By Annetta Lucero
STOP!
I am wedged diagonally across the drivers seat of my car. My left wrist is squirting  a small fountain of  blood. My tongue is lacerated in several places, my knees are swollen and stuck between the steering wheel and dash and I cannot breathe.

Through my window I see a teenage girl get out of the car that just turned in front of me.  She looks scared but fine. She walks to the other side of her car and is speaking to someone inside. I am still not breathing. She goes to speak with some people gathering on the side of the highway.  After some time they glance at my car but nobody comes over.  I wonder why they don’t come. It would be good if they could open my door for me.  I am very hot and I am not breathing.

I think of my children.  I want to breathe so they do not have to endure this loss. I think of my mom. I want to breathe so she doesn’t lose her daughter and grandson within a months time. I think of Noah . . . I want to breathe.

I realize I may not breathe.  I smirk.  I remember I have held my breath for 3 and half minutes just for fun. I’ve got another minute or so. I’ll figure it out.

The girl is now on her cell phone. She guiltily glances at my car as she speaks. Read the rest of this entry »

Aloha, dear yogis…..

I’m fielding inquiries about class on Easter Sunday, tomorrow, at OM Studio:

Yes!   We will have an All Levels Anusara Yoga class from 8-9:30 a.m.

See you there…

With appreciation,

Kathryn

(Editor’s post script: There’s No Place Like OM Yoga Studio is located on St. James Circle in Waimea.)

by Delia Montgomery

Purpose reminder: awareness of exceptional green designers. Not only for their creativity, but their production strategies as well. Comments and ideas from local designers are invited.

Competition reminder: nominations were honored through 2009 August and announced in October of that year. Winners will be announced at the end of this competition series.

Read the rest of this entry »

(Media release) — On Saturday, April 30, 2011 and Saturday, May 28, 2011, Lee Michael Walczuk of Kozmo Mimzi Animation Theatre offers a special Keiki Theater workshop at Volcano Art Center.  Based on recycling and conservation, this two-hour workshop uses found wood, natural and recycled objects in a full-spectrum, creation-through-performance structure.  Shadow puppetry, mask-making, mime, character and story development with a multi-cultural focus are aimed at creating an original script are the ultimate goals. Keiki Theater is an opportunity for youth ages 6 and up to explore new ways of creative engagement at Volcano Art Center.  The cost for each two-hour workshop is $10 pre-registered or $15 drop-in.

Walczuk holds an MFA in Theater Arts, Animation and Cinema from UCLA, with over 35 years of art-focused experience, including 7 years of study, performance and teaching throughout Europe (England, France, Germany, Italy and Poland).  His strong value in multicultural education has compelled him to initiate numerous theater arts programs with virtually no budget, in economically challenged communities and at-risk youth in New Mexico, Ohio and Los Angeles.  Joined by his wife, painter and photographer Renata Walczuk, and their 4 children, Walczuk has participated in the arts and conservation of Hawai’i on virtually every major island.  As a family of artists and performers, the Walczuks work to teach, mentor and foster creative imagination of Hawai’i’s youth.  

Read the rest of this entry »

By Tiffany Edwards Hunt. All rights reserved. Use with permission only.

I’m going to try and not act too self-righteous.  It’s Earth Day, and I just feel so proud to be a cloth-diapering mama.  Yeah, one week into this and I can report that it is a lot of work.  But it’s really gratifying.  It’s a lifestyle change, a shift in attitude about pee and poop.

More and more, I find that the pail of soiled cloth diapers is a lot less daunting than a trash can full of disposable diapers.  With the soiled cloth diapers, I throw them into the washing machine for a rinse cycle.  Then I fill the machine with the family’s clothes for a full wash cycle before drying them. I don’t have time for any line drying like most mothers.  With the trash can full of disposable diapers, I would have to bag those up and, with the rest of our household trash, load, haul and dump them at the transfer station.  There is plenty of energy involved with both cloth and disposable diapers, it depends on how you want to spend your energy. Read the rest of this entry »

Aloha,

Below is a link to the Redistricting Commission’s Web Page on the County Web Site.

You can also go to the County of Hawai‘i home page and click Redistricting Commission on the top left of the page.

http://co.hawaii.hi.us/council/reapp

Karen Eoff Read the rest of this entry »

Mainstreet Pahoa Association will hold a board meeting at 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at Luquin’s Mexican Restaurant. Merchants, property owners and residents of Pahoa who would like to commit to serving on the board are encouraged to attend.

Amanda Sloane - CNN

Hi Tiffany,
Tune into CNN (or set your DVR!) this Saturday, April 23, 2011 at 1:30 a.m. Hawaii Standard time. The show will also be repeated on Sunday, April 24 at the same time and available as a podcast for download on Monday, April 25 at http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/sanjay.gupta.md/

The West Coast will be extensively showcased.

You are welcome to use these high resolution photographs.

Photos can be found at this link.
http://rcpt.yousendit.com/1102136917/a2ddf79751944ff78aa5566587dad2b1

Please credit Amanda Sloane – CNN.

Aloha,

Bree (Dallwitz)

Photo by Tiffany Edwards Hunt. All rights reserved. Use with permission only.

Larry Brown, of the County Planning Office, has noted on the Puna Community Development Plan email list service that his office has received several land use change of zone requests for Puna, and the applications have been posted on the CDP website here.

I am opposed to the Galan change of zone application (No. 11-137)  for  the rezoning of two Pahoa Mainstreet properties, which neighbor my family’s business, from RS-10 to CV-7.5.  The application is actually being submitted to make way for a skate shop, but the Galans fail to state those plans in the application.  I think the application should be rejected and, if the skate shop wants to go in — like they have tried to do for the past 21 days — then the application needs to be resubmitted and be specific to the skate shop.
Have these folks stop trying to do business out of the blue house next door to our legal and established surf and skate shop, and then reapply for commercial zoning with a specific plan attached to the rezone request.
That’s my first bone to pick with the application, the way the application has been filled out by Karen and Adrian Galan.
Nevermind that these people with the skate shop have decided to park right next door to us, trying to cater to the same genre as our store — and trying to piggyback off our success by advertising on Native FM that they were moving next door to us.
That is how I was informed of all this, the radio. Pretty rude and disrespectful, if you ask me.  Actually, everything about this situation has been quite appalling, and that’s not even getting into all the details of shenanigans my family has had to endure in the short time that the skate shop people have tried to set up shop next door.
The application states that the change of zone is for an “unknown buyer,” yet I understand the Galans have a property sales agreement with the skate shop people that is contingent on the rezoning. To me, it’s pretty deceitful not to be stating any of that in the application.
The contract for the sale and the current rental/lease agreement with the skate shop folks should be attached to the application. We should have all that information.
It needs to be noted that Galan’s skate shop tenants have received a notice of a zoning violation. Read the rest of this entry »

Aloha mai,

The process for redrawing our county council district lines occurs every ten years after the US Census is completed.

While it is not a sexy process, it is very important because it deals with upholding basic Constitutional rights, such as “one person, one vote”.

I will do my best to keep you abreast of the Redistricting Commission at http://www.aponohawaii.org.

A hui hou,

Chuck (Flaherty)

Read the rest of this entry »

by RJ Kaleohano Mendoza

Courtesy of Istockphoto.com

“Why is tonight different from every other night?”

This holiday, celebrates the divine intervention and emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. In fact, the entire saga is documented in the book of Exodus in the Bible.

I made the conscious decision to embrace Judaism last year, and have been increasing in my study and level of observance. I have personally found a good deal of peace and harmony from this way of living- so it’s no surprise that I was present at both Seder dinners.

Passover is actually an eight day festival, where Jews remember the plight of our ancestors and teach the history to the next generation. Read the rest of this entry »