Today is the Lunar New Year. It is the year of the dragon - a very auspicious year. This year many Asian countries are expecting a rise in the birth rate as the dragon is held to be lucky, fortunate, and powerful. We are missing Korea - wonderful festivals and fantastic food. Here on Oahu, Chinatown takes center stage in the celebrations, with parades, festival foods, and cultural events. We weren't able to attend this year - maybe next year!
Since it is still New Year's I will take advantage of that and catch up on my deliquent blog. Our New Year's Eve, while not the Lunar New Year, did involve the moon shining a bright path over the ocean. We went out around midnight and learned that the beach is a lively place on December 31st. Lots of people take a ritual dip in the ocean to welcome in the New Year.
Fireworks over the neighboring town of Hale'iwa.
Looking back at our house - a cheery sort of place.
For those who may have been wondering about whether or not Layden got that pith helmet for Christmas (see earlier blog) - no, he did not. Santa brought him a surfboard instead. It is a long board, just what he wanted, and he is happy to pose with it in our back yard.
And here he is, even happier, an orange speck paddling out to catch some waves.
I am not yet convalsced enough for such rigourous activity and I am not sure surfing will be it - I am awaiting my promised bicycle.
In the meantime, I am building things with Legos! Architecture Legos, to be precise. It has been some time since we have had Legos at our house - I had forgotten how absorbing they can be. This is a model in progress of Frank Lloyd Wright's house known as Fallingwater.
And here it is, all 811 pieces!
I learned that there are lots of Lego Architecture sets, and they are all ridiculously expensive. But they are SO MUCH FUN - a fact that my grandchildren have patiently tried remind me of for some time now. Okay, you darling kids - Grandma gets it!
(But they are STILL ridiculously expensive...thankfully there are garage sales and E-Bay)
A word about Legos...
Legos have their origins in blocks made in the 1940's by a Danish toy company. In 1958 (a very good year) the block-and-tube- Lego we are familiar with was produced and patented. The name LEGO comes from 2 Danish words, lege and godt, which mean "play well." Blocks made today are still compatible with blocks from 1958!
LEGO headqaurters are in Billund, Denmark, next to the original LegoLand which was opened in 1968. We got to visit here in 2001. The Billund factory makes 2 million bricks each hour. THAT is a lot of Legos!
ALHOA
and
HAPPY NEW YEAR
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