GENIUS

I wouldn't have been able to type that word days ago, since the "g" on my keyboard stopped working. The forward delete and return key wouldn't work, either. Might have had to do with the fact that I rinsed out the keyboard a few days ago...

Anyway, my underscore key got lots of action. I typed emails saying "_ood luck" and "_et back to me later". That got old, so I just came up with other words and phrases to get around using "g". (For blogging I used a keyboard utility and eventually a different keyboard.)

The novelty had worn off by yesterday so I decided to make a trip to my local Apple Store. The particularly spastic little geeky Apple "Genius" (he really was, I'm not making that up and would never make fun of a fellow Mac enthusiast) just plugged it in to his laptop, and the darn thing worked. He never even flipped it over where he might've spotted the water puddles through the clear iMac keyboard casing.

Guess it just needed extra time to dry out, LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE ON THESE SOPPING WET ISLANDS! It's thundering and lightning-ing as I type. As of today, it's been 40 days and 40 nights of sogginess.

30 Years of Apple

1976 - 2006

Founded in a garage by two college dropouts to become the cultural icon it is now, Apple Computer will celebrate its 30th birthday on April 1st. "One long April Fool's joke."

As I was cleaning out my closet and drawers the other day I discovered I own at least 15 Apple or Mac-related t-shirts and one sweatshirt. That I kinda figured, but my next round-up surprised me.

I have nine Macs in this house! Not all are mine, and not all are in tip-top shape, but they're definitely too precious to abandon. Actually, that's why I have so many, a few are downstairs, having been rescued from a computer donation site. A couple will be used in schools. One classic may not even be working, but it was adopted to keep another we had from years ago company. Kinda like bookends.



Aww, aren't they cute?

Public transportation ain't so bad

in spite of the rain



I took my poor, keyed Scion to the body shop this morning. The street was ponding as I got out of the car. Stepped in a submerged pothole, so by the time I got to the office, I looked pretty pathetic. They took pity on me, gave me a bunch of paper towels and a ride to the mall where I was to catch the bus. Who knows, I might've drowned, otherwise.

Nothing was really open at the time except Starbucks (of course), a couple of eateries, and the supermarket. I was bummed that the new Borders, with their yummy Cinnamon Dolce Latte, wouldn't open until 9:00 am, so I just wandered around..and took pictures. Kind of wanted to, but didn't, take pics of the homeless hanging around the market. Actually, I tried to avoid them, especially the ones talking loudly and gesturing to who knows what.

Tried to clean up and dry out in the bathroom. Several others came in looking pretty soggy, but no one but me took pictures of herself looking like that :)

The last time I took TheBus was probably decades ago. The actual ride was pleasant, but I almost wasn't on it. It appeared on time, but passed right on by! If it weren't for a stop sign a little ways down that gave us a chance to run after it, we would've had to wait another hour for the next one. The driver claimed that wasn't his stop, even tho it was clearly marked and I had spoken to a supervisor earlier to confirm the time and location. (Yeah, I submitted a complaint online a few minutes ago. So there.)

The bus was pretty empty because most people going in that direction hopped on the more-frequent Waikiki buses. Ahh, Waikiki. Instead of the usual sunburned tourists, there were umbrellas, sandbags, puddles and more rain. At least Diamond Head was greener than usual, but no one would want to hike it today.

Won't get my car back until Friday, but will borrow one of my dad's cars 'til then so I won't be doing any more bus-riding for a while.

Between the rainstorms

an excuse to take pictures

The end of April will mark a year since I started blogging. It feels longer than that, and I've yet to find my groove. I can yammer on only so much about Rocky Raccoon, Apple computers, the bands I like, and the occasional personal/topical/news-related comment, before I run dry for weeks at a time. I wouldn't think about dissing work, and always keep in mind that my parents, some colleagues, and even my brother if I ask often enough, actually check in (tho rarely comment!!) once in a while.

I don't have a killer sense of humor, a controversial slant on politics, or even kids to write about. I don't live an exciting life filled with crazy highs and despairing lows..hmm, maybe there's the problem. I don't really have much of a life.

Yet I will muddle on, but, as someone commented recently, I've been in an unusual posting frenzy. (But he also called me a sporadic blogger, which is closer to the truth.) Digital cameras are so nifty. Photoshop is even cooler. And when you have nothing to say, hopefully a half-decent picture or two will fill the bill.

Here's the latest from today, in between rainstorms:

RIP, crazy tree

:(




It put up with a lot, but the recent downpours were too much for it.

Weird Hawaii Weather

Hail and tornadoes

Hailstone drift in geraniums
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, March 25, 2006

Horizontally-flying hailstones the size of quarters on the Big Island of Hawaii, tornadoes on the island of Lanai, lots of flooding, landslides, and power outages state-wide. Roads and homes were taken out, and seven lives were lost on Kauai.

Not your typical Hawaii weather.

This is Hawaii??

Five weeks is enough

EDIT: Both QuickTime and Windows Media Player versions of the 29-second video are now included as links, for those who couldn't view the original QT version and whose browsers were having hissyfitz. Thanks, Joey, for letting me know.

I wasn't feeling well, so stayed home from work today. I never use video cameras, but we ordered a couple for school and I wanted to try it out. It actually started to let up as I filmed, but later at night the island was rocked by thunder and lightning.



OR
[Select QuickTime (.mov) or Windows Media Player (.avi)

The QuickTime version is nicer. Install QT!

It's alive

But what is it?




I thought I had killed it, or at least, put it in a state of suspended animation. It hadn't bloomed in probably a year, then one day I noticed its spines turning pinkish, and soon long, dark purple flower-like protrusions emerged!

About a week later the flowers wilted and the spines returned to green, but soon the same amazing thing happened on the other side of the plant.

I'm not fat, I'm fluffy

Rocky Raccoon could probably could stand to lose a pound or two. Maine Coons are one of the largest domestic cats and males can reach 20+ pounds. Rocky is nowhere near that, probably closer to 14 lbs.

But this big guy is the considered to be the largest Maine Coon -- 45 inches tall and 35 pounds!!

Where are the magazines?

That's what I wondered when I went to my nearest Barnes and Noble for a Cinnamon Dolce Latte* today. And this is what I found out:




Their magazine display fixtures were wiped out when the car crashed through their plate glass window.

* Our Starbucks coffee shops don't carry the new Cinnamon Dolces. B&N does, but they're sure no Starbucks. I've been there twice, and twice they messed up my order. What's so difficult about no fat, no whip??

21 shots

of Grand Marnier



Do you recognize these? They're little sidekicks from Chili's, you know, the little chili-shaped plastic shot "glasses" that dangle precariously from the rims of Chili's margarita mugs. My shot of choice is always Grand Marnier. I savor its sweet, velvety goodness by sticking the end of the straw in it, pressing my finger on the top, and sucking the mmmyummy (40% alcohol!) nectar, which is barely enough to coat my tongue. This way I usually manage to make it last longer than the margarita itself (on the rocks, never blended), which, to me, is incidental. No way would I unceremoniously toss the shot in as suggested. Unfortunately, because I take so damn long to finish them, at least a few sidekicks have been knocked off by people wielding menus or carelessly reaching for something. So sad.

I've also forgotten to take a few home with me when I was done, but, as you can tell, I've frequented Chili's enough to round up a pretty good collection. Brought home the 21st tonight. I don't go there often, and don't go there for the food.

Never got around to doing what I said I'd do: take 'em out of my kitchen drawer where they've lived for probably a couple of years, fill them with red and green water, and hang 'em up at Christmas.

I'd like to put them to some fun, tacky use. Any suggestions?

When times get tough

The tough go.. you know


Recent cute purchases.

Too lazy to retrieve the shoes downstairs for a photo session.

Postponed

It's official


[image doctored..for effect]

Vertigo '06: Final Dates Postponed

It is with great regret that tour promoter The Next Adventure announces the postponement of the final ten dates of U2's Vertigo '06 tour. This action is unavoidable due to the illness of an immediate family member of one of the band. The effected dates are listed below.

'Any fan of U2 will realise that this decision has not been taken lightly', said TNA President Arthur Fogel. 'We will announce further details as soon as we have them.'

The effected shows, which are all sold out, are: March 17th & 18th, Ericcson Stadium AUCKLAND; 21st, Queensland Sports & Athletics Centre BRISBANE; 24TH & 25TH, Telstra Dome, MELBOURNE; 28th, AAMI Stadium ADELAIDE; 31st & 1st April, Telstra Stadium, SYDNEY; 4th, Nissan Stadium YOKOHAMA; 8th Aloha Stadium, HONOLULU.

We'll bring you more news on U2.Com as we get it.