Pipes Away

(more later)

New Pipes

FedEx delivered my motorbike exhaust pipes at 8pm tonight. A little too late to attach them to the bike. Tomorrow, perhaps. As I was saying in an earlier post, the new pipes will be a lot louder to better alert vehicles that I'm in their proximity, and not to merge erratically into my lane. "Loud pipes, saves lives," is the slogan. Wouldn't place all my bets on that alone though. However, just suppose that a day or two from now, someone driving in the very next lane was able to hear my new pipes an instant before he would have otherwise merged blindly into my lane. But driver didn't. It sure would save me wear and tear on my brake pads from screeching to an emergency stop.

Honolulu Festival Parade

Here's some pics from tonight's Honolulu Festival Parade in Waikiki which culminates the annual Friday-to-Sunday Honolulu Festival, itself. "The Honolulu Festival is Hawaii's premier cultural event, promoting understanding, economic cooperation and ethnic harmony between the people of Hawaii and the Pacific Rim region."

Sales Flyers

This post disappeared for a 24-hours period because I hit the "save now" button on my editor page after I added something to it. Apparently, hitting the "save now" button on an entry that has already been posted ("published") yanks the previously published portion of the post from view in the same motion. Operator error. I gather that this is similar to the mental process that leads to forgetting items on your to do list, which I'll leave the expounding and extrapolating on the topic to your own I know just what you mean. Or perhaps, you don't and WTF is he talking about. At any rate, each and every week Longs Drugs bulk mails the sales flyers in the photo above to residents islandwide and this week hasn't been the exception. I still don't understand why it is that Longs doesn't mass email the same sales bulletin to residents who have inboxes. Office depot does just that and the digital copy duplicates the paper version of their weekly sales pamphlet found in Office Depot stores, and they don't incur postage on emails. But it must work for Longs, otherwise they just wouldn't be doing it, with all the trees for paper that they're personally responsible for toppling in the Brazilian rain forest. Sales at Longs Drugs starts on Sundays. In that sense, it's wiser to not buy an item at Longs on Saturday because if what you purchased on Saturday is on sale the following day on Sunday, you'd be a day late and a dollar short. Just couldn't resist that. Pundit.

(more later)

James Sikes and his accelerated 2008 Toyota Prius

You think there's something fishy with the Sikes' sudden acceleration story while he was driving his Prius? Toyota has already been warning drivers of their cars for weeks to shift into neutral if their gas pedals get stuck, and just about every news story reporting sudden acceleration tragedies have been followed up with an advisory to shift into neutral in the event of a similar emergency. Yet, for reasons of his own, Sikes refused to do just that, even after both the 911 operator that answered his emergency call, and the dispatched California Highway Patrol officer driving in the next lane instructed him to do so. The CHP officer even used a megaphone. By his own account, Sikes had the presence of mind to reach down and grab the stuck gas pedal and try to pry it up with his free hand even as his car was wildly accelerating to speeds reaching 94 mph. Perhaps, there's more to the story, and perhaps there ain't.

Sikes, a real estate agent, said he was passing another car when the accelerator stuck and eventually reached 94 mph.

During the two 911 calls, Sikes ignored many of the dispatcher's questions, saying later that he had to put his phone on the seat to keep his hands on the wheel.

Leighann Parks, a 24-year-old dispatcher, repeatedly told him to throw the car into neutral but got no answers.

"He was very emotional, you could tell on the line he was panicked," Parks told reporters outside the CHP's El Cajon office. "I could only imagine being in his shoes and being that stressed."

Officer Neibert told Sikes after the CHP caught up with him to shift to neutral but the driver shook his head no. Sikes told reporters he didn't go into neutral because he worried the car would flip.

By ELLIOT SPAGAT (AP)

Tuesday's Pipes

A female member of the same motorbike forum I'm into on the Internet posted the above photo of her new exhaust pipes that she installed on her bike. I looked, I saw, and I went buy the same kind exhaust pipes online which the retailer was offering for a $60 discount plus free shipping. Mind you, the new pipes are not bling, it's in the interest of safety. My Shadow 600 is quiet. Nice for the neighbors. Bad for my own safety. It's difficult for drivers to see the thin profile of an approaching motorbike from the front. As a safety measure, loud pipes makes a motorbike more conspicuous.

Have no idea how brick-and-mortar stores will be able to survive with the deals being offered today on the Web for the same product. Just between you and me and the pixels on my monitor screen, I honestly don't really care. The only advantage real life stores have going for them over the virtual marketplace is the personal touch. Being that the concept of "service" has generally diminished into a troublesome after thought, I'll take my money elsewhere whenever opportunity offers me a better deal a click away of which there are many. Voodoo economics? Sticking needles into a doll or effigy, except with clicks in place of needles?

Nash done as UH basketball coach

Are they serious? The state just imposed parking fees at the Pali Lookout this past Friday with negative fanfare. Then two days later, the university fires Nash at the cost of $240,000 that he is due for the incompleted final season under the terms of his contract, all the while, the state is broke ass and the professors, themselves, at UH have agreed to pay cuts. In all likelihood, the replacement basketball coach will probably make at least the same $240,000. Next year, then, we're talking about almost a half million in total dollars to pay for the head basketball coach's salary at the university factoring in Nash's severance payout. This amounts to the basketball equivalent of double-dribbling, economically speaking.

True, Nash had a shabby 10-20 season with a 34-56 overall record during his tenure. While this would reasonably call for coach Nash's firing in normal times, the last I checked, we're still in the midst of a recession far off from the sound of the final buzzer, as of such, the state does not have the luxury of replacing a poorly performing copying machine in an office building, much less, even entertaining the notion of ejecting a state employee whom is compensated by the tune of $240,000. To begin with, the lopsided severance terms of practically all of the coaches' contracts at UH are ridiculous. Also, I highly doubt that any new coach could turnaround UH's basketball team's dismal win-lost record during a single season or remotely put UH on the basketball map, so retaining Nash for the final year of his contract should have been a non-brainer.

Remarks by the President on Health Insurance Reform

Well, it is great to be back here in the Keystone State. It's even better to be out of Washington, D.C. (Laughter.) First of all, the people of D.C. are wonderful. They're nice people, they're good people, love the city, the monuments, everything. But when you’re in Washington, folks respond to every issue, every decision, every debate, no matter how important it is, with the same question: What does this mean for the next election? (Laughter.) What does it mean for your poll numbers? Is this good for the Democrats or good for the Republicans? Who won the news cycle?

Since about the only tv that I watch is cable news stations like Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, PBS, I thought that the following quip by Obama on political pundits was quite appropriate.

....And you’ve seen all the pundits pontificating and talking over each other on the cable shows, and they’re yelling and shouting. They can’t help themselves. That’s what they do.

Pundit's motto....under the preponderance of evidence to the contrary, immediately and vehemently deny and denounce your opponent's point by rattling off a salvo of b.s. to the degree that the institution of truth, itself, is held in contempt of kangaroo court. This will leave the opposing party tasked with explaining why they do not indeed owe you damages for undue stress and aggravation.

Sculling on the Ala Wai

All Along The Watchtower

It's been extra windy the past two days. And the wind begins to howl Mary. Jimmy Hendrix. Actually, Dylan wrote the lyrics and recorded the song himself, but Hendrix took it to a new level. At any rate, our windy days have been a fitting inauguration of the parking fees that the state started imposing yesterday on visitors (non-residents) taking in the view at the Pali Lookout. The Pali Lookout is famous for it's severe winds (see photo). The scenic view from the Pali (cliffs) is secondary. The state is so hard up for cash, that they'll tax anything that moves. 900,000 people visit the Pali Lookout per year. Some jump off the edge. Now, if you jump, you pay a tax in addition to the parking fees. If you decide to fly a kite, another surcharge.

The parking fee at the Pali Lookout will be wavered for locals. Only non-residents will be assessed the toll. This disparity has generated a fair amount of controversy. Again, the state is desperately in need of new means of revenue. Lyrics from tonight's theme song ....“There must be some kind of way out of here [recession], Said the joker to the thief [state].” More than a few have professed that the Pali fee is sending the wrong type of message to Hawaii's bread and butter visitors. For the same price of a 4-day stay in Hawaii nei, the same visitors could just as well spend a week aboard a cruise ship visiting Mexico, meals included. Meanwhile, if the driver of the car at the Pali happens to be local, the parking fee is wavered, irregardless of the occupants. Other than that, the Pali has now been officially designated a pay-per-view venue in perpetuity. That might be to the chagrin of an out-of-state visitor who happened to have been born and raised in Hawaii now living in another state, and can't present a Hawaii state picture ID to the gate keeper. There are fees to enter Diamond Head crater ($5 per vehicle or $1 per walk-in visitor), but not all of the monies goes to the upkeep of the Diamond Head Park itself. Of the $700,000 in fees collected in 2009 at Diamond Head, only $300,000 went to the park. That's less than 50 percent. Visitors already pay a compulsory 8.25 percent hotel room tax levied to undo their footprints on the aina dubbed the Transient Accommodation Tax. "Transient accommodation?" Also, at the Pali Lookout, generally people just park, peer over the railing, take picture and drive off to other points in their itinerary. No more than 20-minutes which would seem to be a perk inclusive in the overall transient accommodation package.

And Other Than That

Happy Aloha Friday night. Meanwhile, last night, I ordered $200 worth of energy bars online for my motorbikes. "$200" and you're entitled to free shipping, you see. Financial genius. Free shipping. Do the math. Financial genius added to free shipping and what do you got? I'll be remiss not to note that $200 was enough to buy two items. At any rate, the motorcycle parts company is always mailing me their latest catalogs. While I was busy ordering from the company's website, I just happened to glance down at their catalog which I had on my desk, and noticed on the front cover a $25 coupon waving at me. I typed in #176 and true to their word, they deducted $25 from my bill. Getting off topic, but have you ever bought a bottle of anything at the store, and forgot to remind the clerk to peel off the discount coupon on the aforementioned bottle? Then while you're unpacking your sundries at home you realized that the coupon is still on the same bottle and you hadn't received the discount that induced you to purchase the item to begin with.

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Hawaii under tsunami advisory

Hawaii is under a tsunami advisory after a massive magnitude-8.8 earthquake struck off the coast of Chile, generating at least one 10-foot wave in the South American region.

If a tsunami were to reach Hawaii's shores, the first waves would hit at about 11:19 a.m. Saturday, according to Pacific Tsunami Warning Center officials.

That's surfing the Internet.

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I moved my 2 motorbikes to higher ground at 5am this morning. Parked them on the street by what's da name of the church on Monsarrat Ave. It's beyond the outline of the inundation zone I think. At least it's at a higher elevation than our basement garage which was built below sea level and across the street from the Ala Wai canal. I passed the Waikiki zoo walking back to Waikiki and wondered just what's keeping the wild animals from swimming out of their cages should a tsunami actually hit. The zoo is a stone's throw from the beach and barely above sea level and all that. The thought of wild animals roaming the streets. Noah's Ark??

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The fucking local tv news...."please check your phone books for the inundation zone in your neighborhoods." Imbeciles. Alrighty, perhaps it's just early in the morning. They tv anchors are stressed and utter things that aren't the brightest. If you live a few hundred yards from the ocean on flat land, you'd don't need no stinking inundation zone map, would you?

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The tv news is showing long lines at gas stations around town. A tidal wave is not like a hurricane which shuts off power island-wide disabling gas pumps. So, dunno the urgency of the drivers. The beach camera is also showing some people surfing off Waikiki beach. Wouldn't want to put that off, you knows, real surfing. An ambulance just screamed by on the Ala Wai Blvd. Maybe somebody been get heart attack from all the commotion.

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I've been noticing that the municipal ducks are conspicuously missing from the Ala Wai canal this morning. Instinct? Not even a single quake to be heard. The Ala Wai canal is a tidal pool and ebbs and flows with the ambient sea level. There are a lot of tourists staying on beach front that will be having an experience to remember if a high enough tidal surge does materialize. Tahiti had a 6-feet wave so far. I entertained the thought of renting one hotel room right on the ocean to record the force majeure. But, eh, too expensive. They'll probably jack up the rates. Btw, hotel guests are safe where they're at. Conventional strategy is that you evade a tsunami by high tailing vertically. Climb up the nearest coconut tree. Guests get moved to a higher floor. Waikiki hotels are supposedly built on concrete stilts to allow a tidal surge to pass underneath. Meanwhile I have no idea what the itinerary is for arriving visitors. Earlier this morning I thought of evacuating my two motorbikes to a hotel parking complex at least on the second floor level. The expense wasn't as much a problem as the prospect of not being able to ride the bikes out if the street became littered with debris.


This wahine sound asleep a few feet away from the Ala Wai canal, oblivious to it all. I don't have the heart to wake her up.

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I'm following the Hilo Bay cam, and the water in the bay appears to be receding. The first wave was suppose to hit Hilo at 11:05pm, but still no show. Hawaiian time. Uh-oh, the water is now surging in to complete the cycle, but nothing spectacular. Now the current recedes back again in the opposite direction which signifies the end of the surge. Does that mean the much feared first wave was a humongous 2-inches tall? A resounding thumbs down. In a good way, mind you.

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Forget it....

Obama's Health Care Summit Meeting

Untitled

Mayor's State of the City

In yesterday's State of the City address, da mayor decreed:

"The city must put employees on furlough two days a month saving the city 4.5 percent in payroll." (to address a $140 million budget shortfall)

Then in what seems like a direct contradiction, da mayor goes on to announce....

"plans to stimulate the economy by moving on 100 new construction projects, valued at $220 million, in the next six months."

The prospect of 100 new construction projects sprouting up around town is music to my ears because that' s my trade and the unemployment rate in the island's construction industry stands at a whopping 50 percent. Myself, I make more per hour working on my own then I would on a union job, but union work is steady and the net effect is earning thousands of dollar more for the same few month's period. Apparently though the new projects will be funded by furloughing city workers twice a month which means my gain will come at the expense of the city workers. It's tantamount to economic cannibalism. Some might term it crocodile tears, but no. Meanwhile, the mayor might be positioning the new projects to be eligible for Obama's federal stimulus money designated for public work projects, but if the gamble falls through, he'll be in deep kukai following through fiscally with his loaf of bread to the construction trades.

To begin with, no Honolulu mayor has ever been elected to governor even though that would seem like the logical progression being that 80 percent of the state's population reside within the boundaries of the City and County of Honolulu. Irregardless, just about every Honolulu mayor has tried to make the leap to governor as if it were their entitlement. That said, construction unions have always endorsed Hannemann in past political campaigns and that might have played a role in the way things were dished out at yesterday's State of the City especially in light that Mayor Hannemann plans to serve two-years of his four-year term than run for governor. That's not to say it's always been easy to support Hannemann mainly because Hannemann has displayed a penchant to run for every higher political office that he laid his eyes upon. 

Suspected bra thief arrested at Waikiki hotel

A 29-year-old man was arrested at a Waikiki hotel Monday morning after security guards reported finding drugs, drug paraphernalia and two stolen brassieres in the man's hotel room.

....security guards, who work at the hotel on Seaside Avenue, entered the man's room after receiving numerous noise complaints.

The guards reported finding illicit drugs on top of the dresser and a man sleeping on the bed.

The guards also found two bras on the floor next to the bed, both of which were identified as having been taken during a burglary from the hotel room next door,

....it was determined that the man had climbed over the balcony railing to the adjoining room and entered it through an unlocked sliding door.

Honolulu Advertiser

....the moral of the story is, don't be a bra theft, if you're into illicit drugs. That's not to say, that if you are not into illicit drugs, it's then perfectly alrighty to steal your neighbor's bras. Buy your own. Oh, yeah, forgot about reaction of the store clerks. Buy online, then, and request the seller gift wrap the moral contraband because it's obviously intended for somebody else.

Fashion Tuesday

I found these "jeep style army caps" online, which I'll be ordering later today. I've looked and looked for this style of caps in local stores, but it seems that the only variety that the stores stock on their racks are the baseball style caps. These Internet caps just happen to be inexpensive too. If the same caps came with a brand name logo embroidered on, or a designer graffiti printed on the them, the caps would retail for $25 or more, and you'd only end up wearing them with the brim pointed off to an angle and acknowledged as a rapper. That said, there's absolutely nothing wrong with wearing plain unadorned generic caps. Among other things, bum-bye no mo money to buy gasoline. As it's been said in Texas, all hat and no cattle. Stetson I surmise. You might have noticed that the cap above is purposely frayed to match your best pair of puka-puka pants.



The most prized fabric for a cap in terms of comfort is corduroy, but it's also difficult to find. The corduroy material on this particular cap isn't the familiar ribbed type of corduroy, but it'll do.

Hawaii sits at the top for federal earmarks

Hawaii is the top per capita state this year.... The vast majority of the $412.2 million for Hawaii came because [Hawaii senator] Inouye, now the chairman of the Senate *Appropriations* Committee, sponsored or co-sponsored the earmarks.

Honolulu Star-Bulletin

"$412.2 million?" .... sure doesn't sound like very much, does it. Especially in light that Obama is the President and CEO. Take for example the $787 Billion stimulus package Obama signed into law, or for that matter, the TARP bailout lavished upon the banks. By that metric, da $412.2 million Hawaii earmark seem a paltry sum in comparison. Actually, pork barrel earmarks amount to only 1 percent of the total federal budget, and since some of the same money would have been allocated to the individual states anyways, earmarks don't amount to much percentage wise. Don't get me wrong, if I stumbled upon a million dollars, not a billion, stashed in an abandoned federal building, I would.

Tea Party