Day 2 Uplifting the Present

On Day 2 Uplifting Our Present, Leialoha Kaʻula from KALO, who led one of the sessions I went to yesterday, was the moderator. The keynote was given by John Waiheʻe who was governor of Hawaiʻi from 1986 to 1994; Governor Waiheʻe was the 1st Native Hawaiian elected to that office & was instrumental in having ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi adopted as an official language of the state. There was also a panel discussion about The Journey Home with 4 kanaka maoli presenters who grew up on the continent & have returned to make Hawaiʻi their home. 

There was also a special world premiere preview of The Epic Tale of Hiʻiaka presented during the plenary session. The writers responsible for this new musical version of the ancient moʻolelo of Pele & Hiʻiaka provided an introduction to their work. When it is available on stage I would like to see the entire production. Below is a You Tube video of the musical as it was being worked on.

Writers Roslyn Catracchia & Patrick Makuakāne.

Amy Hānaialiʻi as Pele.

For Breakout Session 1, I went to Crafting an ʻĀina Aloha Regenerative Economy which was about the value of the koa tree (Acacia koa), both ecologically & business-wise. Moderated by Neil Hannahs,  panelists talked about how koa helps support the forest ecosystem & how sustainable harvesting strategies can help restore the diversity of the forest while providing opportunities for Hawaiian-owned businesses as well as producing musical instruments & other beautiful wood products. The session opened with Jason Jeremiah presenting about the state of the forests in Hawaiʻi. 

I believe the blue are lands owned by Kamehameha Schools.

He presented examples of each landscape type.

This is true of forests worldwide.

"Endemic" means they are only found here. Let that sink in. When they're gone, they're gone.

Jason also provided a timeline of significant events that have affected the forests in Hawaiʻi. Mosquitos have now been here for 200 years; I hope the current Wolbachia trials are successful in controlling mosquitos that are carrying the avian malaria that has had devastating effects on the endemic & endangered Hawaiian forest bird populations.

I live in one of the red patches.

Part of what Kamehameha Schools has been doing.

Jason's presentation was followed by presentations from Nick Koch, En Young, & Kali Watson.

Presentation by Nick Koch.

Presentation by En Young.

Presentation by Kali Watson.

The flooring in the cat room I just renovated is engineered wood with a beautiful koa surface layer.

I went to Breakout Session 2, The Kumulipo: A Cosmogonic Genealogy of the World, presented by Lilikalā Kameʻeleihiwa. This session was held in the Marysville Opera House, which I did not know even existed! It was amazing to hear the Kumulipo's telling of the origin of the Universe & life as we know it. 

I got stuck in the back, behind the pillars holding up the balcony.

Similar to yesterday, boxed lunches were provided to attendees who were heading out on the buses to the breakout sessions. Today the lunch was a sandwich; I chose the beef sandwich. Like yesterday, I was so intent on finishing it before I had to board the bus that I forgot to take a photo of it.  

I skipped the concert this evening; it was an additional event with a separate fee. Instead I went to dinner at Rum Thai Cuisine with Jairul, Ken & Dorothy. While there, we got a pleasant surprise when we found out our server was Yupa, who I originally met in about 2000 when she worked at Supee's Thai Kitchen. After Supee retired in about 2007, Yupa took over the renamed Yupa's Thai Cuisine. In about 2011 Yupa opened up the Rimping Thai Restaurant in Lynnwood. I not seen her since then. Tonight she was helping out at Rimping which is now her brother's restaurant. 

After dinner we all went to the Snohomish County Mycological Society meeting that was a couple blocks away. A lot has changed since I left; they are meeting in a new location, the only people I knew where the ones I went to dinner with, & there is a guy that apparently provides some hot dish made with mushrooms at every meeting. I did not try the dish because he used 5 or 6 different species of mushroom & I had only eaten 2 of them before. One of the things they taught us when I 1st started going to SCMS meetings was to try new mushrooms individually to determine whether you are allergic to them. So eating something that someone put a whole bunch of new mushrooms in is not a good idea. (FYI Saying "mushroom" is like saying "fruit". You might be OK with eating apples but you might be allergic to oranges.) 

At 8 am this morning I sent a message through Zillow to the realtor listed for my friend Louis' father's mobile home to set up an appointment to see it. At 11 pm tonight there was still no response.

The cats have now accepted me as the Bringer of Good Things to Eat. They no longer run & hide in the morning. Or the evening for that matter. They look at me, wondering why I am such a slow servant!

(L) Kadydid & Sam I Am.

Episode 35 of the eruption at Kīlauea is anticipated to start somewhere between the 17th & the 21st.