Gail Maki Wilson tagged me for a 7 Things meme. Since I’ve done this before, I thought I’d give it a different twist and share 7 observations about living in Hawaii, from the eyes of someone who spent most of her life on the mainland.

1. You cannot get oversized containers of taco seasoning at Costco. However, you can get li hing mui in the same oversized container.
2. It’s commonplace for radio stations to play songs sung in Japanese, English, Hawai’ian, and Tokelau, mingled with Christian praise songs and hot body songs. It’s all good.
3. Poinsettias grow here like weeds, and yet at Christmas time, you can buy them in pots at the store.
4. Care must be taken when ordering what you think is Mexican food. A taco is a taco, but tako (which sounds quite the same as taco) is squid. Tako is sold dried as a snack or more often, raw. I have tried it both ways. Dried, it’s just fishy. Raw, it is chewy and not among my top choices for a meal.
5. It is rare for a new business to open without a blessing. New homes, too, are often blessed. My husband has attended a number of blessings, but I’ll attend my first in a week or two. As I understand it, Kupuna offer a blessing and chant in the Hawaiian language. I suspect that there is often food involved.
6. People who live in California are called Californians. People who live in Texas are called Texans. People who live in Hawaii are NOT called Hawaiians. That term is reserved for people of Hawaiian descent, no matter where they live.
   
7. When someone offers you food, it is considered impolite to refuse. No matter what it is. Even tako.

I know that there are many differences between what I grew up with and other regions of the country. Let’s continue in this style. Instead of sharing 7 things about yourself, how about 7 things about the area in which you live. We’ll call it “Local Knowledge - 7 Things”. What makes your region different or unusual or quirky? Maybe we can all learn a bit about the rest of the world.

I don’t usually tag people, but I think I will this time. How about Jody, Theresa, Tammy, Miranda, Stephanie, Larramie, and Jax. (I think I’ve covered a small portion of the globe with that list!)

Here’s how it works:

1) Link to the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
2) Share 7 facts about your location.
3) Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.

If you play, leave a comment so I can check it out!