Truckin’ along

All is well south of the equator. Midterms are in a week. It is crazy that 25% of the year is already over.

Our really awesome neighbor Leafa just got back to our island, and we had a cookout last weekend with chicken, turkey tail, and hot dogs. It was pretty tasty.

Half-barrel grill

I have been doing a lot more reading lately and trying to learn more and more in the sciences. There is something about watching “The Big Bang Theory” while eating dinner, and then reading a physics textbook for an hour that makes me feel like an uber-nerd sometimes. But I am enjoying it.

I have been able to watch football on Sundays so that has been great. I wake up around 6 am and catch the first 3 quarters of the CBS game before church. The Sunday night game comes on around 2pm. It is great watching a whole day of football and then still having the whole night left to do whatever.

This weekend is “White Sunday,” which is the huge church service that the kids organize. Cathryn got pulled into one of the song/dance routines that will be performed. I will post pics for sure.

Pineapple season is coming soon. This is what a pineapple plant looks like for those of you that may have never seen them.

Pineapple plant

Palolo season is also upon us. It occurs one week after the full moon in October. There is no explanation for it, but at about 1am the Palolo worm population rises from the ocean floor to breed in the water. They add links of sperm and egg to their worm bodies all year long, then rise on this very special moonlit night to release thier sperm/egg sacs into the water. The ocean becomes like saltwater spaghetti for 3-4 hours. Once fertized, the larva float and grow until heavy enough to fall. They then find a crevass and grow all year long, only to rise next October. It serves as an all you can eat buffet for the Marine Ecosystem so it is a great time to go fishing, which is what I plan to do. But the locals love to eat the worms, cooked and raw. The kids got kind of grossed out when I told them what they were eating, but the stuff sells for about $20 a quart.

In local news, two guards at the American Samoan jail were arrested for letting out the prisoners to make beer runs. I kid you not. Click here for the article in the Huffington Post. Just more evidence that things are little too laid back here. But hey, sometimes it just seems better that way.

September Sunset