On Saturday, we spent a little while at the Cultural Heritage Festival downtown, where dancers and drummers performed, representing the the varied cultural makeup of Hawaii. There were also booths selling food and crafts; Portuguese, Hawaiian, Filipino, Chinese, Okinawan, Japanese, Korean. I didn't see any bagpipes and kilts and no lederhosen, but that's OK. It was small, but still pretty cool. We caught a glimpse of the Korean Lion dance for one, along with a few other Asian performances. I approached the Hawaiian booth and was frowned at by an enormous Hawaiian couple. Not much aloha there. They didn't seem too happy to be there. In turn, not many people were making purchases at their booth. Maybe that's why they were miffed. Or maybe it was because of their grumpiness that nobody lingered long there or pulled out a wallet. As I scanned their wares (mostly jewelry) I read signs describing the materials from which the necklaces were made. They read something like, "these are wikiwiki seeds, NOT coffee beans...," or "This is magambo seed, NOT pussy willows..." They might as well have added "you ignorant, haoli idiot" to each sign. When a little boy approached and touched the tip of one of the fishhook necklaces, the woman admonished him for not reading her sign. It said, of course, "Do NOT touch the tip..." He was all of about six years old. If I was six, the first thing I'd do is touch the tip of the hook to see how sharp it is. Shoots. I'd be tempted to do that now.
Today, I stopped to pick up a few items at the market on my way home from the gym. The market has been dubbed by Ron and I as Pick Your Nose. Why, you ask? It's actually called Sack 'n' Save. For months, however, I called it Pack 'n' Save, which in our house, evolved into Pick Your Nose. Anyway, there were two brothers shopping there. These were young men, maybe in their teens or early twenties. They were Hawaiian and again, enormous. There are lots of really fat Hawaiian people. I know that's not a very politically correct thing to say. Certainly not all Hawaiian people are fat. But many are. They really aren't just a little overweight or chubby. They are morbidly obese. It's not just socially accepted but I think in some circles it's actually encouraged. The grouchy woman at the festival looked like there was no way she was getting out of her chair without some help, preferably from a fork lift.
One of Hawaii's most venerable stars is the incomparable late Bruddah Iz, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole. I'm a fan, for sure. Bruddah Iz not only sang like an angel and plucked a mean ukulele, but he became one of the most recognized voices of the recent rise in Hawaiian pride in the islands and the call for Hawaiian sovereignty. Sadly, he passed away 10 years ago. He was 36 years old and weighed over 700 pounds when he died.
Many Hawaiians are staunch Christians. I find this interesting and initially wondered if they neglected to read the passage in the bible about the body being a temple. Then it occurred to me that maybe they are actually taking that passage too literally. Sort of a, "My body is the Sistine Chapel, the Mormon Tabernacle and St. Peter's Basilica all rolled into one' approach. There's a big push here to convince native people to eat healthier and get more exercise. I don't think it's working.
There are plenty of fat Haoli people too, though fewer here than say, Buffalo, New York, home of Bacci's Pizza, Pat's Hot Dogs, Anchor Bar chicken wings, plenty of homemade kielbasa and beef on 'wick, a sliced roast beef sandwich served on a kimmelwick roll. Yum!
It's not uncommon to see cars or trucks with "Hawaiian Pride" stickers in the back windows. I actually think it's great that so many Hawaiians embrace their heritage. I've thought about getting a "Norwegian, Scottish, German, Irish, Cherokee Pride" sticker for my window, but I'm not too sure it would be appreciated here. The Cherokee part is small, I'll admit. But my grandmother insisted throughout her life it was true, even before it was considered cool to be an Indian. so I have no reason to doubt her word.
Today, the weather is positively miserable. If the rain keeps up all week, I'm headed to the dry side this weekend for some sun.
On a positive note, all the new trees are growing nicely. They've all got new leaves sprouting out. We picked our first zucchini yesterday. We're not quite self sufficient and living off the land yet, but hey, ya gotta start somewhere.
Gotta go write a couple of cover letters. Until next time... a hui hou.... Aloha!
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