We're Back

A very interesting and relaxing cruise this year.

We flew to Oahu and boarded the Carnival Spirit for 12 days of cruising the islands and then crossing the Pacific to debark at Vancouver B.C. There was a large contingent of Australians aboard who continued their cruising to Alaska this morning.

On our first night, by chance, we dined with a couple from Sydney and found that we had a great deal in common. He teaches refrigeration engineering and my father was a refrigeration engineer. She was raised on the Oregon coast and met her husband while she was an exchange student in Australia. It was quite a surprise to find that they both knew a great deal about Astoria. We talked about health care, politics and travel and sampled a selection of Australian wines produced in wine country not far from their home in the Sydney suburbs. It was a great first day.

On the Big Island of Hawaii I met a fellow who makes his living by fishing and by photographing the active lava flows still pouring into the ocean. He hikes for miles over the flows looking for some very dramatic shots and then sells those at a roadside stand near the Volcano National Park. One picture really caught my attention. It shows two guys bank fishing within just a few hundred feet of a molten lava flow spouting into the ocean. Not something you would expect to see.

In Kona a family friend picked us up and toured us around. He then took us to his beautiful home on the slopes of the mountain overlooking Kona harbor where his wife had spent the last couple of days preparing a feast in our honor. There we tried and loved the purple sweet potatoes, and various seafood dishes she had prepared. Of course she also served SPAM with pineapple which is a big island staple food. Hawaiians consume more SPAM than anyone in the world. In fact the weekend we were in Oahu there was a huge SPAM festival taking place in Waikiki that shut down the main streets for hours.

The last five days we were at sea. No phone calls. No emails. Heaven.

Of course I'm making up for that today!

I wasn't surprised to hear that Bradwood Landing had suspended operations. There have been hints over the past few months that things were getting tight financially for Northern Star LLC. I suspect they will come back quietly once another backer comes forward.

I was surprised to hear that Skip Haukie was criticized by former chamber director Roger Rocka for saying a simple thank you to Commissioner Jeff Hazen at the Crab feed and Seafood Festival.

It's usually appropriate to recognize the efforts of those who contribute to the success of a community event. Roger seems to think that's wrong even though he thought it was perfectly acceptable to advertise a local performance of Cabaret in Astoria a few years ago with swastika graphics on big signs at the gateway to Astoria. He pleaded with me over the matter when I found it unacceptable and made it a public issue. Roger's public comments seem a little silly on this Hazen matter.

I'll be back on the air Monday morning after taking a few days to get caught up on administrative matters.

It's good to be home.