THE COLOR OF MONEY

Sometimes it takes a lot of green to go green

Oh, to be a multimillionaire.

That's what it'll take to become the proud owner of the first luxury, LEED-certified house on the block. That's short for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, which means a custom-built home that complies with guidelines that improve everything from the indoor environmental quality to energy and water efficiency.

Fresh on the local LEED market is an innovative five-bedroom, multilevel, furnished house at 3927 Kahala Ave. It incorporates sustainable principles, including the orientation of the house to take advantage of tradewinds and clean and simple lines, and is being marketed as “;Luxury Contempo.”;

Asking price? $6.7 million. Now that's a lot of green.

NET GAIN

Serving up some hometown pride

How exciting was it to cheer on the University of Hawaii men's volleyball team Saturday? VERY. Upsetting No. 1-ranked University of Southern California to win the Outrigger Hotels Invitational title was huge for the UH's Warriors. The win gave UH a boost in the national standings—now at No. 8 from No. 12—as well as in confidence, as it prepares for Friday's match against Stanford, another powerhouse. A particular revelation came in the form of UH junior hitter Joshua Walker, who received the Most Outstanding Player award for his dynamic play and presence. Kudos to first-year coach Charlie Wade and his Warriors for a fine time at the volleyball court. Keep serving it up.

FOXY LADY

And that's the way it is ...

Any Democrat wishing that Sarah Palin might move to Hollywood to cash in on her telegenic charisma in a way less likely to fuel that rising populist rage has another thing coming: She's becoming a political commentator for Fox News. The 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee worked out a multiyear deal with the news channel the White House has described as an arm of the Republican Party. Wouldn't a true maverick have signed with MSNBC?