Company Coming!

Aloha!

Come in!

click on photos to enlarge

"First rate men and women will not and cannot work under conditions fixed by those who are afraid of ideas."
Henry Steele Commanger

"Fire the MBA's and hire a poet!"
P.J. O'Rourke on saving the US auto industry

Princess Kaiulani & Peacock



"There are joys that long to be ours. God sends ten thousand truths, which come about us like birds seeking inlet; but we are shut up to them, and so they bring us nothing, but sit and sing awhile upon the roof, then fly away."
Henry Ward Beecher

In 1881, Hawaii's King David Kalakaua was the first head of state to meet with Emperor Meiji after the opening of Japan.

Kalakaua requested, and Meiji later signed, an agreement (1885) allowing the immigration of Japanese workers to Hawai‘i.

Those issei (first generation) immigrants and their descendants have contributed much to the multicultural society that is Hawai‘i.

During his visit, Kalakaua also proposed betrothing his 5 year old niece Princess Kaiulani (statue above) to Japanese Prince Komatsu Akihito. Though ultimately this came to nothing.

Next week, another Akihito will be visiting us here in Hawaii. Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will be here to observe the 50th anniversary of the local Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship Foundation.

"The Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship is awarded to 1) graduate students in Japan for study at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (My alma mater ;-) ; and 2) American graduate students at the University of Hawaii at Manoa for study in Japan who are pursuing a subject area leading to better understanding between Japan and the United States."

From the website; http://www.jashawaii.org/cpas.asp

The royal couple is also slated to lay a wreathe at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl. In doing so they will honor many WWII veterans including the grandfather with whom President Barack Obama lived.

The president of Taiwan was here a few days ago. . .

Rumor has it that our president will be visiting in December. . .

We'd better clean up!

A L O H A! Cloudia

bonus pic !

Full Circle Crackers

Aloha Friends!

Come on in...

to

W A I K I K I

click on photos to enlarge!

Flights & Ranks of Cherubs Flying Above

"How can we argue with resilience and good humour , criticise without condemning, stick up for ourselves without betraying the inner vulnerability that perceived the slight in the first place?"

Susie Boyt

All Together at End of Day

"Without Haste, Without Fear. We Will Conquer The World."

Signboard outside of China's National Space Launch Center

Black & Blue

"Ever since happiness heard your name, it has been running through the streets trying to find you."

Hafiz

New England's whalers and missionaries were among the first foreigners to influence Hawaii.

There has always been a special relationship between Hawaii and New England that is way beyond the scope of this brief post.

Well Miss Hawaii USA, Aureana Tseu is dancing Hula and sharing lei

in grocery stores throughout the region

to introduce Diamond Bakery's

Saloon Pilot Crackers

to 165 Hannaford supermarkets.

Get out and see her, won't you?

(Carol, Sandy ;-)

The dry crackers

(based, they say, on recipes that sailors relied on back in the days of sail)

will be a perfect complement to

traditional New England Chowders!

Old Trenton Crackers (OTC)

LOOK OUT!

;-)

A L O H A! Cloudia

Beach Stroll Sunday

Notice: Blogger is not updating this blog in blogger dashboards & readers!!!!!

PLEASE check back daily

OK?

;-)

Aloha!

It's

Sunday Morning in

W A I K I K I

Click on this maginificent TED TRIMMER photo to enlarge! (c)

"Truth is stranger than fiction."

Lord Byron

Early morning strolls reveal treasures like these colorful, wet,

beach stones. Trimmer (c)

High South Shore Surf "harvests" coral heads onto the beach





Anyone, any situation, is bearable once you accept it as it is;

And the road to hell is paved with false dichotomies. . .


A L O H A, Cloudia

Go For Broke

Aloha!

Welcome to Waikiki

on July 4th!

Click on photos to enlarge! The wild blue yonder

"There are, in every age, new errors to be rectified and new prejudices to be opposed."
Samuel Johnson

Jean

"The important thing is this: To be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become."

Charles DuBois

William H. Holloman III

"If you don't like change, you're going to like irrelevance even less."

General Eric Shinseki

Today, in honor of July 4th, I re-publish this post about real heroes. Thank you for visiting. Your visits & comments make my day!

*Happy Birthday USA*

Cloudia

You friends who often visit "Da Spiral" know that we like to salute unheralded heroes of everyday life. Heck, I've seen real courage in many of your blogs. But every so often there are Heroes, capitol "H" who strap it on and fly into the teeth of mortal combat, or who put their very lives on the line to say "No" to denigration, unfairness, and abuse. Sometimes extraordinary people are even called upon to face two Goliaths at once.

Today's post is dedicated to two very special groups of such human beings. Please come meet them!

Last September 30th, a few such surviving heroes were honored at Honolulu's Punchbowl National Cemetery of the Pacific by Kauai boy General Eric Shinseki. (The general has since been appointed to lead our nation's veterans affairs by the new president.)

The elderly men that he honored on that day, largely Hawaii born and bred, had served in the famed 442nd & 100th segregated combat units of WWII. They had been the “Go for Broke” Japanese-American soldiers who fought in the toughest European battles of that war, and usually against superior numbers. History remembered, and history written, both tell how they were openly considered expendable because of their race. This was certainly not a surprise to them in their uphill fight for dignity. They all had family in US internment camps, even as German-Americans and Italian-Americans remained in their own homes. Nevertheless these aging men, in their youth answered the call to arms on behalf of the nation that detained their parents.

They are military legend for having saved 230 Texans (the famous “lost” regiment”) at the cost of 400 of their own, among numerous other documented acts of extreme heroism. These men won more decorations, more purple hearts, more medals of honor, than any unit of comparable size in the history of the US Army.

Every day in Honolulu we pass by these neighbors on our streets and in the aisles at Longs Drugs, only too aware that there are ever fewer and fewer of them. In my opinion they are among the greatest of the greatest generation, and what these men did will never be forgotten. . . As President Truman said of them at war's end: "You fought two enemies, the nazis and prejudice. And you have won."

So who could walk alongside such people?

Perhaps it would be the man I had the privilege to meet the other evening. He is William H. Holloman III, one of the justly famed Tuskegee Airmen. But he told me simply to call him "Bill." I was beyond thrilled to sit a spell with Bill and his lovely wife Jean to talk story. It's not every day that one gets to meet such a larger than life figure usually read about in books or admired in documentaries

At a time when "scientists" had told the US Congress that African-Americans had less intelligence and flying aptitude "than monkeys" these young men rose to the challenge of excellence while carrying social and cultural burdens we can scarcely credit today a mere 60 - 70 years later. Through dignity, courage, and sheer ability, they proved denigration a damned lie.

They flew like eagles! And like the Japanese-American combat veterans of Hawaii they came home to build lives of full citizenship earned in blood. Mr. Holloman, whose father might have served the railroad as a Pullman porter - but never an engineer, retired after many years of service as an airline pilot and aviation consultant.

"The Germans shot my black ass down! But they knew all about us, and they treated us with proper military respect. Then I came home and had to ride in the back of the bus." one of these vets has said.

Unfortunately the photo above caught Mr. Holloman with his eyes closed, depriving you of his most strikingly handsome light eyes! But one doesn't ask a legend to stand a second time. And I who religiously avoid publishing photos of myself am proudly shown with him!

A L O H A! Cloudia

First Crush

Aloha & Welcome

to

WAIKIKI

click on photos to enlarge

Early loves stay with us forever. . .

“No, this trick won't work...How on earth are you ever going to explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love?”

Albert Einstein

You were my first crush....I was SO young!

You were still running around with that short guy

in white back then.

We lost touch. . . you haven't been in town for 10 years. . .

Now You're Back!

You still look great.

I see you're traveling with two boy toys now.

Crowds still adore you.

Glances turn your way wherever you go.





But at least I have this memento of our love. . .



Aloha ha ha Cloudia

Diverse Hawaii: Islam Day

Aloha!

Welcome Back to

W A I K I K I

"To understand Barack, you have to understand the Hawaii he grew up in."

Michelle Obama

“To become truly great, one has to stand with people, not above them.”

Charles "the Great" de Montesquieu

“I believe in the brotherhood of all men, but I don't believe in wasting brotherhood on anyone who doesn't want to practice it with me. Brotherhood is a two-way street.”
Malcolm X

“Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence. Love others as well as you love yourself.”

Jesus

“I cannot lead you into battle. I do not give you laws or administer justice but I can do something else - I can give my heart and my devotion to these old islands and to all the peoples of our brotherhood of nations.”
Elizabeth II



“Brotherhood is not just a Bible word. Out of comradeship can come and will come the happy life for all.”
Heywood C. Broun

Hawaii people pride ourselves on our Aloha Spirit by which many cultures share these tiny islands amicably. We eat each others foods, use each others languages in our pidgin, observe each others holidays, and our island habit of intermarriage was a "problem" for some when Hawaii statehood was making it's way through the US Senate.



Yes, there is something alive here that turned me from a "get out of my way!" East Coast person into a much more patient driver and citizen. Tolerance is a nice, safe concept when living as a majority person. It is something else entirely when you have neighbors, co-workers, and even, perhaps, a boss from a very different culture from your own. Unexamined assumptions on both sides can cause very interesting issues to arise. I know that I am a better person for these sorts of life experiences.

And here we celebrate everything!


The Hawaii State Legislature has even provided official recognition to various days with religious connections:

Asian Lunar New Year Commemoration Week
Bodhi Day
Buddha Day
Baha'i New Year's Day
Christmas*
Confucius Day**
Father Damien De Veuster Day
Good Friday*
Islam Day**
Makahiki Commemoration Day

[* Official state holidays
** Recognized by resolution, not in Hawaii law]

And this doesn't include Mayoral and Gubernatorial proclamations honoring Israeli Independence Day and the like.

The coming weekend will find me celebrating Korean culture at a festival here in Waikiki, and this blog is full of my exploits enjoying Chinese New Year, Shinto ceremonies, and Makahiki Season (Hawaiian New Year).

Shall we all sing "Kumbayah" now?

Not yet!

If exclamation points appeared over your head when you read "Islam Day" you are not alone.

According to the Honolulu Star Bulletin of May 15:

"Muslims are a tiny minority in Hawaii, roughly 4,000 residents, but they feel welcome here, said Hakim Ouansafi, chairman of the Muslim Association of Hawaii, who asked (State Senator) Berg to introduce the (Islam Day) resolution.
"Fortunately for us, we're inundated with calls of support and encouragement, not just now, but after 9/11," he said. "This is the Aloha State. We live together, respect each other, love each other. We know that no people should be judged based on the actions of a few."
The terrorists behind the 9/11 attacks have continued bombing campaigns in Muslim countries, he noted. "It's a common enemy, and it's killing more Muslims than non-Muslims," Ouansafi said. "The Pakistan army is in full war against the terrorists on behalf of the world."
He said the Hawaii Legislature's move is helping build a bridge to Muslims, generating positive comments about America from viewers and readers of Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya, major Arabic-language news organizations.
"It's reaching the far, far corners of the world in a positive manner," he said. "The legislators have done in one resolution more to plant seeds of understanding than anyone could dream."

But leave it to 2 of our notorious republican senators to begin foaming at the mouth and spouting absurdities that show the very NEED for such a non-religious day to learn more about our neighbors' culture. Once Fox (Faux) News covered the story in their trademark "even & balanced" fashion there were calls to State tourism officials threatening to cancel travel plans. Lucky for us, I thought, that those folks are staying away. They should perhaps vacation in the colonial 19th Century, eh? All the "different" people here might upset their mind-set! LOL.

Though Good Friday is an official paid State holiday here, Islam Day (which mandated no official observance) was denied on the basis of the "wall of separation between church & state" that Jefferson wrote about.

Today I was at an early morning meeting where Mr. Ouansafi and a lawyer from the ACLU presented their points of view. The ACLU had testified against the senate resolution on the basis of the wall of separation while ignoring the Good Friday holiday as "before my time."

The law really IS an ass!

Hakim told us that Muslim media throughout the world carried the story of Hawaii's attempt to honor their culture and that it was very positive coverage despite the ultimate outcome. (No Islam Day) One writer in Saudi Arabia even proposed that his own country establish a "Christian Day!"

This is the power of Aloha.

Even when it is denied by misguided locals, it still permeates our culture here, thanks to our host Hawaiian culture.

I admit to being reflexively wary of Muslims and their culture. Visiting Chicago on business a few years back, I was involuntarily shocked that everyone from my taxi driver to the toll booth person was greeting with a Salam Alaikum. Did they look down on me as a woman? What would they think if they thought of me as Jewish? It's very uncomfortable supposing that others hate you without knowing you. I suppose that was Hakim's intention behind Islam Day: more mutual understanding here in the isles.

Today I listened to a leader of Hawaii's Muslim community and heard a brother speaking.

A L O H A ? Cloudia

Just Stop And Take A Breath

Aloha!

Thanks for stopping by

WAIKIKI

Today!

Stop for a moment...

Take a breath...
...Then take another...

"The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook."
- William James

"Progress is like walking on a rolling barrel."
- Robert Frost













"Sometimes the first duty of intelligent persons is the restatement of the obvious."

- George Orwell

As children we were pushed to perform; and so most of us have internalized the habit of over-riding our innate temperment. We are strangers to ourselves; never having learned to know, value, and work along with our natural inclinations. . . our GIFTS! That's why life can seem like a "to do" list instead of a pleasure. No wonder we're often exhausted. . . It is the very thing that we seek to be rid of, that thing we are ashamed of, that is calling us back to the path of healing, to our sweet, original selves. If we simply stop running. If we look at it and bear with it patiently. . . treasure will emerge. . . the treasure of your unique nature. . .

A L O H A ! cloudia