#ʻolelo Hawaiʻi

[doctorwhoisadhd]

what are your thomas england thoughts? like what do u think thomas was like b4 they died

ok so thomas england is DEFINITELY one of the players who i imagine as part of the Prehistory Fridays Gang. so first he was around for everything in prehistory (along with fletcher berger, sebastian diaz and his partner, erickson hendricks, rhonda elliott, our lady of perpetual friday, fenry marlow and their dog homer, fitzgerald massey, jessi wise, and mrs silk who was then miss silk. and then also baby york and his dad parker, who was dating miss silk. obv not all of these people were necessarily fridays players at the time though maybe they worked behind the scenes). so THAT was a whole thing.

honestly part of the problem of being LITERALLY retconned out of the game is nobody remembers you anymore. thomas england was only around long enough to get joke lore, we were only really just starting to flesh out relationships between the players when he got incinerated, and he didnt get any of that. and what adds to this problem is, well in the fridays style of lore, we dont necessarily think about what a player does outside of blaseball, or at least we DEFINITELY didnt early on (and didnt get ANY new entirely unlored players until relatively late af in the game — so like, after sixpack on s4d86 our next two were fenry and yass statter jr in the s13 and s19 elections respectively). so as a result there isnt any kind of a precedent to fall back on for what i think about what he did?

but here's what i DO know;

i disagree with the wiki on this one: neither of his parents are from the UK (there is no way). i like to think like, at least one of his parents is native, and hes lived there his entire life

his legal name is thomas england + thats whats on all his blaseball stuff, but typically with other islanders he'd use pelekane (which is what some of the last few members of the hawaiian royal family called england in ʻolelo hawaiʻi). so its like, his career name is thomas england

hes transmasc B) also ADHD

he played first base

he loves doctor who, and not just because its from the UK. like, hes seen the TV movie and at least one of the peter cushing movies and most of classic who, listened to a whole bunch of audios, reads the comics and the novels and like every EDA, has a subscription to dwmag, his bar for media quality is on the fucking GROUND so its literally all good he just loves dr who so much. he also probably has a cosplay of literally every doctor (including the shalka doctor and like the curse of fatal death ones too)

despite this he DOES. NOT. know ANYTHING about UK culture. he is constantly having amelia bedelia type misunderstandings of what things are. (ex: beans on toast = toast, peanut butter, jelly beans / "the tube" = "big pneumatic tube like the one for salmon, except people sized" / thinks john lennon's name was actually "john lemon")

he cant tell a single british accent apart he just identifies all of it as "british accent". fitz massey is from australia and is completely unaware that he thinks they are british. it is extremely lucky that he has never met anyone from ireland because they would probably strangle him. (weirdly though: despite him identifying approximately 50% of kiwis as british seemingly completely at random (absolutely no common criteria has been found at all. not looks not age not location nothing), he identifies 100% of scottish accents as "aotearoan")

he plays ʻukulele! maybe he worked at a ʻukulele store for a time at some point, even if it was like a summer job during high school... i like to think he's what got heat into playing :')

obsessed with choose your own adventure stories. he loves them.

(fridays angst train incoming) so york grew up with the whole Prehistory Fridays Gang as his family, and when york was really really little he couldnt say "thomas" (or england or pelekane, for that matter) but would ask him if they could play "docka who" all the time, so eventually what stuck for thomas england was he became york's "uncle who"

[kataibusaibiin]

First, lemme say, as malihini (foreigner, guest) in Hawai'i nei, to learn ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi is our kuleana (both privilege+responsibility). Given the history and ongoing illegal occupation, learning even just a little ʻōlelo and doing our part to renormalize its day-to-day use is the least - and I do mean the bare minimum - I or anyone else visiting as tourist or living on this 'āina can do. And it should be done with respect for nā kānaka oiwi, their culture, and their ʻāina as language is not separate of these things.

I am no expert and clearly I still have a lot to learn and need all the help I can get, but if anyone else is eager to learn too, I'm happy to share some of the resources others have shared with me to supplement my online classes. Many are free and available online! 

Now, having said that, e kala mai! Please don't take this as an invitation to roast me but if you're kānaka and/or nā po'e ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, please do feel free to offer feedback! I am always eager to learn and practice with others!! I am truly humbled by the opportunity to do so. 

For context, some friends and I were hoping to meet up via zoom last night to study and practice ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi together. We are trying to meet up regularly to practice and encourage each other. Our goal for this week was to polish our ho'olauna (introductions). Unfortunately, we had to cancel/reschedule. But I've challenged myself to practice speaking every day (and not just practice my reading/writing comprehension), even if itʻs just for a few minutes. So.....

I recorded myself practicing and ya'll get to be my accountability buddies this time.

I've been learning 'Ōlelo Hawaiʻi online since this summer. One challenge I face no matter what language I speak (even English) is overcoming my social anxieties. I often freeze and/or nervously fumble over my words, particularly in group settings. Of course, this increases the less familiar I am with the language and/or culture. What fun! Aaaand Zoom classes tend to bump the dial up several notches and send my anxiety soaring through the roof. The emotional landscape of the state of the world certainly doesnʻt help either! So, Iʻm trying to make concerted efforts outside of class to help me lean into the challenges of learning online and my own discomfort. So, here we are...

Please note, this isn't my formal or more traditional ho'olauna but this is my effort to stretch and try to finds ways to speak to some of the many questions that often come up whenever I have to introduce myself, particularly when it comes to where I am "from"... Spoiler alert: I am a multi-ethnic Shimanchu, born on the island of Uchinaa but raised in the diaspora. You can call me Okinawan /  Uchinaanchu or Ryukyuan / LooChooan but please know that I am NOT Japanese. Being given Japanese citizenship at birth does not erase the violent overthrow of our Kingdom and ongoing illegal occupation of the Loo Choo islands.  No matter how much the Japanese government has tried to kill and/or beat or erase Shimanchu and the rich history and culture of the Loo Choo Kingdom, they cannot take away the blood that runs through my veins and the pride I hold in my heart for all of the gifts and lessons my ancestors have passed down to me.

Also, much like trying to learn my own heritage languages like Uchinaaguchi or Chahta Anumpa, it can be challenging to find folks who are both willing and able to practice indigenous languages, thanks to colonialism and the intergenerational trauma and institutional erasure or other barriers it creates/created. But I have been truly inspired by innovative and empowering ways indigenous brothers/sisters/siblings across the globe are leveraging technology to heal, connect, and overcome these hurdles, especially during these times of social distancing. (I mean, have yʻall been on TikTok??) So, here's my attempt to use technology to break down some of these barriers while also confronting some of my fears. Who knows...maybe itʻll inspire someone else to tackle some of your own fears, transform the way you think about technology, ....or perhaps (hopefully!) it'll make you pause to think about our individual and collective responsibility to decolonize ourselves and our communities and to honor the lands we call home - and the indigenous / aboriginal / First Nations peoples of the lands where we live - wherever in the world we find ourselves. (OK, gonna stop there for now before I start ranting about Asian Settler Colonialism, but consider this me lovingly calling in all Shimanchu here in Hawaiʻi to join me...)

OK. One minute challenge. Here we go!! *deep breaths*

[pricelessmagic]

The Language of Aloha at Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa: Manako

The Language of Aloha at Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa: Manako

Manako means mango. February is ʻOlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Language) Month, and our love of ʻolelo Hawaiʻi is one of the most unique aspects of our resort! Did you know that Aulani Resort was the first Disney property to recognize Hawaiian language proficiency on cast members’ nametags? If you would like to experience a unique and beautiful language, you need only say, “aloha” to one of our…

[sousnosdrapeaux]

So we all know that ʻaina means land but did you know that in older variants of Hawaiian ʻaina most likely was used as a broader term for ʻfamilyʻ? 

e.g.: 

aloha ʻaina = love your family

malama ʻaina = take care of your family