The $80 parking fiasco

Friends from the other side of the island invited us to Ko Olina on Saturday for a few hours at the beach. I'm not a big fan of being at the beach in the middle of the day, nor do I like Ko Olina at that time because parking is bad (small public lots fill up early). But they don't come to the Leeward side often, so I gave it a go.

We ended up parking in a hotel garage where we have parked before. Validated our parking ticket after dinner and we had no problems. Not so lucky this time. I wanted to grab lunch (and get the all-important validation), but it for various reasons it didn't happen. I really was hoping Cub would drop off into a nap and I could sneak off, but Cub does not go down with so many distractions. So...our parking bill for four hours? 80 bucks. Ouch! The hotel is sneaky - they don't post rates anywhere. Poor little Cub got burned twice. We didn't get enough sunscreen on his face and his nose is still red. Otherwise we had a really fun day. Here's a shot of Dad and Cub before it all went south.

Get your motor running

Late last week I suggested to my Mom that we put Robbie's bike in the car and head down to a local park. It's one I like to go to for the playground, but I'm always wishing I could let Robbie ride his bike on the half-mile loop around the park. With Cub in tow, it's too hard for me. With an extra adult, I was willing to give it a try. Noel ended up coming home from work around the same time we were leaving, so he hopped in the car and we headed out.

Once on the "open" road Robbie went wild. Loved riding in and around and between sport courts, buildings, fields, etc. We gave him strict instructions to stay in the park loop and NOT head out to the adjacent streets, but he didn't mind us. We lost him as he headed out through the neighborhood. Noel ran after him, I got in the car and found them both a good half mile from the park. Anyone know if you can micro chip kids??

More backyard gecko watching

It's been a busy and fun week with family in town and more trips to the beach than we've had all year. Sadly, I've taken more pictures of the geckos along the fence than our visitors and/or our kids. I guess we were never in much of a photographic mood. So, here's an interesting one of our resident gecko. He is in the middle of changing his colors (grey to green); the tufts around his head look like loose skin but they were gone once he went completely green. Not sure what the technical terms for this is, I'll have to do more research. And he's also doing that thing with his neck, but this time it's a different color. I don't know why, but these tiny creatures are fascinating me. In the following weeks I will be rolling out a new blog feature: The Gecko Cam!

"Cardboard Barry" standing by

A new Obama Watch is starting on Oahu: In June, President Obama's high school class (Punahou, '79) is having their 30 year reunion. An invitation has been sent to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., but no RSVP yet. Organizers aren't getting their hopes up. So in his place, they'll party on with "Cardboard Barry," the life-size cardboard cutout of Obama that appeared at local campaign fundraisers.

Can't blame Obama for not being able to squeeze it in. Here's the schedule of events: "The reunion runs from June 10 through June 14, beginning with a large gathering at Punahou of all classes celebrating reunions ranging from five years to 50. Golf tournaments will be held around the island for the various classes on June 11. Then the Punahou Class of '79 will have its own cocktail party at the O'ahu Country Club on June 12. Another large gathering of the various classes will occur again at Punahou for a lu'au on June 13. And then the Class of '79 will gather alone on June 14 for a family picnic at a classmate's home in Lanikai."

This begs the question, how much is too much time at a reunion?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Robbie came home sometime in February (in the middle of a month when it's usually a sea of pink and red) with this finger painting. I thought, "Well, this green blob will be saved for March!"

Backyard gecko watching

Noel's on the Big Island today, coming home later this afternoon. He was able to take in a photo/ flash workshop in Kona and file some legal documents with the court in Hilo. Sweeeet! While he was away, the boys and I had a lazy Sunday at the house. While Cub napped, Robbie rode his bike on the deck. We both spotted this gecko. I shot a few pictures before he scampered off. Then I noticed another gecko, but this one completely blending in with the bark on the bougainvillea bush. I tried to give Robbie a lesson in camouflage. We thought it was pretty exciting.

This morning I'm out on the deck again with the dogs and spot another creature! Out of the corner of my eye I see what I think is a dark grey gecko. OK, different from the two spotted yesterday, but not so pretty. Then the thing breathes! Oh good lord, the color. When he breathes (I think), a vibrant orange sack drops from his neck. The contrast against his skin nearly took my breath away. The first camera I could get my hands on was the video camera. I took a 3+ minute video of him and got him breathing a few times. I need to edit it before posting. You can hear me trying to disturb it and get it to breathe. (I know, not good behavior.) I also had time for a few still shots.

They saved the phone!

From the Advertiser: The phone on which Elmer Cravalho, as speaker of the territorial House took the play-by-play call on the U.S. House vote 50 years ago, has been kept as a part of history and has been on public display in the past.

Fifty years ago yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 323-89 to pass the Hawaii Admission Act, setting the stage for a historic affirmation by Hawai'i voters that would lead to Hawai’i becoming the nation’s 50th state. On August 21, 1959, President Eisenhower officially signed off on the dissolution of the Territory of Hawai'i that established the state of Hawaii. The phone seen in the picture is the phone used (on the Hawaiian end) when the local speaker of the territorial House took the call from Washington, DC during the vote. Don’t you love this relic? One man's junk is another man's...

World Kidney Day

This March, as National Kidney Month begins, the National Kidney Foundation urges Americans to get to know two humble, hardworking organs: the kidneys.

To help raise awareness and appreciation for all the vital functions the kidneys perform, the National Kidney Foundation is encouraging Americans to learn more and take steps now to preserve kidney health. March 12 is World Kidney Day, the perfect time to get to know your kidneys and find out if you're at risk. Click here for more information for a KEEP free health screening near you.

And if you're in the Bay Area reading this, or plan to pass through this Spring, please take note:

* Join the National Kidney Foundation on Thursday, April 23 at Yoshi’s Jazz Club in San Francisco to celebrate the achievements of the 2009 Champions of Hope honorees. A Notable Evening starts at 5:30 p.m. with cocktails and contemporary Japanese cuisine at Yoshi’s acclaimed restaurant, followed by the Champions of Hope Award presentations and a live performance at the renowned jazz club.

* The Kidney Walk has come to San Francisco! Register now at kidneywalk.org. Then walk along the Embarcadero on May 9th with your friends and family. Take in views of the San Francisco Bay while helping NKF support children and adults with kidney disease. Visit www.kidneynca.org/walk for information on the San Francisco event or to find a Kidney Walk in your area.

Matsumoto Shave Ice

A long-time friend and former Bay Area roommate was in town with his wife and baby daughter last month, and they wanted to check out the North Shore. Together we headed out on a Sunday for a late lunch (not by design, both families were running a little behind) and then to the famous Matsumoto Shave Ice before driving to Sunset Beach for playtime in the sand.
It was my first trip to Matsumoto! I'd been meaning to check it out and try it for a long time, but never made it. It's a little store, in the old-fashioned general store sense, that sits on a small lot very close to a busy highway. And the line is always out the door with folks waiting to get shave ice. Our kids were pretty restless during the wait and I didn't get the sense that I'd be able to enjoy anything that I ordered for myself, so I decided I would just try some of whatever Noel ordered so we could trade off watching the boys. Except he ordered vanilla ice cream. My friend's wife did get the shave ice, some red variety which she shared with me. She also shared a secret with me that she learned while living in Thailand - add the extra condensed milk on top! Yummy. Hands-down better than any copycat I've tried in Waikiki. Next time shave ice will be mine!
A little tip if you're ever there - be prepared. I felt like I was living the Hawaiian equivalent of the Seinfeld Soup Nazi. The staff is a well-oiled machine. Despite the hoards of tourists who come in, they give you blank stares when you fumble about and ask questions. They're nice and all, but let off an aura that they can't believe you botched an order for a simple cone of ice.

Hawai'i advances

True story - Noel and I finalized the house purchase when he was deployed in the Fall of 2004. My sister came out to Oahu to help me when the movers arrived with our stuff from Maryland. We were driving around picking up the usual move-in items: door mats, toilet paper, Windex, shower curtains, etc. (OK, maybe that is a "usual" list when you move from Maryland to Hawaii!). She asked if the island had any Target stores. I said I didn't think so as I hadn't seen any. So she calls 411 and when she asks, the young, female voice on the other end apologetically says, "No, we're not that advanced."

Well, this week, Hawai'i is that advanced. Not one but two (!) Target stores opened, the first in the state. One more on the Big Island (Kona) expected by the end of the year. There was a "soft opening" on Tuesday, with grand openings for both scheduled for Sunday. Even the soft opening was crazy. One of the store managers was quoted in the paper that they didn't expect such crowds as they didn't do an all-out media blitz. Huh? The next time you try to keep something under wraps, don't tell the local media outlets! The paper ran a story and a number of TV stations reported it on the evening news.

One trend I guess we should have expected: Every single print ad that I've seen features a can of SPAM stacked prominently among the products. We get it; you're here, you're local. I wonder how long they will keep it up.

Birthday art

I was inaugurated into the bake-and-bring cupcakes for your child’s birthday club today. Yes, our oldest is now four and off he went to school with chocolate cupcakes. Chocolate per his request. They are teaching him a lot at school, including “new” foods: chocolate cake and chocolate ice cream. We have a few extra for after dinner tonight, and will celebrate with Grandma and Grandpa again sometime over the weekend.
He came home with this artwork in his backpack. Some sort of sponge painting with fruit shapes. I can make out apples, bananas, pears, and a smudged pineapple. I think I cut most of the pears off with the scan…a lot more are on the other half.

Another blog!

I think I've mentioned a few times that I belong to the local bead society on Oahu. In the Fall of 2006 I became the newsletter editor and have produced, printed, and distributed the monthly newsletter ever since. I got a lot of the group to convert to emailed PDF deliveries about this time last year. There are still some holdouts, however, we are much better on the environment than before. Next I wanted to tackle a web presence! I started a blog today which will hopefully become a useful tool to communicate with members while also advertising our group to beaders here and on the Mainland. But for now we'll take it slow. Here's my first post. Boring! You are forewarned.