Yesterday I was most fortunate to have the opportunity to take part in the opening parade of the Maui County Fair! My coworker, Joie, and I were invited to walk with county employees behind the custom-painted Prius, symbol of the county's initiative to promote electric vehicles on the island. From Mayor Charmaine Tavares' 2009 State of the County Address:
With the help of Maui High School’s nationally recognized automotive program, we converted a county‐owned hybrid vehicle into a Plug‐in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV). This was made possible through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy and the Idaho National Laboratory. This vehicle will provide valuable data to further improve and develop vehicles for broader use.
I had the honor of meeting the mayor and several excellent members of the county team. I did experience a brief out-of-body sensation seeing the INL logo on a Prius in the middle of a parade down one of the main streets of Kahului, but I just kept it to myself, not wanting to make a scene so soon after arriving on the island.
Lacking more traditional leis, Joie and I chose to distinguish ourselves by wearing shopping bags with the name and logo of the Sustainable Living Institute of Maui. Unfortuantely, the SLIM graphics were not very visible and we just looked like two goofballs with shopping bags hanging around our necks, waving to the crowd. But hey.
Hawaiian Airlines float
View from behind the Prius
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