Odds and Ends Thursday 53

Dustin’s been a trooper this week. Sure, there’s been the moments where he’s done something difficultly out of the ordinary: abiding with strange bites on his feet, putting up with the heat and humidity, dutifully swallowing palusami with blind trust. I feel like his bigger feat is keeping high spirits through the monotony of Peace Corps life. There’s been days when we’ve seen a lot, but there’s also been days when we’ve seen obnoxiously little. And Dustin’s been a sport throughout. Here are some other odds and ends from the week:

• Did anyone notice the sidebar disappeared for about a week? The snafu happened as a result of an open “div” tag. Blogger’s new system of uploading digital photos has me using “div” tags to delineate captions. The problem is not closing a “div” tag makes the sidebar disappear to the bottom of the page. The bigger problem is how does one find 1 open “div” tag in 512 posts? My superfluous search for the rogue tag began with the “Odds and Ends” post for Hawai’i. And wouldn’t you know, the very first “div” tag of the very first post I checked was erroneously open. I alleviated the problem, and boom: sidebar. It was an exhilarating moment for an html novice.
  
• Supy visited the host village this week, but due to medical issues he was resigned to his host family’s home, rendered immobile. He was given quite a few Samoan massages, which entailed the leaves and flowers of the nonu (noni?) tree. The leaves were used with the oils (the fanu’u) to massage the swollen area. The flower was used to poke at the wound.
  
• The pasiovaa coming back from the Mulifanua wharf on Wednesday was shockingly smooth. Dustin and I had cushioned seats and leg room and not too many people pulling the cord to get off before we reached Apia.
  
• Tonight Supy and I ran into a teacher from my school, Morgan, who is also a fa’afafine. Dustin, Supy, and I collectively pondered the fact that “Morgan” can be the name of a male or a female.
  
• The new wall at Phil’s school is a little preposterous. It’s high enough to be annoying, but the mason left a 3-inch gap between each brick, making an easy foothold for any climber looking to overcome the wall. As a barrier, it looks slightly foreboding, but mostly it looks like a somewhat easy challenge.
  
• Taking the taxi to the Sliding Rocks in Papase’ea last Sunday, Rachel noticed the taxi’s seats were covered in plastic. Dustin noted the similarity between the seats and his grandparents’ couch.
  
• I asked Supy when he’s getting his Samoan tattoo. His response, “I’m weighing my options.”
  
• The movie they showed on the boat on our way back from Savai’i, “Half Past Dead, ” shouldn’t be shown in public. Hell, it shouldn’t be shown in private. Really, it shouldn’t be shown. What a dud.
  
• On the way to Savai’i they showed “The Blind Side”. I was falling asleep when we first got on the boat, but once the movie started I was captivated enough. It was a little cheesy, but overall I approved. We reached Savai'i before we could see the end.
  
• Rachel 82 and Lili 82 watched the cat while Dustin and I were on Savai’i. Thanks, ladies.
  
• Dustin and I crashed 82’s nightly collective dinner party last night. They made burritos with black beans, red peppers, and extremely finely grated cheese. It was a great meal; totally worth the $6 plate.

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

Some sort of life-jacket drill was going on in Apia Harbour on Monday morning.

There was an orderly queue to purchase ferry tickets for the 2 o'clock boat Monday. This never happens.

Dustin and I have played quite a bit of "Uno" during his stay.