the challenge

i realize that this past year has not been the best for blogging. but the life of a work-a-holic makes daily entries a thing of the past. so...the other day while perusing through some of my favorite blogs, i came across the latest entry from my dear cousin neena. she had posted a BLOG CHALLENGE (you can check it out here). she basically discusses how over the next month of september, she will be doing a blog a day...discussing various topics about herself. so i decided to take that challenge and do the same. i'm excited to see what stories will come out of these topic starters!

something WICKED this way comes....

yup....finally did it. saw WICKED!!!! and all i have to say is that it was FREAKIN' AWESOME!!!! not even kidding. i've heard soooo many things from friends and family about this play, so if i had a bucket list...this would definitely be on it. so now i can cross that one off. i was fortunate to go with two very dear friends....jan lesuma...
and the birthday girl...ane mapu...

it was a quick trip...but we were on a mission! my flight arrived slightly delayed at around 10am saturday morning. after pick up we immediately made our way to the orpheum theater to check out the prices and see what our chances would be for winning the raffle. two hours before every show, they raffle off orchestra seats that winners are able to purchase for a whopping $25!!! and guess what....we won!!! it was AMAZING!!!!

we were lucky we won because after they called all the names for the raffle, they announced that it was sold out!!! way to visualize!!! it was meant to be. but man...we must be getting old...because after the show we went straight to our hotel room and knocked out!!! which in a way was a good thing because my flight left at 6am the next morning. talk about the BEST day trip ever!!!

the musicboxer episode

after being all nostalgic with my life at the musicbox, i realized it was necessary to document some KEY moments in the brief time i spent living there. the one that sticks out in my mind the most, was the night we got dubbed the "musicboxers." *sigh* let me just say...that i am a fun loving person, who loves everyone. never do i go out looking for trouble. the same goes for my roommates. we enjoy having a good time, and look for the best way to do so. i just need to disclose this bit of information about us before continuing with this story.

so...back in february of 2007, ms. lauryn hill herself came to hawaii. i am a HUGE...and i mean....HUGE lauryn hill fan. so as soon as they announced she was coming to hawaii, there was not a doubt in my mind that i would be there. NONE! so of course....many of my roommates....avid fans as well....decided to make it a house activity. so half of the house, tiana, ida, crystal and myself went along with our musicbox honorees, kara, and ofo. sadly...ana, raija and kat couldn't make it...but i'm kinda glad they didnt. it would've been TOO much if our WHOLE house got involved.

so anyhoo....we got there early enough to secure a spot front and center of ms. hill's stage. there were like 3 or 4 stages with different groups performing, but we knew we had to get to her stage early, cuz the crowd would be crazy. and boy were we luck we did...cuz it was a MAD house by the time she came out to perform. needless to say...she is FLAWLESS!!! the BEST concert i've been too so far. and now that i think about it...it may have been my last. hahahaha. here's a few pix from that night. and for some reason...i can't seem to find the pix we got of ms. hill herself...but trust...we were RIGHT THERE!!!




now....let's get to the "beef" of the story. so like i mentioned before...we were right at the front, and the crowd was mad packed. there was hardly ANY room for us to move. let alone have people walk through. but for some reason...these two highly intelligent girls decided they could stroll on up to the front. now...as i mentioned before..me and my girls were all G. we didn't care wut these two monkeys were doing...we just thought...they were just tryna find a way out of the crowd. wrong. they started squeezing themselves up to the front of the stage right next to us. which was really fine with us...but the group next to us was NOT feeling it. it really didn't help that these two girls were caucasian, tryna squeeze their way in front of a mess of poly women. wrong move. lol.

one of the girls in the group next to us started yelling at them to get out. but...again...brilliant as they are, these two DRUNK (might i add) haole girls decided to argue back. not a good idea. seeing this...i knew something bad was about to happen, so i tried to intervene and help these girls find their way out. and that's when it started. as i was tryna separate the two haole girls from the group next to us, and lead them out the side....somehow they got separated, one in the very front of the stage, and the other was standing behind me. the one behind me was taller than me (surprise surprise right? lol) and in an effort to get to her friend...she had the bright idea to put her arm around my neck in an effort to choke me!!! are you serious?! are you freakin serious?!

because she was taller than me...all i remember is reaching up and grabbing that chick by the hair. but apparently some girls behind me saw what she was doing to me, and started pulling her hair from behind. hahahaha!! next thing i know, i pulled down, twisting out of HER grasp and just started throwing blows at her face. i got a couple blows in when next thing i know, security or someone pulls her away, and all i hear is lauryn hill stop the concert!!! omg...shame. yes...she stopped in the middle of her beautiful singing because we were fighting.

now...mind you...i wasn't the only one involved in this lovely brawl. and this is why i LOVE these girls. i know they got my back. what i forgot to mention was while i was pulling that girl off of me and bringing her down to my level...tiana...who was like 10 ft away after seeing what was going on came running through the crowd and jumped in to a get a shot at homegirl. and then...crystal and ofo who were at the front next to the other haole chick...were trying to throw her over the barricade to get her out!!!! buahahahahaha!!!! omg. omg. omg. now that i think about it...it was pretty crazy. but it all happened so quickly...and nothing would've happened had that girl kept her hands to herself.

it wasn't long til EVERYONE heard about it. kalofae. and thats when we went from the ladies of the musicbox to the musicBOXERS!!!! aiya. but i must say...this experience brought us soooooo much closer. fo' real. gladly, that was our first and LAST rumble. and this is why i LOOOOOOOOOVE these girls. through thick and thin...they got my back and they know i got theirs.

musicbox memories

every have one of those days where all you seem to do is reflect on life over the past few years??? well today is definitely one of those days for me. i mean, i can't help but think about stuff when there's NOTHING to do at work....lol. well...i SHOULD be planning for our college fair in november...but come now...i've been overworked the past few months, i think i need some "reflection" time. lol.

anyhoo...while here at work...besides cruisin' the book (facebook for you newbies)...i started going through some old photos on my bebo (another social network) page and couldn't help but reminisce about my life at the musicbox.

i don't recall ever writing about my "life inside the musicbox." (which is an awesome song btw by regina spektor). lol. anyways...back to my nostalgic moment....while browsing thru these flix i couldn't help but smile with every click. isn't it amazing how a single picture can tell a story?! and these were GREAT ones!!! to save me some time from uploading pix...feel free to check out the album here.


for those of who aren't too familiar with the musicbox...this was the home to 10....yes...10 amazing ladies. now before u start trippin...no we didn't ALL live here at the same time...but at times it felt like we lived with waaaaaaay more. this blog definitely would not be complete without sharing the story of how the musicbox was founded...so be prepared to exercise those eyes. lol

in the summer of 2006, i was living in hauula with two girl friends...kat tua'one (now pahulu) and tiana henderson. we lived in a small 2 bedroom house in the country...and it was obvious that we needed more room. with all our late night and sometimes OVERNIGHT visitors, it was time to move on. with the up and coming school year, a few more friends were moving to hawaii to finish their degrees, crystal moleni (now tua'one), and juanita afamasaga. ida aspinall, another friend, who had been living with family was also looking to branch out. then came ana aiono and morgan casey (now gilmore)...two fun-loving gals from arizona who i befriended at work (turtle bay at the time). they were looking for a cheaper place to live that wasn't so far from work.

so there you have it...8 girls...all looking for a bigger place. i took it upon myself to find accommodations for ALL of us. since i had already started looking for a new place for just the 3 of us (me, tee and kat), i thought...hey...why not find a bigger house. after about a month...i found this beauty...

hahahaha! ok...it wasn't this bright blue when we were living there. as a matter of fact it wasn't blue at all. the landlord JUST painted it this year. it was more of an off white color. but anyways...this was our home...or...the second floor at least. the deal breaker was that it was literally down the street from my parents home. so if ever we needed anything...we could just walk to their house. lol. and trust...we took advantage of that many a starving night. we moved in on august 1, 2006.

i will probably have to create another blog to begin to discuss the memories we had at this house. there was never...and i mean NEVER dull moment. from birthday parties, to full on bbqs across the street. from serenades to intense board games. much fun was to be had at the musicbox. ahhhh...which brings me to the name...when we had our first "house meeting" we all brainstormed, and miss nita came up with "the musicbox", because the house was overflowing with musical talent. which just so happened to be showcased almost every other night. be it in the house, or in our front yard...the beach. it was awesome. it got to the point where everyone in our ward referred to us as the "musicboxers" which is a whole other blog in and of itself.

now i know i mentioned 10...and only listed 8. well...in november of that same year, ms. raija joined our lovely group...just before morgan moved back to arizona. and then after crystal graduated from byuh in april of the next year, ms. ofo filimoeatu took her place. it wasn't until january of 2008 when everyone bid farewell and went their seperate ways. some got married. some graduated. and some just moved home.

as i reflect on my time there...i can't help but be grateful for having these women in my life. the time we shared here will be forever cherished. but i know that no matter how far apart we are...since we are an international group ranging from the u.s., sweden, australia, and korea....i know that nothing can come between us. these women are truly my sisters. i will do anything...and i mean ANYTHING for them...and i know the feeling is mutual. so here's to the musicbox. stay posted for a few stories...cuz trust...there are many.

this is the ONE pic i could find with ALL of us and our honorary members...lol