Merry Christmas!!
Christmas is right around the corner! As usual, it’s coming faster than I thought. I still have a couple of gifts to buy.
This past Saturday, I went to an annual Christmas party with friends and family. We’ve been having our annual party at my sister’s house in Hawaii Kai the last few years. The main reason is that her house is on the marina, and there’s an annual boat parade each year.
This is a fun event! Most of the boaters go all out to decorate their boats. I have a couple of photos above. But there were many more awesome participants. The last boat actually had a working trapeze. And someone was actually swinging from the trapeze! I kid you not. That’s one of the more original ideas that I’ve seen in a few years.
I hope everyone has a joyous and safe Christmas. Merry Christmas to all!!
Kapolei is Booming!
If you haven’t noticed, Oahu’s “second city” of Kapolei is booming! Consider the numbers. Homes is Kapolei in 1990 – 11,722. Homes in Kapolei projected in 2025 – 56,710. Kapolei’s population in 1990 – 42,983. Kapolei’s projected population in 2025 – 172,000.
The numbers speak for themselves. But if you’ve gone to Kapolei in the past couple of years, you can see the development. This past year, Costco opened their Kapolei store. And right on their heels was the opening of Kapolei Commons with Target, Petco, Sports Authority, Office Max, Ross, Price Busters and many more. There’s further retail development planned for Kapolei to add to the existing retailers such as Long’s, Safeway, Home Depot, Consolidated Theaters and many more. Plus, there are all the eateries such as McDonald’s, Burger King, Taco Bell, Zippy’s and a host of others. There’s even more retail development planned with two more shopping centers to break ground soon.
All this with the planned completion of the Disney Resort in Ko Olina and the opening of the Kapolei Court Complex in 2010. Yes, Kapolei is definitely taking steps to become Oahu’s second city. Even my company, Liberty Mutual, has been eyeing spots to open an office. In the meantime, we’ve been doing a lot of business in Kapolei through our nearby Pearlridge office.
It’s exciting to see how Kapolei has developed, and even more thrilling to think of where the city is going.
Texting and Driving
A couple of weeks ago, Liberty Mutual released some new tips on safe driving. Each tip was accompanied by a short video clip. Check out the link above to view the video.
Hawaii recently passed a law that prohibits using a cell phone or similar devices while driving. When the law was passed, I saw some interviews on the news asking for the publics’ opinion. Before the law was passed, I would occasionally use my cell phone while driving. And I admit, it was difficult driving and dialing a number at the same time! I couldn’t believe that some younger drivers could drive and text at the same time. But then I saw another interview where the texter could text quickly and accurately, without even looking at her phone! I made me realize that you could text and drive if you’re good at texting. Still, as the video shows, even a moment’s distraction can be dangerous.
