Final Days to VOTE for your Captain!

Yes, the final week is here and this coming TGI 'Aloha' F Baby will mark the end of the voting to the Waikiki Aquarium's contest for the 2014 Calendar.

So where do we stand now? Well, as you know, I entered 23 photos in the contest and with some fantastic support and great marketing from friends, all the photos are doing quite well. What I have below are the rankings, photos, and links to the voting pages for the top photos that are either IN the top 20 or close TO the top 20.

Remember, only the TOP 20 move on to the judging stage.  Every vote counts and getting votes to the ones just outside the top 20 really helps so they can move up and into the finalists category and be considered by the judges.

So, let's keep voting, keep spreading the word, keep posting reminders, keep sending e-mails, and keep voting every 24 hours. Yes, you can vote again every 24 hours.

Okay, why the big deal, you may ask?  Why the aggressive marketing campaign for votes?  These aren't my best shots to date, but there were time constraints on the entries, so these are the best from this past year.  To be honest, this isn't about winning something or the prizes, I'm not even sure what the prizes are.  Here is my drive behind this particular contest.

Wait….pictures and links first. Please vote first, so you'll have less time for your 24-hour clock to re-vote and read below for more and if you aren't motivated to vote, hopefully my motivation for entering will motivate you to vote.

#2

Maui Humpback

#6

Sunset Humpback Breach

#9

Manta Flier

#10

Maui Humpback Breach

#13

Frogfish

#14

Shaka Diver

#15

Night Manta

#16

BACK OFF, BRAH!

#17

Sunset Spockin' Honu

#23

First Day Of Raccoon Squirrel School

#24

Just Pokin' Around

Remember, it's the last two which need that little extra shove to get them into the top 20 before Aloha Friday. Let's get them that extra push into the top 20!

So, okay, what's my motivation? Well, here's the story. Ever since I was a child, I have always loved the ocean and dreamed of being a Marine Biologist or Oceanographer. Jacques Cousteau was a hero of mine and I watched his show, The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau, every Sunday evening in the 70's. Also, every Sunday, my mother used to take us to Fort DeRussy in Waikiki to hang out and go swimming. It was our early 70's past time, to keep me out of trouble, or at least try to.  I'd always either end up at or beg to go to the Aquarium where I would spend countless hours looking at the fish and dreaming of being underwater.  I loved diving and learned to Scuba dive at an early age. Maybe it was my escape from reality, like Dustin Hoffman taking the plunge in The Graduate.  Okay, I know…shades of 'The Incredible Mr. Limpet' just went through your head. No, it's not like that though. This contest for me, then, is getting one, if not more, or my photos in the Waikiki Aquarium's Calendar. Yes, the place I hung out at as a kid and the place where I created and dreamed many of the realities that I am so privileged to be able to still experience today.  It would be a tribute to the little boy in me that dreamed of the under sea world and grew up trying to capture images that reflect all the beauty in the ocean.  It would be such an honor to be a part of the Waikiki Aquarium Calendar, a place that had such a significant impact on my love of sea life growing up. 

And while my Mother and Dad are gone now, I know that they would be proud that their little tumultuous rapscallion of a little boy found some peace in that Aquarium he so loved.

So there you have it, now please go vote! …and vote again every 24 hours :)

Mahalo for Voting with Captain Bobby Mitchel

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Time to Vote for Captain Bobby!

Okay friends, your Captain has entered a contest back in the Island homeland to possible get a photo published in the Waikiki Aquarium 2014 Calendar!

So, here's where you come in. Below are my 23 entries with a link directly to each photo's Facebook voting page. Find a favorite or vote for them all :) Yes, you can vote for them all and you can vote every 24 hours until 16 August, so come back here daily and get the easy link to help me get in the calendar for 2014!

Now check out these beautiful photos from my home and vote for one or vote for them all! And come back tomorrow to vote again. BTW, the contest rules stated that the photos had to be taken just from this year, 2013, so it was very limiting. Bummer, brah! I didn't have a lot of time to get back to the islands as much as I had wanted but I think I did get some pretty cool photos.

Maui Humpback

Sunset Humpback Breach

Maui Humpback Breach

Sunset Spockin' Honu

Frogfish

Night Manta

Octopus's Garden

Shaka Diver

BACK OFF, BRAH!

Honu Tailgating

You Say Humu…

Ulua

Sunset Breach

Manta Flier

Just Hangin' Out

Nudibranch

Just Pokin' Around

Raccoon Frenzy

Just Cruzin'

First Day of Raccoon Squirrel School

Thatsa Moray!

Solo

Hidden Crab

Mahalo for Diving with Captain Bobby Mitchel


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California Poppy Hoppin'

...with a little wingman. Did you happen to notice his/her little wingman in the upper left hand part of the photo?

Yes, the California Poppy, the State Flower, also known as Eschscholzia California. Wow, and who came up with that and what were they smoking', brah? A lot of people consider it to be a nuisance and a weed as it seems to pop up just about anywhere and everywhere. 

I never really paid much attention to them until recently. When we moved into our new home up in the hills, I saw quite a few along the roadside and thought they looked rather beautiful with their pretty yellow flower which, as you can see attracts bees. It was then that I was 'schooled' in the fact that it is "illegal' to pick them, cut them, or remove them! It was also then that I learned that they were the state flower of California. Crap! And I wanted to plant some in our new backyard that we were designing. 

So, what's the next step? Easy, because I was to find out that they sell them at the local nursery and we could easily pick them up there and put them in the yard. Score! On out next trip to the our local nursery, picked up a few of the one gallon California Poppy plants and spread them out on our hill. Just enough so have a smattering of pretty yellow flowers in the back amongst the many others flowers and bulbs that we have throughout the back. Yeah, not so fast, Batman. This Spring, we had a huge amount of plants come up from the dirt that was brought in for the planting that we did and, at first it all looked like carrots when it started to sprout, but later on, when they all began to bloom, we found out that we had a huge amount of, yes, California Poppies, that were brought in with the soil. Yeah, good purchase on those three one gallon plants, huh?

Oh, we have Poppies now.

Mahalo for Pollinating with Captain Bobby Mitchel

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Sunset Honu

Ahhhhh, sunset on Maui…can anything be more peaceful and beautiful? Wind gently blowing through the coconut trees, small waves breaking on the shore, a gentle breeze blowing by, soft sand beginning to cool between the toes, and the sky turning a brilliant orange as the sun begins to set over the distant shoreline of Lanai.

Yes, in the calm, blue, beautiful, and warm waters of the Pacific Ocean, up pops a Honu (Hawaiian Sea Turtle) to take a breath and snap, I get 'em, brah!

Perfect timing! The little guy was cruzin' along the shoreline and I guess wanted to check out the sunset too and grab a quick breath of fresh air. Now, if I can just get these tourists to scatter and quit screeching it would be nice ~ Talk about ruining a moment! Jeez!


Mahalo for Sunsetting with Captain Bobby Mitchel



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Honu Free Diving

So there we were, hanging on the beach in Maui just chillaxin and unwinding. My dive buddy was down for the count as she's growing a human in her belly so it was just chill time for the 2 ½ of us. We had Mai Tai's (for me, that is) on the beach, music playing, and many whales in the distance. I took the opportunity to do a little free diving and testing of my new Go Pro Hero 3 camera too.

While out in the crystal clear blue waters, I came across a very large Honu (Hawaiian Sea Turtle) just cruzin' along so I decided to cruz along with her. She did not care one bit and for like a ¼ mile or more I hung just behind her and took videos, pictures, went back up for air, went back down, and hung with her some more. It was awesome! She just cruz'd along at a nice pace and didn't dart off or pick up the pace. I could have stopped off for a Zip Pac or Shave Ice for the two of us and come back down for shares, if I wanted. (Some of you, or most of you, may not have got that reference, so check the link).

I was behind her, moved from one side to the other and she didn't mind one bit. It was like we were formation flying for awhile, except I had to go up for air a lot more often than she did!

Here she is:

No tank required and no navigation, etc. It was such a delight just to once again, hang with my Honu friends and enjoy. They are such peaceful and beautiful creatures of the ocean, gracefully flying along with their soulful eyes.

I'll update this later with more photos and videos of her once I get caught up. I just wanted to share her with you now.  When I was finally done, I just stopped in the water and literally said and waved goodbye. I was kind of bummed… A hui ho, my friend

Mahalo for Free Diving with Captain Bobby Mitchel

Kona Kai Reflects

Kona Kai, our Chocolate Lab and my trusty "First Officer" takes a moment here to reflect on those brave men and women who have given their all in the service to our great nation.

Memorial Day, a day to honor the fallen soldier of the United States' Armed Forces. Take the time to remember for yourself today, for the freedoms we all love do come at a very costly price for many men and women who proudly serve our nation with honor.

And yes, Kona, you can swim now and everyone, please enjoy your day with friends and family. Enjoy that Bar-B-Que, enjoy that day at the beach with your family, enjoy that camping trip, and enjoy that backyard party with friends. Don't be guilted into something else, just take a moment to remember because one of the many reasons we fight for this country is for the freedom to be able to do these things.




Mahalo for Reflecting with Captain Bobby Mitchel


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3D Miracle Ultrasound

So, Dawn and I are thrilled to announce that we are expecting a little boy in August.  His name is Dylan Kainalu.  The ocean is near and dear to our hearts and has special meaning for both of us since we grew up in Hawaii.  We hope our son shares our love of the sea.  His first name Dylan comes from the son of the God of the Sea and Kainalu is Hawaiian literally meaning ocean wave, figuratively to go with the ebb and flow, easygoing, which, we hope will be his Mana or spirit.

This past month, Dawn reminded me to work my schedule around the ultrasound which she scheduled with The Baby Connection. Well, an ultrasound, so no big thing, right? I mean I've seen about three ultrasounds of Dylan already and they're all pretty hard to make out. If I had a little buzz going or was in the right frame of creative mind, I could see some sort of a baby, but mostly it seemed like I was interpreting Rorschach images in a Psych's office, not that I've ever done that before.

Okay, she sends out invitations, yes, invitations, and 8 of us show up in this comfortable, leather couch room with a large flat screen monitor on the wall. We're not at a doctor's office, but at The Baby Connection, a business that specializes in 3D ultrasounds. No, 3D glasses and popcorn were not required, nor provided, but popcorn would have been cool. I wasn't thinking much about it until the first pictures started showing up on the monitor and then I got a glimpse of our son moving around and opening and closing his mouth. OMG!…Wait, this is my blog…Holy Shit! Un-freaking believable! There he is in 3D and moving….free diving without a tank in Dawn's belly. Leaky? Oh, you better believe it! It was all I could do to not burst out in front of these people.

Thanks to the amazing technology of 3D ultrasound, we were able to share glimpses of our little Dylan with family and close friends.  This was no Dreamworks, baby. This was the real deal and he was right there moving around. Dawn had a smoothie and some chocolate about an hour earlier so he'd be extra active and it worked as he moved around. In looking at the live video, we watched in amazement as he moved his hands by his face, open and closed his mouth and made facial expressions that really helped us to feel like we already know him.  The still shots are incredible.  Below you can see one of our favorites, our little man making a heart with his fingers - unbelievable!  Feels like he's already trying to communicate to us.

Yes, that is 100% real. There is no Photoshop here. His little hands miraculously made the sign of a heart in the picture above. 

And then it really started to hit me as I began to see myself too. No, not the pool cleaning guy, but me as a little boy. Take a look at this picture below of me and compare it to the one above.

Bobby Mitchel, circa. 1964

It's no longer a little baby in there, but now he's just Dylan, our son, whom I already know. Hey, Dylan, looking forward to meeting you in person soon. :)

and hey, Baby Connection! You guys rock!


Mahalo for 3D-ing with Captain Bobby Mitchel

Kona-Cam

Kona Kai…our Chocolate Lab

Well, you've seen photos of her, you've seen and heard about her here on this blog, you've seen her on YouTube, and she's even been offered a TV show by a Producer on Animal Planet. You've seen her run, jump, swim, speak and use her 'inside voice' for Scooby Snacks, and even lounge around on the couch and do nothing at all.

You've heard about her, we've talked about her, and some of you know her in person, or should I say, in "dog." Yup, she's our puppy, my trusty First Officer, Kona Kai Waikoloa.

Hey, wait! What the heck is that around her neck, you ask? Well, that is a high definition, underwater video camera. Yup, my GoPro Hero 3, Black Edition that I use for SCUBA diving and lately for Hummingbirds and now Chocolate Labs.

We went to the cabin this past weekend and I decided to attach it to Kona and see if she'd accept it while she runs about the beautiful redwoods surrounding Donner Lake and the cabin. I knew we would go on a hike or two and even though there is still a little snow remaining, Kona would be bummed if we left without going swimming in the frigid lake before she left. And by swimming I mean her, not me!

Well, she did. So, Kona-Cam was born!

Here is a link to the YouTube video and Kona's new addition.

Kona-Cam

Did she enjoy it? I don't really know, but she sure didn't really mind having it on at all. I tested it both on the ground and in that water and it worked well. I was mainly worried about battery life and the collar slipping off and losing the camera; neither of the two were a problem. 

Unfortunately, we didn't come across any animals either, like a rabbit (her favorite to chase) so that was a bummer. It was probably better in the long run as this was just a testing run anyway. The only real problem I came across was the camera swinging side to side a lot and getting stuck to one side when she swims. I'll have to work on that. I really think she'd be cool with wearing a small helmet with the camera attached, but I'm afraid at what the other dogs would say.

Mahalo for Testing Kona-Cam with Captain Bobby Mitchel

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