Obama's Hawaiian Holiday: Spam Sushi, Golf, Offers To Buy Beer For Reporter

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Huffington Post
First Posted: 12-21-08 11:11 PM   |   Updated: 01-21-09 05:12 AM

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Obama Golf

The pool report on Obama's holiday vacation in Hawaii today has some amusing accounts of his spam sushi lunch and a confession that he's not very good at golf:

President-elect Barack Obama finished his afternoon golf game about 5:30 p.m. local time, five hours after arriving at Olomana Golf Links.


There is no word on Mr. Obama's score or any of the others in the foursome.

But half-way through his 18 holes, as he stopped by the snack bar, he unexpectedly bumped into the pool sitting outside the club house. Asked how his game was going, he smiled and conceded: "I'm not that good."

He chatted for a moment, telling the pool to have a beer and put it on his tab. No one took him up on the offer.

As for Mr. Obama and his group, a snack bar clerk later confirmed that he purchased two hot dogs, two spam musubi, two passion orange sodas, one Powerade and one coke, for a tab of $17.75. The spam musubi, a local luncheon specialty, consists of spam and a fried egg on a bed of rice, all held together with a dried seaweed wrap. (Visualize a very big sushi role, slightly larger than a Hostess Ho Ho.)

The golf course was located in the Windward community of Waimanalo, about 20 minutes from Waikiki. The 18-hole course, a par 72, is set against a backdrop of the Ko'olau Mountain Range. The public course, according to marketing materials, features challenging holes of water hazards, sand traps and undulating topographical conditions.

The pool held near the clubhouse for the duration and did not watch the president-elect play.

The motorcade rolled out of the golf course at 5:42 p.m., with Mr. Obama seen on his cell phone, as he made his way back to the Kailua vacation house.

Evening plans? Uncertain.

Jeff Zeleny
New York Times

The pool report on Obama's holiday vacation in Hawaii today has some amusing accounts of his spam sushi lunch and a confession that he's not very good at golf: President-elect Barack Obama finished h...
The pool report on Obama's holiday vacation in Hawaii today has some amusing accounts of his spam sushi lunch and a confession that he's not very good at golf: President-elect Barack Obama finished h...
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    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 05:50 PM on 12/23/2008
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I went grocery shopping last night and just happened to be strolling down the aisle past canned tuna, spagettios, etc and don't you know there was a huge hole were SPAM is usually located........King Midas?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:35 PM on 12/23/2008

In addition to two years of non-stop campaigning, O spent a lot of time away from his wife and girls. This a great time for them to reconnect and relax on his home turf.

I read about this stuff because it makes me feel good for them. Think about a month from now - Jan 23 - he will be President and these few days in the sun will be memory! He'll be tackling the huge problems we all are impacted by, and we'll be focusing in on deadly serious issues - not vacations.

Speaking for myself, in snowbound Seattle, I'm enjoying hearing about the Obama family's time in the sun. So -- read these (sometimes) very entertaining posts on a light weight topic while you can!

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:17 PM on 12/23/2008
- Freesia2 I'm a Fan of Freesia2 294 fans permalink

Agreed. He's going to be walking into an awful mess - I'm grateful he's willing to.

Meantime, I love hearing and reading about him and his family having a holiday. Eating strange things and playing sports and the pictures are fun. I'm having a blast reading and look forward to the articles and photos.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:23 PM on 12/31/2008
- suntzu I'm a Fan of suntzu 16 fans permalink
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Spam musubi is not a Hawai'ian dish even though it originated in Hawai'i. It was first created by some innovative Japanese owner of an Okazuya (Japanese deli), which is why it has a Japanese name, and uses a Japanese ingredient, nori, which is paper thin pressed seaweed. And obviously, it was created probably during or after WW II. And yes, Hawaiians and all kinds of local people eat Spam musubi, but it is an invention of local Japanese people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam_musubi

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 06:49 PM on 12/22/2008

This president went to Punahou School, the most prestigious in the islands. That was before Harvard. He is privileged, though that does not make him a bad person. Let him play golf! http://sandiegojrcc.com is for kids coming up in the San Diego area wanting to play. Obama will be a great influence on them. Todd Iacono and the other pros are all buzzing about Obama's game. Go Barack! Hit em straight...

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 07:21 PM on 12/22/2008

He's only "privileged" in his intellect. He went to Punahou on scholarship.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 02:08 AM on 12/23/2008
- AngryAmish I'm a Fan of AngryAmish 19 fans permalink

Dear Baby Jaysus, just once, in my lifetime, could we have a President who doesn't golf? Please? Happy Burfday!

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 06:37 PM on 12/22/2008
- prog I'm a Fan of prog 17 fans permalink
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Well, he doesn't golf very well. That's progress.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 08:10 PM on 12/22/2008
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I think you can rest easy on that one, Amish. His main thing is basketball.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:44 PM on 12/23/2008
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Olomana is not Waimanalo side! It's more Kaneohe or Kailua!

Passion drink sodas.... No fizz brah!

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 05:08 PM on 12/22/2008
- Sumocat I'm a Fan of Sumocat 32 fans permalink

I believe you're thinking of the Ko'olau golf course. Olomana is definitely Waimanalo since it's past the last turn into the Enchanted Lake/Keolu area.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:26 PM on 12/23/2008
- 2008FedUP I'm a Fan of 2008FedUP 14 fans permalink
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He deserves this vacation and many more. Bush TOOK vacations but NONE deserved!!
Wonder if Michelle is gonna double up on her birth control...lololol

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 03:36 PM on 12/22/2008
- mero909 I'm a Fan of mero909 31 fans permalink
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Bush didn't deserve a vacation? Lol! That's new.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 04:56 PM on 12/22/2008
- frantaylor I'm a Fan of frantaylor 22 fans permalink

Bush has averaged 62 vacation days per year during his presidency. Why does he deserve more than anyone else?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 05:33 PM on 12/22/2008
- jukesgrrl I'm a Fan of jukesgrrl 73 fans permalink
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I truly do believe the PE should be able to enjoy his well-deserved vacation in peace and quiet and away from prying eyes ... so why can't I stop reading these articles?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 03:03 PM on 12/22/2008
- The Lorax I'm a Fan of The Lorax 8 fans permalink

Ok, I know da locals are all on this thread cuz dey like talk story and tinking about spam musubi make us displaced Hawaiians all hungry but I gotta say one thing...

GO WAIANAE SEARIDERS!!!

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 02:09 PM on 12/22/2008
- gayinmt I'm a Fan of gayinmt 10 fans permalink
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God I haven't heard pidgin in so long. Miss my days living in Hawaii.

chaka

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 03:24 PM on 12/22/2008
- Kiabell04 I'm a Fan of Kiabell04 21 fans permalink
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I'm glad he's enjoying the holidays, because lord knows he won't have theluxury to take a 6 month vacation like Bush did in his first 6 months in office. It's almost unfair, but unfortunately this is what the POTUS will have to deal with for the next 4-8 years. It's no easy feat.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 02:00 PM on 12/22/2008
- mero909 I'm a Fan of mero909 31 fans permalink
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Bush took a 6 month vacation in his first 6 months in office?

Really? Go ahead, I'll give you the chance to correct yourself.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 04:57 PM on 12/22/2008
- pvernier I'm a Fan of pvernier 9 fans permalink
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Reports state that the only brush he cleared on his vacation was a couple points where he ended up in the rough.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:57 PM on 12/22/2008

There is no way he could be as bad at golf as he was at bowling is there?

And 2nd grader in this country could out bowl him.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:06 PM on 12/22/2008
- qdog112 I'm a Fan of qdog112 68 fans permalink
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Great contribution to the thread.

How did we make it without you?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:08 PM on 12/22/2008
- fem56 I'm a Fan of fem56 13 fans permalink

If I remeber right they did bowl with him or something like that and he only bowled part of a game. That is why his score was so low and then rumor took over.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:47 PM on 12/22/2008
- stubbhead I'm a Fan of stubbhead 2 fans permalink

In that same game, I do recall seing video of Obama throwing a gutter ball.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 05:24 PM on 12/22/2008
- frappe I'm a Fan of frappe 206 fans permalink
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What a refreshing change to have Obama as our president...Enjoy your well-deserved vacation, Mr. President-elect.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:03 PM on 12/22/2008
- blooddoc I'm a Fan of blooddoc 8 fans permalink
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It IS refreshing to have a president who is not good at golf and admits it. Golf is usually associated with the elite/wealthy anyway, so it's not like he needs the photo op. Besides, ever see him play basketball? He's got some good moves and the cardio benefits over golf are obvious. Let's see a slam dunk, Mr. President!

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 03:12 PM on 12/22/2008
- hialoha I'm a Fan of hialoha 17 fans permalink

Let's see the rest of America is buried in snow. A very fortunate home town to visit. Now excuse me while a stretch my legs and go for my morning constitutional with the dogs around around the macnut orchard watching for breaching whales as the morning temp rises into the eighties. Us fifty stater couldn't be prouder.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:57 PM on 12/22/2008
- frantaylor I'm a Fan of frantaylor 22 fans permalink

And when you run out of groundwater, you can stay there and dry up.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 05:37 PM on 12/22/2008
- hialoha I'm a Fan of hialoha 17 fans permalink

Spam is even part of the Macdonalds menu and working in a first grade classroom on Dr. Suess's 100th birthday, the teacher made green eggs and spam. Spam musubi is a staple. To spend a few days in his hometown eating having he grew up on, visiting other family members after a loss is far from going overboard. There are also huge security measures, temporary no fly zone to consider.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:43 PM on 12/22/2008
- qdog112 I'm a Fan of qdog112 68 fans permalink
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"To spend a few days in his hometown eating having he grew up on"

EXACTLY.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:57 PM on 12/22/2008
- hialoha I'm a Fan of hialoha 17 fans permalink

oops just a typo eating food he grew up on ... apologies

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:01 PM on 12/22/2008
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Wha', you no speak pidgin?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:04 PM on 12/22/2008
- The Lorax I'm a Fan of The Lorax 8 fans permalink

Is saimin still on the McDonalds menu too? And loco moco? It was when I was last home.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:58 PM on 12/22/2008
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