How do you wear out a 6 month old Irish Setter?

You don't.  I just ran Murphy 7.2 miles, to the Diamond Head dog park and back where he played with lots of other dogs, running at a full sprint, chasing balls and the likes, then we ran back home and I get home and he still wants to play... wow.  Oh wait... he just crashed... finally... and he's up again.

Hiking to Manoa Falls with Murph and Jason...

I hiked up Manoa Falls today with Jason... it was a good hike- a little muddy, but a good excursion regardless... we went to Don Ho's at the Aloha Tower Marketplace and had some food afterwards... turns out they let dogs join you for dinner on their patio on the water... so Murph sat with us on the patio while we ate... gotta love Hawaii.

Friday's Flying Video...

Today I bring you footage of America's latest and greatest air superiority aircraft...  The F-22.  I had a chance to work with a Raptor pilot last week and he opened my eyes to some of the incredible capes of this particular aircraft... this video shows off a few of them.  Cheers, and Happy Friday!

Kiva.org

So last year... well, probably farther back than that, I turned into a rabid NPR listener... well, rabid may not be the best descriptor, but let's just say that I developed a voracious appetite for public radio while I was stationed in Japan.  Really, the reason I was turned onto NPR is because the great technology that Apple had developed in their software for music 'iTunes' had this great free feature called 'podcasts'... well, add to the mix nothing but Armed Forces Radio as the only real English station to listen to while I lived in Japan, and well, anyone who has served overseas and has been subjected to AFR, or AFN(etwork) as it's become called, because yes, they do television too...  and after about a week or two of listening to it, one becomes quite tired of hearing about doing your taxes on time, being a good representative of the USA, etc., etc., etc.,... seriously, George Orwell would be proud.  (I blogged about it in one of my early posts) But since most folks in the military, don't really have a choice, and they do in fact play American music, most people like me would listen to them.  Well, that was the case, at least, until I found out about podcasts... once that world was opened to me, and I could find a way to auditory entertainment, without having to listen to the propoganda of AFN, I was hooked.  'Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me', 'This American Life', 'All Things Considered' 'The Car Guys' all these became favorites of mine that I would listen to on my daily commute to work... well, it was during one of these particular shows, maybe 'All Things Considered' that I found out about Kiva.org

Kiva is a microloan organization, dedicated to the advancement of microloans in underdeveloped countries.  But more importantly, what it does, is enable those of us in developed countries to use our comparatively abundant resources to help those trying to make a living in under-developed countries.  In 2006, this idea made headlines when Muhammad Yunus won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in assisting thousands of under-privileged Bangladeshi women attain their goals by lending them small amounts of money (compared to most western loans) with a small interest amount, in order for them to start businesses.  The idea caught on, and today micro-loans are thriving, and the innate human spirit of entrepeneurship is thriving due to people loaning less fortunate ones money.  Anyway- I just wanted to bring it to your attention.  It's a really worthy cause, and when you research it, you find that Kiva.org does it very well... they had a small piece on an NPR show, and something about it caught my interest, and I've been going about it ever since.  I started with four loans, and of those four, three have already been paid back... tonight, I just added three more with the money I received from the paid loans... anyway, it interests me, and it warms my heart to know that I'm making a small difference in whether someone in a third-world country can buy stock for their small grocery business or parts for their taxi, or merchandise for their garmet store.  If you are interested in trying this out, please email me, and I'll send you an invite via Kiva.org.

Meanwhile, if you are looking for something interesting to listen to, 'This American Life' with Ira Glass is hands down the most interesting hour on radio.  If you've got time, download one of their podcasts, and you'll be hooked.  They are really good, and objective, and interesting, and thought-provoking.  Just give it a chance.  Anyway- here's to doing something good for someone today... just because you can.  Well, cheers, and good night.

Predictions and the Hash House Harriers...

Well, so much for my NCAA Bracket picks... how could UNC and UCLA both lose?  Oh well... I've never won one of these, but it's always fun- last year I was second place in my squadron, but this year it looks like I'll be in 5th or so... and I never follow basketball leading up to March Madness either... but it's always something fun to do.

In other news, yesterday I participated in my first ever Hash Run... in case you've never heard of it, and I'm guessing most people haven't, although, allegedly, it is getting bigger- anyway, back in 1938, a group of bored expatriates tasked with governing the British provincial outpost in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, decided once a week to start running together... heck, why reproduce it when I can just paste the article from Wikipedia... here it is... and I quote: 

Hashing began in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1938, when a casual group of British colonial officials and expatriates, Cecil Lee, Frederick "Horse" Thomson, Ronald "Torch" Bennett, and a British accountant of Catalan descent Albert Stephen Ignatius Gispert (A.S. Gispert) would meet after work on Monday evenings to run, following a paper trail, through the environs of Kuala Lumpur to get rid of the excesses of the previous weekend. There was another member of the group, John Woodrow, who is rarely credited as one of the founders as he left Malaysia after the war to return home to his family in Scotland.

After running for some months they were approached by the Registrar of Societies, who advised them that, as they were a "group" they would require a Constitution (the aims of which are reproduced below) and a name.(A.S. Gispert) (known as "G") suggested the name "Hash House Harriers". As bachelors, they were billeted in the Selangor Club Annex, known locally as the Hash House, because of its monotonous food. Their runs were patterned after the traditional British paper chase. A hare was given a head start to blaze a trail, marking his devious way with shreds of paper, all the while pursued by a shouting pack of "harriers." Only the hare knew where he was going...the harriers followed his clues to stay on trail. Apart from the excitement of chasing the hare and solving the clues, reaching the end was its own reward...for there these thirsty harriers would find a tub of iced beer (and, in those earlier, more forgiving days, ginger beer and cigarettes).

Hashing died out during World War II after the Japanese invasion of Malaysia, but started again shortly after the war, when the original protagonists, minus "G" who had been killed in the Japanese invasion of Singapore, re-assembled in Kuala Lumpur. Apart from a "one off" chapter, formed in the Italian Riviera, (now the Royal Milan and Bordighera Hash), hashing didn't take off until 1962, when Ian Cumming founded the 2nd kennel inSingapore. From then on, the phenomenon started to grow, spreading through the Far East, Australia, and New Zealand, as well as Europe and North America. Hashing experienced a large growth in popularity during the mid-1970s.

By the end of the 20th century, there were thousands of Hash House Harrier clubs in all parts of the world, with newsletters, directories, and even regional and world hashing conventions. This boom is owed largely to the power of the Internet to provide timely and accurate information on kennels and their events and points of contact. As of 2003, there are two organized HHH groups in Antarctica.^[

So there you have it.  It so happens that they have a couple of 'kennels' here in Honolulu, and the particular one that ran with yesterday, was the 'Aloha Hash House Harriers.'  We did about 4 miles or so through the hills around and above Kaneohe Marine Corps Base.  I took the Murphster with, and he enjoyed running off-leash.  He was quite in his element, being a field-dog, he was quite at home- in fact, I was surprised, given the terrain we traversed how well he did.  The race finished at this park where a keg of beer was produced and all the runners brought down chairs and got in the 'circle' where awards were given, nick-names were created, and of course 'down-down's' were issued... (violations of the 'traditions' of hashing... there are no 'rules' just traditions to be followed... penance for a violation involves drinking a full glass of your drink of choice- water and sodas where used as well) it was all-in-all a good time.  The run, the conversation and the good time afterward... There were probably 10 or so other people with dogs there, so Murphy had a great time socializing with them as well after the run.

Well- not much else to report this weekend... although, First Friday in Chinatown was sort of special for me for a reason maybe I'll explain some other time... and last night, some friends and I went to the Hawaii Yacht Club to watch someone we know play Jazz Harmonica... it was pretty cool- anyway- peace.  Oh yeah- the exercise is over- thank God!

My only Political Post ever... I promise.

So in between watching my chosen UNC Tarheels beat Louisville and another of my picks the UCLA Bruins destroy Xavier while 'exercising' over Power Point on my computer at work this afternoon... I came across this little opinion article in the New York Times on ole' John McCain today.  I must admit, politics these days illicit everything from dry heaves to downright disdain from me most of the time... the constant barrage of coverage on the topic just leaves me feeling hopeless somedays.  And this editorial, while being skewed to the left... (of course, it's the New York Times) Still gave me pause to actually read what Gail Collins had to say about good ole' John McCain... I'll let the article stand for itself, but let's just say that I appreciate her candid coverage of his track record.  And it really just bolsters my opinion of why I'll probably vote for the man.  In fact, I'm even going to add him to my list of predictions, as it seems I've been doing quite a bit on my blog here lately, and go ahead and pick him as the winner of the Presidential Race in November.  The great points this lady brings up are just too good to pass up.  Besides, John McCain is a Naval Aviator.  How can the world go wrong with a man that flew jets off of an Aircraft Carrier?

Oh yeah- in case you hadn't heard, if Memphis and Kansas both win tomorrow, it will be the first time in the history of the NCAA Div I basketball championships that all 4 number one seeds made it to the final 4.  I picked them that way this year... we'll find out tomorrow.

And one more thing... while I'm on predictions,  I'm going to go ahead and choose my American Idol winner... David Cook.  I know he wasn't in my original Idol prediction post, but I think he's got what it takes to win.  David Archeleta could pull it off purely from the popularity factor with the post-pubescent set with text messaging voting cell phones under their pillows at night, but David Cook is the real deal.  Much like Chris Daughtry of season 5.

Alright, I'm out.  McCain, UNC, David Cook.

Sushi, Sweat and Smells on a Saturday Night...

So I'm sitting here sweating after running I don't know... three miles or so with the Murphster... and proudly burning 400 calories... although I'm behind in my goal because I didn't have my iPod set right for calorie calculations... so my goal shows me 2000 calories behind... that's not good.  I was kind of mad when I found out that my last 2 runs that I ran didn't count.  Oh well... Apple still rules.  Anyway- so sweat is running down my back... I smell like a racquetball locker room and I'm eating sushi... on a Saturday night.  I don't know, it had a nice ring to it... what do they call it when the first syllables of words are the same?  Assonance... I can't believe I just thought of that... seriously.  Oh wait... actually it's Alliteration.  I looked it up... Assonance is any syllable other than the first that is repeated in a phrase.  Alliteration is when the first syllables have the same sound...  wow.  Glad I found that little tidbit tucked away in the cerebral cortex.

So today, being a Saturday and all, should have been a nice relaxing day... but no... Uncle Sam calls.  It's exercise time at work.  Glorious.  And when I say exercise, I don't mean deep-knee bends.  I mean that other military term, exercise.  What fun.  No weekend for me.  Fortunately, I've run into some old folks from days gone by in my military life.  An OCS buddy, a flight school friend, guys I've flown with in Japan, Air Force guys I've flown with... if anything is good about bringing a bunch of folks together in the good ole' DOD, is you are bound to know someone from days gone by.  It's always good catching up with old folks and hearing how old friends are doing.

Oh yeah- the Sushi was good.  There is a Food Pantry literally right outside the front door of my building that is so convenient.  I had Spicy Meguro Rolls (Tuna) with some Salmon Sushimi.  I love living in the city...