LBC: Hawaiian & Island Pride that Sticks

Location: The Honolulu Zoo
Sticker: "Ainokea"
I found this sticker while parking at the Honolulu Zoo parking lot in Waikiki. This sticker "ainokea" is a pidgin term meaning, "I do not care." You can often hear this saying followed by, "I do what I like." The spelling takes after the pronunciation and spelling of the Hawaiian language. "AI" pronounced in Hawaiian "ah-ee" for the Engligh word "I." "NO" prounced in Hawaiian as "nuh-oo" for the English "No." And "KEA" pronounced in Hawaiian language as "ke-a-ah" for the English word Care. This pidgin saying can be looked at as something locals in Hawaii use as a rebellious phase. It is a saying that can be associated with being your own person and doing your own thing without giving consideration to others. Ainokea has become very popular due to the creation of the Ainokea clothing store located at most malls here on Oahu. They sell everything from t-shirt, hats, and stickers for all ages including infants.




Location: Kailua, Oahu (Enchanted Lake)
Sticker: "Live Aloha"
I took this picture while driving around my block in Kailua. This sticker "Live Aloha," is a popular local saying in Hawaii that means to "Live with love, or live with care." As some of you may know, the word aloha has several different meanings and therefore can be interpreted in many different ways depending on who is looking at the sticker. In general, I found this sticker to basically mean live with a good heart. This saying can also be linked to the golden rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." It could also be put on cars as a reminder to drivers to treat other drivers with respect. When there is a lot of traffic sometimes many of us become impatient and this is a simple way to remind others to be cautious and care for the safety of your fellow drivers.

Location: Kamehameha Schools-Kapalama Campus (Bishop Parking Lot) Sticker: "Live Pono"
I found this sticker on the day of Kamehameha School's annual Hoolaulea day. The truck belongs to my brother's classmate. As a former alumni of Kamehameha, this saying is often heard around campus by students and teachers. "Pono" like aloha has many different meanings. The most popular meanings are "righteousness, goodness, excellence, proper, and moral." To "Live Pono" basically means to try and do your best or do the right thing in everything that you do. When I was a student on campus, teachers would often use this phase before we took a test. It is suppose to remind students that cheating is not right or pono.

Location: Kailua, Oahu

Sticker:"Kailua"

These two images I found while driving home on Sunday. The sticker on the left is shown with a picture of the Mokulua Islands with "Kailua" next to it. The Mokulua Islands are two islands that are located at Lanikai beach in Kailua. These islands are very popular not just here in Hawaii, but also a well known symbol on the mainland. Lanikai beach was voted one the top beaches in Hawaii as well as in the U.S. Therefore, when most people think of Kailua they think of this image. From a tourism perspective, this would be great advertising. Kailua is one of the smaller districts on this island and is not located in the heart of Waikiki. However, if a tourist were to see this sticker it would encourage them to come and visit Kailua and the Mokulua Islands. The sticker on the right is another Kailua sticker, however "Kailua" is placed inside of a honu or turtle. Each of the Hawaiian Islands commonly associates itself with an animal. On the Big Island it might be the Nene Goose while Maui it is often the Humpback Whale. On Oahu, honu's is the animal.

Location: Kailua, Oahu Sticker: "I Love Kaneohe" Similar to the other two stickers above, this sticker is one for the district of Kaneohe here on Oahu. The image in for foreground of the sticker is of the Koolau Mountain Range. This mountain range runs throughout the district of Kaneohe and can be seen from anywhere in the Kaneohe district. The Koolau mountains in a Hawaiian perspective is very important. It is at the Koolau mountains where the famous battle of King Kamehameha the Great took place. It is here that he defeated the alii or chief of Oahu in his quest to unite the Hawaiian Islands. Therefore to those who live Kaneohe and know about this battle, may choose to place this sticker as a sense of pride of where they live or come from, and Kaneohe's history.



Location: Kailua, Oahu (Enchanted Lakes)
Sticker: "Haole 1" This is sticker I also found while driving around my block. It belongs to a person that I went to elementary school with. Haole means "foreigner, Caucasian." In Hawaii, sometimes the word can be used in a derogatory manner. We often hear it being used on the TV or daily life when someone does not like a person who is "white." However, this word can be used for a tourist, an immigrant, or anyone of Caucasian decent. The boy that I went to elementary school is of Caucasian decent, but was born and raised here. Therefore, his interpretation of the word is probably more towards the Hawaiian meaning. However, others could interpret the word in a negative a manner.



Location: Kailua, Oahu (Enchanted Lakes) Sticker: "Kau Inoa" This is a sticker that I took from my neighbors truck yesterday afternoon. Kau Inoa To Build a Nation is a Hawaiian group that is dedicated to the development of a Native Hawaiian Government. In the past couple years this group has become very well known. You might have seen a few of their commercials where they feature local celebrities such as, BJ Penn, Raiatea Helm, and Dennis Kamakahi. Although this group seems to have a great amount of members there is some controversy surrounding the group and their beliefs. Not everyone in Hawaii believes in a Native Hawaiian self governance. However, the sticker does provide pride for those who are members of this Hawaiian group.


Location: Manoa, Oahu Sticker: "Made in Hawaii, Played in Hawaii" I took this picture while driving to school. I noticed that this sticker appears quite often on other cars on campus and the back packs of UH athletes. "Made in Hawaii," by itself is a saying that is often associated with things considered to be native or unique to Hawaii. Sometimes you can hear people associate this phrase with clothing items that are usually followed by the image of the Hawaiian flag or the Hawaiian Islands. This image can interpret two meanings. The first that is mentioned above, and combined with UH-Manoa pride. The sticker shows importance of UH football and how local people take pride in the annual Sheraton Hawaii Bowl held at Aloha Stadium.

Location: Kamehameha Schools (Konia Circle)Sticker: "Kamehameha Schools Emblem" I found this sticker on numerous cars and trucks on Kamehameha's campus. This symbol represents the Kamehameha Schools. On the bottom of the emblem is the word "Imua." Imua is the schools motto. The word correctly spelt "I Mua," in Hawaiian means to "go forward or to advance." Kamehameha Schools founder Bernice Pauahi Bishop founded the school in 1887 in hopes to advance and help her Native Hawaiian people through education. During her time, she saw that her people would not be able to survive unless they had the proper education like those of the missionary children. Therefore, Kamehameha Schools tries to push their students forward in to learning the arts and sciences that are needed to survive in today's world. This emblem resembles much pride for Native Hawaiians in hopes that Hawaiians will be able to persevere in education and make a difference.



Location: Manoa, Oahu Sticker: Picture of Turtles I took this picture on my way home from school. The car was being driven by an Asian woman with her children. Turtles are a very popular animal here in Hawaii and one reason could be because it is considered an aumakua. An aumakua is a family god in an animal form. These gods are often desended ancestors of the family and are said to protect the family from harm. In Hawaiian, these animals are considered to be very sacred. If a family knows what animal is their aumakua, they do not harm this animal and do their best in return to take care of this animal. Therefore, for some this sticker could represent their aumakua. For others, it could simply represent their family. For example: the two big turtles could represent the mother and father, and the two smaller turtles could represent the two children.



Location: Kailua, Oahu Sticker: Picture of a Hawaiian Islands Tree I took this picture on the back of an old pick up truck while walking around Kailua. I found this image to be quite interesting. We often see the Hawaiian Islands featured on the back of trucks in reggae colors. However, I thought it was different to see one in the shape of a tree. The first interpretation could first represent Hawaiian Island pride. Hawaii is a unique state with a unique history. I interpreted the tree as perhaps a way of connecting the each island together. Each island in Hawaii has their own unique traits such as, plants, animals, and ancient Hawaiian history. However, all the islands share the same language and culture. This picture could be showing this connection and how the islands stem from the same root or native people that first arrived here.