Hippity-Hoppity

I got everything done I had to do today:  I made fish chowder, enough to send some down to a friend who just had a baby and feed my own family dinner, bought candy, an egg-coloring kit, and the ham for Easter dinner which is now thawing in the fridge, made the carrot cake for the bunny cake and have it in the freezer, I ran errands, balanced the checkbook, spent an hour visiting on the phone with Levi, worked with the kids, took Casey to the airport, started a new book, and took a 15 minute nap.  I thought about doing the dishes--just a thought.  Just for the record, I dyed eggs this year using pieces of old silk neckties (see the finished product above--I think they would have been brighter if I had left them for the 40 minutes instead of 20), but the kit is for Eden to use while I'm gone.  I also watched a video of Madie saying "nanana" about 10 times :)

However, I have not done everything I should have done today:  I did not have scripture reading; did not make my bed; did not assign anyone to wash the dog and cat--or do dishes; forgot to invite my neighbors to Easter dinner (easy fix); did not exercise (but DID chow down on chocolate-covered almonds and raisins).

And tomorrow I go to Guam to be with my honey for a few days. :D

...and MORE changes...

I wanna play tooooooo!

Time for a Change

Here's the thing...we've lived here 10 years.  When we first came the landlord had these blue/white/pinky drapes that I didn't want because 1- they were blue/white/pinky, and 2- because of this:

which is The View from the living room

 and the dining room. 

I didn't want to cover up The View!  However, I also had the noise.  Oh, the noise, noise, noise!  Marble-tiled floors, concrete walls--aye-yi-yi! 

 I've stood it for 10 years, but now as our house settles into less kids and more contemplation (?!) I want a more muted sound.  A year or so ago we got a bigger area rug for the living room and I think we're just about ready for a rug under the dining table (no more spilled jars of pickles, etc.), but I just don't know what to do about the windows. At one time I did put up some curtains and when I think about those curtains now--they were gross.   Maybe I've just gone so long with naked windows that I can't picture them with clothes.

I'm open to suggestions...  

Another Day at the Conner's

Well, I've talked about baking on Sundays, done an FHE post...probably the only other day of the week that really stands out at our house (other than Wednesdays, which is Youth Night so we aren't even here), is Friday night.

Friday is like this big release--you made it through another week. Ahhhh. Time to kick back, relax, maybe watch a movie, have a little free time when it's okay to put off whatever needs to be done for another day or another week.

Maybe that's what it's like for some people, but not here. Friday is ... fun! The kids invite bunches (yes, bunches) of their friends over, if I want I make pizza, we order out if I don't. The Wii, computer games, music--the limits of the week are off! Oh the noise, the smells, the noise, the eats, the noise, the sights, and the NOISE! It's a blast!

On Friday nights, I'm living the dream of having a home where the kids would want to bring their friends to hang out and have fun. We talked about that many years ago when we only had one kid. I wanted them to come to OUR house--I wanted to know what they were doing and where they were and I didn't want to miss out on the fun of knowing my kids' friends.

Tonight, Friday night, is no exception. I've been making pizzas since 3:30 this afternoon when Kait called to ask if Ashley, Christina, and LaKell could come home with her from school. Then Jershon called to see if Christina was here and I told him someone would come down and pick him up. Then when the girls arrived LaKell had her little sister with her. Then Arthur showed up. Then Solofi. Then Sam said Joe and Jenny and Daniel would be coming up with him tonight....

I'm tired. I've been up since 5:00 this morning. But I'm old enough to know that when this is all over I'm going to miss it. Memories--that's what I'm after here.

FHE Hike

We found this trail that goes up this hill...

I've lived here for 10 years and didn't know that "papago" meant "little thorny plant that rips the skin off your legs." Huh. Go figure.

Ezra and the rest got up to the top in no time. Eden and I didn't like running into the "papago," so we took a little longer and were a little more careful about where we stepped.

It was a beautiful view from the top. From the top of the hill we could see the lagoon on the Philippine Sea side of the island and the water on the Pacific side as well. Pretty. Here's the sun setting over the lagoon--we were on our way down by this time because we didn't want to have to feel our way back.

Eden was a trooper. Even though you can't see it in this picture, some of the grass we went through was taller than her. On the way down she found an interesting rock--that's what she has in her hand.

I'm kind of in a weird position scrunching down trying not to hide Kaitlyn's face (Eden really isn't as tall as me--yet!), but here's the happy group. Happy that we did it and happy that we knew the next part of FHE was going out to eat!

Preparing for the Pioneer Trek

Is it possible that 5 years have gone by since the last time we studied D&C/Church History in Seminary? My, my, my...

Well, anyway, we went out yesterday and today to work out a route. It's not easy to come up with a 20-25 mile route on a 14x6 island! Several people have given suggestions, so we went and checked out a couple of places, but today we retraced the route that was used 5 years ago and I think we will most likely end up with a modified version of that. When we did the trek then, we basically mapped out an approximately 18 mile route in the northern part of the island (Marpi area) and walked it. This time, however, we are really getting into the spirit of the trek. Last week the Seminary girls met on Saturday afternoon with Sister Smith who helped us measure and cut materials for bonnets and skirts (!!!), then she took everything home and sewed them up for us. Also, last time we just spent part of one day, but this time we're going for two days, overnight. One of the students is making a couple of handcarts to satisfy requirements for his Eagle Scout award--YES! we're actually going to have 2 handcarts!!! Gulp.

Will we go down this trail and up over that hill?

Or another swing around Bird Island?

Stay tuned...

Rota: The Sequel

Been there, done that...and it was wonderful! We really enjoyed Rota and the place we stayed, The Coconut Village, was very charming and close to the water so we could easily hear the surf.
Rota's reef is very close to the island instead of forming a nice big lagoon like on Saipan, but it has it's advantages and the sound of the surf was only one of them.



Here's Casey looking all manly with the pink girly bike. On the way to Rota we realized that neither of us had reserved a car, but we weren't worried because...well...it was Rota. However, the 4 rental cars available on island were already taken and we were out of luck. No problem, we'll just take a...oops! No taxi service. Okay, we'll just call our hotel for an airport transfer. Hmmm...maybe something was lost in the translation, but for whatever reason they couldn't come to pick us up. Okay. Casey ended up just asking a guy if he would give us a lift into town and he was so nice and accommodating that he took us out of his way all the way to our hotel. Very nice, friendly guy. We invited him and his family to be our guests for dinner and he said yes, so we waited that evening until 30 minutes after the appointed time and then just ate. We know that here in the islands "yes" often means "no thank you", but we wanted to wait a bit just in case. Islanders generally don't like to come right out and say no.

Lucky for us the hotel had a nice little restaurant, The Hibiscus, at which we ate our meals. It was pretty good. Casey had a good seafood curry that first night--I had spicy pork something. But the real treat was the dessert--sour sop sorbet! It was delicious and refreshing! Yum! They said they just take sour sop and milk and sugar and ice and whirl it up in the blender. I'm definitely going to give that a try here at home! The next day after our sweaty adventure that's ALL we ordered to eat for lunch!

Just a couple miles further into the jungle from our hotel was one of those advantages I mentioned from the reef being close to the island. It's a place called simply "the Swimming Hole". We walked down there the first afternoon to check it out and it was great! It's basically a huge tidal pool surrounded by rough rocks and reef, but with a soft, sandy bottom. I'm sure it can be treacherous during high tide and rough seas, but we hit it on at just the right time of day and it was a lot of fun. When I was getting out I saw a flurry of tiny, neon-blue fish flitting around in one of the smaller tidal pools on the side. I forgot to take my camera, but I found this photo of the Swimming Hole online. Unlike here, there were a few waves coming over the outer edge the day we went.



On Friday, we decided to take the two old single-speed bikes available at the hotel and head off to the Latte Stone Quarry and the Bird Sanctuary on the other side of the airport. Casey wanted to go by way of the main roads, but it had been quite a while since I've been bike riding and I didn't feel comfortable about how much control I had on it, so he sweetly agreed to go the back way which took us past the Swimming Hole again. I didn't think it would be any longer judging from the cartoon map we had, but he felt sure it was and he was right.

Poor Casey--I was soooo slow, but on the way, and not too far after passing the Swimming Hole, we came across an old Japanese train that was used pre-WWII by the Japanese for transporting sugar cane around the island. We were taking photos when I notice a low hum coming from inside the engine. That ended that little photo shoot for me! Jungle bees are nothing to mess around with--they're very aggressive. After leaving the train we continued on and between pedaling on the flats and downhills and walking on the uphills we finally made our way--arrrouuunnnd the runway--to the airport terminal.

After a rest and plenty of water it was an easy ride over to the Latte Stone Quarry, except for the fact that Casey's bike got a flat! Groan! He just picked it up and heaved it into the savanna grass so it would be hidden until the hotel manager could arrange to come and get it. He walked the rest of the way.

The Quarry was awesome! No one knows what the latte stones were for, but many people think they used them in building their houses--kind of as foundations to raise them off the ground I think. We disagree. What people would go through that kind of trouble to build a home? Especially here! The native people here lived outdoors, why go through that much work? These things are huge! I'm sure they weight many, many tons. Casey thinks it was more likely they had some religious significance, which would explain a lot including the lack of any knowledge being passed down about their use. Many of the Chamorros converted to Catholicism at the point of a Spanish sword, but I know there were a number of them who chose the other option. If the stones did have religious significance and assuming those who chose death were the most devout, then that knowledge went with them. As for the "converts", why tell your kids about something if you know it could endanger their lives?

We didn't continue on to the Bird Sanctuary (it would have been another 4 mile round trip from the airport), since Casey didn't have a bike anymore. We went the mile back to the airport, then my resourceful husband hitch-hiked us back to our hotel. Hahaha!


It was a fun trip--I loved it. Rota is lovely and quiet with very friendly people. It's one of those place where everyone waves whether they know you or not! I like that.

Casey admitted during our little stay on Rota that he had actually forgotten that he had intended to arrange this get-away as a Valentine gift to me. Hmmmm. That's okay--he made up for that on Guam. :)

Sunday Baking

Sunday afternoon and baking just go together, don't they? I remember my mother telling me that she loved to cook--just not meals (and I'm sure when she said "cook" she meant "bake"). I think I've inherited her attitude. I like leisure baking, not duty cooking. Mallory said lately "cooking therapy" and that's what it's like. It's in-home therapy--creative, goodly, cozy, productive, even philanthropic (hahaha!)--all those things that make me feel like for a little while the world is all right.

Rota

We're going on a little Valentine's excursion this year--we'll spend a couple of days snorkeling on Rota, then go over to Guam for a couple more days and then home. Valentine's on a remote tropical island---WOW!! But, you know, a tropical island is a tropical island and just because we live on one doesn't make it any less beautiful or a moonlit, ylang ylang-scented tropical night any less romantic.

Rota is the smallest of the developed Mariana Islands, only has about 1,000 residents, and was skipped over in the bombing and burning during WWII so it doesn't have the erosion-control plants (tanga tanga and ironwood trees) that were introduced to save the soil after Tinian and Saipan were ravaged. It has a bird sanctuary (probably for all the poor refugees trying to escape the brown tree snakes on Guam) and a latte stone quarry. Latte stones are monoliths with a bowl-shaped capstone. According to one website, "Their precise use remains one of the great mysteries of the Pacific to this day."

I've never been to Rota, but I hear it has great diving and snorkeling, white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, a turquoise lagoon, palm trees swaying in the breeze, brightly colored tropical fish, moonlit nights, ylang ylang,....

:)

A Visitor

Well, we've had rare birds, monitor lizards, and of course gekkos, shrews, chameleons--rats (ew)--etc., come to visit, but this is a first for us here in Saipan anyway. This little brown pig came to visit on Sunday afternoon. Ezra caught it by the hind legs at first, but it kicked like crazy. He looked like he was trying to hold the handles of a souped-up rototiller trying to chop through rough ground! Hahaha!

Eden had a different, and more effective, method for making friends. I was surprised how calm Pepper (our dog) was around it. In front of the camera Piggy definitely turned out to be something of a...well...never mind. ;)

Vacancy--Inquire Within

I want to do something today. It's Friday and I often feel like this on Fridays. I just taught my last early morning class for the week, the kids are just about done with the weeks schoolwork and ready to turn it all in, I don't want to think about my diet or what I need to prepare for Sunday, or any of the things I have to do. AND Casey's home, so I just want to do something. Something fun.

I want to sit in bed all day and play on our computers. I want to IM back and forth and laugh at how silly that is. I want him to show me interesting articles and information he finds on the internet or something funny someone sent him. The kids can bring us food. :)

Or maybe I want to go snorkeling and look at the fish and the coral. And we'll sit on the beach and talk and let the water cover our feet with sand.

Or maybe after lunch we'll go for a walk. Not a fast exercise walk, just a walk we'll walk until we want to turn around and walk back.

I want to eat Chicago-style pizza and watch something funny with Sam and Arthur because hearing them laugh makes whatever so much funnier.

Whatever. I just want to do something I don't have to do. I like Fridays.

Back to The Blog

I repent! Maybe. I told Mallory that I thought one of my New Year's resolutions would be to write in my blog again, so here I am. The problem is Facebook.

I've gotten so into Facebook as a place to upload pictures and videos, keep up on what's going on with family and friends, and record my little thoughts and comments that a blog has gotten to seem a little redundant. I feel like with Facebook I do my duty as far as keeping my Stateside kids reasonably up-to-date on what's going on in our lives and on the rare occasion anything comes up that needs more detail or more privacy, I email them.

That's been my way--and the way of some of my children. If asked how was our day, the answer is short (i.e., "Good." "Okay." "Mmm." "Eh."). Often, I just don't have anything else to say. That day is over--what is there left to say?

Other of my kids will launch into a detailed account of every part of their day. Every conversation, thought, action, everything! I love that, but it's not me. Oh sure, I have times when I want to give a detailed review, but on the day-in-day-out? No.

Ironically, the most consistent blogger in the family is of the short-answer type. And it's at her request that I repent. Maybe.

Another Bird...

out of the nest. We love you Jacob.

Ezra's 12!

Unbelievable, but true!

I Love You More Today Than Yesterday...

Happy 29th honey! (Thanks again Del.)

Madie's Got the Hiccups

Madie's just a little over 2 weeks old here--big hiccups, little girl. :)

Ex-PATRIATE, Not Ex-PATRIOT

Our niece is moving to Spain with her husband and four children ages 14 and down. What an incredible experience this will be for them! I hope they will come to love Spain and the people. I'm sure there will be challenges and certain aspects that may be confusing, frustrating, or just plain annoying, but I hope that overall they will fully enjoy the wonderfulness of their new home and they'll end up with many happy lifelong memories of their time there. I also hope they will acknowledge and express at least an appreciation for the home they've left.

I've noticed, since moving away from the U.S. in 2001, that some ex-pat Americans have a tendency to fall into the habit of viewing their native land with a jaundiced eye. My own experience has put me in a community with members of many other nationalities and I don't see it anywhere else. Palauans love and revere Palau, Koreans long for Korea, Filipinos miss the Philippines, and many Americans miss the good ol' USA, but definitely not all judging from the sometimes volatile tirades they get on in listing everything that's wrong with it. Loudly. Publicly. Authoritatively as if they're the final word.

Of course, there are any number of reasons behind a decision to move away, and that may be why these people are ex-pats in the first place. Some of them end up being the convicting judge and jury on their new homelands as well, but I wish they would keep it to themselves. Doesn't it ever feel like a privilege to be where they are? Maybe they grew up in families that moved around a lot and they're just plain sick of all of it--I guess I could understand that. Maybe the nay-sayers feel like they need to run down the U.S. in order to appreciate wherever else they are. You don't have to dislike one to like the other--you can love both! The beautiful lands, the cultures, the people, the interesting histories, the quirks, the language(s), the struggles, all of it!

Being an ex-pat enriches, enlightens, and expands life in marvelously meaningful ways. I've learned more about other people and how they think, the influence culture has played on my sense of right and wrong (as opposed to what is truly right or wrong), since 2001 than I probably would have in a lifetime if I had stayed at home. I've also come to have a greater appreciation for freedoms that enable me to live and travel pretty much where I want and have shaped--and allowed--a compassion and interest in others. I have learned to marvel at the God-given privileges that my native country has in this world and seen it struggle with how to live up to the responsibilities that come with that position.

Enjoy life in Spain! Love it. Embrace it. Be Spaniards! And be Americans. Be both.

On the Wagon--An Update

Remember the personal pledge not to eat junk foods or sweets for 6 months? Well, I'm about at the half-way point (or will be as of June 27), so I thought it was about time for a little report on my progress and findings.

What I have found is that I seem to have better control over my eating, which makes sense because I've heard that sugar can actually stimulate appetite. Of course, I haven't given up all sugar, just sweets and junk, but still I'm sure that it cuts my sugar intake significantly (I definitely have a sweet tooth!) At first, I think I was eating a little more, but it was easy to stop and I pay attention to portion control.

Another thing I found is a sense of freedom. That probably sounds weird, but it's true. It feels good not to think about what I can eat or can't eat. That decision has already been made and I don't think about or consider it at all anymore. Everything else--anything that doesn't fall into the categories of sweets or junk--is available. At first it was like, well, okay, what constitutes "junk food"? For me, it's chips, soda, candy, and that kind of thing. Mega empty calories.

I think I have a better disposition. I think. I probably should ask the kids, but just in case they disagree we'll just go with that.

It probably goes without saying that I'm eating a lot better--I have a tendency to grab something to eat on the run, but now it's almost always fruit--an apple, grapes, whatever. Or a piece of cheese. Or a handful of nuts. It's so much better than a couple of cookies, or one of the donuts I bought for my class, etc.

And here's the kicker--7 lbs. down with no increase in activity. Oh yeah.

Just Thinking about Names...

I'm up waiting to take a young man who has been staying with us to the airport for a 4 a.m. flight to the States (so we'll have to leave here around 1:45 a.m.), so I'm just killing time Facebooking and surfing the internet and I thought "Hey. I could actually do something constructive like blog," so here I am. It's been a while.

I was thinking awhile ago how weird names are here. It seems like people find a sound they like and go with it. I know a brother and sister whose names are Scarley and Scarla. Then there's Wallynda and Wandalyn and Wallyson. There are Eileen and Heileen--

Aaaaahh! Earthquake! We just got a shake!! Okay--just a little one.

ANYWAY, there's Marlene and Maylene and there are the twins, Marcy and Marsha--maybe not so unusual for twins.
Another thing I don't get about names is Bo-boy. It seems like everyone has a son that they call Bo-boy--the Filipinos and the Islanders. The boy has a real name, but he's called Bo-boy. I don't get it. Juniors they call Jun (June), but he may also be called Bo-boy. It's confusing to me, but it's not unusual for someone to have 2 names that they're well known by. For instance, in my class I have a young man who goes by "Sev," but he also goes by "Ton." Sometimes I call him Sev and sometimes Ton--trying to go by what seems to be most popular among the other students at the time. The Secretary of Health's name is Joseph Kevin Villagomez--sometimes the newspaper uses "Kevin" and sometimes "Joseph" or "Joe," and it's the same with people around island--about 50/50 "Joe" or "Kevin." Of course, there are probably 2 or 3 "Joe Villagomez"-es that all have government positions.
When somebody dies and their half-page color obituary goes in the paper it gives their name and then the name everyone knew them by which doesn't seem the slightest bit related to their real name--like the name may be "Margarita Sablan Camacho" and underneath it will say "Tun Chong" which is what she was known by.
There are some really beautiful names like "Sioloa" (the "Si" makes the "sh" sound). Then there are the misunderstandings that stick, like the brothers, Jim and James, who didn't realize that they were just two different forms of the same name when the US came on the scene and they chose American names. Or one Korean student who chose the American name "Jenny" but her mother made her change it to "Jeiiny" (pron. Janey), because she was told (probably by other Koreans I'm sure) that it would be luckier (maybe) and easier (huh?).

Well, I've got to go to the airport. It's 1:45 a.m.--I'm interested to see how this is going to read tomorrow when I can think straight.

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FMF, Day 3: A deal and the sounds on Orange Avenueposted by JimAbbott on May 16, 2009 3:11:39 AM

Abit of a late start, relatively speaking, because of a Fringe commitment and a visit to the rooftop party at the Plaza. On the roof, I got a chance to meet Matt Maroone of Universal/SRC, who was singing th praises of Million Year Echo. That band, led by Levi Conner, has moved from Central Florida to New York, but is still managed by Sean Perry of aXis Promotions and, of course, FMF.
(Orange You Glad folks: Be sure to look for updates from Kelly Fitzpatrick and Mary Frances Emmons, who were taking in the action on Mills Avenue tonight.)
On Friday, the band reached a handshake agreement with Maroone and his partner Jon Rifkind (Loud Records) on a production deal with Cartilage Records, a new spinoff company that Maroone and Rifkind are launching. The team will be working to produce a demo that will eventually get the band to a major label.
"They have stepped up their game to a whole new level," Maroone said of the band, which performed Friday on the Wall Street Main Stage. "I think Levi Conner is a once-in-a-lifetime talent."
On Wall Street, the band banged out an exuberant, high-energy 30 minutes laced with enough big, melodramatic hooks to put them in the ball park with Fall Out Boy, if that does anything for you.