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The Existence of Lilly Pulitzer at Target

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A mere two days after the release of Lilly Pulitzer’s affordable collection at Target, it’s like it never happened. On Sunday, Lilly fans overwhelmed Target and its stock. On Tuesday, there was nothing to be found. Even the signage celebrating the collection was removed, and all the clothing displays reset. You would’ve been none the wiser.

But scouring around,I did manage to find two Lilly Pulitzer products proving the release did indeed happen.

But by now, I’m sure there’s no trace of the Lilly + Target line.

AppleWatch Works for Lefties

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When Apple made the AppleWatch available to public viewing on April 10, 2015, I was at the Ala Moana Apple Store learning more along with fellow tech geeks, Ryan and Burt. Besides the questions about specs, performance, and apps, Burt asked a simple question that stumped the Apple Store staff. Does the AppleWatch work for left handed people? Can the digital crown and touch screen operate when the axes are reversed?

The answer is yes. All the controls “flip” just with the physical crown oriented on the lower half of the watch. Apple itself visually confirmed this left-handed operation on their video Rise as a lefty answers a call from some guy named Tony Rivas. Hmmm, this is the same guy in that Siri demo for the iPhone 4S and iOS5.

Take a look at the 0:47 second mark.

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Passed on the Adidas Tubulars

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I so wanted to love these shoes, but in the end, I had to pass on them. The Adidas Tubulars have been out for a few months and while they caught my eye, I just didn’t act…until I saw someone wearing them. The silhouette of the Tubulars was distinctive, but the texture and colorway muted the uniqueness into sneaker-ish sophistication. Then I saw the new batch of colorways announced by Adidas, and I had to go looking for the Tubulars. Hawaiian camo!?!?

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Sadly, when I tried on a Tubular size 10, they were considerably too big. A half size down to 9.5, and they were still too roomy. Dropping to a 9 was just too snug. This unusual sizing might be due to the single layer bootie-like makeup of the upper. Instead of your typical shoe with a tongue, the Tubulars upper is like a sock made out of Neoprene. Because of the construction and material choice, the upper is also very pliable like the Nike Roshe Run and Adidas ZX Flux. With stretchy Neoprene, you just won’t get that lockdown feel or rigid structural support no matter how tightly laced they are. Me and my flat arches need more TLC.

Surprisingly, the exaggerated EVA outsole felt pretty good. Even with its hollowed out middle, the ring of EVA was firm with tacky traction. Overall, the shoe is very light in weight. But that size. I just couldn’t find a size that fit just right. Too big or too small. It’s like I needed a size 9.25.

Even more sad, Champs Sports had a few (original) colors discounted $30, going for $80 instead of $110.

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I wish I coulda loved me some Tubulars…

Tubular Runner Shoes

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Testing out the improved Press This function of WordPress. I’m not comprehending it yet…

Rooted in sport and inspired by the runway, these men’s shoes give the ’90s style of the ZX 7000 modern fashion details like a high cut and a slick neoprene upper with leather and synthetic overlays. They ride upon a big chunky EVA outsole.

Source: Tubular Runner Shoes

A Day at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

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How much time should you allot to tour the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park? You could stay a few short hours or even a few days, but my recommendation is to spend a full day in the park. The park’s web site has excellent planning information so be sure to review their links and trip planner. Essentially, there are two main tracks – the Crater Rim Drive tour and driving the Chain of Craters Road. Unfortunately, both routes have must-see attractions that you don’t want to skip. Get to the park as early as you can and even bring lunch along to enjoy at one of the sites. Better yet, stay at the Kilauea Military Camp inside the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to get a sunrise start.

Because of our travel plans, we split our park visit, but we still weren’t able to see everything we wanted. In one afternoon, we drove the entire 18.8 miles of the Chain of Craters Road, starting in the cold, lush rainforest of Kilauea then descending 3700 feet to arid, lava-covered plains reaching the Pacific Ocean. While there are ten identified stops on the Chain of Craters Road, we didn’t stop at most of them. In our limited time, we really wanted to see the Holei Sea Arch at the End of Chain of Craters Road and the petroglyphs. We did stop off at the Kealakomo Overlook, marked by the wooden platform that gives better scenic viewing. The overlook is about the halfway point to the end of Chain of Craters Road.

About this time, you start feeling the drastic change in weather. Gone is the chilly mountaintop weather with the car’s AC now doing the cooling. Finally, we reach the end with the awaited sights to take in. The Holei Sea Arch stands with the waves slowly eroding this natural wonder.

Further up the coastline, the continuous strike of the waves carves the next formation for future visitors.

The end of the road has a small snack bar along with a few restrooms which you should take advantage of before making the drive back. On the return trip, you can now do the hike to the Pu‘u Loa Petroglyphs. Don’t rush on this short but rocky trail and look for the stone markers to keep your bearing.

After a longer-than-expected 0.7 miles, you’ll come to the raised platform protecting the largest petroglyph field in Hawaii where you’ll see ancient images carved in stone.

After exploring the Chain of Craters Road, it’s time for the shorter Crater Rim Drive with its nine designated stops. Although the Kilauea Visitor Center is a good place to start, it doesn’t open until 9am. The park is technically open 24 hours a day so if you’re early, bypass the Visitor Center to see and feel the steam vents and steaming bluff.

Seemingly at every hour of the day, the steam rises as moisture evaporates due to the natural underground heat.

Park your car and crisscross the trails in the area. Don’t worry, there isn’t much of a sulphur odor.

Once you’ve inhaled enough steam, continue on to Kilauea Iki Overlook and imagine that huge crater overflowing with molten lava.

At the overlook, there’s a half-mile hike through the rainforest if you want to experience another type of habitat.

Stop #6 is the Thurston Lava Tube. How Mr. Thurston found this lava tube trekking through the rainforest is beyond me.

Sadly, we missed three stops on the Crater Rim Drive Tour. We couldn’t squeeze in a visit to the Jaggar Museum during their hours of operation. We tried to hike the Devastation Trail but was rained out, and we just didn’t have time for the Keanakakoi Crater hike. But given a half day, I think we could have sufficiently seen the sights of Crater Rim Drive. So yeah, one full day at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is the minimum amount of time I would plan for. If you want a more leisurely stay or want to explore all the stops, then you’d have to stay at least two days. Kids as well as adults will find different aspects of the park to enjoy, so it’s a great trip for the entire family.

Two Voice Tuesday Challenge

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This morning on Hammertime, Two Voice Tuesday took a slightly different direction with a creative challenge. The fan who proposed the most creative combination for Gregg Hammer would win a prize. Listen to the two finalists of a duet of David Ige and Linda Lingle or JrKJr’s sister as the Swedish Chef espousing fast food.

While the contest is for the most creative, I gotta give it to the duet. Oh, the image I used is from the Lilly Pulitzer line at Target that’s just a time reference.

Bold New Camry Hawaii

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File this under better late than never… Back in February 2015, Toyota unveiled their updated Camry line hashtagging it #BoldNewCamry. In Hawaii, Servco sponsored a social media tweetup where invited guests could check out the new Camry and even take a test drive around the Ward area. As a bonus, food was catered by Tango and games were hosted by familiar faces. The return favor for all of this was giving Toyota your impression of the bold, new Camry. Here’s just a sample of what was collected from the night. When you watch the video, listen to Gary N profusely lavish on about the bold new Camry, and you’ll see a tweet or two from me and @abaggy.

I must admit that the Camry does look great. It’s got style and high tech features like the integrated smartphone charger. Place your iPhone on the interior charging mat and it charges wirelessly during your commute. I rode in the four cylinder model that still had some decent pickup even with four passengers.

I like the aggressive look of the fascia and the styling of the front lights, atypical of a family sedan.

Truthfully, the Camry did impress, but at that time, I was looking for something roomier and with more swagger.

Here’s my favorite shot of the night.

And here are a few more pics from the #BoldNewCamryHI event.

Lilly Pulitzer + Target @ Kailua

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So thankfully, I missed it all. Heck, I didn’t even know about it but just happened to be at Target when the Lilly Pultizer collaboration released. Fashionistas had known about this day, lining up outside retail stores early in the morning or swarming Target.com. By the time, I was at the Target in Kailua, this is what remained of the Lilly clothing line.

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Actually, when I first walked by the rack, it was completely barren. But seems like a few items made it back to the rack. In the back of the store, there was another section for home items, mostly towels at this point. Sorry no pictures, and sorry to the fans who missed out on the Target + Lilly line that supposedly is not being restocked.

Not sure if it was related, but the in-store Target guest wifi network wasn’t behaving as well. Once you connected to that network, Internet traffic was super slow and yes, Target.com and its app just would keep throwing errors. Taking a look at the hashtag of #LillyforTarget, you can still get a glimpse of the nationwide craziness and the unhappiness of empty handed shoppers. In the store, I felt compelled to move some of these pastel colored goza mats into the Lilly Pulitzer section just to see what would happen.

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Looking at the Lilly line on-line, personally, I’m not sold. Oh, I’m definitely sold on the hype of the product line, loving and hating brands that can create enormous buzz (looking at Apple and Nike). For my tastes, I described the Target + Lilly line as “Easter Hawaiian,” meaning Hawaiian style prints in Easter pastel colors, but some items are eye catching.

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But really who am I trying to kid? While I may not be a fan of the Lilly designs I saw, if there was a collaboration between Lilly Pulitzer and Nike, I’d definitely be open minded and would consider rocking the “Nike + Lilly.”

Oh Yes – Shoemoji!

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Forget the diversity and multi-cultural aspect of Apple’s recently released emoji set. That’s all politically nice, and all but the real appeal is the ability to increase your emoji mojo. Foot Locker is on it with their creation of quality shoemoji. Check out the stable of Air Jordans, and this is just the first screen of shoemoji.

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Sadly, these shoemoji are only available in the Foot Locker mobile app and is sent as an image on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.

More about shoemoji from the Bleacher Report.

Looking at Griffin Technology’s Cove

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If you have too many personal electronic devices with chargers and cables strewn about your household then you too should look at Cove, an elegant home recharging center. Long time accessory builder, Griffin Technology, is expanding their lineup with Cove and is using Indiegogo to crowdfund this project. The Cove can charge up to five personal electronic devices at one time and not just iDevices. Any of your gear that charges with an USB cable is Cove compatible.

Learn about Cove…

Right now, there’s an early adopter special of $150 for a Cove for the next 48 hours. I admit that I’m intrigued by Cove, but I have two concerns. I don’t know where I would place a Cove in my household that’s close to an electrical outlet and second, I’m afraid I’ll forget devices in the Cove when the door is closed. But I do have this phone and that phone and that other phone, a GoPro, an external battery pack, a tablet, a mini tablet to charge…

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Lodging at the Kilauea Military Camp

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If given the opportunity, staying at the Kilauea Military Camp (KMC) while on the Big Island is sure to be a memorable experience. However, you need to be affiliated with the Department of Defense in order to book KMC cottages. I’ll be honest here. Don’t expect luxury at KMC. It’s clean, it’s functional, all the amenities are there, and it’s inexpensive. The cottages have been remodeled over the years, but if you’ve been to the cabins at Bellows then you’ve experienced a typical KMC cottage. Again, nothing wrong, just keep things in perspective.

There are a variety of cottage configurations, generally offered in 1 to 3 bedroom setups. However, the kinds of bed in each cottage could vary. A one bedroom cottage could have one bed in the single bedroom along with a sofa bed in the living room, or there could be two beds and a sofa bed. It all depends. When calling to make a reservation, just explain your desired arrangement and the workers will try their best to accommodate.

Each cottage is equipped with heaters in each room (including the bathroom), and there’s a fireplace in the living area (you do have to pay/buy the Duraflame logs). And there’s good reason for this heat. Located 4000 feet up in a rainforest, the weather is much different than downtown Hilo. You can expect 20-degree temperature swings from 80 degrees in Hilo then 60 degrees (and colder) on Kilauea.

On location, there’s a general store that covers all your basic needs, laundry facilities, an bowling alley, and an arcade. Although we didn’t eat at KMC, there are dining facilities and a bar. I didn’t check out the Fitness Center, but I made good use of the free Wifi in our cottage. Parking is typically available right outside.

KMC is actually located inside of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, making it super easy to experience the national park’s attractions. You do need to pay a park entry fee, but it’s good for a week. Being inside the park has great advantages of fully exploring all the attractions and getting an early head start before all the visitors arrive. More about park’s attractions in my next post.

There are some things to consider before reserving your stay at KMC. Your plans and itinerary while on the Big Island matter. KMC is somewhat remotely located, about a 45-minute drive from Hilo. Most likely, you won’t be commuting between KMC and Hilo in a single day. Once you head out for the day, you’ll probably stay out. When you come back at night, drive carefully. As you drive further up the volcano, there are less and less street lights. Somewhat windy roads, single lanes, and poor lighting are challenges. Then there’s the rain. Yes, Kilauea is a rainforest. Clear skies could change to downpours very quickly. So add the factor of rain and slick roads to the other conditions, and you’ll be faced with this.

Overall, lodging at KMC is well worth it. There are activities around the area that can last a day or two, and really, it’s just amazing to see how different the climate of Kilauea is.

A few more pictures of the Kilauea Military Camp.

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Fifteen Minutes with the Apple Watch Is Not Enough

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No, I didn’t pre-order an Apple Watch, wanting to see it in person first. So I scheduled a fifteen minute appointment to try on Apple’s newest wearable at the Ala Moana Apple Store, but those fifteen minutes are woefully short. Other than making an appointment, there’s no way of actually putting an Apple Watch on your wrist. The demo units are either behind a case or mounted in a display.

Burt Lum checks out the Apple Watches

The appointment runs through an educational demo of the Apple Watch. It’s kinda cool, but kinda lame since you’re standing there bed to your Apple concierge essentially watching a tutorial about the Apple Watch. The fun begins when you try on the different sizes and bands.

42mm or 38mm?

Guys definitely need the 42mm model. The 38mm looks too small and the band itself will barely fit. I could not slip my wrist through the 38mm Milanese Loop band.

A quick physical comparison to my Kickstarted Pebble watch, the 42mm Apple Watch is actually smaller. However, the craftsmanship and feel cannot be compared with the Apple Watch.

About the Sport Band

I’m not totally digging the Sport’s fluoroelastomer band. Yeah, it feels good, but I had a hard time putting it on single-handedly. It doesn’t align easily since you have to insert the pin first then tuck the excess band on the inside of the band. When taking off the Sport band, it comes off too readily, making for accidental drops.

The watch bands are easy to interchange, but personally, I don’t think all the bands match with the aluminum finish of the Sport model in case you’re thinking of “upgrading” your Apple Watch.

A Tiny Screen

The display of the Apple Watch is clear and crisp if not tiny. Looking at watch faces and well-designed activity monitors is fine. But trying to use Maps is too difficult for aged eyes. I guess the point is to use audio or haptic feedback to guide your directions.

Which Watch?

The general consensus is to buy the most inexpensive Apple Watch Sport model to minimize your investment in a first generation device. That’s very sound advice. Heed that advice and don’t try on the stainless steel Apple Watch. Otherwise, you very well may disregard that logical advice. I’m not sure what it was, but when I tried on the steel Apple Watch, it simply resonated with me. It felt heavier, making me more conscious about wearing it, but it wasn’t a burden. The leather strap definitely projected sophistication, and the magnetic closures felt more sure than the pin-and-tuck Sport band. Maybe I was imagining things, but I thought the steel itself felt cooler. Touching the sapphire crystal face, it felt smoother than the Ion-X glass of the Sport. And the stainless steel finish simply has an elegance missing from the anodized aluminum Sport. Trying on the Apple steel will only make your buying decision harder.

Initially, I was leaning to the Sport model in silver with a white band. But space gray with the black band is now my preferred Sport model. Seeing the gray/black combo stands out next to its colorful family members. But yes, the steel outshines all the Sports.

And there went my allotted 15 minutes. In fact, my appointment went overtime, nearly at 25 minutes, and it still wasn’t enough to adequately comprehend and assess the Apple Watch. I still haven’t figured out which watch to get.

Bonus Content

While at the Apple Store at Ala Moana, I ran across Ryan Ozawa and Burt Lum there for their try-on appointments. Here is Ryan’s Apple Watch post, and watch Burt’s video entering the store.

Through the Apple gauntlet for the #applewatch

A video posted by @bytemarks on

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