A late afternoon at the beach

It’s a sad time here on Oahu for the Coast Guard and their families. Late Thursday evening one of their helicopters went down in waters 6 miles from the Honolulu Airport during a routine training exercise with four crew members onboard. Three bodies were recovered immediately, while the pilot remains missing. They called off the official search at sunset last night. All were stationed at Barber’s Point Air Station - minutes from our home and a stone’s throw from one of our favorite local beaches. Flags in the area were lowered in the area throughout the weekend.

Robbie, Cub, and I went down to the beach late yesterday afternoon for a little activity before the end of the weekend. We saw one orange Coast Guard helicopter tracing the coastline from the Leeward side to Diamond Head and back. It was reported today that crash wreckage had washed ashore near Ewa early Sunday, and they were undoubtedly looking for more. Together we watched the helicopter, but I didn’t tell Robbie why it was in the sky. Not sure if there is an appropriate gesture from the ground to say, “Our hearts are with you,” without looking like you’re in distress and need assistance yourself, so I remained motionless.

Pre-school breakthrough

Robbie’s class has a pretty good curriculum for a three year old. Each day his teacher prepares a “Today at school” pictorial review of his activities. Robbie then can practice writing his name, use the date stamp (we’re old now…but stuff like this does entertain the wee ones - he even got to do it twice yesterday as the first stamp was upside-down), circle the pictures of what they did, and record his favorite activity of the day. Every day since he started school in March his favorite activity has been recess. The boy loves his playgrounds. Being here in Hawai’i, there are few days where they are banned from the outside because of poor weather, and even on those days, three doors down from their room is the “PE room” which looks to be a lot of fun, too. So imagine my surprise when I receive this report yesterday, and his favorite activity was math AND recess. I don’t know if he noticed, but he was given extra fish crackers to mark the occasion. I know, he'll catch on to this soon. I've got to be pretty careful with the treats.

New stamp with Hawai’i flag is released

On Tuesday, the Postal Service issued a Hawai’i flag stamp within the three-year, multistamp series Flags of our Nation. The stamps include the flag and “a snapshot view” of the area represented by the flag. The Hawai’i stamp shows an outline of what I think is Maui and of Oahu’s Diamond Head, as well as local flora.
Here in Honolulu, officials dedicated the stamp midday Tuesday at the Honolulu airport post office, where you could get your new stamps hand-canceled with a special commemorative first-day-of-sale postmark. When I first read about the ceremony, I thought I would go. Good thing I didn’t – I had the wrong post office. I would have headed downtown and would have been really mad at myself for misreading the news article and wasting time and gas.

Weekend wrap-up

I spent a good part of the holiday weekend in the doghouse, one which I probably won’t dig myself out of until I produce another son for Noel. After spending a few days with my Mom, I came home and thought I had washed everything thoroughly for stray cat hair. Well, I missed a few things. The boys got into an infected bag and a blanket late last week and they threw the blanket around the living room and Noel’s allergies blew up on him. I also didn’t wash Jacob’s car seat cover - things got worse when the four of us got in the car together.

Noel was forced into the garage on Monday, the only place he could breathe, and ended up spending most of the day cleaning it. I worked on loads and loads of laundry, and still have a lot of cleaning to do today. I did manage to make it to a public appearance by Bryan Clay, gold-medal winning Decathlete, who spoke on the Marine Corps Base at Kaneohe. He inspired the crowd with his story of growing up a troubled kid in Kaneohe and provided inside stories to his Olympic career. I think he did anyway. I showed up just as the crowd was beginning to leave the building and missed everything. He was still signing autographs, so I took a free trading card and had him sign it. In other sports news, a team from Hawaii won the Little League World Series just over a week ago, and the island celebrated by having a parade run through Waikiki last night. We usually opt out of those things as traffic is a nightmare when they close Kalakaua, but it was fun to see it on the news.

Other highlights were having an early breakfast with friends who were honeymooning here, and then switching gears and spending a relaxing Sunday evening at the beach in Waianae with folks who were renting cabins. Back to normal today as Robbie headed off to school and Noel headed downtown to work.

Not quite the memory I had in mind

Yesterday we ventured out to fill up the car, go to the grocery store, and then run around the playground. (In that order, but not in the same location. It's difficult to enforce at times, but the grocery store does not equal the playground.) We're lined up behind a few cars for errand #1 ($4.229 a gallon), when Robbie starts to say: "Eat fresh! Eat fresh! Eat fresh!" I have no idea what he is talking about until I realize to our left is the sign for the Subway shop inside the mini-mart.

Subway's "Eat Fresh!" commercials ran frequently during our Olympic coverage here, and Robbie picked up on it. Jarrod, move over!

This reminds me that it is time to make our annual donation to the local PBS affiliate. We watch a lot of PBS programming here - both kids and adults. During the children's programming kid-friendly messages run. Tune in for a short time and you'll see ads for raisins, the local Pigtails & Crewcuts salon, and Chuck E. Cheese. But instead of showing you the pizza, soft drinks, and games, Chuck E. is doing jumping jacks with other kids to show the importance of staying active!

Back home in the sun

We made it! It was a crazy, fun-and-love filled four day trip to the Bay Area but we’re all home now. The picture above is about the only tranquil event to occur during our trip. I snapped the grazing deer on the wedding grounds between the ceremony and the reception Saturday night.

Cub and I were able to see a ton of friends and family from all parts. It was an amazing assortment for such a short trip. Seattle, Oregon, Sacramento, Los Angeles, not to mention friends and family in the Bay Area alone and another friend who had been in Kansas City for most of the weekend. Whew! We are enjoying life in the slow lane again. I haven’t even made it to the grocery store.

Noel and Robbie jumped on the opportunity to head to Maui on the Superferry for a few days. It wasn’t the best way to travel for Robbie and he got really sick on the way out. On the way home Noel tucked Dramamine into his peanut butter and cracker sandwiches and he slept most of the time. Little trooper that he is, he talks about going on the “big boat” again.

The week (and a half) in review

Yes, I’m watching a lot of the Olympics. They’ve been fun and inspiring, and I’m having a good time here. I did reach overload rather quickly, though, or maybe I’m just not as big of a fan of all sports as I thought. Luckily, NBC has a handy ticker of sorts they display every once in a while. I turned on the coverage early one evening last week and saw more beach volleyball coverage. Again. Men, women, I don’t care. Even if the men wore Speedos, I’d probably get bored. But then the ticker appeared: Michael Phelps in 44 minutes! Oh thank god, I can turn off the TV for the next 44 minutes! And of course, when I turned it back on, as expected, Phelps was there and setting a world record to boot. I love the Sports Illustrated cover this week. Homage to Spitz!

I actually wrote down some funny bits (and some poignant, too) heard on NBC last week.

The obvious: “It’s important in synchronized diving to train together.”

This insight from a commentator. You think?!

The sad: “It’s my job. I don’t have any other thoughts.”

A Chinese gymnast when asked if she would rather be heading to anywhere but the training complex day in, day out. In all fairness to the gymnast, I think what she said was probably lost in translation or some of the context was cut short.

The funny: “I think my mom could anchor this relay!”

Rowdy Gaines, swimming commentator, during the last leg of the gold medal winning 4 x 200 Free relay. The U.S. team had a substantial lead.

The funny but maybe I shouldn’t be laughing: “He had an open door…and he didn’t walk through it.”

Tim Daggert, men’s gymnastics commentator, when a gymnast fell on an event.

More Olympic memories are on the way for me. Tomorrow Cub and I head to the Bay Area to attend a wedding and see my new niece! Maybe I can watch the Closing Ceremonies with Sarah in my arms.

Sarah is here!

Please give a warm welcome to the world to my niece, Sarah Elizabeth. She was born yesterday, August 16, at 1:48 PM. Her timing is perfect; I am heading to the Bay Area this weekend with Cub and we will get to meet her.

She joins the family with an older brother and two male cousins, yet is already making a statement about that. She arrived sans men - both her Dad and male doctor were out of the room. Four female nurses delivered her.

Shave ice secured, Obama heads back to the Mainland

Obama made a campaign promise, err, told the local folks that he was going to get some shave ice while here. He made it, just in time. Tons of folks caught him and his family getting some of the cold, sweet treat in Lanikai yesterday. Since his fundraiser on Tuesday night, he’s also gone local by picnicking at Ala Moana Beach Park, golfing on the Windward side, and visiting his grandfather’s gravesite at Punchbowl Cemetery. Vacation itinerary: check, check, check. He leaves tomorrow and turns his attention to picking a VP (assuming he hasn’t already) and the Democratic National Convention later in the month.

Noel won’t be there. It was a thought early on that it would be fun to go, but the idea soured on him quickly. Turns out going into the Hawaii Democratic Convention in late May that there were only three spots available. And if you wanted to go, you campaigned. For real. He started receiving postcards and flyers in the mail from serious candidates in the weeks leading to the convention. Then the phone calls came! Yes, folks called Noel to ask for his vote. I was floored. And to top it off, wannabe attendees hosted Convention goers in separate hotel rooms at the Hilton Hawaiian Village where the Convention was held, stocking the room with catered food and drink. Eager convention attendees crowded the elevators and one got stuck for an hour. No kidding. Noel saw that it was too crowded and backed away, only to hear a short time later the bells go off signaling it was stuck in the elevator shaft somewhere.

Overall the politicking and ridiculousness of some attendees got under Noel’s skin too much. This may be his first and last brush with politics. I’m not saying that’s all bad.

The chocolate fountain will be working overtime

Forget Damon Watch*, Obama Watch is on!

Maybe you’ve heard. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic Presidential candidate as everyone is quick to say, has been vacationing and visiting friends and family here on Oahu since Friday afternoon. I asked Noel, still receiving emails from the Hawaiian Democratic Party, if there were any planned events for the volunteers and he said no. But Barack did go to a park near the airport on Friday after he landed where 4,000 or so were waiting for him and spoke for 16 minutes. Parking was a nightmare, but at least you could hear/see him for free. Tonight he will be the main draw for a fundraiser at the Kahala Hotel (where we had that yummy brunch). Ticket price? $2,300. Yes. Over two thousand dollars. For a single seat, not even a table! And the event is sold out.

Over the weekend he was also spotted jogging on the beach, golfing, attending a BBQ, and dining out. There are people hanging out around the house where he is staying in Kailua, but I don’t feel like joining the masses just yet. I’m not in the mood to stalk this week.

* Ah, yes. Damon Watch. It was falsely reported by the local entertainment reporter (the guy gets a lot wrong) that Matt Damon would be spending a good chunk of the summer filming a movie here. It ended up that he filmed for an afternoon (which is about one scene, isn’t it?). He was here one day when my Mom was here in late June, and although he was filming on this side of the island, I didn’t feel like dragging my Mom over just so I could relieve my usual boredom (usual boredom being when visitors are not here) and have something to blog about. Sorry fans, maybe one day I’ll stumble upon a Lost scene.

I love the Olympics!

I’m not sure the exact moment, but as long as I can remember, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Olympic Games. Maybe because my parents enjoyed them and we’d watch the television coverage as kids, or maybe because I grew up swimming and swimmers shine (and dominate!) during the summer games. For years I played with a small plastic bear picked up at the annual Buddhist Fair in my hometown (and I think I even had a plush teddy bear like the one seen here). It was the mascot from the ’80 Moscow games which the U.S. boycotted. Those trinkets must have been really, really cheap. ;)

Together with family friends we spent an early, sunny evening on an industrial street in Hayward watching the torch relay before the ’84 games in L.A. Halfway through college in the summer of ‘92, one of my co-workers mentioned that his girlfriend was going to the events in Barcelona. Someone going to the games? Before this, I hadn’t thought regular folks did this. I’ve harbored the dream of going ever since.

I found it inconceivable to see Sarajevo at the center of a civil war in the 1990s. It hosted the very successful ’84 Winter games. How could this happen?

As a fresh Peace Corps volunteer in St. Lucia in the summer of ’96, all the volunteers gathered for dinner at the home of our director to watch the Opening Ceremonies in Atlanta. There was a buzz in the room as someone knew someone who would be walking with the St. Lucia contingent. We waited a long, long time…and just as Sri Lanka came in, they cut to a commercial! When they came back, the U.S. team was storming in. Doh! During the games, my three homestay brothers would be allowed to stay up late with me in the living room and watch the coverage. Each night, starting with the youngest, and then the middle brother, and finally the oldest, they each fell asleep around me.

One evening late in the month of September, 2000, I went to my parents’ home for dinner and to watch the daily coverage from Sydney. It would be the last evening I would spend with my Dad.

Flash forward a few years and I’m married to a guy who loves gadgets, technology, and TV. Put them together, and I’m staying up late at night watching the ’06 Torino games and high on the myriad of cable channels. Sleep deprived and a little loopy, I exclaim, “Noel, you’ve GOT to check out the ski jumpers in high def!”

So will my boys love them like I do? Time will tell. I’m guessing for the immediate future they won’t. But maybe one day when they look back they’ll be able to recount some Olympic memories, too.

Mid-week hello

My Lightroom installation has been down for a few weeks now and I can’t access and edit some of the images I want to share. For now, a friendly shot from the Kahala Hotel’s dolphin lagoon. Noel has also promised he would guest blog soon with a few stories and pictures from Alaska, so some good stuff is in the pipeline.

The story that will be told is that I didn’t panic

Noel has said that I don’t tell enough embarrassing stories of my own, so here goes.

Yesterday we enjoyed dinner at the home of Noel’s extended family in Kaneohe. The kids were busy and were easy to get to sleep once we were home. I’m wrapping up things, getting Robbie’s backpack ready for the morning and locking up, etc. before heading to bed. For my last stop, I’m using the bathroom downstairs when I notice this creature less than a foot away to my right! I’m in a bit of a bind because I am still sitting down (and barefoot, no shoes around in the bathroom) and those things move FAST! I don’t shriek loudly, but I manage enough sound a few times to summon Noel upstairs. He comes down to find me running through the kitchen with my pants above my knees.

We have these visitors in the house every couple of months and we both have our own way of getting them to leave. I go to grab the broom – my method is to open the door wide and sweep it out with one big hockey slap shot motion. Noel likes to take a pair of long pliers, grab the thing in the middle, and calmly (more or less) walk it outside to stomp on it. Noel went searching for the pliers, which was my signal that he was going to take care of it this time, so I took the picture above. Note he was stuck here for a bit – I think my hair thwarted him for a brief moment! And for those wondering just how big is he?? The doorframe is 2.5 inches wide, so he’s a good 5 inches long. You'd never guess, but his legs are a freaky red color, too. Needless to say, it took me a few minutes to calm down.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

I experienced the highs and lows of dining on Oahu within the past seven days. This post will focus on the highs!

We celebrated Grandma and Grandpa Tipon’s anniversary on Sunday at the Kahala Resort. Tricia was married there two years ago, and the food at her reception was the best wedding buffet I’d ever had. I figured if they did catering that well, the Sunday brunch would be worth a try. It was fantastic! I didn’t eat the seafood, but the other adults at the table raved about it and went back for more and more. I sampled the sushi and the lobster bisque, and they were all very good. They had a good sampling of other stuff, with many items a tweak or twist of a local favorite. Like the malasada bites. Yum!

Only two negatives for me and they were minor. First, the bread selection was tired. Same ol’, same ol’ “it’s fresh but they seem stale” mini-loaves. I don’t know why more restaurants haven’t stolen a page out of the Cheesecake Factory book and figured out how to serve mouth-watering bread for the masses. Is it that hard? Second, they had a Kung Pao chicken dish which Noel said was good. I went back for some, and was mildly surprised to see it was bone-in, small drummette chicken. I’m not that local and don’t dig chicken like that. So I passed, but my loss.

The service was first-rate. Quite possibly the most serene group of servers I’ve encountered. We were quickly offered a bunch of beverages and juices. I wasn’t expecting much when they said they had an “orange pineapple coconut” juice among the selections, but I tried it and it was divine! Not heavy like you’d expect when you hear it.

And the dessert bar was fun. Never has a chocolate fountain had a better view! They don’t just throw a chocolate fountain at you and call it the last course…they had tons of other stuff, including a unique fruit tapioca and other seemingly exotic items I’d never seen. If you’re here and want to splurge ($55 per person) you’ll want to try this brunch. My father-in-law, a huge brunch fan, immediately put it near the top, if not the top, of his list of “Best on the Island.”
Now for the low…I’ve been wanting to try this Mexican place in the middle of Waikiki, a block and a half from the condo and made it there late last week. So, so disappointing. Will write about it another time. Don’t want that experience to cloud the food high I’m still on from the Sunday brunch.

Back to school!

I'm celebrating back to school week! Public schools across Hawai'i are starting school in what I call a "staggered start," and Robbie's school started today. This picture was NOT taken this morning...as of last night he was not happy about school starting, but this morning I didn't have any trouble getting him in the car nor the classroom. If I could only get Cub to nap most of the morning, I could regain some of the sanity that has slipped away from me in the last couple of years. ;)

The picture above was taken on Sunday, when we celebrated Grandma and Grandpa's wedding anniversary with a brunch at the Kahala Resort. We had just let Robbie have fun and enjoy the chocolate fountain. Like his Mom, he is picky, but luckily like his Dad, he has a sense of restraint. He went easy on the chocolate goodies, and instead of wolfing down many a marshmellow, he chose to carry one around for most of the afternoon. Pictures and brunch review to follow (quick note: it was a winner!).

Future photographer?

When Grandma came to town in late June, Robbie went to town with her digital camera. He loved taking pictures and when he couldn't find the camera, tore through her purse looking for it. We were happy and proud to discover he's pretty good! Here are a few of his shots straight from the camera. His favorite subjects? Mom, brother, toys, and dogs (A "bright" Brady is below - lighting tips are not yet understood by a 3 year old).

Budding artist finds another canvas

Finding this artwork on our kitchen floor was made all the easier to stomach for two reasons: First, crayons seem to have been reformulated so they don’t stick to as much as they used to. A little 409 and some elbow grease, and this came right off. And second, Robbie uncharacteristically posed for the pic when Noel was putting this scene together. It reminded me of another canvas Robbie found around this time last summer – the cover of Noel’s silver Mac Powerbook. It was on my watch, and so freaked out was I that the purple crayon wouldn’t come off that I jumped up to clean it right away and didn’t get a picture. After seeing the floor above, I blurted out, “Oh, no problem. If crayon comes off your Mac, it will come off most anything.” I got a blank stare from Noel. Oops. I guess I opted not to tell him last year and he still didn’t know!

USS Oklahoma BB-37 Memorial

Last December, on the Pearl Harbor anniversary, a new memorial site at Pearl Harbor was introduced. It’s a memorial for the USS Oklahoma, which was second to the USS Arizona in casualties. It sits near the parking lot for the Battleship Missouri tours, on Ford Island (on the other side of the harbor from the Arizona ticket office and gift shops). The upright posts represent the lives lost, standing at attention at the bow of the ship. It’s moving, but sadly overlooked on Ford Island in the shadow of the Missouri. But if you read here, you’ll find the story of its inception and creation, and if you’re ever here, you’ll appreciate it.
I went to take a look back in December and even snapped pictures, but I lost them. So recently I circled back to Ford Island and took some more. More for the “What’s new out here” files for all soon-to-be visitors, frequent visitors, or want-to-be frequent visitors.

Sidebar: I know this isn’t very funny, but scroll down to the end of the page to see the somewhat sour look on the face of the teenager in the last picture. Someday, son, although you don’t look it now, you’ll be very, very proud of your Dad!

King Kamehameha Day

This falls under the “late, but I still wanted to share with you" category…King Kamehameha Day is celebrated annually in early June. It’s a state holiday, and there is a midweek, early morning ceremony to drape his downtown statue downtown in 13 foot lei. I’ve wanted to shoot the event each year since we arrived (it’s a popular postcard shot), but never made it. This year I managed to get there on Sunday afternoon to shoot the statue, which I thought was progress! Good thing we made it when we did, as chance would have it, Noel’s bar swearing in ceremony was in the building behind the statue the following Tuesday, and they had removed all the lei. I thought they might let it be a little longer. One day I will make it to the day-of ceremony, for now I will enjoy these pictures.

Here’s some bonus trivia: There are only three statues of King Kamehameha in the world – Honolulu, the Big Island, and in DC in the Capital building. There would only be two, but when the original Honolulu-bound statue was commissioned and completed, it was lost in a shipwreck. A replacement statue later went up in Honolulu. The original statue was eventually salvaged from the ocean floor and brought to the Big Island. I think all three statues are annually adorned with lei on King Kamehameha Day.

Noel pleads: "VOTE ROBERTS"!

It's Final Vote week and we need your help! (If you don't know what that is, stay with me. I didn't either until yesterday.) Brian Roberts, the Baltimore Orioles second baseman and Tipon Family favorite, is on the ballot to make the 2008 MLB All Star game. He's currently trailing some rookie sensation from Tampa Bay, but faithful readers, we still have hope. Head to this site and click "Brian Roberts, BAL" under the American League line up and vote up to 25 times. I think you have until tomorrow night (Thursday) to cast your vote. If you'd like to work the system and vote with multiple email addresses, even better. Mahalo for your time!