Things That Make Me Smile #242

Diego

Pick A Pearl

Last weekend we had dinner at The Cheesecake Factory downtown. Yummy!! I recommend the Thai lettuce wraps appetizer...mmm...definitely! And of course, we had cheesecake....Adam's Peanut Butter Cup Fudge Ripple, the seasonal Pumpkin cheesecake, and my favorite, the Chocolate Coconut Cream cheesecake...oh yeah!

Afterwards, we wandered over to the International Marketplace, which I had not been to yet...I know, I know, it's a Waikiki staple, and I live here, no excuse. There are so many places I haven't seen yet. Anyway, they have this incredibly fun thing called "Pick-A-Pearl", a little kiosk run by Maui Divers. They have giant bowls of humble ugly oysters. You choose one (Kevin helped)- the hairiest ugliest one - then tap it three times, shout A-LO-HA! (that's mandatory, of course), and they open it up right in front of you and pull out your pearl. I lucked out and got a huge deep purple one, and I was even luckier to be able to choose a pretty gold and diamond orchid setting.

I'm a lucky lady...mm-hmm!

Here's hoping you all find a pearl in something ugly today...heh...

Aloha pumehana!!

Today

One vet I know has cemented my perspective on veterans forever. His life was radically changed, not only by his service during the conflict in Vietnam, but even more so by the way he was treated when he came home. If he had been shown the gratitude and honor he deserved for his service instead of outright hostility, disdain and derision, who knows what he might have done with his life, what he might have become. He would've had a chance at happiness. As it is, he never did. A wonderful brave creative sensitive dear soul was crushed beyond redemption. And his is a tragedy repeated thousand-fold across the country.

When someone enlists in the military (or is drafted), they agree to put their lives on the line. Whether they see combat or not, they are willing to fight, and possibly die for the rest of us. While they're in, they are subject to the will of history and fate in a very visceral way; they literally make themselves pawns for the greater good....our greater good. Their service becomes our responsibility.

Please thank a veteran today.

Aloha pumehana...

Il est très simple...

On ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur,

l'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux.

C'est le temps que tu as perdu pour ta rose
qui fait ta rose si importante.

Merci, mon ami, merci <3

Obama Sunset

We were supposed to go to an election night potluck at the church last night, but since it was a school night, Kevin and I decided to stay home and watch the election returns together.

As the results were coming in and I was finishing up the dishes, I saw the sky turn color from the kitchen window, and I just knew it would be "one of those" sunsets. As I grabbed the camera and ran outside, I passed beneath our open living room window and heard the anchorman call the election for Obama, and Kevin exclaim, "Mom! Oh my God, he won, Mom! He won!"

Then I looked up at the sky mauka from our driveway and here's what I saw, this big lovely break in the clouds, a giant glowing O in the sky...well, sort of...heh...too funny:


I showed Kevin and then ran up the hill a bit and got this one real quick. Not the best photo, but look at the colors!! No touch-ups I swear. It was gorgeous!! :


It's a SIGN!...heh.
Actually, the best signs of hope for the future that I've seen in quite a long time were McCain's gracious concession speech followed by Obama's historic and eloquent speech from Grant Park. It was so incredibly moving, I cried...such a marshmallow.

Aloha pumehana...

Vote!

Our freedom and our rights are precious. They've been defended at great sacrifice by so many. How can we even contemplate failing to protect them by not exercising our long fought right to vote?

And the fight was indeed long, particularly for women:

The single most impressive fact about the attempt by American women to obtain the right to vote is how long it took.
Alice Rossi, _The Feminist Papers_ (1973)

Seventy-five years it took, count 'em! And women have only had that right for eighty-eight years. Lest we forget the struggle, here are some images:



I'll be voting tomorrow with gratitude, respect, and excitement.
Hope you will be, too. :)

Aloha...

Hallowbaloo!

[Update Nov. 2 - Judging from the Metromix party pix this event really did turn into a bash, with some really cool costumes. We did see the stilt-walker peacock lady, but she went by through a crowd with her tail-feathers down and I couldn't get a good shot of her. Anyway, the photos are fun, so check 'em out. :)]

Tonight Kevin and I moseyed on down to Chinatown for the first annual Hallowbaloo Music and Arts Festival. This very old historic section of Honolulu has become a fulcrum of the arts community here, with galleries and antique shops and some very lovely restaurants.

This was the first Hallowbaloo, and since I brought Kevin, we went and left early. It was a bit slow in starting, but by the time we left around 8 pm, it was hoppin' with costumed people of all ages, wonderful food, dancing Chinese dragons, and some really fine music. For a first annual event, it was very well attended, and looked like it would become a rollicking bash by the time it ends at 1:30 am. All in all, quite the good time.

Of course, it was a perfect excuse to take some photos, too. :)











Aloha and Happy Halloween!!!