Today and the Year of

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Saturday Upshifting

*toe shifter.



What you do is rest your heel on the motorbike's foot peg and in the same motion step down on the toe shifter to klunk the transmission into first gear. That's done with the sole of the shoe. However to up-shift, because you don't want to be riding around all day at 5mph, you finagle your toe "under" the toe shifter and lift up on the toe shifter.



Therein lies the rub. As the photo attests, work shoes don't fair well used as riding shoes. After a few thousand up-shifts, the toe shifter has gashed the leather hide layered over the steel toe. The question is whether I should pay to have the tear in the leather stitched up, or just buy a brand new pair of work shoes. It needs a resole also. But oh da comfortable.



I bought this neoprene "sock" today specifically designed to slip over a motobike's toe shifter. It's similar to a body glove that skin divers wear.

Sarah Palin Opproved This Message

Yesterday's Post

Happy Aloha Friday .... 11:27 pm, as it is. The reason that yesterday's post was left unfinished [more later] was dat I forgot all about it. I also have a bridge to sell you. Plus, a beleaguer the point. Would you direct your attention to the empty tin can of spaghetti sauce in the photo above. Usually when you open the lid of a can of canned goods, there's something in there. Yesterday there wasn't, metaphorically speaking.

(more later)

Toyota Recall

Some experts are claiming that the culprit behind the problems that Toyota has been experiencing with their gas pedals and brakes is electro-magnetic interference upon the computer chips and software that control these devices. It makes me wonder why then aren't other devices effected as well like rolling down windows and shutting off driving lights by the same stray electronic interferences. They're all controlled electronically somewhere down the line. Also, why wouldn't there be an onboard indicator whose only function is to detect the presence of rouge electro-magnetic interference. Once electro-magnetic interference is detected the watchdog indicator would signal the computer chips to over ride standard electronic operations and revert to a safe mode.

They built cars today with so much electronics controlling everything under the hood that it's not possible anymore to fix your own car without having to buy expensive electronic equipment whereas a simple wrench and a can of beer would make do in the past. At least to me, there's a lot of mystery surrounding the electronic controls in modern cars. Specifically, as to how well they were adapted to the conditions that a vehicle must endure from everyday driving like vibrations and temperature extremes. And the mental state of these miniature black boxes when they do stop working for whatever reasons. For example, I've done my own wiring on my motorbikes which often involves splicing in a relay onto the wires. There are equivalent electronic relays available from the automotive industry, however I always use a tried and true mechanical relay. If an electronic relay burns out it would stop working in the "on" state and whatever device it was relaying electricity to would stay on. Whereas, a mechanical relay would usually expire in an "off" state such that the specific device that the mechanical relay is wired to would stop getting electricity and cease operating without having to shift into neutral.

Walk Signs

I was cleaning out my photo files and I came across this photo that I took last month. The inspiration behind this particular photo was at that moment I had realized that count-down walk signs had been installed at just about every intersection around Waikiki without me being aware of it. Nothing of significance beyond dat. Did you get to see those news clips of Sarah Palin reading notes that she had pre-written on the palm of her hand while in the middle of her speech this weekend at the Tea Party convention? I believe she was denouncing Obama for over-relying on the teleprompter when he gave his speeches. Betcha. Who else would do a thing like dis but Sarah Palin. It's tantamount to a political on-side kick that didn't work. Excuse me dear reader, while I check my own palm. From now on, if I should run across ideas worth blogging about throughout my day, I'll be sure to scribble them down on my palm. Then, when I'm at the keyboards, I won't ever again forget what it was that I was trying to remember.

This Saturday

So much for Snowmageddon, the blizzard hitting the mid-atlantic states. Who dat, whoo, or something of that nature. Ain't a thing I can do about it. For the record, I've never even been in snow myself. Tomorrow the Super Bowl.  Be watching for the Tiger Woods' tv advertisement in which he makes an apology to his pupule wife.



Mostly you see people riding their rinky dinky mopeds. This is a pleasant change of scenery. Especially since newer mopeds like these don't produce loud annoying sounds from their exhaust pipes. Also, when I'm on my motorbike riding behind a moped, I cannot begin to tell you how much unburned fuel is emitted from the older model mopeds just from the smell of things. Essentially raw pollution. Imagine the situation in countries where mopeds are the vehicle of choice. Something about 2-stroke engines won't be allowed on brand new mopeds in the US after this year. I think it was this year. Mopeds will be required to have more energy efficient and quieter 4-stroke engines.



If you look closely, there are two parakeets in the picture. When I asked permission from the sidewalk vender to take their photo, she reluctantly agreed. She doesn't have any idea who the heck I am. Does she? But dear reader, you do. Me, the world renowned photographer. I wasn't going bite the parakeets or talk to them. At any rate, apparently they are her biggest salesmen on the floor.



I simply can't say enough about these people.



Nice shady spot on the grassed-in area on the beach.



I've been meaning to mention that this may be the best internet cafe in Waikiki. It's located in a sorta-satellite post office in the International Market Place in the middle of everything. The odds are that you wouldn't find it unless you knew of it. It's on the second floor above the tourist shops.



The hourly rates are reasonable and their chairs are plush.



As I was saying, the internet cafe is located on the second floor. Kitty corner and upstairs from the Waikiki retail outlet of Hank's Haute chicago-style hot dogs, which you can see through the window.



You walk up the stairs shown in the right of the photo to get there. End of tour. 



P.S., the home stretch on Waikiki's glorious Ala Wai canal. Actually, a moat excavated to keep the tourists from wreaking havoc on da rest of Honolulu.

Lost and Found Department

I didn't stroll down to the beach tonight to take in the festivities of the season premier of Lost with all of the show's stars making a live appearance to kick off the final season of the tv series. Some aficionados of Lost flew in to Hawaii just for the occasion. On the other hand, I live only a few blocks away from the extravaganza. Oh, well. That's an "oh, well," as in, I don't watch network tv so what's all's the excitement surrounding the Lost phenomena? In that sense, why take up a seat in an already packed house. And deprive a true fan of Lost from their big moment. People starting arriving hours earlier in the morning to stake out a spot on the sand in front of the silver screen set up on the beach. Am I missing something? Not meaning, material to blog about. But rather the true meaning of life : )

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The other day I was riding at the far end of the Ala Wai Blvd. and traffic was being diverted onto a single lane because they were paving the adjacent lanes. It's about a hundred-yard long section that represents the finish line of the repaving work they've been doing on the one-way Ala Wai Blvd. This marks the culmination of the second phase. The first phase in 2007 seemed like it took forever and a day. Musta been only 2-hours later that I passed the same spot and traffic was already allowed on top of the fresh asphalt. I'm not sure if the asphalt had sufficient time to set up. The other alternative would be to let the asphalt set up overnight, but as I was saying, it's only a hundred-yard section as far as inconvenience for drivers. It would seem that heavy weight trucks would imprint their tracks into the freshly minted pavement. And it's not like they repave the Ala Wai Blvd. on a yearly basis. This latest resurfacing or repavement, whichever, will have to last us years before Ala Wai Blvd. works its way back to the top of the schedule.

Demotivation or Plain Immaturity?

State of the Union, etc.

I watched the president's speech twice. It just happened to be rerun-ed on the station that I was watching at the moment. I did though read through the official transcript. Obama musta gone off-script because the particular quote that I was searching for wasn't there on the official transcript .... (paraphrasing) "If you have a better idea, bring it up. Bring it up and I'll have a look at it." I think the president meant it, too. With this year's State of the Union address, I related with Obama as being a local boy, instead of his capacity as the President of the US, the most powerful person on the planet. Last year he was the President, this year, he was more Barry. Still overall the best orator that ever held the office. He seems to genuinely care about da people. While Bush was more "I, da man," deploying the military off to Iraq as if he were playing with plastic boats in the bathtub.

Ironically, the National Republican Party is in Honolulu, Obama's hometown, holding their winter meeting with Republican leaders from all 50 states here to devise national strategy. They must think there's something in the water. I have just the magic water for them. Fresh from the Ala Wai canal. Anyways, Obama still comes off as a bit naive with his illusion or even disillusion of bi-partisanship. The Republicans will always vote against Obama's bills, solely on the basis that he's a Democrat. Obama has been in office for a year already, and perhaps the reality is beginning to sink in. I don't count myself as either a Republican or Democrat insofar as national elections, but the Republicans aren't ever gonna cooperate with a Democrat president and abandon their goal of scuttling the presidency.

Today, Just a Tinge of Vog

I'll venture a guess that the vog component in today's air fell in the range of 5-ppm or lower, down from yesterday's horrendous 5-billion ppm's. In relative terms, mind you. I do know that before the advent of weather reports and Doppler satellites, people predicted the local weather by sticking their heads out the window to gather up the necessary meteorological data. Thereupon the high council would convene and debate just how many goats to slaughter to forestall the monsoon. Just being humorous. In the top and second photo, you'll notice that you're able to make out the fairways on the Ala Wai golf course, reputed to be the busiest municipal golf course in the US. Recently they cleared away the mangroves overgrowing the banks on the golf course shore of the Ala Wai canal so you're now able to view the fairways from ground level when you're taking a stroll or driving by on the Waikiki side of the canal.

Voggy Day

The Fountain of Friday's Post

Happy Aloha Friday, as always. This is where I found myself kicking back after taking a spin out to Makakilo and having just arrived back to Kapiolani Park from whence I earlier embarked to circumvent the globe. Metaphorically speaking, of course. The circumventing the globe part. At any rate, there aren't many bona fide water fountains in Honolulu. Definitely not other fountains around town worth taking a photo of. With the exception of water main breaks, LOL.

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Ala Wai Blvd has been a parking lot due to a broken water main. And sound travels up. For example, to my lanai. For the past 4-hours.

Haiti Band-Aid

By most accounts, emergency medical supplies aren't getting to the earthquake victims even eight-days after the earthquake. Medical supplies have been flown into Haiti but they sit uncrated at the airport. 

Wednesday's Gondola

No doubt, the Ala Wai canal's version of the Salahi's, the couple who crashed the White House reception. As far as I know, the Ala Wai canal is off-limits to motorized watercrafts and has been off-limits for a while now. Otherwise you'd see and hear an armada of jet skis, etc., plying their sport on the waterway to the dismay of the adjacent neighborhood. It might not be the case for long, though. That is, the State is so hard up for revenue, that they might just allow motorized access to the municipal canal for a fee to offset our $1.2 billion budget deficit. To be fair to our couple, they were probably unawares of the long standing maritime rule and were simply enjoying their time together oblivious to woeful rate of the nation's foreclosures, bankruptcies, Sarah Palin, and ignorance is so bliss if not convenient. Whoops, left out health care reform.

The couple's saving grace was that the outboard motor that powered their dingy was whisper quiet. So while the boat's wake might have disturbed the talapias in our city's unofficial talapia wildlife refuge, if you didn't happen to be looking down on them from the lanai (balcony), you wouldn't have heard or known that they had passed by at all. For all anybody knows, their second boat might be a luxury yacht docked at the yacht harbor situated at the ocean outlet of the Ala Wai canal. Speaking of too loud noise, there's a new law in the works that will disallow tv stations from raising the volume during commercial breaks. It might be only me, but in anticipation of the new telecommunication edict, commercials have been only sounding noticeably louder than usual. I barely watch network tv at all, but instead, CNN or Fox News Network. I dunno what's the situation on other tv stations.

Haiti Scams

Gypsum crystals up to 11 metres long

Hard to believe but this photo isn't doctored.  These "mega-crystals were found a decade ago in caves next to the Naica mine near Chihuahua, Mexico." via New Scientist