GoodBye 2008, Good Riddance!

Here is a great ecard I got from Tom. It really sums it up for me.

Hello 2009!

Christmas Cheer in Unexpected Places

This morning I found a website called Scouting New York (via Neatorama) that I fell in love with instantly. "Scout" is a film location scout and finds all kinds of nooks and crannies and details most people overlook in and around NYC. (I've bookmarked him over on the right.)

My favorite photos were those of his shots of some mistletoe in an unusual spot:

I love that someone did this! I love that mischievous spirit that can only make people smile, if people notice it at all. This is the kind of thing I would like to do.

Thanks Scout, for letting me use your pictures.  All the best to you in 2009!

Fun Snacks From Chinatown

It starts off simple enough, the snack aisle in Chinatown in Downtown Honolulu...BBQ flavor, good.

Then comes the "Oki Dokie" so we should be in good shape.

Then come the fish crackers. Now. Are they crackers made from fish or fish flavored as well as Salt and Vinegar? Hmmm. Let's move along.

Then, uh, hmmm. Ri-Chee crunchy snacks. Okay. Wait. Milk flavor? Milk. Wait, what? What kind of crunchy snack is milk flavored? I'm not ready to try it. I see one further down that looks good...

YAY! Squid Rings!!

There Is So Much To Be Grateful For

I have lost a great deal and yet there is still so much to be grateful for. All the family who love and support me, good friends abound, nice home, sweet cats, and who could ask for a better husband? Not me. I'm not in an outwardly Christmas mood this year and I am so glad to be home with Mom and Jack, just relaxing, sleeping in, watching it rain.

 There was a myna bird in our yard with one leg. I waited a bit to see if he was just holding one up, but he wasn't. But this myna looked and sounded and acted just like any other myna in the yard, chattering and hopping about. Made me think of mom's neighbor across the street who lost his right arm in a boating accident about six months ago. I watched him walk to the beach in his swim gear this morning, still gaunt and recovering, but he was off to swim. I saw him come back later, wet from his morning go in the warm salt water. There is still plenty of life to be lived, no matter how much or how little we might have.

Merry Christmas.

Chinatown Honolulu Part II

After dim sum and a further walk to downtown Honolulu, we meandered back to Chinatown, heading toward the Oahu Market. More great old buildings to see.

We arrive at the Oahu market.

Inside smells like every open air market that sells meat and fish you might have ever been to. Not a place you want to stay in for long. Unless you needed to purchase bullfrogs, then this is your place.

Ahem.

So we departed and continued on our way.

Avocados are L A R G E in Hawaii Nei.

Luckily, the cat was NOT for sale.

And apparently this is one of the best lei shops in Honolulu, in case you need one.

It was a lovely morning and I look forward to going back with my real camera at some point. And since the Grand Cafe was closed and we couldn't get our lemon cake, we MUST return!

Downtown Honolulu

After dim sum we walked over a few blocks to downtown Honolulu where the tall modern high rises surround the old old old Honolulu office buildings. There is the Alexander and Baldwin building:

It was built in the 1920's or so and has detailed doors and murals and floors in the entry (seen above). Amazing beautiful building.

Down the street (but we didn't walk down there) is the Dillingham Building:

Just another block or two down it the ocean.

Chinatown Honolulu Part I

(I wish my regular camera had not run out of juice. I had to make do with my iPhone camera. I'm glad to have had that camera though.)

Mom and Dana and I went to Chinatown on Monday morning for a little shopping and some dim sum brunch. Chinatown in Honolulu is Old Skool. You are in another country, but still in Honolulu, it's great. And I love how it is right up next to downtown Honolulu high-rises on one side.

The buildings are a mix of original Portuguese owners as well as Chinese and Japanese. That says "1901".

I love love love this old sign!

I really wished I had my bigger camera for this sign. It says "Hubba Hubba Live Review" and I think it said "Nude" somewhere...I would love to buy that sign and restore it!

The sign was on an empty building, down a side street that didn't have stores, just a few bars, open for business at 10am. And they were kinda busy for a Monday morning.

And I loved this building -- Portuguese name -- and that it is called "Pantheon". I wonder what it's original use was. It caught my eye especially because the Pantheon is my favorite building in Rome.

After the Pantheon, we stopped and had dim sum at a very very local joint.  Good bites for brunch, not much atmosphere, but who needs it when the food is yummy!

After dim sum we ventured into downtown Honolulu...

Kopke in Honolulu

There is a woman I work with who's last name is Koepke. She's from a town near Bremen in Germany. Well, my great grandmother was named Kopke (before she got married) and her family came from Bremen. My work friend and I discussed it and we decided we MUST be related however distantly. I didn't get a chance to take a picture of the street sign, but here is proof of the Kopke history in Honolulu:

It is, in fact, a small world.

Flying In and Out Of Honolulu

It's been a few years since I've flown into Honolulu, usually I fly into Maui directly. And Sunday was a great day to look out at many islands at once.

I don't know how to photoshop yet (new year's resolution) so I'll do my best to describe.  The two humps way in the back/left are Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the big island. Mauna Kea had snow on it. I think Mauna Loa did too, but it was hard to tell. The big hump on the left is Haleakala with the West Maui Mountains to the right. THen comes Molokai and behind is Lanai. If I had my better camera (not my iphone camera) you'd be able to see Kaho'olawe as well.

Such a nice view to come home to.  

When mom and I left Honolulu yesterday, this was the view flying out:

Diamond Head to the right with Kapiolani Park to its left and Waikiki beach. Honolulu is looking very nice. As we fly around Diamond Head we could see along Kahala and Black Point:

Black Point is that sticky-out section in the middle.  On the right side corner of where Black Point meets the Kahala shoreline is Royal Circle where we lived after mom and dad got divorced. It was a GREAT place to live.

See?

From Left to right as I'm standing on the tiny beach: our apartment was the bottom section of this house and this was our front yard.

The front yard turned into beach.

With the beautiful view of Koko Head.

There were some happy days there.  I'll dig up and scan photos from mom's books here for more history later on.  I'm sure I can find one of Betsy that she'll wish I didn't post.  

Pickled Maui Onions And Fishcake

We went to Safeway this morning for a few necessities and I got my lunch for the next few days:

Pickled Maui Onions

Fishcake 

Lomi Salmon

(I'm snacking on the pickled onions now -- YUM!)

There was another young woman there at the fishcake/lomi salmon aisle and we were both laughing about just coming in from the mainland (she just came in from Las Vegas) and had to stock up. Both our moms were waiting with the cart. So local!