Puunene Reunion 2007 Documentary

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Livestream Broadcast of TEDxMAUI, January 22

Thank you to all the people who worked to bring TEDx to Maui! BRAVO!

Watch live streaming video from tedxlive at livestream.com


(◕‿◕)
@Celebrate_Maui

Monday, January 2, 2012

A New Year's Tribute to My Family and Friends on Facebook

'Aloha and Mahalo 2011' (Kalama Park in Kihei) - Photo courtesy of Lucas Woodford

New Year's Eve around our house was ... well, shall we say ... nothing to shout about? ... me on the floor soothing a groggy doggy who in the past couple of years has needed a tranquilizer to make it through all the evil-spirit-begone celebrating (which turned out to be relatively sedate in our upcountry Maui neighborhood this year)... Beau Joe snoring as a New Year's text on his phone beeps periodically ... me checking to see if Scrabble Buddy has made a move (yes, she has, and did you know 'hao' is an acceptable Scrabble word?) .... reading a (real) book a friend recommended ... you get the idea. Low-key.

Oh, yes, and checking Facebook to see how my FB family and friends are doing.

Yes, I am totally unembarrassed to say that I check Facebook often and I don't think it's a waste of time. In fact (full disclosure), I find all of it Rich.

I see those skeptics rolling their eyes and I hear them muttering under their breath a dismissing "Meh -- worthless time-sucker". Time-sucker? Well maybe, sometimes. Worthless? Not for me.

I love all the stories.
I admire the keiki-action photos ...

'Determined to paddle by herself ... might need to buy a baby SUP?'

I laugh at the silly jokes ...


I learn from the helpful posts ...


I commiserate with the disappointed, the angry, the tired, the confused.

... I appreciate the uniqueness of each individual.

New Year's mochi with a Chinese Year of the Dragon twist, courtesy of Rieko Goo.

The baby announcements are the best.
This post from Ohio came complete with sonogram.
"Hey, guess what -- I'm going to be a Daddy on June 27!"
and this photo from Reno made me cry.

'Mikaela' (named after her uncle)

And of course there's The Food.
Isn't this sashimi-making photo wonderful?

'Cutting ahi for poke' - courtesy of Steven Higgins

New Year's Eve brought mention of many yummy concoctions, notably: homemade nishime, champagne cupcakes, rum cake,  chocolate chip brownie cheesecake, and of course, the traditional Japanese luck-bringing Mochi.


Southern traditions came up more than once. Black-eyed peas for New Year's, with growing-up stories from Lynette and a recipe from Sherri, who even sent me The History of the Black-Eyed Pea Tradition. And Sarah remembered grits, shrimp, and sausage, another Southern dish.

(Yes, there were more than a few mentions about beer, too)

New Year's greetings from family and friends were full of hope.
This greeting from my cousin is one of my favorites:


She later apologized for the spelling error (hau'oli instead of haoli), but no matter, her message came through loud and clear. I can always count on my cousin to brighten my day.

And I like this philosophical post:


In short, I treasure all of my Facebook connections.
Listening to all of the voices on Facebook is a heart-filling pleasure I indulge in often.

But yes, I do step away from Facebook just as easily as I step in. After the day's chores are done, I'll be back reading that book, with my doggy at my feet ... and, maybe, just maybe, I'll beat Scrabble Buddy this time.

Mike Neal shares his breathtaking sunset photos on FB almost daily. Thanks, Mike!

Linda
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@Celebrate_Maui

How about you? Do you have any interesting stories about Facebook?