Tag Archives: Life

Ars Gratia Artis

Yesterday while biding my time before a board meeting I decided to stop by one of my favorite gallery-tiques (<–coined just now for gallery/boutiques) called hi (shortform for “human imagination”). Every First Friday, creative director and founder of hi, Rhandy Tambio … Continue reading

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We are The Descendants

I’m writing this personal assessment of Alexander Payne’s “The Descendants” knowing that I will evoke the same brand of local provincialism that I’ve eschewed upon my return home to Honolulu after a stint on the East Coast. In the summer … Continue reading

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Young expatriates hold key to building a better Hawaii

Below is an article graciously written by David Shapiro, a sharp journalist at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.  This all came about because I emailed Mr. Shapiro to get his thoughts on the Brain Drain after having read one of his quips … Continue reading

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Stemming the Brain Drain through Local Commitment

Through a chance meeting at a local style send-off for a mutual friend returning to New York City, I met Professor Christine R. Yano of the Department of Anthropology at UH-Manoa.  I shared my story as a kama’aina fresh back … Continue reading

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Saving the Ham for Portuguese Bean Soup

“I know this sounds lame but do you have traditional Hawaiian food at Thanksgiving?” wrote a New York buddy of mine in a text message. “What?” I replied back. I knew what he meant. I chuckled. “You know…like the pork … Continue reading

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Where Kakimochi is Mandatory

We had movie night at my parents’ house recently. Everyone gathered in front of the telly and prepared to watch (or re-watch) “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” I had read this short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald but I … Continue reading

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You can’t ‘shush’ people in the ‘hood

It’s true. The only reason why I’m awake right now is because my neighbors are playing the hottest hits in da club. Normally, I wouldn’t be home to ecoute such traumatic reggaeton but I’ve had to curtail my downtown nightlife … Continue reading

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Dalai Lama “Renaissance” Soundtrack

There he was at the front of the Vector Arena in Auckland, New Zealand. A small figure draped in marigold and burnished cardamom colored swaths of fabric. He laughed a bit before putting on a visor to shade his eyes, … Continue reading

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Small islands

If you have friends from Hawaii, you may have heard them mention the “Coconut Wireless” or say “The island is really small.” These comments refer to the not-so-erroneous stereotype that all Hawaiians know each other. On Oahu, a patch of … Continue reading

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Not Quite Thom Yorke’s "Creep"

Creeps. They’re everywhere in NYC. One can expect to encounter a creep on the subway around 3:30AM. Or during happy hour down at that dirty dive you go to because you saw it on myopenbar.com. But at the office around … Continue reading

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