Sharks in Texas Waters

In June I took some time off of work. I packed my bags, cleared my datebook, and flew out into the starry  night to spend a few weeks with friends in France and and family in Texas. On my return from France, I stopped in Fort Hood to visit my two younger sisters who are stationed there while in the U.S. Army. Of course, I had to rent a car because walking or biking in that miserable Texas heat was not on my “Vacay 2010: Things I Must Do” list.

The strangest thing happened when I got into the vehicle of the Enterprise employee, Sierra, who picked me up at my sister’s house. Sierra’s phone rang and she started talking to someone who seemed to be in a different time zone then us, because although it was 1 p.m. in Killeen, she had asked him if he was headed to school to teach this morning. The first thing that came to mind, “That would be funny if she was talking to someone from Hawaii.”

Ha! He was calling from Hawaii. Sierra had just returned from a two-week vacation on Oahu. The guy on the phone was a hot (her word) surf instructor with the most adorable dreadlocks (her description) whom she had met on Waikiki beach. Cue in choir singing “It’s a small world after all…it’s a small, small world.”

But that’s not why I'm blogging about this random coincidental turn of events that started with a Google search and ended with a new friend in Killeen, Texas.

Here it goes. This is why.

Sierra rambled on about how much she loved Hawaii and all the beautiful things she got to see and the interesting people she got to meet and the delicious food she got to eat. “But,” she said, “I didn’t get to taste the one thing I most wanted.”

“What?” I asked, thinking she’d say something like poi or taro.

“Shark fin soup.”

Oh, snap.

Epilogue: I told Sierra that I worked at the Legislature and explained to her that shark fins may soon be banned in Hawaii because of a new bill we recently approved  that would take effect July 1, 2010. She was disappointed. I, on the other hand, as a supporter of the law, took a teeny-tiny bit of pleasure in telling her about the ban and the reason it's important.

ACT 148 (SB2169) RELATING TO SHARK FINS
Report Title: Possession, Sale, and Distribution of Shark Fins
Description: Prohibits the possession, sale, and distribution of shark fins in the State; repeals the ban on the practice of shark finning. (CD1)

A ban on shark fins is one of about 70 laws that take effect today. See the list here. 
Star Advertiser has an article in today's paper.