Star-Bulletin file photo
Invention of elevator went hand in hand with
construction of taller buildings.
press a button. The door closes. The room lurches; you feel it in the pit of your stomach. Faraway engines hum. The movement stops, but you feel slightly unsteady until you regain equilibrium. The door slides open with a whoosh and ... YOU'RE SOMEPLACE ELSE!The average person traveled in two dimensions prior to the 20th century. To travel in the third dimension -- up or down -- required effort similar to mountain climbing. But taller buildings required easier access. A new mode of transportation was invented to fill the need, the elevator.
Elevators made the human being comfortable in three dimensions, allowed civilization to claim the sky as well as the land and sea. They also made human beings unwilling to make the physical effort to move from one level to another -- elevators are common even in low-rise buildings now. And more than that, they made the act of traveling an act of transmogrification.
Purchase of a $20 ticket ($17 tax deductible) will give buyers discounts from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. at participating Ware Warehouse, Ward Centre, Ward Village, Ward Farmers Market and Ward Auahi Center shops. Discounts range from 10 percent off items at Craft Flair and non-sale items at Honolulu Chocolate Co., to 40 percent off sterling silver jewelry at Sedona.
Borders will offer a 20 percent discount (some exclusions), and there will be complimentary breakfast for ticket holders, offered between 8:30 and 10:30 a.m. at Ryan's Grill.
There will also be entertainment, including a 2 to 3 p.m. fashion show at the Ward Warehouse stage, emceed by KITV's Kathy Muneno, and 2 p.m. performances at Ward Centre by Daniel Ho and George Kahumoku Jr.
Funds raised will help Junior League programs devoted to improving communities through volunteerism. Call 946-6466 for tickets or visit Child's Play, Executive Chef or Noa Noa at Ward Warehouse, or Successories at Ward Centre.
