365 Inspirations—354: Hawaiian Holiday Party

“A slight breeze cooled the Hawaiian spring air, swaying the branches of palm trees, which cast black silhouettes against the purple and orange colors of the twilight sky.”—Victoria Kahler

Why not mix it up a bit? Instead of having the traditional Christmas Party, why not have a Hawaiian Holiday Party?

Today is the day and guess what? It snowed today for the first time. Isn't that interesting. I'd been waiting for snow for so long and it decided to come on the day I'm thinking about sun and Hawaiian-like things.

Oh well, I went out and took some photos of the snow at our house this morning. Here they are:


After that, Yoon and I got to work in setting up for our Hawaiian-themed holiday party. Last Saturday, I bought some Hawaiian decorations online on Amazon. I'm a Prime member so I get free shipping in two days and these things were cheap.

I bought leis that we also used to decorate our fireplace and lamps, a really cool grass skirt for the food table, little umbrellas for my Blue Hawaii cupcakes and flip flop lights. Oh, and this cool banner of a surfer guy and hula girl that we stick our heads in. Here are some photos of my decorations:

Also, Yoon when out and bought a 5 pound pork shoulder for our Hawaiian pulled pork sliders.

Here's the recipe:

Pulled Pork Sliders

5lb pork shoulder
Two cans of root beer
Your favorite BBQ sauce
Hawaiian sweet rolls
coleslaw

Put the pork in a slow cooker, pour the root beer over the pork. Cook for about 6 hours or so.

Drain out root beer and with two forks, pull the pork apart. Place back in slow cooker with your favorite BBQ sauce and keep on warm.

Mix up a package of coleslaw with mayo, apple cider vinegar and a little mustard. I added some sliced apples and currants to mine. You can also put this on the sliders.

Slice slider rolls.

Guests can help themselves and make their own sliders.

I also made Blue Hawaii cupcakes:

Blue Hawaii Mini Cupcakes

Package of yellow cupcake mix
1/2 cup of shredded coconut
1/4 cup of crushed pineapple
eggs
oil

Make cupcakes according to package, but add in coconut and pineapple and less water.

Buttercream Blue frosting:

One stick butter
three cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
vanilla to taste
blue food coloring

Whip until smooth.

Frost cupcakes after they are cool. Place one maraschino cherry on each cupcake and stick a mini cocktail umbrella through each cherry.

Yoon and I love Hawaii so much that I wasn't surprised when he said he wanted to have a Hawaiian Holiday party! It's a great way to add warmth to the season.

Have you ever hosted a holiday party? Are you going to any holiday parties this year

365 Inspirations—325: Kona Kitchen Restaurant in Seattle Opened by Former Karate Kid II Actor

Mr. Myagi: "Trust the picture." 
Daniel: "How do I know if my picture is the right one?" Mr. Myagi: "If it comes from inside you, always right one."

We are creatures of habit, but it's so exciting to step out of our tiny box and enter another realm right in the neighborhood. Perhaps Hawaii is following us around. A few days ago, we flew from the Big Island and landed in the black hole known as Seattle, with sideways wind and pouring rain. I was NOT happy to be back to this and almost got on the next plane back to the land of aloha.

But Aloha decided to pay us a visit instead. I find it a little serendipitous to now have a few days of absolutely no clouds and SUN! Not only that, but we discovered the Kona Kitchen today, only minutes from Greenlake, where we walked this morning.

On a whim, I googled Hawaiian food on my phone and found that there was a restaurant very close to us.

"Let's go!" I said to  my husband.

I wanted to taste the island again. I wanted a little piece of it in my neighborhood.

And there it was. Kona Kitchen in all its glory and it's not a new restaurant at all.

This little place, which serves Kona beer (liquid Aloha, as they call it), musabi (spam sushi), Kalua pork and cabbage with rice and mac salad and many other Hawaiian favorites, has been in Seattle for over 13 years!

On the walls were lots of old Hawaiian memorabilia, a surf board, fake palm trees, old movie posters AND, get this:

The owner, Yuji Okumoto, was a star in Karate Kid II opposite Ralph Macchio. He played the no-mercy Chozen. He even has an action figure of himself still in the box. Originally from LA, Okumoto moved to Seattle because his wife is from this area and they decided to settle down here with their daughter. Okumoto has relatives in Hawaii and has always wanted to open a Hawaiian restaurant.

I found the place to be very Hawaiian and a bit kitschy. Its slight tackiness makes it cool and it's a really mellow place to hang out.

 They serve Kona coffee in various Hawaiian mugs that don't match. It would be great for a party as there is plenty of space and they serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and have a full bar. They even do catering.

I had lilikoi juice, Yoon had a Kona beer and we both got the Kalua pork and cabbage plate.We also shared a spam musabi.

The food was great and the prices are very reasonable. We will be back!

Have you ever discovered a new place right in your neighborhood or city that you did not know existed?

365 Inspirations—313: Waking Up in Paradise

"Love is a portion of the soul itself, and it is of the same nature as the celestial breathing of the atmosphere of paradise."—Victor Hugo

We arrived at 7pm last night and the sun had already set on the Kona Coast, but it was so nice to wake up in paradise! The man at the front desk upgraded us to a full ocean view room at the King Kamehameha Marriott. The photo here is the view we woke up to.

We meandered downstairs and had a lovely buffet breakfast out on the veranda and then a quick dip in the pool and jacuzzi.

 We head to Hilo today. We are going to Kalani for the Hawaii Yoga Festival. Both Yoon and I are featured presenters along with thirty other people at this event! We'll be over on the tourist-free side.

Right now we are going to enjoy our last few hours in Kona before we drive across island. More soon from the land of Aloha.

Have you ever flown to a place and woke up in pristine beauty? Where was it?

365 Inspirations—312: Kona, Hawaii

We made it to Kona. It was a long day of travel, but we were so happy to step off the plane into the nice warm sauna that it is outside. We got our rental car and headed to the King Kamehameha Marriott on the beach where we will stay for one night before heading to the Hawaii Yoga Festival on the Hilo side of the island.

After checking in, we decided to get a bite to eat and a drink at the poolside bar and grill. I instantly felt my entire body relax. I'm in Hawaii finally. The pace is different and I can't wait to see what is in store for us this time.

More soon from the land of Aloha!

Have you ever been to the Hawaiian Islands? What was your favorite memory of your visit?

365 Inspirations—172: Summer Solstice, Full Moon and Collaging

"You are a volume in the divine book
A mirror to the power that created the universe
Whatever you want, ask it of yourself
Whatever you're looking for can only be found
Inside of you."— Rumi

I'm still here and I seemed to have had a turn around. Yesterday I felt like I wanted to go back to the city and now I'm fully immersing myself in this solo experience.

I walked around the lake, meditated, almost finished my second book proposal, stared at the sunset out on the end of the dock and gazed at the moon. I heard frogs and crickets and people actually swimming in the distance. I guess that's one way to celebrate the first day of summer—go for a night swim! The water was like glass and I loved sticking my hand in the water to create perfect rings that got bigger and bigger as they moved away from me. I wandered up the driveway and sat for several minutes staring out at the full moon. All is so calm here.

I felt moved to collage. It's something I love to do. It's a great way to access the right side of the brain and just play! Many of the images of the collages I've made in the past have become real images in my life.

I haven't spoken to many people out here and suddenly while I was in deep concentration and focused on my art work, my cell phone buzzed. It hasn't buzzed much since I've been here. Hardly anyone calls and I guess that's good. It means I get more work done.

Just as I was pasting the Eiffel Tower onto my collage, my friend from my writing group texted me from France at 11:00pm. I found that very interesting!

Here's her text:

Hi Kathy, I've had limited internet, so haven't posted on FB. Here's a pic of the entry to a 12th Century village in the South of France that I explored yesterday.....


And here's the photo:

I feel like I'm there with her. I will be there in the not-so-distant future. I feel lots of traveling happening soon!

In my collage I also included the Big Island of Hawaii. I got an e-mail today from someone there. I'll let you know what that's all about later. Lots of manifesting happening out here at this lake house. I feel good things on all fronts.

Happy first day of summer everyone, hope you enjoyed the solstice and are enjoying the full moon. I'm headed outside again for some star and moon gazing before bed.....good night!


Did you do anything special for summer solstice or the first day of summer?

365 Inspirations—136: Channeling Pele, The Goddess of Volcanoes

Pele, Goddess of Volcanoes, by Herb Kane

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us."—Albert Schweitzer

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd feel a connection to a goddess. I'm not really even sure what that means. However, since visiting the big island of Hawaii, I've had many dreams and thoughts about Pele, the goddess of volcanoes.

I feel like she is with me daily. Even though she is depicted in human form, I'm not really sure she can be considered human. She is a force of nature.

I walked on the her lava late at night and in the distance I saw fire spewing out on the edge of a cliff high above the sea.

This volcano, Kilauea, is still very active.

I feel a strong urge to return to this land.

I don't know why.

I feel I have more to learn there. Something is calling me to make a bold move and just go.

Pele is thought to be the goddess of creativity and change, two things that are quite dominant in my life right now. I don't really know if I'm channeling Pele, or she is channeling me. I don't know why I keep having dreams and thoughts about this place.

The Big Island of Hawaii, particularly the Hilo side where I spent quite a bit of time on my trip, feels very sacred. This part of the island, near Kapoho, feels untouched and very pure to me. In this area, I swam with dolphins, sat in a natural pool that was heated by the volcanic rocks beneath it and sank my feet into a black sand beach.

There, I felt I was finally waking up to a very deep part of myself. A part I had forgotten or dismissed. Perhaps there is a whole side to me that I've yet to get to know.

Me at La Push, Washington

I'm ready to know that part of myself. I'm ready to let the flame within me grow.

Do you feel a connection to any particular place or even to a God, goddess or deity? How have these things appeared in your life? Have you made changes in your life because of your experiences with these things?

365 Inspirations—112: Breaking Patterns and Feeling What's Right

Observatory at Mauna Kea

"The sky is closer than I've ever seen it, ready to spill its secrets."—Peter Fish

I'm a night teacher, so I tend to get up a little later than most people. I usually eat breakfast with my husband at 8:00AM or so. We have a nice, leisurely breakfast together. It's my favorite part of the day. While most people are rushing out the door and barely have time for a bite to eat, my husband is often humming in the kitchen to a song on the radio while cooking up eggs or slicing fruit and making coffee.

Sometimes I'm the breakfast person, but he usually wanders into the kitchen before I do in the morning, so he becomes the breakfast person.

Not today.

Something happened today.

I woke up at 7:00AM wide awake. I quietly got dressed and told my husband I was heading out for a walk around Greenlake, Seattle's equivalent of Central Park, and that he was welcome to come with me.

He said, "No, that's okay. You go ahead. I've got class at 9:45AM." I never miss breakfast with my husband, but the lake, sun and water were calling me quite loudly and I was listening.

I got to the lake and a huge smile spread across my face when I saw a gaggle of Canadian geese and their babies. It was so precious and something I rarely see.

At Greenlake in Seattle this morning

I walked at a brisk pace and found myself humming "Home" by Mumford and Sons. Before long, I burst into song, and didn't even seem to recognize how loud I was. I sang this:

"Hold on, to me as we go
As we roll down this unfamiliar road
And although this wave is stringing us along
Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home

Settle down, it'll all be clear
Don't pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found

Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home..."


This was my theme song while walking and it made so much sense to me at this time in my life when nothing is making sense. I'm starting to break patterns. I'm just doing what feels right.

I looked down on the path in front of me and could have sworn I saw a Hawaiian lei just waiting for me to put it on. It turned out to be a cherry blossom branch. Were my eyes playing tricks on me?

When I got home, I flipped through my new Sunset Magazine for May and right before putting it down I flipped to the back page which has a picture of millions of stars and all the telescopes at the observatory on top of Mauna Kea, on the big island of Hawaii.

Peter Fish, the author of the story, said, "The sky is closer than I've ever seen it, ready to spill its secrets."

I'm listening....I'm REALLY listening and feeling this time. I am ready to discover those secrets!

Have you recently done something you don't usually do because it felt right?

365 Inspirations—81: Gardens

"No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth, and no culture comparable to that of the garden."—Thomas Jefferson

Hilo is a place that bursting with life in the garden area. It's hard to contain all the sights and sounds of this place. It's overwhelming at times.

My husband is conducting a yoga retreat on the Big Island of Hawaii. We are in Hilo, Hawaii. Our place is located close to all these amazing thermal snorkeling pools. They are very warm and perfect for swimming!

This afternoon we visited the Botanical Gardens in Hilo. In the 70s, a couple bought a large plot of land that was wild and a bit trashy and, over the course of several years, groomed it into an outstanding botanical park right on the ocean.

Some of the plants simply didn't seem real to me. I felt like I was in a Sci Fi movie walking through the park. Hilo has a primal feeling. It feels like how the earth must have been before humans were introduced.

The gardens here have inspired me to do some gardening myself when I return home, but for now I'm going to enjoy all the sights and sounds of this place!

Do you have a green thumb? Do you like to garden?

365 Inspirations—80: The Big Island

"Hawaii is not a state of mind, but a state of grace."—Paul Theroux

This evening we all walked down the street, through a tree tunnel and out onto pumice rocks and geo thermal pools with the roaring ocean in the distance. We sat down on the hot rocks and meditated in the moonlight. Suddenly I felt the entire moon fill me up. There was a circle around the moon, like a big aura and the stars were so clear.

We are out here in the middle of the ocean on The Big Island of Hawaii. Everything is lava rock in Kona, but Hilo is bursting with life—a rebirth if you will. Everything is humming and buzzing and growing. I feel like we are nestled in a great big jungle. Our house is like a tree house and life is pulsating here. The sights and sounds are overwhelming and heavenly all at the same time.

We've forgotten what day it is, what time it is, what month it is...we've forgotten about plans. We follow the flow. This place does something to you. Makes you stop and breathe and rest and tune in.

The Big Island is calling me. It's telling me to stay for a while. It's telling me it has some stories to share. And I want to listen...........

Is there a place that calls to you?

365 Inspirations—79: Plumeria

"Plumeria flowers represent spring and new life. They are also associated with beginning or birth of something. This flower has a special meaning in the Hawaiian culture as it symbolizes everything good in it. It also stands for paragon or flawlessness."—from Buzzle.com

I'm in Kona and the smell of Plumeria and other tropical flowers are everywhere! No Internet here now, so I'll type more when I find Internet! Typing a blog post on an iPhone is hard....more soon!

What is your favorite flower?