Sriracha...

a shortage???

Oh No!

I heard on the news the other day that there might be a shortage of

Sriracha (that hot Thai chili sauce).

Here Sriracha has been around for a very long time.  You find it on the table

next to the shoyu and tabasco.

You put it on eggs, loco moco, noodles, pho...

pretty much everything.

Now a shortage because the neighbors around the plant where it's

made are complaining about the smell.

So the city sued the company.

It's funny...here it's pretty much a staple.

On the mainland, they seem to just have found it

and make all sorts of gourmet sounding things with it

sriracha aioli, sriracha marinade, sriracha ceviche, sriracha cocktails

and sriracha strawberry milkshake!

We like it straight out of the red bottle with the green top.

Think I better go stock up

A Million Moons...

over Waialua, Hawaii.

(Susie Okimoto photo)

sometimes I feel that the sunrises are more beautiful than the sunsets.

Waialua Elementary School~ Mural...

for the longest time I'e tried to take a photo of the 

beautiful painted mural that's in the Waialua Elementary Cafeteria.

One day last week my friend and former long, time teacher at the school, Heidi Luarca

posted a picture of it.  

It's beautiful!

I asked her if she knew the story behind it.

The artist was Ipo a me Kunani Nihipali.  

There was a group of students that worked on it also.

their names and the artist is at the bottom left corner of the mural.

It was painted in 1989

It depicts ancient Waialua before the mill, etc.  

Beautiful Mt. Ka'ala is towering above Waialua.

Even after  24 years, it's still as vibrant as always.

I'm glad Heidi got the perfect shot and the story behind it.

(Heidi Luarca photos)

Thanks again Heidi for the photos.

Ragnar...

 this sweet little baby boy was blessed yesterday.

Ragnar Steve Pollock

his parents Luke and Stephanie gave him a name befitting his Viking heritage...

He's the 7th grandchild of our friends Coco and Steve 

and he's a cutie.

had a fun Mexican potluck at the Pollock family compound

such a special time for this very special family

it was fun to have so many great Mexican dishes.

I made apple enchiladas...so easy and such a hit.

grandma Coco

getting the food ready.

yup, even then remove the shoes.

Congratulations again Stephanie and Luke~ he's beautiful.

Haleiwa~ Big Changes...

I was gone for 2 1/2 weeks and when I came home, I found most

of the East side of Haleiwa surrounded by wood.  A wooden

fence has been erected from before Haleiwa Eats, to Aoki's & Iwa Gallery.

skipping Matsumotos and Global Creations.

They haven't torn down Aoki's yet, but I'm sure that's coming.

I drove around to the back and this is what I saw...more fencing

and big machines and some huge, old trees gone.

I found that the sunflower field has all been fenced in...

the whole thing.

There's been planting there for years and never had a fence...now

seems to be that most of Haleiwa has been fenced to keep people out.

The lack of fencing and country feel is what we've always loved about 

the North Shore.

How long will it be before there's an ABC store out here?

Mt. Ka'ala Fire...

there's been a fire burning on Scholfield since last week.  

They'd gotten it out on Sunday, but then Tuesday night it started again.

In the middle of the night I had to close the windows and turn the fans

on because the smell was so bad.

This morning we woke up to a smoke haze that looked like fog.

All of Waialua was covered in the thick, smelly stuff.

We kept our doors and windows closed for most of the day because

it was so bad.

From in front of A-9 this morning

after school I drove up Kaukonahua to see exactly where it was.

at that point it was up at the blinking caution light

6 water dropping helicopters 

this is almost to the UH station (opposite side of street)

this evening it looks like it might be almost out, (I hope).

I has made for some pretty gorgeous sunset photos.

(Dale Yoshizu photo)

Ranch Camp, Waialua

Air Force Band Visits...

the Air Force Band paid a visit to 

Waialua Elementary School yesterday.

It was an our long concert of pop songs that all the kids knew.

it turned into a dance party!

 (Susie Okimoto photos)

what a great way to end the day...

with a surprise concert.

Hawaii Change...

fall has arrived....

at least at 6:41 am,

but it's nice to have to use a blanket

at night.

Bring on the cooler weather, sweater and soup!

 one of the very last things in the MH that needed to be redone was a small

bathroom with a single shower.

This room wasn't affected by the flooding, so nothing

had been done to it during the remodel, expect we did have the 

new flooring extended into there.

In March, when I was there I'd finally had enough of the green ivy

wallpaper and harvest gold shower.

fake gold fixutres

we'd tried getting the wall paper off at some point and

Geoff started putting in a new vanity, fixtures and light.

This is what he found when he took out the vanity...

the darn wall paper wasn't coming off that easily. Geoff went ahead with

his installation and we had to have someone come in a do something

about the wallpaper.

Hubby and I tried putting up new wall paper over the old...we got 1 wall

done and ripped it off...the wall was so uneven, it wasn't going to work.

we had someone come in a put a sealer over the old wallpaper.

Then this last unexpected trip finally led me to this...

I had the shower re-finished to beautiful white (like we had done 

in the remolded big bath

and we had a painter come in and add another sealer, drywall mud and

new paint.

Its really beautiful.  Just need a new switch plate cover and

the blind for the window and it's done.

It was a long process.

So glad that Geoff was able to do the demo on it and

install the new fixtures.

I'm also glad that the unexpected trip gave me the 

time I needed to get it completed.

The MH is really like a whole new house now.

Cinepolis...

hubby and I finally went to Cinepolis.  We'd been hearing about

this place everytime we're in SC.  Finally broke down and went.

Luxury is a good 1 word description.

It's not your usual movie experience that's for sure.

From the front lobby (huge) with it's seating areas to the decor it's

really first rate.

It's expensive...$17.00 for senior tickets! We're used to paying a third

of that in Laie.

the seating is probably what make it...

reclining leather seats.  Spaced two together with a little table between you and

the next two.  Lots of room to put your drink or plate down.

They have wait service that comes to your seat and take your order.  We were

surprised by the choice of items....even GF and Veg choices.  From pupu

type to full dessert.  They have a wine/liquor menu also.  We saw people

having wine and cheese trays or sandwiches.  

we got just our regular popcorn and Diet Coke, but they even had choices

on the popcorn.

It really was a fun experience.  We'll have to go again when we're here.

At home we'll stick to our little, local place, Laie Palms...makes

Cinepolis seem even more luxurious when we go again.

Pumpkin Patch...

we met the youngest grands at the pumpkin patch.

They were busy riding all of the fun kiddie rides.

This "pumpkin patch" has been around for years, it's in a mall

parking lot with straw covering the asphalt.

 Grey wanted to try his hand at a stuffed animal grab...

and he got one!

Emme waa so excited to ride in the tractor race with her brother...

First time he did it, Grey was driving NASCAR style, with his 

sister, and a low battery, he took it slower.

no pumpkins were bought on this visit,

they're going back in a couple of weeks with their coupons.

Pumpkin Craze...

I was at Trader Joes yesterday and realized that they had

a bit of a pumpkin craze going on.

I love pumpkin, but was shocked by the over 100+ items (the checker told me this)

 they had...

yup, even pumpkin scented body butter...

I felt the pumpkin overload by the time I left.

A New Cookbook...

I have a real weakness for cookbooks...over the years I've gone from

the classics (Joy of Cooking and Better Homes & Gardens) to a whole

bunch of favorite cook books made by groups or friends (the old Laguna

Niguel Stake cookbooks are still my well-used favorites).

So when I saw that Ann Romney had a cookbook of family

favorites and was donating the proceeds to charity, I decided I needed it.

I was making plans to go to Deseret Books in San Diego to buy it and a few other

things.  When I went online to check the times, I saw that they had a store closer 

and that Ann Romney was going to be signing books that very night!!!!

Neither one of the girls could go, so off I went.  Perfect timing, even getting lost.

The line was around the building, but by the time I'd shopped and paid for

them, there was a lull and only two people in front of me.

Mrs. Romney was so gracious.  We chatted about grandchildren

and how great they were.  Even laughing about also getting lost!

while sitting in the car looking at the book, up pulls  two big, black

cars with some very official looking men...and out she came and was off.

so today I'll be pouring over the beautiful photos and text and deciding what recipe to 

make first... may be "Mitt's Meat Loaf Cakes"!