10/14/07
One of the weirdest (and coolest) parts of my life here is the causeway. It’s a 4 and a half mile stretch of coral reef that was dynamited and then mixed with garbage and stacked up to form a somewhat solid surface connecting Ebeye and Gugeegue. It is by no means a road. Even a hummer would struggle to surmount its copious sand dunes and jagged craters. It is miraculous that the school buses get here on time as often as they do… which is not often.
Last week, nature did her best to reclaim the causeway as her own. The winds reversed, and the waves from the lagoon side came splattering over the fringe of the causeway, leaving rocks, sand, coral, and tires all over the gravel. The buses had to take turns shoving and pulling each other through the thickest parts of the sand to make it through. On Thursday, we had golf as usual. It was a lot of fun – but on the way back, it was insane. The plan was for me to take the scooter back with Lorie, an 11th grader who lives on Gugeegue and needed a ride home. I am still new at riding the scooter, much less with another person on board. When we got back to Ebeye from Kwaj it started to monsoon. It was not rain. It was sheets of solid water. There isn’t a working drainage system in Ebeye. The road was soon under about a foot and a half of water. It was dark outside. Every little kid has come out to dance naked in the streets. Imagine, literally hundreds of kids screaming and dancing in the road that now looks like a swimming pool, the majority of them completely naked. Lorie and I got on the scooter, and tried to navigate through the river of children, constantly honking the scooters horn. The horn, however, only got them more excited, and a mob soon formed around the scooter, and they began to run alongside us in the pouring rain, with me not really even able to see if we were on the road or someone’s front porch (there are no yards). Finally, we got out of Ebeye, and slowly maneuvered our way back to gugeegue. Occasionally I just started laughing at how ridiculous it was – a wave would splash me as I tried to avoid a huge crater filled with water only to plow through a pile of rubble, causing my entire body to ache. Where else in the world?
Some funny stories about teaching. In biology, we learned about protists last week. One example of a protist is an amoeba – it is the textbook example, and so I had them draw the little guys in their notebooks. Halfway through their class, Jonathon raises his hand and says “Mr., it’s 9’o’clock, may I go drink my medicine?” Sure… come back immediately. After class, I asked Jonathon, who showed me his Ziploc full of antibiotics, “hey, are you okay – what did the doctor say you have?” “An amoeba.” Haha. Who says microbiology isn’t applicable to Marshallese life?
Next to my house, a little workshop has been set up by our carpenter, who usually builds desks for us, but has recently been cannibalizing our deceased truck. Students usually hang out in the workshop during the day because it’s shady and teachers avoid it. The other day, I went to check out what was left of the white whale, only to find “ionic bond” carved into the left side of the hood and “molecular bond” carved into the right side. At least my chemistry students are remembering some of the terminology….
In my biology class, we are learning about cells. One part of the cell, the cilia, are tiny hair-like structures that help the cell move and sweep food inside. On the wall of the workshop there is a pornographic drawing that was recently added. I noticed, however, that it had been labeled. The private areas of the pornography were not-so-privately labeled as having cilia….. How could I even be mad? An educated allusion – that’s just hysterical.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Friday, October 5, 2007
10/3/07
On Sunday, we took a trip to Kwaj, where the military base is. After half an hour in the bus, which is now broken because there are apparently no fan belts on island, and then an hour on a ferry, we walked through the fake metal detectors and put our bags of laundry through the x-ray machine. Welcome to Little America. Kwaj is the most non-military military base ever. I think there are 30 or so people there out of 1500 that are actually in the army. The rest are all contracted by aerospace companies. It’s kind of like Pleasantville – everyone rides around on bicycles to their cute cinderblock houses, mostly oblivious to the problems of the country that surrounds their leased plot of land – and with all the amenities of home, how could you not be. We had to be signed in by our sponsors, relinquish our passports, and then we had permission to roam the base. Our sponsors are really awesome families that are willing to help us out once every couple weeks when we want to do laundry (in a machine that actually washes clothes rather than one that pulls and pushes until things rip in half – I really liked my pink striped boxers…oh well) or get some American fast food, or call home! After talking to mom and dad from a “California” number for an hour or so, we grubbed out on some pizza and quesodillas (CHEESE!!!!) and French fries. Then I thought about working out at their awesome gym. That thought lasted about 30 seconds. Then we went to the beach, because believe it or not, we don’t have many sandy beaches in our lives. Just lots of water, sky, palm trees, and lava rock. Plus, it was the first time the girls had worn actual bathing suits since we got here. When the missionaries came here in the mid 19th century, they made sure that the one thing (and perhaps only) the Marshallese people took from Christianity was that Adam and Eve were very, very embarrassed when they realized they weren’t wearing clothes, and that they should be too. So, women here are not allowed to wear pants, or anything that shows separation between their thighs. They all wear skirts or dresses that go well below their knees, and cleavage is out of the question. It’s okay (well, maybe a little bit frowned upon) to be promiscuous with 14 year olds, or to miss work because you’re an alcoholic and haven’t stopped drinking in 4 days… but for God’s sake, woman, don’t show your navel! Anyway, it was a good day. I even got to take a hot shower. Unfortunately, we can’t shop at the base’s store to bring buckets full of cheese and real produce back with us.
Today was the 4th meeting of the health club. Instead of walking the causeway, I have been running. I let the kids (and other teachers) walk a ways ahead of me for about half an hour and then catch up to them. Today I ran the 4.5 miles in 36 minutes, which for me is pretty awesome. Since there were only 7 kids walking, I decided I would bring some money in to buy them all fruit at the grocery store (i.e. apples). I’m still not sure why, but for some reason I thought that $40 would be a good amount of money to take. I stuck it in my shoe (since my shorts don’t have pockets and I carry my shuffle in my hand) and ran off. I spent about $13 on fruit for the kids and ice cream for me, then somewhere between the store and the place we walk to in order to hitch rides back to gugeegue, $27 fell out of my shoe. There is a very happy little kid on Ebeye tonight. I was not pleased, especially when I considered I had just dropped 10% of my monthly stipend.
For those of you that have sent me packages, thank you very much!! I have gotten some from the S’s of Knoxville, Grams, A. of Va Beach, and of course my parents. I’ve also gotten a letter from the Knoxville grandparents, and a belated grad present (thanks!). You guys are all helping me help other people. Also, if you sent me a package but I didn’t get it – which apparently has happened – Aunt N! – I’m really sorry… I am just as appreciative! Hopefully it will turn up soon.
Also, if you are thinking of sending a package my way, a small amount of couscous and/or baking cocoa would be much appreciated, as these are things my personal chef enjoys cooking with and that I recently found out I enjoy eating, and that are not available on Ebeye.
On Sunday, we took a trip to Kwaj, where the military base is. After half an hour in the bus, which is now broken because there are apparently no fan belts on island, and then an hour on a ferry, we walked through the fake metal detectors and put our bags of laundry through the x-ray machine. Welcome to Little America. Kwaj is the most non-military military base ever. I think there are 30 or so people there out of 1500 that are actually in the army. The rest are all contracted by aerospace companies. It’s kind of like Pleasantville – everyone rides around on bicycles to their cute cinderblock houses, mostly oblivious to the problems of the country that surrounds their leased plot of land – and with all the amenities of home, how could you not be. We had to be signed in by our sponsors, relinquish our passports, and then we had permission to roam the base. Our sponsors are really awesome families that are willing to help us out once every couple weeks when we want to do laundry (in a machine that actually washes clothes rather than one that pulls and pushes until things rip in half – I really liked my pink striped boxers…oh well) or get some American fast food, or call home! After talking to mom and dad from a “California” number for an hour or so, we grubbed out on some pizza and quesodillas (CHEESE!!!!) and French fries. Then I thought about working out at their awesome gym. That thought lasted about 30 seconds. Then we went to the beach, because believe it or not, we don’t have many sandy beaches in our lives. Just lots of water, sky, palm trees, and lava rock. Plus, it was the first time the girls had worn actual bathing suits since we got here. When the missionaries came here in the mid 19th century, they made sure that the one thing (and perhaps only) the Marshallese people took from Christianity was that Adam and Eve were very, very embarrassed when they realized they weren’t wearing clothes, and that they should be too. So, women here are not allowed to wear pants, or anything that shows separation between their thighs. They all wear skirts or dresses that go well below their knees, and cleavage is out of the question. It’s okay (well, maybe a little bit frowned upon) to be promiscuous with 14 year olds, or to miss work because you’re an alcoholic and haven’t stopped drinking in 4 days… but for God’s sake, woman, don’t show your navel! Anyway, it was a good day. I even got to take a hot shower. Unfortunately, we can’t shop at the base’s store to bring buckets full of cheese and real produce back with us.
Today was the 4th meeting of the health club. Instead of walking the causeway, I have been running. I let the kids (and other teachers) walk a ways ahead of me for about half an hour and then catch up to them. Today I ran the 4.5 miles in 36 minutes, which for me is pretty awesome. Since there were only 7 kids walking, I decided I would bring some money in to buy them all fruit at the grocery store (i.e. apples). I’m still not sure why, but for some reason I thought that $40 would be a good amount of money to take. I stuck it in my shoe (since my shorts don’t have pockets and I carry my shuffle in my hand) and ran off. I spent about $13 on fruit for the kids and ice cream for me, then somewhere between the store and the place we walk to in order to hitch rides back to gugeegue, $27 fell out of my shoe. There is a very happy little kid on Ebeye tonight. I was not pleased, especially when I considered I had just dropped 10% of my monthly stipend.
For those of you that have sent me packages, thank you very much!! I have gotten some from the S’s of Knoxville, Grams, A. of Va Beach, and of course my parents. I’ve also gotten a letter from the Knoxville grandparents, and a belated grad present (thanks!). You guys are all helping me help other people. Also, if you sent me a package but I didn’t get it – which apparently has happened – Aunt N! – I’m really sorry… I am just as appreciative! Hopefully it will turn up soon.
Also, if you are thinking of sending a package my way, a small amount of couscous and/or baking cocoa would be much appreciated, as these are things my personal chef enjoys cooking with and that I recently found out I enjoy eating, and that are not available on Ebeye.
9/29/07
The scooter is awesome. A lot of fun. It is a surreal experience to zoom down a causeway made out of dynamited reef and garbage avoiding potholes at 45km/h and look out on one side to see a calm lagoon and some islands in the distance and on the other side huge waves and endless ocean.
We had soccer again on Tuesday. Our numbers went down to 15 or so, but that made it much easier because boomer was sick, so it was just me coaching and reffing. I have officially challenged Father Hacker’s High School to a scrimmage. It should be fun. If it doesn’t work out, the kids seem to be having a lot of fun anyway, even though they keep asking me when they are going to kwaj to play the army kids, which isn’t happening this year because of a miscommunication.
We had our Manit Day (Marshallese custom day) school picnic on Thursday. The kids and some of their parents came in and set up loud speakers that blasted Akon and that song about beautiful girls that make that guy suicidal all day. The kids played volleyball, soccer, and basketball. They are really really good at volleyball, although they play a little differently – there is no need to take all three hits to set up a good spike because none of them are tall enough to do that, so it usually goes over in one or two hits. Boomer and I went swimming at the dock after playing with the kids, and some of them joined us later. I pushed one of my 10th graders off the dock. It’s a 7 foot drop, but he was already swimming. I felt a little bad, but then 5 minutes later he pushed me off… “F in biology this quarter, eh Jojabot?” The day was followed by hours of a game called Flick that we play with the Fijians that live on Gugeegue. Flick is kind of like playing 8-ball pool, but with checker sized pieces that you slide across a wooden board by flicking a bigger checker sized piece at them and trying to knock them into holes. It’s very relaxed to begin with, but when you mix it with ritual Kava drinking, it’s a sedative. Kava is a drink that comes from a root found in some pacific islands (not RMI, I don’t think) that they grind up and then filter through a sock into a big bowl, and then scoop it out using half coconut shells. There is much rhythmic clapping each time someone receives a shell from the distributor, and you are supposed to clap once before and once after you drink it or something like that. I just clap all the time to be safe. I was kind of excited to see what effect it would have, but besides being very zen-like, it just made my throat feel like I had sprayed some vick’s chloroseptic in it.
Yesterday was actually Manit day, all of the teachers and administrators from the public schools were invited by the assistant secretary of education to take a boat out to an “outer island.” It took about an hour to cross the atoll, and when we arrived, it was literally a seen from Lost. There were abandoned radar stations and huge white spheres on towers (presumably with satellites inside) that reeked of the Dharma Institute, and a 4-story, 50 yard long rotting freighter lodged eerily against the dock. Apparently the army used to have 100 people living there, along with the 100 or so Marshallese that still do live there, but in the early 90s they were able to switch over to remote access, and now the Army just pops in once and a while on a helicopter to make sure the Marshallese people know they can’t use the antennae as clothes lines.
The picnic was alright. I’m actually not a huge fan of most traditional Marshallese food. A lot of breadfruit was consumed. The way the food was prepared and served also made me a little nervous. Before we left, everyone took their raw meat they brought, unwrapped it, and dumped it into a huge cooler on the boat to let it all marinade together in the sun…. Staci started vomiting at about 11 pm last night – 12 hours later, she’s still not out of bed.
The snorkeling was good though – clownfish, huge schools of giant rainbow parrotfish, and a few eagle rays. And while we were eating a pod of dolphins swam by. Just another day.
The scooter is awesome. A lot of fun. It is a surreal experience to zoom down a causeway made out of dynamited reef and garbage avoiding potholes at 45km/h and look out on one side to see a calm lagoon and some islands in the distance and on the other side huge waves and endless ocean.
We had soccer again on Tuesday. Our numbers went down to 15 or so, but that made it much easier because boomer was sick, so it was just me coaching and reffing. I have officially challenged Father Hacker’s High School to a scrimmage. It should be fun. If it doesn’t work out, the kids seem to be having a lot of fun anyway, even though they keep asking me when they are going to kwaj to play the army kids, which isn’t happening this year because of a miscommunication.
We had our Manit Day (Marshallese custom day) school picnic on Thursday. The kids and some of their parents came in and set up loud speakers that blasted Akon and that song about beautiful girls that make that guy suicidal all day. The kids played volleyball, soccer, and basketball. They are really really good at volleyball, although they play a little differently – there is no need to take all three hits to set up a good spike because none of them are tall enough to do that, so it usually goes over in one or two hits. Boomer and I went swimming at the dock after playing with the kids, and some of them joined us later. I pushed one of my 10th graders off the dock. It’s a 7 foot drop, but he was already swimming. I felt a little bad, but then 5 minutes later he pushed me off… “F in biology this quarter, eh Jojabot?” The day was followed by hours of a game called Flick that we play with the Fijians that live on Gugeegue. Flick is kind of like playing 8-ball pool, but with checker sized pieces that you slide across a wooden board by flicking a bigger checker sized piece at them and trying to knock them into holes. It’s very relaxed to begin with, but when you mix it with ritual Kava drinking, it’s a sedative. Kava is a drink that comes from a root found in some pacific islands (not RMI, I don’t think) that they grind up and then filter through a sock into a big bowl, and then scoop it out using half coconut shells. There is much rhythmic clapping each time someone receives a shell from the distributor, and you are supposed to clap once before and once after you drink it or something like that. I just clap all the time to be safe. I was kind of excited to see what effect it would have, but besides being very zen-like, it just made my throat feel like I had sprayed some vick’s chloroseptic in it.
Yesterday was actually Manit day, all of the teachers and administrators from the public schools were invited by the assistant secretary of education to take a boat out to an “outer island.” It took about an hour to cross the atoll, and when we arrived, it was literally a seen from Lost. There were abandoned radar stations and huge white spheres on towers (presumably with satellites inside) that reeked of the Dharma Institute, and a 4-story, 50 yard long rotting freighter lodged eerily against the dock. Apparently the army used to have 100 people living there, along with the 100 or so Marshallese that still do live there, but in the early 90s they were able to switch over to remote access, and now the Army just pops in once and a while on a helicopter to make sure the Marshallese people know they can’t use the antennae as clothes lines.
The picnic was alright. I’m actually not a huge fan of most traditional Marshallese food. A lot of breadfruit was consumed. The way the food was prepared and served also made me a little nervous. Before we left, everyone took their raw meat they brought, unwrapped it, and dumped it into a huge cooler on the boat to let it all marinade together in the sun…. Staci started vomiting at about 11 pm last night – 12 hours later, she’s still not out of bed.
The snorkeling was good though – clownfish, huge schools of giant rainbow parrotfish, and a few eagle rays. And while we were eating a pod of dolphins swam by. Just another day.
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