'Waimanalo Blues'

I will spare you the details, my friends, but tonight (technically, this morning) has been tough.

Here's hoping you are having a wonderful week. I'm OK. Putting one foot in front of the other.

But, as I type at 3 a.m. because I can't sleep, this song fits my state of mind.

You know how badly I want to head to Hawaii. But, no, I won't stand on that soapbox. Not now.

My favorite spot on Oahu is Waimanalo Beach. The reasons are personal, sentimental, spiritual and pure. I will not share them now.

But when I watched the sun set at the spot pictured on this page, I had come home to a place I'd never been before, to coin a phrase.

Yes, I am a haole. Waimanalo can never be my home in the truest sense of the word.

But, yes, I revere the people of Hawaii. I don't blame them one bit if they tire of tourists. "Waimanalo Blues" tells you why. It is poignant. It is perfect.

The version I submit to you here is performed by the late Billy Kaui and Country Comfort, circa the early 1970s. If you like the song, surf to YouTube. You will find interpretations by the late Iz and friends, and Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau.

Mahalo and aloha ahiahi ia oukou.