Just got back from a business trip to Oahu, Hawaii. I had one good day for surfing and diving, and it was a thrill. I had to admit: it was ridiculously beautiful. Had I not lived in ridiculously beautiful Monterey, I'm sure I would've been awed. As usual, being surrounded by natural wonders brings me back to God. His handiworks are truly awesome... taking my breath away. These two photos are the only two worth salvaging from the very few photos I took. Why so few pics? I'm not sure...it was as if I didn't want to look through the camera lens so I could look at the real thing as much as possible. Feel free to click them to view the larger photo.The conference itself (about export control systems) was a learning experience for me. Not because of the substance of discourse, but
because of the lack of substance in the discussions. I don't mean to appear arrogant, but I often found myself amazed to learn how far behind the world stands when it comes to security issues like export controls. Most disappointing was the realization that too many government officials from APEC countries found the whole conference and discussions to be terribly boring. How could they not be interested when they were in charge of such measures and programs in their countries? One of the Korean delegates skipped out one day to go have fun with a visiting friend in Waikiki. I wonder what Koreans would think of knowing their tax dollars (or Korean wons) were sending their bureaucrats to go shopping and sight-seeing.--
