Jast's blog

Noah's Eventful Birthday

2009-06-26T21:23:00.000-07:00

As if it isn't enough that my brother turned twenty-nine yesterday on June 25, there were a few other notable occurances that also took place yesterday.

Unfortunately the construction business as well as most other businesses will not recognize your birthday as a holiday be it paid or not, and in Noah's case it wasn't even recognized as a good enough reason to get off a bit early. Oh well, we enjoyed dinner and a relaxing, mellow evening together and it was very nice.

One thing that took place totally overshadowed the media coverage. And that was the passing of the self-proclaimed "king of pop", Michael Jackson. At age 50, it was echoed throughout the radio and television waves, as well as the facebook community and twitterers that he had some type of heart failure and was pronounced dead. While reflecting on his life, the many, many great tunes that he brought to life played on the radio, recalling what an amazing talent he was.

There were specifically two things too yesterday that were in the news that made the day especially peculiar, other than M.J's death. Both Farrah Fawcet and Ed McMahon. both shared this as their last day here on earth with Michael Jackson.

But, again, a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! to Noah... thirty is just a short year away!! wow. that's pretty freaky! ...lol :)

2009 Kamehameha Day

2009-06-19T11:25:00.000-07:00

A little over a week has past since Kamehameha day here in Hawaii nei. On June 11, the festivities took place for Kamehameha at Moku Ola, Coconut Island in Hilo complete with Hawaiian food, dance, music and games.

What made this day such a special one for me and my family was the special afternoon that we had. Me and Vynn were blessed to have Uncle Wede, Aunty Debi, and Julia come over and spend the afternoon with us. It was so nice to see Julia while she was visiting from Arizona. We were left with very warm memories of laughter and stories from the past. So much fun to gather with family, we can't do that enough!

Opihikao, Hawaii is lovely all year round

2009-04-20T20:11:00.001-07:00

Truly, God shows His greatness here!

The sun comes up over the horizon and the breathtaking spectrum of colors paint the sky. The smell of salt fills the air as the raging sea crashes into the pure black lava rock and black sand that forms the shore. The leaves and the grass seem to grow greener, and the blue of the ocean and sky seem to appear deeper. The ocean is fruitful in producing fun, fish and life.

My song about Kauai island

2009-03-25T17:25:00.001-07:00

Many songs in Hawaii are written about Kauai, and this would be mine

Kauai, an endless beauty
where I always dream to be.

I have only the fondest of memories
that still visits me in a sweet dream.

Kauai, also called the Garden Isle,
a fitting a name as one would see.

Upon visiting it will bring a smile
and a heart filled with glee.

I picture the place called Eden
and that picture is painted clear when

I know that Kauai is Hawai`i's Eden
and a place I imagine in this world to be heaven.

Dance, Song, and Inspirational Message

2009-03-23T13:06:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was one to remember.

It started on Friday evening when Vynn and I were fortunate enough to have been sitting in front of the tv channel surfing and come across the 89th Annual Kamehameha Schools Song Contest. It definitely was one of those "lucky we live Hawaii" type of moments! In this years contest, the students celebrated the music of John Kameaaloha Alameida. I guess the fact that I don't remember who the winners were of each division says something about how much that part of it mattered to me...but I do remember that the Sophomore class were my favorites and the Hoike was very entertaining. Vynn and I were very enlightened after the program.

The Tahiti Fete in Honolulu took place this past weekend, and from what I hear is the largest Tahitian dance competition in the state. Of course, naturally we were rooting for Big Island ---congratulations MERAHI Productions!! I heard they did great!

One thing that me and Warren were fortunate enough to do is see Nick Vujicic at the Sangha Hall in Hilo. Although he was born with no arms or no legs, he truly is one giant of a man! His life is truly not only about living without limbs, but living WITHOUT LIMITS!

In his message he mention that the largest crowd he has spoken to was 110,000, so we in Hilo were very blessed to have had a visit from this man. The turnout was very good though. The Sangha Hall was packed to the gills. I estimate that there were at least 1000 people there. Not bad for Hilo!

A care package from Hawaii...

2009-03-19T18:53:00.001-07:00

These would be true tastes from home

Li Hing Mui crack-seed
it's something that can only be found in Hawai`i

Big Island Candies
it's a home town fave!

Rubber slippahs from Long's
in the mainland they're called "flip flops", but they aren't the same

Dried Mango
of course, seasoned with Li Hing Mui

Kona Coffee (peaberry)
There's no coffee like it in the world!

Frozen Poi
it's the ultimate taste from home, steam to de-frost and you're set!

Dried Ahi
it will go good with that poi!

DVDs like "The Braddahs" and one from "Augie T"
Again, it's something that can only be found in Hawai`i

Where are we with MS?

2009-03-10T21:28:00.000-07:00

As a person who has been diagnosed with MS, I really get excited hearing about all of the new research and development being done for the disease. The progress sounds very promising, and there seems to only be more and more upcoming developments.

This is a very cool video clip

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

New Beginning

2009-03-03T21:03:00.000-08:00

There definitely are a few blog-worthy moments in my life right now...

First would have to be the uprising of family on facebook. It seems that everyone from people in the distant forgotten past to the closest of loved ones has joined the ever popular social network site. Oh boy, the good ole Internet is just shrinking the size of this earth, every day!

Second thing worth a mention is a great concert that took place this past Sunday where what seemed like a thousand (or more) people came together to worship the Lord, along with the help of MercyMe. As soon as my time allows, I'll post up a couple of short video clips of that event on my youtube channel that I took with my camera. Wow, what a good fun time me and Vynn had at the concert with Vic and Denise.

The third and last thing would be the launch of finepointgraphic.com. It's coinciding with the start of my new business. It's an exciting new beginning, a constant work in progress and a fresh, new start.

The Week Before Cupid's Holiday

2009-02-11T19:40:00.000-08:00

Valentine's day approaches and the florists must be gearing up for this weekend. There is a much more important thing to celebrate though--a couple of birthdays on Sunday. Now that is something to look forward to! A huge bonus from that event is that it will give the family a good reason to gather, talk stories and eat.

The coqui frog may go into hiding when dry but will surely re-appear when there's moisture, which there has been a lot of over the past week or so now. We on the East side of the Big Island even have a flood advisory and high wind watch right now at the moment, although I see no signs of any foul weather...well, not yet..

I have waited long and have finally received the news that I had hoped for. Things are going smoothly and taking place with great timing, just as they should. I am fortunate and blessed that God has anointed these two events that are unfolding in my life right now. To the Lord all of the credit is due, for placing the events and people in my life that He has. It has and will continue to be an exciting adventure getting to network with old friends and make new ones, and ultimately help others in whatever way I can. We are all facing uncertain times, and I keep praying for wisdom and guidance while facing the coming challenges. It's comforting to know that God is in total control, and He will reveal Himself especially in tough situations.

I can't end this blog entry without mentioning the nifty thing that I just learned to do on my computer. I need not wonder any more what the button up on the top right of the keyboard that says "Print Screen/SysRq" is for. When you hold the "Alt" key and hit this key (just above the "Insert" key), it will take a screen shot of whatever you have up on the monitor. It's a must! Pull up MS Paint (by going to Start, then Run... type in "mspaint") and from the Edit menu select "Paste"...then voila! When would it come in handy? Well, I really wanted to get a picture of Barack Obama showing shaka to the Punahou band during the Inauguration parade but could not find anything...

Until I thought of looking for some free trial screen-shot software to download so I could capture a picture while watching the Inauguration Parade video. Good ole Google, led me to find out that this feature is built-in right on my PC!

Rainy Kind of Day

2009-02-03T20:10:00.000-08:00

After a couple of weeks of dry, cold weather (and a state of coqui frog silence), the rain has returned. I must admit it's quite nice. I'm prompted now to make a blog entry!

Well, at the top of the things on my mind at this very moment is that I am close, very close to receiving news from a couple of different sources. Whether it be good news or bad I'm not sure yet, it's just hard to wait and I'm growing ever impatient. But it's good that these bits of news, or anything in waiting for that matter does NOT happen on my time or on my terms...but on God's. I'm presented with a chance to grow. Thank You Lord!

Another thing that the rain prompted me to do today was search through my computer hard drive archives. I came across this old video, from early in '06 back when we lived on Iwalani Street.

Waiting for Winds

2009-01-16T09:09:00.000-08:00

The Eastern side of the Big Island has been receiving a consistent dosage of vog lately, so maybe the presence of some strong winds may be welcome! The news report is that we can expect it though, especially on our neighbor islands. Mayor Mufi Hannemann has already granted the City and County of Honolulu the day off because of the potentially dangerous conditions. There's a chance that the school students on the neighboring islands may get a day off too because of the expected weather.

Even if we in Hawai`i receive the nasty winds we're anticipating, it's still a breeze compared to the below-zero temperatures and harsh winds being experienced in some of the northeast and Midwest US. So far, five deaths have been reported this week because of the arctic cold.

A beloved Hawai`i personality, Mike Sakamoto died the other day. In 'Fishing Tales' he will be someone I'll always remember as the original star of the show, being that it was when he hosted was when I really enjoyed watching it.

I got this family picture in my e-mail yesterday, courtesy of Shawnna.

Wonderful Beginning to 2009

2009-01-09T11:41:00.000-08:00

We had an awesome start to 2009 when on Saturday, January 3rd we gathered at Kow's Restaurant for a family luncheon.

Unfortunately, Amanda and Noah weren't able to make it. Other than that, everyone from the Aaron Hegerfeldt Ohana, the Wedemeyer Au Ohana and the Brannock Au Ohana was there. It had been many years since we have all been able to gather like this. We started off hanging out, talking stories, catching up and just having a relaxing time. Wow how our family is growing!
...and we ended with the performance by Keali`i that earned him the fish hook he's wearing (given to him by santa claus!), followed by more picture-taking. Many, many thanks to Aunty Debi and Uncle Wede for bringing us all together and making it a very special and memorable occasion.

Well, on another note, as we get ready to say good-bye to president Bush, I came across this hilarious article in BBC News about some of his funniest quotes... definitely worth a look! I gotta say I'm thankful for RSS feeds because that's how I found this funny bit!

Big Island Beauty

2009-01-07T12:29:00.001-08:00

After many inches of rain for weeks now, Rainbow Falls starts to look more like a dip in a river rather than a water fall! Well, maybe it hasn't quite rained that much yet. But for a while there it seemed it wouldn't stop...

...until that big, golden, heat-producing orb in the sky that governs our day showed itself on Monday, giving us all a reason to get out our cameras, point them up at the mountain and start shooting away!
Beautiful Mauna Kea is made that much more breathtaking covered with tons of snow!

Still Remebering 2008

2009-01-07T12:13:00.000-08:00

Now how can I move on to mentioning anything in 2009 without a mention of my brand new niece Rylee Ann!

...she's seven weeks old today and growing by the minute!

Remembering 2008

2009-01-01T00:44:00.000-08:00

As we head in to the new year, I can't help but think back on some of the events that took place in 2008...

Early on in the year, Aloha Airlines shocked the state by closing their doors for good. ATA Airlines was soon to follow, along with a couple other airlines. As the year continued on, and the stock market and wall street hit record lows since the great depression, we start seeing other companies big and small also shut their doors. There will be and always is something good to come out of all of this. Who knows what the next coming years will bring in the financial department, but there's always a positive for every negative!

In Sports, UH Manoa Alumni Colt Brennan does well as a Washington Redskin, and Maui's Shane Victorino along with the Phillies win the World Series. A spectacular opening ceremony welcomes the world to Bejing for a great Summer Olympics 2008. Michael Phelps becomes a household name swimming his way to many gold medals, and we even have a couple of Hawai`i Olympians that proudly bring home the gold too.

Political signs cluttered up the roadway for some months there, but they proved effective for candidates like Billy Kenoi who was elected as Big Island Mayor, Mufi who was re-elected as Oahu Mayor, and of course Barak Obama elected as commander and chief. Top issues on the Big Island were Coqui Frog control, waste management, Marijuana possession penalties, and traffic for West Hawai`i. The main topic for Oahu was the railway system; and what dominated the presidential election was our country's economy and the war in Iraq.

Another thing when I reflect back upon 2008 is the launch of the Hawai`i Super Ferry and all of the controversy surrounding it. On the one hand environmentalists were worried that it would harm whales and marine life, and others worried about there being more cars on the roadways followed by more thefts, crime and drugs, and will this allow invasive species to spread faster? On the other hand, there were some that were eager to use the ferry because the price of flying becoming so outrageous and they only could ask: 'when is it going to start going to the Big Island?'

There are many other events that took place, especially here on the islands that I just can't think of at the moment, but as we move forward I'm sure we'll look back and fill in the blanks.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

2008-12-29T11:21:00.000-08:00

Well, this is a much neglected blog... pua ting!

..now, to get back on track. Barak Obama is our President elect, standing by to take office very soon. He'll be stepping in at a very critical time for our country, with the economy in the dumps. I think everyone at this point is just hoping that he can deliver. But, actually the fact is that he's not in control here anyway - God is! Ultimately! So, with that said, having prayer and wisdom in our own lives is the best thing we can do.

For the moment the report on the oil prices are good. After rising above $142 a barrel in July, it's currently down to about thirty-eight bucks, which translates to about $2.50 a gallon here on the east side of the Big Island. Not too shabby, hopefully this holds up for a good while.

Currently, Hawaii is receiving a heck of a lot of precipitation, and more showers are expected throughout the week. This cold, wet climate has been consistent here for the past couple of weeks now. It was worse even for the folks on our neighboring islands like Oahu and Kauai who got hammered by rainfall that they couldn't handle resulting in massive flooding. This stormy weather did bring about snowfall on the tops of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa treating many visitors to a weekend of icy recreation.

2009 promises to be a year full of many interesting and noteworthy events, and I need to make a promise (to myself) to keep up with and maintain this blog with entries more frequently than every 5 months. Much, much more frequently!

ALOHA!!

Happy Thursday the 24th!

2008-07-24T20:39:00.000-07:00

Another day passes with a bit of scattered rain showers, inching us away from drought. And more showers are expected for the weekend! That's what they say anyway, although by the looks of the satellite image that KHON2 provided it seems like nothing but clear skies ahead.

Speaking of the news, an interesting story was reported the other day about the slaughtering of a sea turtle named "Honey Girl" at Laniakea beach on Oahu's north shore. A memorial was set up for her on the beach where she would frequently sun bathe, complete with her picture, lei and flowers, and even an American flag. On Monday afternoon, a large male sea turtle named "Kuhina" made his way up on the beach toward Honey Girl's memorial, placed his head down and sat in front of it for hours, staring at her picture. A classic example of the animal kingdom displaying human characteristics!

-jast

Kilauea Volcano

2008-07-08T15:28:00.000-07:00

As Halema`uma`u continues to pour out sulfur dioxide gasses, a breakthrough of lava started recently fountaining a couple of miles east of Pu`u`O`o. Here's some awesome footage.

There's also a good little story about the eruption on KITV's website that's worth checking out.

peace...

jast

Happy Fourth of July!

2008-07-05T02:20:00.000-07:00

On this Day of Independence, skies were free and clear of any vog and it was an 86 degree high in Hilo. What a great day to gather with your favorite people, at your favorite spot, down at the beach or park, or in a parking lot (with a good view of the fireworks of course!). I wonder just how much charcoal is sold across the country on this holiday? I wasn't able to find that out, but here are some other facts about July 4th that are pretty interesting.

Fireworks are being lit like mad in the United States, but no one does it like Madame Pele!

peace-

jast

Weather....

2008-06-23T19:27:00.000-07:00

It's amazingly calm in Hawai`i while forces of nature create incredible challenges not so far away. Northern California wildfires sure could use the extreme excess of water from the Mississippi River right about now. I received these photos in my email today of the flooding in Iowa, and some before and after pictures of flooding in the midwest. Internationally, tragedy strikes the Philippines in the form of a typhoon this past weekend. Weather most likely didn't have anything to with this, but as long as I am logging current events here I should note that locally here on the big island the Cessna plane that was missing for nearly a week was found in the Ka`u forest, unfortunately without any survivors.

I feel there's a need for a lighter note here, so on a much lighter note, here's a cool link to check the status of the Pu`u `O`o vent at Kilauea volcano. It's a panoramic view and it's updated every few minutes. It's definitely worth a look... check it out!

peace,
Jast

In Loving Memory

2008-06-21T02:25:00.000-07:00

Last week, on Wednesday, Kamehameha Day, June 11, 2008 we as a family gathered to remember and celebrate the life of William Raymond "Ray" Au, Jr. It was a day that I considered to be a "perfect" Hilo day. It Began with a gentle rain to cool down the earth just enough to welcome everyone gathering at bayfront. Blue eventually filled the skies as makani remained the day's constant companion.
What a blessing it was to see and be with loved ones and friends. Uncle Wede delivered a beautiful eulogy that treated all of us to recollections of grandpa's life. Over a week has already passed since the service, and I miss seeing everyones smiles. Aloha nui loa, A hui hou, Papa Au

Aloha,
Jast

In the peak of summer

2008-06-18T01:41:00.000-07:00

Today was a day that was graced with rain followed by brilliant blue skies and summer heat, then cooled by strong trades to make it the perfect day for...

...a yard manicure! ahhh, there's something about the smell of freshly cut grass!

Right on guys, much mahalo for your kokua.

Gee, with the way the gas prices are, those electric mowers are looking pretty attractive!

In the meantime, gotta save those pennies. Keep track of the lowest (and highest) gas prices in your zip code area with MSN Autos. It's a pretty nifty site that's updated every evening.

Peace,

jast

Checking In...

2008-06-16T19:36:00.000-07:00

...my first message, brand new to the blog thing, but gotta get on it eventually. I guess it's about time! I hope all the fathers out there had a great Father's Day yesterday!

Oh, what a day for golf! Tiger Woods nabbed up his third US Open title today after he parred the 7th hole at Torrey Pines on a sudden death 19th hole. Mediate just couldn't hold Woods back! Tiger, still recovering from his knee surgery, was quoted that he's now going to "shut it down for quite a while." Awesome tournament, and one for the history books.

See ya!

Jast