Odds and Ends Thursday 12

With the exception of tomorrow’s Common Assessment Test for my year 12s, school is finished until June 8, which is very exciting. I wholly admit I’ve been in a little checked out for the past 3 weeks, but this week, the checked-outness of my school surpassed my own levels, which has been good and bad. In a way it’s good because I there was a twinge of guilt before, and that’s gone. But getting my year 12s to show up for CAT practices has been a little like herding cats, and I fear for tomorrow’s attendance. Here are some other odds and ends from the week:

• Did you notice anything missing from yesterday’s Culture Day post? Namely, my parents? Yeah, their flight from Oakland to Los Angeles was so delayed they missed their connecting flight to Apia. I don’t want to call out the airline, but I will say that it rhymes with Wunited. In any case, they had to spend all of yesterday in Los Angeles, then they flew to Auckland where they’re spending the whole day today, and they arrive in Apia tomorrow morning. On the whole, kind of a bummer.
  
• I saw three things yesterday I’ve never seen before, but which I’ve heard commonly referred to all my life. They are:
• Rubbing 2 sticks together to make a fire (I may have seen this on TV, but I don’t know that I’ve ever seen it in real life);
  
• A chicken running around with its head cut off; and
  
• I can’t remember the third, but I remember thinking there were 3.


• Last Friday I purchased a coke just before getting on the pasiova’a, the bus to the wharf. There was standing room only, and its disrespectful in Samoa to eat or drink while standing. But people often drink on the bus, but I wasn’t sure about standers. So I asked the kid behind me who was wearing a Samoa College uniform. He said it was fine if I did it. I asked if he would do it. He answered, “No because I’m Samoan. You’re palagi so it’s fine.” So I waited until we got to the wharf.
  
• I’ve been debating what to do with the blog while I’m in New Zealand. I’m having trouble reconciling the fact it’s Matt’s Samoa Blog, so what is to be done when Matt is not in Samoa? Posting fresh content will mean sacrificing the Matt or the Samoa part of the name. I’m interested in having (a) guest blogger(s) post things from Samoa, but I figure I could also post about experiences in New Zealand. I’m still wrestling with this, but feel free to chime in with your 2 cents.
  
• My next-door neighbor Maengi is recovering well in India, and is expected to be back here in June when school starts again.
  
• With all these papers to correct, it really doesn’t feel like school is ending tomorrow. With all of the stuff I still have to do (administer tomorrow’s CAT, tests to grade, CATs to grade), I just can’t get into the celebrating mood.
  
• Six weeks of Culture Day has left songs in my head to which I don’t know the words. This is frustrating and sad. Maybe I will ask a student to write down the words for me. Or maybe I will write English lyrics for the melodies. About living in Samoa. How fun would that be?
  
• I’ll probably just get the words from a student.
  
• Today is the 150th post on the blog.
  
• I’m a little worried about what to do with my parents for a week. I’m sure they will be happy to do whatever as the purpose of the trip is less about doing things and more about being together, but I am still the host.

That’s all I got for today. I hope you’re well. More Culture Day pictures below.
















Teams seated together at the beginning of the day.
















Squeezing the coconut milk out of the coconut pieces.
















Roasting cacao beans. Mortar and pesle in behind.
















Girls posing with fish.





















Stuffing the pig with mango leaves.
















Uncovering the umu.