I've been meaning to write this for
a
while. It is too long for a blog post and best left
inconspicuous. The need to move the blog readers
temporarily in
the wee hours of Friday July 18, 2008 brought this back to
mind
as I reflected upon the mass email list I had readily handy and
the
contacts I have made since my blog "Bus Stop" days in March
2007...
A background story first--
I
think
most
us
have
gone
through
the
"bus stop" before. Since I am a guy, I'll tell it from from a
guy's
point of view: I was young and unattached when I met her at
the
bus stop. Every work day, I would see her for a while as we waited
to transfer to our different buses in the morning. Sometimes
we
had 10 minutes to wait, sometimes only 3 minutes. We watched each
other
for a week and eventually started to speak to each other.
She
wasn't stunningly attractive but the more we talked I sensed she
was a
very nice person indeed.
One day, I worked up the courage and decided to ask her for
a
date. But when her bus arrived-- she wasn't on it. I
never
saw her again. Frantically I tried to find her to she if she
was
all right and would go out with me. Let's see... her name
was
Jill (no last name) and she lived in the Nuuanu area. She worked
as a
clerk in an office downtown on Bishop Street. Her boss was a
grouch and she had a cat named "mango". Her father just bought a
super
size 25" TV set, her brother likes playing Atari games, and her
mother's right knee bothers her. Yup--I knew alot about her,
but
I knew nothing to find her and hence lost something forever.
A few decades pass and now I'm
reading
a blog named "The Warrior
Beat". It's been months and I start to speak to the
interesting
and remarkable people that I met there. It is fun, it is
informative, and I never thought I'd be so drawn in and accepted
by a
bunch of faceless strangers...then, ST talked of the blog shutting
down
and I realized everyone was faceless ...and the memories of the
bus
stop came flooding back.
A lunch at Camellia? I'm going. What's your name? Can I have
your
email address? Here's my card...do you have one? Where
do
you work? Yeah--I still get teased about that today.
But I
got the info. Was I planning to see them again?... go to
tailgates, football games, parties, and karaoke? No.
Not at
that time.
But if the blog died, at least I
knew
I could find
them again...at least that was an available option now.
Then one day I posted my email address on the blog in the hopes of
locating the venerable Long Time UH Fan who had suddenly
disappeared.
Futility and another example of the Bus Stop. We eventually
located LTUHF when he responded to my email address.
Interestingly, I received other emails from bloggers saying
"hi"
and giving me their email address "just in case..."
Just in case of what?
Then
I realized we are all at the Bus Stop and they shared the same
fear of losing unseen friends that I did. Some were hoping I
would contact them if the blog stopped. Time passed and many
Tsai-ko events expanded the group and web of contacts info.
I
created my website to post current info and showcase the Tsai-kos.
I believe the blog network has grown so much that if I sent word
to the
people who have shared their email addresses over the past year+
--
they in turn will forward the info to those who they know. Those
who
bookmark my web site will get the current info if I maintain
it.
We should be able to reach 80% of all bloggers and lurkers in 24
hours,
with 95% total within 3 days.
I have seldom solicited email addresses... but I can understand
the
"Bus Stop" emotion and how those who might want email from me
(during
the change/crisis) might feel. So, if you want me to
put
your email address on file and in my "emergency" group email list,
go
ahead and send it to me. No explanation necessary and I
would
welcome it.
But remember, with my web page and the Tsai-ko-managed "lifeboat"
blogs
now,
emails are less critical.
SteveM
Tsai-ko Karaoke Homecoming
Newer members of the Warrior
Beat
blog might not know the origin of Tsai-ko karaoke and the
Karaoke
Calls. Here is my musing and recount if interested...
February 2, 2008:
Addahknowjoe, James, Stretch, UHfan808, Peaches and I sat
quietly--too
bashful and intimidated to touch the microphone in the Club Genji main
lounge half full of strangers. It was the firstTsai-ko Karaoke Call
ever, and
only
6 of us showed up with guest las vegas
(rasu begasu).
After dinner, las
vegas put in a couple of songs. After all, Genji's was
his old
haunt from his last years in Hawaii. I had learned this over
a
year earlier on the blog, and now I kept an old promise to bring
him there.
las vegas
sang in Japanese. I thought I was listening to a
Hibari-class enka
recording. He could
sing! Others agreed, as the room burst into enthusiastic
applause
and more waitresses came over from the bar side to bow to him and
say
something in Japanese. After a slightly longer exchange, he
translated that he was asked what Club in Japan he performed
at.
A customer hung over the seat to talk to him and Tina had to coax
her
back--instant groupie. You get the idea.
Emboldened by the fact that we were part of las vegas's
group and had instant acceptance, we put in a few english songs
after
the dinner crowd thinned. We discovered karaoke was
fun and
I somehow managed to reserve the large PRIVATE room every Saturday
for
4 months straight. Yes, that's the origin of the signature songs
of
certain Tsai-kos. ST was a semi-regular too and one night the "lion" escaped
to the internet. The larger
Karaoke
Calls followed.
The fact that Genji's was las vegas's
hangout and my cousin (Gaye) is a
half-owner is coincidental. I had always felt welcome but
over-matched at Genji's so had only gone there maybe 6 times in
their
19
years of operation. In fact, I didn't know it was also a
sports
bar and
had UH PPV. Now, all the owners and staff know the Tsai-kos
--
from a karaoke and football point of view. Tsai-kos are truly
welcome
there because they are fun.
February 2009: las
vegas
is returning to visit. Great--put out another dinner Karaoke
Call
for him! Then the memory of the first karaoke call hits me: only 4
other Tsai-kos joined Peaches and I that night-- Addahknowjoe,
James,
Stretch and
UHfan808. You might notice how they fit in at current
Karaoke
Calls. :-) That was the night we first met Tina too.
How far has Tsai-ko karaoke evolved since then?
We have seen gliimpses, but will find out on February 21, 2009 --
homecoming of las
vegas and
the
1st Anniversary Karaoke Party. Back to our karaoke
origin: Club Genji and with
the Tsai-ko who
started it
all. Can I sell tickets?
Tsai-ko Cycles Written and posted by Committed
Road
Warrior (AZ) on
March 30,
2009
"The Tsaiko is most noticeable to humans and comes out of its
shell
when found in one of three native habitats: the confines of Aloha
Stadium, sprawling across the grass practice fields at the
University
of Hawai'i, or loading up on foodstuffs from the buffet line all
the
while singing at the Karaoke bar. In their natural state, the
Tsaiko is
a fun-loving bunch who welcomes all into their clan and makes them
feel
at home. They span the spectrum with regards to age, occupation,
and
other affiliations but all have in common the love for one thing:
UH
football.
Today we find the Tsaiko grazing the practice fields as they feed
their
thirst for college football, despite the season not starting for
another five months.
For two hours a day during this time of the year, the Tsaiko is
fixated
on the University of Hawai'i football team and their ultimate
quest for
a WAC Championship. They spot and watch not only the UH players
and
coaching staff engaging in practice exercises and routines, but
off to
the distance lies the most important Tsaiko of all, the grand
pooba of
the Tsaiko species, for he is called the Tsai-meister, and it is
him
who is meticulously jotting notes about any and every thing that
is UH
football.
The Tsai-meister reigns supreme over the Tsaiko species, however
he
enlists a few higher-level Tsaiko individuals to help him ensure
that
all the other Tsaikos stay in line. These select Tsaikos are
mainly of
the female variety and are armed with lead slippahs, for the lead
slippah is most feared amongst the Tsaiko culture not so much for
its
chemical abilities but its ability to put a hurt on those it is
applied
to. It is through this that the sanctity of the Tsaiko culture
remains
in a state of equilibrium.
Come autumn, the Tsaiko habitat moves from the grass fields to
Aloha
Stadium, where they attend college football games and tailgates as
they
cheer on the UH football team to victory. The stadium is where the
Tsaiko is most noisy and rambunctious, for cheering on the UH
takes
precedence over everything else. The tailgate is where the Tsaiko
gorges on food and beer and other artery-clogging proclivities.
They
remain happy and joyful throughout the autumn and early winter
season.
In some instances, the Tsaiko may travel into enemy territory to
catch
a glimpse of their beloved UH football team in action at the home
of
the opposition. The enemy usually treats the Tsaiko well, but in
some
instances the Tsaiko gets chased out of town for no apparent
reason.
While away from the rock, gambling halls are popular with the
Tsaiko,
but not as popular as watching UH take on the opposition.
January marks the end of the college football season and the final
movement of the Tsaiko habitat, this time going from the stadium
and
tailgate zone to that of the buffet line and Karaoke bar. It is
here
where the Tsaiko will do one of two things: load up on and store
excess
food in preparation for the upcoming UH football season, or
partake in
Karaoke as a way to channel their boisterous voices and cheering
for
peaceful purposes. Karaoke allows the Tsaiko to yell, have fun,
and
show off when not in a football atmosphere, while the buffet line
allows the Tsaiko to gorge on massive amounts of food between now
and
when they make their return to Aloha Stadium.
Spring time marks the movement of the Tsaiko habitat from the
buffet
lines and Karaoke bars back to the grass practice fields to graze
on
the beginnings of UH football. They make their return to the
practice
fields and the Tsaiko cycle begins again."
