May 2003 Archives

Recipe Request

Update: My co-worker made me the cake when they celebrated my birthday at our staff meeting last week. I know it was early but go here to see a picture of the cake.

I can hardly believe that I am having a difficult time finding an appropriate recipe for GUAVA CHIFFON CAKE like the one Deelite Bakery makes.

WaikikiStories?

Of Manhattan it is often said, "There are a million stories in the naked city." For Hawaii's tourist Mecca, Historic Waikiki will settle for a thousand. Backed by several artists, writers, teachers and activists, the site is a treasure trove of information and everyday remembrances.

Perhaps inspired by the Flash-based 1,000 Nights in Manhattan project (but with less sex), the real gem is a map of Waikiki with dots marking the place where personal histories were made. From the old Coco's Coffee House to the west and The Jungle to the east, already dozens of stories have been told. Proclaims the site, "951 more to go..."

Funny being Asian?

This arrived today, thought some of you might be interested:

As part of our continuing efforts to identify Asian/Pacific-American actors and writers with the potential to contribute to programming on the network, PSNBC is planning to present a marathon of short, comedic one acts at the Abingdon Street Theatre October 1-5, 2003 featuring a cast of exclusively Asian/Pacific-American actors performing works written by Asian/Pacific-American actors.

Change of Address

My roommate is moving back to New York so I'm looking for a new place to live and hopefully in a new neighborhood. For anyone who didn't read or reply in the Safe Places at Night thread, I've got a few questions about the different area's of Honolulu.

Ideally I'd like to find something between my two jobs, Kahala on one end and Kaheka St. on the other. That leaves me with Makiki, Kaimuki, Manoa, Kapahulu, McCully, Ala Moana, Moiliili or the Ala Wai. Waikiki is still an option but I think I'm ready to move out of the tourist district. Am I forgetting any other viable parts of town? I've got until July 1st so I will be starting the search in 10 days.

Where to Celebrate?

This is partly a poll of favorite restaurants to celebrate momentous occasions in Honolulu, and partly a way for me to figure out where my family, friends, and I should go for dinner tomorrow night.

So, where is a good place to celebrate a graduation? There are visitors from out-of-state so we'd like to go somewhere that's unique to Hawai'i. Oh, and not too expensive. Gotta save all that money to pay back student loans...

Safe Places at Night

What are your opinions about outdoor safety at night here in Hawaii? My mom has a quivery voice over the phone as she expresses her worry over my plans to check out the full moon at Makapuu tonight (in a group, of course). I'm a little irritated by the way she lives her life in fear, avoiding rich life experiences "to be safe."

Perhaps there are two issues this post brings up. One is the question of where in Hawaii is it considered reasonably safe to hang out at night? And the other question relates to the broader issue of how to balance fear and truly living.

We Need More Awards Shows

No, we really don't. But I'm wondering if anyone here would be interested in a Hawaii Stories version of the Weekly's Best of Honolulu (and the many, many others out there).

It has Arrived

While passing through Ala Moana today, I noticed that there were people putting the finishing touches on the Apple Store. The grand opening is Saturday. Despite the fact that this wasn't really announced on Apple's website, there is now a page for the Ala Moana Store.

New Asian American health website from NIH

The site features census data on major Asian American populations, background on cultural traditions and heritage, links to health policy offices, online medical databases, publications and other organizations. It's a companion to the HealthFinder site, which will include a new section devoted to Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander populations. The user-friendly Web site brings together multi-lingual information in Cambodian, Chinese, Hmong, Korean, Laotian, Samoan, Thai, Tongan and Vietnamese. The new consumer resource will be useful to caregivers, patients and others searching for health information on behalf of individuals more comfortable in their native language.

All of that is directly from the HHS press release; don't hold me to that "user-friendly" phrase.

Happy Workers

What are some Hawaii companies that treat their employees respectfully? I read a journal entry from one of our own (excellent) bloggers about the health coverage and scholarship opportunities provided by Zippys. Makes me want to be more loyal to this restaurant. I know that no workplace is perfect, but if the principles are in place, the company will generally do good for the community. Any other companies you'd recommend based on their business principles and ethics?

Public School Rankings

Thought this was worthy of mentioning here, especially since it's been awhile since I posted. The May 2003 issue of Honolulu Magazine has rated 256 public schools in Hawai`i based on surveys and Hawai`i DOE results.

Hunger Pangs

It's been a while since I've been home and I'm craving some manapua. I'm sure there are many new manapua shops around and I'm wondering what your favorite manapua shop is.

For the record, my fave is Char Hung Sut. They also have my favorite chow fun and pork hash.

Local People Doing Local Things

FILM SCREENING:
Date: May 10, Saturday
Time: 6:30 p.m. (show runs 7-9:30 p.m.)
Cost: $10
Location: Revealed after ticket is purchased.

Always setting out to blaze a trail for film-making in Hawaii, Vertov Industries (the independent film crew I work with) have created yet another film that is sure to become your new fiction favorite.

SCR 18 (Patriot Act)

I just did a Google News search for Hawaii Patriot Act; the first item on the list was the story from Hawaii News. The next was the Denver Post. I have searched the S-B and the Advertiser sites, and I find nothing about the passage of this resolution. Have I gone blind, or have our two major newspapers decided that our state legislature's decision not to comply with a major Federal statute is not newsworthy?

Help me out here, folks.

Dirty Laundry

News anchor Joe Moore's play Dirty Laundry (about a newsanchor having to deal with ethical issues in the face of the demand for ratings) is similar in plot and characters to a 1986 tv movie which starred Martin Sheen. Moore admits that he borrowed a 'twist' ending from the film (adapting it to Honolulu), but says his work is original. The Advertiser article has a helpful comparison of the similarities between the two works.

Without having seen either work, it sounds to me like Moore was mostly reworking traditional elements of the journalistic drama (commiserating over drinks, heated newsroom arguments with the news director, the clash between the experienced professional and the young pretty female newcomer). It's not exactly original, but it isn't necessarily theft either.

The Large Island

I recently had an ongoing discussion with a friend about the "correct" way to refer to that rather large inhabitated island to the east of Maui.

Is it the Big Island? Hawai'i?