LIHU‘E — Though the aftermath of New Year’s Eve still lingered this weekend in the form of haze, lost pets and littered streets, the start of 2010 was relatively calm on Kaua‘i.

LIHU‘E — Those bringing stories into the 5th Circuit courtroom of Judge Randal Valenciano should bring their “A” excuses with them or not even bother.

KALALAU — At least five people have been airlifted from Kalalau Valley in the past week for injuries and other health reasons.

LIHU‘E — When Bob King’s wife saw a Hawaiian monk seal, it was love at first sight.

David Allio has been named the Exceptional Faces Photographer of the Year for 2009, states a release from Appleget Associates.

A $4,500 grant from S. W. Wilcox Trust will allow Hale ‘Opio to administer a new 6-week session of the Street Smart program for Kaua‘i girls at risk, a news release states.

The Sunrise Club plays at 9 a.m. every Thursday (open game) at the Community Building in Princeville. The club welcomes North Shore visitors and part-time vacationers.

LIHU‘E — Tires, car parts and plastic bags are things one would expect to find at a landfill, not in an ocean.

LIHU‘E — A long-awaited county plan for energy sustainability over the next two decades is set to be presented next week and could pave the way for policy decisions, including action on a proposed ordinance allowing personal windmills.

LIHU‘E — The steam boilers came alive Saturday at the train yard across from the former Lihu‘e Sugar Plantation mill.

NAWILIWILI — Paul Endo of First Hawaiian Bank did not need mistletoe to get a helping of hugs and kisses, Wednesday.

PRINCEVILLE — The public has until Monday to vote for their favorite tree at the St. Regis resort lobby, said Ruth Marvin of Coldwell Bankers Bali Hai Realty.The contest started Dec. 4.

Most would agree that under ideal circumstances, Christmas dinner is best enjoyed at home, surrounded by family and friends, savoring course after course of delicious homemade food. But when the key ingredient — a home — is missing, Kaua‘i’s homeless don’t have to go without the rest of the Christmas traditions.

• Kaumuali‘i Highway • Kuhio Highway • Kapule Highway

LIHU‘E — Although it definitely won’t be up that long, the Island School student mural gracing the construction wall of the Lihu‘e McDonald’s restaurant on Kuhio Highway is done in paint that has a lifetime warranty.

LIHU‘E — The state of Hawai‘i agreed to pay $1.5 million as part of a settlement between numerous parties in the resolution of various wrongful-death and property-damage lawsuits stemming from the 2006 failure of the Ka Loko Reservoir Dam.

LIHU‘E — Taekyu U, 27, of Kapa‘a, will spend at least the next five years in prison after being sentenced Thursday on weapons and reckless endangering charges.

WAIMEA — First babies bid farewell to 2009 and welcomed 2010 at the Kaua‘i Veterans Memorial Hospital.

KALALAU — A 22-year female visitor and her 20-year-old brother were airlifted from Kalalau Valley last and were dropped off at Ke‘e Beach, according to a county press release.

LIHU‘E — Residents can still help Kaua‘i’s youth by purchasing the remaining calendars of local emergency responders through January. The calendar sales will help fund Shattered Dreams, a school-based alcohol prevention program that aims to raise awareness of the consequences of underage drinking through dramatization, a news release states.