#66, When Wall Street Goes South

Small Boat At North Shore, Waimea Bay, Oahu, Hawaii, May ‘08, artistic view, map.


Small Boat And Lava Rocks, North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii, May ‘08, artistic view, map.

So it happened! The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) suddenly stopped working, shortly after it was switched on. Some expected things to quickly become vary dark, as in black holes, but initially nothing happened, than a transformer blew up and helium leaked. Now everything is quiet again, and will stay that way for many months to come. No new particles were found, no black holes created – at least that we know about, just another transformer got fried. So for now, let us move this subject of the front pages.

You have heard of another meltdown, this time on Wall Street. And this one is indeed very serious; the well-known financial institutions are collapsing indicating that the whole financial system is in trouble, perhaps reminiscent of 1930’s. The federal government is offering help, assistance, and bailout – whatever you want to call it. Should not troubled institutions be allowed to fail, especially since the failure happened mainly because of their own mismanagement? Why prop something that is not worth much any longer, and is only draining huge amounts of money? Apparently the federal government thinks different, and talks about pumping more money into the bankrupt institutions. The news now is that even Warren Buffett is trying to save another institution in trouble – Goldman Sachs, in a move very uncharacteristic for that extraordinary investor. And truly, what are we supposed to think about this country if Wall Street is beginning to crumble?

Aloha everybody!
Another subject. The Hawaii Superferry is in full operation, after many long delays. We thought we write a word about it, since in the past only troubled news was available. Not anymore, from Honolulu on Oahu to Kahului on Maui the service is working fine, with $49 to $59 fares, twice daily. If only people were visiting Hawaii as often as they used to! So the Superferry and Wall Street are linked together after all, we are not talking here about isolated events.

You already know that the weather in Hawaii can change dramatically in a very short time. It never changes that fast in California, for example. You need to be prepared, or you can find yourself in a dangerous situation. For example, flash flooding is one of those situations that comes to mind. Same is true when swimming in some places, North Shore east of Haleiwa, and Sandy Beach are two places from our own experience, that can be quite unpredictable, and where one should take appropriate precautions. If you follow several simple safety tips, things can be very enjoyable. Now wash all the sand of your body, actually this seldom works well at the beach, drive back to the hotel, and keep washing away all remaining sand that refuses to go away. The places it tends to stick to, we are not going to write about on those pages.
Mahalo everybody!

Book: Steve Caplin, Art & Design in Photoshop, Focal Press, ISBN 978-0-240-81109-3. My favorite art book at this moment.

MP3 music: http://002e972.netsolhost.com/ .