There are several new entries at DaScoops.com, thanks to our newest contributors: Rod and Ryan, including reviews on Little Village Noodle House, the recent Hawaii Book and Music Festival, and all the scoops on cool skins for your iPod called Gizmobies.

Toro Nagashi, 2003*
Haleiwa Jodo Mission, Hawaii

I also posted a blurb about the upcoming Toro Nagashi, Lantern Floating Ceremony to be held at Magic Island, Ala Moana Beach Park on Memorial Day. I am hoping to be able to attend this year and get some photos of the festivities. Each year, I think about going, but never make it out there. Health and weather permitting, I may decide to join the masses at the beach on Memorial Day. Besides that, I discovered that they are also offering a shuttle service from the Convention Center — which is a big plus! My reluctance to go to the event has always been exacerbated by the fear of lack of parking. Will you be there?

*This photo was taken at a similar event that is held in Haleiwa.

A cross-post from champuru h&f (health & fitness):

I’ve been pretty happy with how I’ve been doing lately.

I’ve been eating homemade salads for lunch everyday for the past two weeks, with the exception of Monday when I was out of the office at Olelo (I ate half of an oyako donburi at Hanaki) and Wednesday when I was blessed with a free bento from a co-worker. Portion control has been pretty consistent and I’ve been able to avoid overeating or binging on chocolates in the afternoon hours at the office. I’ve also successfully stayed away from caffeinated drinks, including my beloved Diet Pepsi and Itoen iced teas, opting for iced or hot water instead. I will admit, however, that I do allow myself to indulge and have a cup of hot cocoa after dinner though. I consider that my “dessert.”

Afternoon walks have been consistent, even in light of less than perfect weather today. I grabbed my red umbrella, braved the raindrops and had a wonderful, relaxing walk. I think these walks have also worked wonders on my stress levels. That and a deliberate attitude adjustment. Who knew a positive attitude could make such a big difference? (Well, Hubby did and he’s been trying to convince me for the past 15 years!)

I hope to turn these good practices into habits and integrate them solidly into my lifestyle. If I can do that, I’m sure I will see the added benefit of a healthier body and mind.

I wish I caught the whole story, but I saw Pamela Young on KITV news this afternoon visiting a Korean bath house for women only called Loess Spa. They offer such services as industrial strength brillo-like rubdowns to get you squeaky clean, cucumber facials, community hot bath soaks (think: onsen), and saunas with Chinese herb aromatherapy. (I’m sure there was more, but I missed half of the story.) It’s supposed to be somewhat like a traditional bath house that you can find on “every corner” in Korea, according to Pamela.

With the knots in my neck, shoulders and back, the thought of a nice, long soak in the hot bath sounds heavenly. If it weren’t for the naked factor, I might consider taking a friend or two with me to try the place out. I guess I could consider it practice for going hadaka in Japan at an onsen in idllyic Hakone.

But somehow, as relaxing as it all sounds, I don’t think I’d be very relaxed in the buff — in “public.”

But yet, maybe if I can overcome the modesty it would possibly be a good experience. Any volunteers to get nekkid with me? Hmm, that didn’t sound quite right.

In case anyone is interested in trying this place out with(out) me, here’s the info from the KITV website. If you go, be sure to tell me about your experience and what you thought!

Loess Spa
Phone: (808) 841-3311
1361 Mookaula St.
Honolulu, HI 96817

*hadaka means “nude” in Japanese

Remember what I said about being allergic to my job? Only seven days back on the job and I’m already succumbing to the sickness.

About midway through the day, my throat started feeling raw. I tried to be optimistic and blame it on the heavy blanket of vog hovering over the island today, but even after tossing back an allegra, I still feel the onset of a cold threatening. Sometimes I can’t tell whether I’m coming down with a cold or if I’m simply suffering from allergies. Usually, if it’s allergies, I already start to feel better after one dose of allegra, so I’m fairly certain this time my symptoms are virus-induced and not a result of the volcanic haze in the air. Despite three doses of Airborne I took over the course of the day, my nose has also decided to jump in on the action.

I didn’t let that stop me from taking my afternoon walk today, however. I am trying not to miss. My after-work walks have a way of de-stressing my day, so the benefit is two-fold: exercise and stress management. And even more than the former, I sure need the latter.

I’m going to take a shower, snort some Vicks, and hit the sack early tonight. Hopefully tomorrow will be a fairly calm day at the office so that the germies won’t be able to put their hooks in me. I tend to be much more vulnerable when I’m stressed.

Must be impervious to germs. Must resist the sickness.

Rush Hour Observation: A Mercedes owner with a sense of humor.
Note the vanity plate: LMFA0

My 2-year contract expired with Verizon Wireless on May 9, 2007, which meant that I was eligible for a phone upgrade at a “discount.” I knew I wanted to get a SmartPhone/PDA this time, but wasn’t sure which model would suit my needs. Posting a plea for advice on HawaiiThreads.com, I received some sage counsel from none other than Ryan, who is doing pretty much what I want to do — but on a much larger scale. If the price point was fair, I decided that I would get the Palm Treo 700p. Luckily, with my corporate discount and a $150 rebate, I was able to score the device for about $250. (If you got yours for cheaper, please don’t tell me. I hate feeling ripped off.)

So, you’ll be seeing more of these kinds of random, spontaneous shots on my blog from now on and more Twitter updates, too. (Which can also be found on the right sidebar under the “What I’m doing” heading.) I feel so connected!

One of the bosses just returned from a business trip today and saw me for the first time since my surgery.

He remarked, “hey, Donna, you lost just the right amount of weight.”

“Thanks,” I replied. “Nice side effect, huh?”

What I should have said: “So, what you’re saying is that I was FAT before?”

Why can’t I ever think of these smart comebacks right away? Instead, it occurs to me hours later. Like now, right before bed. Doh!

I have an unnatural fear of kiosks. This is mainly because some kiosk vendors are about as aggressive as vacuum cleaner salesmen and I have a very real problem with high pressure sales. The problem is: I can’t say no. So, instead, I am keenly aware of which kiosks have vultures poised to attack, and I deliberately avoid them.

On the flip side, there are some kiosks that offer some really cool wares. Rod shares his gadgety find on DaScoops.com. iPod fans will really appreciate this one. This is one kiosk I won’t be avoiding.

Here’s an excerpt:

I first saw Gizmobies at Meadows Mall in Las Vegas. I thought they were so kewl, I wanted to buy an iPod just to plaster some on. But since they weren’t readily available in Honolulu, I passed on buying an iPod - and bought a Samsung K5 instead.

But hold on to your earbuds! Gizmobies are now available at Ala Moana center. I don’t know how the guy did it, but he was able to secure a kiosk right in front of the Apple store. Talk about location, location, location! Read the rest of the article>>