Lunch Break

This couple takes their lunch break (Subway sandwiches and Starbucks coffees) on the back gate of a pickup truck in a parking lot.

Surf Shooter

This surf photographer watches the action at "Ala Moana Bowls" off of Magic Island Park, as a wave explodes against breakers.

Koki‘o Kea

Three white hibiscus flowers (Koki‘o Kea) in bloom at He‘eia Kea State Park.

Money Grab

This woman participated in a money grab sponsored by a local bank at the Made In Hawai‘i products expo a few weeks ago.  She had 30 seconds to stuff as much money as she could into the box on the outside of the booth, through a thin slot.  She won $50 for her efforts.

Pup & Cup

This pup found a cup full of water to drink, but some spilled out as he carried it.

Surfer Girl

This female surfer was one of those who braved the six-foot faced waves.

Trashed

This surfboard looks like it was the victim of a crushing wave.  As you can see the nose is severely dinged up, as well as the sides.  When I looked closely, the board had a few major cracks throughout its surface.

Cutback Spray

This surfer creates a large amount of spray as he cuts back on the top of this wave he's riding.

Tugboat In Channel

This tugboat, and another behind it, make their way through the Kewalo Boat Harbor channel which flanked on both sides by popular south shore surf breaks.  "Kewalos" is on the far side of the tug.  The surfer in the foreground is returning from his surf session.

Kewalos

Two surfers catch the same wave over at "Kewalos", which is across the Kewalo Boat Harbor channel.

Watching The Surfers

A father and son (lower right corner) watch the action at "Point Panic".  The bodysurfers take the left side of the break.

Bodysurfing

This month's theme week is "South Shore Swell".  In the beginning of August, there was a surf swell that hit O‘ahu's southern coast, in which  waves reached face heights of eight feet.  On the day I went to a surf spot called "Point Panic", wave faces reached six feet.  "Point Panic", in front of Kaka‘ako Park, got its name because of the short ride before reaching the rocky shoreline.

Todays' photo shows bodysurfer attacking the left break, with two others ducking out of the way.

Honohono Orchids

A couple of years ago, Kat's mom gave me a honohono orchid plant, but it took a while before it finally bore a few flowers.

Game On!

The 2010 University of Hawai‘i Warriors football season kicked off yesterday with their opener against the University of Southern California Trojans at Aloha Stadium.  The Trojans escaped with a 49-36 victory over the Warriors.  Today's photo shows the Warriors players tunnel shortly before they entered the field from my camera platform, and we were about to go live.

Aloha ‘Oe Eagles

The Hawai‘i Air National Guard's 199th Fighter Squadron bid a fond farewell to the McDonnell-Douglas F-15C Eagle yesterday at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.  The Eagle is being replaced by the Lockheed-Martin F-22A Raptor.  78-0509 is seen above departing the Reef Runway for Nellis Air Force Base, NV.

Bathroom Sink

I was walking through a Home Depot bathroom department, and came across a display of glass bathroom vanity sinks.  Today's photo is a close-up of one of the designs I took with my cell phone.

Bishop Street

Bishop Street is one downtown Honolulu's main thoroughfares.  It was used in the film "Don Juan DeMarco", and was supposed to be New York City, but one of the city buses was in the background, and gave it away.

South Shore Swell

In the beginning of the month, a south shore surf swell hit the southern coast of O‘ahu.  This is a little spot where surfers go out to hit the break at a favorite spot called "Bowls", on the left of the mouth of the Ala Wai Boat Harbor.

Team Impact

Team Impact was invited to perform for five nights, two weeks ago at New Hope Leeward.  They performed several feats of strength, as well as offer their testimony, and their walk with Christ.  Among their feats, they blew up hot water bottles, ripped phone books, bent steel bars, and broke baseball bats.

In today's photo, Team Impact member Siolo Tauafea (from Honolulu) breaks this stack of 14 concrete tiles with his bare hand.

Watching The Bride And Groom

Bridesmaids from Kirk & Merilyn's wedding wait while the couple is photographed before the wedding ceremony.

Orchid Railing

In celebration of the arrival of its first Airbus A330-200, Hawaiian Air held a blessing ceremony for the new addition to their fleet. The stairs leading up the main entry was door were draped with orchid lei.

Old Staples

Old, rusty staples left behind from old sign postings, in a wood utility pole ...

Injured Player

During this past Saturday's Interleague High School game between the Wai‘anae Seariders and Saint Louis Crusaders, Seariders wide receiver Niko Camacho (#87, on the stretcher) was knocked unconscious by a member of the Crusaders return team while Camacho was chasing down the Crusaders punt returner. The replay showed helmet to helmet contact to the side of Camacho's head, and he crumpled to the ground after the hit. No penalty was called.

From my field camera angle, I did not see the collision, since I was focussed on the returner. The game, only in the opening few minutes, was delayed almost 30 minutes as an ambulance was called to take Camacho to a hospital. Fortunately, he did show movement in his legs and hands, while the firefighters, paramedics, and Wai‘anae training staff secured him to a backboard. They also cut away his jersey, and removed the face mask from his helmet. Camacho's condition was not known after both games were finished. To make things worse, the Crusaders trounced the Seariders, 42-3.

In my seven seasons on the Aloha Stadium video crew, this was the fourth time I've witnessed a football player carted off in an ambulance. Hopefully, Camacho will make a full recovery, and return to playing football.

Surf's Up!

Last week, another south swell hit the south shore of O‘ahu with wave faces as high as six feet. Though not as big as the 15-feet-plus winter north shore swells, the south swells draws many surfers. Point Panic, in front of Kaka‘ako Park, is a top surf spot which also attracts body surfers and body boarders as well.

Today would have been Duke Kahanamoku's 120th birthday. He was instrumental in bringing surfing to the rest of the world.

GIant Flower

The flower of the monstera deliciosa plant measures over eight inches in height. It's a common landscape plant, and there are quite a bit where we live.

Today's photo shows one of the flowers that bloomed in front of our townhouse.

Canoes & Waves

Canoes and waves along Waikīkī's eastern end ...

Bear In Chair

This teddy bear was a gift from a parent of one of Kat's students. I took this photo a couple of weeks after we re-painted our bedroom.

Climb Out Rays

The sun's rays cuts through clouds over Honolulu as we climb out in a US Air Force Boeing C-17A Globemaster III. I was invited to go on a media flight during the 2010 RIMPAC exercises, in which we would perform an air drop over the Pohakuloa Training Range on the Big Island. For the departure out of HNL, I was selected to sit in one of the jumpseats in the cockpit. The C-17 must have one of the roomiest flight decks around!

We had some rain showers as we taxied from the Hickam ramp to the Reef Runway, and can see more rain in today's photo.

West Shore Campus

Our home church, New Hope Leeward, opened its fourth campus this past Sunday as the West Shore Campus! Focussing on the Wai‘anae side of O‘ahu, the West Shore Campus will set up their 11am worship service at beach parks on the Wai‘anae Coast. Led by Campus Pastor Milton Bradley, the fourth campus will minister to those farther out from the other three New Hope Leeward campuses, and as an outreach for the homeless on that part of the island.

The homelessness on the west side has seen a spike in growth, especially among families with children, with the downturn in the economy, and theCity & County's push to get the homeless out of metro Honolulu.

Today's photo was taken during the praise and worship part of the service.

Paddleboard Sunset

A stand-up paddleboarder gets some time on the water at Ala Moana Beach Park as the sun goes down. I got this during rehearsals of the 2010 Lantern Floating from my camera position, and during a part in the show where my camera wasn't a factor.

White & Green Orchids

Recent blooms of my white and green orchids.

Aloha Vision

Aloha Stadium recently had a new video board installed that replaced the Matrix scoreboard and Sony JumboTron. The new Aloha Vision screen is an LED screen that can be split (as seen above) or shown full-screen. We got to debut the screen on Saturday with the first high school football games of the 2010 season beginning with the ‘Iolani School Father Bray Classic. The first game featured Pac-Five Wolfpack downing the Kaiser Cougars, 7-3. The feature game had the ‘Iolani Raiders overpowering the Waialua Bulldogs, 37-7.

Double Duck

A duck and its reflection in a pond at Moanalua Gardens.

Family Photo

The wedding couple's family jumps in to take a family photo after their wedding at the Ko ‘Olina Resort. Couples married at Ko ‘Olina are taken to one of the four lagoons to have beachside photos taken.

Hawaiian Blessing

Anytime a new aircraft type is brought into a Hawai‘i-based entity, it usually undergoes a Hawaiian blessing. It even applies for the military units based here. Recently, the Hawai‘i Air National Guard's 199th Fighter Squadron received the first two (of 20) F-22A Raptors. These two fighters were blessed by Kahu Kordell Kekoa, the chaplain for Kamehameha Schools, with Hawaiian water and sea salt. The customary blessing is preceded with a Christian prayer in Hawaiian and English. The salt and water are poured into a koa wood bowl, and sprinkled with ti leaves.

Today's photo shows Kahu Kekoa blessing the tail section of aircraft 03-4045, which has the "Hawai‘i" tail flash.

Blast Off!

On the beach fronting the Elks Lodge, there are these cement bowls. It's not known what they are for, though it looks like they could be bases for over-water decks. Anyway, these bowls are a favorite for kids to play in. This boy was playing in it during high tide, and was caught by a crashing wave.

Mā‘alaea Lookout

A bit northwest outside of Mā‘alaea on the Honoapi‘ilani Highway on the way to Lahaina, is a scenic point which overlooks Mā‘alaea Bay, and has Haleakalā in the background.

Fireman's Helmet

A firefighter's helmet from Honolulu Fire Department's Engine Company 6 (Kalihi) lays on the ground as the firefighter tends to a car crash victim.

Queen Anne's Revenge

Hawai‘i is the location being used to film "The Pirates Of The Caribbean 4: On Starnger Tides", the fourth volume in the "The Pirates Of The Caribbean" movie series, starring Johnny Depp. The Queen Anne's Revenge is the ship used by Jack Sparrow's nemesis Blackbeard. The sailing ship was towed to Hawai‘i from the US mainland for the filming, and is seen above moored at the He‘eia Kea Boat Harbor in Kāne‘ohe. The film is due for release in May 2011.

Queen Anne's Revenge is seen above from a shot I got from the He‘eia Kea State Park.

Red Plumeria

One of the rarer types of plumeria, are the deep red variety. Kat & I came across a red plumeria tree in bloom at the Waipahu Plantation Village visitor center.

Raptor Sunset

A few weeks ago, the Hawai‘i Air National Guard's 199th Fighter Squadron received their first two Lockheed-Martin F-22A Raptors. To show the fighter's capabilities, the 199th held a demonstration practice on the west side of O‘ahu a day before the blessing ceremony. Show center was a mile off-shore, and abeam the ‘Ihilani Resort.

A friend had told me about the flight demo, and Kat & I had ventured down to Ko 'Olina's Lagoon 4 to watch the performance. We were amazed with the jet's capabilities. The F-22A can be seen below the top center cloud.

Playing In The Sand

While Kat & I waited for a flight demonstration by a Hawai‘i Air National Guard Lockheed-Martin F-22A Raptor over the west side of O‘ahu, we saw this boy playing in the sand.

Sandy Sisters

Our nieces Ellie and Kisa at Mokulē‘ia Army Beach on New Year's Day. This was Ellie after she got buried in the sand. We had awesome weather to begin 2010, and decided to take our nieces and nephew to the beach for the afternoon.

River Surfing

A bodyboarder takes on the muddy current of the Waimea River as it meets Waimea Bay.

Gone Fishin' 4

A group of fishermen line the beach of the Sand Island Marine Recreational Park.

Reading At The Beach

On a trek to Kailua Beach last year, I came across the woman who seemed more interested in the novel she's reading than the beach.

Pahipahialua Beach

Welcome to August! Being that this is the middle of summer, our theme week will be "Beach Shots", a variety of photos I've taken around beaches that Kat & I have been to.

Leading off our theme week is fisheye shot of Pahipahialua Beach on O‘ahu's North Shore. On the left side of the photo is Kukaimanini Islet.

Overturned

A Honda Civic (background) driven by a lone female, crashed and flipped over on the southbound lanes of the Likelike Highway on the Kalihi Valley side of the Wilson Tunnels. According to other witnesses, she managed to crawl out of her car. Honolulu Fire Department (HFD) firefighters administered first aid, and placed her on a backboard. Fortunately, she was responsive, as firefighters treating her asked her the typical head injury questions.

One northbound lane was closed by Honolulu Police Department (HPD) and HFD on the initial response. One southbound lane was closed as well. At one point the both southbound lanes were closed to allow a City & County ambulance unit to arrive quicker escorted by a few more HPD vehicles.

After exiting the southbound tunnel myself, I noticed an HFD engine, and HPD cruisers responding to a call on the northbound lanes. Little did I know, that they would be responding to the same accident. Those units had to go up to the tunnels, then turn around, where there is an over-height exit.

I came across the accident scene as passers-by had stopped to render aid. One theory is that she may have been speeding, and lost control of her car, then flipped it. There is a dip in the Likelike, a couple of hundred yards before the accident scene, and has been known to cause high-speed crashes. Earlier in the day, HPD was running speed enforcement on the southbound lanes, on the Kalihi Valley side of the Wilson Tunnels.

I submitted this photo to a couple of local news outlets.

Delivery Crew

The delivery crew of this China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737 mingles around the aircraft after it arrived at HNL. Normally, the crew and aircraft gets to overnight in Honolulu, before continuing onto Shanghai via Majuro and Saipan.

The group huddled together is looking at photos they took at the base of the stairs. The guy in the green shirt takes video of Kamaka Air's Super DC-3 parked several yards away, while eating an ice cream bar supplied by the ground handling company.

Droplets

Dew droplets on our windshield one early morning.