Beach Toys

A child's beach toys left unattended while he plays in the water.

Naupaka

The naupaka plant is commonly found around the coastline of Hawai‘i, as well as other parts of the Pacific region. One feature is the half-flowers. There are two types of naupaka in Hawai‘i, the naupaka kai (grows near the ocean) and naupaka kahakai (grows in mountainous areas)

There is an ancient Hawaiian legend that the because of the half-flowers, the naupaka kai and the naupaka kahakai were two lovers that were separated, and that when brought together, they form one whole flower.

Wings Of Gold

The local Nieman Marcus department store has hundreds of butterflies made of bird feathers that are strung from the ceiling where the escalators are. Recently, they changed from the white butterflies to gold.

Ready For Some Football, Eh?

The 2008 Canadian Football League regular season gets underway this week. My favorite team, the BC (British Columbia) Lions, begins their '08 campaign for the Grey Cup on the road against Western Division rival Calgary Stampeders tonight. Yes, that's my mini-helmet and my t-shirt.

How did I get to like the CFL? Back in '82, the NFL had a labor dispute, and ESPN had the brains to put CFL games to stem the loss of football on TV. Since that time, I got hooked. In fact, I enjoy the CFL more than the NFL, due to the speed of the Canadian product, and watch it whenever I can. And yes, I have been to a CFL game, a Lions one in fact, and enjoyed it all the more.

Go Lions!

Orange Moonset

The moon sets as the dawn sky turns orange as the sun rises behind me.

Rocks In Waves

The irresistable force meets the immovable objects. Waves pound against these rocks at an O‘ahu beach.

Eye In The Sky

One of the coolest video gadgets around is the Fly Cam. Riding on a series of wires, the camera can zip along a path at speeds up to 100mph, and can swivel 360° horizontally, and 180° vertically.

The next time you're watching a sporting event, concert, or special event with moving high perspective, it might be a Fly Cam.

Canoes

One of the big summer activities in Hawai‘i are outrigger canoe races ... Ke‘ehi Lagoon hosts some of the races during summer weekends.

Our New Addition?

We saw these Dachsund puppies at a local pet store, and being both suckers for a doxie, we had to go look, and carry one of the four pups they had for sale. They were so cute. In fact, we had to go back to get a photo of us with one of the four.

No, we did not buy any of the puppies.

Paper Shredder

World-renowned aerobatic pilot Patty Wagstaff shreds some paper streamers with the prop blades of the Extra 300 she's flying. Wagstaff performed at the 2007 Blues On The Bay air show as the headlining aerobatic pilot, ahead of the US Navy's Blue Angels.

Wagstaff actually had to use Tim Weber's Extra 300, because she had a technical issue with her Extra 300.

Bridge

A macro shot of my guitar's Floyd Rose Original Locking Tremolo® bridge.

Jumbotron?

If you've been to any stadium, you've probably seen a large video screen that shows the replays. Sony's Jumbotron is one of the more common ones. In fact, Sony even makes a "portable" model which is transported in modules (each one being about five by seven feet, and weighing a couple hundred pounds). The total screen was five modules high by seven modules wide, or 25 feet by 35 feet once it was assmebled.

During the Na Lei Aloha Foundation's Lantern Floating this past Memorial Day, two High Definition Jumbotrons were assembled to show the event for those in attendance.

Today's photo is of some of the thousands of light emitting diodes (LEDs) that make up each module. No, I wasn't about to count how many LEDs were in each module ... I'm just guessing.

Opihi

Opihi are a type of limpets that live on shoreline rocks around Hawai‘i, and are a delicacy in Hawaiian cuisine. These were found on a beach on the west side of O‘ahu.

Udom Blue Angel

Udom Blue Angel is the type of orchid that Kathy bought me a couple of weeks ago. In bright sunlight, blue hues can be seen on the petals.

Happy Father's Day!

Wishing all the dads out there ... Happy Father's Day!

Flag Day

"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

June 14th is the day we honor our "Stars & Stripes".

Push Back

This Shenzhen Airlines Boeing 737-800W, B-5379, is being pushed out of its parking stand after overnighting at HNL. B-5379 is a brand new airliner being delivered to Shenzhen Airlines (Shenzhen, Guangdong, China) from the Boeing Commercial Aircraft facilities at Boeing Field (BFI), in Seattle, WA.

Due to the range of the aircraft, about 3,000 miles, 737 delivery flights to Asia usually transit through HNL, then island hop across the western Pacific Ocean toward their new home. Usually, there are several pilots and staff that travel with the new airliner.

B-5379 is getting ready to depart for Majuro (Marshall Islands) on its next leg across the Pacific as "Shenzhen Air 5379" or CSZ5379. The guy on the left is communicating with the flight crew and the driver of the push tractor.

Little Green Orchids

Little green orchids from the orchids section at Foster Botanical Gardens.

King Kamehameha Day

June 11th is the day we in Hawai‘i honor King Kamehameha I. Today's photo was from last year's dressing of the statue.

Among The Palms

A couple embraces among the palm trees that line Kahala Beach, while a para-surfer cathes some waves and air in the background.

Dos Aguas

I just picked up my main camera from repair, and was playing around with it while Kathy & I sat in a Barnes & Noble browsing magazines and having our coffee fix.

Junior Fishermen

These boys try out hand line fishing at Kewalo Park one afternoon.

Uki Uki

The uki uki is a native Hawaiian lily that is another popular flower found in landscaping ... it comes in white, or in shades of blue, lavender, and purple.

Cannonball Flowers

These unusual looking flowers belong to the cannonball tree. Why you ask? There are fruits that look like cannonballs that will fall from the tree, which tends to grow to heights around 30 feet. There was a warning sign denoting the falling object hazard of these fruits, which could cause severe injury. There were a number of fallen fruit on the ground, and are about the size of a small cannonball. The flowers themselves are quite interesting to look at.

Tiare

The tiare, or theTahitian gardenia, is another commonly found flower in Hawai‘i. It's a favorite of girls (or women) who wear a flower above their ear to denote whether they are single (right side) or spoken for (left side).

The tiare can also be seen on the tail of Air Tahiti Nui's airliners

Bouganvillea

One of the most ubiquitous non-native flowers around Hawai‘i is the bouganvillea. It comes in many different colors, and the shrubs can grow quite huge in the wild, while shrubs can be even kept in a fairly large pot as well.

Fuzzy

I don't know the name of these flowers ... but if you look closely, there are fine hairs on the petals.

Waterlilies

A pair of waterlilies taken the Hawai‘i Convention Center.

Lehua

This month's theme week is "Non-Orchids", flower photos ... and not one of them this week, are orchids.

One of the native flowers of Hawai‘i is the Lehua. I got this photo on the grounds of Kawai‘ahao Church, before I videotaped a Japanese tourist wedding.

Congratulations Tiff!

It's hard to believe how fast time has gone by ... my daughter Tiffany graduates from high school today, and takes her first steps into adulthood.

Today's photo was actually taken a couple of years ago when I was helping Tiff and her sister Chel do their homework at a Starbucks.

Congratulations Tiff! And congratulations to all the other graduates of the class of 2008!

Winglet Over Southern California

Returning home to Honolulu from John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, CA aboard an Aloha Airlines 737-700W, N751AL ("‘Aukele"). It was one of those days where the winds were blowing toward the ocean from the surrounding mountains. So our departure path took us toward the Santa Ana Mountains, then had to make a 180° right turn to head back to Hawai‘i. Down below is the Orange Country coastline, right before we begin the journey over the Pacific.

This plane I was on, was recently leased to Sun Country Airlines from the leasing company that had originally leased to to Aloha.

Twisting Water

Water from a waterfall twists away from the sheet before hitting the pond.

Spotted Orchids

I found these spotted orchids at Foster Botanical Gardens ...

Is This Hawai‘i?!?

With the recent vog attacks that have been plaguing the Hawaiian Islands, I thought this shot reminded me of a smoggy day in L.A., and the palm trees reminded me of the type that line the street of outlet malls in southern California. The vog was so bad this day, that the Wai‘anae Mountain Range can barely be seen.

Memorial Day

Today is the day we honor our fallen veterans, who paid the ultimate sacrifice to keep us and our country free. They gave their lives in defense our rights and freedoms given to us by our founding fathers, and the laws of God.

Today's photo is of three US Air Force Lockheed/Martin F-16C "Fighting Falcons" in the missing man formation to honor their fallen comrades. The fourth F-16C, the second from left, made an upward break toward the heavens before passing over the show site.

Surfing Couple

This couple spent the afternoon catching waves in front of Kewalo Park. They are paddling out to catch the first set of waves.

Flowers In Cup

Kathy got this cup of flowers as a gift for Teacher's Appreciation Week.

Nose View

The head-on view of a Boeing 737-700 Business Jet (BBJ) while its owners play around in Hawai‘i.

After 2005, all of the new Boeing 737s built had the eyebrow cockpit windows eliminated to reduce construction and maintenance costs. I thought, cosmetically, that the eyebrows gave the face an expression, but with modern navigation technology, they really have no use for them.

Railings

The railings of a footbridge at the entrance of Kahala Beach Park, facing out toward the ocean.

Breaking Wave

This little wave is milliseconds from crashing into this rock.

Stadium Silouhette

The sun rises behind the Ma‘uka (mountain-side) and ‘Ewa (leeward-side) sections of Aloha Stadium at the beginning of the Great Aloha Run.

Looking For Miss Naughty

Kathy & I saw these t-shirts at a store in the Ala Moana Shopping Center one evening, and had a laugh talking in British accents asking her "Are you Miss Naughty?" ... "Yes, I'm Miss Naughty." We found it so amusing that we had to go back and get a photo of us with the t-shirts ...

By the way ... Kathy's a good girl!

White Orchids & Blue Sky

Some of my orchids against a blue sky background ...

Armed Forces Day

Paying tribute to those serving our country in our armed forces ... thank you for defending our freedoms!

Today's photo is of a US Navy Sikorsky SH-60B of HSL-37 (Helicopter Anti-submarine - Light) "Easyriders", which is based at MCAF Kane‘ohe Bay. 162348 is the squadron commander's helicopter, hence the colorful tail markings. The "Easyriders" were formerly based at NAS Barbers Point (now closed, and known as the Kalaeloa Airport) before moving to "K-Bay" a few years ago. Their mission is to provide air support against submarine threats to a carrier or battleship group when traversing the oceans.

Skyline Rainbow

Gotta love those liquid sunshine mornings ... where the sunlight and rain mix to form these rainbows ... with the downtown skyline in the background.

Boogie Boarder

This body boarder catches a wave off of Magic Island during a mid-summer south swell.

Moku ‘O Loe

Moku ‘O Loe, or Coconut Island sits in the middle of Kane‘ohe Bay on O‘ahu's windward coast. It houses the Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology, which is part of the University of Hawai‘i.

I got this photo of Moku ‘O Loe from a roadside lookout of Interstate H3, and coverted it to black & white.

The classic TV series "Gilligan's Island" used a shot Moku ‘O Loe as the island they were shipwrecked on for their scene breaks, and the opening and closing credits.

Bamboo

The bamboo grove inside the courtyard of the University of Hawai‘i's Art Building.

Night Departure

An evening inter-island flight departs from HNL's Runway 8L heading south, destined for either Maui or the Big Island, with Honolulu Harbor in the foreground.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all the moms ...

Happy Mother's Day!