I have to say I love you in a blog

So much has changed in the world.
Used to be we'd say "I love you" through a poem or song.
Now it comes in spurts, fondly known as twits. If you can't say it in 160 characters, it's better off left unsaid.
There are some tricks of the trade, a shortened lingo that helps a person get more words for their widget.
Here are some examples that I've come up with:
Love = Luv
two = 2
to = 2
be = b
today = 2day
great = gr8
before = b4
four = 4
are = r
see = c
you = u
okay = k
why = y
So, a love note might look something like this:
B4 time bgan, I luv u. BTW, u r gr8 2 b w/ & I c us 2gether 4eva, dats y! K? By!
ROFLOL!

This Memorial Day remember: Freedom is NOT free!

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University of Hawai`i, Hilo Campus production of "Twelfth Night O' Whateva"

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Reality blues just don't go away

I'm having reality TV letdown right now.
Most of the shows have wrapped up and declared a winner.
There's J.T., the ultimate survivor; Shawn Johnson, the ultimate dancer; Kris Allen, the ultimate singer; Victor/whomever the ultimate racers.
The list is endless, but it's over. All pau. No more. And now, this reality junkie is having withdrawals.
Truth be told, I hate the final episodes because I never want the shows to end. I don't want them to pick a winner. I want the drama, the madness, the intense feelings of satisfaction I have for the competition and its competitors.
Now it's over and I'm grumpy.
Guess I'll have to quench my need for reality speed by watching new episodes of The Bachelorette.
Yea, I'm desperate for relief and, like a junkie, I'll take anything I can get -- even if it puts me in a coma.
This is when REALITY BITES!
Ouch.

Volleyball rules need changing in Hawaii

I don't know exactly how to say this, but after two years facing Hawaii Baptist Academy (HBA) in the Division 2 Hawaii State Volleyball Championship Match, I think it has to be said.

HBA is and should be a Division 1 team.
I don't want to say this as a complainer...because I'm not.
I don't want to diminish their win...because they are a stellar team.
The cream of the crop.
One of the best.
They won Punahou in regular season play, so that counts for everything.
The past two years they've met up with Hilo High School in the final division 2 match, however, and it's evident. The cards are stacked in their favor. Well, actually, height is stacked in their favor.
It seems to me that any private school offering scholarships or tuition in exchange for the best athletes coming to their school should automatically be required to be a Division 1 team. It's not the count that matters when a school can hand a gifted and talented player a berth on their team. When they take a student from another district, they are, in essence, stripping that team of a potentially winning season. They've taken from their "natural" pool. In the process hey've weakened the opposing team and, in the process, taken the top grade players from the island. This may be rumor, but I hear the private schools from the island go to other places, away from Hawaii, to scout and entice top-seed players to come to the islands to play on their team.
That leaves the local schools at a serious disadvantage to ever topple these teams. It's a near impossibility for a Division 2 school to compete on this level, as they have to rely on students in their district to field their team.
I am respectfully asking the Hawaii State Association to reconsider the rules and to change them to make the playing field more equitable. It's time. It needs to happen.
There, I've said it and it wasn't so bad.
With that out of the way, I want to offer a heartfelt congratulations to Punahou, HBA, Kamehameha (Palama Campus) and Hilo High School for a memorable night of championship sport. Best wishes to all the athlete's futures!

May 12, 2009 partial chatlog for http://theandybumataishow.com

13:00 AndyBumatai : Auspicious, Click the ON-DEMAND button under video window. Then "Online Shows."
21:48 HawaiianKiko : Aloha from the tropical islands of Hawaii on the coconut wireless
12:10 alohaarleen : Aloha
12:32 haleboyz : It's getting hot here in Vegas!!
12:49 Bruddah Q : aloha
12:50 Bruddah Q : Wish I wuz on island time
12:51 Bruddah Q : Chello rocks!
12:52 AndyB : Bruddah, You'll be on Island Time in about 10 mins. K'den.
12:53 Bruddah Q : countdown ... 7 minutes
12:55 tracitoguchi : Aloha!
12:56 Bruddah Q : congo beat rocks !!
12:57 LayneM : Hello peeps
12:57 tracitoguchi : Hey!
12:59 tracitoguchi : Up first @alohabruce www.hawaii-aloha.com
12:59 tracitoguchi : After that @nics_dolcevita www.rozsavage.com
12:59 KarenWelsh : hi everyone!
13:00 LayneM : hello karen
13:00 KarenWelsh : hi layne!
13:00 KarenWelsh : hi traci!
13:00 tracitoguchi : @davelawrence has got: Fresh rock news on Jane's Addiction, The Who, Depeche Mode, The Dead Weather
13:00 KarenWelsh : hi alohaarleen!
13:00 tracitoguchi : Hi!
13:00 KarenWelsh : hi dave!
13:00 LayneM : pretty busy at work, so ill be in and out
13:00 tracitoguchi : Mahalos for your efforts Layne! :)
13:00 Bruddah Q : cool!! We all on Hawaiian Time now ... aka Bumatai Time!!
13:01 susieschmoozee : Hi Traci!
13:01 tracitoguchi : Hi Susie!
13:01 tracitoguchi : Hi Karen!
13:01 tracitoguchi : Hi BruddahQ!
13:01 LayneM : Hey susie
13:01 Bruddah Q : Nice in Falls Church, Virginia
13:01 Bruddah Q : Hi
13:01 susieschmoozee : Hi Layne!
13:01 KarenWelsh : It's BumaTIME!
13:02 KarenWelsh : hi bruddah
13:02 HawaiianKiko : Aloha from the tropical islands of Hawaii
13:02 LayneM : hey kiko
13:02 tracitoguchi : @davelawrence Tour Tracker Videos from Metallica, Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction
13:02 tracitoguchi : Hi Kiko!
13:02 HawaiianKiko : sup peeps
13:03 HawaiianKiko : LayneM...Traci Aloja
13:03 tracitoguchi : lol aloja 2 u 2!
13:03 HawaiianKiko : Ten Q
13:03 KarenWelsh : ace!
13:04 Bruddah Q : So Hawaiian kine dis kine
13:04 HawaiianKiko : Bruddah Bruddah
13:05 HawaiianKiko : chat has sum Polynesian Paralysis
13:05 Bruddah Q : dejavu
13:05 HawaiianKiko : dejavu da Green bottles
13:06 HawaiianKiko : everyone taking der Union break
13:06 Yoon Ho Um : I'm a guru...
13:06 Yoon Ho Um : LOL
13:06 Bruddah Q : ya ... quality . pass on da brown bots ;)
13:06 tracitoguchi : Hey Yoon! Mahalos for Tweet!
13:06 tracitoguchi : Aloha Andysis!
13:06 Yoon Ho Um : Hi Traci with an i...
13:06 Bruddah Q : pau hana on da east coast
13:06 Andysis : Saying hello from Red Wing, Minnesota
13:07 HawaiianKiko : Hapi Hour on da East
13:07 KarenWelsh : @alohaarleen has followers, class and the smarts!
13:07 Bruddah Q : yup ... green bot time
13:07 tracitoguchi : lol yoon with a y
13:07 HawaiianKiko : howz da Pupus
13:07 Bruddah Q : steinlagers
13:07 DonEads : Bruce is not a big fan of Aloha Arleen
13:07 Bruddah Q : wasabi sashimi
13:07 Bruddah Q : mmm mmm
13:07 tracitoguchi : Aloha Don!
13:07 LayneM : lol Doneads
13:07 HawaiianKiko : 70k following on drugs.....lol
13:07 KarenWelsh : @alohaarleen can and she does it quite effectively!
13:08 DonEads : He just said it but I know him
13:08 alohay : hi traci
13:08 DonEads : Howzit everybody
13:08 HawaiianKiko : wassup DonE
13:08 tracitoguchi : Aloha Alohay!
13:09 burajiru : Aloha everybody!
13:09 HawaiianKiko : wassup burajiru
13:09 DonEads : howzit burajiru
13:09 tracitoguchi : Aloha burajiru!
13:09 alohay : aloha everyone
13:09 KarenWelsh : hey, I get @AndyBumatai directly on my phone via SMS
13:10 HawaiianKiko : aloha alohay
13:10 khunt : WOAH
13:10 KarenWelsh : this guy is whining!
13:10 EyesOn : Who IS this guy?
13:10 S S Peterson : Aloha everyone, lol everyone
13:10 Yoon Ho Um : don't give away all my secrets... please...
13:10 DonEads : I don't know it seems to me our community is pretty cool
13:10 KarenWelsh : whine, whine, whine!
13:10 Iron Shiek : Nice Hat
13:10 HawaiianKiko : would you like some chez and crackers wit da Whine
13:10 khunt : Its BIll BURR
13:10 KarenWelsh : booooooooo
13:10 KarenWelsh : blah, blah, blah, whine, whine, whine
13:11 tracitoguchi : Aloha those who just joined us!
13:11 KarenWelsh : tell me something I want to know
13:11 burajiru : fell off the grid. back again
13:11 S S Peterson : shut him up with a shovel
13:11 Bruddah Q : he's taking a long time to say "I'm a newbie on twit"
13:11 HawaiianKiko : wb burajiru
13:11 EyesOn : Seriously, who IS this guy, and why is he getting airtime?
13:11 S S Peterson : your correct
13:11 alohay : karen , what do u want to know
13:11 KarenWelsh : man, end the segment Andy
13:11 Yoon Ho Um : Hi john
13:11 Bruddah Q : change da subject
13:11 KarenWelsh : something about social media me thinks
13:11 burajiru : mahalo hikiko!
13:11 KarenWelsh : just complaining
13:11 Bruddah Q : what's his niche? cuz it ain't twit!
13:12 lingerlonger : Is this the new david lee roth show?
13:12 burajiru : Hey Yoon!
13:12 lingerlonger : Kind of looks like Diamond Dave in cammo
13:12 S S Peterson : oops
13:12 KarenWelsh : NO ANDY...don't bring him back!
13:12 HawaiianKiko : bye bye
13:12 KarenWelsh : phew
13:14 Bruddah Q : where da local commercial w/ da puna budaz
13:14 Bruddah Q : shoots ... gotta roll

Video Highlighs of A.J.'s Hilo High School Volleyball Game

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Time to put bad volleyball terms/practices to rest

I love volleyball. As the Mama Kahu at Haili Church in Hilo, the host of the sanctioned Haili Volleyball Tournament, it's pretty much a qualification of my position. It's actually become a family sport. My son, Andrew "A.J." Welsh first learned how to play volleyball six years ago at Haili Christian School. As the starting front middle blocker, he just helped Hilo High School win their fourth consecutive Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) Division 2 Championship. As much as I love volleyball, there are a couple of bad sportsmanship terms often heard at games that I feel need to be left by the wayside when entering the gym. One of them is "side out." It seems there's always one parent, usually a woman, yelling this term each and every time the opposing team serves. Since volleyball has changed its rules in recent years to count every ball in play, this term has become obsolete. Yelling "side out" now is like telling the player to "hit it out of bounds." It's not only annoying, but it's disrespectful to the opposing team. This goes against the BIIF rules and philosophy to "cheer with aloha."

Another taunt that needs to go by the wayside is when people in the audience and on the opposing team yell "jump," in an effort to try throwing off someone who is making a jump serve. This is not only immature, it's simply bad form. No coach should allow this to happen on any occasion. Period. I'm happy to say that Hilo High parents and spectators have not participated in or indulged in these antics. Perhaps it's time for other schools on the Big Island to take the lead of their championship team. Let the kids play and always cheer with aloha. That's a couple of rules that should never go by the wayside. Ever!

Expect the Unexpected

It seems that most of my days have been turned on their ear lately.I usually go from totally elation to complete devastation, but I'm getting used to expecting the unexpected.
Take this past Monday, for example. I went to Hilo High School early in the morning to help the PTSA host a Teacher Appreciation Fiesta. I was elated at how successful the event turned out. My happiness, however, turned to despair when I arrived home in the early afternoon and found my teenage son burning up with a 103 degree fever and writhing in pain. I quickly took him down to Urgent Care, where the doctor informed me that he might be suffering from viral meningitis. That meant a hastened trip to Hilo Medical Center's Emergency Room, where I was assured they could test him quickly and efficiently. Well, the quick part of the equation didn't happen, as we sat in the waiting room for nearly three hours (I'm still scratching my head at how the ER can keep someone with possible meningitis in the waiting room to contaminate others). We had a great doctor to aid us once he was put in a room. She ordered blood work, a cat scan, and a lung x-ray. Turns out he's the perfect specimen of health, probably suffering from an innocuous virus, and, he did confess to sneaking into the river and doing a massive back flop into the water. The hard hit really put his back out. He got a good heartfelt scolding from his dad, and the doctor and me (we have forbade him from EVER going in the river) before leaving the ER at 11:30 p.m. I took him to my chiropractor, Dr. Stacy Nagareda, the next day, where he's done a great deal to help bring his back into alignment. Blessedly, my son is in top physical condition and is responding well to his treatments. It's hard to believe only five days have passed since that horrible day and he's already playing great volleyball. My elation was brought back up tonight as my son's volleyball team beat Pahoa High School and are now going on to the finals tomorrow night at 6 p.m. at Waiakea High School Gym. Come out and cheer if you can. Just know, that if you're around me you might want to expect the unexpected!

Hilo High School Big Island Interscholastic Federation Division 2 Champs!

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