Outrigger on the Lagoon – Fiji It’s Not Just a Garners Two …saturdaybriefing.outrigger.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/sb... · on the Lagoon – Fiji Garners Two “Bests”

Saturday BriefingPage 1

March 2, 2013 A MESSAGE FROM RICHARD R. KELLEY TO OUR OUTRIGGER ‘OHANA

®

Outrigger® on the Lagoon – Fiji Garners Two “Bests” at the AON Excellence in Tourism Awards

By Peter Hopgood

Denarau Island was abuzz with activity as the 16th AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards were held recently recognizing individuals and operators who performed exceptionally in their respective fields last year.

I am thrilled to announce that the Outrigger® on the Lagoon - Fiji is one such operator, having been named the Best Deluxe Resort in Fiji. This recognition is given to the property that provides the most exceptional service and highest quality holiday experience for its guests.

Judges also acclaimed the resort’s cuisine, naming Outrigger on the Lagoon’s signature restaurant Ivi as Best Fine Dining Restaurant. This award is given to the restaurant that delivers the most impeccable level of service while presenting innovative cuisine with a commitment to the use of local produce.

Naming Ivi Restaurant as Best Fine Dining Restaurant recognizes the culinary standards set by Executive Chef Shailesh Naidu, assisted by sous chef Priya Darshani, as well as the exceptional service of the Ivi staff in creating an extraordinary dining experience. Recognizing the Outrigger on the Lagoon – Fiji as Best Deluxe Resort in Fiji recognizes the superior standards and dedication set by the Outrigger Team. I was truly honored to accept the award on behalf of the Outrigger on the Lagoon – Fiji vuvale (family).

The Outrigger on the Lagoon - Fiji vuvale at the AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards

The good ship “United States of America” is sailing in dangerous waters

Nightmare >> 8

It’s Not Just a Bad Dream: It’s a Real Nightmare

By Dr. Richard Kelley

As I write this column on the last day of February, I have a vision of a storm at sea. Am I dreaming? I see a sailing ship battered by wind and waves as it enters uncharted waters. The tidal currents are treacherous. There are hidden reefs that can tear huge holes in the hull. Although daylight is rapidly fading, I can still read the ship’s name on the hull – “United States of America.” The ship is headed toward swirling seas where it has never been before. Heavy flotsam churning in the waves and threatening to batter the ship is labeled with terms like “Sequestration, $16 Trillion Debt, Defense Cuts, Layoffs, Obamacare ....” Suddenly, I realize this is not a dream. It’s a living nightmare that portrays what is happening in our country today. In Washington, D.C., the House of Representatives, the Senate and the Obama administration have not been able to agree on a budget and, as suggested by the administration, late in 2011 they enacted legislation that imposed $85 billion in across-the-board federal

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Saturday Briefing is published by and for

employees of Outrigger Enterprises Group (OEG)

Editor-In-Chief: Richard Kelley

Supervising Editor: Pila Hanson

Senior Editor: Kathy Foley

Proofing Assistant: Char Luning

Contributing Writers: Employees of OEG

Visit us online at:

www.saturdaybriefing.outrigger.com

Submissions to Kathy Foley

at [email protected],

via interoffice mail to OEH/HR,

or by phone at (808) 921-6957.

© 2013 Outrigger Hotels Hawaii An Equal Opportunity Employer

Happy Birthday!Mar 13: Anthony Del Piano, Herbertned K. Fernandez, Zhi Yi Chen, Joanna L. Lee, Teerawat Pankong, Sommat Phetrat, Asaeli Nayaloga, Adivosa Qicatabua, Seremaia Rabonu, Ema Rokoleba, Samuel Vakatuturagana, Kordeeya Maunkoo, Kannika Chaiputthi, Eka Wiraputra, and Pattrawadee Seewongkranuan.

Mar 14: Eufemia L. Saoit, Leslie K. Laa, Josefina Pablo Corpuz, Matilde R. Claracay, Be Ho, Suryawati, Ema Radike, and Ashika Vandhana.

Mar 15: Agatha Boo Wol Kim, Prescila M. Constantino, Bridgett T. Dela Cruz, Charles R. Kelley, Talaini Roko, Corey Graham Stedman, Supachai Petcharat, Worawut Katanyou, Ratih Purnami, and Evelyn Adanzo.

Mar 16: Cynthia X.Y. Feng, Garrick T. Otsuka, Li Yuan Huang, Thomnong Khunchatturat, Lite Daunabou, Amelia Vuase, Salesi Vesivalu, and Jayveen Santos.

Mar 17: Samuel S. Tateyama, Karen H. Hiraoka, Primo D. Agasid, Patrick P. Ramos, Dianne C. Newman, Javier E. Mau, Wassana Traiteerakul, Marlina Ragasa, and Maraia Bennion.

Mar 18: Sheila E. Pike, Dana M. Sato, Kelli-Ann N. Morihara, Randhish Sharma, and Pritesh Kumar.

Mar 19: Joselyn S. Valenzuela, Lisa Sur, Gilmore Claonan, Nora Ajolo Ubaldo, Mira Sol T.C. Pascual, Afu H. Taufa, Ted R.J. Tuttle, and Randylo Cerico Fernandez.

Employment Opportunities If you are interested in a position listed below and meet the qualifications, you may apply online. Please go to Outrigger.com, click on ABOUT OUTRIGGER, then EMPLOYMENT. We only accept online applications for the open-listed positions from internal candidates. If

you have any questions, please call Chad Teramae at (808) 921-6989. Application deadline for the following positions is March 8, 2013.

Front Desk/Night Auditor (Full-Time)

A minimum of one year customer service and cashiering experience, preferably in the hospitality industry required. Previous night audit experience preferred. Must have basic computer skills and ability to type 30 wpm. Must also be a team player with excellent communication skills and flexibility to work any day and shift.

Bell Person (Part-Time)

Must have at least six months customer service experience, preferably in the hospitality industry. Must be able to lift 70 lbs and work any day and shift.

Outrigger Reef on the Beach

“My name is Wayne Yamato. I am staying in suite 1250 with my wife and two girls. Just want to let you [Bill Comstock] know that I really love your hotel and workers!! I have been a Platinum Starwood member for years, visiting Waikiki several times a year and staying at the Sheraton/Westin resorts. As a kid, my father always stayed here at the Reef, that was in the 70s but I never had the opportunity recently to try the Outrigger Reef because of my Starwood membership. Well, all I can say is that I am really impressed with the Reef. Not only does it bring back fond memories of my childhood vacations to Hawaii, but the overall experience here so far has been nothing but fantastic. From check-in (Junko) [Austin], housekeeping, pool/beach services, and valet, everything has worked out extremely well. Your employees are hard-working, courteous and professional. Also enjoy your amenities in the room, my wife is very happy and comfortable. So please share this with your staff – they have made an experienced Waikiki visitor like me very satisfied and provided the Reef with that decisive edge over its competitors because I will be back here on my next visit – not at the Sheraton Waikiki, PK or Westin Moana.”

Wayne Yamato

Moments of AlohaMoments of AlohaMoments of AlohaMoments of AlohaMoments of Aloha


Peter Hopgood Re-elected as Chairman of Coral Coast

Hotel AssociationBy Vanessa Steele

Peter Hopgood, general manager of the Outrigger on the Lagoon – Fiji, was re-elected for the third year as chairman of the Coral Coast Chapter of the Fiji Hotel and Tourism Association (FHTA) this past week.

Peter shared that going forward, Coral Coast hotels would become more proactive in community projects as well as in the promotion of the Coral Coast as Fiji’s premier tourism destination.

“The big project for 2013 will be the construction of a new maternity ward at the Sigatoka Hospital. We have so many babies being born on the Coral Coast and we need proper facilities for our women to give birth!”

Peter joined other Coral Coast resort general managers to present a cheque for $300,000 to the board members of the Sigatoka District Hospital as part of the funding for this project. The Fiji government had already committed one million dollars. Peter encouraged local business houses and the Provincial Council to dig deep as more monies are needed to complete the project.

Another key objective of the Coral Coast chapter of FHTA is to promote the Coral Coast as the premier tourism destination in Fiji. “We have a fantastic group of sales and marketing executives working at our hotels on the Coral Coast and our aim is to combine the talent and resources of these professionals to market the Coral Coast in our major source markets such as New Zealand, Australia and the United States,” said Peter.

Other members of the association voted into their respective chairperson roles were:

• Assistant Chapter Chairperson David Woodman (Naviti Resort and Spa)

• Marketing Chairperson Darren McPhee (Geckos Resort)

• Hospital and Community Funds Chairperson Coral Kennedy (Sandy Point Resort)

Peter Hopgood (left) with fellow Coral Coast resort managers

presenting a cheque to the Sigatoka District Hospital for a new maternity ward

A Visit from the National

Marine SanctuaryBy Luana Maitland

En route to Washington, D.C., from the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa, Dan Basta, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) director of the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and chief of staff Matt Stout made a brief stopover in Honolulu.

In 2007, Outrigger became the first hospitality company to establish a Memorandum of Agreement with the NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries so I was pleased to be able to meet with Dan and Matt at the Outrigger Reef on the Beach and provide them an update on activities at the hotel.

Coming up: During the summer months at the Outrigger Reef on the Beach, join the National Marine Sanctuaries for DOLPHIN SMART - a unique voluntary recognition and education program encouraging responsible viewing of wild dolphins. Keiki activities will be held in conjunction with the program.

Matt Stout and Dan Basta of NOAA

with Luana Maitland at the Outrigger Reef on the Beach

kiosk that provides a fun way for visitors to learn about

protected marine mammals


LivingWellMind • Body • Spirit

Each month, the “Saturday Briefing” (SB) staff will be publishing a LivingWell Q&A with an Outrigger employee. If you would like to be featured in a future article, please email Kathy Foley at [email protected].

Fran Patoskie (FP) is senior database manager based in our corporate offices in Waikīkī. She is also a very successful Beachbody® Coach, helping others to take charge of their health, transform their bodies and their lives!

SB - How often do you exercise?

FP - I do my workouts at home mostly, using DVDs. I feel like I have a personal trainer who tells me exactly what to do and how to do it, and I don’t have to get dressed or even comb my hair to go to the gym! I mix up cardio, resistance training and stretch workouts, like yoga. I find the older I get, the more I need to do lower impact workouts, and the recovery workouts are vital. I feel good when I exercise because it releases stress, makes me feel younger and more agile, keeps my weight down, and allows me to eat more than just steamed veggies when I go out! I try to exercise six days a week, but at least five. I never go more than two days without moving, even if it’s just a 15-minute make-up-my-own routine workout in a hotel room.

SB - Do you strive to eat healthy?

FP - I do! I look for recipes that make healthy foods taste great. Sorry, nothing’s more boring than bland food! I love to add garlic, seasonings, Bragg’s amino acids, and Himalayan salt to my food for lots of flavor without added calories. I never fry anything because it just feels too heavy to me (although I’ll never say no to a good french fry!). One of my favorite recipes is a very simple soup that I make with steamed zucchini and raw cashews (see recipe right). I shop at the farmer’s market for fresh local produce; I feel good knowing that I’m helping our local farmers and eating the freshest possible produce.

SB - What indulgence do you allow yourself every now and then?

FP - Oh, I love mochi ice cream from Bubbies! Anytime I have out-of-own visitors, I take them there. I limit myself to three pieces per visit, so if my friends are here for a week, we usually go at least twice! And, anything salty and crunchy is dangerous around me.

SB - What benefits have you enjoyed from your efforts in the area of exercise and nutrition? FP - I rarely get sick and I don’t have migraines anymore since I eliminated dairy, soy, wheat, corn and vinegar from my diet.

One thing that makes me smile is when someone thinks I’m my son’s girlfriend (My boys don’t think that’s funny, though!) Now if only exercise would prevent my hair from turning white...

SB - What “secret” that works for you would you like to share with the Outrigger ‘ohana? FP - Get an accountability buddy! I have facebook buddies that I check in with every day. Stay off the scale and go by how your clothes fit. I don’t own a scale, but I know within a pound

or two how much I weigh because of how my jeans fit.

SB - How do you “de-stress?” FP - I love getting Thai massages, where the therapist stands above you and massages you with her feet. It’s amazing! I love reading and take my iPad everywhere because it’s my Kindle. And of course, there’s nothing like a good workout to burn off some stress. Sometimes I need a good yoga session; sometimes I need a good sweaty cardio session.

SB - Do you have any past “moments of glory” you’d like to share?FP - I’ve finished the Honolulu Marathon three times. I don’t run, but I can walk pretty fast. I got rear ended by a car two weeks before my first marathon, so my back was pretty sore during the race, and I finished in 6:55. The next year, I cut 50 minutes off my time! I’ve done P90X five times and did a round of Insanity as well.

Fran and her husband Joseph make fitness a lifestyle together

Fran’s Zucchini-Cashew Soup

1 large or 2 small zucchini, cut into chunks and steamed

1/4 cup raw cashews

Himalayan salt or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos, to taste

Herbal seasoning or fresh herbs, like basil or dill (optional, to taste)

• Soak cashews in enough water to cover for 1 hour; drain.

• Combine cashews, hot steamed zucchini (drained), salt or aminos, and seasonings in blender and mix until smooth, adding water as needed for desired consistency. For chunky soup, add steamed chopped vegetables of your choice.

Can be served hot or cold. Serves one.


Lunch & LearnMedicare by Kaiser Permanente

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

12 p.m. to 1 p.m.

OEH Pool Terrace Conference Rooms

General informational workshop on Medicare by Senior Account Manager Kawehi Keliipuleole.

Heart & Sole WalkWednesday, March 20, 2013

OEH Bell Desk. Meet at 5:15 p.m.Take a 45-minute to 1-hour walk around Waikīkī!

Tell Us Your StoryBy the Saturday Briefing Staff

The Saturday Briefing staff would like to continue our LivingWell employee feature (see article on page 4). That means we want your story!

Please send your “story,” photos and recipes to Kathy Foley at [email protected]. We’ll feature one ‘ohana member each month and look forward to reading about you in a future issue of Saturday Briefing.

Let’s share, learn and support one another in this important effort to LiveWell.

The 19th Annual Honolulu Festival Comes to Waikīkī!

By Kathy Hansberry

The Honolulu Festival comes to Waikīkī this weekend March 2 and 3. Outrigger Hotels and

Resorts is proud to join the Honolulu Festival Foundation, Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, City and County of Honolulu and other corporate sponsors to present the 19th annual Honolulu Festival, a weekend filled with events and activities that celebrate the cultural diversity of the Asia-Pacific region. Groups from Hawai‘i, Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea, Australia, the Philippines and North America will perform at three Waikīkī venues: Hawai‘i Convention Center, DFS Galleria and Waikiki Beach Walk®.

A press conference to kick off the festival was held last week Tuesday at Waikiki Beach Walk. Hawaii dignitaries, including Mayor Kirk Caldwell; president and CEO of Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, Mike McCartney; president of the Honolulu Festival Foundation, Keiichi Tsujino; and president and CEO of Outrigger Enterprises Group, David Carey, highlighted the significance of this festival that celebrates cultural diversity and brings thousands of visitors and local families to Waikīkī. For more information and a complete listing of scheduled performances and exhibits, visit honolulufestival.com, follow updates on Twitter (@honfestival) or become a fan of its Facebook page (Honolulu Festival). Best of all, admission is free and events are open to the public, so bring the entire ‘ohana down for an amazing cultural exchange!

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell; David Carey; Keiichi Tsujino, president of the Honolulu Festival

Foundation; and Mike McCartney, president and CEO of Hawai‘i Tourism Authority

LivingWellMind • Body • Spirit

Living Right“7 Sight Savers”

1. Wear sunglasses

2. Rest your eyes

3. Have regular eye exams

4. Eat vegetables

5. Maintain a healthy weight

6. Don’t smoke

7. Be safe at work

Get the full article plus “What’s your Eye Q?” with your March 2013 Living Right Bulletin at HRSC.


Celebrating the Paddle JourneyThe OHANA Waikiki Malia Puts Paddle 5 Into Action

By Divina Garcia

Photo above - Standing: Chuck Shishido. Sitting: Mary

Lou Casilla, Mary Rose Tabion, and Florefe Lawrence.

Photo right: Primie Marzan and Jolynn Nihipali display

the value of Aloha

Yuan Ni Lei Lim, Sui-Lan Fong, Feng Zhen Chen, Jun Ling Lu, and Lai Chee Lum

Wai Choi Ho, Xiaofeng Huang, and Efren Agustin

Manny Nicolas, Primie Marzan, Troy Boyce, Herb Fernandez, and Henry Rodrigues

Celebrating How We Do What We Do - We are guided by our values to do the right thing, in the right way and with Aloha.

Continuing on our successful journey, the OHANA Waikiki Malia put into action Paddle 5, (Celebrating How We Do What We Do) by revisiting and re-educating employees in Outrigger’s core values of Ke ‘Ano Wa’a. In this process, we divided up our eight core values amongst three departments. The Housekeeping department took the values of Aloha, ‘Ohana and Kuleana. The Maintenance department took the values of Wahi and A‘o. The Front Office department took the values of Kīnā‘ole, Kaulike and Nā Mea Ho‘okipa. Each department received a 30” by 30” recycled presentation board to interpret their values by using words, pictures and so forth. Presenting for the Front Office was Troy Boyce. The Front Office department consists of 15 employees; three teams of five were assigned one value to interpret. Troy gave an excellent presentation speaking from the heart and emphasizing how our guests are the reason we are here. Presenting for the Housekeeping department was Grace Mello who spoke with poise and pride on how we all work together as a family to maintain the highest level of guest satisfaction and good working relationships with one another. Our Housekeeping department’s motto is “Yes we can,” and we strive to be the best we can be. Presenting for the Maintenance department was Herb Fernandez who spoke about how their two values of A‘o and Wahi affect each other. How we learn and share as we face different challenges in our workplace - with our guests, co-workers and surroundings. This process can help us to become better individuals and make a more harmonious work environment. After our three awe-inspiring presentations, Kaipo Ho blessed our gathering and food as we then went into a spirited Kung Hei Fat Choi luncheon fellowship enjoyed by all.

Paddle >> 7


I Got the Values in MeBy Chad Teramae and Char Luning

The Company Services Alaka‘i, in celebrating Paddles 5 and 6 - How We Do What We Do and Celebrating our Successful Journey - are sharing our thoughts on a value each month to draw attention to how we live our values each day!

Wahi

According to the Pukui-Elbert Hawaiian dictionary, there are several translations for the word wahi. The primary one is (n.) Place, location, position, site, setting.

Everyone can relate to this one. We all have a relationship to where we are (wherever you go, there you are). And we all can name a favorite place… top of a mountain, curl of a wave, in front of your gaming console.

And this sense of place comes with a sense of responsibility. If we want to enjoy a beautiful yard, we must mow the grass, trim branches, and pull weeds. It’s the same wherever we are – home, work, or holoholo. We take care of our place(s) so that we can continue to enjoy them.

As an Outrigger value, we refer to it as a Sense of Place. “… we protect, care for and live in harmony with the land, our workplace, its peoples and cultures.” As we venture into new locations – as individuals or as a company – we carry our values with us. Keeping our value of Wahi strong makes it easy to honor new lands and cultures.

How do you live the value of Wahi? Think about it...

In recognition of the value of Wahi, we ask all our Company Services ‘ohana to wear green each Friday in the month of March! Imua, Company Services!

Celebrating Paddle 5

How We Do It!By Luana Maitland

The Alaka‘i at the Outrigger Reef on the Beach thought Valentine’s Day would be the perfect opportunity to redistribute our Ke ‘Ano Wa‘a values card, along with some sweets!

This simple, yet effective way of celebrating Paddle 5 was a great reminder of “How We Should Be Doing It” - being guided by our values to do the right thing, in the right way, and with ALOHA - a perfect gift on Valentine’s Day!

Fu Hua Chen, Randall Mateo, Imelda Suguitan and Violeta Robles

PaddleFrom << From 6

Be Courageous!Credit: toastmasters.org

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” - Anais Nin

Most people go to Toastmasters to overcome their fear of public speaking, so at Toastmasters meetings, what you’ll see – among other things – are demonstrations of courage. ConsiderEleanorRoosevelt,whowasbynaturetimid,introvertedandterrifiedof speaking in public. But because she was married to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, she had to speak in public often. She faced her fear and became one of the great speakers of the 20th Century. Let her words inspire you to be courageous:

“You can gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along’… You must do the thing you cannot do. - Eleanor Roosevelt

Outrigger Toastmasters Club2nd&4thWednesdaysmonthly•12p.m.•OEHLobby2

For more information, email Kathy Foley at [email protected]


Nightmare<< From 1

Would Admiral Horatio Hornblower

have asked for sequestration?

Gregory Peck as

Captain Horatio Hornblower

spending cuts if the president and Congress could not agree on a better budget solution. The president and Congress failed to do this, and as a result, “sequestration” officially took effect yesterday, March 1, 2013. While $85 billion sounds like a lot of money, in terms of $3.8 trillion of federal spending each year, it is only a 2.23 percent budget cut. Yet, President Obama and his cabinet members have been in front of the TV cameras over the past few weeks telling us how thousands of teachers will be laid off and tens of thousands of parents will have to scramble to find childcare. Over 5,000 air traffic controllers will be furloughed, very likely creating chaos in airports around the country as flights are delayed. Unsafe bridges will not be repaired. National Park Service campgrounds will be shut. Homeland Security will sideline 5,000 border agents. The president, hoping to blame Congress, is implying that everyone will be severely inconvenienced and perhaps the economy will slowly grind to a halt. Earlier this month, because of the impending budget cuts, the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman was not sent on its scheduled deployment to the Persian Gulf – where it could have served as a deterrent to the dangerous nuclear-weapons ambitions of the ayatollahs’ rogue regime in Iran.

Would Admiral Horatio Hornblower have asked for sequestration? This failure to prioritize and find a way to tend to essential business should, unfortunately, not be surprising when you remember that, more generally, whenever government is involved, projects cost more than budgeted and the resulting services or products are less than promised.

Private enterprise works the opposite way. Firms compete to provide more than promised at a lower cost. Hotel managers handle budget shortfalls of 2.23 percent or more all the time. They carefully watch costs and they prioritize. The front desk, bell, food and beverage, housekeeping and maintenance departments are fully staffed, and, particularly at an Outrigger or OHANA hotel, everyone has a smile on their face and aloha in their heart. Compare that with your local driver’s license bureau, a classic example of government speed and efficiency! Predictions of the result of sequestration cuts in services have been very unsettling. That, plus record federal debt levels, unfunded liabilities at all levels of government, rapid growth of entitlements, and the pending full implementation of Obamacare in 2014, have many concerned about the future of the American economy. Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward is furious and has lambasted President Obama for not taking

responsibility for the sequestration process. On Wednesday, Woodward slammed as “madness” the president’s decision not to deploy the USS Harry S. Truman to the Persian Gulf. That makes me wonder if the good ship United States of America will follow the path of another fictional ship, the USS Caine, commanded by Captain Phillip Queeg, whose strange behavior provoked a mutiny. I hope not. Now jump to Hawai‘i’s state Capitol where the transient accommodations tax (TAT or hotel room tax), which was temporarily raised to 9.25 percent as an emergency measure in 2010, is scheduled by law to be scaled back two points to its pre-Great Recession level of 7.25 percent on July 1, 2015. However, in the Legislature, proposals have been introduced that would not only cancel the scheduled roll-back, but perhaps raise the TAT two points more – to 11.25 percent – effective this year. An increase to 11.25 percent would add 55 percent to the TAT’s basic, 7.25 percent rate! That would be just like raising the price of gasoline from $4 per gallon to $6.20! Even maintaining the current TAT rate of 9.25 percent and cancelling the scheduled roll-back to 7.25 percent would damage the competitiveness of Hawai‘i’s visitor industry and hurt the state’s economy, which depends so heavily on tourism. In my view, for Hawai‘i to maintain high hotel taxes – let alone raise them! – in the face of all the problems our “ship of state” is facing at a national level would also be “madness.” I will return to the TAT in next week’s Saturday Briefing. For now, let me just observe that what our federal and state governments have in common is a spending problem. Too many politicians at both levels are addicted to creating expensive, “feel-good” programs that must be fed either by continual tax increases or by out-of-control deficit spending. If sequestration and the budget-deficit crisis push the national economy “south,” Hawai‘i will more than ever have to be priced right and marketed heavily if we are to maintain visitor industry jobs at present levels. It’s a “mad, mad, mad world” out there today. I only hope we weather the storm and avoid the reefs.

Who Was Horatio Hornblower?When I was a kid in the pre-TV, pre-computer, pre-mobile telephone days and living in Los Angeles during World War II, if I was not out on the street playing Kick the Can, I would read a lot. Yes, I read comics such as Captain Marvel, but I also enjoyed adventure stories like the seriesofHoratioHornblowerbooksbyC.S.Forester.HornblowerwasafictionalofficerinBritain’sRoyalNavywhowouldgetintothemostharrowing situations but always escapeattheendtoliveandfightonceagain.He rose in the ranksfrom a seasick midshipman to Admiral of the Fleet. Forester wrote 11ofthesebooks,whichwerethenserializedformagazinesandin1951adaptedintoafilm,Captain Horatio Hornblower, starring Gregory Peck. Obviously, thememories of theHornblowerescapadesarestill inmy mind. - RK

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Documents

Outrigger on the Lagoon – Fiji It’s Not Just a Garners Two …saturdaybriefing.outrigger.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/sb... · on the Lagoon – Fiji Garners Two “Bests”