The Secret

I really love the island of Maui. I love living here. Such a wonderful feeling being here. The beautiful land , sky and ocean. Inside my heart I feel at home here, I always have from my first moment I arrived. The secret is in my mind and heart. I Love Maui!

Grand Slam FINALS

The 2007 Grand Slam FINALS and 4th Anniversary coming up next week (April 5th). The Genie (scratch guitar virtuoso) will be in town and will round out the show as our musical feature. With DJ Qbert as one of his influences, this musical pioneer incorporates classical guitar, beat boxing, DJ scratching, live-sampling, and beat juggling all on one guitar to produce a live show that, quite simply, will blow your mind.

And don't forget that our super special feature for this show is Big Poppa E, a National Poetry Slam Champion who has appeared 3 times on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam. He has also been featured on BET, NPR, and CBS’s 60 Minutes. Furthermore, he has headlined at more than 200 showcases in 33 states (including more than 60 major universities), making him one of the most recognized names in the National Poetry Slam community.

Plus, we've got the 12 best poets from the 2006-2007 season fighting for their metaphoric lives in an all out, three-round elimination match to determine the members of the 2007 HawaiiSlam team. This will indeed be the most intense poetry slam of the entire year (if you remember last year's finals, you know what we're talking about). Tickets are $15.

roundabout

WAILUKU – Maui could get its first roundabout – that circular traffic island so familiar to drivers in Europe and parts of the Mainland – if Mayor Charmaine Tavares’ request for funding is approved.

The roundabout would be located at the intersection of Liloa Drive and Piikea Avenue in Kihei. Tavares requested $1 million in county funds, with the expectation of an additional $2 million in matching federal dollars, in her 2007-08 budget currently being reviewed by the Maui County Council. Kihei Community Association officials said the project is long overdue.

Tony Walholm and the Ebb & Flow Arts of Maui Hawaii. Tony is such a neat-o guy!

Old Kahului Shopping Center

WAILUKU – The conceptual plans for remaking the Old Kahului Shopping Center into a new Kahului Town Center will require a special management area permit – up for a hearing at 9 a.m. Tuesday before the Maui Planning Commission .

The hearing will be in the Planning Department conference room in Kalana Pakui.

Grant Chun, vice president for A&B Properties on Maui, said it is the last “discretionary approval” for the plans before A&B can proceed to complete its designs and seek building permits. If approved, he said, construction could begin in late 2008.

Maui Rain Storm 3/13/2007

The rain was fantastic yesterday. I was driving down to Wailuku-Kahului from Pukalain and it poured. I went to the mall and the tents that cover the mall were being played like drums, like pounding thunder and striking lightning. Flash water dance from the sky, I thought about you, your magic like the water that poured out so fast from the sky. I met you like that, Meeting you was like a thunder storm that poured dangerously and furiously fast and ended before I could understand the natural beauty. You visited me yesterday in the rain.

Ahfook's

Ahfook's is back! Can you believe that! The old time Kahului grocery store burnt down almost three years ago. Now they reopened a very small store close to the same location. You know many older folks love that place and are dedicated to the local grinds. I was so happy to see the same cashiers and stocker's back at work. Wow, nice job Ahfook's.

Hawaii Superferry & Real Estate Speculators

1/7/07
Today is the last day of the senates ability to pass all bills, if they do not pass today then the become invalid and go back to the drawing table.

1/6/2007 senators yesterday called for the state to complete an EIS while the Superferry is allowed to start service between Honolulu and Maui in July.

Ferry officials had raised the possibility of suing the state if it is not permitted to start service, after the state has put $40 million into harbor construction for the ferry. The service is scheduled to start this summer.

The bill is expected to pass the Senate tomorrow and then go to the House.

A bill that did pass the Senate yesterday requires counties to identify property owners running vacation rentals and bed-and-breakfast establishments to make sure that the owners are paying the hotel room tax.

In the House, lawmakers worked well into the night tackling a 341-bill agenda that included measures ranging from the establishment of traffic cameras to catch red-light runners and increased taxes for real estate speculators.

Some of the more spirited debate in the House focused on increased taxes for speculators, those who buy properties and sell them after a short time at a profit.

One measure, House Bill 1002, would assess a graduated anti-speculation tax on the capital gains realized on real property held from less than six months and up to 24 months before sold. Another measure, H B 252, increases conveyance tax rates for sales of condominiums or single-family residences where the purchaser is ineligible for a county homeowner's property tax exemption.

"How can we deny that speculation is not contributing to increase the cost of housing, when neighborhoods in Makaha have homes that are selling for millions of dollars," said Housing Chairwoman Maile Shimabukuro (D, Waianae-Makua).

"I'm just really concerned about this philosophy that the speculators are the true cause of raising the costs of housing in Hawaii," said Rep. Kymberly Pine (R, Ewa Beach-Iroquois Point). "I believe the true cause of the high cost of housing in Hawaii is us -- government."

Hula Girls

Lahaina Cannery Mall on Sunday March 3rd, Cute eh!

Buy Now

It's a great time to buy a house or real property. Interest rates are low, there are too many houses to choose from. America has an all time high in inventory 4 millions homes for sale nation wide. If you haven't bought, then now is the time, Buy Now, because interest rates will go up, market prices have fallen. If you have been saving your money, fixing your credit score or just procrastinating, buy now. The perfect time is now, So many choices and sellers are now willing to negotiate. The National Association of Realtors has started a slogan called Buy Now, I couldn't agree more. Buy Now!