I usually post my Top 10 memorable moments as a blog post but this year I tried something a little different. I went out to Twitter and asked others to participate using the hashtag of #2009Top10. It was fun to see others recollect the year in review and come up with their significant moments. Mahalos go out to bitershark, Melissa808, NathanKam, PHOTOluluTV and CindyBlanknship for participating. If you are interested in reading the tweet stream just do a search on #2009Top10 or click here. If over time Twitter does not archive this tweet stream I’ve saved it as a Google doc.

If you feel inspired to create your Top 10 memorable moments for 2009 please do. I encourage you to use the hashtag #2009Top10 and I will update the Google doc. Also as 2010 unfolds make every moment a special moment. The following is my reverse chronological thread of my Top 10 memorable moments in 2009. Wishing you all the best in 2010 – The Year of the Tiger!

Bytemarks What are your Top 10 memorable moments for 2009? #2009top10 1 day ago from Tweetie Bytemarks What are your Top 10 memorable moments for 2009? Seeing the Star Trek Movie was one for me. Countdown to continue… #2009Top10 about 23 hours ago from web Bytemarks Next memorable moment following a somewhat chronological order is the 2nd Annual Unconferenz held over at JAIMS back in Feb. #2009top10 about 21 hours ago from web Bytemarks # 3 in my list of Top 10 memorable moments is when my Acura Integra died this year which lead to a new Acura TSX. It’s all good. #2009Top10 about 20 hours ago from web Bytemarks Continuing the countdown # 4 is work related. It’s the formation of the Innovation Team and HMSA 2.0. I consider myself superlucky #2009Top10 about 20 hours ago from web Bytemarks Going to @SXSW for the first time is # 5. I went to a great @guykawasaki party put on by @neenz and met the inspiring @sunnibrown #2009Top10 about 19 hours ago from web Bytemarks Going out on the escort boat to watch @rozsavage continue her trans Pacific solo row was my # 6 memorable moment. #2009Top10 about 18 hours ago from web Bytemarks Spending Summer Solstice on Kaua`i in a valley called Nualolo is # 7 It was a great place to spend the longest day of the year. #2009Top10 about 17 hours ago from web Bytemarks My # 8 is an aircraft carrier. How awesome was it to go out on the @USS_Nimitz? Very awesome! That was a signature moment for my #2009Top10 about 17 hours ago from TweetDeck Bytemarks The Wayfinder Series at HPR is # 9. We had Nainoa Thompson, James Koshiba and Paul Zorner on as speakers. Great storytellers. #2009top10 about 17 hours ago from Tweetie Bytemarks During our ride on the Hokule`a we were visited by A or Hawaiian Booby is my memorable moment # 10. In every moment a connection. #2009Top10 about 16 hours ago from web

Just a little background on the calendar. I try to find photos which help depict the 5 basic Chinese elements: Wood, Metal, Fire, Water and Earth. The flower arrangement has elements of wood, water and metal (the kenzan), the sunrise is fire and water and the waterfall at Nualolo on Kauai is earth and water. Mochi is for the cuteness factor which isn’t one of the 5 basic elements but a requirement for my calendar nevertheless.

Our Bytemarks lunch group also got treated to a visit to the collections area where row after row, cabinet after cabinet are filled with the Museum’s insect collection. If you are into bugs this is the place to be. It is interesting for a place that contains so many bugs, they take extra care to keep all the live, local varieties out. The Museum provides the service of identifying species to other organizations and the public in general. This could involve sending the specimen to the Museum for identification as New York City did to identify the Asian Longhorn Beetle. Or it could be as simple as sending a photo to the Bishop Museum Flickr group: Ask a Bishop Museum Scientist. Our Bytemarks Lunch outing was obviously too short to experience but a small portion of the collections but it gave us a sense of the vast resource housed at the Museum, the 4th largest in the US. We did get to see what I wanted to personally witness, the giant rat from New Guinea. It was the culmination of a great science outing!

Paul Zorner was our third speaker for the Wayfinder Lecture series held tonight at Hawaii Public Radio, Atherton studio. He spoke about how Hawaii’s dependence on fuel and food from out of state sources is something we cannot sustain. At some point those external producers of both fuel and food will realize they need it to service their own people. The question is when that last barrel of oil comes to Hawaii will it be because we are self sufficient or will it be because it is needed elsewhere? How prepared will Hawaii be at that point. Most places on the US Continent have other sources of energy to tap; hydro, nuclear, solar, wind, etc. Ninety percent of Hawaii’s energy needs are from external sources. Even if we had electric cars, we would still be burning oil to power our electric plants. Zorner’s company Hawaii BioEnergy may have a solution.

This is the third and last lecture in this Wayfinder series. It started with Nainoa Thompson in July, James Koshiba in August and finally with Paul Zorner. Many people asked me when will the next lecture be. We are looking at Summer 2010. We gotten a lot of positive response from attendees but always welcome your feedback. You may post your comments here and I can share them with the station. Finally, after three tries I got the webcast working. With Nainoa I have video of his talk which I need to compress and post. During James Koshiba’s talk I lost Internet access but I do have audio which I will also post. You can watch Paul’s talk in it’s entirety via Ustream.tv. Stay tune as I work through my content backlog.

While researching news items for Bytemarks Cafe I came across this story on the Discovery website about rats devastating the Native Hawaiian snail population. Interesting story but I was taken aback by this photo supposedly depicting one of our native snail species. The snail in the photo is of the specie: Achatina fulica originally from East Africa, now common in Hawaii. These varieties can grow quite large and can quickly devour a home garden. The adult female carries hundreds of eggs allowing it to proliferate in Hawaii’s tropical climate. During the wet winter season is when the African snail populations explode. Rats and African snails have coexisted in Hawaii for many generations and I don’t detect any decrease in these snail populations due to rats.

On the other hand the Native Hawaiian tree snails or Achatinella live exclusively in the native forests primarily feeding on a native fungus living on the leaves of the ohia or kopiko. This specialized diet keeps the Achatinella inexorably linked to the native forest. It takes about 7 years to reach reproductive maturity. At this point they will bear one keiki (baby) snail per year. Without any natural predators the Achatinella never adapted mechanisms against external threats as devastating as rats.

I did contact the Discovery.com web team (via email) to point out their error. I got this message in reply from Viewer-Relations:

“We sincerely appreciate you taking the time to write us and for bringing this matter to our attention.  Please know that we will take your comments under advisement.”

As you can see the site has yet to be corrected. Of course I do this with the hope that accurate information about Hawaii is portrayed, especially as it pertains to our people, places and native ecosystem. Here’s to hoping it gets fixed soon.

My friend Kelvin describes these experiences as gateways. These gateways could be physical, like swimming from one point to another, or hiking or entering a waterfall and then emerging from it. Gateways could also be spiritual, going from one level of consciousness to another. I’ll give you an example. I am not a water person and don’t take to the ocean as some of my friends. I have a lot of respect for the ocean and know how foreign it is to me. It could be characterized by fear but over the years I think I’ve dealt with it head on. Right now, it is more apprehension. There were sections of this trek that took us into some open waters. As I launched into the deep I could feel my body tensing up, my legs were getting tired and my breath became short. As I felt this fear welling up in me I realized there was nothing to be fearful of. I could see the spotters and the early morning swells were small. I let go and relaxed. My legs relaxed, my breath became steady and I enjoyed the moment. The beach landing was challenging as the waves crashed onto the boulders but I had already given into the moment and rode the waves in as best as I could. The less I fought the easier it got.

The swim back was 6 hours later and after a long day of hiking. The afternoon trades were blowing and waves were bigger than in the morning. Again I could feel the apprehension welling up in me. When it was my turn to time the wave, I let go and slid out into the surf, like a monk seal as Kat would say. It was rougher in the afternoon, in all honestly the waters were very accommodating. When I landed I felt a sense of accomplishment. I had made it through another gate.

The final gate was the zodiac ride from Nualolo to Port Allen. It was a solid hour on the open ocean with the zodiac going full throttle. I had one hand on the rail, one on the rope and sat on the zodiac side. It was like riding a bronco but there were times I felt like I was in 2001 – A Space Odyssey going through a votex in space. It was the wind, water and up & down ride that was so immersive. If that wasn’t a gateway I don’t know what is. As you can see there were many moments of transformation. An experience like this has helped me to understand myself, my connection to the land and to my fellow companions. I will be processing this for many days to come. More importantly, I will seek the linkages between the grounding I felt in Nualolo and daily life. It’s all a state of mind.