Sandy Beach Rainbow

A low rainbow at the Makapu‘u end of Sandy Beach.

Rosemary Sprig

I found this rosemary plant in a public community garden ... very fragrant.

Vintage Cockpit

This is the cockpit of Kamaka Air's Super DC-3, N9796N, which was the subject of a magazine article I co-wrote, and photographed for "Airways" magazine. The article appeared in the December 2006 issue. The monochrome look gives it the vintage feel, though you can see a few modern instruments as well.

I know the politically correct term now is flight deck, but this is a 60+ year old aircraft ... it's a cockpit.

Rainy Sunset

A rain shower band cuts in front of a sunset and the downtown Honolulu skyline. It gives the impression there's a huge fire behind the buildings ...

Tiny Yellow Flowers

These yellow flowers are from one of my plants on my lanai. The flowers are no more than a half-inch across.

Gone Fishin' v2

Fishing in the late afternoon ... as soon as I saw the silouhette, I knew I had to get this one.

Watching The Surfer Girl

This surfer watches this surfer girl cut loose on a wave before jumping in to go surf the break at Kewalo Basin.

Bats

The bats of the Hope968 softball team during a game from last season.

The South Side Of LAX

From a mini-park on East Imperial Highway, designed and built for aviation photographers and spotters, people can see the southside operations of LAX (Los Angeles International Airport). From this point you can also see the famous "Hollywood" sign (in Griffith Park), and the San Gabriel Mountains behind that.

Oh ... the hustle and bustle that is LAX ... The American Airlines Terminal (#4) is jam packed, as is the Tom Bradley International Terminal on the left (green tail). Asia-bound flights are leaving while in-bound flights from Europe begin to arrive.

This has to be one of the clearest days I have seen in L.A.! Had a blast spending my free day photographing airliners. I'll post a take-off shot I took from this side in the future.

Moonset At 6

The moon sets behind the the Honolulu coastline at 6am as dawn breaks.

Discovery

Little Malia experiences her first Hope968 Easter Egg Hunt.

Mahalo Leila!

Broken Jack

I was at the airport getting a photo of a Xiamen Airlines Boeing 737-800, when I saw this broken bottle of Jack Daniels® whiskey near my car. I thought it looks like despair, or frustration, or someone trying to escape reality. I thought switching it to a black and white photo had a more dramatic effect, and the framing of the branches to give it depth.

A Thorny Situation

Look at those mean looking thorns on this cactus! I sure would not want to fall onto that ... that would hurt ... real bad.

Stalking

Lola, the black Labrador Retriever, stalks a kingfisher in the middle of one of the Blaisdell Center's ponds. The kingfisher was stalking the tilapia for its lunch. I guess it's one of those the hunter becomes the hunted(?).

Roses In Vase

This floral decoration was the centerpiece on altar at church. When I saw it, I had to get some photos of it.

Aloha Week

The second Saturday in September marks the beginning of "Aloha Week" in Hawai‘i. The Aloha Festivals Committee sponsors the Aloha Festivals Floral Parade which is being held today. This floral parade, which is featured nationally during the Thanksgiving Day Parades Across America TV show, runs from Ala Moana Park to Kapi‘olani Park. The parade features flower decorated floats made by various organizations and corporations, marching bands, pa‘u riders, and dignitaries.

The Aloha Festivals Committee has these banners hanging from light poles around metro Honolulu and Waikiki. I wanted to get a sunlit shot of these banners, but forgot to get the re-do while walking back to my car.

Thunderbirds Run 'em Up!

The US Air Force's Air Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds, performed twice over Waikiki yesterday, as part of Air Force Week, and the 60th Anniversary of the US Air Force. These Lockheed-Martin F-16C Fighting Falcons roared over metro Honolulu and Waikiki at speeds reaching 500mph at altitudes about 500 feet!

In today's photo, the Thunderbirds make a pass in their six-ship delta formation over Waikiki as they began survey flights in yesterday morning. The two solo pilots, Thunderbirds 5 and 6, break away from the delta. They performed later in the afternoon, and included a pass over the USS Missouri and the USS Arizona Memorial at Naval Station Pearl Harbor.

The Thunderbirds are also performing on Saturday with show center fronting Fort DeRussy in Waikiki.

Rocky Beach

Waves crash upon the rocks of this secluded beach.

Bird Of Paradise

One of the flowers commonly associated with Hawai‘i. They can be found in practically every part of Honolulu. I found this one at Foster Botanical Garden, and used a soft filter.

Never Forget

Six years ago, one man called 19 others to commit the most atrocious acts on US soil. Their acts caused thousands of innocent lives to perish in a matter of hours. They thought by flying four airliners into four buildings and bringing them down, and those in them, they could bring down an entire country. They were wrong! Five men on one of the four airliners (United 93) used in this terrorist attack, decided to fight back, even if it cost them their own lives to save those in the intended fourth target. What the events of September 11th, 2001 did was bring our country closer, to fight those bent on destroying our country.

It seems a lot of people seemed to have forgotten those horrific events of the saddest day in American history. Many have also forgotten that we have the God-given right to defend our nation, our freedoms, our loved ones, and ourselves from those bent on destroying it. If we don't stop them on their soil, they will bring us down on ours. Please take a minute out of your day to remember the thousands of people who perished in New York, NY; Washington, DC; and Shanksville, PA; and those serving our country around the world who have paid the ultimate sacrifice to preserve our freedoms.

I was trying to find a photo that would be right for this solemn day, thanks to T, she said this would be the photo to match this day. I got this photo one early evening aboard the Star of Honolulu dinner cruise ship.