“Hawaii’s economy is in distress and serious obstacles stand in the way of recovery. What’s the status of that recovery, and how will our economy be transformed in the process? Which industries and organizations will disappear and which will survive? Who will be the losers and who will be the winners? What can Hawaii do to direct these changes and who among us should do what?“

ThinkTech and HVCA presents: RECOVERY AND TRANSFORMATION: Straight Talk on Rebuilding Our Troubled Economy on Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at the Plaza Club from 8:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

The complete agenda is below.

Download (PDF, 138.28KB)

Earlier this week I shared with all (or one) of you that I had accepted an invitation to participate in a flight on the C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft as it practices dropping cargo to resupply ground forces as part of the Rim of the Pacific exercise.  I was not disappointed.  But, before we get to the Top Gun fun, I’d like to talk about our host, the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) a division of the US Pacific Command (PACOM).

Mission: Provide the US Pacific Command integrated expeditionary Air Force capabilities to defend the Homeland, promote stability, dissuade/deter aggression and swiftly defeat enemies.

To sum it up Guy Kawasaki style, they “kick ass on our behalf.”  With a team of approximately 45,000 based throughout the Pacific, PACAF is home to the only two C-17 units outside the continental US.  PACAF is also host to the Rim of the Pacific or RIMPAC international maritime exercises.  Fourteen nations which includes 32 ships, 5 submarines, and over 170 aircraft.  More than 20,000 personnel participate in exercises to sharpen not only skills, but global partnerships.

For a few years now, PACOM has been embracing social networking and media tools to reach out and provide a resource of news for the community.  If you’re an active member of the Facebook or Twitter networks, often times you’ll know the news du jour before the 5 o’clock television news.  Therefore, as an attendee from the social media community, it’s important for me to get my blog posts, tweets, photos, and videos out in real-time.

Before we departed Hickam Air Force base, I had already published seven blog posts which chronicled each step of our adventure, until we were required to turn off all electronic devices, excluding video and photo cameras.

• Crew reporting for #C17HI #RIMPAC
• Sitting here in briefing
• Score! Air Force swag
• Boarding the bus #C17HI #RIMPAC
• Inside the #C17HI for #RIMPAC exercises
• This is our #C17HI drop for #RIMPAC
• The view from my seat on the #C17HI for #RIMPAC exercises

When we landed at Kona International Airport, I was able to check in on Foursquare and publish two audio casts with photos using CinchCast.  One about our landing and the other about our lunch.  But, the best part about our day was everything that I could not share in real-time, the actual flight and experience.  To convey this, I put together a video below.

To learn more about PACOM and PACAF connect with them on the following networks:

• Follow @PacificCommand and @PACAF on Twitter.
• Keep with @usairforce and @RIMPAC2010 on Twitter.
• Check #PACOM and PACOMTWEEPS on Flickr.
• Fan U.S. Pacific Command on Facebook.

Also, you can add their blog feeds to your MyAlltop by visiting our Military topic.  Enjoy the video, you’ll especially like the trek across the ocean before the F-16 interceptors make their appearance.

Karen Fujimoto was already playing in the majors, though her niece was on my team and her brother my coach. Fast forward a few decades and Facebook reconnected me with Karen. To make the world even smaller, she is also a classmate and homegirl of my favorite pushy Chinee broad, Melissa Chang.

Karen was very helpful during the 2009 tsunami in Amercan Samoa in helping us get in touch with family. And, this morning she came into work hours before her shift for a hug and this cool swag!

We’re here early to beat the weather for the drop on the island of Hawaii.

Standing in the parking lot with @rickyli99 @synwpn @coffee_tweets @justincruzkhon @sesdogg waiting for our orders.

Pulled pork sandwich for $7.99

Earlier this afternoon I attended a media day event for locally owned restaurant, Good to Grill.  I received a personal invitation (nice touch) from one of the restaurant’s owners, Jason Kim.  I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from the “Price is Right” dubbed event, however my nose, rather my stomach, trumped my stack of things-to-get-done-already.

I had dined at Good to Grill for Social Media Day, so I knew the food would be scrumptious, but the announcement was even more spectacular.  G2G not only improved their lunch menu, made  a commitment to continued quality, speedy service; but they’ve lowered their prices!

This is where they revealed the fun part of the event, G2G’s version of the popular and timeless game show, “The Price is Right.”  Bob Barker, err…Drew Carey’s role was played by Kimo Kahoano and the restaurant’s associates delivered dishes.  “Contestants” or members of the media, which included Honolulu Star Advertiser’s Nadine Kam and Steve Uyehara of Hawaii News Now among others, were presented a dish in which they were instructed to sample and guess the price of the dish.

I was completely surprised by the prices of the dishes, especially because they’re all so delicious and served with generous portions.  Below is their new menu as well as their kid’s menu.  If you’re looking for a place that serves quality dishes at reasonable prices, you’re good to go at Good to Grill.

Follow @goodtogrill on Twitter and fan them on Facebook.

Download (PDF, 1.1MB)

Download (PDF, 2.47MB)

Disclosure: I received a complimentary dish, the pulled pork pictured above.  But, I didn’t eat it all by myself, I shared it with Tutu. In case you were wondering.