I'll admit this after the fact, but we were really short handed this year.  I had to bring in my counterparts from Kahala Mall and Pearlridge Center (both managed by MMI Realty) to help with specific tasks for this, one of the biggest events of the year for Aloha Tower Marketplace. I've worked on shopping mall accounts before, but none with the spirit of teamwork that I enjoyed tonight.

Alex himself worked really hard, not just as a concierge and sound tech/stage supervisor but as an all-around “go-to” guy for all the madness behind the scenes tonight. I'm so used to it by now, I think I take it for granted.

But beyond that,  I was really grateful to be able to tap into MMI’s resources and have Lurline Kawainui & Kelly Kauinana on hand tonight, not just lending their expertise but bringing the experience & leadership that they provide to Pearlridge  and Kahala, respectively, to my property. They were in charge of specific areas of the event, and they were exceptional in their execution—above and beyond the call.  I didn’t have to worry about anything because Alex, Kelly, and Lurline had everything under control. From a customer’s point of view, I know they made it a memorable event because many people (strangers) came up to me afterwards to say so. I don't think anyone knew all the chaos behind the scenes that we had to deal with. As I've said before, the main thing is that you, our guests, enjoy themselves.

  Lookit that crowd! And did I not tell you that the fireworks were super up close? That was a crazy awesome fireworks display, by the way.  I missed getting a photo of that spider web/flare effect that Bruce executed at the very beginning of the show, but everyone was buzzing about that. Anyway, it's been a long day, but I just wanted to share that with you.  I'm taking the weekend off, thankyouverymuch. Have a wonderful long weekend, everyone!