Ryan's tumblelog. Remaindered links beyond the blog, random web discoveries ranging from the whimsical to the wild, the weird to the wise.
Urban Geek Pau Hana
We’re three Code for America fellows – Sheba, Mick, and Diana – and we’re partnering with the City of Honolulu to take on challenging problems using technology, as well as to increase civic engagement on the island. The 3 of us are very interested in how cities and citizens can work better together, as well as in code, design, and user experience. We’ll be working with Honolulu to create applications and other solutions to help solve issues for citizens.1 week ago
We’re here in Honolulu for 5 weeks, and we’d love to meet with and talk to as many people as we can – so we can better understand both the needs of the residents, as well as what’s already being worked on. After our 5 week stay we’ll be returning to San Francisco, where Code for America is based, to spend the rest of the year working on implementing the ideas that come from our experiences in Honolulu.
We’d love to see you at a casual pau hana. Come mingle with Code for America and many other new friends, and enjoy discounted drink prices this Thursday at Manifest!
Thursday, Feb 9
5-8pm
The Manifest
32 North Hotel Street
Honolulu, HI 96817
On Feb. 25, the fifth annual Unconferenz will be held at Kapiolani Community College. This longstanding grassroots technology event has been the brainstorming launchpad for a number of interesting and promising initiatives in Honolulu. Mark your calendars, and please join us!
3 weeks ago
![stevenespaniola:
Travelocity Ad = FAIL
“Hula is the language of the heart, therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people.” - King David Kalākaua
Over the years there have been many commercial ads that laugh at, poke fun of or mention my Hawaiian culture in a lighthearted manner. Normally, I shrug them off as ignorance and move on, however I recently stumbled upon a poster ad (above) by Travelocity while traveling on BART (San Francisco’s mass transit system) that stopped me in my tracks, jaw dropped. […]
We need to put an immediate stop to these types of ads the moment we notice them so that we can educate the masses about the importance of hula and our culture. If you are reading this and share my thoughts, please take a moment to send Travelocity your feedback by clicking on the link below:
Travelocity Feedback: http://bit.ly/v8QNQP
BART Complaint Line: 510-464-7134
Mahalo for listening!
Steven Espaniola](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvybjeWDe21qdfddio1_500.jpg)
2 months agoTravelocity Ad = FAIL
“Hula is the language of the heart, therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people.” - King David Kalākaua
Over the years there have been many commercial ads that laugh at, poke fun of or mention my Hawaiian culture in a lighthearted manner. Normally, I shrug them off as ignorance and move on, however I recently stumbled upon a poster ad (above) by Travelocity while traveling on BART (San Francisco’s mass transit system) that stopped me in my tracks, jaw dropped. […]
We need to put an immediate stop to these types of ads the moment we notice them so that we can educate the masses about the importance of hula and our culture. If you are reading this and share my thoughts, please take a moment to send Travelocity your feedback by clicking on the link below:Travelocity Feedback: http://bit.ly/v8QNQP
BART Complaint Line: 510-464-7134
Mahalo for listening!
Steven Espaniola
Via Makana:
3 months agoThis video was taken on Nov. 12, 2011 in Honolulu on the grounds of the Hale Koa Hotel. My guitar tech shot it with a camera phone during my performance for the World Leaders Dinner at APEC, which was hosted by the First Family.
He had to be extremely discreet as Secret Service had warned those on site that any phones used to capture photography or video would be confiscated. Since he has a guitar tuner app on the phone we were able to justify having it out, but grabbing video was not easy. We were under constant surveillance. Personally I like to have video of every performance. It’s my art and my right.
About an hour into my set of generally ambient guitar music and Hawaiian tunes, I felt inspired to share some songs that resonated with the significance of the occasion.
I sang a few verses from “Kaulana Na Pua” (a famous Hawaiian protest song in honor of the anniversary of our Queen’s passing), then segued into Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower”, Sting’s “Fragile”, and finally my newest song “We Are The Many”.
My goal was not to disturb the guests in an offensive fashion but rather to subliminally fill their ears and the entire dinner atmosphere with a message that might be more effectively received in a subconscious manner. I sweetly sang lines like “You enforce your monopolies with guns/ While sacrificing our daughters and sons/ But certain things belong to everyone/ Your thievery has left the people none”. The event protocol was such that everyone there kept their expressions quite muffled. Now and then I would get strange, befuddled stares from heads of state. It was a very quiet room with no waiters; only myself, the sound techs, and the leaders of almost half the world’s population.
If I had chosen to disrupt the dinner and force my message I would have been stopped short. I instead chose to deliver an extremely potent message in a polite manner for a prolonged interval.
I dedicate this action to those who would speak truth to power but were not allowed the opportunity.
Contained on this brand new full length album of rarities are many previously unheard tracks along with the live version of “Cloisonn” heard on the official video of the song, a fantastic remix of “You Probably Get That A Lot” from the Elegant Too, plus the band’s now legendary appearance on The Onion AV Club’s Undercover series performing “Tubthumping” with the AV Club Choir. Rollicking new music from TMBGs Other Thing Brass Band sessions fill out the set.
(Source: amazon.com)
3 months ago3 months agoHarold Perrineau has released a new single with Tom Tom titled “Movin’ On”! If you only know Harold as “the ‘WAAAAAALT!’ guy, you’ll be happy to hear he’s massively talented at making other sounds. Check out the music video, and download the single on iTunes!
