… MELE KALIKIMAKA to all! May Christmas bring good cheer and peace and enjoyment with family and friends — and prosperity in the new year wouldn’t hurt either!!…

… the party atmosphere seems a little subdued this year, but everyone seems to be bustling around on a lower key with family and good friends…

… and in the wider world, things seem a little iffy. The problems with Pakistan outing the CIA boss — not good! North Korea rolling up its sleeves and plopping bombs on a small neighbor island — not good! Iran, of course, chomping at the bit to get its nuclear facilities working to threaten its neighbors and the western world. But just as long as we can keep messing with their computers — or someone keeps messing with their computers — we should be able to stay one jump ahead until they give up…

… but while the rest of the Northern Hemisphere battles with snow storms, we’ll enjoy our balmy island and cope with the occasional 4.8 on the Richter Scale a couple of miles under Kaho’olawe…

… Wiki Leaks’ ASSANGE is still digging himself deeper by releasing more thousands of pages of diplomatic cables aimed at the West in general and the U.S. in particular — what an ego! And where does he come off using a Hawaiian word?…

… and back home, I ask you, who has more fun than the West Maui Seniors? Their Christmas party this year was no exception headed by the inimitable MAY FUJIWARA at the KAANAPALI BEACH HOTEL. And the entertainment not provided by the seniors themselves was by JODY BARAN, KBH’s magician-in-residence. I’ve seen magical acts in my time — the best of them in fact — and he is right up there with the tops in the profession. In was a great Christmas party in all — a happy time all around!…

… and our new stretch of highway is almost pau — kudos to all who made it happen, from our representatives at the State Capitol to the workers in the field. Mahalo nui loa to all! There’s only one snafu that I can see — that corner on the north side of Prison Street. The sound barrier extends so far out into Prison that it makes it almost impossible for vehicles to turn the corner. It’s gotta go, baby!…

… and last week, our newly inducted governor, NEIL ABERCROMBIE, acted on his promise to visit all the Neighbor Islands, and for Maui he picked LAHAINALUNA HIGH SCHOOL as the venue. He seemed to enjoy the performance the school organized for him, particularly singing by the Boarders’ Chorus, which was “chicken skin!” What a great choir, and congratulations to choir master LORI GOMEZ and ART FILLAZAR…

… our new mayor is wasting no time making his choices known for the new department heads, and so far, from where I stand, his choices are excellent…

… now a call for help: I was always given to understand that the Hawaiian ukulele originated with the Mexican rancheros brought here in the mid-1800s to run the cattle ranches in the islands, but I now read that the instrument was created by Micronesian immigrants in the 1870s. It is now essentially a Hawaiian instrument, but which origin is correct???…

… and so, once again, Mele Kalikimaka to each and all…

Up Front Lahaina is a twice monthly feature. To protect his innocence, the writer chooses to remain anonymous. The views expressed in this column belong to the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of the Lahaina News staff and owners.