Passion
Ambassadors of Aloha
It began in 2009. Â This was the very first time I had heard of the US Navy’s Distinguished Visitors’ Embark program where a few fortunate, Hawaii-based personalities participated in an unforgetable adventure. Â I dub this Class of 2009 as the Ambassadors of Aloha, paving the way for the rest who followed. Â The Ambassadors of Aloha are:
Fast forward to 2012. Thanks to Ambassadors of Aloha, the tenacious leadership of the Avere Group, and with the good graces of Guy, I’m getting the chance to experience operations of an aircraft carrier participating in RIMPAC 2012. Speechless…
Acknowledgement
My embarking to and from the USS Chester W. Nimitz CVN 68 aircraft carrier during RIMPAC 2012 was made possible via my nomination by Dennis Hall, founder of Avere Group LLC (www.averegroup.wordpress.com), through collaborative referral to him by Guy Kawasaki (www.GuyKawasaki.com) and L.P. “Neenz†Faleafine (www.Faleafine.com). Dennis Hall initially submitted my nomination to the Public Affairs Officer of the US Navy’s Third Fleet. The Public Affairs Officer then referred my nomination to the Office of Public Affairs, Commander, US Pacific Fleet. The US Pacific Fleet selected me for the Distinguished Visitors Program, inviting me to embark for about 24 hours during RIMPAC 2012.
Binging on Music
Fueled by deals at Amazon’s MP3 store and new stuff in iTunes, I’ve been on a music binge. Some of the stuff I recently bought:
- Phil Collins | …Hits
(only $0.99 for the entire collection!)
- Nas | Life is Good
- Ellie Goulding | Lights
(only $0.25)
- Flo Rida | Wild Ones (Feat. Sia)
(only $0.25)
- Carly Rae Jepson | Call Me Maybe
(only $0.25)
- Katy Perry | Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection ($0.99)
- Lana Del Rey | Born to Die ($0.99)
- Florence + The Machine | Ceremonials ($0.99)
- Fun | We Are Young
- One Direction | What Makes You Beautiful
- Maroon 5 | Overexposed
- Linkin Park | LIVING THINGS
- Florence + The Machine | Lungs
- Jimmy Fallon | Blow Your Pants Off
Most of these were on special at prices I couldn’t resist although Amazon did get me a few times with price changes.
Hauns Brereton on Fire with His Red Kicks
Will Hauns Brereton keep his fiery Adidas when UH’s Big West season begins? Okay, so these red and black Adidas don’t match the UH unis, but superstition says that if you got the hot hand, you keep doing what you been doing. If Hauns can score 47 points a game then he needs to keep them kicks!
See more NCAA Summer League pics at BrandonFloresPhotography.com.
Seen at the Grocery
Highlighting some of the new stuff I saw at our local Safeway.
Ben and Jerry’s has a new limited ice cream flavor, Key Lime Pie. I love me some key lime, and this frozen treat does taste like key lime. Mellow key lime anyways, not a mouth-puckering, eye-squinting, sour-on-the-tastebuds key lime.
International Delight is changing their packaging with a newer, more sophisticated logo (seen on the left).
The Dark Knight rises, and he drinks Dark Berry Mountain Dew? Whatever, but Mtn Dew is definitely playing up the Dark Knight and Gotham City.
I didn’t see this Mtn Dew, Dark Knight, and G Shock collabo at the grocery store, but if I did, I woulda grabbed it and seen if my Safeway Club Card gave me any discounts.
Grinds at Whole Ox Butcher & Deli
Had lunch at the Whole Ox Butcher & Deli but the darn WordPress iOS app ate my blog post. So anyways, here’s a late blog post and pictures of the onolicious grinds.
We ordered the dry aged burger, the roast beef sandwich, the chicken fried chicken, a side order of potatoes, and one pickle. I thought there would be leftovers. I was wrong. Okay, I lied. Technically there were leftovers – half of the dill pickle. But that leftover didn’t last the rest of the day.
The food is straightforward without too many extra components, accentuating the natural flavors. The interior decor is pretty Spartan without a whole lot of space for diners (the place looks bigger from the outside). Glad we beat the lunch crowd since the line of two customers quickly grew to about 10 as nearby workers flooded the place. Yeah, I’d definitely go back and try anything from their protein-rich menu.
SoundHound LiveLyrics, Cool!
Whoa, just discovered the LiveLyrics feature of the SoundHound app. How does it do that?
Showing the lyrics for a song is cool, but scrolling the lyrics line by line in step with the music is downright amazing!
Lana Del Rey vs Katy Perry
This is an interesting spin on pop music success. Katy Perry started her musical career as Katy Hudson, a gospel singer. She then underwent a pivot, changing her persona and her fortune.
Basically, Lana Del Rey followed a similar path to Katy’s but with differing results (for now anyways). The trailer park-living Lana is actually Lizzy Grant who has significant backing for her talents. Her past and musical start didn’t begin with YouTube but as a member of Interscope Records. After this was revealed, there was backlash against Lana though her Born to Die album is melancholically good.
I’m not sure why Katy’s change didn’t derail her popularity. Maybe it’s Katy’s can’t-be-taken-seriously image she portrays that is the big difference, personified with songs like California Gurls and Last Friday Night. For the seriousness and weight of Lana’s genre, a transgression in her storied past cuts deeper since it questions her pain and angst captured in her music.
Listen to Lana’s music, and you decide for yourself.
No H50 Nikes Spotted
Scanning pictures taken from the blessing ceremony for Season 3 of Hawaii Five-0, I didn’t see anyone wearing the custom designed Nike Free Trainer 5.0. These shoes needed an appearance at this event. 🙁
I’m hoping these kicks are seen sometime this season on or off air, preferably on air. C’mon H50, if you got custom kicks, you gotta book’em rock’em!
Love the Eco-i-Lite
Aw, I’m bummed that my original pair of Eco-i-Lite flashlights have both died. I love these rechargeable lights. Plop them into their inductive charging bays, and that’s it. When the power goes out, these light up themselves. Under normal conditions, the charging bays also act as night lights. The LEDs in the flashlights are bright (though not focused beams) and their batteries last for a long time.
Sadly, I can’t find them locally anymore. I swear I bought these at Costco or Sam’s Club a few years back and thought I saw them in the past few months. But neither big box retailer carries them anymore. Not sure why, but Amazon has them so I’m ordering a new pair.
The Volturi Are Coming for Us on November 16
The conclusion of the Twilight saga starts November 16, 2012.
The Kenmore Elite 72053 Refrigerator Is Magnetic!
Here I thought the stainless steel Kenmore Elite Model 72053 (31-cu ft) refrigerator did not have a magnetic surface. I am wrong, or partially wrong at least.
Out of pure randomness, we passed a magnet near the behemoth’s surface, and it stuck! But it’s only in the upper left corner where the ice maker is. And the magnetism isn’t strong. Don’t expect to attach large or heavy objects. Pictures and single sheets of paper are okay. Anything else starts sliding down the surface. “Magnetic stickers” work well though to get your refrigerator in the seasonal spirit.