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A frequent visitor to Maui who created a meme to convey his frustration with Hawaii's confusing travel requirements last year is being honored by a national meme organization.
Keefe Jajkowski of Simi Valley, Calif., designed a meme with a squinting chihuahua last July, to express how confused he was trying to figure out how to fly to Maui among ever-changing flight rules due to the pandemic.
"That dog's face pretty much summarizes how I felt just trying to learn what I needed to do to get on a plane, and, especially, get off at OGG without being immediately deported," Jajkowski said. "I tried getting help from visitors in all the Facebook groups for Maui, and learned I wasn't alone. People were perplexed.
"So I quickly made the meme, and it kind of took off."
So much so, in fact, that the American Consortium of Meme Ennoblement (ACME) noticed ~ and entered Jajkowski's design into its annual contest for best memes in America in 2021.
And it won the "Best Meme for Government Silliness," said Johan Yankovic, president of ACME, headquartered in Texas.
"We found the meme accidentally in the comments section of the Maui Bound Facebook group, and immediately fell in love with it," Yankovic said. "I mean, almost all of us tried to travel last summer, so we sympathized. Then, those in our organization who tried to travel to Maui laughed so hard at the meme, we had to look further into it."
They learned that right about then, the state of Hawaii was announcing a new 12-tier pandemic re-opening strategy, Yankovic said. The state had only just announced a new, secret 6th tier.
"And then it got worse on Maui and in Hawaii," he said. "We're still confused. Which tier on we on now?"
Jajkowski said he was surprised by the honor because he didn't even have to submit it. "That it was seen, found, and appreciated by an organization that loves and promotes memes is a miracle. I'm honored."
He then said he had to go because he was on hold with the state of Hawaii trying to plan a visit to Maui in April.
