Brother helped in many ways
Life is like a sporting event. There are both positives and negatives. But I have discovered that when things are negative is when you learn the most and grow as a player and as a person. Everyone in life has a goal, and there are people in our lives who will support you to set that goal and achieve it and get you through the obstacles. They are our biggest fans, and yet our biggest critics. And the harder you work for something, the greater you’ll feel when you achieve it.
My rock, the person I looked up to, is my brother Isaa. He is the person who I am really close to and who is really important to me, who has encouraged me to do better and achieve my goals. I’d watch my brother through high school play baseball, and he influenced and encouraged me by helping me step on the field and learn the game of softball.
He has taught me to look back on any game, especially if we lost, and learn from my errors, as well as how I can work on not making the same mistakes and go for the win on my next game. He has told me numerous times that softball will challenge me mentally and help me learn real life lessons as well.
Jamie Horner, Lawai
North Shore businesses hurting
My wife and our family operate a small farm and commercial business in Wainiha. The kitchen supplies our retail outlet at Ching Young Village in Hanalei.
We and neighbors have adjusted to all the road closures, have rescheduled employee schedules to accommodate the convoy schedules and, in spite of all the necessary juggling, have managed to keep our shop open. Numbers have been down over previous years but we’re OK.
The recent landslide at mile marker one has reopened all the wounds. Local customers and visitors are being advised to stay away. We are aware of travel agents making suggestions for the past year to stay away from the North Shore (didn’t help merchants). Now the printed suggestions to avoid us are beginning to hurt more.
We have had customers brave the risk to come see what they can of the North Shore and tell us their concierges and others advise them to go south. Read today that the agencies involved will try to accommodate upcoming scheduled events. We attended a poorly attended concert Sunday. Did the warnings scare away people?
Speaking to other business owners in Hanalei reveals deep fears of surviving the planned, long-term disruptions. The residents and business owners on the North Shore have been fantastic in coping with the necessary repairs and changes in our lives.
The potential negative outcomes of suggesting avoidance will hurt the North Shore long after this is all over.
Jack Mitchell, Princeville
The amount of smug, arrogance, racism and entitlement that North Shore residents managed to put out over the course of the year does not make me feel sympathetic towards lost income.
Ok, I’ll bite……..what racism have North Shore residents displayed exactly over the last year?
Arbitrary, what are you talking about? Some billionaire? The working business people on the north shore are some of the sweetest people you will ever meet.
This is the problem with the slow-as-possible attitude exhibited by HDOT. If it takes over a year to fix one thing, it’s entirely possible that something else bad will happen. In fact there’s still a good chance something *else* bad will happen while they repair the hill. The fact is the state needed to (and still needs to) allocate 3-5x more $ and resources than they do. Otherwise you end up ruining lives and livelihoods. Over and over they make the same mistakes: instead of just fixing the road, they decided to implement the entire north shore “plan” (cough) and build out shuttle parking and all kine things that they have zero experience with. A smarter person would have done the repairs first to restore access, then built the “improvements” later. But that smarter person doesn’t work for the state unfortunately. So now we’re even deeper in than before. Disappointing.
“… learn from my errors, as well as how I can work on not making the same mistakes…”
Jamie…you are lucky to have such a good brother who has given you some of the best advice for making it in life. Rather than whine about how life has turned out, you will be a success by always remembering what your brother Isaa has taught you. How refreshing to read your letter juxtaposed as it is with those of whiners (like Hooser)
All the best to you,
RG DeSoto
Smugness? Arrogance? Racism? Entitlement?
Please provide concrete examples of all the the above accusations.
Sounds to me like you may be a bit jealous of those who live and work on the North Shore.
Way to go, sowing discontent from members of parts of our island community about others who live in a different part of the island.
Small mindedness will get you nowhere.
Kauaiboy
Mahalo for your comments. We are encouraging all of our friends to come to
Hanalei. Best Aloha