GeoffreyShilling.com is primarily for our family to use as a quick reference for our favorite recipes. More to come…
[tabby title=”Short Version”] Like you, I have a lot going on. But I’m not willing to let that take away from spending quality time with my ʻohana and making awesome memories. Here’s a quick summary of who I am and what I do. I…
- work full-time as a firefighter.
- volunteer as a firefighter for the town we live in.
- am Enlisted as an Electronics Technician, First Class Petty Officer (E6) in the Navy Reserve. I’ve been in the Reserves since 2012.
- have two children.
- am Hawaiian-at-heart.
- created my first website in the late 1990’s using HTML and CSS.
- earned my Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Systems.
- bought my kids their domain names when they were two years old and eight. The kids may never want to use them, but at least now they’ll have the option.
- love learning web development in my spare time.
- spent five years active duty with the United States Navy, stationed on a submarine out of Pearl Harbor, Hawaiʻi.
- love coffee but have cut way back in the last year. I only have about six to eight cups a day now.
- have more hobbies than I do time. My list of interests is extensive, but some of my favorite things to do include hiking, camping, running, cooking, Geocaching, and almost anything else outdoors.
[tabby title=”Long Version”]I love everything there is about Hawai’i, as you will likely see. Some people say I’m a little obsessed with it, but I prefer the term “passionate.” My license plate is a variation of “aloha.” My grandparents took me to Hawaiʻi for the first time when I was 13 for their 50th anniversary. I was immediately hooked.
The first “big” website I created was back in college and was all about Hawaiʻi. I was lucky enough to be stationed on Oʻahu for four years after I graduated. For me, the Big Island nō ka ʻoi, meaning the Big Island is the best!
I was first introduced to computers by my grandpa back in the late 1980s with the game Mixed-Up Mother Goose. Although it was pretty basic by today’s standards, it was enough to pique my interest and get me hooked on technology. My first experience with the Internet came around 1995 with a dial-up service provided by AOL.
I started making basic HTML websites in the late 1990s/early 2000s. Do you remember the old Geocities websites from back then? It seemed the gaudier your website, the cooler it was. Luckily for everyone, things have changed quite a bit. I do think it would be fun to create an old-looking WordPress theme. Imagine where things will be in another twenty years.
I received my Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Systems from DeVry Institute of Technology in 2004. The college has since changed names to DeVry University. After graduation, I spent five years in the United States Navy, serving aboard the nuclear submarine USS Pasadena out of Pearl Harbor, HI.
I ran into a guy I went to high school with at the beginning of 2016 and we caught up a while. It turns out he was a member of our town’s volunteer fire department. Our town is small and doesn’t have a large call volume, but it sounded awesome to me. I started attending the business meetings and was voted on the department in March 2016. I became the treasurer in 2018. The volunteer department is a time commitment, but it’s very rewarding and I love it.
A city nearby was hiring for firefighters in 2018. I didn’t know how much of a chance I’d have but figured I’d give it a shot. The worst thing that could happen is I wouldn’t get the job and things would continue as they had been. I ended up getting hired and started at the end of January 2019. I couldn’t believe it when I got the call from our chief. I’ve never had a more rewarding job and I love it!
Live Aloha
Beyond the fact that I’m very passionate about Hawai’i, aloha is the foundation of who I am. Every decision I make is made with aloha and I work hard to instill this in my kids.
From Chapter 5 of Hawai’i Revised Statutes:
[§5-7.5] “Aloha Spirit”. (a) “Aloha Spirit” is the coordination of mind and heart within each person. It brings each person to the self. Each person must think and emote good feelings to others. In the contemplation and presence of the life force, “Aloha”, the following unuhi laula loa may be used:
“Akahai”, meaning kindness to be expressed with tenderness;
“Lokahi”, meaning unity, to be expressed with harmony;
“Oluolu”, meaning agreeable, to be expressed with pleasantness;
“Haahaa”, meaning humility, to be expressed with modesty;
“Ahonui”, meaning patience, to be expressed with perseverance.
These are traits of character that express the charm, warmth and sincerity of Hawaii’s people. It was the working philosophy of native Hawaiians and was presented as a gift to the people of Hawaii. “Aloha” is more than a word of greeting or farewell or a salutation. “Aloha” means mutual regard and affection and extends warmth in caring with no obligation in return. “Aloha” is the essence of relationships in which each person is important to every other person for collective existence. “Aloha” means to hear what is not said, to see what cannot be seen and to know the unknowable.
(b) In exercising their power on behalf of the people and in fulfillment of their responsibilities, obligations and service to the people, the legislature, governor, lieutenant governor, executive officers of each department, the chief justice, associate justices, and judges of the appellate, circuit, and district courts may contemplate and reside with the life force and give consideration to the “Aloha Spirit”. [L 1986, c 202, §1][tabbyending]
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