i too can cook stuff...well sorta...

Today I realized that my sister-in-law, Kristie, and I are the worst shopping duo ever. Unlike the efficient pair Aimee and I are, Kristie and I took 2 hours to grocery shop! And we even forgot to pick up her prescription!

Oh well, we did have a nice dinner at Nana's.

I cooked...well...sorta.

I made my "famous" chili, "famous" because it's the only thing I really "cook." This time I used red and yellow bell peppers instead of green beans. I also attempted to "bake." I thought, hmmm, what would be nice with chili besides rice? Aha! Corn bread!

Well, for one, the pan was 1" square too large, so the bread was about .25" high, and I left it in too long...hey, I was just following the recipe, I just didn't realize the pan was too big.

Lucky for me, the corn bread was still good. Nana ate too much of both chili and corn bread, which I found a good thing as she needs to keep up her energy.

stuff from my 1st day in Hilo

In Hilo on my 3rd official day of "vacation." My sis-in-law picked me up from the airport with my nephews in tow. Shosei (3 y.o.) was home sick from school and Choki (11 mo. old) is home cause his sitter is sick. Boy, it never fails, these kids (or someone they know) are always sick everytime I visit.

Sick or not, these kids are the cutest and funnest (even when throwing tantrums...because I'm just the aunty) EVER!!! They also provide me with fun stuff to shoot.

(1) Easter came early for Shosei as he found the bags of Easter goodies his mom bought. (2) The cutest pair of pants ever! Who can resist butt-graphics?!? (3) Choki didn't like the fact that he was being exploited for his pants. (4) My mom's collection of tiny plants. (5) Shosei's newest LEGO creation, he was so proud! (6) Some how one of the toy dinosaurs made a break for it and ended up back in his "jungle home."

cultural stuff

George and I spent today first visiting Allison Izu (Song) at her event at Pearl, hoping to buy a new pair of her awesome premium jeans, but alas, no luck in the style I wanted.

Then it was off to Bishop Museum. We both haven't been there in a very long time and was surprised at how big it is, even with one of the main halls closed for renovation. Unfortunately they aren't able to offer the Family Sunday discount due to cuts in their sponsorship, but thank goodness for kama‘aina rates.

The main building is so beautiful, even the bougainvillea (which I really think is one of those "rubbish" plants) were gorgeous!

They have a small contemporary art display where I found Maika‘i Tubbs' artwork the most interesting (birds shaped from melted cassette tapes). Maika‘i states "Recycling and re-purposing things challenge and enable me to problem-solve."

Currently they have an Animation featuring Cartoon Network exhibit which was fun, even the kids weren't that out of control ... no I take that back, there was a group of pre-teens that came in just as we were leaving who were kinda rowdy.

We also visited the science building for the first time. It was fun, more natural science stuff, volcanoes, insects, tidal waves, etc.

All in all, we didn't expect to spend that much time there ... and wouldn't you know it, we were there for over 4 hours! We had to have lunch there because I was hungry and starting to get grumpy. I should have took a picture of our $5 lunch (hot dog, chips and drink).

stuff in the ground

Yesterday was movie night at Aimee and Oscar's (we watched "Milk" and I showed Oscar how good popcorn with arare and M&Ms is, see last photo). I got there a bit early and Oscar was on a mission to clean coins that they found in a hole in their back yard. Apparently the previous tenant stashed coins in this hole ... what a place to keep your piggy bank. The oh-so-clever Oscar even made himself a make-shift sifting contraption for easy-cleaning.

pho friday stuff

Today, my 2nd day of "vacation," was spent hanging out at my friend Teresa's home in Kaneohe. Must be nice to come home to the Ko‘olau Mountains in your front yard everyday. Anyway, her mom (who's from Vietnam) made YUMMERS homemade Pho (Vietnamese noodle soup). So good!

I got there a little late, so I missed the cooking lesson, but did take photos of the finished dish.

On the way to Kaneohe, I was so surprised how different the sky was compared to yesterday's super bright day. Even Honolulu was brighter and sunnier today. As soon as I went over the Pali it was totally overcast and drizzly, though that seems to be the norm everytime I go to Kaneohe.

scenic stuff

Today was my first official day of "freedom," (i.e., laid off due to downsizing being masked as vacation as I wait to start my new job in a few weeks).

Not knowing what to do with myself since I'm so used to working all day long during the week, a friend, who's a freelance writer, and I went to Kailua for lunch. We took the long way there via Waimanalo side.

Looking over at the beach, I made a split second decision to pull over and snap some photos, you know, as we had no agenda and it's fun to do something impulsive. And it doesn't fail, there is the local beverage box discarded on the side of the road...haha!

The day was super clear, sunny and mild.

When we got to Kaiula we ended up at a nice Mexican restaurant. I even contemplated ordering a margarita, but opted for the diet coke (I used up my impulsive card by pulling over to take pictures of the beach).

Had a burrito, and then for desert we had fried bananas ... YUM!!! It even came with a mini Mexican flag toothpick! So cute!

recycled bag stuff

So I came upon a new blog www.lazyenvironmentalist.com in order to "Discover easy, stylish and super convenient ways to green your lifestyle with Josh Dorfman, green entrepreneur, media personality, author of The Lazy Environmentalist. No guilt-trips. Never any sacrifice. Josh offers insights into cutting-edge products and services, emerging trends, and innovation underway to bring our lifestyles into balance with nature."

I'm totally the bag lady when it comes to buying those reusable bags at Safeway, Whole Foods, etc., whoever has a cute one at the moment. I think at the moment I have about 12 bags and 1 hot/cold one.

To my surprise and delight Angry Little Girls has a bag that screams "gotta have!" with it's sassy saying "Shop with a reusable bag, bitch!" AWESOME!!!

Now I can go to the farmers market (with all the other yuppie-granola-wannabes) proud to be loud!