Waking up the morning after attending this annual event for
the first time confirmed that it wasn’t just a surreal dream. But I truly wasn't sure until my head started
throbbing from the wine that somehow found its way into my system. Then I started to work my way back in time
when I left my home for the Hawaii Prince Hotel to attend this event.
Certainly this was a well planned and executed combined
Valentine and fund raiser event for the Filipino community. It was similar to showcase events held
elsewhere (Pacific Beach Hotel, Sheraton Waikiki) except the Mauna Kea Room was
smaller, limiting the number of guests, and with a smaller dance floor than usual. Clearly at times, the dance floor was really
crowded with accommodating dancers who were graciously making room for others
passing by. I felt that it took all of
my peripheral vision and mathematical computation skills to wiggle around to
find any open spots and then lunge there before anyone could claim the
territory. Still the dancing was fun;
the music was varied and commanding. Indeed,
everyone seemed to be enjoying this gala event.
But not everybody, but the majority of attendants wore
something red. Naturally the women were
decked from head to toe in red in absolutely beautiful dresses that filled the
room and added to the festive but surreal character of the evening. Red everything….roses, shoes, purses,
dresses, shawls, shirts, barongs, jackets, etc, etc. For me, red was a challenge that I conquered
at Macys when I found a long sleeve red shirt to wear that was decent in
quality and fit me really well in addition to being discounted so many times
that in the end Macys had to pay me at the counter. And I wore a beautiful valentine day tie
that made me remember my deceased wife of 25 years who bought it for me in the
early 80’s while attending the Western Pediatric Society Research meeting in
Carmel, California.
At my table, I was flanked by four gorgeous women – two at
each side who were so red and so beautiful that it was difficult to concentrate
on anything else that was happening…..adding even more to the dreamlike character
of the night….perhaps I was in heaven after dying of a coronary. But then again, why would I expect that heaven
would be my final resting place? In any
case, I have grown a little gun shy about including names in my public writings
except when I have talked to the individuals involved wanting to respect their
sense of privacy. So I will mention
that one of the ladies was my stunning dance instructor Yanna Samkova, another one – a very
lovely new friend who just recently relocated from the east coast and is an excellent
dancer, the third - my beautiful friend and dance partner, Emi Matsuoka, and finally,
another friend who was attending with her husband – who is also beautiful and
was particularly radiant.
The mayor of Honolulu, Peter Carlisle, attended the event;
he made it to the podium and provided some introductory comments and
welcomes. I truly was too busy to pay
much attention to what he said but do remember that his delivery was relaxed,
friendly and cordial, and not stuffy or
regal as you would expect someone filling his shoes might find more appropriate. Later, the mayor found his way to many of the
tables, and even found his way to me, offering a handshake and a few friendly
words….I was too bewildered by this gracious effort to have the presence of
mind to stand up and return his kindness with something meaningful. I did however manage to shake his hand and
mutter a few mindless words.
General dancing filled the moments in between three
events. The first was highlighted by two
dance exhibitions performed for the audience including one by my dance
instructor Yanna Samkova and her husband Lucas Jaime. They performed a lovely cha cha cha and
included several aerial displays which impressed and enthralled the audience. The one trick that still puzzles me is the
one where Yanna ends up riding Lucas’s shoulders on her back and horizontal to
the floor while Lucas is spinning on his feet simulating an airplane propeller
about to take off in flight. Now this
would be difficult under any circumstances but somehow Lucas and Yanna can do
this without any hands; the contact of Lucas’s shoulder to Yanna’s back somehow
glues Yanna in place and makes this impossible task look effortless.
Another interruption in the general dancing was a fashion
show of willing entrants of men and women dressed in red who paraded around the
dance floor in front of judges who determined whose dress and appearance
deserved to be recognized. I can’t say
that I agreed with all of the results but it was all for fun, at least from my
vantage point. And I even managed to
negotiate a picture with the drop dead gorgeous winner, which may find its way
to my facebook account.
The final interruption was a dance contest of five
couples. Now I remember one of the
organizers coming to our table trying to drum up more entries for the event requesting
that I enter with my dance partner Emi.
I’m certain that I declined in no uncertain terms at least 5 times! I was in no mood to participate, but rather happy
to contribute to the clutter during the social dancing, and to chatter and
laugh with my guests and friends at the table while clutching faithfully to my
wine glass. However, somehow, when the
couples were called to the dance floor for the contest, we were included! And somehow, someone managed to attach an “E”
on the back of my shirt for the audience to use when they voted their
preference. How this conspiracy occurred
is still a mystery to me. But in the
end, we went with the flow and contributed to the evening entertainment. Again, it was all for fun, but it gave me an
eerie feeling that at least last night; I was no longer a free agent in the
world, but rather some big brother’s automaton. If anyone can lend some clarity to this
situation, I would be eternally grateful.
Or maybe last night was just a
dream, a very nice dream, but what I really did was stay home to watch a movie
and then had this wonderful dream that is described above.
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