The Honolulu Star-Advertiser recently released their ballot for their popular “Hawaii’s Best People’s Choice Awards” for 2013. One of the categories is “Moving Service” and, as the lil’ bro to the best big sister around (Minna Sugimoto), I felt it was my obligation to help her company get votes for this contest. 🙂
Not sure if they are still printing the ballots, but if you can find one (this one was in Monday’s paper), please do me a solid and vote for Island Movers under the Moving Service category of this Hawaii’s Best contest! I am told that they are accepting votes postmarked today as the last day (no online way to vote as far as I know), so please vote, vote, vote! Much mahalos!
Please vote for Island Movers in the Moving Service category of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Hawaii’s Best People’s Choice contest!
* VH07V was selected as one of only 10 crafters to get into this year’s SPAM Jam festival in Waikiki taking place next month (Saturday, April 27 @ 4pm-10pm). Come on down and visit us at da booth k?
Hawaii Self Storage‘s Kapolei West location (2009 Lauwiliwili St. Kapolei, HI 96707) has a regular Flea Market that takes place Fridays & Saturdays from 9am to 2pm. Call 808-682-0333 for more info or click on “Events & Auctions” on the Kapolei West Hawaii Self Storage web site to view the upcoming schedule.
Flea Market Fridays & Saturdays at Hawaii Self Storage!
Well, my baby has finally arrived. It took 1 whole year (again), but I pushed and I pushed and am ready to deliver it to you today. Hope you can make it down to Rice Fest at Ala Moana’s Magic Island today between 10am-6pm.
Check out the below for an hour by hour breakdown of the day’s festivities including celebrity & chef cooking demonstrations, “Riceipe” cooking competitions, live entertainment by Jody Kamisato, Bruce Shimabukuro and a Taiko Drum Performance by Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko Hawaii, a SPAM® Musubi Eating Contest, and a Guinness World Recordâ„¢ attempt to create the Largest SPAM® Musubi in the world!
12:30pm-1:30pm – “Riceipe” Cooking Competition – Professional Division (including returning champ Hideaki “Santa” Miyoshi from Tokkuri Tei, Executive Chef Wayne Hirabayashi from the Kahala Hotel & Resort, Executive Chef Hector Morales from the Turtle Bay Resort, and retired chef Kent Thompson).
“Riceipe” Cooking Competition – Judges (11:30pm-1:30pm) – Food experts John Heckathorn from Honolulu Magazine, Nadine Kam from the Honolulu Star Advertiser and Melissa Chang and Mari Taketa from Nonstop Honolulu.
All Day (10am-6pm)
* Rice Donation Center – Donate your brown rice to Lanakila Meals on Wheels and white rice to Hawaii Foodbank
* Guinness World Record™ attempt to create the Largest SPAM® Musubi
* Live Tweetup/Scavenger Hunt – Compete in this Tweetup/Scavenger Hunt for a chance to win great prizes!
* Rice Education Booth – Learn all about Rice from the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Professor of Nutrition Dr. Maria Stewart, and
* The Keiki Zone – coloring contest hosted by members of the 2011 Narcissus Festival Court from 10am-2pm, bouncies, balloons and fun from Douglas Odani, Crystal Face Painting & Tattoos by Lei Crystal Tattoos, and games from JMJ Gaming.
Sorry peeps. Had one shmall kine family emergency earlier tonight so I wasn’t able to work on this week’s WIH game for y’all (it’s 3:24am as I type this). 😦 Everything is OK for now so no worries, but going have to postpone “Where In Hawaii” for this week. Apologies yo. Hopefully, these bad luck Tuesdays will go away soon. 😦
In the meantime, here are a few things to help pass your time this week:
Follow da sis on Twitter!: Da big sis literally just joined Twitter and she’s already tweeting more often than me. Haha! Follow her for crime/news/traffic related updates (and personal ones too)!
Like da sis on Facebook!: From resisting technology to having a Facebook and Twitter account all in like 2 months… her progress is quite impressive. Chicky-check it out k?
Lemme know if ya wanna play Fantasy Football: Let me know if you want to join our annual WWE Fantasy Football league this year.
Yeah, I know. Dis post is more than a week overdue, but bruddah ova hea had to sift through 635 photos from all ova da creation (Twitter/Twitpic, flickr, Facebook, etc.) from like 20 different peeps. Finally whittled it down to a little over a hunny in the hopes of giving you a little glimpse into the event that absolutely consumed my life for the last year or so.
For those who don’t know, I am the co-founder of an event called Rice Fest , an event that I am very passionate about, and one that I can honestly say Hawaii wants/needs. Let’s face it. We love our rice here in Hawaii. The plan is to put the Rice Fest on every September (in line with National Rice Month), which we started at our inaugural event last week Saturday (September 11, 2010) at the Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace. Below are the scenes from that day. Mahalo to everyone for the support!
(A big mahaloz to our sponsors/partners: Diamond G Rice, Oceanic Time Warner Cable, Lanakila Pacific, Vacations Hawaii, HPE Live, and the Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace!)
Due to a tent mix-up, the ladies of the 58th Cherry Blossom Festival Court were out in the hot sun for part of the day. A big mahalo to all of them for being such troopers!
Also in the Keiki Zone, University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Department of Human Nutrition, Food, and Animal Science educator Dr. Maria Stewart shared her current research in an interactive and educational display entitled “Nutrition for Everybody: Learn How Rice Promotes a Healthy Body”.
Mahaloz to all of our #RICEHUNT participants: @amisan34 (and friend), @bitachu (and friend), @biznaz, @photolulutv, @princesstara459 (and friend), @emichan58 (and friend), and @lauriecicotello, and congratulations to @bitachu for winning the grand prize that included gifts from VG Addict, OhanaPCS, TNBLive, and Oceanic Time Warner Cable. Special thanks to @octobersoldier for coordinating the game and prizes! Awesome job!
And then, it was time for the Rice Fest to officially begin! 102.7 Da Bomb’s Bruddah Bryan gets us started…
Soon it was time for the Lung Kong Physical Culture Club to bless our event with good luck via a traditional lion dance. I was told to stand in front while the lions start on me. Love love LOVE this cool shot from @PhotoluluTV that totally captured the moment!
One of my favorite events of the day was the “Riceipe” Cooking contest that pitted 5 professional chefs against each other to see who could make the best dish that incorporated rice. Fun, adrenaline pumpin’, exciting stuffs!
The participating chefs were Chef Hideaki “Santa” Miyoshi from Tokkuri-Tei, Chef Kendall Uyehara from HMSHost, Chef Robert Denis from Don Ho’s Island Grill, Chef Matthew Naula from RumFire, and Chef Colin Hazama from Kauai Grill.
I’m still trying to convince him that “Sugimoto Risotto” has a much better ring to it. 😉
Meanwhile the judges took their places on stage and prepared to feast on some ono kine (rice) grindz! Our judges were Star-Advertiser Food Critic Nadine Kam, Twitter Goddess and all around foodie Melissa Chang (@Melissa808), Professional Baker Ed Morita (@NctrnlBst), and Diamond G Rice’s Harrison Wong.
I was unfortunately running around so I was unable to capture the dish, but FYI, it was “Slow cooked New Zealand King Salmon” with miso yuzu broth, young ginger, soft tofu, and crispy jasmine rice… A dish Chef Colin serves at his Kauai Grill restaurant.
A big mahalo to everyone who came out to support our first event. Thank you to our hard working staff and volunteers (especially Lincoln Jacobe and my day-to-day partners in crime: Umma Kayvalyam, Harold Su and my wife Mai). Thank you to the media for all of your coverage, including Oceanic Time Warner Cable, Hawaii News Now’s Sunrise, KITV4 This Morning, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, The Nikkan Sun, KUMU, Nonstop Honolulu and all those who talked/blogged about us in Hawaii’s Social Media space (@Melissa808, @ParkRat, @Mel808, @RickNakama, @sarakata, @PhotoluluTV, @fashiontribe, @octobersoldier, @LanakilaPacific, @randi808, @pacificsoul, @Nctrnlbst, @amisan34, @bitachu, @biznaz, @princesstara459, @emichan58, @lauriecicotello, @tweetpea, @haboolani, @HawaiiIRL, @hnlmark, @strobie, @SSquire, @MikeSumida, @ChrisHall78, @JKuroiwa, @atmarketing, @Living2Shop, @theodene, and more! Sorry, I know I’m missing a lot!). Mahaloz to @PhotoluluTV, @ParkRat, Kiman Wong, Todd Masui, Tyson Yamada, and more, for taking photos and letting me “borrow” some for this blog. 😛
Mahalo to our sponsors and partners Diamond G Rice, Oceanic Time Warner Cable, Lanakila Pacific, Vacations Hawaii, HPE Live, the Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace, and Rob Yunich and the rest of the USA Rice Federation team. Thank you to all of our vendors: Arturo’s Hot Sauce in Hawaii, Big City Diner, Don Ho’s Island Grill, Dr. Maria Stewart (University of Hawaii at Manoa Professor of Nutrition), Eastern Food Center, Hawaiian Kine Seasonings, Himalayan Kitchen, Island Taste, KATS SUSHI, Lanakila Pacific, Leonard’s Malasadas, Mobile Gamer Guys, OISHI-GENMAI – GIC JAPAN, Pelekunu’s Teri Sauces, Primo Sushi, Thai Kitchen, Soul Patrol, SNOW |F|A|C|T|O|R|Y|, and Sweet Charlotte, and our entertainers: 102.7 Da Bomb’s Bruddah Bryan, Cookin’ With Cutty’s Chef Barry “Cutty” Cutler, Hawaii News Now’s Stephanie Lum, Kai Market’s Darren Demaya, KITV4’s Lara Yamada, Kauai Grill’s Chef Colin Hazama, Hawaii News Now’s Minna Sugimoto, Ernie Loo and the Lung Kong Physical Culture Club, Heart & Soul (and Kalei Gamiao), the Ukulele Hale Keiki, Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko Hawaii under the direction of Sensei Akemi Martin, Kapena (Kelly Boy, Kalena, and Lilo De Lima), Jonathan Murai and the 58th Cherry Blossom Festival Court, and Bubbles Duh Clown.
Thank you to our SPAM musubi eating contestants and our “Riceipe” Cooking contestants: Don Ho’s Island Grill’s Chef Robert Denis, Kauai Grill’s Chef Colin Hazama (again!), Tokkuri-Tei’s Chef Hideaki “Santa” Miyoshi, RumFire’s Chef Matthew Naula, and HMSHost’s Chef Kendall Uyehara. Mahalo also to our Starwood contacts: Candice Lee Kraughto, Jocelyn Elfstrom, Joanie Matsumoto, and Chaunce Lovett, among others. Mahaloz to the “World Wide Ed” community for reading this far and always showing your support in whatever I do. I know I’m forgetting a lot more, so thank you to anyone and everyone who helped make the inaugural Rice Fest a reality. See you guys next year! 🙂
I know, I know, I’ve been pimpin’ this event out for the last month or so, and you’re probably tired of hearing about it, but for those who haven’t heard about it yet (or for those who ignored my last uku million or so notices), I figgah one last push wouldn’t hurt right? Hehe!
Anyway, rather than doing something standard like simply asking you to come and support a brutha and check it out, I thought that giving you the details of the event (with photos!) might be an easier sell. LOL! So without further ado… Here ya go!
12:00pm – Rice Fest (at the Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace) starts, hosted by 102.7 Da Bomb’s Bruddah Bryan
3:00pm-4:00pm – “Riceipe” Cooking Competition – Professional Division (including Don Ho’s Island Grill’s Robert Denis, Kauai Grill’s Colin Hazama, Tokkuri-Tei’s Hideaki “Santa” Miyoshi, RumFire’s Matthew Naula, and HMS Host’s Kendall Uyehara).
All Day (12pm-8pm)
* Live Tweetup/Scavenger Hunt – Compete in this Tweetup/Scavenger Hunt for a chance to win great prizes!
* Rice Passport Game – Complete the Rice Fest Passport for your chance to Win a trip to Vegas!
* Rice Education Booth – Learn all about Rice in our educational booth
* Rice Donation Center – Donate your rice to Lanakila Pacific’s Meals on Wheels program and
* The Keiki Zone – coloring contest hosted by members of the 58th Cherry Blossom Festival Court from 12pm-4pm, balloons and fun from Bubbles Duh Clown, and games from the Mobile Gamer Guys!
The real title was actually “Fave Friday: Comedians” for dis one, but I just had to… 😉 (see bottom if you have no idea what I’m talking about).
In Wednesday’s blog, some of you peeps started talking about old school joints like Gems or Holiday Mart/Daiei, etc., and it made me want to blog about it. Unfortunately, I beat myself to the punch. LOL! Shmall kine forgot that I already did um befo’! *blush*
Instead, let’s do a somewhat newsworthy one. Comic legend Bill Cosby is in town for a couple of shows this weekend. Is he one of your faves? Let’s list ours up. Hurr’s mine:
* Jim Gaffigan – my all time favorite! Wifey bought us tickets when he came to town. HILARIOUS! He also seemed like a nice guy too when we met him to take photos after the show.
* Dave Chappelle – a close second! I would sooooo go watch him if he came here. I’m proud to say that I was his fan way before he blew up. 8)
* Ellen DeGeneres – smart, witty, and most importantly funny! Seems genuine too! Loves it!
* Chris Rock – edgy, funny, a little racist though. LOL! Love his comedy specials!
* Martin Lawrence – ditto the above. Wonder what he’s up to these days. Mah-innnn!
* Dane Cook – used to be one of my fave plays on my iPod. Popularity seems to have majorly plummeted(?)…
* Brian Regan – old school comic that used to make me laugh on Letterman.
* Paula Poundstone – another old school comic. Actually dragged some friends to go watch her when she was doing a show at Pipeline. LOL!
Tanioaka’s Interview On a side note, I’m scheduled to meet with the good folks at Tanioka’s on Monday for a short interview for Part II of my up-coming “Poke Paradise” article (read Part I here). If you have any questions you’d like me to ask, lemme know! Also, if you have any suggestions on what poke you think I should try from there, let me know too!
Talk to me!
* Post your fave comic(s) below.
* Please help me congradumalate my sis for her good play at the Sony Open Pro-Am da odda day. She played with David Toms, and, from what she tells me, he’s a real southern gentleman type. Gotta love those celebs/athletes who keeps it real! Goooo David! (Read her blog about it here.)
* Again, if ya gots any questions you’d like me to ask to the Taniokas, holla!
* Any American Idol chatter out dea? I really liked Jermaine Sellers (for his voice), Skiibo Ski (for his personality), and most importantly, General Larry Platt (for his lyrical geniusness!).
Shoots! Have a great weekend y’all! See ya on the flipside!
So there’s a new movie coming out called The Box. Much like the 1993 movie Indecent Proposal, someone is offered $1 million in exchange for doing something questionable. Here’s the plot summary for The Box:
Norma and Arthur Lewis, a suburban couple with a young child, receive a simple wooden box as a gift, which bears fatal and irrevocable consequences. A mysterious stranger, delivers the message that the box promises to bestow upon its owner $1 million with the press of a button. But, pressing this button will simultaneously cause the death of another human being somewhere in the world; someone they don’t know. With just 24 hours to have the box in their possession, Norma and Arthur find themselves in the cross-hairs of a startling moral dilemma and must face the true nature of their humanity.
So today’s Fun Day Monday topic is about this premise. WWYD (What Would You Do)?
Politically and principle-wise, I can easily tell you that I would never stoop to such levels no matter how much money I am given, but until I’m put in that position (like Norma and Arthur Lewis were), I really can’t answer for sure. Like in that Batman movie (The Dark Knight was it?), where the two ferries were pitted against each other. Oh, here’s a button that blows up the other ferry. Push it first and your ferry will be saved. And neither ferry pushed the button! WTH? Now that’s willpower! Hehe!
In the comment area, post your thoughts on this moral dilemma. Also, what you would do if faced with the situation in The Box. Or how about Indecent Proposal? Or even the Dark Knight one. Holla atcho boy.
* BTW, the sister (Minna Sugimoto) is starting her new blog today at blogs.HawaiiNewsNow.com/Minna. Please support her by visiting it and sending some love in the comments section. Tanks ah! 🙂
And… we’re… back… Let’s put a wrap on all this wedding talk with Part II of my Wedding Day Recap. It’s been what, almost a month, and I’m still blabbing away about it. Sorry!
Like before, we’re using Noreen’s day-of Twittering as the framework for this post. Enjoy!
What a nice cake! 12:23 PM Nov 22nd from TwitPic
Cherry Blossom cake
Ed’s Comments: Cherry blossom cake went with our Asian/Japanese theme.
Good food at Sheraton Waikiki. Liked the soup, especially on a rainy day. 12:30 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Awww what a cute couple! 12:36 PM Nov 22nd from TwitPic
Now for the best part — dessert! 12:37 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
@worldwideed‘s mom is singing a traditional Japanese song about love for the couple. She’s a good singer! 12:47 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Mamasan singing “Ai No Sanka”
Ed’s Comments: Didn’t think I’d be as touched as I was. Much love ma!
It’s like watching a professional singer. She’s awesome! 12:49 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Ed’s Comments: Thanks ‘reens! She was supposed to be a pro back in the day in Japan, but chose family. Thanks or I may never be here today… Hehe!
Now for intro of family. Minna Sugimoto, @worldwideed‘s sister, is co-emcee and speaking in Japanese. 12:54 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Bruddah Bryan and Minna Sugimoto
Ed’s Comments: Thanks big sis!
Bruddah Bryan is scoping out the single ladies in the bridal party 12:57 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Groomsman’s advice to bride- don’t listen to @worldwideed! 1:02 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
What a jerk! 😛
Ed’s Comments: And I consider him a friend… *sigh*
Learning a lot about @worldwideed. Something about an inflatable doll named Nani??? 1:06 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
More jerks!
Ed’s Comments: The worst part was that I couldn’t defend myself. Haha! “Nani,” just so you know, was a gag birthday gift and I brought it home to the boys as a practical joke. Oh brother!
Bruddah Bryan is trying to play matchmaker for bridal party 1:07 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Matchmaker Bryan
Ed’s Comments: Quote of the day, “Single single or boyfriend single?”
Our table is making our own jokes. Must be the beers talking. 1:11 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
@worldwideed is apparently an attention whore, according to best man. “Puppydog stuck in human body” 1:18 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon in reply to worldwideed
Ed’s Comments: Perhaps I should reconsider my pick for best man. 😉
@worldwideed apparently also has a light blue security blanket. Love best man’s speech! 1:19 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon in reply to worldwideed
All these guys are jerks aren’t they? *grin*
Ed’s Comments: Lies, all LIIIIIEEEEESSS! Hehe!
Banzai toast time! Raise em up! 1:23 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
That was the most spirited Banzai toast ever! 1:25 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Props to Dave!
Ed’s Comments: Dave’s self-proclaimed “Best Banzai speech in the history of all weddings!”
It’s like Battle of the Banzais! 1:32 PM Nov 22nd from TwitPic
Props to B.I.L. Lee!
Noreen’s view of Lee
Ed’s Comments: Not to be outdone, Dave friend (and my brother-in-law) Lee does his version.
Time for Kagami Biraki or opening of sake barrel. I’m Japanese and never heard of this before so 1st time for me. 1:28 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
1-2-3 YOISHO!
Ed’s Comments: Oh yeah! You heard it here first! As Borat would say, “Very Niiiiice!” ‘Twas a big hit with the guests, especially the sake drinking part. LOL!
Bouquet toss time. Love how they let it drop on ground. 1:53 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Bouquet Toss!
Ed’s Comments: You could tell they wanted it, but the ladies tried to ack like they didn’t. It was cute.
Garter toss time. @worldwideed pulled Granny panties off Maile! 1:56 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Gettin’ In Thurr!
Ed’s Comments: Love the reaction of Jon and Ann in the back!
@worldwideed is singing to Maile. So sweet and a little off-key. 2:00 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Why are Jon and Justin laughing?
Ed’s Comments: Haha! I don’t know what performance you were listening to ‘reens, but it surely wasn’t mine! *grin* Nah, it was a little off key (only in the beginning! 😉 ), but to defend myself, I was pretty nervous and drunk all at the same time. I brought it home after my nerves settled down though! *grin*
Got some sake from @worldwideed‘s dad. Smell reminds me coloring Easter eggs. 2:02 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Sake to Me!
Ed’s Comments: Pops was the perfect person to be pouring that to the guests. He looked so happy!
Slideshow time 2:04 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
@worldwideed: such a cute baby! 2:09 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon in reply to worldwideed
Baby WWE
Ed’s Comments: No comment.
Slideshow included video of @worldwideed‘s proposal. He managed to ask her to marry him without literally asking. So sweet! I have tears! 2:17 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Ed’s Comments: I thought about posting the video to YouTube for a split second, but thought that I should save that as a private moment between wife, me and the hundreds of guests at the wedding. Hehe! Maybe one day in the future… who knows!?
Gotta go UH game so leaving wedding. Thanks & congrats @worldwideed and Maile! 2:27 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Ed’s Comments: Much love again ‘reens! That was awesome. Hope you were still able to enjoy the wedding in-between tweets!
Whoa! Validated parking cost $8! Guess that’s Waikiki for ya! 2:36 PM Nov 22nd from TwitterFon
Well, that’s it. The last of the wedding posts (*crossing fingers*). Wipe those tears away though. I’ll be back for more useless nonsense tomorrow! Holla!
Now before you get all nuts, I do realize that politics is a touchy and personal subject for us all, so don’t feel obligated to voice your opinion here. I expect to either get very few responses or a record amount for WWE readers (which isn’t very much anyway! 😛 ).I was originally just going to post this amusing video a friend sent me (see link below) for today’s blog, but since it’s Survey Thursday, we might as well keep with tradition right? 🙂
Isn’t that video just the most hilarious thing ever? (The old lady cracked me up!) Amazing what technology can do nowadays… You can customize it yourself here.
And yes, I know it’s shmall kine propaganda aimed at getting us to vote for Obama, but the real reason why I posted this for you guys is the underlying message… Just Vote! At next week Tuesday’s General Election, don’t leave it to chance! Whoever you support, just vote, vote, VOTE!
This is Edward Sugimoto and I approve this message. 😛
World Wide Ed 