Now for those few people who read my blog know that my style is different than Dad or Alex’s. Dad and Alex use their blog to say what happened to them, where they’re going, what they’re thinking, etc. And while sometimes I like to mirror their style, I try to make my entries more informational and worthwhile long-term. So I hope you guys understand, that I’m not withholding information from you or ignoring you guys, I value each of my readers and hope they appreciate this difference.

Besides, if wanna get my day to day, follow me on Twitter!
http://www.twitter.com/nickkawakami

Anyway, onto the news! Hawai’i got smoked by Wisconsin over the weekend, capping off a roller-coaster of a season. And while the pole 11.5 crew showed up in force, it wasn’t enough as Wisconsin ran all over the place. Oh well, I have to say, with all the crap that Coach Mack had to deal with this year, it’s amazing how well it turned out. Congratulations and thanks go out to the senior class!

Some of you have heard that Manoa DNA will be airing a two-hour radio program in Nagoya, Japan every Sunday afternoon. We are meeting tonight to finalize the details of the show’s content, but as a preview I thought I would test my reporting skills and let you all know of a delicious Vietnamese place in Kaimuki, O’ahu called “Hale Vietnam!” Their specialty of course is the pho (Wikipedia definition), a soup and noodle dish with vegetables and your choice of meat. It comes with bean sprouts, basil, mint, along with your usual pho fixings creating a delicious aroma that hits you the minute you walk in the door. If you aren’t in the mood for soup, I also love their Vietnamese thin noodles. Comes with a variety of meat, seafood or vegetable toppings, and I tried the lemongrass chicken. Whoo! Broke da mout! So ono, so good. Definitely makes the trek out to Kaimuki worth it! If you get a chance to make it to Hale Vietnam, tell them Manoa DNA sent you! (They won’t know what you’re talking about, so take their photo and send it to me! I would love to see their face!)

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Have a great week everyone. Thanks for reading!
Nick

Welcome to Nicktown: “Beautiful Hawai’i”
12/2/09
This post dedicated to the short but wonderful memory of Stevie the bird.

Now the title of this blog entry may seem general and overused, but a wave of appreciation has overcome my emotions when I woke up today.

Don’t worry, I won’t bore you with tedious, tear-filled, post-menopausalish details, but let’s just say I realized I don’t take many steps back and appreciate what I have. Try it, it’s weird. That’s all I’ll say about that, and leave you to create your own thoughts.

On a less-serious note (while still beautiful), Hawai’i football is unstoppable (*knock on wood*)!! With the best game of the season (so far) played on Saturday, Hawai’i keeps its slim bowl-game hopes alive. What a game though, and well worth the entire roller coaster of emotions that have summarized this season. Heck, I lost my voice! My precious music-creating voice was taken for granted and now I can barely talk. It was worth it. Now, Hawai’i has to get through nationally ranked (#26 USA Today) Wisconsin Badgers next Saturday and it’s off to the Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl we go! Cross your fingers, send your prayers, and let’s go Warriors!!

Thanksgiving was a great time with the family! Plenty of turkey, stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and more. I didn’t eat as much as I usually do, but that was not due to the quality or quantity of food before me. Instead, I think I took it easy, decided to enjoy the company of my family and take the time to catch up with everyone (something I’ve never done before). What the? Beautiful Hawai’i? Catch up? Not eat? Am I getting soft in my old age?!

Anyway, that’s my report for this Wednesday (hump day) in beautiful Manoa. We have a great series of holiday events coming up this month, so check the schedule and head down!

Happy Holidays Everyone! Be safe and shop!
Nick

Hi all, one week to go before we head back to the motherland for a short tour with the city of Honolulu. Hope to see all of you natives up there as we will have an extended concert celebrating the sister city relationship between Honolulu and Hiroshima!

Last weekend was bad because the Hawai’i Warrior football team lost an embarrassing game to nationally-ranked Boise St. There is little to say about the loss, and I think I am so devastated that I don’t wanna be seen on camera in a vlog right now.

So, as I lick my wounds and heal up, I will hopefully have something for you guys later this week. Stay tuned!

What do you think of the title? A little adjustment means that I finally have some idea of where I want to take this bad boy!

We had our first live internet broadcast of ManoaDNA LIVE from Lulu’s in Waikiki last night!  Boy, was it fun!!  It was interesting to see the number of internet viewers increase as the evening went on … I hope everyone enjoyed our version of reality TV!  I think the boys are going to it again from Kani Ka Pila tonight so it should be interesting … I hope you’ll tune in to see us!

And our beloved U.H. Warriors won last night although they had to come from behind in the last couple of minutes!  Oh well, a win is a win in my book …

I’m off to walk the puppies and then I’m headed out to join some friends for a round of golf out at the new Hoakalei course in Ewa.  I’m taking a lot of balls in case I have a bad day, but hopefully I’ll be able to keep my score below 100!

Aloha, Lloy”D”