Kauai's best kept secret...

Many years ago when I first arrived on the cosmic  Garden Island of kauai, I would swim in the ocean everyday with my mask and snorkel.

The ocean is one of my passions but with chronic back pain, nerve damage, diabetes, and yada yada yada, swimming is the best therapy for my many medical problems.

 I quit swimming in the ocean on a daily basis since I was getting cut by coral quite a few times and developed cellulites, a skin disease, most people would not get, being diabetic I am more susceptible to infections. Plus I had a near drowning experience and have been gun shy of the ocean ever since.

Swimming releases serotonin in one's brain, you hear of runners and "the runner's high," in comparison, I get the swimmer's high. Many days I have a hard time pushing myself to swim, but the rewards afterwards are low glucose , lower blood pressure and more serotonin feel good chemical in my brain which acts as a natural anti-depressant.

I still have the highest respect for mother nature and the ocean but needed to find somewhere I could swim without the worries of being cut by  coral, being swept out to sea and possible shark bites.

A long time ago I walked over to Kapa'a pool and asked how much it cost for a membership to swim there? The lifeguard at the time told me, "brah, dis Kauai's best kept secret, It's free!" No ID required, no money required and some of the friendliest Aloha  spirited lifeguards I have met.

I would like to thank Keala, Jeremy, Brandon, Eric and Cheryl for my lifeline and a place to heal, "Kapa'a Pool," Kauai's best kept secret.      http://www.theoriginalkealakai.com/

I am taking my chances that someone may actually read this blog and no longer will Kapa'a pool be kept secret, oh well, I just can't keep my mouth shut.

Unsolved mystery -- where are the clocks?..

Unsolved mystery -- where are the clocks?

Honolulu Airport might have the most on-time flights of any airport, but try finding a clock anywhere on the wall. Lihue has a similar problem; they have a wall of clocks which represents times all over the world, but not one clock works. Lihue Airport is much smaller and friendlier, making it easier to ask a stranger for the time.

I was at Honolulu Airport a few hours early for a flight back to my home and favorite island of Kauai. My time was being spent on an Internet kiosk. I do not wear a watch and refuse to become part of the cell phone digital time mania that has taken over the world.

My flight was departing at 10:25 a.m. I needed to watch the time, and there were no clocks within distance so I took a stroll; still no clocks. This is an international airport, and finding a clock was an act of God. Finally I looked at a flight arrival board, and in the smallest numbers was the time.

Try finding a clock at any major shopping center, bar or restaurant anywhere in Hawaii. It's no wonder "Hawaii time" has become synonymous with arriving late. I understand aloha but still feel the need to look up and see the time.

I remember as a youth, clocks were everywhere, at the post office shopping malls and airports. Now in this fast-paced world of computers, cell phones, HDTV, iPods and jet travel, a clock is a commodity that is hard to find.

I miss the good old hanging clock with dings and dongs. What has gone wrong? Where has all the time gone?

All have life, love and spirit

All have life, love and spirit

“Haole,” as I was taught by a famous Hawaiian kumu, means without the breath of life and spirit.

The “ha” in “haole” is the same “ha” as in aloha, meaning the breath of life and spirit; aloha is the breath of life and love; “haole” is without the breath of life, love and spirit.

Calling a Caucasian person a haole is the equivalent of calling a black person the “N”-word.

Most times “haole” is used in a derogatory way, as in traffic, saying things as that “frickin haole” or in long lines at the supermarket or when a white skinned person asks any dumb question they are “haole.” In essence anyone could be a “haole” since “haole” does not mean white-skinned-person-from-the-Mainland, it means “without the breath of life, love and spirit.” Any person white, black, Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Portuguese or even Hawaiian could be “haole” (without spirit).

Imus the radio talk show host was  fired from his syndicated radio talk show for making racist remarks about blacks. Michael Richards who played “Kramer” on “Seinfeld” made racist remarks about blacks with the use of the N-word. Richards was reprimanded, punished and formally apologized to the black community. Mel Gibson made racist remarks about the Jews and was made to apologize to the Jewish community.

Referring to somebody as a “haole” (without spirit), is the same as referring to them as a dumb frickin idiot. Any person who uses the word “haole” is a “haole.”

“Haole” is one word that should be deleted from the Hawaiian language

"Tsunami watch, next time let me sleep..."

The news media is so competitive these days, every network with it's own local news, plus all the different cable news stations form MSNBC on the left, to Fox on the right and CNN in between.

There was an earthquake in Chile, on friday 02-26-10, Hawaii was told there is a chance a Tsunami tidal wave may arrive within 14 hours..

Nobody slept, the media was in a frenzy for all the young whipper snapper news-anchors to become famous, nobody wanted to admit that since the sea's were calm, the chances of a tidal wave were very minute, instead they made it sound like Revelations and the end of times.

Friends calling at 2:00 am, neighbors knocking on doors at 4:00, AM , "get out there's a tsunami coming," and cops evacuating sea level homes to higher grounds.

All the evacuee's, decided to come to where I live as a safe place to hide out, since I have an ocean view upon a hill overlooking the ocean, over 300 cars were literally parked in my back yard, it looked like a tailgate party, people setting up tents and partying with pizza, beer, poke and many other local grindz in hopes of viewing a mass destructive tidal wave as cheap entertainment  during this recession.

Finally at 11;00 AM the ETA for the tidal wave, the news anchors start saying that maybe the tidal wave is behind schedule and this could take another couple days, stay tuned to this station and it's sponsors for more details....chi ching chi ching...

Finally our Mayor Bernard Carvalho around 2:15 PM decided to lift the tidal wave watch to the dismay of every news anchor person in the state of Hawaii.

I can't knock it, it was a good dress rehearsal, a fire-drill so to speak,for the future which is bound to carry some more disasters.

The Tsunami watch is over, It was media overkill but still got the adrenaline going in this old fart and at least most everyone got to talk story with their neighbors.

Please let me sleep next time a tsunami comes our way.

a place where everyday is the sabbath...

Noise is everywhere. One notices it more after one has lived away from the sounds of cities and neighborhoods.

Recently I have returned to civilazion after 5 years of living alernatively and have found many "noisy inconvenient truths" It is hard to concentrate, I now have a nice  apartment close to town and the beach.

Don't get me wrong,I am blessed to have a roof over my head, however.... The noise of neighbors playing music, the noise of Lawnmowers, weedwackers, leafblowers, cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, constructiin machines doors opening and closing, plus the  apartmment  uniits are so close I can hear the sound of my neighbors urinating in their toilet. When they sneeze I say, God Bless you.

I used to take a quiet refuge on the Bus, now everyone has a cell phone with a different ringer. One guy actually had a ringer with the sound of a siren and the bus driver pulled off the road. The ringers are one thing, then on any given bus on any given day you have three people screaming into their cell phones so everyone cannot help but hear about their pathetic lifes.

 The ideal community would be no cars, or cell phones. The grocery store and entertainment is never more than a 60 minute walk or 30 minute bike ride. Clohing would be optional, and everyone would mow their lawns with an old fashioned push mower with a bag to collect the grass, no electric or gas operated garden tools of any kind.

Everyone would volunteer to wear headphones when watching tv or listening to music. No bottled watered which only fills the landfills with plastic bottles. Tap water has been proven more healthy, there are more anti-bodies in tap water which helps build our immune system. No paper plates, and conservation of paper and plastic whenever possible.

 Fruit trees, vegatable gardens, fish from the sea and quiet, a place where everyday is the sabbath... Anyone interested?

Home’s where you’re happy...

Home’s where you’re happy

Recently many articles have been written about the homeless coming to Hawaii with one way tickets issued by the California department of human services.

I lived outdoors many years  squatting in a tent at many different sacred places on Kaua‘i. I did not consider myself homeless because I did not have four walls and a roof over and around me. I was happier living outdoors in the peace and quiet than around roommates, noisy neighbors and society as a whole.

Living on Kaua‘i one must be rich or live alternatively to survive. Those in between are the ones we should worry about, not the people without houses.

Many people who have multi-million-dollar homes are homeless. Home is where you are happy and feel at peace with the divine one. Many people live in mansions and have anxieties and stresses that are horrid to live with.

People living outdoors experience a freeness that you can only experience by living the lifestyle.

To sum things up, one does not need to be without a house to be homeless. Many people without houses have homes in the spirit of the ‘aina and the Lord.

Many of the great sages and prophets that we worship were without houses, but definitely not homeless.

The old expression, “Home is where the heart is,” is as true today as ever.

Next time you speak of the homeless, look within

Scammers make big bucks on safety checks

Scammers make big bucks on safety checks...


There is a major problem in Hawaii concerning safety checks on motor vehicles.

I cannot mention names, but have witnessed on many occasions motor vehicles getting through safety inspections that shouldn't.

Everyone seems to know a mechanic who will pass their vehicle if a speedometer cable doesn't work, if the muffler is loud or even if the high beams don't work. I know someone whose mechanic delivers to their home the safety inspection sticker without ever checking the car.

Mechanics are endangering our lives by trying to give friends a break. Who knows how many accidents could be prevented if there were stricter laws on issuing safety inspection stickers?

The whole safety inspection deal is just another scam for the almighty buck