Chocolate Hawaiian Shirt Friday

Well folks you can tell its Friday, actually a pretty lackluster Friday. I originally started giving thought to planning out my weekend but the thoughts quickly shifted to my can of macadamia nuts, enhanced with sea salt. So basically here I sit with my macadamia nuts wearing a one of a kind chocolate colored Hawaiian shirt that looks something like a cross section of Hawaiian MilkyWay bar, except for that it is covered with sea turtles (Honu).

Its clear that I am not accomplishing much at the moment, but I am certainly enjoying my Hawaiian snack. Which brings to mind that eivissu has not yet sent me a box of chocolate covered macadamia nuts, pay up eivissu! Well I will probably end up cutting an order for a customer and working on the website this weekend. But then if I get really motivated, I may just start working on my Hawaiian gifts for Christmas. If you are a good customer or in our elite circle of friends that serves up loving anchor text for the shirt shop, you usually get rewarded with a unique, handcrafted Hawaiian shirt from the Wave Shoppe.

Graduation Leis

Beautiful Hawaiian Leis have long been a part of the culture and tradition of the Polynesian People. Exotic, colorful Leis were made from island flowers, leaves and other natural items such as shells, feathers, twigs intertwined. Surviving the passage of time Leis are still an important part of Polynesian Culture, and many other cultures in society have embraced the spirit of Aloha by continuing the tradition of wearing and giving Leis.

In the US and many other countries, you can see bright, pretty, Hawaiian Leis at luaus, parties, weddings, and the ever popular backyard BBQs. A growing trend in the United States is the giving of Leis to High School and College Graduates to wear with their cap and gowns to graduation ceremonies. Does the average High School or College parent know about this new tradition? Am I the only parent in the dark? My one and only daughter graduated from high school this year and upon arriving to her graduation was so surprised to see a colorful myriad of Hawaiian Leis gracefully draping over the shoulders of the graduates. The graduation cap and gowns were black so the leis stood out and added such visual beauty to the outfit. I found my daughter and breathed a sigh of relief to see her wearing 2 leis that I later learned were given to her by a family friend. Yep here I am co-owner of a company that sells absolutely beautiful Hawaiian Leis and I didn’t know anything about the graduation lei tradition.

I was so grateful to my friend for giving my daughter the leis. My daughter came up to me afterwards and asked why I didn’t bring her some leis she was expecting lots of them from me and had even told her friends that her Mom would be bringing lots of leis and that she would share them with the few students whose parents didn’t realize that getting leis at graduation was a symbol of “future luck”. I decided there and then to reach out to other parents, aunts, uncles, and family friends to be aware of this tradition and prepared for it. SO whether you know someone who is graduating or attending a luau, party or backyard BBQ be sure to buy a lei for them and give them a little piece of aloha and good luck at the same time. Buy from WaveShoppe unless you want to make your own leis from flowers-feathers etc

A kid from Chicago

Aloha everyone, a few weeks have passed since we wrote anything (brain cramps), but I thought it would be fun to get off the beaten path and write about something quite different, me. See back around 1958 there was this women messing around in the back of a car and the next thing you know here comes little Charles. Well I hate to say this, but the guy who fathered me wanted nothing to do with me and it was the 50s, a time where illegitimate children and the families that spawned and harbored them were shunned.

So I was sent off to catholic charities and stuck in a place for unwanted children called the Cradle House. Enter my grandfather and grandmother, my grandfather was a dear man and immigrant from Poland, full of pride. He worshiped the USA so much that after he came through Ellis Island he lied about his age so he could join the military and serve his new country in WWI. My grandmother was from the Ozarks and she never had a job and never drove a car, but could cook and I would have put her up against Rachael Ray any day of the week. A few months after going to the Cradle House they claimed me and I lived with them for a couple of years until some social worker decided I needed to go to a home that they selected for me. I will always let my grandparents serve as my guiding light, my grandfather, an honored American hero, and my grandmother, a person with values that were in the purest sense.

My friend Raff Ahlgren, FOX 6 Community Affairs Director says I should write some books; after all I have the uncanny ability to remember events and words spoken to me like it was just this morning. Unfortunately a life full of repression and abuse is not what I wish to spend my time remembering.

Here is the short list: 5 abusive foster homes (which include my natural mother). Having to sometimes wear girls shirts from the Salvation Army because the foster homes could not justify spending their state issues check on me. Placement with a colored family; which just so happened to live next to the Billy Graham Center during the Martin Luther King civil rights movement. Being thrown through a second story window by a drunk that was pissed that he had no more silver dollars to steal from me (my grandfather had gave me a handful for every birthday). Not having the ability to develop trust. Having my front teeth knocked out because I drank somebody’s soda while staying at their house. Setting myself on fire and spending my entire summer vacation in a burn unit with 2nd and 3rd degree burns on 60% of my body. I eventualy got tossed out on th estreet at 16 whereas I worked as a farmer, welder, machine operator, truck/car mechanic, service man, warehouse worker, computer tech, management, etc. 2 failed marriages in 15 years.

On the subject of child support, please tell me why I still have to pay thirty thousand dollars in compounded interested on back support that’s been fully paid for quite a while? Does it matter if one of my emancipated children lives with me while the leaches continue to let my blood?

I am now currently employed as a manager for a crappy software company and the proud owner of two unique businesses, Wave Shoppe Hawaiian Shirts and Film my Ride Picture Cars, I made them by myself. I am chairperson for some well know charitable events in San Diego and I funnel money to the needy and those that go without as deemed necessary.

Yes I know what your thinking, how on earth does this guy still function. Well some days I don’t, but I have managed to look past all this and I have even managed to develop some real friendships, ones that I sincerely believe are genuine in nature. My shirt shop is so cool because for once in my life I can do something that allows me the opportunity to truly express myself. Sure I could dwell in the darkness of my past but why? It’s an incredible feeling to make a happy looking Hawaiian shirt knowing that some other human being will be wearing it; they will be helping me disperse Aloha with good karma.

So the light at the end of the tunnel is quite bright and I am excited about the future. In just a few short years Wave Shoppe has quadrupled in size and revenues, and my collection of Hawaiian shirts is immense, not bad for a kid from Chicago. By the way I want to thank Janeth for the inspiration to hang my own laundry in public view. If you are ever in a position to don one of my shirts, be assured that it contains some rich history and some moral threads.

How many Hawaiian Islands?

Ok, just how many Hawaiian Islands are there? You may or may not know this, but did you know that what we refer to as the Hawaiian Islands comprise a total of 137 islands? I sure the heck didn’t know that, actually the more I learn about the islands, the stupider I feel.

We are constantly searching for link love from Hawaiian themed sites; but I feel like we have already visited every Hawaiian site ever made. So with nearly 137 Hawaiian Islands how come we have so few Hawaiian websites? It’s because they are all uninhabited, that’s why.

Below are the islands that are best known, but certainly not a comprehensive list of every piece of real estate in Hawaii that’s not covered with sea water:

• Hawai’i
• Maui
• Kaho’olawe
• Lāna’i
• Moloka’i
• O’ahu
• Kauna’i
• Ni’ihau

What intrigued me was the island of Kaho’olawe, which is theoretically “uninhabited” I could not help but wonder what it would be like to have my very own island. Just think, as supreme ruler and big kahuna of my own island I could do what ever I wanted to do, just like Kamehameha the Great did. To make life a little more interesting I could even weave a little technology into my lifestyle and create a vast network of Hawaiian websites with dedicated IP addresses and link all of them to www.waveshoppe.com

In the meantime I suggest that you quickly jump into your canoe and paddle over to your PC to give us some well deserved link love. KW: Hawaiian shirts Ha, ha, ha Charles, why should we even do something like this for you? Well folks, this act of kindness will not only improve your overall karma, but it will also earn you a make-believe get out jail free card that could be instantly redeemed if you are ever threatened with something like being thrown into the Fire Pit of Pele. Remember, you are not invisible and you can be found.

Ok enough of entertaining myself; today we are going to have a trivia question. If you go on a trip to Hawaii wearing a traditional black/brown Kukui Nut lei, what do the local natives do to your Kukui Nuts?

Yes, you will actually get a prize for having the best and most comprehensive answer. Our winner will receive a discount code for $5 that can be used to purchase any product on our site. But to keep things fair we need to have a minimum of 4 different user posts in the Comments before I will choose a winner (you have to have the correct answer). This offer is good until April 30th 2007 Get creative, it will improve your chances of winning some Aloha!

Waikiki Trolley Transportation

Aloha everyone, today I want to turn you on to a cool way to get around Honolulu, the Waikiki Trolley. This is a great way to visit historic sites, beautiful sceneries, and world-class shops and restaurants. This marvelous Waikiki trolley transportation service even offers three different lines!

This is Honolulu's only service that takes you to Honolulu's most popular tourist attractions and back to Waikiki, now that’s a deal. Their website boasts on-line discounts and trolley ticket deals that are hard to beat, how about $45 for a 2-adult 4 day trolley ticket, yeah baby that’s got aloha. And when you think it cant get any better, how about downloadable coupons for local shops offering gifts or discounts to Waikiki Trolley passengers, leaves you with extra $$$ for macadamia nuts and we all know how much we love those little jems.