Thursday, May 22, 2008


The plane has been removed from its half on half off the runway location and flights are operating on their normal schedules once again, thank you Jesus! Tina, Lacy, and Rachel are flying out today.
School is now officially over, no more grading, no more lesson planning, and no more yelling "SIT DOWN!!!!!" The last few days of school were spent taking tests and practicing for the 3rd grade concert that Maribel (the other third grade teacher) and I have been planning. Yesterday was our class party. We played games and I gave out awards for good behavior, good grades, and whatnot. Then we ate lunch and blew up balloons. They ran around and hit each other with them for a while and a few helped me clean up the classroom.
Later in the evening was our concert. It went so well!! I was really nervous about it because I've never been in charge of a program and had to plan everything. We started the program with a slideshow of our students throughout the year set to music, it was really cute. The kids enjoyed laughing at their classmates and themselves. Next we had the whole "choir" (both classes) sing some worship songs that we have taught them during morning worships. Wow those kids can sing!! In the middle was a skit portion and they did a really great job with that as well. At the end Maribel and I sang "Side By Side" for our kids and that was that! It was a great success and although it was stressful and a lot of work, I'm really glad we planned it. A bunch of the parents thanked us, so I think everyone enjoyed it. Anyways, school is over and I'm still running around feeling like there is something important that I need to be doing. Hey, I guess relaxing is important too!














Things I've Learned in Pohnpei:
1.Mr. B is pretty much a superhero
2. I'm going to freeze when I come home!!!

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Crash Boom Bang!


Friday a tuna plane didn't stop in time on the runway and is not stuck hanging part way off the runway. All flights in and out have been cancelled until who knows when. I've heard estimates of a few days to a few weeks. I'm hoping it is the former. This means that a few of the SM's may possible miss their flights home and no mail service either. So much for hearing from Loma Linda this week.... Only 1 1/2 days of school left, then the party and 2 more graduations. I can't believe the end is here, I never thought it would come!!! It still doesn't feel real yet. Nothing much else to report.
Things I've learned in Pohnpei:
1. Traveling is wicked expensive!!!

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Final Trip to Ant Atoll



This weekend was our last school fair, which was a good time
of course. Part of the fair included a talent show spread throughout.
The lady SMs did a Tahitian dance together which was super fun.
The guys danced to an N'Sync song, which was hilarious.
Overall we probably didn't make a whole lot of money, but everyone had a good time.



After the fair we packed our camping gear and headed out for Ant Atoll! Along the way we did a bit of trolling (fishing with strong line held over the back of the moving boat). I felt a strong tug and after much struggling to pull in the line Mr. B informed me that I had a large shark on my line. We both tried to pull it in, but it stretched the line and eventually snapped it. A-Whoops!!

Eventually we drove to an island and crashed in a hut for the night. The next morning we drove to another island and set up camp the good old fashioned way, with palm branches under you and a tarp above you! After some nice swimming in the beautiful blue water and playing with hermit crabs the rain came. The rest of the day was spent lazily reading and napping whilst waiting for the rain to subside. Island camping is pretty much the best. The next morning we got up fairly early for scuba-rama! We drove out to a wall near an island called Bird Island. Apparently the entire island is swarming with birds. Anyways, the dive was fun. We swam through a sweet tunnel in the reef too.
The drive back to camp was exciting because a storm was a-brewing and the waves were pretty crazy. I can't explain what one of those boat rides are like. It's a mix between a rollercoaster and hitting severe potholes over and over again while driving at breakneck speeds. It's a good time. So the interesting part was that near the end of the ride the engine suddenly died. Hmm, out of gas. The other boat gave us some more gas, still no go. We had to get towed in by the other boat. The problem was that now we had 20+ people on an outer island and only one boat to get them back. Mr B. ended up making several trips and some brave souls stayed an extra night on the island. The ride back through the open ocean was some adrenaline pumping fun. The waves were HUGE!!! I was sitting on the front of the boat hanging onto a rope for dear life bouncing up and down like a kangaroo on steroids. Mr. B is an excellent driver and thus avoided what could have been some dangerous waves, but we still had quite a ride. My bum is a bit sore. It was such a fun weekend and things like camping on Ant make me really sad to be leaving so soon. I will certainly miss that, even the hermit crabs pinching my toes while I try to sleep (it tickles SOOO bad).

Things I've Learned in Pohnpei:
1. I will miss it when I leave
2. Hula dancing is wicked hard!!!
3. Goodbyes are no fun at all

Friday, May 2, 2008

The rains came down and the floods came up!



This week was the closest thing to winter that I’ve experienced all year. It rained and rained and rained all week long. Tuesday we had to put sandbags in front of the office to keep it from flooding. We waded through inches of water on our way to recess in the gym and all my students busted out their jackets. As a result of the rain, the temperature was wonderful, barely any sweating all week!! It was probably 78 or so most of time, which was a wonderful change, I thoroughly enjoyed it. This week was a big one for us, we had the evaluators here checking the school, it was midterm week, and I had to give chapel on Friday. The week was slow, but everything turned out well and now it’s Sabbath!! Yay for weekends! Three weeks of school left and it doesn’t seem real that at the end of this month I’ll be back in Cali to see my family and friends again!!! I’m very excited, although sad to say goodbye to the 19 crazy little kids that I will miss very dearly. The year is wrapping up and it will be incredibly busy up until the very end with graduations, concerts, school fair, camping trips, and parties to plan! The myth that 4th quarter goes the fastest is definitely false, however, the busyness gives a wonderful façade of time moving quickly.

Last weekend we hiked up “Mr. B’s Mountain”. The mountain doesn’t actually belong to him, but the land at the base belongs to his family, so we still refer to it as his. “Hike” is maybe the wrong word for this excursion. There is no trail, it is more like clambering straight up a muddy slope of 2000 + ft, grasping at any living vegetation to prevent slipping back down the few feet that you just gained. It was a muddy, slipperly, sweaty good time! The view from the top was breathtaking though!! It is the 2nd highest point on the island, so we had a great view of most of the island. The wind was blowing up in our faces off the edge of the cliff and at one point it rained UP on us. Getting back down the mountain was even more interesting than climbing up. There were many America’s Funniest Home Video moments as everyone present probably spent a good share of the way down on their butts or in that not quite stable position , arms flailing and legs kicking to stay under you. It was the craziest hike I’ve ever been on and I loved it.

We just finished our last SM Sabbath at the Kolonia church. It went really well although it was a long one! We had a nice potluck afterward and are now enjoying relaxing. I’ve got to recharge this weekend to get ready for the coming onslaught of planning and parties that come with the end of the year.

Things I’ve learned in Pohnpei:

  1. when the ship doesn’t bring fruit, it’s a sad day
  2. 78 degrees can feel cold, temperature is all relative
  3. It’s impossible not to overeat at potluck, yum!

Friday, April 4, 2008

The end is near


So the idea was to post a blog a day during Spring Break, but we were much too busy doing all kinds of adventures, so this short summation will have to suffice. Break was awesome and for the most part relaxing. We went camping, scuba diving, waterfall hiking, more hiking in the rain, exploring Nan Madol, and a little bit of just kicking back too. It was great to see my mom and it made me very anxious to come home. We are now in the 4th and last quarter of the school year. It seems like time has flown by and yet gone extremely slow at times as well. Only 7 more weeks of teaching left and although I love my students dearly and will miss them, I am looking forward to the end of school.
Last weekend was a nice long one because of report card/parent teacher conference day and Cultural Day on Monday. We had to have conferences on Friday morning and then we were free for the rest of the weekend. On Sabbath we drove to a waterfall near Kitti (not sure of the name) and after a nice 45 min hike or so we swam for a while. The scary part is that in order to get in the water you have to plummet 35 ft off the edge of a cliff into the water. Believe me, 35 ft is a long ways when you are suspended in midair, screaming for all your worth. I jumped and screamed and screamed and screamed until I was out of breath and realized I was still only about halfway down. It was certainly the highest I have ever jumped from, but it was thrilling and fun. On Sunday we hiked up Sokehs Rock to spend the night. It was a very fun trip, although hauling all your gear, food, and water up that climb was not the most enjoyable thing ever. We cooked hot dogs and watched the plane land at night. It was very windy at the top and quite cool. It was nice to have to bundle up to keep warm. I'm used to sweating all night. Monday it was back to work to get ready for school the next day.
The past two weeks of school have been interesting. The students were still in vacation mode for about a week so it was quite hard to get them motivated to learn. I'm sure it'll get better now that we are back into a routine.

Things I've learned in Pohnpei:
1. Good communication makes EVERYTHING easier
2. 2 months is a very short time
3. 2 months is a very long time
4. The hardest times of your life aren't necessarily the worst times

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Easter Break volume 1



My mom arrived safely Saturday afternoon. We relaxed and got caught up all evening and packed for Ant. Sunday afternoon we drove to Ant atoll and snorkeled for a bit in the channel. We camped the night on an island with no huts or anything. We slept under a tarp amidst a thunder storm. This morning we got up and went diving. Our dive went smoothly and we saw a shark and a really cool eel. Mom was a bit nervous about diving without an instructor or anything but she was a good sport and did just fine. After the dive we packed up and headed back to the main land. I tried trolling on the way back but I didn't catch anything. We just got back from walking to the store. We got caught in the rain pretty bad, but now we are nice and dry, so all is well. I'll try to keep you posted about the rest of our adventures later!!

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Manta Madness!




Dragging myself out of bed Sunday morning to get ready for diving
was not the easiest thing in the world. I almost decided to skip it a sleep in instead, figuring that the dive wouldn’t be that great and trying to convince myself that I should save my money for diving over Easter Break. I eventually got up though, luckily. We ended up going diving at a place called Manta Road. It is a small channel in between 2 sections of the reef. Aptly named, it was swarming with manta rays. I probably saw 10 or 12 during my dive. It was by far my favorite dive. The bottom was only about 55 feet so we stayed down for a long time. I only had 2 small rocks in my BC for weight so I had quite a time getting down. After Tim handed me a few of his weights I got down alright though. For once I wasn’t using the leaky regulator, so I actually had air to spare after my buddy ran out. I snorkeled around for a while longer using my air because I wanted to watch the mantas some more. All of a sudden I was in the midst of a huge school of fish. Seriously, all I could see were fish, well, and then down about 10 feet under us were 4 small reef sharks hunting the fish. Suddenly, 2 mantas were there to join the party as well. CJ and I were watching this whole spectacle in awe when lo and behold 3 more mantas decided to play chicken with us. They swam straight at us until they were about 2 feet away and then dove down right under us. I probably would have kicked one if my legs had been extended. They are beautiful creatures, wow!! I envy their graceful gliding through the water. And to think I almost didn’t go on the dive! It was a good time. As is tradition, we got caught in the rain for a while but then it cleared and I secured those funky tan lines at mid shoulder and knee that I know you are all envying (I also have a killer flip flop tan, really, it's quite impressive). We were back to the school by 1 which was good because that meant I could still get a decent amount done for school. This is the last week before Easter Break. Mom is flying in 5 days from now and I am very excited. I’ll admit it doesn’t seem real yet, but I can’t wait to see her.

Last week’s adventure was noteworthy as well, but I never got around to blogging about it. It consisted of an impromptu boat drive out to Ant atoll to snorkel for about 30 min (the boat drive is about an hour, maybe longer). On the way we got caught in a storm, it was pretty cool, huge waves, pouring rain. It was a little cold, but a lot of fun too. We bounced around on the front of the boat in the waves, luckily we were sitting on lifejackets to cushion our landings. I would liken the feeling to that of a rollercoaster. After snorkeling we went trolling for a while and Mr. B caught a fish or two. It was fun to get out on the boat and just chill for a while. Last week I was also blessed with 3 packages in the mail. I know, I really am spoiled. I enjoyed it though. Hopefully this week goes smoothly and we can actually get some legitimate work done in the classroom some of the time. Around vacation time it always gets a little crazy. I don’t mind it some of the time though, I enjoy when my students are excited, especially when they have been working so hard all quarter.

Things I’ve learned in Pohnpei:

  1. Manta Rays are stupendous
  2. Contrary to popular belief, roosters do not crow only at dawn. They crow all day, all night, and especially all morning, wherever and whenever they please. This includes but is not limited to directly outside my window.
  3. “Midday Sweat” is my new fragrance. Not to be confused with fragrance of choice, of course.

Friday, February 29, 2008

School Picnic


Last Friday was our last elementary school picnic for the year. I have mixed feelings about the picnics. While I am there I thoroughly enjoy myself because my kids are infinitely more fun outside the classroom than in. I can play with them and enjoy them. However, planning the picnics is a lot of work. Finding parents to drive and supervise, sending out notes, collecting money, and the like. The day of the picnic dawned with pouring rain, and I mean POURING. I was a bit nervous about it, but low and behold, an hour later it was sunny and beautiful. My drivers all showed up and we transported the kids to Nihco Marine Park. The kids swam and eventually dragged me in after them. We played chicken fights and launched kids off our knees into the water for a while and then ate lunch. Right when we packed up and got in the cars it started pouring rain again. Good timing! It was a fun day.
I got another package from the Lawrences (you guys are the best!) and my students have been enjoying the new books, puzzles, and Bingo game. Last week they were kind of crazy and it was a rough week, so it was nice to end with the picnic. On Sunday a group of us hiked through the fields and jungle to a waterfall that we normally drive to. It was a few miles away and we didn't really have directions, but we found it without too much trouble. The water felt so good after the hike. I have become accustomed to the weather and the river water feels cold now though!!
Spring Break in 2 weeks and only 15 days until Mom comes!! Oh, the SDA church women's ministry group is doing a prayer vigil next weekend, if you have anything you would like me to add to my prayer list for my hour, let me know!

Things I've learned in Pohnpei:
1. warm showers are nice even when it's 80 degrees
2. don't take cereal for granted
3. fans are amazing inventions

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

V-day Banquet and Spirit Week



The last two weeks have been jam packed with activities and a lot of work too! Last week was Spirit Week, which made things interesting to say the least. I enjoyed seeing the kid's costumes everyday, but finding something to wear for each day was rather challenging given our limited wardrobe. Nonetheless, I never pass up an opportunity to wear a fabulous costume, so I managed to dress up most of the days. Pajama day found me wearing comfy pants and my spiderman pj shirt. Tuesday was career day. Since I didn't have scrubs or a dental hygiene mask I decided to dress up as a pro b-ball player. Hey, at least I got to wear pants for a day! Wednesday was weird day. My outfit was pretty exciting and my kids all laughed at me. Thursday was cultural day and Friday was class colors day. My kids voted to wear red so the playground was a blur of red during recess that day. To end off the exciting week was the much anticipated Valentine's Banquet put on by the Junior class. The banquet was held at Club Cupid on a hill above the school that offers a stunning view. It was gorgeous. The best part was getting all dressed up! We had fun taking pictures and getting ready together. The entertainment for the banquet consisted of students singing, break dancing, and a few numbers by some of the teachers as well. It was a fun relaxing evening.
This week has been kind of hectic for me. I have fallen rather ill in the past few days which makes teaching less than pleasant. A head cold can seem a thousand times worse when you have 20 little kids screaming in your ears and grabbing onto you all day long. This Friday is our school picnic and we will be going to the same swimming spot as last time. It's so much work to plan these things!!! I think it will be fun if I can get enough sleep and hopefully feel better by then. Another stress this week was sending out midterms. This means getting all caught up on grading and recording whilst trying to prod the lazy kids to turn in their work! It's practically the weekend though, or at least I keep telling myself that. Only 4 more weeks until Spring Break! I can't wait for mom to visit, we'll have a rockin good time!

Things I've learned in Pohnpei:
1. with enough hairspray my hair can stay curled, even in the humidity
2. Nyquil is my best friend, Vitamin C is a close 2nd
3. cereal and dried fruit = the value of gold

Saturday, February 9, 2008

thus far in 2008



It's midterm time yet again. 3rd quarter is half over next week. The weeks have passed rather uneventfully this quarter, which is certainly not a bad thing. Let's see- Last weekend we hiked down to Sahwertik & Sahwerlap again. It's a fun hike especially with good company. A few weekends ago we hiked up Chicken Poop mountain. There was a crazy drunk guy yelling at us when we came down. The B's called the police and they came and took care of it. About 3 weeks ago I decided to brave the waves and go bodyboarding with the crazy surfer SMs. These waves are on steroids, I kid you not. They are HUGE. So it turns out I'm not terribly good at duck diving waves with a body board (where you dive through them as they are about to crash on top of you). I ended up being spun 3 times in a row in monster waves. I now know what my clothes feel like in the spin cycle. It's not a pleasant feeling, well, that and you can't breathe while being tossed about. It was an experience, that's for sure. I'm alive to tell the story and I amazingly didn't get cut on any coral either. I was lucky. Now I can check bodyboarding off my list of things to do....and not repeat.
We finally poisoned one of our resident rats. It chose to die right in front of our microwave on our counter. It was a gruesome death too. Gross. One down, who knows how many to go!
Only 5 weeks until Mom comes out to visit. I'm super lucky to have so many people come visit me. I can't wait to see you mom! Thanks to all of you that have sent me packages/cards in the mail, I appreciate it!

Things I've learned in Pohnpei:
1. Karaoke makes me happy
2. It is possible for time to go both fast and slow simultaneously

Friday, January 4, 2008

Vacation Chronicles!!!!



As nearly a month has pasted since my last post I have a plethora of adventures to recount for your reading pleasure. The first few weeks of December pasted in a blurred frenzy of attempting to wrap up the quarter, practice for the Christmas program, and plan/attend Christmas parties. It was a lot of fun and very very busy!! The Christmas program went well, my kids sang “Angels we have heard on high” and looked adorable dressed in white. The class Christmas party and secret santa gift exchange went off without a hitch and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Immediately following the party we drove to the airport to pick up Ross. It was so great to finally see him again! Riki flew in from Saipan a few days later. It was great to see you Rik!!! We all had a really fun time touring the island. During vacation we camped at Black Coral and went diving twice. We also visited the ancient ruins at Nan Madol, which was fun. We went on the 6 waterfalls hike. Yes, you really see six waterfalls along the way. It’s a great hike, swimming around in the waterfall basins, hiking in the river and through the jungle. We even found a few ginger water balloon flowers (no idea what they are actually called) to throw at each other. One of the waterfalls had a sweet cave behind it too! We visited Twin Falls and also climbed Sokehs Rock. One day we drove around the whole island and also climbed Chicken Poop mountain (yes, it’s really called that). On Christmas day we attended a local party. New Year’s Eve we went to a concert at the Kitti Church and spent a good share of time driving around Kolonia throwing candy to kids and yelling “Happy New Year” to everyone who was out and about. We got soaked with hoses and water balloons too! It was a great vacation and went slow enough to be enjoyed too. I missed being with my family over Christmas, but it was great to be with some of my best friends and be able to show them around this beautiful island. During break there was also the high school b-ball tournament. Since I’m the assistant coach for girl’s varsity I went to some games which was super fun too. We even had a coaches vs. officials game during the last day, which was a lot of fun.

I can’t say it ever really felt like Christmas much to me, but that’s ok, the vacation was very welcome. Thanks to all of you who sent me Christmas presents and cards, I appreciate it! Well, school is starting back up again and it’s back to work! The school year is half over, I can’t believe it! Happy New Year!

Things I’ve Learned:

1. I have amazing friends and family (ok, so I already knew that)

2. Playing should always follow hard work

3. I can bake bread, but still not slice it evenly