August 26, 2007
Table of Contents gets a little culture
The Table of Contents, a group of BookCrossers on Oahu, met today at The Hawaii State Art Museum. I’m so glad I found this wonderful group. They have all become dear friends and they’ve introduced me to some wonderful local experiences. I was pretty much a loner before I started meeting regularly with them, and I’ve never been one to do much exploring on my own. Sad to say, but in the twelve years that I’ve been in Hawaii I had never visited HiSAM or the other museums that TOC has introduced me to.
We met in the cafe for lunch. The menu is limited but superior. I selected an amazingly light and airy omelette served with a mix of fresh local greens. I’m not a huge eater of salads since I can’t digest raw vegetables, but today I nibbled a bit more than was probably good for me (and sent the rest home with a fellow diner.) All of us were over-the-top pleased with our lunch. There were only five items on the dessert menu, so we decided to order them all and share. If you have never had cucumber sorbet (and I’m betting most of you haven’t) you should try to find some in your own area. I took a taste, not expecting to like it at all. Ha! That’s what I get for thinking. The flavor and fragrance were delicate but quite distinctive and we all enjoyed it tremendously. The churros were “French style,” much lighter than the denser but more authentic Mexican variety, and were served with a chocolate dip with a rich cocoa flavor. The pannecotta literally melted on my tongue and induced near-ecstasy. The entire menu was true gourmet fare. I regret that I don’t have the culinary vocabulary to adequately describe it. Oh, and the service more than matched the food. Chris took great care of us, was informative about all of the menu items and was attentive but unobtrusive. Mahalo, Chris! You gave us a great dining experience.
My fine art vocabulary is also sadly lacking, so I will let the photographs do most of the talking. HiSAM features the very finest local artists. Today we viewed carved wood and pottery exhibits. Is it Michelangelo who is credited with the quote that he did not create sculpture, he merely freed it from the stone? The concept occurred to me again and again as I viewed the amazing carved wood artistry. Even my untrained eye could see that the artists pulled their visions from the natutal grain and contours of the wood. It seems a magical and enchanting process to me.
My camera batteries died shortly after we entered the pottery exhibit, but I got one imperfect picture of a special piece. A very dear friend works at a local community college. They periodically showcase and sell the work of their art students and instructors. My friend has gifted me with several small pieces by Kauka deSilva, talented and much acclaimed local artist and educator. It is pure serendipity that his piece currently on display was inspired by the Waianae Mountain Range, “my” mountains. Make sure you read the text about how he creates his colors. (Click on any photo above to be taken to my Flikr page, where you can view the photos in full size.)
Our group was small today but we had a wonderful time together. We traded some books, gave some to the wait staff at the restaurant and released a few into the wild. (Check out BookCrossing.com if you don’t understand that statement. 
) I behaved myself and only brought home a few books. The day was further enhanced by the rain that has been falling off and on all day, even out here on the dry leeward coast. The cool, moist air energized me and I caught up on quite a bit of work at home this afternoon. All in all it’s been a very good day filled with friendship, good food, some amazing art and a sense of satisfaction. I am, at this moment, perfectly contented.
[tags]art, BookCrossing, food, Hawaii, Hawaii State Art Museum, Hawaiian art, photos[/tags]
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August 26th, 2007 at 5:53 pm, Whim Says:
Sounds like a wonderful day Skeet.
Nice pics!
August 26th, 2007 at 8:54 pm, skeet Says:
We really had a wonderful time, Whim. Time with my TOC friends have become very precious to me.
September 9th, 2007 at 7:03 pm, Postie Carnival Says:
[…] presents Table of Contents gets a little culture posted at skeet’s stuff. Another place you should check out if you go to […]
September 10th, 2007 at 3:50 am, Lisa Says:
This looks like an awesome place to go visit. I know if we ever end up in Hawaii we’ll go check it out.
September 10th, 2007 at 3:51 am, valmg Says:
That sounds like a really nice day. The items pictured are neat, and the picture of the food made me want some breakfast.
September 10th, 2007 at 4:42 am, Colleen Says:
What a great time!
September 10th, 2007 at 5:56 am, corrin Says:
That looks like a great museum and how wonderful that you can take pictures. Our museums are so stuffy about that!
September 10th, 2007 at 6:56 am, CyberCelt Says:
Sounds like a good time. I am glad you found some friends to share your life with. You are a neat person and deserve it.
September 10th, 2007 at 8:08 am, skeet Says:
There are some wonderful museums here, Lisa. Given another lifetime I may be able to visit them all eventually!
September 10th, 2007 at 8:09 am, skeet Says:
Valmg, the food was absolutely amazing. Most museum restaurants have uninspired sandwiches and wilted salads. This one is gourmet all the way. Oh, and the exhibits were great, too!
September 10th, 2007 at 8:10 am, skeet Says:
We really enjoyed the museum and the meal, Colleen, and the celebration of friendship most of all.
September 10th, 2007 at 8:12 am, skeet Says:
Corrin, I was surprised they allowed pictures, too. They don’t allow flash, so I had quite a few that didn’t come out, but most of the exhibits are so well lit that no flash is needed.
September 10th, 2007 at 8:13 am, skeet Says:
CyberCelt, the museum and food were wonderful, but it’s the fellowship with good friends that keeps me going back for more.
September 10th, 2007 at 11:35 am, suni Says:
i would have LOVED to be there with you for that. i love books, art, pottery, and FOOD lol
September 10th, 2007 at 5:12 pm, skeet Says:
Suni, those are some of my favorite things do. Sharing it all with friends was very, very special.
December 15th, 2007 at 9:10 pm, skeet’s stuff » Friends, food, books, aloha! Says:
[…] Table of Contents had our holiday gathering today. For the uninformed, Table of Contents is a group of local […]
January 27th, 2008 at 5:22 pm, skeet’s stuff » Self Portrait Sunday for January 27, 2008 Says:
[…] was Table of Contents day. We met at a Chinese restaurant up near UH this time, where we spent an hour or so enjoying […]
May 4th, 2008 at 12:02 am, skeet’s stuff » Contented with the Table of Contents Says:
[…] We met at The Hawaii State Art Museum (HiSAm) last August. We were thrilled to return to the restaurant and to have Chris as our waiter once again. He took wonderful care of us and I think he was as happy to see us as we were to see him. We left him about twenty books to distribute to restaurant staff and museum patrons. We’ve often noted that wait staff in Honolulu tend to be highly literate and they’re always pleased to be invited to help themselves to our books. Above: Chris and Hyphen8 […]