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Daily Smile

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<title>Daily Smile: Friday, April 3, 2026</title>

Daily Smile: Friday, April 3, 2026

 They say if your dog is smart, they will put their paw against the wall...

Hawai'i Skies

Today's Hawai‘i Skies was captured by Chris Mueller at Hulopo‘e. "

Fishing in high surf on Lānaʻi - under the mixed clouds and expansive ski on the Island of Lānaʻi, Chris and Jean closing out the day at our favorite beach, 

; enjoying the efforts of one last body boarder in high surf conditions, joined by a local beach fisherman as the ski closes out for the evening."

To submit your Hawai'i Skies photo, visit us 

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

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<title>Hawaiʻi Skies: High surf</title>

Today's Hawai‘i Skies was captured by Chris Mueller at Hulopo‘e.

Hawaiʻi Skies: High surf

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Aloha Spirit

The surfing community in O‘ahu‘s North Shore was hit particularly hard by the aftermath of the Kona low storms that flooded the Islands for consecutive weekends in March. While some surfers on the North Shore have to wait out contaminated water conditions following the storm, some surfing business have seen their headquarters get flooded. 

Waialua-based Arakawa Surfboard Factory was hit by five inches of floodwater, leaving countless foam blanks and unfinished boards damaged. Other parts of the factory, including tools and furniture were damaged during the floods, and surfboard production was paused in the days following the storm. A 

GoFundMe was started to support the business

Surfboard Factory Hawai‘i has an April sale in which all Arakawa surfboards are $50 off, and funds will assist with Arakawa Surfboard Factory's recovery costs. 

In other storm and flood relief efforts, Hawaiian Island Creations is holding a free product giveaway for those affected, particularly those who lost valuable possessions. HIC's Billabong Hale‘iwa store will host the giveaway from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 4. Brands such as 

Billabong, Quiksilver, Roxy, RVCA, Volcom and others have donated over $100,000 in inventory to give to those affected. Attendees are encouraged to bring ID cards in order to expedite the check-in process. 

Additionally, modern surfing legend and North Shore native John John Florence's brand, Florence Marine, is partnering with Sig Zane Designs and Slowtide on a limited edition merchandise collection, where 100% of the proceeds will go toward storm and flood relief. 

Waialua-based Pyzel Surfboards is holding a raffle with $3,000 worth of merchandise from the Florence brothers. Raffle tickets cost $20 each. All proceeds will go towards storm and flood relief. 

Arakawa Surfing Factory 040226

<title>Hawai‘i surfing community comes together for Kona low storm relief</title>

Multiple raffles, in addition to a Saturday giveaway, aim to help those affected by March's devastating Kona low storms.

Hawai‘i surfing community comes together for Kona low storm relief

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

, the Kailua-based Queen of Island Reggae, had to pick a few words powering her in 2026, she would go with: “all days on” and “collaboration.”

Love recently spoke with Aloha State Daily from Aotearoa, where she was set to have her first official performance in over a decade. She was a featured international artist at a pre-party event for 

Jim Beam Homegrown, a large music festival with seven stages

It's been quite a long time since I've performed here. 

And I've never performed here without Fiji. It's gonna be emotional and nostalgic — and all the things.”

Love had been planning to go to Aotearoa to record new music with George Brooks Veikoso, known as Fiji, who had been based there the last few years of his life. Recently, she spent time looking through some of the tracks he started, which had not been published yet. Love, who knew Fiji for more than 20 years, was invited to finish a few of those, she said. They previously collaborated on singles like “It Is Wut It Is” and “Auright.”

Coming up this weekend, Love will take the stage at the Blue Note Hawaiʻi on Saturday, April 4. She will share music from her new 

 which was released in December of 2025, as well as classics from her catalog and a few songs that were released before streaming existed. She has several extended plays that are only on CDs and plans to digitize them soon and release them on a monthly basis on streaming services as archive throwback songs. Love also recently released the single “Love Reggae” last month. At the upcoming performances, several of the young women she mentors through her nonprofit, Mana Wāhine Movement, will be opening, she said.

“It's going to be a musical journey from what I'm doing with the girls now, in present day, and my new music — all the way back to old catalog stuff,” she said.

Love has more than 235,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, with large populations of listeners in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi and other parts of the United States, as well as Aotearoa and Australia. Love has 

toured with Morgan Heritage, Pink, Chaka Khan, Fiji, J Boog, Katchafire, Tarrus Riley and more

, according to her biography on the streaming platform.

“New Zealand is really good for genre bending, and that's kind of something I've always wanted to do,” she said, adding that Island Reggae is especially loved in Hawaiʻi, where she grew up. “My dad is part Jamaican, and my name is Jamaican, so reggae has always been kind of a foundational genre for me. But as an artist, I like to say, we don't ask painters to paint with one color. And for singers and musicians, one genre is like painting with one color.”

She is working on some Neo-soul/Reggae. Love has songs with Sammy Johnson and J Boog coming out soon, she said.

“I'm really trying to collaborate as much as possible too, because I feel we create things that we can't create on our own when we collaborate,” Love said. “For me as an artist, that's kind of my favorite thing is seeing the magic that we can create.”

Songwriting has been easier in Aotearoa and France than it is at home, she said. 

“I feel like as human beings, when we have access to put ourselves in new environments, it brings out different aspects of our personality,” she said. “Some even dormant abilities, in the sense of when I create out here, I feel like songwriting for me is a lot easier than it is when I'm in Hawaiʻi. And it's easier for me when I was in 

, so I really believe that it's just because I get to be my most authentic self in an environment that is less familiar to older versions of me.”

Whenever she returns home, her favorite comfort food is Saigon Noodle House in Kailua, she said.

“I get the same exact thing every time,” Love said. “It's the lemongrass tofu vermicelli.”

Sometimes, she gets comments on social media asking when she rests, she said.

“And from my vantage point, I'm barely doing enough,” she said. “I love what I do. I love how fulfilling it is to be able to be on stages and speaking. ... It feels like this is what I'm meant to be doing. I feel like I'm walking in my purpose. And so whenever we do that, we have this — I don't know — ancestral access of energy that just gives me the capacity to show up more, to sleep less, and to just do more.”

Love will be traveling a lot this year, with tours in Europe and Africa in the summer and Japan in the fall. In Aotearoa, she has been taking time to get outside.

“I always try to find the closest mauna to my hotel in the different cities I'm in here in Aotearoa and go for a walk — a trail walk or just sit in the parks that they usually have around the mauna,” she said. “I just want to encourage people to connect to the ʻāina, wherever you are. It's probably one of the easiest and most accessible ways to calm the nervous system in these trying times for humanity.”

 for her performances at 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. at the Blue Note Hawaiʻi. Doors open at 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., respectively. 

Irie Love

<title>Irie Love shares musical journey on Saturday in Waikīkī</title>

The Kailua-based Queen of Island Reggae just returned from Aotearoa where she performed for the first time in more than 10 years. This weekend, she will share classics, new music from her album “Reflections,” and archive throwback songs on Saturday, April 4, in Waikīkī.

Irie Love shares musical journey on Saturday in Waikīkī

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

Were the results of the 2024 Hawai‘i County election invalid? We may finally have an answer … next year.

, the Hawai‘i Elections Commission has been wracked with debate over alleged mismanagement of the 2024 election results, particularly on Hawai‘i Island. But after multiple conflicting reports, countless failed motions and hours upon hours of argument, the Commission seems no closer to resolving the issue.

 on Wednesday, commissioners disputed the issue yet again for more than five hours. At the center of the discussion were the findings of a permitted interaction group formed in October that investigated each county’s “chain-of-custody” practices: that is, what happens to the ballots when they are submitted, how they are counted and who does so.

 were, on their face, damning. The report claimed that the group was unable to obtain documentation proving that all counties maintained daily records of their chain-of-custody, and therefore no independent body can verify whether any county has made an accurate accounting of their ballots.

If true, this would dovetail with previous permitted interaction group 

 a 19,042-ballot discrepancy in Hawai‘i County’s ballot totals. The state Office of Elections 

 76,595 mail-in ballots were received in that county’s election, but Commissioner Ralph Cushnie has alleged that the county’s mail-in ballot dropbox records and USPS receipts indicate only 57,553 ballots were received.

Hawai‘i County Mayor Kimo Alameda won election in 2024 by less than 9,000 votes.

Consequently, Cushnie and other commissioners have called for audits of the election results to confirm their validity — and on Wednesday, Cushnie moved to have the U.S. Department of Justice investigate the case, but was voted down — but other commissioners remain skeptical of the entire issue. Commissioner Jeffrey Osterkamp accused Cushnie on Wednesday of “lying to the commission and to the people in the audience again and again and again.”

Osterkamp had been a member of another permitted interaction group that, in September, published 

 rejecting claims of electoral wrongdoing.

“This is a one-man crusade by Commissioner Cushnie to try to show that a discrepancy exists that does not exist,” Osterkamp said. “We all know that, we know the emperor has no clothes, but we’re pretending that this is a real issue.”

But Osterkamp was wrong on one point: by Wednesday, the matter was no longer a one-man crusade, as dozens of testifiers urged the Commission to remove state Elections Officer Scott Nago from his position. Others accused commissioners directly of interfering with the 2024 election through incompetence or maliciousness.

Nago told Aloha State Daily that the 19,000-ballot discrepancy signifies little. He said Cushnie’s count of the county’s reported ballots relies upon USPS Business Reply Mail receipts, which are not official election records.

Indeed, the Office of Elections has responded to the commission’s chain-of-custody complaints already. Last September, the Office of Elections

 finding that allegations of election mismanagement were unfounded and lacked rigor.

Nonetheless, Nago told ASD he is still willing to investigate the 2024 election. For the time being, he said, the Office of Elections is required by 

 to maintain all election records for 22 months after an election. Once that period expires — around the end of September — the Office of Elections can dig into the ballots.

While several commissioners and other testifiers scoffed at the idea that the Office of Elections cannot investigate the contents of records it is required to hold, Nago told ASD that the federal law is for the benefit of federal investigators, who reserve the right to review unadulterated records within that 22-month period.

Nago added that the State Supreme Court could also order the records to be unsealed for review. However, 

 against Nago and the Office of Elections in the Supreme Court in 2024 came to nothing.

But Nago also told the Commission that, by the time the 22-month period ends, the state will be gearing up for the 2026 general election, meaning the Office of Elections will have its hands full and any investigation into the 2024 election will, realistically, not bear fruit until 2027.

 For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Getty Images 515280686 16x9

<title>2024 election question to be resolved after 2026 election</title>

Allegations of election mismanagement on Hawai‘i County two years ago are disputed by the state, but official answers are still likely months away.

2024 election question to be resolved after 2026 election

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Business & Tourism

As Hawai‘i communities continue to recover from destructive back-to-back storms that caused significant flooding and damage across the Islands last month, architects across the state are offering their support.

Architects "stand ready to assist in evaluating structural damage, navigating repair options and supporting resilient rebuilding,” a recent announcement from 

 notes. They can help property owners "understand the extent of damage, determine whether repairs are feasible and ensure that any reconstruction meets current building codes and incorporates strategies to better withstand future climate-related events."

“Architecture, at its core, is about creating physical space that is safe, functional and [meaningful] to community,” Melanie Islam, president of AIA Hawai‘i, told Aloha State Daily in an email. “At this time, the most important perspective architects can provide is supporting the frameworks that ensure families, kūpuna and keiki impacted by the floods are safe, healthy and able to stay together.

“Our role as architects will become more relevant once residents and community have had time to heal, assess the damage and begin thinking about what the future of their community and homes should look like,” she continued. “At that stage, we can work alongside community to shape homes and neighborhoods that feel safer from future storms, while keeping the identity of the [place] they love and call home.

 said in the announcement last week that there had been no requests from state or county agencies to deploy architects through the AIA’s 

“After a disaster, an important priority is to help residents understand whether their homes and buildings are safe to return to,” Islam said Monday. “The Safety Assessment Program, or SAP, trains licensed professionals — architects and engineers — to support community by assessing damaged buildings so that people can make informed, safer decisions during a difficult time.

“As volunteers, SAP professionals work with the city and state disaster recovery teams. At this time, we have not been activated, but when the community and governmental agencies are ready, SAP Professionals and AIA Hawai‘i are here to help.

 had a chance to volunteer in Waialua last week through the Pacific Century Fellows, where he was able to connect with and hear first-hand stories from the community. 

Hirai says he realized that whether you're offering help or receiving it, "being present makes a difference." 

As for ways architects can support the community, Hirai says, “At this point in time, when the community members are ready, we can help. We’d love to have an AIA table in Waialua to listen, to offer guidance and connect in any way we can.”

AIA Hawai‘i also notes that the public should be aware of potential scams that can arise in the wake of natural disasters.

"Residents should be cautious of unsolicited offers for repair services, especially from individuals who request large upfront payments, lack proper licensing or pressure homeowners into quick decisions," the recent announcement noted. "Always verify that contractors and design professionals are properly licensed in the state of Hawai‘i and request written agreements before proceeding with any work."

 that the two March storms, which brought 30 to 60 inches of rainfall to some areas and led to the worst flooding in Hawai‘i in more than two decades, caused around $2 billion in damages and economic loss. The preliminary estimate accounts for damage to homes, businesses and infrastructure, as well as tourism losses, agricultural impacts, and emergency response and recovery operation costs across O‘ahu, Maui and Hawai‘i Island, AccuWeather notes.

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

DSC07742 16x9

In an interview with Aloha State Daily, Hirai said that he’s lucky “to be a part of such a momentous time” for the organization, which marks it 100th anniversary this year.

AIA Honolulu 2026 Lance Hirai

Mentorship is priority for Lance Hirai, 2026 AIA Honolulu president

The organization has events lined up on O‘ahu and Hawai‘i Island throughout October to celebrate.

Walking Tour 3

AIA Honolulu builds community with Architecture Month

<title>Hawai‘i architects 'ready to assist' after storms</title>

AIA Hawai‘i says architects can help property owners "understand the extent of damage, determine whether repairs are feasible, and ensure that any reconstruction meets current building codes and incorporates strategies to better withstand future climate-related events."

Daily Smile: Friday, April 3, 2026

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Daily Smile: Friday, April 3, 2026

Authors

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