizza opened at the Ward Centre. I remember it - fondly - from its early origins during my college days, but had no idea that it had gone on to become a relatively big franchise. We finally got there earlier this summer and it's even better than I remember. The staff is super friendly as well, going beyond the call of duty to help us out as we rolled in with a toddler and a preschooler in tow.

Hands-down beats Boston Pizza here, who claim to be the best pizza on the island. Even better news for us, there will be a new zpizza location coming in a yet-to-be-completed shopping and dining complex near KoOlina.

Photo Trek at Waimea Valley

A few Sundays ago, I joined a small group of local photographers on a day trek with professional photographer George Lepp. Lighthaus Camera hosted the day and bused us out to Waimea Valley on the North Shore. The theme for the day can be summed up quickly: HDR - Bracket, bracket, bracket! Lepp has embraced the hot photographic trend and was eager for all of us to try it. Sure you can take a zillion images, but you need to later run the images through Photoshop or other similar apps to really see what you can get. And I haven't yet, which should surprise no one. This shot is from my phone, proof that I made the short yet tiring hike to the falls that day. Sadly it's not that far and completely paved, but always seems longer than they sell it.
They promised lunch in the deal and I was a little worried. I'm not a picky eater; I simply do not like a lot of "normal" stuff. I had visions of cheap, deli meat sandwiches slathered in mayo and mustard. Yuck, yuck, yuck. (I guess I'm outing myself in my hatred of mayo here. It's beyond dislike. The stuff makes me sick.) But I was very pleasantly surprised. The organizers let us have our pick off the menu at the Waimea Valley snack bar. For a snack bar, it was surprisingly good. I bypassed the standard plate lunches and instead opted for the Vegan Taro Burger figuring this might not be something I can easily get elsewhere. It was pretty good - moist taro patty on a soft taro bun. I looked around at the folks having the Kailua pulled pork and teriyaki chicken plate lunches and they looked pretty good too. If you're planning a trip to Waimea Valley, I can recommend eating there without any hesitation.

One more try with the thermal pool pics...

More images highlighting the unique colors and markings surrounding the thermal pools in Yellowstone. I spent a good chunk of time (when not trying to keep tabs on Robbie) studying the ground for interesting pictures of the patterns. Yes, that's a good vacation for me. :) I think the deep oranges are caused by sulphur. There really is an amazing range of colors, for some reason I liked best the shots highlighting mainly the earth-tones.

More from vacation...

It's Labor Day, and folks all over are probably wishing summer would not end. So here's my take on that time-honored tradition. I'm dragging out more pics from our trip this July. This was taken while roaming the grounds surrounding Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park. I loved this thermal pool for its depth, color, and interesting interior "walls." Wanted to dive in, but you know that would be a very, very bad idea!

Sunset at Ko Olina

We're having a fantastic weekend with my sister and her family. Local beach run this morning followed by dinner at the Marriot Beach Villas (Lagoon 3 for the curious). Live music, a lawn for the kids to run around, and this view. When they leave Sunday for Maui the house will be very, very quiet.