Posted on: Sunday, January 6, 2002
Hawai'i Ways, Hawai'i Days
Strange sights, mosquito bites mark UH days
By Terry Nakamura
I started college life at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa in the summer of 1974. Seems like a long time ago, but still I have pleasant and funny memories of the people and classes there.
Today's UH students should be thankful they have shuttle van service. We didn't have it in my time. The big classes were taught at the Varsity Theater. There were few other rooms on campus that could accommodate the huge classes. Rain or shine, we walked up and down University Avenue. When I took Introduction to Art, professor Preble took advantage of the Varsity stage. He and his friends treated the class to a performance by their Kapakahi Jug Band with jug, kazoo and washboard music. They had pretty good rhythm, and it was fun to watch.
Most everyone wore T-shirts and slippers or sandals. This was before designer labels were "in." Certain fashion aspects of the hippie days were still visible. It was cool to dress down. A lot of professors wore slippers and T-shirts, too.
My cousin and I took American Studies 310 (Japanese American Experience). The readings that professor Ogawa had assigned were easy to understand and interesting. My cousin's teaching assistant was a young, enthusiastic guy named Glen Grant. One day, Glen showed the class his spooky slides of ghostly images and haunted houses. We never imagined he would make a career out of that.
I took Psychology 100, and extra credit was offered to students who volunteered to be guinea pigs for psychology research. I signed up for a taste-perception test conducted by a psychology student in the basement of Gartley Hall. I didn't know the Gartley basement was a mosquito haven. The student had me drink mysterious pastel-colored liquids and rate each one on sweetness, saltiness, bitterness, etc. One I tried was screw-up-your-face bitter. After the test, I walked out with mosquito bites all over.
The area near University Avenue was frequented by a three-legged dog, a light-colored stray that hobbled around campus. My brother had graduated from UH two years before and he was shocked to discover, "That three-legged dog is still there?" We don't know whatever became of the dog; now I wish I had befriended him.
I didn't know that stinky smell in the air near Sinclair Library was from a skunk tree. I thought it was a serious bird-doo-doo problem.
Some students thought the school cafeteria food was poison. One day I bought a slice of cherry pie, and the crust was so hard, I couldn't break it with the metal fork. I tried and tried, but the rock-hard crust wouldn't give. Right there was concrete evidence that the food was sometimes inedible. I had to be content with scraping out and eating the cherry filling. (Ho, da sweet!)
The hamburger dishes were annoying. My teeth would crunch on bone fragments in the hamburger. Bones in the patty, bones in the meat loaf, bones in the chili. But I thought a few of their dishes were good. I liked their teriyaki butterfish, stuffed trout, chicken chow mein, and grilled ham and cheese sandwich with side of fries. But overall, the quality of the cafeteria food was inconsistent.
If you attended UH-Manoa during this time, and you have other fond memories of college life, you should share them too!
Terry Nakamura graduated in 1978 and works at Hamilton Library on the Manoa campus.
Hawai'i Ways, Hawai'i Days is a column of essays by readers on what makes Hawai'i unique. Send articles two to three pages long, double-spaced, with your address and daytime phone number, to: "Hawai'i Ways, Hawai'i Days," The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; or you can send e-mail to islandlife@honoluluadvertiser.com, or fax to 525-8055. Articles submitted to The Advertiser may be published or distributed in print, electronic or other forms.
