HAWAII: The Happiest State in the Nation

Wallet Hub, which regularly shows that Hawaii is too expensive, reported that it is the happiest state in the USA. 30 metrics determined happiness.

Finland was for the sixth year in a row the happiest country in the world.  Nordic countries took the top three positions, Denmark #2 and Iceland #3.  All this comes from the United Nations World Happiness Report.  Blue is best, although dark green is okay, and the U.S. is ranked #15.  Black is bad, and that is Ukraine.

If you lived in Hawaii as long as I have, there is a lot of reminiscing to do.  Someone sent me a link to the past:  here, and more here.  Thanks for the Memories.  

While I'm into this mode: 

• from the Man of La Mancha, The Impossible Dream
• from Casablanca, As Time Goes By

• 
  Old Movie Stars Dance to Uptown Funk
• to I'm So Excited
• Mary Hopkin with Those Were the Days from The Ed Sullivan Show
• you've seen Tony Bennett with Lady Gaga, here he is with Judy Garland for I Left My Heart in San Francisco
• Judy Garland's final performance of Over the Rainbow in 1969.

• 
  Born in Dublin, Sinead O'Conner passed away at the age of 56:  her most famous songs, and six minutes of Nothing Compares 2 U.  She was married and divorced 4 times, with 4 children.

Just watched Honolulu, a 1939 movie, which got a 20% rating from Rotten Tomatoes, meaning don't bother doing the same.  However, even this film has some scenes you don't see anymore.  Robert Young plays three roles and Eleanor Powell taps to the hula, and has a blackface performance.  Also, George Burns and Gracie Allen look relatively young.  

Also released in 1939, here is the entire production of Charlie Chan in Honolulu.  In that year he already had 13 children, with one more to come.  It's only around an hour long, but you need to consider that Rotten Tomatoes only gave it a 46 rating.

Typhoon Khanun is now up to 105 miles/hour and could well strengthen to 135 MPH when it gets closest to Naha Tuesday afternoon.  How close?  Too close.  There will then be a weakening as China is approached, and early projections of landfall over Wenzhou next weekend seems to be changing to now more closely head in the general direction of Shanghai.   So if you're flying to that city later this week, watch out.

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