That's Not an Accent!

"You have an accent, where are you from?" 
The first time I was asked this, I said "America".  After all, it was the truth, in fact I'm from Hawaii, I'm a Native American.  
"Oh I see, you're an islander".
  
I know Hawaii used to have a professional baseball team named the Islanders, I know there are businesses in Hawaii with the word islander in their name, I also know there are little league and high school sports teams who choose the team name "Islanders", but never did I think of myself as "an islander". 

Five years later, I've become accustomed to identifying as an islander, as explaining my Hawaiian heritage can sometimes be difficult.  Not the explaining part, but the "shake my head" amazement at what so many mainlanders don't know about the 50th state and their native inhabitants.

A co-worker once told me that she didn't realize Hawaiian was a race.  She just thought that anyone who resided in Hawaii was a Hawaiian, sort of like Oregonians or Houstonians.  Okay....

But all in all, I find that people are delighted to meet someone from Hawaii, especially someone of Hawaiian descent.  They love to ask me questions about all aspects of life in Hawaii and I love to share it with them!  I've always considered myself a walking Hawaii Visitors Bureau, ha! ha1

I am grateful to have spent most of my life in a place most people consider paradise.  The aloha spirit, the love that the people of Hawaii have for life and for one another is pretty darn unique. I do miss my island home, but have found a love for the Pacific Northwest and have learned to grow (and bloom) where I've been planted.  I've made a lot of wonderful friends and acquaintances, and have been fortunate to have family members relocate here since moving. 

So that's my starting point for this blog. I have a lot to share, and I don't want to ramble. I want it to be helpful, encouraging and  funny at the same time...because God knows, we all need a good laugh in these times!  


A hui hou!  See you soon!

My first time at Century Link Field,home of the Seattle Seahawks! This night it was the home of Metallica and Avenge Seven Fold!
                      Rock On!  Aloha!

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