Happy New Year!

A L O H A Friends

Happy Hawaiian New Year!

click on photos to unleash the dazzle

Waikiki Flats

All of today's photos courtesy of Ted Trimmer

"Your vision will become clear

only when you can look into your own heart.

Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens."
Carl Jung


Plumeria



"You're writing the story of your life one moment at a time."
Doc Childre and Howard Martin

Hawaii State Flower: Yellow Hibiscus



"Life begets life. Energy creates energy.

It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich."
Sarah Bernhardt


In the old times, Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiians) studied nature and her changes closely, especially the movements of the heavens. The first sliver of November's new moon (today!)marks the beginning of Hawaii's winter months, the Makahiki Season that some call Hawaiian New Year.

It was by navigating across the vast Pacific, guided by the star Hokule`a (the star of gladness) that the first people had voyaged to Hawaii Nei. Their children trusted the wisdom embodied in the stars to indicate proper times to plant, harvest, observe festivals, or even when to make war.

The stars have guided the Hawaiians from the kahiko

(ancient) days.

Makahiki begins with the appearance in the eastern sky of a star constellation called in Hawaiian: Na Huihui o Makali`i, in which name my poor Hawaiian sees the (na) club (hui, saying it twice a sort of emphasis) eyes (maka) Ali`i (royal chiefs); perhaps "The League of Watching Chiefs" would not be an entirely incorrect translation. Yes, "The Pleaides," or Seven Sisters, as they are called in English, are very significant to foundational Hawaiian thought. In fact, according to the ancient tradition, the first Hawaiian people came to Earth from the Makali`i!

The star-based Hawaiian calendar has always placed a special significance on these interstellar ties to the Makali`i.

For four months, the Ho`o-ilo (winter season) will be taken up by the Makahiki, the year's most important holiday and traditional celebration of the harvest. It is a time of personal rest, and spiritual & cultural renewal, a 'jubilee' so to speak.

It was a time when all wars and battles were ceased, tributes and taxes were paid by each district to the ruling chief, sporting competitions and contests between villages were organized, and festive events were commenced. Even some of the rigid kapu (taboos) were suspended for this period of rest and renewal. As in the Bible, the land lay fallow in preparation of the next growing season. The Makahiki is considered a species of "first fruits" festivals common throughout the world's first nations. It is cousin of our own American and Canadian Thanksgiving, of Oktoberfest, and numerous other harvest celebrations of our present day as well.


Though a somewhat similar holiday period was observed throughout Polynesia it was here in pre-contact Hawaii that the festival reached its fullest flower. Lono, the god of peace, agriculture and fertility, was especially propitiated during this period. Lono was said to be embodied in a certain clustering of dark clouds, in thunder, in the partial rainbow, whirlwinds, and even waterspouts - all Hawaii winter phenomena.

The Hawaiian Makahiki festival proceeded in a clockwise circle around the island. The image of Lono (Akua Loa - a long pole with a strip of white tapa cloth) was carried thither by the kahuna. It is said that Captain Cook's sails resembled these lono standards. Arriving as he did during Makahiki assured a peaceful visit. It was not till he returned unexpectedly later that tension developed. You see, at the very end of the Makahiki festival, the chief would go off shore in a canoe. When he stepped back on the beach, a group of his warriors threw spears at him which he had to deflect or parry. Success proved his worthiness to continue his rule. Perhaps Cook merely failed to "duck," proving unworthy?

Today, late November is still the beginning of the Ho`o-ilo (winter or rainy season) in our modern Hawaii. The Makali`i cluster once again rises at sunset and sets at dawn, visible through the night. The Heavenly Chiefs are still watching. Lono, god of peace and harvest, will remain close until Kau (summer) begins with the Makali'i rising in the dawn's east, no longer visible in the dark, sacred night.

Till then, Lono is said to be in the rain that falls from the Kona (southern) direction. So you see, even now the ancient energies renew the vitality of our `aina (land), nourishing our gardens with liquid blessing.

Todays Makahiki events and activities are practiced in abbreviated form. Still, there are said to be Hawaiian souls who return from the past to embrace their descendants and Hawaii people of today. Island residents still hear ancient drums sounding on certain nights, especially near ancient Heiau (temples) and other sites of timeless significance. Some have even witnessed spectral apparitions, processions of chiefly spirits in ancient regalia, along the ancient, half forgotten ala (paths).


So brew another cup. Pull the covers tighter around you, and listen to the whisperings of your own local gods in the branches and among the buildings. It is a time of rest and renewal; a time of looking forward and back.
Happy MAKAHIKI season to you. Let the games & feasting begin!

A L O H A ! Cloudia

What Else is Down There?

ALOHA Friends!

Welcome to the Sea Floor off of Oahu

They Exist!

“The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore”
Vincent van Gogh

Emerging from History


“There are fish in the sea better than have ever been caught”
Irish Sayings





Short "Teaser" for Tonight's Program

Submarine Archeology Score

The 1-401 submarine carried three folded-wing fighter/bomber aircraft in an

on-board hangar. The sub could surface and launch her planes in a matter of minutes.

One of the missions they were designed for was to bomb the Panama Canal.

"These subs were bigger than nuclear subs, the largest diesel subs ever built. They could launch aircraft, stay submerged and run 37,500 miles -- 1 1/2 times around the globe -- without refueling."
John Wiltshire, acting director of HURL (Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory)

It was HURL submersibles Pisces IV and Pisces V that found several of these 60-year-old Japanese submarines in February. The Geographic Channel partly funded and documented their mission for a special, "Hunt for the Samurai Subs," premiering TONIGHT as a crown jewel of the network's second annual Expedition Week.

This legendary class of submarines was developed by the WWII- era Japanese Empire using revolutionary technology. They were the largest submarines ever built -- 400 feet long -- until nuclear-powered submarines were built in the 1950s and 1960s. Had they become operational sooner, they might have had a big impact on the outcome of the war in the Pacific. Plans included the bombing of New York and Washington DC.

The U.S. Navy came into posession of the submarines at the end of WWII, sailing five of them from Japan to here to Pearl Harbor for inspection. A veteran involved in the transfer has reported that other than being unable to read the printing on the instruments, the American submariners had little trouble operating the vessels. The boats were ultimately sunk off of Oahu's coast (1946) in order to avoid sharing their technology with our Cold War adversaries, the Russians, per treaty as our WWII allies.

Tonight, "The Hunt for the Samurai Subs" on the National Geographic Channel tells their story.

One key interviewee is Atsushi Asamura, a kamikaze pilot assigned to the I-401 aircraft-carrying submarine.

Go to http://www.pacerfarm.org/i-400/ for a detailed memoir onboard the I-401 by the late Tom Paine that begins:

"This saga recounts my adventures during the last voyage of His Imperial Japanese Majesty's Sensuikan Toku (Special Submarines). In 1945 I returned from World War II as Executive Officer and Navigator of the U.S. Navy prize crew in one of these aircraft-carrying giants: H.I.J.M.S. I-400. Sailing her from Sasebo, Occupied Japan, to Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, seemed a fitting finale to my career in the Submarine Service. . ."

I just love tales of technology, and of the deep.

How about

YOU?

ALOHA! Cloudia

Morning Moon Whispers Secrets

A L O H A

Welcome to Monday in Waikiki,

Friend!

click on photos to reveal what is hidden to the quick glance

Morning Moon

"Celebrity is just obscurity

biding it's time."

Carrie Fisher

Purring Ripples, Barking Sparkles

"Life happens too fast for you to ever to think about it. If you could just persuade people of this, but they insist on amassing information."

Kurt Vonnegut

Jolly Jelly Fish

"Many people try to run away from their inner loneliness.

They do not know how to be alone. They do anything to escape being alone. They are always on the go; they are always doing something. To live meaningfully, we must master one of the fine arts of life -

learning how to be alone without being lonely."

Paul Osumi

<>< + ><>

We are magnets

We attract what we love

or hate

or obsess about.

Complaints always worsen

a situation.

What we focus on

always grows.

Imagination

is stronger than will

and always wins.

Will power is just for

short bursts.

Imago is our creative force.

Without feeling

nothing occurs.

Emotion is the energy

that causes the thought

to happen.

These rules are the difference

between being a dreamer

and a visionary.

Nonresistance

frees the

magic.

ALOHA, cloudia

"The River Is Deep"

A L O H A

Welcome to a Lazy Sunday in Honolulu

F R I E N D !

click on photos, Frodo

He says that the river is deep,

never writes his poetry down.

But he carried moldy canvas

stuffed with type-written pages

across decades - and continents.

And so it has been,

deep that is.

And should it flow

another continent or two,

or just a handful of tomorrows,

the river has been deep,

sweet & daily,

with sparkles of eternity.

Our river is deep

indeed.

Thanks for visiting!

ALOHA, cloudia

Saturday Friends

ALOHA

Saturday Friend!

click on photos for magic

Friends Like to Gather at Day's End. . .

"As I make my slow pilgrimage through the world,

a certain sense of beautiful mystery seems to gather and grow."

A. C. Benson

Friendly Competitors?

"Whenever a friend suceeds, a little something in me dies."
Gore Vidal

Birds of a Feather or

"I don't care if someone is blue, orange, yellow or purple..."

"The bird a nest, the spider a web, man friendship."
William Blake

Finn is a true friend.

Sure he is highly trained,

but everyone is just more relaxed when he's around.

He plays when his human companions are playful,

And he is quiet, and a good listener, when they're pensive.

Finn is the first service dog assigned to help recuperating Marines.

Everyone agrees that he boosts their morale

at the Wounded Warrior Barracks.

True Friends Require No Words:

Thank YOU

for being a Friend,

ALOHA, cloudia

Aloha Friday

It's ALOHA Friday!

Welcome Friend

click on photos to inspect deeply

Every Sparrow. . .

“I once had a sparrow alight upon my shoulder for a moment, while I was hoeing in a village garden, and I felt that I was more distinguished by that circumstance that I should have been by any epaulet I could have worn.”
Henry David Thoreau

Torch Eternal


“Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it onto future generations.”
George Bernard Shaw




Kolea in the Sun



"Never part without loving words to think of during your absence.

It may be that you will not meet again in life."

Jean Paul Richter

Moon & Mist




"Writing well mean never having to say, 'I guess you had to be there.' "
Jef Mallett




Years ago,
I used to read the Honolulu obituaries in my taxi.
Back then, every other deceased was foreign born:
China, Japan, Korea, Azores, Philippines.
Their brief stories spoke volumes about Hawaii,
what we're all about,
and how we got this way.








Later,
many obituaries mentioned birth
in places that no longer exist:
"Camp Number 7, Ewa Plantation"
That was the plantation-born generation.
What a tale those lives could tell!








Recently, I noticed an obit
for an old local woman born in China.
There was to be a Taoist Funeral,
so I went to pay my respects.
Not just to the lady and her family,
but to an entire generation.









And I longed to see, hear, and smell
a Taoist Funeral.











For some reason
I have always gravitated to things
Chinoise.
When I was a child,
there was actually a pretty standard Halloween costume:
"Chinese Person"
and I clamored to wear it
for many years.









Imagine!
An ethnicity as a Halloween costume!
But I was just a kid
and I wanted to be
Chinese.










When I got to Diamond Head Memorial Park
the viewing was taking place,
as was an outdoor gathering
of seemingly casual folks eating Dim Sum,
my favourite brunch.










I sat with some older women
who welcomed me simply.
I explained that I wanted to attend a Taoist Funeral,
and to honor the deceased, family, and generation.









They insisted that I eat.
Everything about the Chinese seems eminently sensible to me.
The ladies warmed up and talk-storied with me,
as local people will do.
I wasn't an outsider you see - being local.









One new friend said that she was glad that her ancestors
had settled in Hawaii, not San Francisco
(my other favorite town).
"There it was too ghettoized for us. Here we mix and move away from Chinatown. San Francisco too closed!"








We all agreed:
"Lucky we live Hawaii."









Then they started telling me about Hawaii Chinese funeral customs that they remembered growing up.
They spoke of keeping the deceased in the home overnight,
illegal now,
of burlap clothes,
and hired wailing mourners
making a racket in the house,
and parading down the (Honolulu) street.












These customs are growing attenuated today,
but for this honored decedent
there would be ancient ceremony,
the burning of spirit money,
and attendance by cardboard servants.










"Lots of people became Christian over here,"
my new friend explained.
Her own Goong Goong (grandmother)
had had the gift of physiognomy,
she read the truth in people's faces,
but gave it up
after Christian prayers had cured a serious illness.
Such was the tendency and pressure of those days.









The Benevolent Societies remain,
though less vital generation to generation.
And Chinatown is busy with new immigrants
from Southeast Asia, Oceania
and elsewhere.










But this family was holding a traditional funeral
to honor a woman born in the old country.
I didn't feel right taking pictures,
so my words will have to do.












The family stood attentively in two rows
facing the coffin, regalia,
and the priest with his chanting
and implements.












Chanting was punctuated by the preparation of tea.
The acolyte told the family
when to drink,
when to bow.
The tea was offered to the woman's spirit
and poured into an urn
of sand.









The acolyte also took articles right outside the chapel
to burn.
Cardboard servants-
a male and female-
were held like puppets,
raised up, and
bowed in unison to the deceased.
All very matter of fact,
all as the lady would have wanted it.











At last, Chinese music,
strings and cymbals,
was played
to my delight.











All the while,
most attendees
sat outside
eating Dim Sum
and talking.










I still have the ladies obit
and take it out
to pay her my respects.










Thank you for having me to your
last Honolulu party.











The food was delicious,
the conversation good,
your incense and music beguiled me.










Go with our respectful
gratitude.









A L O H A! cloudia

Come to My Windows

ALOHA

Welcome to Thursday in Honolulu

click on windows to enter therein My computer is my window on the world,

the WHOLE world.

"The Internet is becoming the town square

for the global village of tomorrow."

"People everywhere love Windows."

Sometimes it's just plain fun, like when I visit YOUR blog!

"I really had a lot of dreams when I was a kid,
and I think a great deal of that grew out of the fact
that I had a chance to read a lot."

When everything is working right,
it's a beautiful thing!

"As we look ahead into the next century,

leaders will be those who empower others."
All Quotes Today:

Bill Gates





><>

I bought my first laptop 10 years ago.
And I used it for the entire ten years;
Windows ME operating system and all!




When it was on it's last legs I anguished over it's replacement.
Some swear by APPLE. I've been a PC and learned it's Window ways, but I was willing to change for the right reasons.



I went back and forth.



Ultimately, I bought another Dell Inspirion 15
with the much heralded
WINDOWS 7.




This was a great decision!
Yes, I'm one of those people that the ad campaign is about:
I'm ecstatic about this dual core beauty
and after 3 weeks,

WINDOWS 7 has been nothing but a joy.



It has exceeded my expectations -

and I don't like change where my tools are concerned.

It takes too much energy from my creativity.
I just want things to work,
and Windows7 really does.
It's elegant.




So if it's time, treat yourself.
If you spend hours of your life on-line like I do,
it will be just like getting a new and better body.
I'm BEAUTIFUL again!

Having been involved in public health, I know well
how much basic good the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
is doing thoughout the world
and here in
America.


Windows it is!




I purchased at Best Buy and had a good experience.
The person who helped me, Richard, was totally cool.
As a stingy tightwad, I mean careful spender,
I can tell you that it is
Very Worth It
to get a machine that they have
optimized.


So, come to my windows.
Then you can enjoy your visits here to Hawaii
even MORE!


ALOHA, Friend! cloudia