Big Island News

Match.com, Yahoo personals, Single Parent Network, Plenty of Fish and eHarmony. Unless you are living in a cave without electricity you know these are online dating sites.

The bad rep online dating has seems to be fading. As well it should. We are all busy with jobs, kids, and life. We use the Internet for everything from shopping, stock trading to keeping close to relatives. Why not use it to find a partner? It is practical. If you haven’t used a dating site yet, tons of tutorials and advice can be found online, but here is a quick overview:

· Pick a site (Plenty of Fish is free, so practice on that one).

· Answer the questions honestly and with humor.

· Post your best current photos.

· Wait for “winks”, or “flirts” or whatever the site calls them or if you are the proactive type – start sending feelers out to those you are interested in. Women often wait for men to initiate but there is no rule here. And men sometimes lose interest when there is a lack of response.

· Once you have a few partners that you are emailing – turn off your profile temporarily so you do not become overwhelmed.

· Move from writing to a phone call relatively soon.

· If all seems good, make the coffee date.

Dating on the Big Island takes creativity. We don’t have a slew of nightclubs, independent movie theaters, art galleries or a symphony. In fact most places are dead by 9:00PM. Kona stays open later but the choices are limited.

When I first moved here I was not the water nut I am now. So dating consisted of; the initial coffee shop first meeting followed by dinner somewhere and maybe a walk. It is best to do something active for the second date. Most over forties are looking for active partners.

The Big Island has lots of opportunities for activity. Pick up a copy of “Big Island Revealed” and look for hikes, water sports, best-hidden beaches, ocean tours, etc. Lots of ideas in there and it will give you a chance to explore that rarely happens unless we are taking guests. Try to pick things that are somewhat public and drive there yourself the first few times, just to be safe. A picnic at a beach where you can watch Windsurfers is ideal. Anaeho’omalu is the most popular windsurfing spot. A boat tour for snorkeling, whale watching or swimming with dolphins is really fun too. I am not crazy about dinner cruises but that is an option. Stop by any scuba store or hotel and they’ll have a list of boat tours to choose from.

I have been dating again for almost four years now. My advice is to have fun, do not invest in an outcome too early, most of your dates will not lead to anything. Do not get discouraged and keep your sense of humor. So what if one of your dates posted photos taken 20 years ago? It gives you something interesting to talk about with the next date. And when a potential partner shares his love of women’s shoes try to be open minded and then giggle about it with your friends. Think of it as a journey.

You can explore Hawaii while you are doing all this. Try new things, see new sites, meet new people and remember to do it with Aloha.

It’s that time of year again. Time for the Hawaii Brew Fest on the Big Island of Hawaii! My wife and I have been to the Kona Brewers Festival in the past and have always loved it. And we’re headed back again.

The brew fest is located in the town of Kailua Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii and is always a blast. The event is held for local charities to showcase local brews. Charities the event helps range from Hualalai Academy to Ahuena Heiau, National Historic Landmark. Events happen throughout the weekend, starting on Thursday, which include a home brew contest which you can bring your very own brew and try to win a medal!

The main event is held on Saturday from 2:30 to 6:30 pm, put on by the Kona Brewing Company at King Kamehameha’s Beach Hotel and includes brews from all over Hawaii and the mainland that come to give you libations on the ready. There’s also pupus galore, music, and more!

If you haven’t booked your ticket, we suggest trying to find some tickets and head over. Tickets were available at $55 but are not longer. However, you can most likely find some on craigslist.

For the past several weeks I have been reluctantly preparing for a race. My friend wanted someone to buddy up with in case the others in her group ran too fast. Paddling and biking I do regularly, but the last time I went running I fell head over heels into the bushes, resulting in a disgusting staph infection. However, I thought it was time to jump back on the horse, so to speak, and agreed to join her.

My first clue that this might not be an ordinary race was the pigtails requirement. In hindsight I should have asked more questions.
Arriving right on time we pulled in behind a line of cars parked on the side of the road. We noticed that most of the people were wearing funny hats. Court jester hats, Cat in the Hat hats, hats with ears and a host of others. Was it possible that the race requirements had been changed? It turned out that down the road from the starting place was a “funny hat” wedding reception. Inevitably the pigtail group and the funny hat group kept getting mixed up.

And the race wasn’t actually a race after all, it was a run, or walk or even a crawl if one so desired. The men wore pigtails too, albeit more creatively as we saw one with a pink homemade curly cue pinned to the back of his shorts. I think my second clue (perhaps I am not too quick) was that some of the runners were leaning on their cars drinking beer. I did notice that most people were wearing quality running shoes – except for the girl in slippers, who actually finished before we did.

At 2:45pm, right on time, two runners were dispersed to lay the trail using flour markings. That is when we were called into the virgin circle. This was our first Hash House Harrier Run. We were given instructions on to read the flour markings along the trail. The advance runners, referred to as hares would not only mark the true trail but would mark false trails to throw off the hounds who would set out after the hares at 3:00pm. We were the hounds.

The serious runners started out first and then we ran with the tail of the pack. The trail went up through rain forest above Kona, and it was beautiful with the sun streaming through the trees and the cool moist air keeping us from overheating. However, the trail was extremely rocky and in some places vines grew across it. The gradual incline seemed to go on forever until we came upon our first beer stop. What kind of crazy people drink alcohol during a run? We chose water and passed other runners for the next few minutes. After a while the incline was so steep and the path so narrow that it was all we could do to keep a brisk walking pace. Luckily, more experienced Hashers were in front of us calling out, “On, on,” which meant we were on the right trail.

Stopping at the third beverage break we were hot, sweaty and wondering how far the trail really was. This time we were offered Jell-O shots and we gladly accepted. After that we perked up and made pretty good time to our next beer. Needless to say, it was quite entertaining. By the time we got back to the start a party was going on and people cheered as if we had all accomplished a great feat. There were honors bestowed and we virgins graduated to hashers as the beer flowed.

So maybe all that training hadn’t been necessary, but I ended up meeting fun people, going for a hike, learned I like Jell-O shots, and was referred to as a virgin all day. I am definitely going to this again.

Hash House Harrier runs are held in 183 countries, so find one near you and check it out.

copyright © 2009 by Johanna Kim (Life After Forty)

A recent article in Fortune Magazine Online sparked my interest in a new trend on The Big Island, sustainable farmed fish. Especially after going to the Kokua Festival this last week and soaking up the energy of the “green scene,” I thought it would be a good idea to do a little more research and pass this article onto our readers.

It turns out, whether we like to admit it or not, the waters in Hawaii and around the world are being over fished. Yup, that big blue ocean is being messed with, and it’s not just the global warming that’s giving it problems. Too many people trying to catch too many fish and not doing so in a sustainable way.

That’s where a company off the Kona coast of The Big Island comes in. Kona Blue Water Farms grows a special breed of yellowtail tuna dubbed Kona Kampachi. The nets are a half mile off shore in some 200 feet deep water. This is a big difference from farmed fish which usually reside in man made reservoirs causing the fish to be lower in nutrients, lack flavor, and be susceptible to diseases in such close corners.

Kona Kampachi on the other hand is claimed to be very flavorful and richer in omega-3 than any other fish in ocean. It’s not genetically engineered. It’s not treated with antibiotics of any sort, or any other growth hormones. It’s also claimed to be of sashimi-grade (which I wasn’t aware there was such a grade of fish.)

The fish are bred on the island in special breeding stations, the eggs are grown up to inch long fishes, and then those fish are taken to the nets until they’re about 4 to 6 pounds. One of only down sides to the growing of fish like this is that the feces could create potential problems for local aquatic life. However, I see this as a much more solvable problem than hormone injected fish, or depleting our oceans.

If you’re interested in the fish you can order right from their website for $17 per pound plus shipping and handling, or you can head to your local Whole Foods which carries the fish for $20 per pound. Kings Supermarkets, Kroger and Costco are all carrying the fish in selcet locations as well.

I think it’s an interesting idea and with the population growing and more and more people looking towards our oceans for food, we’ll need to have ideas like this help keep our oceans from being depleted.

You can read the Fortune article here.

Big Island’s own Troy Mandaloniz has moved on to the next round on Spike TV’s hit reality show The Ultimate Fighter.  Troy, originally from the Big Island, and a good friend of BJ Penn, entered the show in hopes of capturing the fight contract from the UFC, which guarantees him fights along with a six figure salary.

Troy fought Paul Georgieff and ended up knocking him out in the first round.  After feeling each other out, Paul landed a few jabs and a nice kick that was effective.  But Troy threw hard, so hard in fact that Paul decided to take Troy to the ground.  Paul tried to put Troy in a kimura (arm lock), but did so unsuccessfully.  Troy broke guard and threw a punch and landed it on Paul’s face.  After that, Paul stood back up.  That was the final mistake, as Troy landed a perfect shot to the face that put Paul unconscious.

Congratulations to Troy for making it into the next round.  He seems the most promising fighter coming out of Hawaii, as Andy Wang and Anthony Torres both didn’t fare too well on the show.  If Troy can make it to the finals, it will be big for him as well as putting Hawaii back on the map.  With only BJ Penn making a big mark in the UFC and being the only Hawaii fighter right now, Troy may be able to break into the 170 lb division and shake things up.

Good luck Troy, and we all hope you make it to the finals!

With Hawaiian Telcom now having the fastest internet available in Hawaii, they are stepping up one more time by providing over 100 wi-fi hot spots around the state. This is big news, because their wi-fi will be free to subscribers of Hawaiian Telcom’s internet service. Now you can take your laptop to one of the many locations to use the internet.

Some of the locations that provide this service are Ala Moana Center, Restaurant Row, Downtown Honolulu, and all Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf locations in Hawaii (Source: Honolulu Advertiser). Certain areas on Oahu will also receive the service, such as Kailua, Hawaii Kai, Manoa, Ewa Beach, and Pearl City. They also didn’t forget the neighbor islands as well, so they will provide service at Kapa’a on Kauai, Kona and Hilo on the Big Island, and Kahului in Maui.

Compared to Oceanic Cable, who offers only 40 locations around Oahu, Hawaiian Telcom is really upping the ante with the high speed internet customers.

I think Hawaiian Telcom is looking to better themselves, especially having very poor service ever since they took over Verizon as the phone and DSL provider in Oahu. So far, things seem to be going great for them, and for them to expand into Oceanic Time Warner’s market is a big step, since Oceanic has most of the high speed internet subscribers. With lower charges for internet, more free wi-fi locations, and having the fastest internet, Hawaiian Telcom might persude more than just a few subscribers.

The Big Island of Hawaii is causing some spectacular sites for locals and visitors. The active volcano Kilauea has been erupting in a spot since July 21st of this year and has funneled into a mile long flow.

The flow, pictured here thanks to USGS, is beginning to get a few people worried as it flows towards some homes located seven miles away. Although the flow is obviously slow it still has a few people worried as it trickles along.

The state warns that people should be worried because conditions can change at any time with vents and flows popping up unpredictably. It’s tough to gauge so be careful out there and if you have any questions contact the government or the USGS or someone of authority on the matter. We here at Aloha Update don’t have any authority on lava flows. We just think they’re cool to look at.

If Hurrican Flossie isn’t bad enough news for the Big Island, last night they were hit by a 5.4 magnitude earthquake.  A minor landslide occurred due to the earthquake.

The earthquake happened on the southern end of the Kilauea Volcano, but was felt throughout the island.  There were also several aftershocks that occurred with a magnitude of 3.2 after the first shake.  Even with all those quakes, there were no tsunami warnings because it did not generate enough force to cause one.

Luckily for us, we didn’t have out interisland cruise now.  Not only would it have most likely deviated our course through the island because of the hurricane, but the Big Island would have heavy rains and the earthquake if we had docked there.  I’m glad the WalMart is open 24 hours now to help prepare people for the upcoming hurricane.

Just when I thought that the Big Island was an island I would consider living in, now I’m a bit apprehensive.  Hopefully the hurricane will deviate its course, but from I heard, they should get some heavy storms mid-day today.  Hopefully the hurricane doesn’t cause much damage.

Category 4 hurricane “Flossie” is heading toward us. What is category 4? Well, the U.S. National Hurricane Center classifies hurricanes of Category 3 and above as major hurricanes. Category 4 hurricane can produce up to 155 mph wind and 18 ft of storm surge. Flossie is stirring up sustained winds around 135 mph.

The Central Pacific Hurricane Center said Flossie was located 665 miles southeast of Hilo and about 875 miles southeast of Honolulu today. The storm was moving west-northwest at 14 mph. Good news is that Flossie will become either category 1 hurricane or tropical storm by the time it passes within 100 miles of the Big Island. However, the Big Island might still experience winds at around 39 mph.

We, however, always need to be cautious and prepared since a hurricane can change its direction without a notice. Here are the things that you should prepare for a hurricane.
1. Non-perishable food (3-5 day supply)
2. Water: 1 gallon per person per day (3-5 day supply)
3. Non-electric can opener
4. Your prescription medicatioin
5. First aid kit
6. Portable radio
7. Extra batteries
8. Flashlights/gas lantern
9. Plastic sheeting/tarps
10. Sleeping bags/blankets
11. Change of clothing
12. Personal hygiene and toiletries
13. Ice chests/coolers
14. Dry ice/ice packs

It may have been derived from the Greek word kyklon, which means moving in a circle.[4][5] Some say that Piddington derived the word from the Greek word cyclos, meaning “coils of a snake”

According to the Honolulu Star Bulletin, about $15,000 in fake money is circulating in Hawaii.  The counterfeit money actually came from the Crips and Bloods, a well known gang in Los Angeles, and has leaked some of its fake money onto the islands.  There has been at least $4 million worth of counterfeit money in the Los Angeles area.

The bills have turned up in Waikiki and Pearlridge, and has even passed onto other neighbor islands.  The Secret Service has also noticed that people have been using the counterfeit money to purchase items and then to return the items later to receive real money.  This way, they are getting rid of their fake money in return for real money.

It was also reported that the fake $100 bills have been made with high quality paper that is close to the real paper used to make official $100 bills.  The printing is also very close, if not exactly the same.  The bills are also sprayed with chemicals so pens that stores use to check for fake bills will not be detected.  As you can see, the operation looks to be pretty large.

Below are ways to spot a counterfeit bill (source: Honolulu Star Bulletin):

» Look for security threads. Genuine currency has red and blue fibers in the paper, not just printed on the bill.

» Check the watermark by holding the bill up to the light. Real $100 bills will have a watermark with the face of Ben Franklin that can be seen from both sides of the bill.

» Look for distinctive and sharp printing in the portrait, border and treasury seal.

Call the police if you suspect a fake bill.  Just beware especially if you use large bills like that.  Fortunately, I don’t use $100 bills, and usually don’t have enough money to aquire them, so I’m safe.  =)  But to you others, watch out!