Meagan's Brainspace

Fly Peeps in a Yaris

2008-07-29T13:18:00.000-10:00

The first morning I woke up to pouring rain. I think it was almost going sideways. Cheryl and I decided to try and walk across the parking lot to get breakfast at the restaurant. Luckily the hotel had umbrellas. Luckier still is that I remembered to bring rubber slippers. At one point I think my umbrella was directly in front of me to block the rain, and I hunched behind it. Believe it or not, that was the most effective... even though I still looked like a drowned rat when I got across the parking lot. (The rain didn't stop for almost the entire trip... drowned rat became a good look for me)

I ordered an omelet with cheese. It was so greasy that I had to blot it on the side of my plate. Kind of gross, but food. I had taken my water bottle with me, and I was trying to keep hydrated with bottled water. I had heard stories about people getting sick, and I wasn’t about to risk it. I saw the Sex and the City movie. I know what happens. (If you didn’t see the movie, that will mean nothing to you.) Sadly, the food wasn't to get much better over the course of the trip. I was to experience foods like "Hawaiian Poke" with carrot shavings in it, shrimp that was served cold but had started out warm, way too many breads, and enough plantain bananas to keep all the monkeys in the world fed for centuries. On the last day we were treated to food from an umu (like an imu) - stuffed chicken, palusami (luau leaves and coconut wrapped in tin foil and cooked in the umu), and some amazing sweet potato stuff. I also had red papaya to my heart's content. That umu eating experience was probably my favorite.

PEC was a great experience, too. The opening ceremony had its highlights and down points. By FAR FAR FAR, the absolute highlight was the performing arts group that was made up of a team of students from two local high schools. Their choral work would put Kamehameha Song Contest to shame, and their dancing was flawless, energetic, and culturally quite stirring. I tried to get some footage on my little camera, but I didn’t have the sound on, so it’s kind of lame. I keep hoping I’ll find it on YouTube or something.

The down side was that Mike Gabbard was the keynote for the opening ceremony. He really bugs me. I didn’t feel particularly moved by anything he had to say. And THEN in one of his stories he talked about a time that he felt like he experienced prejudice and discrimination. Supposedly, it haunts him to this day. I say this not to diminish any feelings that come forth from a discriminatory situation – that’s horrible for anyone, even people I don’t like. But to come from a guy who has said some HORRIBLE things about homosexuals, and shown some of his own flagrant discrimination and judgment against others, I thought it was interesting that he thought his experiences might garner any respect at all. On the contrary, it made my stomach turn and I thought I was gonna hurl. (But let me tell you how I really feel....) And no matter what, he kept showing up at the large group events. I got really tired of seeing his face. Luckily, there were lots of cultural performances and fun experiences to make me forget about him!

Sadly, I didn't end up blogging a lot while I was there, in part from a mediocre internet connection and in part from spending too much time exploring, gallivanting, and enjoying myself. That little Yaris we rented added some serious miles, and us Fly Yaris Peeps made sure to take advantage of every photo opportunity that presented itself along the way. You can see my pictures and all the captions, which will tell you more of my experiences, on my picasa site. Please take a look, tell me what you think! =) (http://picasaweb.google.com/meems808) All in all, it was a great experience, and I'd LOVE to go back!

The first day in American Samoa - 7/13/08

2008-07-14T13:04:00.000-10:00

I worry. Is the first hour any indication of the week that is to come? The flight was fine, no big deal. It was once we got IN to American Samoa that things began to get harried.

So we're getting off the plane heading in to customs and there's a SUPER cute dog sniffing the bags. We get inside, and Cheryl's asking if I saw the super cute guard guy. I was like, no.... I was looking at the super cute dog. So she starts describing his muscles and tatoos to me and her eyes went all a-flutter.

THEN we finally get our bags, make it through the other end of customs, walk through TONS of Samoans (it was it's own cosmos chaos) and I go get the keys for the car at the Avis counter. Then I ask for a map. Have I mentioned I’ve been looking for a map or a tourist guide for weeks and haven’t found one? Well, they don’t have them at the Avis counter either. I’m not sure if the streets have names here. They might not.

So I got very descriptive directions from the Avis chick (I think it was a girl, not sure). She made sure I listened by holding my arm very tightly for a very long time until I was actually almost uncomfortable. Go out to the street take a left, go to the first intersection, take a right, go down a ways and you'll see a sign on the right. "You can't miss it," she says.

So we're running through the terrible rain, and the guy is helping us find the cars by grabbing our keys and hitting the alarm button so we can see which one is ours by the flashing lights and honking. We find our car, and head out. Yes, we are two FLY chicks in a Toyota Yaris. Did I mention it was pouring?

So we drive out and can't figure if she meant left out of the airport or the parking lot. So we took a second left which my gut said would be right. It was. What I missed was the so-called "intersection". What the hell. There's no lights on the street. The "intersection" looked more like a driveway to me. So we get caught in the traffic as we loop around the airport again. In the distance I see a bus. I scream at Cheryl - I'll bet it's going to the TRADEWIND HOTEL!!!! You watch the bus, I'll look through the raindrops and make sure I don't bang anyone. Watch where that bus goes. She said OK. Pu-shaw.

As we go driving past the pickup area (about seven cars behind the bus), Cheryl blandly states that she doesn't see the cute guard anymore. I look at her in shock, and she's staring longingly out the window at the airport again. BUS!!!!!!! I scream at her. You're supposed to be watching the BUS!

We found our way out that time, followed the bus, and lo and behold, it went straight to our hotel. Hungry and resembling a drowned rat, the free bologna and cheese sandwich slathered in mayo on white bread they gave us at check in never tasted so good.

That was our first HOUR.

It's gonna be a crazy week.

I know I know... still waiting on that blog I promised.

2008-07-09T21:40:00.005-10:00

I haven't gotten to the one I mentioned in my last post. BUT I have a funny story that I was emailing to a friend, and then thought, "hey, self, this is the kind of stuff I should put in my blog." So I'm putting it in the blog. And I swear I'll get to that other funny and interesting one that I promised.

Here's the thing, tonight I am looking around for stuff to do while I'm in American Samoa because I'll have time for sightseeing. Looking at hikes, beaches, etc. Found a website with the following paragraph. I was reading quickly, and not really processing everything my eyes took in. Granted, the paragraph is pretty entertaining:

American Samoans have a rich language that remains the main language of the people. English is the second language and all islanders can speak english as well. There are several levels of spoken language. The high talking chiefs have a high oratory of rhetoric that only the indoctrinated can understand. They are the politicians and negotiators. There are regular chiefs that speak the everyday language of the people and get things done. Many have noticed how similar this is to mainland American society.

So I misread it. I misread the word "indoctrinated" and for some reason my eyes told my brain that it said "intoxicated". And that made the paragraph even FUNNIER, especially considering the last line.

And I'm sitting here totally laughing at myself like a big dork ad realizing this probably means it's time to go to sleep. I'm just getting silly. But I thought I'd share the joy.

(note: the paragraph comes from http://www.ipacific.com/samoa/speak.html)

By popular demand...

2008-07-03T22:09:00.003-10:00

Here I am. And I'm gonna blog. Yeah, it's probably my fifty millionth attempt at this. The wreckage of digital and hard copy journals I've left in my path is significant. You could probably fill a couple shelves with them. Well... except for the digital ones. They're kind of nothingness. Which is pretty much all I wrote.

Over the last two years, I've been approached at parties, emailed, myspace messaged, and generally verbally encouraged to write more. I've been told it entertains. I don't think I'm all that OR a bag of chips, but I think I've finally been told enough to get the point. Tonight I was having drinks (and baked brie and mozzarella and tomato salad... but that's a whole yummy story that will get me quickly on a food tangent) with Kaira - one of the cooler chicks on the planet. She asked me a question, which I shall not divulge, because it's going to be the topic of my first REAL blog as opposed to the intro one, and after I answered her, she incredulously asked me if I had that answer down anywhere.

No. Of course not. It's all in my head. That's where it all is. My brainspace has a lot, some useless, some not. Some funny, some dramatic, some smart stuff, some things that maybe I shouldn't know. But it's all in there.

On my drive home, I shook my fists to the heavens, crying out, "FINE, God, you WIN, I'll write this crap down I GET it!"

Kay, maybe that's a bit dramatic. Obviously I wasn't shaking my fists in the air while I was driving. That's dangerous and my mother wouldn't approve in the slightest.

But still.

So here we go. I'm not even gonna write all that bull crap about how I'll be good about this one and I'm really gonna do this time and how I know this will be good for me and blah blah blah. If it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, it doesn't. But I kind of hope it does, because I spent kind of a long time figuring out how to customize my header and make something I liked. And for that alone, I owe it to myself.