| BOY
SCOUTS TO RECYLCE CHRISTMAS TREES
Boy Scout Troop 264 will offer curb-side pickup of Christmas trees for recycling,
Pickup dates are January 8 & 15, 8am till Noon, in Mililani &
Mililani Mauka. Donations requested.
For further information please contact Chris Oleyte
at 623-5895 or Jayne Burns at 623-0310 or burnsohana@email.msn.com.
Y2K
- A LOCAL PERSPECTIVE
by Gary Powell
Not all that long ago the
population of Hawaii would have given little thought and even less worry to the situation
we all know as Y2K. Telephones regularly did not work. Electrical shortages were common
place and yes, even water systems gave out as the pumps rusted out, lines broke and
regular household valves collapsed from corrosion in our acid soils. Notice anything much
different today?
But today is not the same as our small kid days or the days our
grandparents go on and on about... Today we live a good portion of our lives connected to
cables and modems. Our idea of a trip to the bank is often stopping by an electronic box
on a street corner. In our headlong rush to keep up with the incredible speed of
communicative transactions we have placed ourselves in a prison of sorts. What happens
when your server goes down? Or phone lines are interrupted? Or worse - the hardware
crashes? The very idea of Y2K - that date driven problem, prophesied by some, gathering to
bring the world to a halt - causes terror in many hearts and does actually raise serious
questions about our ability as a society to face disruptions in our way of life.
While the more affluent countries of the world are worrying more about
the supply of champagne for the celebrations of the Millennium than they are about the
flow of gas through our pipelines, the same is not true of less developed countries - many
of which are primary producers of raw goods for our industrialized appetite. These
countries will have a longer and harder time in upgrading during the months following the
change of date. This could result in a slow down in some flow of supplies but most
corporations have stockpiled in anticipation of slowdowns. In the US, most of Europe and
Japan we will likely see very few and widely scattered problems - none major. The basic
systems we depend on have been tested and resettled and we should see very little problem,
with power sources, water and the like. As at any time, if we all try to access the same
resource at the same time we will see overloads the result in shutdowns. That would not be
Y2K problem, it would be a response problem that we caused directly.
So, if we are to have water, lights and basic communication without
much problem, what does really concern us? MONEY! That's right! Our hard earned kala is
our real concern. Locally our banks have done pretty well in testing their systems. There
may be a few small financial institutions that will have a slow down in their servicing of
accounts. But fow the most part we do not need to be terrified that our funds will vanish
into a computerized version of Ray Bradbury's parallel world. Banks maintain records on
line and off. Insurance companies are probably the most record astute, with corporate
files on each client and networks of agents who maintain their own client files. Wall
Street and the major trading companies may have some glitches in their trading but even if
the whole system failed the stock market would simply suspend trading - effectively
freezing our economy until the computers were back up.
There are a few practical steps that everyone should take simply to be
prepared in the case of any emergency. Look at your telephone book - page 81. That is a
very good list to which we all need to pay more attention. If you are really worried your
funds might be tied up for an inconvenient period of time, plan to increase your cash on
hand - say enough to cover basic expenses for a week. (a note of caution on extra cash -
be certain the thieves of our community are paying attention to this potential so be
careful!) Be sure you have your charge accounts, bank records, loan statements, insurance
policies, investment transaction statements and stock records up-to-date and in a safe
place. Don't plan on being able to use ATM cards, charge cards etc. without possible
interruptions for a couple of days. Better yet - don't use them at all and give the
machines a breather for a day or so.
A prominent local CPA told me recently he thought Y2K was going to be a
bit like Haley's comet - lots of buildup and then a fizzle at the end. Edward Yardeni, the
chief economist for Deutsche Bank and one who was predicting global recession in the wake
of Y2K is quoted from his recent research report that Y2K may prove to be a
"nonevent". In fact, he thinks that there is a possibility that it will result
in a Y2K boom as consumers who pulled extra cash out their bank accounts are, "so
relieved that nothing terrible happened that they would spend it all."
Hawaii - remember the old days - we lived just fine with occasional
power outages. Telephones have never really worked all that well anyway and if the water
gets shut off at my house? Well I can always go visit my Auntie for a day or so. My money?
Well, lets see, have I got enough for a couple of plate lunches for me and the kids? O.K.
And maybe just a couple of extra dollars to let me toast the New Year happily.
Mai ho'okaumaha! (Don't worry).
Editor: Gary Powell is a New
York Life agent. You can email him at: gapowell@ft.newyorklife.com |
|
FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS MILILANI, HAWAI'1 - Larry Birgado bench-pressed
585 pounds to set a record in his weight class at the World Bench Press & Deadlift
Championships in Portland, Oregon. Mr. & Mrs. Fernandino Juan renewed their vows & celebrated their 60th wedding
anniversary...Alissa
Schneider, MHS '99, participated in the 33rd
annual Univ. of Pennsylvanical Model United Nations Conference...MHS offensive tackle Mililani Walmart donated $1,000 to the the MHS Project Graduation for
2000... Janis Kinmore was named realtor of the month for October by Castle &
Cooke Homes...Ryan Santos verbally committed to playing for the UH Rainbow Warriors
next fall...Mililani Trojan
Pee Wees won their second straight state Pee
Wee title at the 45 annual Mele Kalikimaka Bowl at Aloha Stadium...Wendi Woodstrup is the new manager at the Mililani Public Library; she
replaces Donald Chambers who retired...Members of the Mililani Lion Club constructed 2 picnic tables at Rec 1, & also
repaired and painted 2 existing picinic tables...Rosario Juan
replaced Richard Cervino as MTA Design Committee Supervisor
BUS ROUTES 52 & 98 TO CHANGE.
MILILANI/WAHIAWA AFFECTED
ROUTE 52
Eastbound
to Honolulu (via Mililani): Kamehameha
Highway,Left Meheula Parkway, Left Ainamakua Drive, Left Makaikai Street, Left Ukuwai
Street, Right Ainamakua Drive, Right Meheula Parkway, Right on-ramp to H-2, onto H-1, H-1
to EXIT
18B Middle Street / Kamehemeha Highway / Dillingham Boulevard, resume regular eastbound
service to Ala Moana Center.
Westbound to Wahiawa / North Shore (via
Mililani): Dillingham / Kamehameha Highway to on-ramp H-1, H-1 to H-2, EXIT
5A Mililani Mauka, Right Meheula Parkway, Left Ainamakua Drive, Left Ukuwai Street, Right
Makaikai Street, Right
Ainamakua Drive, Right Meheula Parkway, Right Kamehameha Highway, resume regular westbound
service to Wahiawa and
the North Shore.
ROUTE 98 BUS RIDERS
Effective Monday, December 6, 1999, there will be a change to the Route
98 in the Mililani-Mauka Park & Ride area. This
change is being done in conjunction with the Route 52 Wahiawa-Mililani-Circle Island route
modification which will be servicing the Mililani-Mauka Park & Ride. Route 98 will
service ALL bus stops along the new route in the Mililani-Maukaarea.
A.M. route: From Meheula Parkway, left Ainamakua, LEFT MAKAIKAI,
LEFT UKUWAI, RIGHT AINAMAKUA, right Meheula Parkway, right access ramp to H-2 EAST,
resuming regular route.
P.M. route: From Meheula Parkway, left
Ainamakua, LEFT UKUWAI, RIGHT MAKAIKAI, RIGHT AINAMAKUA,
right Meheula Parkway, resuming regular route.
WHERE TO GO TO
VIEW XMAS LIGHT DISPLAYS
The following places in
Mililani are noted for having the best Christmas lighting displays.
95-533 Wailoa Loop, Maiaohe Place, Neleau Place, Anania Drive (94-084
to 94-088), 94-165 Kuahelani Avenue (#173-180), & 94-1452 Lanikuhana Avenue (Units 385
to 390).
THREE
MILILANI GOLFERS SCORE HOLE-IN-ONES IN DECEMBER
Donald Segawa scored a hole-in-one on Dec 15 on the 130-yd 6th hole at
the Ted Makelana course using a 9-iron. Patrick Hennessey aced the
140-yd 7th hole at the West Loch course using a 8-iron on Dec 21. Three days later on Dec 24, George
Kahoilua aced the same 140-yd 7th hole at the
West Loch course using a 7-iron. |
