Via the conversion of sound into cogitation...

I was cleaning my room and ended up browsing through my high school yearbook, reading the messages and notes that old friends have written in it. One of my closer friends wrote me a short message in a small box. After seeing how little he wrote, I yelled and asked him to write more (on Post-its) as an addendum. What a smart ass...

Via the conversion of sound into cogitation through my auditory canal, I perceive that 1 Mr. Kevin [C] desires that I write more in his annual folio. For this reason, I shall resume ejaculating the boundless praise that he is deserving of. While I may not be exceedingly fond of his visage, I've come to enjoy the company of its twisted features, finding comfort in its striking angularity and pallid hue. This horrid sight is but a prelude, a mask disguising the wonder that is Kevin. I am afraid that a man of my oratory and literary faculties will be unable to accurately convey his greatness, but I shall attempt nevertheless. 

Kevin [C] was born in a log cabin in Formosa in 1988 to Taiwanese butternut squash farmers. He soon grew to be a stalwart, a mighty slayer of insects. Then he went to Brooklyn Tech and eventually met Kent. Since then, his overwhelming intellectual and firm grip on reality have markedly diminished, but in the process, gave him some memorable moments with the aforementioned Asian. Hopefully the moments will be cherished long past their occurrences, living forever, chronicled for eternity in both their minds and Gmail mailboxes. Hopefully.

It's funny how stupid and simple things like these can bring such solace when it's being sought.

Kevin Fact 11

Sunset in Hawaii.

Anyone that knows me knows that I can be very sentimental at times, chewing on the past and thinking a lot about what-ifs and how-did-that-happens.

It is nearly time to go back to school for the last semester at Cornell ever, a semester I haven't been looking forward to for a long time now. Campus will be painfully empty after I return to campus and realize that all the December graduates did not. (We were the leftovers, pursuing our M. Eng's after our undergraduate graduation last May.)

For better or for worse, 2010 was simultaneously the best and worst year of my life. Right now, life is not good. But I do have a knack for fixing things; I'm sure I will pull myself through this trough of life. Or am I just taking credit away from Time?

[Hawaii 2011] Day 7: Dole Pineapple Plantation Maze, H3, and BBQ

Scenic point off H3, taken straight from the iPhone.

Stephen and Farrah finishing the maze.

Today's our last full day in Hawaii, in which a 30% chance of rain turned out to be yet another perfect-weather day. In the early afternoon, we went to the Dole Plantation in Wahiawa. Benson and I finished the "world's largest maze" in about 40 minutes, beating Stephen and Farrah by a few minutes. The pineapples were awesome. Earlier in the day, I tweeted: "A slice of fresh pineapple is a bite of pure happiness. And I had three." That pretty much sums up the day.

Tonight's Dinner.

After the Dole Plantation Stephen and I really wanted to check out the mythical (not really) H3 "interstate" highway. I must say, it is one of my most favorite highways to drive down. The scenic value of it is off the charts. We stop several times for scenic views and photos.

Dinner tonight comprised of steak and hamburgers that we put on the grill along with a whole ton of leftovers from the week. Benson made the burgers and prepped the steak. I did the grilling (for the most part, until Benson started yelling at me; haha). All in all, we had a great time, sharing stories and answering Farrah's silly questions like, What was your favorite place we went to this week?

One of our few group photos, at sunset.

We all fly out more or less together tomorrow afternoon. Benson's the first to fly out at 4. Stephen and Farrah at 5. And I am peacing out at a late 10 pm, which means I'll have a lot of time to kill at the airport tomorrow... or something. My itinerary has me going to Seattle for a short layover, which will be nice to visit for real some day. And then home via JFK from there. What a trip.

[Hawaii 2011] Day 6: Snorkeling

Hamauma Bay from an overlook.

We went snorkeling and I saw fish *this* big at Hamauma Bay Nature Preserve. Afterwards, Stephen wanted some bigger waves, so we hunted for some at Makapuu Point Beach. Disgustingly and amazingly, we had KFC for lunch in between going to each beach. For me, I think today helped me learn about how (just) okay I am at swimming and helped me overcome some of my fear of it (not that you'd know if you saw me this week; I was doing everything). And speaking of doing things I don't like or am afraid of, I've started eating tomatoes. (For the record, I still don't like them, but I've become braver.)

Some really nice waves at Makapuu.

Today, we did some epic sightseeing on the way there and back.

By the way, the weather forecast for today was 70% chance of rain. This is the most gorgeous 70%-chance-of-rain day I've ever seen.

Stephen, Benson, and Farrah (buried).

[Hawaii 2011] Day 5: Polynesian Culture Center

Stephen and I tried to make fire unsuccessfully, twice.

Today we spent all of today visiting the Polynesian Culture Center, which was apparently one of Hawaii's biggest tourist attractions on Oahu. It took about two hours to get there. We left around 10 and got there a little after 12 (all the while I had to pee really badly; I was the first one off the bus, let's say). It covered the islands of Samoa, Tonga, Hawaii, Fiji, etc, with a themed area for each. Tried some Hawaiian poi for the first time, and I honestly didn't think it was that bad once you think about how it was made. It's basically mashed starch, which was so bland and flavorless and purple it was weird in an awesomely weird kind of way. There was music, a luau dinner and an amazing show called 'Ha: The Breath of Life,' which was so amazing. (No photos allowed though.)

Mid-day boat parade showcasing the different islands.

This Japanese audience member was hilariously oblivious to what's going on at one of the mini-shows.

[Hawaii 2011] Day 4: Rainy Day, Please Go Away

View of the Pacific from Aloha Tower. Honolulu Airport to the right.

There was some pretty heavy rains this morning, and tonight, I can see lightning in the distance. There was an emergency broadcast on the television about storming and flooding in the north side of Oahu, where we're going tomorrow. We went to Swap Meet at Aloha Stadium near Pearl Harbor (it's kind of like a flea market / night market), followed by more shopping and drive-around sightseeing. I think I have all my take-home souvenirs and gifts prepared. In other news, I drank a lot tonight because I needed to.  All in all, today was pretty crummy day. I hope it gets better.

[Hawaii 2011] Day 3: Sightseeing

View of eastern Oahu.

Today we went sightseeing at Kualoa Ranch, on the east side of Oahu. It was pretty awesome doing the touristy thing. There we met some really cool farm animals (video to come), and we got to drive ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) around the area. In the afternoon, we went back to [try and] build an Aztec pyramid this time, in Ala Moana beach. It was pretty good given the bad sand. Also, so far, I've been to two Apple Stores in Hawaii, both within walking distance from "home."

ATV riding.

Pyramid-building, again. Smaller, but better.

[Hawaii 2011] Day 2: Pearl Harbor

USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

We paid our respects to Pearl Harbor, its history and its people. We visited the USS Arizona Memorial, USS Missouri battleship, and checked out the Pacific Aviation Museum.

Also, it was cloudy and started raining today. Quite unusual, but appropriate for the occasion I suppose.

[Hawaii 2011] Day 1: Waikiki Beach

Pyramid Building on Waikiki Beach, Hawaii.

We spent the morning figuring out what we were going to do this week. And then we went to the beach for the rest of the afternoon followed by an amazing dinner prepared by B. Wong. It was a nearly perfect pyramid, using just our hands and a frisbee to smooth things out. We also had a moat in front of it to divert some of the water as the tide came in. We noticed some people taking pictures with/of it when I went back to sit down, so we decided to etch our names onto the sides of it. Then, we proceeded to destroy it before we left. In retrospect, I feel just a little bad for defiling and destroying it at the expense of others' enjoyment.

Video of the sand pyramid found here for now: MobileMe gallery.