AllegraMarshall is of French/ Australian background and has been living part time in French Polynesia for over 40 years. Wanting to visit the remote islands before they were to be “discovered” by tourists, she went on local cargo ships with her mountain bike in the early 1990s. This was a most unusual way to get around! Travelling alone, Allegra found that doors opened and families would start discussing their lives and backgrounds. They were generally more than willing to share their family anecdotes and stories (both good and bad) with someone who had no vested interest and who they may never see again. Many had at least one ancestor who came from outside their Polynesian island and group.
Around 2014 Allegra met a French historian who was particularly interested in the headstones of the oldest section of the Uranie cemetery (commenced in 1843). These certainly stood out from the rest. They had clearly been commissioned and carved elsewhere.
On closer observation, Allegra noted that these particular headstones were clearly anglo-saxon only with the names of stonemasons from New Zealand inscribed on the bottom front /back.
The Uranie Cemetery, situated on the outskirts of Papeete in Tipaeuri, is Tahiti’s oldest and most interesting cemetery. It was named after the French war corvette the URANIE – which was sent to ensure French Polynesia would fall under French rule (and not English). The Uranie, 54.5 metres long, armed with 60 canons, arrived in Tahiti after a 6 month journey from Toulon, France on 4 November 1843 with around 650 naval crew. The land on which the cemetery stands was the base/camp of the troops that arrived under the command of Governor Bruat, commander of the Uranie with Captain Bonnard at the helm. The Uranie would go and claim one island after another as French Territory over around a 4 year period. Queen Pomare was exiled to Raiatea where she was forced to sign over the islands to France.
The first people to be buried at the Uranie were naval officers and various Tahitians. They were buried in unmarked graves with no headstones. One of the first headstones with an inscription, dating from 1855 is of Dr Francis Johnstone (1802-1855), Queen Pomare’s surgeon. Johnstone was Scottish and had arrived in Tahiti around 1836. He was also an amateur botanist – the first to understand the value of using plants for medicine. He was much admired by the Tahitians in particular who had been using “Ra’au Tahiti” or plant medicine for centuries. Unfortunately he died before being able to publish his book. Hearsay is that he was buried with his future botanical manuscript – for it to be never discovered, or its secrets again!
A few, Like Alexander Salmon, a rich Jewish businessman from England (married into the royal family to eventually acquire land and become a very important person) received into their homes dignitaries and other key people. Some lived beyond their means (like Scotsman, William Stewart – who established the cotton plantation at Atimaono on the southwestern part of the main island of Tahiti in 1864). Bankrupt after 10 years, William Stewart was known for importing Chinese labour (both legal and illegal). Some of these Chinese decided to remain in Tahiti – for whatever reasons they chose. Since then, the Chinese have become an integral part of the Polynesian culture. They even have their own cemetery at Pirae (even though there are Chinese buried in most cemeteries in all the islands). The Chinese, known for their hard work and perseverance, have remained in major businesses in all types of industry – from bakeries to banks, from commerce/importation to tourism. Many of their headstone inscriptions are in their maternal language and Hakka (the Chinese dialect still spoken in French Polynesia to this day).
Anglo-saxons who travelled to remote parts of the Pacific area were generally whalers from the East Coast of the United States, Gold prospectors in search of further challenges after the goldrushes in California had been exhausted, and people who were looking to escape their homelands (for whatever reason). Many Irish, Scottish and English also settled in French Polynesia and stayed. They married locals and generally had large descendances. Many never returned to their homelands. Some ventured elsewhere after many years here. Explorers, missionaries, artists, authors, photographers, beachcombers, vagabonds, sailors, blackbirders – mostly men and a few very adventurous women – arrived to adapt to the local ways and integrated themselves into the local society in all of the 5 archipelagos of French Polynesia (Society Islands, Tuamotus, Marquesas, Australs & Gambiers).
Aside from Anglo Saxons arriving in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, there were of course many French and some German, Scandinavians, East Europeans, South Americans, Asians and a variety of people from all over the world.
Many of these people left lasting legacies in terms of descendants and can be found in cemeteries scattered around all of the islands. Catholics, Protestants, Mormons are often all buried together in the cemeteries (unlike many countries where they are grouped together).
A feature of more contemporary headstones are photos of the deceased (usually when they were younger) and their respective nicknames.
French Polynesia’s former President Edward Fritch has American ancestry! (first elected 12 September 2014 and then re-elected 18 May 2018). His paternal great grandfather, Edward Hewlett Fritch, was born in San Francisco on 11 September 1859 (he died in Tahiti on 18 December 1909). Ex-President Fritch’s grandfather (born in Tahiti) died in Boston. Allegra can show you some of these graves in Tahiti
The 1st November of each year, All Saints Day, is a major event in the local cultural and sociological program. The families commence cleaning and preparing their relative’s graves and headstones up to a month ahead of the key date. This is generally done with white sand (brought from the atolls specifically for this occasion) and white paint. The headstones are occasionally re-inscribed with black paint. Flowers, generally from respective family gardens, are brought the day before the 1st November. On the actual day, the families reunite at dusk with small candles, chants and stories. It is the most special day of the year. Allegra visits 3 of her favourite cemeteries to reconnect with the families she helps and knows each year.
Cemeteries are a fantastic way to learn about a country’s history. Important information is often inscribed on the headstones. In some cases this information is inscribed in the mother tongue (ie the Leontieff family’s headstone is in Russian).
Allegra brings together her deep knowledge and passion for the history of this part of the world and an enthusiasm and dedication beyond words. Having researched many of the key families for close to 10 years, enables Allegra to tie in stories across multiple families and different parts of the world.
Allegra’s knowledge of travel in the Pacific area, particularly the shipping routes (generally San Francisco to Sydney via Hawaii, French Polynesia, Tonga, Samoa, Fiji, New Zealand) means the stories are in context of the period – which makes it even more fascinating listening. However Allegra has also researched the routes from Europe via the US as well, so can also explain how this worked.
Allegra can explain death rituals across the centuries and why cemeteries are a relatively recent occurrence in Polynesia. Allegra’s larger project is to write stories of certain people who established themselves in Polynesia and who had interesting and varied lives and experiences. In the meantime, Allegra is helping locals find their ancestor’s last resting places and encourages them to restore them to their former glory.
The Polynesia language was oral and not all was transcribed or documented. By visiting the cemeteries on Tahiti and Moorea, Allegra has been able to reunite many families – both locally and internationally – and also to contribute to a number of family history books.
Come and join Allegra on your visit to Tahiti for an insight into the history of this remote part of the world! There is definitely more than beaches for you to see and experience! Since Allegra is not in Polynesia all year, take the opportunity when she is there to book a tour with her.
Tours are held on demand and on certain days at 2:30 pm (or at a time that suits both parties). The meeting spot is the car park of the Uranie Cemetery at 215pm. The tour lasts around 2 hours. Just bring a hat, a drink and good walking shoes. Refreshments are served after as well as a home-made snack.
For further information and or/ bookings, email Allegra on nati.tupuna@yahoo.com. Tours to other cemeteries and specific graves can also be organised. Book in early to not miss this unique tour to discover the deep, complex and interesting history of French Polynesia. Allegra speaks French, English & Spanish, so she can customise your tour. If you are a group of no more than 3 people, Allegra can pick you up/drop you off at your hotel for a little extra. See you very soon for this unique Polynesian Cultural Visit!!
This year’s Fourth of July has come and gone, but I’m still thinking about how restrictions on our freedoms have caused so many of the problems we face in Hawaii today.
In particular, I’m concerned about how Hawaii’s severe restrictions on homebuilding have resulted in too few homes and some of the nation’s highest housing prices.
Gov. Josh Green focused the public eye on this issue a year ago when he issued his first housing emergency proclamation. He said Hawaii’s land-use, zoning and many other regulations have increased our cost of living, downgraded our standard of living and caused many of our friends, family and neighbors to move to the mainland in search of greater opportunities.
And yet, Gov. Green has said he intends to veto a bill passed by the 2024 Legislature that could help counter this awful situation.
That bill, HB1633, would let homeowners who build or improve structures on their own land lease those new residences to someone else within the first year. Right now, they may neither rent nor sell those structures within the first year. The Legislature rightly determined that the rental prohibition is an unnecessary barrier to getting more rental units to market more quickly.
The proposal wouldn’t apply to a whole lot of people, but that doesn’t mean it is any less important than some of the more broadly based bills the governor has signed this year.
Green’s rationale for vetoing HB1633 is primarily couched in terms of safety, suggesting that it could open the floodgates to unlicensed contractors building new housing for rent.
But safety isn’t really an issue here. The homeowner-builders would still have to conform to the same building codes; use licensed contractors for all work that requires licenses, such as plumbing and electrical; and get the same permits as everyone else.
My hope is that Gov. Green will change his mind about HB1633. He already has signed two bills passed by the Legislature aimed at tackling some of Hawaii’s more major housing regulations: SB3202, which requires the counties to allow at least two accessory dwelling units on all qualifying residential lots, and HB2090, which made it easier to convert office buildings into housing.
Letting HB1633 become law would align with the spirit of Gov. Green’s earlier bill-signings, as well as with his ongoing emergency housing proclamation.
Expanding our freedom in this case by providing more housing options would admittedly be a small step compared to other actions the governor has taken recently on behalf of more housing. But it still would be a step forward, and one worth celebrating, in keeping with the ideals we honor on the Fourth of July. ________________
Keli‘i Akina is president and CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii.
Editor’s Note from Rob Kay: I first met Gerry back in 1996. Someone from my yoga class invited me to a party. I cracked open a beer and amidst the buzz I heard someone say “Fiji”. I’d spent a great deal of time there (I’d written a Lonely Planet guidebook to Fiji) and was curious who brought the subject up. It was Gerry. I introduced myself and was curious what he knew about Fiji. “Very little”, he replied. He explained he was heading off there to spend a year in a town called Levuka on a grant to do historical preservation. He said he was an architect, and he would be there to help the town protect and maintain its heritage.
I told him I’d lived in Fiji and knew Levuka quite well. I was happy to prep him.
So began our friendship.
Gerry understood I was a new kid in town and was interested in meeting people. So how did he respond?
He threw me a party, inviting his closest friends. That speaks profoundly about Gerry. He cared about people.
Gerry had a remarkable year in Levuka, Fiji’s old capital, from 1995 to 1996 working as a Heritage Advisor to the Fiji Government. His work led to the town becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
Gerry’s book culled from his experiences living in Levuka, Fiji from from 1995 to 1996
More recently Gerry helped me update and improve a guide book on Suva (Suva, a history and Guide) Fiji’s capital, which I co-authored with Al Schutz who also happened to be a friend of Gerry’s. Gerry generously provided us with nuanced descriptions of Suva’s iconic buildings. (If anyone is interested in a PDF of the book, I’ll be happy to send it to you).
Born and reared in Honolulu, Hawaii, Gerry Takano offers a glimpse into the profuse and curious intersections of place, culture, history and recognition. As president of TBA West, Inc., based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Gerry acquired a range of experiences, including architecture, urban design, planning and programming. He received his professional architectural education and early training in upstate New York and Boston. His projects were in a variety of locations from New England to Hawaii, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia and Guam. In Fiji, he lived for a year in the town of Levuka, the original British capital of Fiji, and worked with the local government to promote rehabilitation, encourage conservation and establish historic preservation guidelines. Gerry also served as Hawaii’s National Trust Advisor, Commissioner for the State’s Historic Sites Review Board and previously was Senior Program Associate at the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s San Francisco office. In addition to his role as a KGGV deejay for the station’s history and music series, Beneath the Waves, Gerry continues his consultant work in architectural and planning.
“Even though it’s been heavily Eurocentric in this country, preservation is really a universal field. It was another gay preservationist in Hawaii who helped me to understand and be confident in my own direction: a queer, working-class, Japanese American Buddhist from Hawaii, I am as much a preservationist as anybody else…. I’m sort of a romantic, so I love working with people who have passionate, rooted connections with historic buildings. If it doesn’t affect you in your heart, there’s no real connection.
—Gerry Takano, San Francisco, California
(At the bottom of this page you can read Gerry’s contribution to Project Muse A Passion to Preserve: Gay Men as Keepers of Culture, published by University of Wisconsin Press in 2005.)
Gerry and “The Senator” in high school.
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Below are tributes and reminiscences of folks who knew Gerry:
Michael Bosley
My late husband Jack Canfield and I met Gerry in 1980 shortly after his return to Honolulu from the east coast. We all became good friends and enjoyed many good meals and conversations over cheap wine and cigarettes…we all smoked then.We also enjoyed hiking and many neighbor island trips together over the years. In 1984 he met Michael Stick, the love of his life. After their move to San Francisco in 96 our friendship continued with many visits to their homes in the city and eventually their house on the Russian River. His garden there was beautiful…he put so much love and effort into it, and it showed! He always remained a local boy in his heart though; he developed a radio show which showcased Hawaii food and lifestyle…he loved plate lunch! He was a loyal and great correspondent; his cards and letters were always illustrated with his beautiful art work, drawings and penmanship. I miss those cards and letters, and hearing his voice and laugh…he was a dear friend and soulmate! RIP
Gerry and his young cousin. Photo taken at his family reunion at Natsunoya Tea House in May 2022
Josh Benson
Gerry was one of the most erudite and contemplative people I ever knew, with an infectious love of art, design, landscapes, and ideas. Getting to know him as a little kid through my mother was and eye-opening into the possibilities of the world beyond my upbringing—that the world was a big place and there was room for everyone if you just wanted to explore a little.
Leslie and Gerry
Leslie Kurisaki
Gerry Takano and I first crossed paths in the late 1980s when we briefly worked together at a small planning firm in Honolulu. We soon discovered we had a lot in common—we lived in the same downtown condo; we grew up about a half mile from each other in Nuuanu, and attended the same elementary school (though 9 years apart). We had both recently moved back to Hawaii after years of living on the mainland, and immediately bonded over a common struggle to find our place in an island home that was comfortable and familiar, but in some ways no longer relatable. This love-hate relationship, this ambivalence about Hawaii and what it meant to be “local” became our communal reality… for the next 35+ years.
Over Chinese food lunches (and years later over long-distance calls), Gerry and I spent endless hours gossiping, philosophizing, commiserating, and pontificating about life. One memorable adventure together was a work trip to Subic Bay in the Philippines, where we roamed the seedy streets of Olongapo amid underage “escorts” and M16-armed soldiers. Another was a journey to enchanting Bali, Indonesia, where we were outsmarted by a teenager who kindly volunteered to be our “tour guide” for the day. Gerry, always the optimist, was disappointed that nothing is free!
Of his many talents–artistic and intellectual—Gerry’s greatest gift was his ability to relate to others. Author Malcom Gladwell, in his book The Tipping Point, describes people he calls “connectors”— individuals who seem to know everyone and are naturally skilled at making and maintaining connections. That was Gerry T to a T. All who received his thoughtful hand-written letters and homemade cards, even well into the internet age, know the effort he made to maintain his relationships.
Connectors, Gladwell says, are people who link us up with the world, and who have a special gift for bringing the world together. I can’t think of a better way to describe my dear friend—our dear friend–Gerry Takano.
As Rick Waters said, “Gerry’s pen and ink drawings expressed his love of nature, inter twined with people, places and events with precise detail.“
Rick Waters
I don’t know too many people that met Gerry that didn’t speak highly of him. He had a gift to connect to people, understand them and make them feel special and tey mattered. If you asked Gerry his opinion, he would confirm you really wanted it…the Hold ON you would get an honest but compassionate opinion
Gerry’s pen and ink drawings expressed his love of nature, inter twined with people, places and events with precise detail.
His expertise and dedication in the preservation of historical sites and buildings was evident. His desire was for society as a whole to embrace and support the preservation of these sites to cherish and protect for future generations.
Gerry’s way of dealing with his diagnosis was not to be emotional or vulnerable, but to accept and connect with it, find happiness in simple things and peace in heart.
Wendy Walters
Gerry always expressed a genuine authenticity in wanting to get to know someone. He immediately took an interest in another person’s interests, passions, and perspectives. When he’d speak to you it always felt like you had his undivided attention, and when he’dsee you months later he would remember everything you discussed as if it were yesterday.. His demeanoor was always so even and level, and always so welcoming. He had a subtle and dry wit, but he wouldn’t ever demean someone in conversation, on the contrary, he always seemed to prop people up. Gerry found his soul mate in Michael, a person who like Gerry always put others before himself. Together they built a home with Aloha spirit, always welcoming, peaceful, and happy from the moment you entered to moment you bid them farewell.
Arnaldo Moreno
Gerry was an amazing human being. He was gentle, kind, generous, and creative spirit. I feel fortunate that I could count Gerry as a friend. The world is a better place because Gerry was a part of it, and I believe that the universe will continue to benefit from his presence.
Holiday card to Gerry’s friends dated 1987. (This one was posted by Leslie Kurisaki)
Michael Stick
When I met Gerry in Hawaii he was working in an Architecture firm. He worked with the local government to promote rehabilitation, encourage conservation and establish historic preservation guidelines. Gerry also served as Hawaii’s National Trust Advisor, Commissioner for the State’s Historic Sites Review Board and previously was Senior Program Associate at the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s San Francisco office. He hated that the historic Toyo Theater in Honolulu was destroyed. He was then sent to the Philippines where of his work involved luxury resorts or military base master plans which he did not like but it was a job. Then came Fiji. He was hired by the government to work to save the old capitol of Fiji called Levuka and to save all the historic building from being destroyed.
Then he moved to San Francisco and worked with a company who also worked to preserve historic buildings. From there he moved to Guerneville, California where he opened his own business called TBA West where his was hired to work with the city of Scotia to catalogue the historic towns homes and businesses. He was working on that project until his passing.
Gerry and Leslie in Bali, 1988
Ruth Tamura
I came to know Gerald when working at the Honolulu Academy of Arts, the local private art museum in the late 1970’s- early 1980’s.
During that time, I was Curator of Extension Services and was very active with the Hawaii Museum Association.
The Hawaii Museums Association would hold membership meetings twice a year. While serving several times as President of the Association, the membership meetings would often feature museum carolleagues from the mainland who would share their museum skills, expertise, experiences and discuss current trends and viewpoints that “movers and shakers” in the global museum world were trending/debating; the notion that the museum should expand their “community” consciousness, expand its audience focus beyond patrons, to encourage educational outreach partnerships beyond the museum walls and the latest trends in exhibition design. One trend that we now take for granted was to have zoos develop habitat exhibitions that were closer to the animal’s original environment: not small rectangular bar cages often housing one lone animal. Gerald, though not a career member of the Association, often attended these meetings and participated in these discussions, providing a historic preservation perspective and shared his reactions as a museum enthusiast and local community member.
He moved from Hawaii to the San Francisco Bay Area. I too moved to the Bay Area for work. When serving as a temporary Executive Director at the Japanese American Historical Society, Gerald and I found ourselves as fellow team members of the Presidio Building 640 project. Together we attended planning meetings, reviewed proposals, and discussed ideas/next steps. Gerald continued working on the Building 640 project while I transitioned to working with and international eye care organization.
We kept up our friendship connection and would meet for lunch with other Hawaii friends and talk about local Hawaii happenings, people, and other aspects of the “local” Hawaiian scene. Gerald cared deeply about Hawaii; its past and present — He was in all ways a local boy, as a McKinley High School graduate, as a member of the architectural preservation community, as an ex-pat,– a kama’ aina
Aloha, Gerald
Gerry and Michael
Cindy Barton
Gerald Takano was a man of strong convictions and soft spoken words. I admired Gerry’s curiosity and enthusiasm; he had a genuine interest in the world and a commitment to making it a better place. He was diligent about seeking the opinions of others and would actively listen and thoughtfully consider the responses. Gerry was passionate about issues and his intellectual ability combined with his integrity made him an asset to any project. His contributions will be missed.
Where are Boston Samurai? A 1975 drawing by Gerry given to Jan Yokota in 1977.
Jan Yokota
Gerry and I met when we were in our 20s. We were both hired as staff planners at the Hawaii Community Development Authority, in the old days when we were looking at what the conceptual options could be for Kaka’ako. As two planners born and raised in Hawaii but recently returned from school on the East Coast, we shared idealistic dreams for Kaka’ako, while eating our plate lunches on the outside staircase of the building that now houses Highway Inn. Gerry was part of both worlds: a local public school graduate who had gone to the East Coast to study, work and absorb all that he could learn about architecture and life.
After Gerry left Hawaii, I was fortunate to be able to connect with him from time to time. He remained a kind, intellectually curious soul who tried to bring people together and share his knowledge about architecture, Hawaiiand all of the other issues about which he was passionate.
In 1977, Gerry gave me a remarkable drawing titled: “Where are Boston Samurai?” (see above) that he had done in 1975 and which incorporated different parts of his early life. For nearly 50 years, I have kept this sketch as a memory of a very dear friend who I will miss very much.
Here is Gerry’s contribution to Project Muse, A Passion to Preserve: Gay Men as Keepers of Culture published by University of Wisconsin Press in 2005.
A LOT OF GAY MEN REALLY DO have a sense of good design, a good aesthetic sense. Whether or not it’s politically correct, I believe that stereotype is the truth. There are major differences between gay men and straight men, very different ways of living in and viewing the world. Seeing the potential of old buildings to be attractive, gay men are not afraid to go into marginal areas and fix them up. I have found that this gay sensibility is very much out there, in every community.
I was born in 1948 and grew up in Honolulu’s Nuuanu Valley. Most of the houses were New England–style, wood construction, built in the early part of the twentieth century by the descendants of missionary families. My family is very working-class Japanese American, and we moved in there after many of those families began relocating to suburban neighborhoods. So I was around older buildings as a child, but I was also intrigued by urban renewal’s radical transformation of old Honolulu. The city was being heavily developed in the 1960s, so a lot of historic buildings were being demolished, and nobody seemed to care. Because Hawaii had recently become a state, people just assumed that the new “mainland” growth was better, which was typical throughout the country. And in an isolated place like Hawaii, we were thirsty for change: new ideas, new things, new buildings, new developments.
In the early 1970s I attended Syracuse University to study architecture. It was a period of intense preference for modernism and fashionable antihistoricism. It wasn’t until I was living in Boston’s South End that I really developed an appreciation for historic buildings. That’s where my connection to preservation began to click. The South End had a reputation as a seedy, dangerous place with many derelict old buildings, but the area’s promise was slowly being realized by those who chose to live in the inner city, especially gay men drawn by the outstanding vernacular architecture. After acknowledging and accepting my gay reality, I broke off plans to marry a woman 147 [98.150.147.76] Project MUSE (2024-07-22 21:25 GMT) 148 California Conservative and moved into a brick 1860s townhouse flat on Appleton Street. I was near the gay bars of choice at the time and just up the street from a market run by a tough, burly gay man.
While working in the planning department of a large engineering office, I studied the impact that major development projects were having on old buildings and neighborhoods. Doing an urban design study of downtown Leominster, Massachusetts, really got me excited about historic buildings, their undiscovered qualities, and untapped potential. Many people in Leominster couldn’t see any merit in what they had and thought I was totally off.
Gradually I began meeting a lot of people in preservation. One gay man who was very much involved in Providence, Rhode Island, really influenced me to see the potential of neglected industrial and residential areas of urban centers. I’ve never been that interested in opulent mansions; I’ve always focused more on the undiscovered vernacular sorts of buildings.
I was in New England for six years and was very happy there, but there was a recession and work dried up, so I went back to Hawaii at the end of the 1970s. I got a job with a state agency in charge of redeveloping several hundred acres in the industrial part of Honolulu. There was a strong emphasis on consolidating parcels of land for new buildings and complexes, so I tried my best to identify and document some of the more important historic structures that were threatened by this development. It was frustrating because people had very little sympathy for a lot of those old buildings.
I joined the Historic Hawaii Foundation, became a board member, but even there I was frustrated by the indifference to buildings and places that represented working-class Hawaiian life. These kinds of cultural resources were rapidly being destroyed by post-statehood development. Hawaii was just not a preservation-friendly environment at the time. Like the continental United States it was evolving into a generic environment of sprawling new development.
After my urban redevelopment work with the state of Hawaii, it was difficult to adjust to designing resort architecture in the private sector. Preferred designs often ignored the existing fabric, the cultural and social layers, and the historic resources themselves. Our international work especially troubled me because our clients preferred designs of American prototypes, totally disregarding their own rich cultures and what was originally there. In Java, Indonesia, for example, a client requested that we build an equestrian center, boutique hotel, and single-family residential subdivision on the site of three hamlets, rice paddies, and clove and cinnamon groves.
I promote historic preservation that represents the broader spectrum of America’s history. We’re doing a great job of preserving significant symbols for mainstream, majority America, but a lot of work needs to be done to California Conservative 149 make sure that other groups are represented. Other fragments of our complex American story need to be told, interpreted, and linked. The perception is that preservation is elitist and reactionary, but that doesn’t need to be the case. Even though it’s been heavily Eurocentric in this country, preservation is really a universal field. It was another gay preservationist in Hawaii who helped me to understand and be confident in my own direction: a queer, working-class, Japanese American Buddhist from Hawaii, I am as much a preservationist as anybody else. I want to be around more people whose vision of preservation is inclusive. My greatest satisfaction comes from working with grassroots groups, currently in the Bay Area.
Other people can do the legalese and public policy aspects of preservation much better than I can. My background is design, the visual part of the world and its relationship with the complex and fascinating dynamics of culture, society, and time. Preservation is really about loving particular places and the history that’s connected to them. It’s about transformation, revitalization, and change in our existing order. And it’s about bringing community back, which includes the physical places of community, the built environment. I’m sort of a romantic, so I love working with people who have passionate, rooted connections with historic buildings. If it doesn’t affect you in your heart, there’s no real connection.
The Fourth of July is just around the corner, and the freedoms that all Americans enjoy are well worth celebrating.
Of course, Hawaii tends not to be known for enjoying great amounts of economic freedom — at least not compared to most other states in the U.S. But it appears that finally we might be on the cusp of change.
This year especially, our freedoms were expanded with the passage by our state lawmakers of important legislation. Those expansions covered taxes, housing and healthcare — and I’m hoping that won’t be the end of it as we move forward.
The importance of freedom is that it is the key to both personal and economic fulfillment. Whether you want to be an artist, homebuilder, truck driver, farmer, doctor, professor, athlete, inventor or whatever, freedom is what allows you to follow your path.
The more freedom we have, the more we can be ourselves, whether as individuals or as members of our families and broader communities.
This is why I focus so much on trying to get our legislators and other policymakers to appreciate the wonders and benefits of freedom, whether it is about lowering our taxes, making it easier to build homes, or even loosening regulations on beekeeping, cottage foods or other small business activities throughout the islands.
It has been gratifying to see signs of change in Hawaii. Freedom is having a moment.
But that moment can easily slip away.
That is why I urge all of us to keep the momentum going. Together, we must encourage our lawmakers to continue adopting policies that will expand our freedoms.
As economic research has shown again and again, the people of states and nations do best when their governments embrace greater economic freedom — lower taxes and fewer regulations.
This Fourth of July, I hope that you will join me and raise a glass — or a hot dog or a sparkler — in celebration of greater freedom in Hawaii. _____________
Keli‘i Akina is president and CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii.
For the 2024 legislative session, the governor has just released his intent to veto list. That means bills not on the list are going to become law, with or without his signature, in the beginning of July.
For the most part, bills affecting taxation or public finance did not make the list. There were, however, two notable exceptions: HB 1800, which is the state’s budget bill, and HB 40, which is the bill that puts $300 million into our rainy day fund and $135 million into the pension accumulation fund. As you may recall, the Hawaii Constitution requires that some money be either refunded to taxpayers, put into the rainy-day fund, or put toward state retiree benefits, if our general fund balance is more than 5% of general fund revenues for two fiscal years in a row. The financial target was met this year, but the Hawaii Constitution does not tell us how much money is to be sequestered. (Indeed, before the constitution was amended in 2010 to allow for rainy day or pension fund transfers, our legislators were having fun complying with this provision by giving taxpayers a $1 general income tax credit for many years.)
Giving notice of veto of these bills, however, doesn’t mean that we will be completely in chaos mode for budgeting purposes or that we will be noncompliant with the Constitution of Hawaii. What it does mean is that the governor will be able to reduce or eliminate some of the appropriations contained within those, and perhaps other, bills. This is known as “line-item veto” authority.
In other words, the budget drama continues.
Before July 10, the Governor has to come up with all of his line-item vetoes (or any other vetoes) and must make them known to the Legislature. At that point, the Legislature will decide whether to call itself into special session to do some veto overrides.
As a practical matter, however, negotiations are now under way between the Fifth Floor and legislative leaders about where the Governor’s line-item veto axe is going to fall.
The outline of the Governor’s grand plan is contained in a press release issued on June 21: “This veto list reflects our need to prioritize Hawaiʻi’s crippling high cost of living, the state’s affordable housing crisis and Hawaiʻi’s families impacted by the Maui wildfires,” Governor Green is quoted as saying. “In doing so, I intend to veto, line-item veto, or make appropriation reductions on several bills in order to maintain a balanced budget, but more importantly, to achieve a healthy carryover balance of more than $300 million at the end of next fiscal year. After enacting the largest income tax break in our state’s history, strategic decisions were necessary to ensure we had a balanced budget.”
Specifically relating to HB 40, the press release noted that the rainy-day fund is now more than $1.5 billion and “is the largest it has ever been.” Back in 1998, my predecessor Lowell Kalapa wrote about the proper use of the rainy-day fund:
The concept of a “rainy day” fund is to set aside moneys when times are good for the state that then can only be used when there are insufficient funds to insure the health, safety, and welfare of the community. A good “rainy day” fund would require that a super majority of the legislature be required to approve any expenditures from the fund. A good “rainy day” fund would be capped at a certain level to insure that it doesn’t just become a slush fund to store surplus funds. This cap can be set as a percentage of general fund receipts so that the absolute number of dollars will be allowed to grow as the economy that produces those revenues grows.
And, of course, the need to be vigilant against various “slush funds” remains. We wrote last year about one fund with more than $180 million in it that is now pretty much doing nothing.
Let’s see if the Governor and legislative leaders can agree upon a soft landing for our budget that will allow for the enacted tax cuts, take several steps toward right-sizing our government, and minimizing “slush funds” that hoard taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars without a clear and justifiable purpose.
Rucking is one of the latest fitness crazes. Full disclosure, I’ve succumbed.
First a definition. Rucking is walking or hiking with a loaded backpack, over varying distances and terrain. You can observe ruckers all over town. It’s those folks with backpacks, clambering around Diamondhead or up Wilhelmina Rise. They are on a mission.
Rucking is nothing new. The military has been marching recruits for time immemorial with heavy packs all over creation. And now it’s chic.
Civilians have gotten on board for good reason. It’s a great workout and most people can join in. Rucking is a low impact exercise that can improve strength, cardiovascular capacity, caloric burn, balance and bone density.
The italicized part is why I got hooked.
My DEXA scan was a wakeup call. No, these aren’t my hips but you get the idea. (courtesy Wikipedia)
“We all lose bone density as we age,” says Bradley Willcox, Professor and Director of Research at the Department of Geriatric Medicine, John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii. “It’s a concern more often associated with women, but men need to be aware of this too. Up to 25 per cent of men over 50 years suffer from bone fractures.”
This revelation hit me personally when a recent bone density (DEXA) scan revealed my hips were on the verge of osteoporosis–a condition that causes bones to become weak and lose their strength.
Yikes.
What to do?
There’s a whole rabbit hole of interventions: diet, supplements, pharmaceuticals, FB Groups, high-tech exercise equipment, and specialized fitness centers such as Osteostrong.
Rucking is something that just about anyone can do whether you’re in the bush or on Bush Street. (courtesy Goruck)
My PCP handed me a script for some magic pill that would increase my bone density and the appointment was over. “How long do I take this stuff?”, I asked the guy in the white coat. He shrugged his shoulders and sent me away.
So much for Kaiser Permanente.
So I stumbled into rucking.
The weight-bearing nature of this exercise, as your feet hit the ground, can increase bone density, especially in your hips. So they say.
Is this a silver bullet? According to Dr. Willcox, “when rucking is combined with a healthy diet (i.e. dairy products, fish, soy products, dark green leafy vegetables, etc), limited sun exposure and other healthy lifestyle factors (i.e. no smoking or excessive alcohol consumption, etc.) it can only help.”
That sounded good to me.
Goruck makes a line of packs dedicated to rucking. They suggest that the 20L model is a good fit for most people. (courtesy Goruck)
Does one need special gear to ruck?
Not necessarily.
Goruck, a company that builds specialty backpacks and footwear for rucking, says on their website, “If you are new to rucking, don’t worry about which type of pack you use… the important part is that you get started, so grab any backpack you can find laying around.”
My feeling is that you could indeed use any pack so long as it’s comfortable, but it
The main thing is that your pack is comfortable and it will have to be would have to be quite strong. You may have to experiment on weight distribution. You’ll be toting generally anywhere from 10-30 lbs depending on your size, state of fitness, etc. More on that later.
One more thing. You’ll a good pair of shoes or boots.
Open the pack’s zipper and voila, you’ve got two pockets for plates. Just drop the plate in (as I’m doing). The plate lies flat against your back so there’s very little movement. (Rob Kay photo)
Goruck
One of the companies that’s leading the rucking revolution is Goruck. The company offered me a chance to try its signature product, so I availed myself of it.
The company was founded in Africa by Jason McCarthy (a former Special Forces operator) and his wife Emily (a former CIA operative). The couple describe, on the Goruck website, that their goal was to “build a rucksack with life or death quality standards that would thrive in Baghdad and NYC…”
“Life or death quality standards” sound unequivocal and serious. When you’re working for the CIA or or a Special Forces operator, that’s the case. I’m not quite in the same league as Special Forces but my bone density issue is pretty darned important to me.
Their company provides a wide variety of gear including training rucksacks (constructed to carry metal plates), travel backpacks, men’s and women’s footwear and apparel.
Note the difference between the two rear loading straps from two packs. On the left you’ll note the hefty padding on the Goruck product. On the right is a strap from Peak Design, which is a high end travel backpack but not nearly as robust. (Rob Kay photo)
Goruck adds a “lifestyle” component to its corporate culture with events, clubs and training programs, even for children.
My interest of course, is focused on my hips.
I was advised to get the 20L pack which is what most folks get. Not too big—not too small. Priced at $255 it’s very robust and has extra padding on the back straps. It’s also designed to have an “elevated” pocket to add the “Ruck Plates” (weights). The point of the elevated pocket is to place the load as high on your back as possible, to avoid any unnecessary friction as you move.
The Goruck pack is a great deal slimmer than an average backpack. Chances are you’re not going to be carrying your picnic lunch in there. It’s meant to carry plates. (However, you could easily stash a bottle of wine).
You can buy plates of various weights or add books or even bricks. (I added bricks to begin with but ditched them for plates).
Another dimension of pack comparison. On the left is Goruck’s 20L 4.0 “rucking” bag. It’s slim and made to carry plates. On the right is a 30L travel backpack from Peak Design which got me through Europe last year. (Rob Kay photo)
Footwear
Goruck has several styles of footwear. They offer a plethora of “trainers” as well as trail shoes and boots ranging from mid-top to military style. Prices are competitive with what you’d find in the “marketplace” for decent footwear–$140-170 range.
The company is adamant that “Goruckers” use footwear that provides decent arch support. And they are right. If you already own high end hiking boots or athletic shoes, you’ll be ok. I use their brand of an all terrain shoe called Mackall* ($160)–a low top trail shoe that was comfortable and comparable to the (LOWA) trail shoes that I usually wear. I’ve been wearing them regularly and the arch support is great–as good as the expensive German (Lowa) shoes that I normally wear. For rucking on flat surfaces the Mackalls are excellent.
Goruck has a line of footwear designed for rucking. The Mackall model, above is excellent. The grippy sole is great for off the road. (courtesy Goruck)
It has a grippy sole that was ideal for all-terrain purposes.
(*The shoe is named after Camp Mackall, the home of Special Forces training).
My Rucking Journey
My rucking regime revolves around “lifestyle”. I don’t care for that word but it seems to fit the best.
I have ag land attached to my home. It’s terraced and steep, laced with lava rock. Every morning and evening I tend to the land checking irrigation lines, pig snares, rat traps and bee hives. This is when I don my Goruck pack and my Mackall shoes. (With the bees I need my special suit and having the pack on under it, is not an option).
So I do everything else with the pack on. Weeding, picking fruit, whacking away with the bush knife or simply walking around. The pack definitely adds to the workout, especially when it’s hot. In addition to the “farm work” I’ll walk the dog around the neighborhood with a friend or even take a hike up on the Mauʻumae Ridge Trail which is quite close to my home. Or as pictured below, I may ruck down Wilhelmina Rise to meet friends at a restaurant.
The author in action on the Mauʻumae Ridge Trail in Honolulu. (courtesy Rob Kay)
One of my concerns on the hillside is balance. There’s gravel, loose rocks, tree stumps hidden in the weeds. I need to take extra care in this endeavor. So far so good!
I’ve fallen down a couple of times on my property but it’s not the fault of the shoes. When you hit gravel, loose dirt or slippery leaves that pile up, you just have be careful.
Those in the know say that neophytes should begin with about 10-25 pounds. If you don’t have a pack made for rucking you can use a dumbbell wrapped in a towel. The advantage of using packs made specifically for rucking is that they don’t bounce around. The main thing is that you want to be comfortable. To get on track with rucking you can make do with your exisiting gear so long as you make it work for you. Keep in mind that your existing pack may not handle a lot of weight. Good quality packs can handle a lot weight but I’m not sure I’d want to take the chance of trashing an expensive travel backpack by using it day in an day out for rucking.
I started with about 10lbs on my back, just to get used to the gear but every week added a few pounds to the equation. I’m up to 25 lbs now. (From my research the goal for improving strength and maximizing the benefits of rucking is to slowly increase your carrying weight). Obviously there are practical limits to this and I plan to use common sense in my practice.
The upshot is that I’ve grown to enjoy wearing my pack. It’s comfortable and “usable” in a way that a conventional pack might not be for my “farming” activities.
The advantage of using equipment made specifically for rucking is that it’s not going to need tweaking. The flat ruck plates will rest against your back.
This video rucking is a comprehensive rucking overview.
How far should you go?
Use common sense and start out slowly. Your body is going to need to get used to this. Goruck suggests the beginners start with 1-2 ruck workouts per week, for 2-3 miles. Your pace should be between 15 and 20 minutes per mile. If you’re moving slower than 20 minutes per mile, lowering your weight is a good idea.
I’m a sort of outlier considering that most of my rucking is solitary. Goruck has a social component built into the company’s DNA. They have sponsored 10,000 live events since 2010, and there are over 500 independently run GORUCK Clubs worldwide including one in Honolulu: the Kekoa Ohana Ruck Club.
So far so good. I’ve only been rucking for about two months and I definelty feel stronger. I like the idea of leveraging my precious workout time. I get the theory but one has to The long term goal is to increase or at least not lose any more bone density without taking pharmaceuticals. My next DEXA test is in about six months. In the meantime I feel like I’m doing something important for my health and well being.
Stay tuned.
Rob Kay is a technology columnist for the Honolulu Star Advertiser and the creator of FijiGuide.com.
If you look around you at other people, there is one thing you will find all of them are doing, regardless of race, religion, nationality, gender, or any other way people are differentiated from one another. This one thing is something all people do, whether they like it or not. Most don’t even question doing it, although it is really worthy of questioning. Of course, that thing is that they are all wearing clothing.
Clothing clearly sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom. You can’t seem to spot a human without them wearing some material made of plastic (such as polyester) or natural fiber (such as cotton, wool, silk, or linen) on all or part of their bodies. From the feet to the top of the head, the human body is covered, adorned, constricted, compressed, squeezed, wrapped, or draped in some material, and which is intimately in contact with the skin.
Amazingly, this is all ignored by the medical industry. As far as medicine is concerned, the human body is a biochemically operated machine, and treatment involves finding the right drug to tweak the body’s biochemistry. Clothing has nothing to do with that, so it is ignored.
Meanwhile, in the real world of clothing-clad people, there are tight shoes that are distorting and misshaping feet, resulting in foot, ankle, knee, hip, and back complications. Toxic chemicals in the shoes leach into the foot skin, resulting in foot fungus, and even melanoma skin cancer. Add to this the tight socks that leave marks around the calf or ankles from being too tight, and you have impairment of circulation from the feet, especially of the lymphatic system in the skin. The lymphatic system is part of the immune and waste disposal systems of the body, essential for removing toxin-containing lymph fluid from the tissues, such as chemicals released from shoes and marinating the sweaty skin of the feet. The foot skin retains these toxins longer as a result of the tight shoes and socks impairing the lymphatic drainage from the foot skin. This results in fluid accumulation, which many people see at the end of the day when they remove their shoes and socks.
Doctors will ignore shoes when discussing the feet, ankles, legs, hips, or back. When was the last time your doctor asked you about how tight your shoes were, or how toxic they were? You probably weren’t even asked about your tight socks, and what that might do to your feet, unless, maybe, you had diabetes. There are actually diabetic socks that are looser fitting around the ankles for this very reason, but this is an exception. Doctors rarely discuss them, since you can buy them without needing a prescription.
Then there is tight underwear and its harmful impacts. Let’s face it. Penises and testes do not like being compressed by tight briefs. And vaginas don’t appreciate being smothered and unable to breathe, either. Give them a little room. Of course, all these pieces of underwear hold on by uncomfortable elastic bands which stay on by squeezing. This is actually compression, and impairs the easily-compressed lymphatic system, just like sock tops do to the skin lymphatics. Add to this the nature of the material smothering the vaginas, penises, and testes, and whether it is natural fiber or plastic. You have to let the crotch air out, not keep it sealed and set for fungal or bacterial incubation.
Underwear, of course, implies that there is overwear, which there is. Pants are typically used by men and many women, and these garments must somehow hold onto the hips. This is more difficult to achieve for men than for women, and there needs to be some elastic or belt to hold the pants up. The pants are tighter when sitting than when standing, so unless they are adjusted constantly, they are either too tight or too loose. Elastic bands stretch to fit the size, but that makes them extremely tight when sitting if they are already tight enough when standing. Suspenders can hold pants up from the shoulders, but this places uncomfortable pressure on the shoulders, which can lead to headaches, backaches, and neck pain. But a tight belt around the waist can interfere with digestion and cause increased tissue pressure and fluid accumulation in the parts of the pelvis beneath the belt.
When does a doctor ask a patient with digestive issues about their belt tightness? Never.
Women often wear a layer of plastic closely adhered to their legs and over their belly, called pantyhose. These can breakdown into toxic chemicals in the sun’s ultraviolet rays and in heat, and its intimate contact with the skin makes it easy for these to be absorbed. And fabric-squeezed skin does not easily flush clean of toxins, since squeezing reduces circulation.
Moving upwards, there is the bra, a useless device that tortures women for fashion. This device is tight by design to alter breast shape, and this causes problems for the lymphatic system, once again. Lymph fluid cannot easily flow in tiny lymphatic vessels that are compressed or constricted by tight clothing. If a bra leaves marks or indentations in the skin, then it is too tight. If tight bras are worn daily for long hours, this results in fluid accumulation in the breasts, which women feel as breast pain. The fluid collects into pockets, forming cysts which doctors will repeatedly drain by needle aspiration. Over time, the cysts can become filled in with scar tissue, creating fibrocystic breast disease. The breast tissue becomes progressively toxified by impaired circulation from tight bras, and immune function is impaired as well, leading to decreased ability for the immune system to fight developing cancer cells in the breasts. The result is increased breast cancer incidence. In fact, bra-free women have about the same risk of breast cancer as men, while the longer and tighter the bra is worn the higher the risk rises, to over 100 times higher for a 24/7 bra user compared to a bra-free woman.
Bras also heat the breasts, irritate the breast skin, compress and invert nipples, impair lactation leading to mastitis, and causes the breasts to become droopy due to fluid retention and reliance on the bra for support. (Natural suspensory ligaments in the breasts atrophy and weaken from non use when using bras.) Bras also have been shown to affect the autonomic nervous system, resulting in slower digestion and longer menstrual cycles. It also reduces the ability for the chest to fully expand when breathing, affecting respiration.
Medicine, however, ignores the impact of underwear and bras. They consider the breasts of a woman who daily wears a tight push-up bra for 18 hours as the equivalent to a bra-free woman. And they ignore the cumulative impact of these tight garments over decades of daily usage, sometimes 24/7.
Of course, the doctor can see the bra when the patient removes her blouse. The doctor may tell her to remove her bra for the mammogram, since any metal clasps or underwires may interfere with the x-ray. The doctor may then see deep grooves in the shoulders from the weight of the bra strap bearing down, or deep marks from the bra encircling the torso. They may see nipples smashed down, and skin abrasion or irritation from the bra material rubbing against the skin. The doctor may even see a rash from chemicals leaching from the bra, or skin depigmentation.
But the doctor will not really take notice these things. They are so normal that they are invisible. The doctor becomes oblivious to the obvious, and the impact of the bra is ignored altogether. After the x-ray, the woman will be told to put her bra back on. To the doctor, the bra is not a medical issue, despite research showing that it is.
Neckties were shown by research to increase head pressure when worn too tightly, due to compression of the neck veins. The backed-up blood increases brain and head pressure, and can even cause glaucoma. But doctors will never ask patients about their neckties. Many doctors are themselves wearing neckties. Many doctors are also wearing bras, underwear, and tight shoes and socks. This makes them even more blinded to the impact of these common garments.
This is one of the reasons why clothing gets a pass from medicine. When everyone does something, there is nobody available for comparison. Likewise, if everyone smoked, then the hazards of smoking would be overlooked, as it was until about 50 years ago.
Another reason why clothing gets ignored by medicine is because its effect is mechanical, not chemical. Pharmaceutical-focused medicine wants biochemical answers, not biomechanical answers. The constriction of circulation from external forces, like tight clothing, is something medicine is simply blinded to, despite recent studies into the biomechanics of the lymphatics and bras.
This blindness is also defensive, due to the need to defend current research and practice that ignores the effect of clothing. When you consider that tight clothing can have profound impacts on the body, it follows that medical research should be considering clothing tightness, frequency of wear, and chemical composition when focusing on clothing-associated parts of the body, such as the breasts, groin, feet, brain, eyes, etc. All skin research, including skin cancer, must consider constriction from clothing and the leaching of chemical toxins into the skin from synthetics garments and cleansing agents. Tight clothing both delivers these toxins by skin contact, and impairs their effective elimination through constricted or compressed lymphatics. This also impairs immune function within the constricted tissue or organ. Clearly, this is nothing to ignore if you care about understanding the physiology and pathophysiology of the human, clothing-clad body. How can medicine face up to this massive oversight that puts into question their entire approach to disease treatment and research design?
How will the medical industry tell women, for example, that their bras may be causing breast disease and cancer, after years of ignoring, and actually ridiculing, this issue? The American Cancer Society even sells mastectomy bras, which is ironic as well as moronic. It’s like selling patients cigarettes after lung cancer treatment.
Interestingly, while medicine treats tight clothing like it doesn’t matter, the medical industry enjoys telling people to use compression bandages for lymphedema management. The theory is that damaged tissue filled with lymph fluid can be decongested of fluid by squeezing the tissue with an elastic bandage. Amazingly, despite the extensive use of compression bandages, the scientific evidence of their safety and efficacy is limited, and it never solves the problem. Lymphedema is currently incurable, and keeping constant pressure on the swelling area may reduce stagnant lymph fluid, but it will also reduce replacement with new fluid. As a result, these compression bandages need to be removed frequently to allow blood to return to the area, at which point the tissue swells again and more compression is used.
Again, this does not cure lymphedema, and over time the compression of any organ will result in reduced circulation and progressive deterioration. But the medical industry can’t think of another way to reduce lymphedema without compression. They are currently looking into the biochemistry of the lymphatics to find a drug that can improve flow for people with lymphedema, but a mechanical impairment due to clothing will not be resolved until the clothing is not longer tight. Mechanics trumps chemicals when it comes to circulation.
And yet, while medicine uses compression garments for lymphedema management, they never consider the impact of tight clothing in people who do not yet have lymphedema. They see that compression garments affects circulation and health, but refuse to consider that tight clothing can have a physiological impact by impairing circulation.
Until removing a bra or cutting off someone’s underwear becomes a billable surgical procedure, medicine will continue to seek drug solutions to mechanical problems caused by tight clothing. People will continue to make themselves sick by their clothing choices, while medicine insists that clothing has no impact on health or disease, except for compression garments prescribed by a doctor.
Medicine clearly has a clothing problem. Perhaps their stethoscopes are too tight around their necks, cutting off circulation to their brains.
Over the last few years, I’ve become wedded to my bread knife. I would venture to say there’s nary a single tool in the kitchen as versatile as a bread knife. It not only glides through crusty artisan loaves and baguettes, it will magically cut through soft, delicate fruit or veggies.
Let’s not forget how it effortlessly slices those ripe tomatoes (there’s an obligatory shot in every magazine article about bread knives) but it’s useful for all kinds of fruit and vegetables–onions, limes, mangos, breadfruit, grapefruit, oranges, avocado, melons, squash, Okinawan sweet potatoes—you name it.
What’s more a high quality bread knife can slice through fruits and vegetables without leaving a mess on your cutting board. The serrated edge allows one to (gently) saw a rubbery-skinned fruit (like a mango) without crushing it. You can work magic with very little downward pressure. It’s useful for both squishy, delicate foods and very firm, tough foods or even meat.
Yes, this is a bread knife story but it is useful for other purposes than slicing artesinal loaves. (Rob Kay photo)
In short, its become my “EDC” kitchen blade.
For this story I plan to look at three bread knifes — the ZWILLING Pro 9-inch, Bread Knife Z15 Serration, the Sani-Safe Scalloped Sandwich knife from Dexter Russell and the Mercer Culinary Genesis 8-Inch Bread Knife.
Bread knivesuber alles
Am I some apostate or weirdo for using a bread knife for items other than bread?
Hardly. For example, author and (former) Bon Appetit food writer Andy Baraghani, declares that he too uses his bread knife for all kinds of chores. (You can watch him eviscerate a pineapple on this video). Not only is it useful for just about any fruit or vegetable (as alluded to above) but a bread knife comes in very handy whacking capped honey cells to prepare a frame for the honey extractor.
So back to the blog.
We’re looking at these three knives–from top to bottom, the Mercer Culinary M20508 Genesis 8-Inch Bread Knife, ZWILLING Pro 9-inch, Bread Knife Z15 Serrationand the Dexter Russell Sani-Safe 8″ Scalloped Bread Knife. (photo Rob Kay)
When my old bread knife literally disappeared (who knows what happened) I decided it was a sign that I should acquire something new. But first, I wanted to educate myself.
Here’s what I discovered…
Blade Length
Obviously if you actually do use your bread knife for mostly bread, it’s got to be long enough to span the width of the loaf you want to slice. If you are mostly slicing sandwich-width loaves or baguettes, an 8-inch bread knife will be fine. If you’re using it for mostly non-bread items, a shorter blade is preferable. (For wide, oblong artisanal loaves, you might consider something 9″ or longer). I use a bread machine which keeps my loaves on the compact side. For bigger loaves (or as alluded to above, for harvesting honey) consider a 10 or 12-inch blade.
Flexibility & Serration
A bread knife blade should not have too much flex–it should not feel thin or wobbly. The rule of thumb is if you press the tip into your cutting board, you should only get the slightest bow. With a wimpy blade you could slip and get cut when slicing something dense. Of course if you buy a knife online, you’re not going to know the condition of the blade. So getting it from a quality manufacturer is the way to go. The (inexpensive) Dexter model below had some flex but was usable for most applications.
The Sani-Safe 8″ Scalloped bread knife from Dexter Russell (Rob Kay photo)
So back to “technology”. What about the serrations?
If you’re cutting hard-crusted bread, consider a knife with “pointier” teeth. With softer crusts, a more rounded tooth might be better. In general, a scallop pattern might be a good compromise, especially if you’re planning to use the knife for a variety of applications (other than bread). Wider serrations will also be easier to sharpen than the smaller serrations bunched close together. That’s an important point to consider.
Maintenance
What about care? Manufacturers do not recommended to wash your knife in a dishwasher. The recommendations below came from the Mercer website and would be good guidelines to follow for all knives:
After each use, carefully wash cutlery by hand with warm water and mild- to medium-strength soap; rinse and thoroughly dry it with a soft towel.
The Zwilling Pro Z15 measures 9 inches
Cutlery should never be washed in a dishwasher: the intense heat and radical temperature changes may cause the handle to deteriorate; the blade edges will become dull through rubbing against each other; and caustic soap will cause staining and pitting of the blade.
Cutlery should not be soaked or submerged for long periods. Chlorine and bleach products discolor and pit high-carbon steel. If chlorine or bleach products come in contact with the blade, thoroughly rinse off immediately.
Galvanic action—the transfer of electrons from one metal to another—may cause pitting on the blades. To prevent this, avoid long periods of soaking in aluminum pans or a stainless steel sink, remove cutlery from condiments (such as mayonnaise) stored in aluminum or stainless steel pans.
Always store cutlery in a cutlery block or sheath to preserve the cutting edges and prevent personal injury.
Kitchen Testing the bread knives
ZWILLING Pro 9-inch, Bread Knife Z15 Serration
What can you say about Zwilling, officially known as Zwilling J.A. Henckels, a 290 year old German brand? Quite a bit actually.
Zwilling is one of the most recognized and respected names in the cutlery and kitchenware industry. They offer a wide range of products that cater to both professional chefs and home cooks around the world.
The company was founded by Peter Henckels in Solingen, Germany, a city renowned for its blade-making tradition. The is located about 40 km, a short drive north of Cologne, where my great uncle Bim ran Brüder Landauer, a department store. The name “Zwilling” (which means “twin” in German) is the source of the iconic “twin” logo.
Full disclosure, I have dual US and German citizenship but readers can rest assured I would never be biased testing a German product. (Products made in Germany do tend to be pretty good though).
So back to the review. Even though a bread knife review doesn’t seem to elilcit the excitement as a chef’s or carving knife, don’t be fooled. A good bread knife is adaptable to many applications. The Zwilling Z15 Pro 9″ Bread Knife was able to handle just about everything I threw under it–baguettes, artisanal breads and of course tomatoes. (It received “Best Overall” bread knife in a review from Food & Wine).
A scallop pattern, such as the Z15 serration above works if you’re planning to use the knife for a variety of applications. Suffice to say it’s extremely sharp (Courtesy Zwilling)
When I first started using this tool it was so sharp, I literally had retool my technique–in other words “re-educate” my muscle memory. With this knife you don’t have to use much pressure. It’s hefty and robust so the extra weight combined with the sharp cutting edge means the action is more like a violin bow rather than a saw.
For example during mango season part of my routine is to cut up a ripe mango for my breakfast bowl of fruit and yoghurt. I’d gotten used my old chef knife but the Zwilling Pro took things to a different level. It glilded right through the mango–cutting through the pit as if it were the flesh of the fruit! So I had to recallibrate. I also found it useful to cut prunes with the sharp serrations and rounded tip.
Along with “heft” it has an ergonoimcally friendly handle.
The Zwilling Pro glided right throuigh the mango but I had to recallibrate my technique because the blade was so sharp. (Rob Kay photo)
Dexter Russell, established in 1818, is also no slouch when it comes to having a notable “cutlery” history. The company was founded by Henry Harrington in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Originally named Harrington Cutlery Company, it was the first cutlery manufacturer in the United States. Nowadays Today, Dexter-Russell is known for its extensive range of professional cutlery and tools used in the food service industry. Dexter-Russell knives are used by chefs, fishermen, butchers, and food service workers, ensuring the company’s legacy continues in kitchens and workplaces around the world.
The Dexter Russell Sani-Safe 8″ Scalloped Bread Knife worked well with most items. For those on a budget, it’s a good bet. (Rob Kay photo)
So what was my experience?
Actually quite good considering the (low) price. The sharp serrations and rounded tip made it easy to slice through just about anything. The plastic handle is not as fancy as a higher priced item but the ergonomics are satisfactory. The blade is flexible compared to the Zwilling Pro but considering that the later is more expensive by a factor of about 5X you’re not going to get Kruppstahl as the Germans used to be fond of saying. Nonetheless (as alluded to above) I found it quite “usable” for bread and just about everything else. One of the nice qualities of this particular knife is that at 8″ it’s easier to manipulate than a larger knife. (I used it the other day to dismember a pig that had died in my snare).
The Genesis 8″ Mercer Culinary breadknife combines German metalurgy (high carbon steel) and Taiwan manufacture (Rob Kay photo)
Mercer Culinary was founded over 30 years ago and has grown to become a leading name in the culinary tools industry. The company is based in Ronkonkoma, New York, and is family-owned. That is often a good sign. Family businesses can provide a commitment to quality and customer satisfaction that larger, public companies may not be able to equal. Mercer Culinary has established a strong presence in the culinary education sector, partnering with many culinary schools and institutions. Not a bad sign either.
TheMercer Culinary M20508 Genesis 8-Inch Bread Knifecombines German metalurgy (high carbon steel) with Taiwan-based manufacture. The blade is firm (not wobbly at all) and very, very sharp. The “Santoprene” handle (not certain what that means) is comfortable and feels ergonomically correct. And yeah, it cuts everything quite efficiently. This looks to be a great melding of good technology and inexpensive manufacturing. Taiwanese products are generally very well made.
Yes, folks you can even use a bread knife to cut bread! The Mercer model does a keen job of cutting my rye/spelt loaf. (Rob Kay photo)
At 8″ (of course you can get whatver size you want) I like it for all the reasons I’ve alluded to above. It’s a handy size. The weight and balance feel excellent.
If you don’t want to spend the $100+ for a European-made product, this seems like a good option rather than a “compromise”. I can’t think of anything I dislike about this knife. As a matter of fact, I think it’s a winner. For $40 on Amazon, you can’t go wrong.
Keeping them sharp
Generally, a serrated blade is stays sharp for quite a while longer than a standard blade but of course, it can dull just like any knife. I’ve read that when a serrated blade gets dull you either need to send it back to the manufacturer or, let a pro sharpen it. However, there’s other options.
A company called Knife Aid has a mail-in service in California that will sharpen your knives. They provide a special envelope and you send your items to them. It makes sense if you have high end utensils and don’t have the time or wherewithall to do it yourself.
How often to you need to sharpen? Sharpening your bread knife it every six months or so should be adequate. To do it you’ll need a honing steel or a ceramic hone. You can purchase these from the knife manufacturer or on Amazon. The idea is to sharpen the teeth on your knife (as illustrated in the video above).
The Ken Onion Work Sharp Blade Grinder Attachment is great for deburring the edge of your breadknife. (No we’re not demonstrating a bread knife in this photo). (courtesy Work Sharp)
I’ve used use the Ken Onion “Work Sharp” sharpener for a number of years and I think it’s terrific. (If you are going to get this tool, I also suggest getting their newest version of the tool that comes with a Work Sharp Blade Grinder Attachment).
Once you have completed the task with the honing steel or ceramic rod (as demonstrated by the video) you can deburr your knife with a Blade Grinding Attachment. (See below).
Sasha Hua, the Work Sharp spokesperson explained that most folding and EDC knives have serrations are ground into the right side of the blade with a flat side on the back (left side with knife in hand looking down onto blade spine). Kitchen bread knives are often ground on the other side, just reverse the method below to accommodate.
The diagram above shows where to place the bread knife’s blade to deburr the edge.
Conclusion: All of the above products were more than satifactory kitchen tools.
All the knives reviewed were extremely sharp. One of the main differences between the more expensive (Zwilling Pro and Mercer Culinary products) and the Dexter, was the blade rigity. Both of the former had a heft and robustness which lended itself to a stability that the Dexter model didn’t have.
For slicing lime or grapefruit the Dexter’s comparatively flexible blade wasn’t an issue. However if you were cutting something more massive like a watermelon or something really dense, like meat, you’d need a beefier blade.
Off course not everyone can afford a $100+ breadknife. If you are on a budget, the Dexter model would serve you well for most applications.
Rob Kay is a technology columnist for the Honolulu Star Advertiser and the creator of FijiGuide.com.
One of my favorite parts about leading the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii is that I have many opportunities to talk with our supporters, whether in person at our events or just out and about in the community, or over the phone or by email.
I have the pleasure of hearing a lot of worthy suggestions on a wide variety of issues, and I take each of them back to our team to consider. We even keep an ever-expanding list of all the issues we would love to get more involved in as resources allow.
I really enjoy these informal discussions, and our team appreciates the feedback we get on our work.
Hearing about what is truly important to you not only provides us with insights and stories that inform our work, it can help us build new partnerships and coalitions to advance our principles statewide.
In essence, we don’t know what we don’t know — and it’s up to you to tell us what we don’t know.
A recent example of this is how talking with doctors at our neighbor island events opened our eyes to how financially challenging it can be to operate private practices around the state, especially in rural areas.
As a result, we focused for years on communicating those concerns to legislators, and this year we can celebrate that they finally passed — and Gov. Josh Green signed — a bill to lift the state general excise tax on medical services covered by Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE insurance programs.
A huge part of our job, which we take very seriously, is to make your voice heard in Hawaii’s government, and our conversations with you help us do just that.
Of course, we have to choose our battles and figure out how to make the best use of the resources we have. That is true for any organization in our position.
But our influence and impact continue to grow year after year, thanks to your involvement and support.
As an organization, Grassroot testified 165 times on 98 different bills at the 2024 Legislature, and there were even more that we were tracking and would have commented on if necessary.
With a mission statement that calls on us to preserve and promote economic freedom, individual liberty and limited, accountable government, we could easily submit our thoughts on almost every single one of the thousands of bills introduced at the Legislature each session.
But we owe it to our principles — and those who support our work — to be successful in advancing our ideas, and that means having to choose which issues get our attention.
Even though it’s not feasible to take up every important cause that comes our way, rest assured that we are always listening to you — because at the end of the day, we need your stories to inspire our work. What we do to help Hawaii thrive and prosper means nothing without you.
Our success depends on your involvement, and we are so fortunate to have such passionate and involved supporters.
Even if we aren’t currently active on your favorite issue, please continue sharing your ideas and feedback with us. It’s one of the most important ways we can work together to improve our paradise for all. __________
Keli‘i Akina is president and CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii.
A lot of people have expressed concern to me that today’s historic tax cut will be next year’s excuse to impose tax increases.
Or that letting Hawaii taxpayers save $5 billion through 2031 will result in some sort of a budget crisis for the state.
My take is that Hawaii absolutely can afford the state income tax cuts proposed by Gov. Josh Green and endorsed unanimously by the Legislature, both now and into the future, without having to raise any new taxes.
Keli’i Akina
Even with pressing problems such as the rebuilding of Lahaina, the state seems well situated to give Hawaii taxpayers a break, so if not now, then when?
Consider, for example, the fact that the Hawaii Council on Revenues projects the state will take in about $9.5 billion in tax revenue this year, and expects that to grow by 4.8% next year, then by between 3.5% and 4.5% each year after that for the rest of the decade. At that rate, Hawaii tax revenue will total about $12 billion in 2030.
Hawaii taxpayers, meanwhile, are expected to save about $1.2 billion that year, according to state tax officials, so the state still would still have almost $11 billion to cover state services and debt payments.
Yes, it’s important to recognize that these are just estimates. But let’s consider also that between 2010 and 2019, state tax collections increased each year by 6.36% on average.
Could state tax revenue slow to less than that? Sure. But we must also factor in that these tax cuts are likely to encourage economic growth and boost state tax revenues.
At the very least, they could help stem the tide of Hawaii residents seeking a lower cost of living on the mainland, which would mean more people in Hawaii to pay taxes.
On the spending side, there always seems to be wiggle room to slim down the budget, and, in fact, state leaders already are looking for ways to cut spending.
For example, at the signing ceremony for the tax cuts, Gov. Green noted that the state has about a 30% job-vacancy rate, so “we’re doing a deep dive into the costs that we have on the books that maybe shouldn’t be on the books.”
Just last year, Gov. Green cut approximately $1 billion from the Legislature’s proposed biennial budget.
And this year, when concerns about Lahaina funding were at their highest, some lawmakers suggested across-the-board budget cuts of up to 15% and reductions to grant-in-aid funding. Yet they wound up passing the sweeping tax cuts instead.
I believe our leaders made the right call, and that the state budget won’t suffer because of these long-overdue tax cuts. In fact, there is every reason to believe these cuts will make Hawaii more affordable and create more economic opportunities — especially if we stick to smart budgeting. __________
Keli‘i Akina is president and CEO of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii.
