Pearl Harbor

 This is walking from the parking lot to the Pearl Harbor Memorial.  The actual memorial of the USS Arizona is the building on the far right in the first picture.

 After a movie, and a walk around some museums (pictures are after the Memorial) with information, we got on a little boat to motor out to the Memorial.

USS Missouri

As we dock at the USS Arizona Memorial

And this is what you see.

The top of the ship was cut off as 'unsightly' and scrapped.

View from the Memorial

I know this picture is odd and impressionistic.  But it's of the oil still seeping out of the wreck.  You can smell it because it's so strong.  They won't pump it out because it's mixed with human remains.

This is inside, looking down through a hole in the building.  I don't know if you can see it, but there were gold colored fish swimming around the wreckage.

 Names of the deceased engraved on marble.  The park ranger asked people to be quiet in this room.

The white marker on the right is also part of the Memorial.

Here are some snaps from the mainland museum.

If you were at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, you may have seen some of these people.

The code breakers were highly respected for their work aided by this contraption.

Finally, I took this picture mainly because (on the left) it points to Tripler Hospital, which is where YaoYao is stationed.  But, from the sign, Pearl Harbor really is the crossroads of the Pacific.

It Happened Again

Beep, beep, beep.    Silence, but for the TV.            

Beep, beep, beep.    Is it the TV? Where am I?

It's 5 a.m. and I'm sleeping (sitting up) on the couch with the TV on.  (Apparently, due to this cough, I can only sleep sitting up.  If in bed, I slide down to a horizontal position and wake up, coughing.)

Anyway ... it's the microwave.

Three days ago, I was dozing and being sick with this horrible sinus infection and I hear the beeps.  I go out into the kitchen and open and close the microwave.  Repeat this twice. Then, nothing.

The next night, I was at my computer and the microwave turns itself on and proceeds to spin.  This happened twice.  Later, forgetting that it's probably broken, I try to make tea: nothing.  So now my microwave is in the category of some people: It lights up, spins, makes a lot of noise, but doesn't do any work.

Back to today: I unplugged that sucker.

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Ling Ling potstickers make me happy.  And I'm about to eat the last one I have.  Will I brave the freezing rain to go to Costco in Springfield to get more??

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So I watching Stoop Chats on TV (MTV?? I don't know which channel.)  A woman, Greenberg I think, interviews and actor/celebrity sitting on a brownstone stoop.  On the very top step is her dog, Gracie.  I have to say, Gracie is the real star of these chats.  She is an enormous grey/white bull dog who usually just naps.  But in the interview with Alan Cumming (Eli of The Good Wife), Gracie seemed to be listening intently.

Then after a commercial (of course!) the next interview was with the main guy from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (you see, I'm no good with names on paper either!).  And they had a plate of cookies to go with their tea or coffee, or whatever they sip.  Well!  Gracie looked over at the plate of cookies and looked at "Mom" as if to say, "Uh huh.  And when will you remember to give me one?"  Her soundless antics watching every move, or potential move, of the cookies is hilarious.  I do believe they finally gave her one, but most of that has been edited out.

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I really think I would like to be a personal chef.  Yes, Mom, I know you shouldn't call yourself a chef unless you have had formal training, but that is the "new" industry term for someone who goes into a home and prepares several meals for a week.  That way, you do not have to have your own commercial kitchen approved by the  health department and, if needed, you can put the meals directly into the client's freezer.  You can work while they are at work.

I say "new" because the term and profession has been around for years. About five years ago, I did an internet search and there is a company who will train you to be a personal chef.  I'm sure you get a lot of good training, but it is wickedly expensive.  And I've always felt that people here are too frugal to pay for such a service.

And my cooking is like my blog: You either love it or ... you leave it.  I certainly cook a varied bunch of dishes, but not necessarily fancy.

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In answer to my question about how cruise ships get/produce so much water for drinking and showers, etc.:

The United States’ first known experience with desalination was in 1791 when Thomas Jefferson had a simple distillation process printed on the backs of all papers distributed on ships, giving sailors an option to produce drinking water in case of emergency.
The first desalination plant built in the U.S. occurred in the 1960’s at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. When water supplies to the naval base were cut off in retaliation for the Cuban Missile Crisis, the base became self-sufficient, desalinating 3.4 million gallons of water every day.


Today, cruise ships and submarines desalinate ocean-water to meet the needs of their passengers, but less than 1% of the U.S. population on land currently receives desalinated water to drink. Ocean-water desalination has been in practice in the U.S. for hundreds of years, though, and as the technology continues to improve, it is becoming easier and more affordable to produce desalinated ocean-water for everyday human uses.

Have I told you lately how much I love Google??

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Sail Away Party -- Sailing Away from Honolulu On Dec. 27, 2013

Sailing away from Honolulu

This is one of the many bands.  This married couple (he's in the way back, she's to the left) do Hawaiian music.  He teaches ukelele, she teaches the crocheted Hawaiian leis and beaded necklaces.

There was a continuously running video on the giant screen showing various dances and partying scenes.  One of the three pools is in the middle.

This is the bar at one end.  They had all kinds of flashing twinkling lights in with the bottles of liquor.  Needless to say, it did not show up on this picture.  After I took the picture, a very drunk, beautiful young blonde grabbed my arm and said, 'If you take a picture, you have to get a drink!' I pretended I don't drink, lol.

Here's the beginning of line dancing. They really got going after a while.

The floaties in the pool are baby dragons.

With my back to the party, I watched Honolulu recede.

They gave us streamers to throw!

It got pretty crazed. The streamers got hung up on lights strung across the top of the pool.  The lights were not on because Honolulu officials asked that they remain off to not annoy nesting shore birds.  Don't know what the birds thought of the high decibel music and pink lights ...

White Christmas lights in the trees of Honolulu

Aloha 2! 1-9-14

So, o.k., I couldn't make it for a full day at work. But I need more of Hawaii.  Can't do the day by day.  I'll pick a clump of pictures.  :)


WAIKIKI BEACH, HONOLULU  at sunset

(Sorry, you should look from the bottom up -- the pictures loaded backward!)

 My guide, Capt. YaoYao Zhu, US Army.

(It was about 76 F. and windy.)