Keiki Zoo

The petting zoo is a big hit with both little and big kids. This Spring our students especially enjoyed the time we spent in the goat pen -- except David who took exception to one of the goats nibbling on the front of his shirt, which still had a bit of his breakfast on it.

Cass captured the heart of yet another fella.

Candy has such a great ear scratching technique that this little one followed her around for a bit after she got up and walked away.

And this fella snuggled really friendly-like and told me he loved me, then he tried to steal my purse. We had quite a tug-of-war. I finally convinced him that pink and purple geometrics weren't a proper match for his coat.

The Country Club Bum

OC and I went to lunch Sunday and had lunch on the lanai of the Makaha Resort Golf Club. It has a lovely view with all the flowering trees in bloom, the emerald green manicured lawns and the azure sea beyond. I took my camera to capture the view, but company came and took much of my attention.

The company was uninvited. He slowly sidled up to the table and helped himself ...

He approached us with an innocent, "don't mind me" air.

He casually strolled closer, looking everywhere but at us.

He nonchalantly took a seat at our table.

Scooted up close.

Stepped on up to the plate ...

Gave it a thorough inspection.

Then admonished us. "Okay you two, perhaps you didn't get the memo. All guests are required to leave a bite or two for me!"

He tried valiantly to convince us that our callous disregard of his dietary wishes had put him in eminent peril. In other words, he insisted he was starving. He might have made better headway if he'd sucked in his gut.

By the way, the chocolate Lava Cake was yummy. I highly reccommend it.

Surfing Wai'anae

The tide is out, exposing the inner reef.

This view looks toward Makaha.

From the sea to the shore. The tide is on it's way back in.

And so are the surfers.

Surfers paddling out.

Surfing!

They made it look easy, but trust me, I was content to take my pretty pictures and scuffle along the shore.

Shrines

It is not unusual to be driving the highways or freeways on Oahu and see roadside shrines. Crosses adorned with photographs, ribbons, fresh flowers, and sometimes even teddy bears adorn the sides of the roadways and the shores near the edge of the beach.

When I traveled to the makai end of Piliokahi Avenue in Nanakuli I was not surprised to find a cross. I was however very surprised at the size of the cross, so I started asking questions. I was told that a Nanakuli church sometimes holds their services here. I must say, I have never seen a more beautiful sanctuary.

The View

The view of Honolulu & Waikiki from Manoa Valley.

Wet Diversity

As I've said, I adore Hawaii.



Here one can stand in the sunshine and the rain at the same time. I took this photo the other day at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. You can see the rain falling and the sun shining on the green leaves and the building beyond.



I took this picture from our lanai just before sunset on January 1st. You can actually see the rays of sunshine competing with the rain. I stepped outside and held out my hands. Rain fell into my right hand. My left hand remained dry. I was standing half in and half out of the rain shower. That is not an uncommon phenomena here in the Rainbow State — where liquid sunshine falls almost every day of the year.

The rain is warm and soft. Even so, we carry umbrellas with us every where we go. In a state with an almost constant humidity level of 80% or higher, once one’s clothing gets wet it tends to stay wet all day — and in air conditioned buildings that can get a bit uncomfortable.

Oh, and that sunset photo?


Did I mention that I adore Hawaii?

Diversity, Part I

I love visiting the University of Hawaii at Manoa campus. Diversity abounds: the buildings, the languages, the people & their skin colors, and the plant life. Each step along every path brings something new and amazing.

For instance, this Coral Tree simply took my breath away. I stopped to photograph it, and a gentleman on campus stopped to query me. "What purpose is there in taking pictures of flowers?" He asked.



"Purpose?" I parroted and shrugged. "I just thought they were pretty."

"Pretty is not important." He flicked his hand like he was brushing away dust.

"But look at them," I pointed and said. "The shape --. The texture --. The amazing color --."



"Listen," he said. "If you want to see something truly amazing you need to study mathematics."

"But numbers aren't very photogenic." I replied.



He looked at me quizzically, shook his head and walked away. I was shaking my head as I watched him go.

Diversity.


Erythrina crista-galli, Fabaceae, common coral tree, origin, Brazil.

Zosterope japonicus japonicus, Zosteropidae, Mejiros or Japanese White Eye, named for the ring of white around it's eyes, is a song bird from Japan.

Diversity.

Santa Visits Honolulu Hale Fountain

That fur suit is a killer in 80F heat. Santa stopped by the fountain at Honolulu Hale to cool off.

Mrs. Santa came along for the ride.
Would you stay at the North Pole if your partner was visiting Hawaii?

Of course, with as much military as there is on this island,
you can't land a flea without folks noticing,
so jeeps rolled and emergency plans were dusted off ...

And Santa proved that rather then being a haole,
he's Kama'aina by greeting them with the traditional Hawaiian shaka,
or aloha wave.

Christmas on Oahu

In the previous posts I'd only just begun to scratch the surface of the Honolulu Hale decorations. You've seen the park and the foyer. Now I present a few of the sights that can be seen on the front and side lawns. (Stay tuned for the fountain tomorrow!)

Mele Kalikimaka -- Merry Christmas to you and yours!
The word mele is actually musically based, so in literal translation
you are being wished a musical Christmas!

Politics and Christmas: Every red ribbon in this display -- 1800 of them -- represents
a Hawaiian who died of aids.

Politics and Christmas: there is a small faction of people in Hawaii who want to make Hawaii a sovereign nation governed by Hawaiians. This display was fashioned by those who disagree.

Religion and politics:
This is at the bottom of the above display. The signs read, Happy Birthday, Jesus.

The Christmas tree in front of Honolulu Hale.

Train beneath the tree.

Religious displays on public property -- with not an outcry to be heard.

Beside the nativity is a PFLAG display.

Elvis is very popular in Hawaii -- be it Christmas or any other time.

Here is a bit of, Blue Hawaii, for you.

My Christmas wish for you and yours.

Deck the Hale

Honolulu Hale decks its halls for Christmas. Local businesses bid for the privilege of providing the decorations. For every photo here there are at least two more I didn't share and twice as many I never even took! The Hale foyer was dressed to dazzle!

Hawaii Christmas Express -- first stop, the bank, then on to the mall!

What's Christmas without a stop at the candy store?

Don't forget to stop by the shipping company to get those packages mailed.

Here's a real snow bird come to Hawaii for some Christmas Cheer.

Not a creature was stirring ...

Ha! Not true! The place was packed!

A Hawaiian Christmas tree.

And Santa in aloha wear. That red suits just a bit too warm here.

Park Elves

Hawaii decorates for Christmas in a big way, with Honolulu Hale as a role model. Businesses bid for the honor of decorating sections of the Hale grounds. The snow family below, these elves, and several other attractions (photos will follow in the next several days) are sponsored by the auction winners.



These photos were taken at dusk in the rain -- well, drizzle -- which accounts in part for their poor quality. The other part would be my lack of expertise with any form of photography other than point-and-shoot.