philly420pdx

I voted yesterday, and I feel GREAT. Hawaii has early elections, which was very nice. No lines, easy to do, and since it was Halloween, I was assisted in validating my ballot by a cute bumblebee.....
I must admit that leaving the polling place, I felt as if an eight year old, 10k pound gorilla was lifted off of my shoulders. Although the last two elections have made me paranoid about the legitimacy of our democracy, I feel fairly confident that we are about to find our way out of the wilderness.
I have always said that if the Bush family were Sicilians, they would be considered the mafia. They have been involved in criminal activity for generations, and for those that the Bush family truly caters to (oil, military industrial complex) the last two terms have been wildly successful. Never mind that the rest of us have been left to hang in the wind by our short-hairs. Bush and Cheney both deserve prison sentences, and if their criminal activity doesn't meet the definition of treason, I don't know what does.
But now, we are on the verge of a new America, an America that values human dignity, compassion, and diversity. Barack Obama has shown that he has the brains, temperament, and ability to reach across the aisle to get this thing turned around. (Chuck Hagel for Secretary of Defense anyone?) I see Obama creating a "green" New Deal, a plan that will rebuild the infrastructure of our country, our environment, and our economy. It is exciting to think that for the first time in my life, progressives will have a hold on both the White House, Congress, and the Senate AND have a chance to change the dynamics of the Supreme Court. If the progressive movement works hard and plays their cards right, they can break the choke-hold that corporate America has had around our necks for generations and generations.

Aloha from paradise all!
Things are just cruising along so far over here. The collapse of civilization has not seemed to have had an impact on the Big Island yet. I really expected to see a slow of business, but we have been pretty busy at work. I think the next few weeks may be another story....
I am pretty geeked about my beloved Fightin's taking game 1 from LA earlier. I did not get a chance to see it, but the first thing (after kissing my wife)i did was fire up ESPN.COM. I have always had a deep loathing for anything Dodgers. I remember the glory days of the late '70s-early 80's Phillies, and the one team that always seemed to kill the Phils were the Dodgers. It's nice to see the venom return to my veins......
I guess I can't sign off w/o at least mentioning my jump-around, giggle like a five year old excitement about the return of RIP CITY. I was pretty freaked out on this team BEFORE seeing Rudy Fernandez in PDX, and now, I don't sleep at night. My brain runs an endless loop of Fernandez feeding Oden for a board-shattering two handed alley-oop slam dunk. How am I going to survive the next 10 years?!?!?!?
A hui ho!
Matthew

Well, it's been a while, but I now have a new computer, and I can post again. Since it's been over a year, I'm not gonna try to go over everything that has happened. Things are still good here in Keaau, we have added a new addition to our ohana, and that is Buddy, my nephew. He has been here a few months, and has adjusted well. Gerry is back in school, and I am now Assistant Manager at the same Starbucks that I began at. I am STILL giddy to see Greg Oden in a Blazer uni, and I am STILL looking forward to seeing the Phillies go deep in the playoffs. Poke is getting bigger, but seems happy and goofy as ever.
The past year has blessed us with visits from my parents, Gerry's dad Arnold Sr and his new wife, Gerry's sister Janell and her daughters Madison and Lauren, The Tuley family, and Dave Lowery and Susan Otto. It is always a blast to get visitors, and we are always looking forward to having more.
We are not sure when we will be back in PDX, but we both miss it very much.
I hope all is well w/ everyone,
Take care and Aloha!
Matthew

It's been a week, and ESPN is continuing to declare that the Blazers hit the jackpot in the Greg Oden sweepstakes. I have been walking in a numb fog since then. I find myself chuckling out loud at work, whistling while driving home. I have literally dreamed of this day since 1984, or the last time the Blazers had a chance to welcome a championship dynasty.
The Blazers should draft Oden, and trade away Zach Randolph for ANYTHING, and then start planning the victory parade route, cause it will be a regular occurance. The foundation of Oden, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Brandon Roy, if the good lord willin' stay healthy, this team could go down as one of the best in the history of the NBA. Any team would be thrilled to have one player as talented as those three, and for the Blazers to land all of em is mind-blowing. The only thing that I could compare it to would have been if the Blazers would have landed Drexler, Olajuwon, and Barkley back in the day.
To top it off, all three of them are the kind of guy you would LOVE if your daughter brought home for prom. Classy, intelligent, humble. It's almost too good to be true.

Pokey at Kalapana Think she had fun with Mom and Dad, but wasn't so sure about the ocean....

Greetings from the Big Island!!
We have recovered from the Merrie Monarch Festival, which takes over Hilo for a week each spring. It attracts hula troops from around the world to compete. Hilo's population probably doubles for the event.
The highlight of the week for me personally HAS to be the parade that passed right in front of my work. The parade featured Gerry as "Bottle Bill", every ones favorite floral patterned recyclable. Gerry was AWESOME!!!!
The weather has been great for the wet season. Not much rain, just enough to keep our catchment full.
The puppy is getting bigger by the minute. She is a really fun addition to the family. Gerry and I took Poke to Kalapana. Kalapana was the community that was swallowed up by the volcano in the early 90's. There is a small, but beautiful black sand beach right there. It's a 20 minute drive from our house, past Pahoa.
You are all in our thoughts, we can't wait to see you in July!
Aloha,
Matthew

Well, the season is over for my beloved Blazers, but this is the first time in MANY years that I was not left with a bitter taste in my mouth. This young team won about as many games as I thought they would, and would have won more if Joe Pryzbilla had shown up more often than the injury gremlin did. This is a team that makes you feel good to be a Blazer fan again. They are missing a few small pieces, and with Kevin Pritchard, the new Blazer GM wunderkind calling the shots, I think that they will be able to find them for next year. They should be in the playoffs next year.
If they decide not to trade their draft pick, they have a shot at a decent SF. I think that they will (and should) package that pick with Zach Randolph and get someone who can play center. (Jermaine O'Neal anyone?) A trade for O'Neal for Randolph and Martell Webster and a swap of draft picks would work under the cap rules. O'Neal, LaMarcus Aldridge, Udoka, Roy, and Jack/Rodriguez would play good D and be VERY fun to watch. I also think that they should try to re-sign Magliore and slot him as the 6th man off the bench, and figure him for 20-30 minutes per game. It sounds like he likes Portland, and if he knew exactly what his role was, and what kind of PT he could expect, he may just jump at the chance. Besides, I don't know what kind of offers he will get from other teams.
On a personal note, all is well in paradise!
Aloha,
Matthew

Aloha!
Just wanted to share a few pics of our new family member. I think we will be naming her Poke, a play on the Pokey Little Puppy. Poke is a marinated raw fish treat that is one of my favorites. The older dog is Piahi, my friend and co-worker Jazzmin's dog. We have been doggie sitting for her while she has her first baby. All is well here, enjoying the island life.
Yesterday, we took Poke on a long walk in Hilo. She got to chase doves, and got her first taste of the ocean. She wasn't too sure about it, but she had fun!
Miss you all. We are planning to be back in Portland in early July for the family reunion. Can't wait to see you all there!
Matthew

Well, we are now officially homeowners again! We have finally moved into the new digs, just up the street from our old rental, in the same subdivision. We were without internet for a while, but it is now up and running.
Along with the new house, we celebrated my 38th birthday by welcoming a new member of our household. We adopted a little puppy from the Humane Society. She is a 15 week old mutt, a mix of an English Sheep Herder and Pit Bull. She is a sweetheart, but a handful. We have not come up with a name yet, but I am sure we will soon.
Aloha!
Matthew

Last night, I couldn't sleep, so I decided to flip through the tv. I happened to stumble on the HBO documentary, "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib." It was a powerful and compelling investigation on the evil that was committed in our names. As disturbing as it was, I could not stop watching. It left me angry and ashamed.
When I was younger, I used to feel that America had become the "Evil Empire." This was of course in the days of George Bush Sr and his criminal cabal. As I grew older, I began to feel that it was simply my "angry young man" phase. Last night, however those old memories were came rushing back.
Iraq is and always has been a huge clusterfuck (sorry mom). It has been a criminal enterprise that has been a complete failure, unless you are a stockholder of Blackwater. We invaded a country that had ZERO intentions of harming us in any way, have destroyed their infrastructure, murdered hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians, and basically created generations of young men and women who will be hell-bent on destroying us.
We have become the evil that the "Greatest Generation" sacrificed so much to keep from taking over Europe. We sat by on our fat asses and allowed a criminal enterprise steal two elections. We watched as they trumped up a bunch of bullshit excuses that were easily dismissed with even cursory investigations, and used them to get us into this mess. We paid more attention to American Idol than we did the blatant corporate corruption that gave us our environmental, energy, and economic policies that has done nothing but lined the greedy pockets of Bush and Cheney's CEO friends.
We have to stop this madness. The people running this country have committed treason. They must ge held accountable.
If you get a chance, watch the documentary. Start a revolution.

I promised an update on my parent's vacation, so here it goes.....
Mom and Dad were here for two weeks. I met them at the airport w/ the obligatory leis and a huge smile. After picking up their rental Jeep, we headed back to our house.
I had been warning them about the weather, since the two weeks prior to their arrival was filled with grey clouds and LOTS of rain. Mother nature made a liar out of me, however. Mom and dad saw very little rain, and actually quite a bit of sunshine.
It was fun playing tour guide, as it gave me a chance to see stuff that I have not gotten around to see. We spent quite a bit of time checking out the surreal sights at Volcano National Park, including my first whale sighting! We even walked through the crater. We might as well have been on Mars, the landscape was so bizare. We also spent a great day checking out the Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Farm (cheesy) and the local zoo. The zoo is a great deal for the money, (it was free), with some cool animals and beautiful foliage.
We also got to spend time in Kona, including a very cheesy and tasty luau and some amazing snorkeling.
All in all, it was a great time. The best part however, was when both Mom and Dad looked me in the eye and said they understood why Gerry and I made this crazy move to the middle of nowhere. Mom, I am glad you can now sleep easier at night!
Aloha from Paradise,
Matthew

(I started this entry with the intention of describing my adventures of the past few weeks, but it turned into an open love letter to my mom and dad. I am sorry if this is a bit mushy, but it comes straight from the heart. I promise a complete rundown of our adventures later...)
I have been slacking on updating this because my parents have spent the last two weeks with us. We had a great time with them. I was lucky enough to get some time off while they were here, so I had a chance to play tour guide for them. If you don't know my parents, they are the best DPUs (devoted parental units) that you could ask for. Spending time with them is one of the most precious gifts that I have been given. My family has always been close, and I have always appreciated that. I grew up in a neighborhood where kids just didn't grow up with both of their parents, and the disadvantages that it caused. I am really convinced that the reason I am not dead or in jail is because I had such an amazing family. I don't say this to be melodramatic, because I have many friends that met those fates.
My parents are the most honest, kind people that I know. They are the kind of people that you love to share a meal with, sharp, engaging, with a great sense of humor. It is a trait that is found throughout my family. It is probably why I gravitate to friends with these same values.
I hope that I grow up to be just like them.

Today was why I moved to Hawaii. It was the middle of winter, and I awoke to a nearly cloudless sky and temperatures in the low 80's. Driving into Hilo, Mauna Kea's peaks made a rare appearance, with the bright sun shining off of the observatories. The weather lately has been wet and grey, so the bright sun was a welcome change. Everyone at work was crying about wanting to be at the beach, but I was just happy that I didn't have to scrape ice off of my windshield!!!
Not much more to report, just happy it's warm, and I am too old to get drafted.
Aloha,
Matthew

I know it's been a while, but I am back, and will really make an effort to be more active in my posting. Gerry and I have been really busy between work, finding a house, and having guests. We have been VERY successful on all fronts.
The Starbucks in Hawaii have recently been folded into the same ownership group as the ones on the mainland, and it sounds like they are planning a huge expansion. The corporate execs were on the Big Island for a tour a couple of weeks ago, and they could not believe that there were not hundreds of stores here already. That just means that there will be lots of management opportunities in the near future.
Gerry and I have finalized the purchase of our new house. The house is just up the street in Paradise Park. We will close on March 1st. The house is older, but in great shape. It has plenty of room for guests (3 bedroom) and a beautiful yard. It is a full acre, and has LOTS of fruit trees. We can't wait for everyone to come and see!!!
We also had our second guest last week, as our friend Jen came for a visit. It was great to see her, and we had a great time. Jen was a lot of fun, and had a nasty habit of cooking GREAT food every night. She has only been gone a week, but we miss her. Our next guests will be my parents, who will be showing up the first week of February. They will be here for two weeks, and Gerry and I are really looking forward to it.
One of the fringe benefits of working at the Starbucks in downtown Hilo is that you NEVER know who you will run into. In a span of a week, I bumped into Larry, my ole banking friend from Legacy Credit Union in Portland, and a few days later, my old friend Kiel was standing in line waiting to buy a latte. I had not seen him for a while, and we were both shocked to see each other so far away from PDX.
Drop me a line, keep in touch.
Aloha,
Matthew

Merry belated Christmas to everyone!
Hope you all had a great time with friends and family. Our celebrating kicked off on Christmas Eve, when my whole family called on a conference call, asking me to do my yearly rendition of an African-American style version of "A Night Before Christmas", which has become a pretty big hit, I guess. I do my best "Nate Proby" imitation. Nate was an old baseball coach I had and loved as a kid, a great bear of a man who sounded like Tom Waits with a frog in his throat. Great guy, and ironically, an old neighbor of my Uncle Dave. I had a great time doing it, and my family sounded like they had fun, too. They had all gathered at my folks house for the traditional Christmas Eve roast beast. Part of the evening involves everyone reading a favorite Christmas story, with a Hanukkah story or two thrown in as a tribute to my dear Grandpa Joe.
Later that evening, Gerry and I went to our new friends Pat and Mary Jean's house for a party. They live a few houses down the road from us. Pat and Mary Jean had great food, we "talked story" with their friends and family, and even played a little poker for fun. We rolled home well after 1 am, hoping we didn't miss Santa! The next morning, we opened our gifts, which we loved. (THANKS SECRET SANTAS!) The rest of the day was spent lounging around in our pajamas, as usual....
Gerry and I had a fun time together, but it surely is not the same without being surrounded by family and friends....
For New Years, we have been invited to a family party thrown by Gerry's co-worker Tiana. It should be fun, but we will miss you all.
On a more somber note, I am writing this just after getting off work, and have just learned that Saddam Hussein has been hanged today. I was going to go off about how I feel about this, but I don't want to spoil my good mood. I will write more about this later, and I will try to do it without the Secret Service or NSA getting involved... :-)
Aloha,
Matthew

For the first time in a LOONNGG time, I actually lounged around in my boxers, and watched football. Sometimes it's good to be a man...
The Eagles did everything they could think of to lose, but fortunately they were playing the even bigger train-wreck, the NY Giants. The IGLLES came out on top, and now actually have a chance to win the NFC East if they can beat the Cowboys and Falcons in the next two weeks.
Not much else to update.
I won't complain about the rain, since it's still in the upper 70s, and my family back in Oregon is FREEZING......
Aloha,
Matthew

Per and Doe Our congenial hosts at Thanksgiving.

Sorry that it's been a while since I have updated this journal, but I have been kinda busy. Gerry and I have been working a lot, looking for houses, and pretty much running around like crazy. We had a great Thanksgiving with Per and Doe, who kindly invited us to share the evening with us. The food was excellent, and we got to meet many nice people. I did miss having leftovers for the late-night sandwiches, and it was certainly hard not sharing it with our blood family. A few days later, we celebrated Gerry's birthday by pretending we were rich, and spending a couple of days at the Hilton Waikaloa Village, on the Kona coast. It was beautiful! We also ate like royalty. It's not a bad place to see a sunset, that's for sure. We are getting excited to have guests. We will have Jen here for a nice stay coming up in several weeks, and that will be great! That will begin a steady stream of friends and family that will be joining us. It will certainly help with the homesickness.... The following photos are from Thanksgiving, and our Hilton stay... Aloha! Matthew

Not much to say, but wanted to wish all of my friends and family a happy Thanksgiving. It's always kind of funny being so far away from everyone, especially during this time of year. I have been blessed with a family that is VERY close, and the holidays have always been a great reason for us to get together and enjoy each others company. It is hard knowing that we are not going to be able to participate in person, but Gerry and I will be there in spirit. I will also really miss the oyster stuffing and the gravy with guts!
Gerry and I will be heading over to Auntie Doe's house for dinner tomorrow. She kindly invited us to share the festivities with their family, and Gerry and I are looking forward to it. Doe and Per are really sweet folks, and it will be nice to hang out with them. We have not been able to see them since we moved here, as Doe has been very busy. She ALWAYS has guests staying with her, and they have been renovating their beautiful house as well. I will be sure to post photos of the dinner.
Don't eat too much, and remember that you are all in our thoughts.
With love and Aloha,
Matthew

I have not been updating the journal due to the fact that I have been fighting the "Starbucks crud", a nasty sinus/throat bug that has hit everyone at work. Frankly I didn't have anything nice to say, so I took my Mom's advice and said nothing at all. I am feeling better, however, and I don't think it had ANYTHING to do with the big Philadelphia Eagles win over the hated Redskins.
The biggest news is that I walked into work early last week, and the elves had apparently already paid us a visit. All of the Christmas crap was up, and the eggnog lattes were flowing. Christmas in Hawaii is always surreal to me, since Santa and 80 degree weather just does not seem to go together for some reason.
Gerry is doing fine, although she is putting a lot of effort into her new job. We have started getting serious about our house search. We have an appointment with a real estate agent next week. We will keep you all updated.
That's all for now, I have to get up early tomorrow for work.
Aloha,
Matthew.
P.S. If you ever decide to leave a comment, PLEASE put your name in the text, since if you don't have a Live-Journal account, it simply says you are anonymous. The last couple of posts have had some great responses, but I have NOOOO idea of who they are from.....
M