Hula Dreams

What is wrong with people?

2007-06-14T09:07:00.000-04:00

Rare mountain gorilla shot dead in DR Congo reserve

Sun Jun 10, 12:14 PM

KINSHASA (AFP) - A rare protected mountain gorilla has been found shot dead in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Virunga nature reserve, fuelling fears that rebels are targeting endangered species, conservationists said Sunday.

"The body of Rubiga, an adult female, was found yesterday by guards. A two-month old baby was clinging to the mother and was tranferred for treatment to Goma," said Paulin Ngobobo of the Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN).

"We think she was killed Friday, after residents reported hearing gunfire. We set up patrols and the guards found her Saturday," Ngobobo told AFP.

The central African country is home to three of the world's four great ape species: gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos -- pygmy chimps whose population has been decimated over the past 15 years.

Conservationists say endangered gorillas are increasingly under threat from Tutsi and Hutu rebels who have taken refuge in the huge eastern nature reserve. Two silverback gorillas were killed and eaten by rebels in January, they said.

Park rangers have also been targeted. Mai Mai rebels last month killed a park ranger and critically injured three in an attack on the reserve.

"Rubiga was part of a group of 32 individuals, the biggest of the five groups in the sector which over the years have grown accustomed to humans," Ngobobo told AFP.

He added that the sector of the park where she was found is home to 84 of the some 700 gorillas living in the reserve, near the mountainous border with Rwanda and Uganda.

"It was an act of sabotage, against tourism, against research," he added, dismissing the involvement of poachers who would not have left the body in the forest with an infant, given their value on the black market.

"The guards have found traces of blood in the forest and we hope no other gorillas have been wounded or killed. We are looking for the group which has completely dispersed after the attack," he said.

Virunga, Africa's biggest national park and classed as a World Heritage Site by UNSECO, is sometimes used as a refuge by rebel groups to evade patrols by the regular army.

This makes me sick... this was the first thing I saw when I woke up this morning.

2007-06-14T09:03:00.000-04:00

Poachers kill one of last two white rhinos in Zambia
Tue Jun 12, 9:57 AM
LUSAKA (AFP) - Poachers have shot the last two white rhinos in Zambia, killing one and wounding the other, in a night operation at the Mosi-Oa-Tunya national park in Livingstone, an official said Tuesday.The shooting of the two endangered animals in a heavily-guarded zoological park near Victoria Falls in Zambia's tourist resort town of Livingstone took place last week.
"I can confirm that one of the white rhinos was shot dead by suspected poachers. The other one was wounded and is undergoing treatment," said Maureen Mwape, spokesperson of the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA), which would be investigating the shooting.
The dead female rhino's horn was apparently removed.
Zambia's white rhinos were all killed by poachers but the government managed to acquire six from South Africa in 1993, of which the injured male is the last to survive.

Hi I'm a Marvel superhero... and I'm a DC superhero

2007-05-03T11:51:00.000-04:00

Hi I'm a Marvel superhero... and I'm a DC superhero

Stevie Nicks shares 'Visions' with Chris Isaak

2007-03-27T17:40:00.000-04:00

Oh my god! I am so happy that Stevie is making a stop close to us! I have always wanted to see her!!!!Stevie Nicks shares 'Visions' with Chris Isaak

Eddie Vedder comes through for me once again!!

2007-03-22T10:49:00.000-04:00

Today I went to check the mail and finally received my LP Single from Pearl Jam's fan club Ten Club. www.tenclub.com I am so excited but now have to figure out a way to play since technology has moved on to the cd and mp3's!! It contain's "Love, Reign O'er Me" from the motion picture Reign Over Me www.sonypictures.com/movies/reignoverme/ starring Adam Sandler. On the b side but hardly a B song is "Rockin' in the free World" which was recorded with Bono of U2 fame in Australia, 2006.

Raptors

2007-03-22T09:36:00.000-04:00

Went to the Toronto Raptors game last night which they won 92-85 against Orlando Magic. It was a good time and the $9.25 beer went down smoothy!! I still think I enjoy the mascots a little too much though, "Raptor" is very distracting to a girl like me when the game is on!!

Twinkie Sushi

2007-03-21T09:21:00.000-04:00

What a great idea! For the sweet tooth and non sushi lover!! Hostess Cakes

Congratulations to Me!!!

2007-02-27T16:55:00.000-05:00

I just arrived home from passing my G2 Driving Exam!!!!!!
I was so absolutely nervous and thought I did horribly but the lady still passed me! So I am on my way to more transportation freedom now and maybe will drive to see the California Coast one day! Thanks to all of my friends who drove my drunk ass (never had to be the DD!)around all these years and also to those who drove me when I just was not able to drive!!!

Winston's So Suave!

2007-02-13T09:55:00.001-05:00

Who says he can't pull off a pink bandana that reads "Red Hot"?!

Making the world a safer place... I hope so

2007-02-13T09:15:00.000-05:00

N. Korea agrees to nuclear disarmament
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070213/ap_on_re_as/koreas_nuclear

Na Pali Coast sadly takes a life...

2007-02-13T08:58:00.000-05:00

Photographer and Naturalist David Boynton Dies in Kauai Fall
Superb photographer and naturalist David Boynton died on Saturday in a fall along Kauai's Na Pali Coast. The Honolulu Advertiser reports that Boynton's body was found at the foot of a 300-foot cliff on the north face of the Miloli'i Valley. Apparently Boynton had been enroute to photograph sea turtles on Miloli'i Beach.

While Boynton was best known for his superb photography which is featured in such books as The Kaua'i Movie Book, Flowers: Images from Hawaii’s Gardens, and Kaua`i Days, he also heavily involved in educational outreach through the Hawaii Department of Education.

Boynton's death brings to attention the fact that danger is never too far away in Hawaii's natural wonderlands and that even the most experienced hiker can encounter life-threatening dangers. Kauai's Na Pali Trail is both one of Hawaii's most beautiful nature experiences, but also one of the most dangerous, especially in winter conditions.

Our sympathies and prayers go out to David's wife Sue and their family. David will be greatly missed by all of us who have enjoyed and treasured his work and talent. You can view some of David's work on his website at www.davidboyntonphotography.com
From John Fischer,
Your Guide to Hawaii / South Pacific for Visitors.

All Hail the Crab King!!!

2007-02-08T09:50:00.000-05:00

Please click here to view! Budweiser: Beer-Stealing Crabs
http://www.ifilm.com/video/2819747
My kind of ad!!

Lukas Rossi

2007-01-26T13:13:00.000-05:00

Massey Hall

2007-01-26T13:11:00.000-05:00

Dilana

2007-01-26T13:10:00.000-05:00

Dave Navarro of The Panic Channel

2007-01-26T13:08:00.000-05:00

2007-01-26T13:07:00.000-05:00

Supernova goes Platinum in Canada

2007-01-26T13:04:00.000-05:00

The concert was great on Wednesday night and here are some highlights!!

Rockstar Supernova went platinum in Canada and the guys from BMG were there to hand out the records

Dilana opened the show and was amazing!!! Everyone sounded just they way they did on the TV show which was nice. I was torn between Dilana and Lukas as the winner so it was great to see her there!! She also had her guitarist from L.A. with her.

Toby Rand was also there which pleased the ladies in the crowd! I was never really a huge fan of Toby's but his band Juke Kartel (from Australia) sounded great. Crowd at the front of the stage and screaming ensued... I did like the comment that Lukas made "You think Canadians can drink, try drinking with an Aussie" or something to that avail!

The ladies love Dave Navarro and Dave loves the ladies!!!!!!!! I did enjoy Dave very much as well!!!

People on the floor level were encouraged by the bands to rush the stage... which made it easier for Dave to lean over and plant one on some lucky girl!! Dave also lifted a young girl up onto the stage who could not have been more than seven!! Very cute!

Dave is physically sexier than Tommy- I thought it might be close but Dave won! Also surprised that Dave is so buff, Tommy is just very tall and thin. Both have charisma though!!

I was blinded by the lights catching Dave's right nipple ring!!!!

Was pretty sure that Tommy's boardshorts were going to fall off at some point... then he would only be wearing a tie!!!! Tommy was full of charm and personality and the screams were deafening everytime he got up from behind his drum kit!!!

Who knew Tommy could also play the keyboard?

Screaming for what seemed like forever ( was probably about 2 minutes) when Tommy introduced Lukas Rossi back to his hometown crowd!!!! He said on ET Canada that that was a point where it was very hard not to cry... I was surprised that he didn't.

I was happy to hear him refer to his old job at Hooters that he still had in Toronto a year ago. Good publicity, ha,ha!

A female quartet was brought in for their rendition of The Verve's "Bittersweet Symphony" and also an original "Can't bring myself to light this fuse"

Could not see Johnny Colt very much but he sounded great.

Gilby Clark was great and has a set of guns on him!!!

Tickertape!!!!!!!!!!! I have always wanted to see tickertape fall live!!!! Cheesy I know, but I have watched too many american parades on tv!!!!

Tommy threw a drumstick that was caught by someone in the first row of the top level! Our level but too far over...

Strange audience... People aged 7 to 60? I am used to a loud ACC crowd and this was not it. At one point Tommy gave the crowd hell for sitting down. And Lukas was like " We can see you!" You sort of had to stand as the seats were very small and you could not sit with you legs in front of you. they had to be out to the side if you have legs like me.

No booze... Maybe that was the problem. You were not allowed drinks up in the stands and the bar was jammed at intermission. I am used to drinking $9- beers at a concert!!

Overall, great venue though, you feel very close to the stage from any seat and the sound was awesome!!!!!!

Great night!!! Great concert!!! Lots of fun!!!

Just what we need... a dog stumbling around the house asking for another beer!!!

2007-01-24T11:20:00.000-05:00

Yummy: Pet shop owner creates beer for dogs from beef extract and malt - Yahoo! Canada News
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/070122/koddities/oddity_doggie_beer

Tommy Lee does Toronto!! ( Via Supernova)

2007-01-24T10:08:00.000-05:00

Tonight we are going to see Rockstar Supernova ( http://rockstar.msn.com/) here in Toronto at Massey Hall http://www.toronto.com/arts/listing/000-100-075 ! We bought the tickets way back in the summer before they even announced the winner but we were sure Lukas Rossi was a shoe in! Dilana would have worked for us too. The venue holds less than 3000 people so it is quite intimate for a concert.

The Panic Channel will also be there and I am looking forward to seeing Dave Navarro!! There is so much music history between these guys... Nirvana, Jane's Addiction, Motley Crue, Gun's and Rose's, Metallica...

We will miss Jason Newsted who will be replaced by Johnny Colt from The Black Crowes. Here's to a quick recovery Jason!

Should be a pretty emotional show for Lukas as Toronto is his hometown... will tell you all about it in the morning!!!

The 12 Days of Christmas Local Style

2006-12-27T09:06:00.000-05:00

Numbah One Day of Christmas(The 12 Days of Christmas local style)- by Eaton B. Magoon Jr., Edward Kenny, Gordon N. Phelps

Numbah One day of Christmas, my tutu give to meOne mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Two day of Christmas, my tutu give to meTwo coconut, an' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Tree day of Christmas, my tutu give to meTree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Foah day of Christmas, my tutu give to meFoah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Five day of Christmas, my tutu give to meFive beeg fat peeg...
foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Seex day of Christmas, my tutu give to meSeex hula lesson, five beeg fat peeg (that make TEN!),Foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.
Numbah Seven day of Christmas, my tutu give to meSeven shrimp a-swimmin', seex hula lesson,Five beeg fat peeg, foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Eight day of Christmas, my tutu give to meEight ukulele, seven shrimp a-swimmin', seex hula lesson,Five beeg fat peeg (that make TWENNY!), foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Nine day of Christmas, my tutu give to meNine pound of poi, eight ukulele, seven shrimp a-swimmin',Seex hula lesson, five beeg fat peeg, foah flowah let, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Ten day of Christmas, my tutu give to meTen can of beer, nine pound of poi, eight ukuklele, seven shrimp a-swimmin'Seex hula lesson, five beeg fat peeg,Foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

Numbah Eleven day of Christmas, my tutu give to meEleven missionary, ten can of beer, nine pound of poi,Eight ukulele, seven shrimp a-swimmin', seex hula lesson,Five beeg fat peeg, foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree.

(Numbah Twelve day of Christmas the bes', and the bes' stuff always come las'...)
Numbah Twelve day of Christmas, my tutu give to meTwelve TELEVISION, eleven missionary, ten can of beer,Nine pound of poi, eight ukulele, seven shrimp a-swimmin',Seex hula lesson, FORTY steenkin' peeg,Foah flowah lei, tree dry squid, two coconut,An' one mynah bird in one papaya tree!

"It was written in 15 minutes as three friends ate Chinese food in the living room of a Diamond Head home." So reported the Honolulu Star Bulletin back in December of 1995. The song was copyrighted in 1959 by Eaton "Bob" Magoon Jr.'s Hawaiian Recording and Publishing Co. Listed as its authors were composer/real estate developer Magoon, actor/singer Ed Kenney and Gordon Phelps, then Magoon's assistant. Hawaiian Recording and Publishing Co. is no longer in business.

Sunset over the weekend

2006-07-24T22:37:00.000-04:00

Storm view from our balcony

2006-07-24T22:33:00.000-04:00

View from balcony

2006-07-24T22:05:00.000-04:00

Full Moon-View from Balcony July 2006

2006-07-24T22:03:00.000-04:00

Pack,Pack,Pack!

2006-07-24T21:37:00.000-04:00

I am in full admittance. I am a pack rat! With our move only a few days away, I have come to realize that I don't need every little scrap piece of paper that I have picked up over the years! I can't even begin to go through the totes that my Mom brought down for me. It is way too distracting at this time to be going through old letters, pics etc from my teen years!!! Some good and some bad memories were rediscoverd though.
I am feeling excited about the move but also sort of sad as I look out the window and gaze upon the Toronto skyline. That view has brought a smile to my face for over 2 years now and I will miss it. It will great to be able to finally unpack and use our wedding presents, many of which I have forgotten as they have been packed since our wedding day! That's it for now, must continue to pack. And dream of the new place!

2006-06-28T22:56:00.000-04:00

10 days on, 2 days off (and out of town) and then 10 days on again...
this is my excuse for slacking on my blog. I have been working like a maniac! You would think it was summer or something with the amount of pedicures and bikini waxes I have given lately! I am as beat as this kitten in this video but have some time off in the next couple of days so I will write some more. I especially want to spread the word about the "fish bowls" at Boston Pizza...

Breaking News!!!

2006-05-30T16:04:00.000-04:00

We have purchased our first home! It is one year old and located in Pickering off of White's Road. Our move in date is July 28 and we could not be happier!!! It just so happens that Sara and Jeremy live on the other side of White's Rd so we have instant neighbours!! I always said that I wanted to live on the outskirts of a city so that I would have the best of both worlds and right now it is the very last street before the country! We can't wait to have everyone over and have a house warming soon after we move in. We look forward to sharing it with all of you!

Concept Drawing from the Builder

2006-05-30T16:01:00.000-04:00

Our New House!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2006-05-30T15:59:00.000-04:00

The honu who inspired our tattoos

2006-05-30T15:44:00.000-04:00

This guy and his friends really were most of the inspiration behind our new tatoos. We were privileged nough to snorkel with them on a very local beach south of Kona, Hawaii. They were so tranquil and beautiful and we will treasure that day forever. Thanks to Tim and Eddie(crew from the Pride of Aloha!)for convincing us not to do some big excursion for $100 but to pay $5 to go to this beach nicknamed "Turtle Beach"!

2006-05-30T10:35:00.000-04:00

Here is a great new product listed on www.sephora.com for those kittens that can't attend a pool party or the beach without a full face on! At the very least, I would be happy with a really good waterproof mascara! I think an added benefit would be to make the carrier case heat resistant!

The CARGO Swimmables Kit offers a must-have collection of high endurance makeup essentials.Packaged together in a fun, water-resistant, strong acrylic makeup tote that floats! Set includes Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Charcoal, Tinted Lip Balm (a sheer rose), and Waterproof Mascara in Black. $25-US

TIP: SINCE THE NEUTRAL COLORS LOOK GREAT ON ALL SKIN TONES, THIS KIT MAKES A PERFECT BIRTHDAY PRESENT OR HOSTESS GIFT.

Warm your heart!

2006-05-28T09:34:00.000-04:00

My client actually told me the coolest story about Pearl jam yesterday. Her friend was in a bar in September here in Toronto. He bumped into a waiter and apologized. The waiter asked him what he was doing that night and he said it was his birthday but that he did not have further plans. The waiter told him to sit tight for a minute and came back with two tickets to the Pearl Jam concert. He said they were from the band and that PJ gives downtown restaurants tickets to hand out to special people. I think that is so nice. Another sign of how Pearl Jam is so fan based!

Honu Hawaiian Islands

2006-05-25T18:51:00.000-04:00

Here is a shot of Matt's newest tattoo. Those
are the hawaiian islands inside the sea turtles
shell.

Eddie Vedder 05/09/2006

2006-05-25T17:07:00.000-04:00

I had never dreamed that we would be enjoying the sounds of Pearl Jam live twice in less than a year! But on May 9th, 2006 the boys came through for us again and also released a new album! Which I believe is their best since Ten for sure. Every seat at the ACC was only $59- which PJ always tries to do for their fans and $1- from every ticket sold went to a charity in that city.
The set for the night went like this:
Set 1
Severed Hand, World Wide Suicide, Life Wasted, Marker In The Sand, Given To Fly, Better Man, Even Flow, Unemployable, Garden, Sad, Corduroy, Present Tense, Daughter, Grievance, Not For You, Inside Job, Why Go
Encore 1
Do The Evolution, Jeremy, Come Back, Alive
Encore 2
Porch, Rockin' In The Free World, Yellow Ledbetter

For a free download of their newest video click on this link: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6187666924357770983 Once again, I was able to successfully sneak my camera into a show and hopefully I will be able to publish some of the video from the concert on here as well. Eddie and the boys put on a fantastic show and I needed the stress relief so badly. I really rocked out, as Matt put it! We were apparently in the loser section though as the security kept an eye on it the whole time. They even pulled out a kid who had passed out. And then continued to weed out all of his little friends!! LOL! Kinda like the 50 Cent/ JayZ concert. Another good link about the band is www.pearljam.com Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!

New Commitment

2006-05-25T16:50:00.000-04:00

Tribal Honu (turtle) This is my newest tattoo! It is placed on the center of my upper back and is 3 weeks old today! I just love it and it has all of the elements that I required: honu, surf and hawaiian flowers. The flower is a Plumeria, the hawaiian wedding flower. Matt and I both decided after our hawaiian honeymoon that we would have honu tattooed on our bodies. While snokeling off the Big Island of Hawaii we had such an intimate encounter with these endangered creatures that they left a very strong impression on us. And so here we are. A pic of Matt's will follow soon. I must say that this was the most painful of all my tattoos as it was right on my spine and full of nerve endings. I don't remember the others been quite so painful but maybe I am just getting old and wimpy!! Hope you enjoy it! It has given me a new sense of confidence but I always did like to show things off a bit!

Bittersweet Spring...

2006-05-25T16:26:00.000-04:00

May has kept us quite busy with both sad news and happy events. Three weeks ago, my stepdads mom, a family friends mom and my grandma all passed away within four days of each other. Isobel, my stepfathers mom insisted on a large family dinner instead of a funeral which I thought was so nice. So much more cheerful. For my grandma's funeral we drove down to Cornwall. I had not really seen my Grandma since I was 17 ( at my Grandpa's funeral) as she had Alzheimers and I chose to keep my memories of her intact. When I saw her two weeks ago, all the guilt I had been feeling over the years melted and to me she looked so good. I was successful at keeping her spirit alive in my heart. I always felt so bad for my mom, aunts etc. who would go to see her and come out so upset as she would not know who they were and such. It was so nice to have time with family. I just wish it had been under better circumstances. May all of these women rest in peace. We will all miss them. Also, big props to Winston, our golden retriever who stayed at the Days Inn with us in Cornwall and was so good! Good dog!

Aloha! Welcome!

2006-05-25T16:21:00.000-04:00

I am so happy to be starting this blog for all of those around me. I always have such great intentions with email and hand written correspondence but have trouble following through! I hope to entertain and maybe you will learn something about me that you did not already know!