Kolekole

We went to Kolekole (Hawaiian for talk story)beach park yesterday in an effort to go somewhere new. success! It's a nice little place by the ocean, the beach allows a calm pool of ocean water to play in, on the other side of the pool is a rope swing.

The park is simple with families and kids running around. It's what would come to mind when you think about a Hawaiian park.
We brought a picnic of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with a strange salad (artichoke hearts, grean olives, onions, carrots & green peppers). I really wanted to go swimming but it was too cool and none of the locals were which is a good indicator not to.

I didn't bring the nice camera because we didn't know how crowded it would be but we did bring her little Chameleon. This is the cheapest of all digicams and is at this point about 6 years old but tends to take some really interesting pictures no matter the situation.

Wedding

Having just been intimately involved with a wedding here are the things I learned.

Photography

We relied heavily on friends and family which had lots of good points:

1. free
   
2. we keep all the originals
3. lots of candids
   
4. we have 1,200 pictures
   

The downsides are:

1. they vary quite a bit in quality,
   
2. we missed a lot of important shots, like the family portraits because
   
3. there was no organization for any of the shots
4. there was no expectation of professionalism

In hindsight, I should have arranged with some of the groom's men to be in charge of organizing the photography.

Style and originality

Be as as unique as you want to. We had a wonderful minister who did an amazing job and she gave us a unique ceremony that many people seemed to enjoy. We also had leis shipped from Hawai'i and my nephew being a flower boy dressed in aloha gear.
But plan ahead. We had some really great ideas but there just wasn't enough time to arrange for them.

Invitations

We made our own. We designed them in Publisher, used flower graphics that our friend made, printed them at Office Max for about $75 and cut them ourselves. This was a really good decision. We got a lot of great feedback from everyone (grandparents & friends). It really set a nice mood for the ceremony. My cousin advised that as soon as you mention the word Wedding to a professional anybody the price jumpes about %100 because they know you aren't a returning customer.



We did the same for the RSVPS . The glaring error that we made was in not leaving a place for them to write their name. We received so many RSVPs that said "All 5 of us will be coming" and we had no idea who they were. Sometimes though, no matter what you do, the ravages of the USPS can deliver only the useless husk of a one grand RSVP.

Marriage License

We got ours at the Richmond Circuit court. It cost us $35 +$2.50 for a certified copy of the marriage license. To help the process go smoothly, arrive in a good mood, bring cash, and your ID. Turn off your cell phone.

Location

Our ceremony was held at the Unitarian Church in Richmond, and Artworks in Southside hosted the reception. We really lucked out. We only had 6 months to find a place. I suggest start calling as soon as you can, a year before is not too early. Seriously, start calling now.
Having the reception at a venue that already has some decoration helps a lot. Ours was at an art studio so there was lots of gorgeous stuff on the walls already. My brother had his at a nursery, so all of his pictures have plants in the background.

Food

Don't expect to eat on your wedding day. I was lucky, I got a little bit of food during the reception, J got less. We didn't really eat until we got to the hotel room where my uncle had arranged a gift basket with delicious bread and other treats.
My dad arranged the catering, mostly from a Mediterranean bakery. He complimented it with food from Costco for those with more delicate palettes. We got lots of compliments on the food we barely touched.

Minister

We had the best minister possible. She is a family friend and has been a part of my life since I was a baby. She's beautiful, smart, resourceful, talented and was absolutely perfect for us. She made the ceremony. She kept me from folding from nerves, she kept me sane, she gave me a kiss. Choosing the right minister will make your ceremony a real success.

Getting married is one of the best experiences of my life. The months leading up to it were very very difficult and put a lot of strain on us. The wedding day completely made up for it. I could not have asked for anything better.

Please comment on your wedding if you've had one, or with expectations if you haven't and plan to, or why you won't if you're not.

Hawai'i looks like this nearly every day at some point. Often it will be overcast and rainy in the morning but by the afternoon the clouds will thin and the sun will shine. Because we live on the rainy side of Hawai'i the vegetation is lush and abundant.

It's a really magical place to live, it's so far from modern society really. Families move down to live by the beach all summer in tents and under tarps going home only to do laundry. The surfing beaches are packed from 3 when school lets out until sunset everyday. Kids are friendly and unashamed of their bodies, they're trusting. Locals are friendly, even to haoles provided you're the same. When you wake up and everyday is beautiful and the beach is over your shoulder for generations your entire culture becomes wonderful.

Coconut Island panoramics. I took these a couple of days ago, I was leaving in a hurry when I took these, that's why a good portion of them are blurry, but I think it's an interesting effect to have a blurry picture merged with an in focus one.

Small Day

You just want to be special. Your life will be boring and without consequence, and you'll die on a deathbed thinking, "but... but, nothing big happened... that means that my existence was worthless... I didn't experience anything out of the ordinary

Thank you stupid Internet.

Big Day

1. First news of the day: Wil Morva was sentenced to death today.

There’s nothing more I can do, but there are others like me and I hope you know that and soon they’re going to get together,” says Morva. They’re going to sweep over your whole civilization and they’re going to wipe these smiles off of your faces forever. That’s all.

2. Then I Stumbled this page from Eric Schmidt talking about Net Nuetrality. I got the number for Senator Akaka in Hawai'i and left a message expressing my support. Never have I felt leaving a message to be so proactive.

3. I mailed 48 thank you cards today. The postage is $.42, most of them had a $.41 stamp. I bought $1 of $.01 stamps.

4. On the corner of Mamo and Kilauea I came across a guy passed out in his truck. He was stopped at the intersection. I ran into the art co-op and asked someone to call 9-11 while I opened the door, held him up and turned off the engine. He was breathing but unconcious. The EMTs arrived very quickly and they took over. I waited another 30-45 minutes to give a statement but none was wanted. They said he was on a lot of pian killers. I'm sure he'll be fine.

City lights on the inside of my eyelids

I miss living in a city. I haven't very often or for very long. Barcelona for 2 months, Seattle for 5 months, I guess you can count Richmond for 2 years. A corner stone of any city that I'd like to live in is public transportation.

Seattle had an amazing public transit system that would take me from Bellevue into downtown in about 45 minutes. This is me time, time to read and listen to music. NOT talk on the phone, because that's just rude. But I really enjoy the sway of the bus, the other travelers; I feel connected with them in a way that I don't when we drive next to each other. The driving is left to someone else and I can watch the scenery. I can focus on the birds and sunset, I don't have to worry.

Around Seattle also had ferries, these are at least 12 kinds of awesome. They also provide a time for picture taking, down time, time to talk and provide a good adventure, even if only for 30
minutes.


I enjoy much more riding the subway. The dirty tiled floor of the station, swiping cards or giving tokens has a sense of time to it that cannot be matched anywhere else. Again, I enjoy connecting with the other passengers by their presence only. Talking to strangers in that kind of setting has never appealed, but the clutch of the train as it pulls away and the G forces as it slows down. The flickering of lights, well it just appeals to me.

I miss living in a place where I can travel without being the driver. Here either I bike or I drive. There is a bus, sure, but it runs only a few times a day and isn't really designed for around town commuting, more for cross island destinations.


I enjoy walking on stone. The hard surface beneath me makes me feel small against the age of this stone. It's been around longer than I have and will continue to be long after I'm not.

It's not just the reduced carbon footprint, or the lower cost, the absence of anxiety from not driving. It's also the culture. These things were built during a time when city planners put an enormous effort into moving a large amount of people. This technology comes form a time when society wasn't centered around the individual. You can blame it on whatever you want, video games or media, it doesn't really matter at this point. Pretty much everyone is on this path to manifest destiny.

$4.50 at the pumps yesterday and I still filled up.





To revive my old meme:
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be.
If you had your choice of method of transportation there, what would you choose?

5x5

songs

1. Aphex Twin - Window Licker
2. Beatles - Day in the Life
3. Ratatat - Nostrand
4. Daft Punk - Face to Face / Short Circuit (Live)
   
5. NIN - The Becoming

movies

1. Perfume: Story of a Murderer
2. Sunshine
3. Paris: Je T'aime
4. Lookout
5. Brick

What are yours?

I ignored a phone call from a friend today.
From the beginning of the day until the end of it I've been happy, lonely, energentic, lazy, scared, excited, hungry, full, empty, poor and rich.
I've taken two showers, worn 2 pairs of pants and 3 shirts.

Every day is different. Every day is exactly the same

It was a wonderful day.