A friend let me borrow his VHS tape of the 1987 Rainbow Wahine NCAA championship game against Stanford.

(You know that's a good friend when he trusts you with that kind of priceless historical document.)

The game was epic, but the commercial breaks were cultural artifacts.

You could write a grad school thesis on those ads.

Hawai'i was caught up in the big '80s then, and like the rest of the country, we were not ashamed to be wannabes. Aspiration, however superficial, was admirable.

Remember the commercial for Hakuyosha Cleaners? The one with the lady aerobicizing? It wasn't enough to have clean clothes back then, you had to look super-skinny in them, too.

"You're the one who's staying in shape, you're the one who's watching the tape ... and your clothes are in shape like you."

The revolving restaurant on top of the Ala Moana building was revolving and restauranting in 1987. It was called "Windows on Waikiki" and served "fine New England cuisine." Ha? What, panko mahi not good enough? Guess not. Not then.

A commercial for Island Movers emphasized how well they'd take care of your stuff when you move to the Mainland. These days, every other commercial is for storage space or mortgage companies. Everyone is staying and trying to make room. In 1987, if you were going Mainland, that was definitely a "moving on up" triumph. These days, could be that you just couldn't make it here.

The Kamehameha Schools Glee Club singing the American Airlines jingle because the flight attendants let them pick their own seats. And wow, several international air carriers had ads tailored to Hawai'i those days. Hard to imagine.

Shiseido was offering a line of makeup to make you look obake white, like you've never been to a beach or eaten a vegetable your whole life.

Mixed in there are a bunch of ads with people and things we have lost, images that just make your heart hurt:

Loyal Garner in white playing a white piano, singing "Happy Holidays" to a bunch of sweet-faced children. Miss her.

Good luck to the Rainbow Wahine, from Gene Kaneshiro and the Top of the Boulevard/Columbia Inn staff. Miss them.

King's Bakery Portuguese Sweet Bread French Toast at McCully and the Kaimuki shopping center.

Frank DeLima for Wisteria and KC Drive-In.

Didi Ah Yo and away we go with Creative Holidays.

Put some sparkle in your life with Security Diamond and Conrad Jewelers.

There's not as much sparkle now without Didi or waffle dogs, beef stew bar or Portuguese Sweet Bread French toast.

As for the match, that manages to be timeless once you get past those dated, distracting commercials.

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.