Two Honolulu residents have written heartwarming short stories published in the Chicken Soup for the Soul Delectable Series — Chocolate, Coffee, Tea and Wine.

In "Chicken Soup for the Coffee Lover's Soul," Rosemary Mild's "Arigato!" shares how Mild found solace at a Starbucks in Kanazawa, Japan.

"Chicken Soup for the Tea Lover's Soul" includes Jennifer Crites' "My Mother's Tea Set," about a well-worn English tea set that arrives in Hawai'i, strengthening a bond between Crites and her mother.

"Chicken Soup" books offer life-affirming stories, trivia, anecdotes and information.

— Zenaida Serrano

SHARE YOUR FAMILY CUSTOMS

Many families have one-of-a-kind holiday traditions — a gift-giving format, an annual photo posed in a particular place, a certain cookie that Mom just has to make. These stories of seasonal celebration make warm telling, and The Advertiser's Island Life section would like to tell as many of them as possible.

Send us a paragraph — two at most — about something that makes your family unique. We'll publish these in December. Mark it "Traditions" and e-mail to islandlife@honoluluadvertiser.com; mail to Island Life, Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; or fax 525-8055.

— Wanda Adams

FINAL WORD

"With doing Shrek, I don't have to put on a costume. I don't even have to shower. ... But I prepare, and I care very much that it be great."

Mike Myers | the voice of Shrek in ABC's special "Shrek the Halls," at 7 p.m. today on ABC