Odds and Ends Thursday 50

With Luisa in town and an important Peace Corps event earlier today and school exams coming up next week and my professional typist skills in demand, I missed posting yesterday. Forgive me. This happens from time to time. Suffice it to say things are busy and I’m tired. My Vice Pule stopped me this morning to ask me to type out the timetable for next week’s mid-term exams. Next week: no classes, 1 exam to monitor per day. I’m ready for that. Here are some other odds and ends from the week:

• Did you know cats lose baby teeth the same way humans do? I noticed one of Scout’s fangs was completely horizontal last week, and it freaked me out. But a quick Internet search revealed everything’s completely normal. Also, Scout’s about to enter into a “teenager” phase where she tests boundaries and rebels against rules. How fun.
  
• I’m pretty proud that Odds and Ends Thursday is turning 50. Given that the first one appeared in February last year, you’d have thought we’d have reached 50 by January, but you know, things come up, things get in the way. I’m hoping we can do something more exciting for my 500th post, which is rapidly approaching. The tally in the sidebar is still off. I hope that will be fixed by post 500, but I’m not holding my breath.
  
• Coming back from Savai’i, I had an epiphany: Express bus. I noticed that our bus and another coming from the wharf on Sunday essentially played leap frog all the way into Apia, each dropping a slew of passengers off along the way. Why not have one or two buses that go directly to town, and another that makes stops along the way? What’s the Samoan word for “non-stop”?
  
• I’m reading James Joyces’ “Ulysses”. Sometimes it’s entertaining. Most of the time I have absolutely no idea what’s going on.
  
• Yesterday the economics teacher asked me to type his midterm exam. I agreed, not knowing it was going to be 24 pages. It had to be finished first thing this morning, so I was up at the crack of dawn finishing it. But mostly I feel sorry for the economics students who have to take it.
  
• I would choose Vailima over the following beers: Coors, Corona, Miller.
  
• I would choose the following beers over Vailima: Guinness, Pacifico, Sam Adams.
  
• It’s finally gotten a little cooler, although there are still moments when the heat becomes oppressive. I’m still quite sweaty when I get home from school each day.
  
• The culture show at Tanu Beach Fales is pretty good. The couple who sat next to me, Claire and Neville, were singled out for because they’d stayed there for 5 days and the night we were there was their last night. When they were singled out, the announcer called them “Claire and Natalie.”
  
• I found out that my year 13 Marie from last year, who is now at the National University of Samoa, has Australian volunteer Patrick for one of her classes. It’s a small island.
  
• While hiking Mount Vaea, the Indian missionaries asked if I’d gained any weight since I moved to Samoa. I told them I hadn’t, and I pointed out that in the Peace Corps at least, girls tend to gain weight and boys tend to lose weight. Maengi then shouted, “Oooh! I want to be a boy in the Peace Corps!”

That’s all I got for this week. I hope you’re well. Pictures below.

Silhouettes of guys at Le Waterfront on Savai'i.

Phil and his backyard.

Scout killed a lizard last night.

Out for Briony's birthday tonight.