Actually James...

Some of your tuition dollars are in fact sending me to and around Hawaii...but let's remember I'm working here. Really hard, too.

So at work today I went to Waimea Canyon (affectionately dubbed the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific Rim" by money hungry cultural sellout tourist groups). If you've never been to Waimea Canyon I would highly recommend that you start saving up your pennies now to make a trip out to Kauai so that you can behold the splendour and majesty that is the Canyon. Check it:

That was earlier on in the morning while it was still a little foggy from the rain. But as the day went onward it was a lot easier to take pictures of the Canyon. Once again...Hawaii makes you Ansel Adams

Taking pictures of the Canyon is all well and good. But if you are like me, and your red American, Republican blood is always pulsing for a good adventure, then you know what you have to do to make this situation a lot more interesting...go find some obscure hiking trails and walk out onto the canyon face in order to take some slammin' pictures!!! And when I say obscure, I mean like fall-and-break-your-leg-and-no-one-finds-you-for-a-week-so-you-have-to-chew-through-it obscure.

You may or may not be able to tell from these pictures, but the Waimea Canyon is so many different colors. Blues, reds, oranges, yellows, and even seafoam colors make up the collage of different clay soils that make up the canyon. And also most of the canyone is all clay...not a whole lot of solid rock to stand on. The combination of bright colors, fun soil, and the opportunity to have 'an adventure' allured me to one particular side of the canyon.

If you know me, then you know it doesn't take a whole lot to distract my eye. So when I saw stuff like this...

...all of my available faculties were consumed with the thought of taking a picture of the beautiful parts of the canyon sand-with me in it. But for some reason blogger.com isn't letting me upload any more pictures, so you don't get to see what happens just yet. Maybe tomorrow.

But in lieu of not having pictures to show you, I'm never lacking in thoughts to share with you (much to you all's chagrin I know). I'm out here on Kauai right? All I see everywhere I go are advertisements for 2 things: helicopter rides and luau's. Now there's nothing wrong with a helicopter ride over the Waimea Canyon, or some other natural attraction. But luau's? I know that's a staple of the Hawaiian experience...but should it be? A luau is a celebratory feast to commemorate key events in the lives of the native Hawaiian people: coronations, birthdays, marriages, etc. So why is it that an event that's supposed to be reserved for special occasions has been whored out by the pimp of modern tourism? I think I'm kind of offended by the fact that the people of hawaii would so quickly sell out a rich part of their culture to make a quick buck off the tourists and mainlanders. The fact that I see billboards proclaiming that "So and So has the BEST Hawaiian luau...all for only $59 a person!!" makes me honestly upset. Luau's aren't for me, they are for special occasions. As much as I love myself and think myself deserving of a party, I would never expect a luau on my behalf just because I happen to be in Kauai. If I do something sweet, like slay a hundred dragons with narry the hindquarters of a gelding, then throw me a luau. Until then, though, I'm going to keep my money in my pocket and let the luau commence rather for a legitimate occasion. That's what I think.

Ok more pics later!