The Adventures Continue

Friday's Adventure: Hannah and I took the day off from work. Had a personal day we have not yet used, and I decided I could use the day to ourselves and recuperate a bit more from my cold/sinus infection. Woke up normal time and did my core workout. Then, we headed to the laundromat. I had been putting off my laundry like crazy. I wanted to do it Friday morning, so I literally was wearing my swimsuit under my clothes on Friday as it was one of the few clean things left. hahaha No problems here :-)

The laundromat is supposed to open at 7am, but it is more so whenever the family that runs it decides to show up. We ended up sitting in the Bookworm Internet Cafe for a bit, where I enjoyed a freshly brewed cup of coffee for just 50 cents! Yes, 50 cents. Just one cup, but one was all I needed. Cindy is always an entertaining person to talk to as well; she's the lady that owns the little place. Laundry washed and hung up to dry in our bedrooms and closets, we watched an episode of Big Bang Theory. We hadn't watched them in at least a month, and this weekend seemed like a good time to catch up.

Then, as 9am approached, we grabbed a bus to town and hopped off at DDW Cafe. Have I ever mentioned that DDW stands for "Don't drink the water", as in down in that area it is best to not drink tap water. If you order water to drink at any restaurant on this island, you receive a bottle of water that you have to pay for. That was one thing that took some getting used to - not being able to just order free water to drink when I'm out. Oh well, though. The iced tea and coffee options have worked just fine for the one time I eat out each week or two :-) Anyways, I simply enjoyed a homemade scone and multiple glasses of iced tea. We had a planned stop for a good lunch, so I wanted to keep breakfast light. They have some very delicious scones, though. Real scones :-)

We sat there for a while nibbling on our breakfast, sipping our iced tea, and having many conversations. That's just one of the things we do. Next, we were off on a little walk in town for a few points of interest on our agenda for the day. A few places that are really only open during our normal work hours, so the day off it was :-) First, we popped in the district court as Hannah likes seeing court rooms. She has her JD and practiced health care law for a year and a half before backpacking in Europe and Asia then coming here. We sat in on a hearing for a drunk driving case fot a bit to see the inside. 

Second, we stopped in the National Park Visitor Center. Yes, I had just been in there a week ago, but I didn't get a chance to actually check out all the exhibits and information as I was too busy watching what my students were up to. Yes, I wanted to read every single word on the exhibits. I'm a nerd like that - I love learning, and I love the NPS. I was curious about what information they would choose to display here and how they go about displaying it. After working with kids for a few years now, I found myself noticing the way they worded things and tried to catch the attention of different age groups. For instance, I noticed there was not a single sign that really said "Don't touch the (breakable) coral on display"; instead, I found "Please touch the turtle on this exhibit". Using the positive way. I've learned that technique through my previous work with younger students. Also, we found this cool book about some invasive species on the island that cause problems. They titled the little display "American Samoa's Least Wanted." Then, as we flipped through we found different plants and animals with descriptions about their crime. Very cool :-) We're in our early twenties, and we enjoyed it.

Also, I have to mention this for some of you friends and family back home I know will enjoy this. NPS friends, if you read this, don't judge. My family and friends laughed every time I said something like this after my trip to the Galapagos Islands. Anyways, "This is the biggest boobie I've ever seen."

Chuckle I did as I pointed out my joke to Hannah and why it would be fun to throw it up on my blog. This is a red-footed boobie model to be exact - the bird to the left. Every time I get a glimpse of the boobies I hear I think about the blue-footed ones I saw on the Galapagos. :-)

Eymard came out not long after we arrived, and then I could hear him say "Jessica's here" to Pa'i as they were in a meeting. Pa'i came out and greeted us, and I had mentioned the day before I would probably be stopping by. Always nice to see them :-) Hannah thought I should have a picture by the sign, since this is my thing. We have a picture of her in front of all the court buildings. I have one already with one of the park signs out in the actual park, but this is a nice addition to my collection. ha

So, all morning I found my stinking cheap flip flops to rolling under my foot as I walked. Felt like I was an incapable walker for the morning. Man, not cool. Sure, I'm a little clumsy.... but, here's the funny part... see these scrapes here:

Yeah, those were not a result of me tripping in my cheap flip flops for the day. Rather, I slipped in some mossy water that was running across the sidewalk ever so graciously. hahaha Lucky I sorta caught myself and did not get my dress all wet. Learned my lesson that I should always carry a few band-aids and some triple antibiotic ointment in my purse. As we were still right by the National Park Visitor Center as this happened, I decided I might as well just go back up there and borrow a few supplies from my friends. Normally, I would just go with this. Not a big deal and just clean it out well and put the stuff on at home - that's what I did the day I cut my knee good hiking a while back. Still, since I had friends right next door with things I could use, I walked back up the steps and took care of it. Pa'i dug out the first aid kit for me. :-) Then, my leg looked like what you see below, which Hannah found rather entertaining. haha

Then, back to our little schedule we were. Up next heading to Tisa's in Alega for lunch. Grabbed a Tula bus and headed that way. After my little fall and first aid trip, we only sat at the bus stop for maybe a minute or two before the bus came. Good timing ;-)

I had told Hannah how the banana fries they make are yummy, and we could get a nice green salad with them. Pretty much their lunch menu without the big piece of whatever fish they had caught for the day. Look how yummy this delightful little lunch is. Mmm :-)

Plus, it was partly cloudy out on that East side of the island, so it was a nice afternoon to sit there and chat for a while as we enjoyed our lunch. I was prepared to go sit on the beach if I wanted to, but I was quite content staying up on the patio at our table as we enjoyed the ocean, the mountains, and our food.

We decided to head back into town and head to Matai Restaurant to enjoy some beverages, continue chatting, and maybe a little desert. I enjoyed my $1 refillable coffee. I had 3 or 4 big cups, and I tried a piece of their cheesecake. Don't even remember the last time I had cheesecake. Good stuff. Oh, and I actually ate the cherry on top. For some reason I didn't think I really liked them and usually would hand them off to a friend, but today felt like a good gay to give it a whirl. Yum. Why didn't I think I liked these? Perhaps certain canned versions aren't as delicious. haha. Sorry, Karena. Looks like I won't be sharing my cherry as much now if we are ever out  and have cherries on top :-)

On to my last "First Friday" at the market we went. We went to First Friday for the first time back in August - the night before my birthday. This was the night the Manila brothers sang "Happy Birthday" to me in the back of their mom's pickup truck as we had hitched a ride with them. I was starting to get tired, but I had been thinking about getting myself a bag of Samoan panikeke all day. $1 for six balls. Had to wait a few minutes, but that meant mine were fresh. Booyaaaa :-) It was cool to watch her making them and see the giant mixing bowl full of batter. I asked if I could take a few pictures, and the lady said sure. A palagi lady next to me said, "All year I've been wanting to take a photo of this. Wish I had the courage to just ask like you did." Cool moment.

They give them to you in a brown paper bag like this. Check out the grease seaping through the bag. Cringe a little if you wish; I do. haha. I told myself this would be the last Samoan panikeke I would have. Yes, often in the office in the morning someone has a bag or two they have picked up from one of the gas stations and offers it, and I've taken them from time to time. No more, though. Want to end my panikeke experience on this really good note, with my favorite ones on island. These right here from the place in the Fagatago Market.

These were nice and light brown, nice crunch on the outside, and delightful softness and chewiness inside. Some even had some banana in them. Yep, ended my panikeke experience well :-)

I convinced Hannah to try one of the Samoan banana "smoothies" for $1. This is what Richard had bought for us that one night we swung by the market after Youth. I didn't have my camera that first night, but I snagged a photo of the smoothie - mostly just mushed up bananas, perhaps some coconut milk, and some peanuts served in a styrofoam cup that was scooped out of a cooler. ha

I was really getting tired around 6pm. We knew some other people were planning on stopping by, but I decided I should probably head home and rest up. Had some plans for Saturday that I wanted to be ready for, and you can't fight being tired. We caught a bus home around 6:30pm, watched another few episodes of Big Bang Theory (fully caught up now) and went to bed early.

Saturday's Adventure: Time for a Saturday field trip with some students. Yes, I voluntarily agreed to lead a little fun education on one of my Saturdays. Making up for those field trips that fell through for some students that really care and wanted to go :-)

I woke up earlier than necessary. Had already made the decision I wanted to wait and do my core workout for the day after returning from the day's adventure. Instead, I decided to watch a few episodes of DC Cupcakes online. Just something to pass the time. I've watched plenty of shows like that, and actually a few of this particular series on TV before. I didn't have enough time to watch a movie, so a few little episodes of cupcake making it was. Ate myself a bowl of oatmeal, and then I was out the door at 8am to catch a bus into town as I wanted to run one quick errand before meeting up with my students at 9am.

I knew there was going to be a cruise ship on the island this particular Saturday as Pa'i was telling me about it, allowing the National Park Visitor Center to actually be open on a Saturday. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been open and I would not have been able to make the stop there with my students on Saturday. Lucky for us in one way. Unlucky it can make transportation a bit more difficult. I was surprised I caught a bus so quickly. Many of the buses end up getting hired to do some tours for the foreigners. Anyways, after running my errand I was walking down the street to McDonald's - the place I told the interested students I would meet them.

Good gracious! I had no idea cruise ships were so large. This was the first time I had seen one in person that I really recall. The ship must have just pulled in shortly before I was walking that way as people were just coming out onto the street. A few were asking me where this and this was. I said good morning to many - saw some families, old couples, young couples, friends traveling together, Australians - the whole cabootle :)

Whenever a cruise ship stops in American Samoa, it only stays here for one day. Seriously, though... Look at the size of that thing.

I knew telling the students "be ready and meet me at 9am" meant we would more likely leave around 9:30am. Yeah, that was about right. Eight of my senior students joined me for this little Saturday "field trip" to the National Park with Miss Boschen. I was excited about the group I had turn up - some good students, some that have been very friendly, and I respect each and every one of them. Two boys, six girls, and one palagi teacher... Off we went - Filipo, Tavini, Tautala, Faitafa, Christina, Sarah, Chardine, Carmel, and I.

We walked to the National Park Visitor Center, which was about a 1/2 mile walk from McDonald's. Along the way, and as we were waiting at McDonald's I was saying "good morning" to many of the tourists. One of the boys asked me, "Is that how you meet so many people?" Sure, I guess that's one way. I'm just being friendly and welcoming them to the island. :-) Also, I was so proud that not a single one of them complained about walking. That's usually one of the first things I heard on my official field trip last week. That, and "It's so hot." No, it's not. Yay for my great seniors :-)

Here are some of them peeking around the visitor center. They walked up the steps first as I followed, an then there is Eymard saying, "Oh, is this a group of yours? I was expecting all foreigners today, and then here come some Samoans up the steps. haha" Haha, yep. I explained what I was up to and told him our plans. "How are you getting there?", he wondered. Told him I would get us a ride in the back of someone's truck :-)

I'm glad they got to explore the visitor center a bit; there's some good stuff in there. Eymard even took a group picture (which I haven't gotten my hands on yet). As we were leaving, he told my students to take care of me and listen to me. Ah thanks :-) They all smiled, and off we went on our adventure.

We weren't getting lucky with a ride there in town, they were all making fun of my hitchiker thumb, and they finally convinced me to take an Aua bus which would get us to the base of the mountain on the road that we needed to go up and over (a ways still), but at least you know the vehicles are actually heading your way at this point. On the little bus we crawled, got off, and then started walking a bit. The boys thought they'd be all athletic and start jogging up the mountain. Boys, we got a ways to go. haha I get a pickup to pull over, and the driver says I can sit up front, most of my girls hop in the back, but then a few don't fit or something as he already had some people in the back. Off we went, and I've only got four students with me. "Well, this should be interesting." No worries, though. 

The driver introduced himself, asked where we were going, and what we were up to. I explained I was a teacher and was taking these students to the National Park Trail between Afono and Vatia. He actually lives in Afono and was planning on stopping there, but being the nice dad that he is he drove us all the way to the trail. I kept thinking the whole time, "those kids should be smart enough to get themselves a ride, and it will be a good experience for them." Made it to the trail with four of my girls, and I enlist them to call the others. One of the boys had a phone as did one of the girls. Those with me explained where we were, and then we got updates as they got rides. :-) Good work, you guys. They actually got themselves dropped off in Afona, but then luck should have it the kind guy that gave us a lift, saw them, figured they were more of my students, and brought them the rest of the way. I recognized his truck as he pulled in, and I shook his hand again saying, "Thank you so much, John."

As I was patiently waiting at the trailhead with the other girls, I decided it was a great opportunity to just enjoy some of my favorite views on the island. One of which is that of Pola Island from this spot. I mentioned that in my other field trip post. I played a little with my photographs, and here is one example.

Christina, one of my students, also kindly took a photo of me with this beautiful background. Vai'ava Strait is one of the picturesque photos you can find when you search American Samoa online, and one of the well advertised photos through the National Park for obvious reasons.

The girls spotted a fruit bat hanging in this tree and called me over right away. "Miss Boschen. Miss Boschen, there's a bat!"

Good work girls. He's the black triangle shape you can see in the center of the photo just above the big branch.

By noon, all of us had made it to the trailhead. They learned a little about hitching rides here in American Samoa (something none of them had done), spent some time along the road in a new area on their island (none of them had ever been out this way), and they worked together to explain to one another where we were. Looks like we're going to have learnt a lot more than I ever imagined we would on this little adventure.

Down the Lower Sauma Trail we went. A few of them were a bit tired after walking a bit on the road, but they persevered. I shared some water and snacks, and down we went to this really cool spot. The boys ran ahead, of course, but I explained a few things as we went to the girls that were close to me. The Lower Sauma Trail takes us down through the rainforest past some archaeology sites, through some shrubbery, down some lava rock, to a beautiful tide pool along the ocean. There is also this great view of Vatia village and the mountains.

Here is Chardine with part of that awesome scenery :-) I love this photo.

The boys were so excited about swimming. I actually ran into a guy I had met a while back on a hiking trip I had done down in Vatia, and he told me that this particular Saturday was a great day to go swimming in the tide pool. Awesome! Tavini and Filipo are actually two of the football boys that I met on my first day of school. You remember, some of those that ended up signing into my Marine Science class cause I seemed pretty awesome. haha ;-)

Here's some of the girls making their way down the large rocks, almost to the bottom - Tautala, Christina, Faitafa, and Chardine.

Sarah made herself a little camp over in some shade a little ways back behind the pool, and there she stayed most of the time we were down there. We ended up spending about an hour down here, which was nice.

Here you can see Pola Island and Vai'ava Strait in the distance. Had some nice clouds to add dimension to all the photos today, as well. Always a nice thing for a photographer, even though I'm no professional :-)

It was relaxing and fun to swim around in the beautiful tide pool. All of us but two of the students ended up getting wet. I took this photo with my camera down at water level, which is fun.

Like I said, a beautiful spot, right? This was my first time all the way at the bottom. I had sorta peeked around the corner a bit the day Hannah and I came down the trail most of the way when we had the car, and I knew some friends that had come swimming and jumping into this tide pool. It was great to finally experience it for myself :-) The big tide pool we were swimming in is at the bottom of this photo (only part of it seen).

Yep, some of us jumped in to from a little ways up. So much fun! Filipo had already done it before I even made it all the way down. I originally didn't plan on swimming today, so I just had the one set of clothes with me. I completely forgot being told about this nice place to jump in, and I didn't want to now pass that opportunity up. My first experience like this was in the Chihuahan Desert of Texas on my May Term with Dr. Stroh last year. Good grief, that's an entire year ago already now. Wow....

Back to the Samoa story... so, first thing after snapping a few photos, I took off my shoes, walked over to the spot, and jumped on in. Deep enough there. I'm responsible, don't worry :-) Me jumping in encouraged a few of the girls to give it a whirl. One was a bit nervous, so I went with her the first time. Then, later she went alone. Filipo was great about helping some move the few feet to the edge if they needed it. We got Tavini to do it, too. I said now's your chance when I'm here and you have some great friends here, too. This was cool to see them helping each other - a team building and encouraging experience :-) Proud moment again. Yay for some good students. We had so much fun and were safe the whole time! By the way, I also had my first aid kit, and Chardine brought one, too. In case you were wondering ;-)

I finally decided it was time to stop the fun and head back up so we could find a ride back to town. I snapped this photo of six members of the group for the day. It was hard to get them all to stand still for just one group photo. Maybe they were having too much fun. Nah, no such thing ;-)

Back up the trail we went.

Then, at the top we ran into Ranger Pa'i with her group of foreigners for a little National Park tour for some of the people from the cruise ship. I had never seen this Vatia bus before, and I had to take a photo. I mean, come on... it says "National Park" on it and has some cool photos. :-)

Pa'i knew I was bringing some students out today and said we might run into each other. She took a group photo of us, as well (which I also don't have my hands on yet). She mentioned to the tourists that I was a teacher that had brought some field trips out here. A few of them asked how we were going to get back. "We're going to hopefully catch a ride in someone's pickup truck," I said. Pa'i added, "Jessica is super nice, and I'm sure she'll find her way back down." Yep, no problem.

We started walking just because I needed to actually be on the road to flag someone down, and there was some shade. The boys started walking faster of course, but I said "This time we are all going to get in the same truck, or I'm not getting you ice cream in town." ;-) Just a minute though, and here comes a pickup. The first says he's just stopping in Afono. About to get in and go that far, when another pickup comes down the hill. I ask her quick where she's going, and she says town. "Would you mind letting us ride with you?" "Of course," she says. I explain I have a few more students that were walking ahead and ask if she will pick them up, as well. Yay! We are all in one pickup and heading all the way back to town. "That's how it's done, kids." haha

Four of the drier ones rode up front in the cab, and then four girls and myself were in the back. Drying off with the breeze as we meandered our way around, back up, and down the mountain. The girls said it was fun to hitch a ride, as it was something they had never done before. Here's a few of us in the back of the truck.

She dropped us off in Pago Pago, and right away I walked into a store and bought us all a bottle of water. I lucked out and got some for 50 cents each, worth every penny. Many of them had run out, and I wanted to make sure they were hydrated. Plus, I could use another one myself, as I had given one of mine away earlier. Then, we walked to McDonald's, where I bought us all ice cream cones. Yep, I may not really make any money, but it's still fun to do this for them. Nice way to end our adventure for the day before parting ways to head home. We made it back to McDonald's about 2:45pm.

Here's a cute photo I snagged of Sarah and Christina walking down the street with an i'e above their heads to protect from the sun. This is a pretty common sight down here, students walking or sitting in with an i'e (the piece of fabric) over their heads. Also, the kids were telling me how much they enjoyed our field trip on our walk. Good; I really enjoyed it, too.

Grabbed myself a bus back toward home, stopping at a store on the way to grab a few things. I found some cans of V8 juice. Ah yes! I love vegetable juice, so I enjoyed one after my awesome core workout. The workout was so great. I'm glad I saved it for this time of the day. Sweating with salty water on your skin is an interesting feeling, though. Here's my V8 :-)

I was mighty hungry by the time I finally had dinner then. After my bowl of oatmeal in the morning, I had only munched on some almonds while we were out, and had my ice cream cone at Mickey D's. Correction, I had two cones. Not on purpose. The guy sort of made us an extra, and I couldn't just pick one student to give it to, so I ended up enjoying it. Ooops. No biggie. I love ice cream, and I had plenty of room that day.

I had been thinking about the following pancake experiment for a while. The last of my Bisquick mix in a bowl already stirred up with water, I threw in some peanut butter and grape jelly. That's right... PB&J pancakes. Mmmm. Check out the batter for yourself:

Then, as I sat down to enjoy my little pancakes that really weren't too shabby, I was graced with this beautiful sunset out my window. What a nice evening after a great day with some of my seniors out on an adventure. Showing them you can get around the island without the bus or your own car, experiencing the national park, seeing some new places, learning life skills, and having fun :-)

Sunday's Adventure: Woke up at stinking 5:20am even though I didn't want to. I honestly could have slept in a bit more I think if it weren't for the roosters I could hear crowing. I decided to watch Captain America - a pretty decent movie actually. Then, I enjoyed a bowl of oatmeal before heading to church. After church, one of the ladies asked the van to stop at the store, and the driver's cutting his turn into a spot a bit close with this big green machine... and... yeah... contact was made. "Looks like we'll be sitting here a while," I thought. Yep. Been there and done that, though. Pretty standard procedure. Sure, not the funnest thing to sit in a parking lot when I could be at home by now, but hey I got to chat with some of the youth I haven't as much. That was nice.

Made it home about 1:30pm. I'm usually home before 12:30pm on a Sunday. I had proposed that Hannah and I walk the little trip to the Lucky Dragon for a little Chinese food. We ordered one thing of vegetable fried rice, and one was definitely the way to go. Ginormous plate! I mean I knew their menu was sorta set up to run the thing family style, but still. Wowza. Ginormous. We maybe ate a little less than half the plate between the two of us for our late lunch. Had some great glasses of iced tea with it, and then shared a little bowl of some pineapple ice cream. Came back home, and it was already 3:30pm. Time sure does fly some times when we get a chatting and are nibbling on some food and sipping on some iced tea. haha

I made a batch of chocolate no-bake cookies (no peanut butter this time) as Hannah and I wanted to give some to our administration on Monday. I decided to make a little powdered sugar icing to drizzle over them to add a little color and use up some of our supply. Looking good, and they tasted good too. I had a few crumbs ;-)

All day I had been looking forward to this bottle here. A bottle of some brewed root beer. Yes, I really don't drink soda anymore, but root beer will be my one exception from time to time. Especially authentic root beer like this. I had picked up a case of four bottles at the store on Saturday to treat myself. I figure I could have one each weekend, and then the last weekend Hannah and I will be sharing our last bottle of sparkling apple cider we have.

This is some pretty good stuff. I also looked up their website, and it was fun to read about the company and how they are about the natural stuff here. I did notice on the bottle that it was low sodium and gluten free. No added sugars. Good stuff, and it was fun to read up on some of the other products. Good ole root beer. A favorite that brings back lots of family memories. Last time I had a bottle of root beer was on my holiday vacation in Independent Samoa, and that was actually a sarsaparilla.

I've already received some nice thank you's from my students that joined me Saturday thanks to the Internet, and one of my NPS friends - Eymard, also commented about the trip. I had a great weekend. Different adventures and I got eight more students out and about on the island. A good group, too. This is the kind of education I'm really passionate about :-) More informal, hands-on, experiential, and outdoors.

Hope you all had a nice weekend and have a good week!

Just a Few Things

So... I kept going back and forth all afternoon whether or not I was going to work on a post today or not. At first, I couldn't really think of a creative way to write about anything in particular this time. There were a few things worthy of mentioning, though. Plus, I know I have some regular readers that know I generally have a post up Friday morning. haha.

Here goes... I really wanted to show some sort of video to my students dealing with nature and conservation. I didn't want it to just be a documentary. Don't get me wrong, documentaries are interesting, but I wanted to find a little something more. As I was searching for what I could download for free on iTunes, I stumbled upon an episode of The Discovery Channel series Dual Survival. "Ah, this may be my ticket."

I had watched this show a handful of times with my mom back home and started thinking, "yeah, this could work." Give them a different way of looking at the concept of living off the land. Our ancestors all used to live off the land without things like cars, electricity, phones, etc. Turns out the episode I could get even included a little story about the home of the main guy in the show. His home is super environmentally friendly. He collects lots of rain water, has solar panels, rocks that naturally radiate heat on the floor, and collects wind. He doesn't pay a single utility bill on his house. I explained that he had to pay for all the foundation and the panels themselves, but they start to pay themselves off. Thinking about the way we currently do things affects the environment. Not too shabby. Some were also intrigued by the show. Others, indifferent, and some... ungrateful. Yeah, I found myself thinking that word more than once this week. "Ungrateful little punks." Oh well, focus my energy on the kids that care. :-) I shared this episode with three of my classes. 

I took the class I subbed for and one of my of my own to my colleague's room where a presenter I'm having come next week to a few classes was speaking - Tina from the Tula Observatory. I talked about my tour with her and trip out to the Cape a few weeks ago. Her presentation was great, as it included personal stories, photos, and introduced the kids to several different science careers. Not just one, but a handful. My fellow Earth Science teacher had invited me to bring any classes if I would like. Also, Ranger Pa'i came back to my room to talk with one of my classes again. She talked a little more about the marine part of the National Park and shared some videos from the reefs out in Manu'a (the outer islands).

Zumba was fantastic after school on Thursday. I was a little sluggish halfway through on Wednesday, and it felt great to be able to keep my energy level up throughout the workout on Thursday. Then, Peteru led us with an ab workout to finish our session. I learned some new ab moves I've never tried before. Nice little things I can mix in this month as I'm focusing on my core and abs.

I enjoyed a little cup of ice cream while I was watching some How I Met Your Mother. Okay, so ice cream is pretty much one of my favorite desserts of all time. Good ole plain vanilla ice cream. It's also the less unhealthy options when it comes to desserts. hahaha Well, I've been thinking about throwing in these little photos and decided today was the day. 

If I buy a tub of ice cream from the store, you know it looks like what you see here. Pretty typical, and delicious in this form of course. Yet...

I like to swirl it with my spoon unti lit softens up even more - looking more like homemade ice cream or soft serve. My brother and I used to do this all the time, as I'm sure many kids did growing up. Yep, this is probably one of my favorite ways to enjoy a tub of ice cream :-) Even better....

Smooth, creamy, and not destroyed with chocolate (as my roommate likes to eat it). ;-) Vanilla ice cream will forever be my favorite.

Finally, I have a video I took one day I was riding home in the back of a truck. I've been wanting to video the mountains as we go to try to give you all a little better idea of how much dimension there is to this mountainous island. I try to describe it, but I struggle. My pictures don't show you at all what I'm talking about. This video helps a bit more. It's just so hard to grasp without seeing it for yourself. I can't get over it no matter how many times I ride down the road.

I hope you all have a great weekend! Until next time...

Tales of the Island Teacher

Ants, Ants, and More Ants

From day one of living in the townhouse in Malaeimi, there have often been ants scurrying about the kitchen. Some times you can see a trail of them coming up the wall. They would immediately swarm any spots of food or liquid left out. If the sink isn't completely clear, I find a batch of them huddled around whatever little food they find when I first wake up in the morning.

Was getting pretty used to it, and they actually didn't seem to be out as much lately. Well, I spoke too soon. I see them a little more now again, and here's the real kicker. I found a line trailing down the wall in my bathroom upstairs from the light fixture above the sink down to the floor. What on Earth were they doing up there? No food in the bathroom. I did find them swarming about my little trash box up there, which happened to be full of mucus filled Kleenex. Do they find mucus appetizing? Ick. So, I threw the whole box out and then sprayed the floor area and all along their trail on the wall and cleaned it up.

They proceeded to form their line in that area for a while after, but thankfully now I'm only finding a few. Oh, and did I mention that a few would wander around my bathroom sink. I also found a patch on my floor right next to my bed. The place where a few Kleenex would pile up as I laid in my bed sick last week during the afternoon. Seriously, ants? 

Then, after this problem in the bathroom, I come to school to find a trail of them on my desk and in my top right drawer, which I frequently open. Gah. What are they doing in there? Sure, they're often along the walls. Have been from day one, and I generally let them be. Just part of living here, but they are not allowed to scurry in one of my most often opened desk drawers. They wind up crawling on my hands or over the kleenex I'm about to use. Not cool. Once again, are they after my discarded mucus? haha

So, from time to time over the past few days I've been swatting ants that make their way onto my arms or hands as I touch things, spraying a bunch of Windex, and wiping up ants with paper towels.
Ants...

Stay on your Side, Mr. Centipde

Every so often, I will see a centipde waltzing around my workout room (the garage). Garage is the best place for them to be, of course. Don't need them waltzing around the kitchen, bedroom, or bathroom. The first day I saw one when I was exercising, I considered leaving him be right away. Then, as I thought about it more I decided to throw him outside so he wouldn't mysteriously sneak up on me while I was really focused and pounding through my workout.

Another time, I saw one way on the other side up on the wall. I left him alone. Seemed like he would stay on his side. This Tuesday morning was my first morning workout in a week, since I've been sick. I see one within the first few minutes of my workout waltzing along the floorboard in front of me. Hmmm, he's a moving but looks like he's going to stay up against the wall (his side). I sorta see him out of the corner of my eye circle around, but I keep going. Then, here he comes waltzing right up to my sweat towel on the ground one foot in front of me. Alright, Mr. Centipede.... you have officially entered my personal space, and now I have to get rid of you. I don't mind sharing the garage, but you just crossed the line. So, outside he went.

Miss Attitude

I have this one stick thin student who from day one can be sweet, tells me almost every day "Love you Boschen", has given me a few seis, and tries to give a bracelet at least once a week it seems. This same student has spent many a days just falling asleep in my classroom, not always doing work, but trying to do some catch up now. Well, this student was not too happy to hear that our field trip for Thursday wasn't going to be taking place that day. Rolled the eyes, which I've seen before from this particular one. My skinny Miss Attitude. Didn't take it personally but called her out on it, and then there were other students apologizing on her behalf afterward. Sort of gave me an apology before she left class on Monday. Then, she came in to class Tuesday morning, and the first thing she  did was give me a rather sincere apology. She also said she would like to be put on the list for my Saturday trip to the National Park. You got it :-) Miss Attitude can be genuine, a bit of a brown noser at time it seems, kind, and a big help. Oh Miss Attitude - some days I want to kick her out and some days she makes me smile.

Plan? Samoans don't Really Understand that Concept

I knew this coming into moving here that planning really wasn't a highly recognized concept. I had read from previous volunteers that meetings would magically show up during the day, days would be cut short, and people were often late. No worries. Sure, I like to plan some things, but I can go with the flow. Good thing, too. All semester as we've been working on this guest speaker series, some weeks we've been really unsure if a person was actually going to show up until they actually did, particularly the Samoan guests we had come in. Our palagi friends have generally been a bit more of a sure thing. 

I had booked the folks from the National Marine Sanctuary over a month ago to come back this Wednesday to focus more on their careers. Last time they came in, they spoke a lot about what the National Marine Sanctuary is. If you remember from my great experience with that that included a Samoan and a palagi. I had confirmed with both of them a couple times for this week.

Then, I am checking my e-mail during lunch break on Tuesday to find a message that begins, "I really hate to do this the day before we're supposed to come..." Oh great. Just yesterday I was saying  "Thank goodness they're coming this week." Last week was a rather long week. My students were also excited for them to come back. Turns out their boss cut the plug on the day at Tafuna, as they apparently need everyone in the office to get ready for this little special thing going on at the Ocean Center on Saturday. So much for what appeared to be a sure thing. Little bummed, but oh well. Nothing we can do about it. Hannah and I immediately worked on a new plan for our "life experience" lesson for the week. Don't really have anything else prepared, and quite honestly the guest speaker and other little things we have worked into class have been some of the most successful and favorites for the students. We are pretty proud of our little project.

Bread Without Butter

Often times when I walk through the main office at school, someone will have a little food sitting there. Some times they offer me some; some times they nearly shove it down my throat. haha Tuesday I pop in on my way up to the cafeteria for lunch, when one of the counselors says "Jess, come have some locally-made bread." Mmmm, homemade bread. Can't pass that up. Looked delicious. "And there's butter." I told her she didn't need to butter mine. "Oh, there's plenty of butter, and I'll let you do it." She gives me a whole slice, and I give the biggest thanks. I start to walk out, and she and the security head both say, "you have to put butter on it." No, no that's okay. Sure, butter on bread can taste good. I've eaten that way plenty of times in my life, but bread is quite delicious on its own in my opinion. Mmm hmm :-)

I popped into the counselor's office after school to tell her thanks again for sharing. I really enjoyed it. She said there was plenty and I could have taken more. Then, she proceeded to tell me practically her whole life story. Okay, not quite her whole life story. Still, she began to tell me how she was out running some errands on lunch for this reason.... because of this... because of this... because of this. haha Samoans tend to tell you a roundabout answer rather than cutting to the chase. haha Regardless, thanks for the delicious locally made bread. :-)

Listening to a Teenager

One of my really good students will stick around my room some times after school and just chat with me. Mostly, she does a lot of talking and I listen to her. I'm a good listener :-) I throw in a few words here and there. She's really great, but I do find myself analyzing the way a teenager talks about things some times. Man, I was an oddball teenager that really didn't do the whole "teenager phase"... at least I don't think I really did. At least not the stereotypical version. haha She told me how much she's really going to miss me, and she proceeded to add that she knows a bunch of other students will, too, after I'm gone. Even before saying all this, I found myself thinking again how it's ncie to have some students like this - the ones who pay attention and are learning some of the big ideas and more important things that I've been hoping to instill a bit. This student also really enjoyed my no-bake cookies the one day she got to try one and asked about the recipe. I gave it to her, and she was telling me how she made some for her family. They were all amazed about the whole cookies-without-baking part and thought they were good. :-)

Cartoons in Notes

The presentation I had for Monday's class included various little cartoons about littering, funny emotion, and just little things that added a little fun to the presentation. A few times, it seemed like the students were taking rather long on a slide. "Come on you guys, there isn't that much information on this slide." I peeked and noticed some of them were copying the cartoon images. Oh boy. I know they like to draw... and sure, they look nice.... but, they just made me laugh. It wasn't just a few students doing this either, I came to discover as I graded notebooks during my prep period. hahaha These kids... drawing completely unnecessary cartoons in their notebooks. Drawing them really well, though, of course. :-) At least, most... I repeat MOST of them also took some good notes in addition to the drawings. A few may have only focused on the cartoons. *shake head and smile*

Genuine Thanks

One thing I've hoped I've been teaching some of my students this semester is how important I think personal thank-you's are. For almsot every single guest speaker that has come in this semester, we have worked on some thank-you's in a couple different ways. Every time I've tried to re-iterate whey I think they are important. Appreciation is a fine quality to share. Anyways, a handful of students gave me verbal thank-you's after the field trip on Friday. A few gushed about it in their write-up Monday morning. Then, a few even mentioned me in their thank-you's for the NPS on Tuesday. Some are the students I know have been learning from me, and I truly enjoy having in class. Some are ones that surprised me a little, and some are ones I've watched grow as people this year.

I also had my students in those classes that were unable to join us on Friday write about their favorite parts of this class. Many talked about the guest speakers, and some ended by saying how great of a teacher they think  I am and why. Do not think I am trying to toot my own horn by writing any of this here. I don't do anything for recognition. Thank you's are nice to get, but I'm cool without them, too. It's more so the value that I taught them that I can see coming out in their writing and some of their behavior lately. Some of my students really do rock and are going to become great people.

Love My Zumba

One week, three boxes of Kleenex, two bottles of medicine, four liters of juice, gallons of water, days of afternoon exhaustion, hours and hours of rest and sleep, and I finally was back at Zumba. Boy, did I sure miss it. I was still a bit congested on Tuesday, but I successfully woke up right away to my alarm and had my morning workout in, feeling pretty good. I still had most of my energy by the end of the day. No more missing Zumba. May is my last month with this awesome Zumba class. Not even 5 seconds into our warm-up number, and I was grinning ear to ear. Oh, how I love Zumba. Such a fun workout, sweating out calories and impurities from the day, having fun, and making friends while I'm at it. Erica said I actually had some color in my face today and was glad to see me back. She had seen me one day last week (not at Zumba) and saw me pale and sad-looking that day. Felt really good to be back, I told her. The workout felt great. One other lady mentioned she was worried I had left them already as I hadn't been there all last week. I was also chatting with one of my coworkers - Tutuila (a VP at Tafuna) who I usually ride over to Zumba with. She has barely missed any classes from the beginning of the year, just like me. :-)  She wants me to keep in touch, and I made sure to get her e-mail today. Like I said, I have some Zumba friends - our little Zumba community. Yay Zumba!

The End

Alright, that wraps up some "Tales of the Island Teacher". I had this little idea to put my post together this way, so I hope you enjoy it. I also hope your weeks are off to a good start. Hope you guys back home are done with the snow now, as it will be May 1st by the time you read this. Thank you all for reading, by the way. Toodles.

Field Trip!

My first field trip from the teacher perspective was a success. The day seemed to be over and done with before it had even started. Perhaps that is my virus infested brain talking. haha More likely it seemed to go by so quickly because it was a whole lot of fun. You know I love learning, being outdoors, being in the National Park, and trying to share the awe, love, and appreciation for nature I have.

Might as well start at the beginning. Since the day before was a bit chaotic at school, I did not get a chance to gather all the students that were meant to join me on the field trip to go over a few things. That meant I did not get a chance to encourage them all to bring a bottle of water. Wanting to come prepared, I decided to buy a couple cases of water from the store across the street (just 30 cents a bottle) to be able to give one to each student that was joining me that day. Ended up getting a ride to school with our landlord, as he saw us standing alongside the road with my two cases of water.

My head was still stuffed up and muscles tired, but I was ready to go. Made it to school and headed straight for the cafeteria to see if the kitchen staff would be able to send us with any snacks. They told me they would get some sandwiches ready. Thank you thank you! I told them I would send a few students up about 8:45 to grab them. Had an announcement made for all of my students from 2nd and 3rd period that were coming on the field trip to report to my room immediately during 1st period. The bus said it would come at 8:30am, which I knew meant more about 9am; yet, I wanted to have time to go over a few things with all of them. (In my muffled weak sounding voice. haha) 

They were all excited to go, and I explained that they better be on their best behavior. Reminded them how much effort I put in to get this lined up and how fortunate we were to get a bus and have the rangers willing to take us out. We would be stopping at the visitor center in Pago Pago, first, check out the exhibits there, and get our instructions from the rangers. 

Our bus pulled into the parking lot about 8:55am. Climbed aboard, and I did a roll call and head count and then took my place in the front seat. My first time on a field trip from the teacher perspective. Lots of head counts to come. Sort of a cool feeling, though. Then the driver asked where we were going, and he didn't realize we were heading all the way to Vatia eventually, thanks to some miscommunication via my administration  No worries, though. He called his boss, we pulled into the "school bus station", and the manager had us switch drivers. He wanted to give me one that is more used to driving a bus out over the mountain to Vatia - a guy who comes from that area. Thank you, kindly! 

This bus driver turned out to be a lot of fun. He played some music for the kids, seemed to be making jokes, and even told them a little history of Vatia. Pulled into the Naitonal Park Vistor Center in Pago Pago. Great new visitor center! We were the first school group to be up there after the dedication, which is kind of cool. 25 students and I meandered a bit. They were like a bunch of 6 year olds on a playground, I tell you what. "Oooh look a this." "This is cool." "Take my picture." "I wanna touch this." haha

In addition to having Ranger Pa'i lead our interpretive trip for the day, Ranger Eymard also came with us. He is in charge of the social media for the Park, and he was all over the group photos for us throughout the day. He is Filipino and has been with the division for less than a year. I enjoyed getting to talk with him. He and I made the caboose when we were out on the trail in Vatia. Thankful for nice group photos and all the other photos he took, as well. Great photographer. Plus, he shared about 36 from the day on the Park's Facebook page. Can you find me in this one? haha

After a little talk in the center's classroom about safety, rules, and expectations, we were back on the bus following the rangers out to Vatia. My photograph shows us on the bus following the NPS vehicle:

Up and over the mountain we went, which was an experience in the school bus. haha. The driver did a great job, and the kids sure got a kick out of him pushing the pedal to the metal from time to time. Made a stop at the nice scenic overlook of Pago Harbor on our way up. This is a photo I grabbed:

And this one is courtesy of Eymard:

Onward we went. It's simply a fun experience to be driving up and over to Vatia. Great views of the ocean, the rainforest, and the mountains. Ahhhhhhhhh.... just take it all in. Some students brought along their cameras, which is awesome! I even noticed a few boys sticking their iTouch out the window as we went, and I asked if they were filming. Yep. "We want some video of the whole field trip thing." Cool. At least half of the students that were with me on Friday had never been down to Vatia before. I was excited for all of us :-)

All the way at the end of the paved road, we stopped and then spent a little time taking in the beautiful Vatia Bay along the rock wall.

Most students love posing for photos, and are known for putting up the Warrior "W" on their hands.

Then, a hiking we went. Well... mostly just a nice little walk to the Pola Island Trail. If one has a vehicle, they usually drive a little farther on this unpaved bumpy road to the actual trailhead due to a group of some not-so-friendly dogs. Vincent, of the Maintenance Division, actually joined us for this little jaunt and stood guard as we walked past the dog area. No problems, today. :-)

Not even one minute into the walk, I get some "Miss Boschen, it's hot." "Oh come on. haha You can do it. This walk isn't that far." Little pansies. haha It was fun for some of them I think to see me out on a hiking trail, as they all know how much I like to talk about it and share photos with them. Some of them also chatted me up more than I've had from them all year. Don't get me wrong, these girls aren't quiet by any means, but it was fun to have them just "chat" with me more. Elena said she didn't realize my first name was Jessica until this day, as that's what Ranger Pa'i and Eymard called me all day. You have to be kidding me? She is also a wrestling sister, like me. I do remember seeing her at the championships, and she told me every Saturday she was at a tournament watching (during the season). Elena also mentioned it would be cool to have a job like them. I told her those are exactly the kind of jobs I'm looking into these days. More my kind of teaching. Interpretive and environmental education, if you will :-)

Then, we have Tuli here. She stuck by me most of the day, chatted me up, told me her dad kept trying to call to check on her, noted all the new things she was experiencing, and by the end of the day she was telling me it would be cool to work for the National Park. I couldn't agree more :-) I encouraged her to go check it out this summer, maybe do a little volunteering, and talk with the rangers some more. That would be super cool!

At the trailhead for the Pola Island trail, there is a nice upward view of Pola Uta, the famous nesting site for seabirds on the island. Saw some boobies and other birds flying around as Ranger Pa'i told us all about them.

Here are some of the boys actually doing what they're supposed to at the time and looking up at the birds. ;-)

So, I had my big D70 out to take photos for the day, but I also had brought along my little compact camera in my bag. I decided it would be fun to let one of my students take some photos with it as we went. Some shots from a student perspective - an experiment. I handed it off to Christopher (Chrissy), and I enjoyed looking through them. Some great shots, some fun ones, and a handful of self portraits. haha

I enjoy this one below. Shows Miss Boschen with her camera taking photos of some of her students out on the awesome field trip in the National Park of American Samoa! I learned that a bunch of this rock we were walking on is basalt rock. Pa'i also kept reiterating that we were not to take any rocks from the grounds, as it is all part of the National Park. Learning about conservation :-)

Here is one of my favorite group photos from the day. We did a normal smile nice one first out on this rock with Pola Island off to the left, but then the kids insisted on a fun one, which Eymard entertained. Turned out nicely :-) They were having such a good time. I was, too, as you can imagine, along with my awesome ranger friends.

Here you can see Emi, Ranger Pa'i, Chris, myself, and Amona.

One of my fun little slightly artsy photos:

After our little excursion on the Pola Island trail, we loaded back up on the bus to make our way to the trailhead for the Lower Sauma Trail between the villages of Afono and Vatia for lunch. There is a stunning view of Vai'ava Strait from here, which you can see in the background of these students enjoying their lunch on the grass.

Many of us sat under the nice little fale, though, while we enjoyed our sack lunches from the great kitchen staff. They're always so friendly, and I love saying hello with a smile to them everyday and receiving hellos and smiles backs. Not only did they prepare us sandwiches, but they threw in some tatertots they cooked up quick for us in the morning. Yes, tatertots. They actually weren't too soggy at this point. Plus, they sent two cases of milk cartons. Tai lava! (Thank you much!)

We had some extra lunches, so I gave them to the National Park staff and our bus driver. We also were joined by some guys from the Maintenance Division. The boss came over and talked to me a bit. Asked if I had been hiking out on the Shoreline Trail near Leone. Yes, sir. "The guys told me they saw you out there one day." Haha, oh yeah." I did see them, and the trail was sure clear on my way back down, too." You all may remember my post about that one day. So, then I walked over and said something to them. "So, you guys remember seeing me that day hiking on the Shoreline Trail." They nod their heads and smile, and Vincent said, "I thought that was you." So, I grabbed a photo with the group. Thanks to these guys, we have nice trails to walk on as we enjoy the beautiful National Park. They all enjoy their jobs, too.

I also grabbed a photo with Ranger's Pa'i and Eymard before getting back on our bus. Yay for the interpretation and Education Division! Thankful for them, and I love their jobs. Two really cool people I am happy to know and will definitely stay in touch with. Eymard said this is one of the few photos he's actually in, as he is usually behind the camera. That's me most of the time, too. :-)

We had to leave a little earlier as the bus driver needed to be back, so we showed back up at school partway through 6th period. I made them all come to my room so we could discuss our day a bit before I sent them off to their last class of the day. Many said thanks again as they left. Some obviously purely enjoyed it simply because it was a day out of school, but they are high school students. I can't fight it. haha I hope together with the rangers and the experience in the park that we were able to encourage more appreciation for nature, conservation, and the island. I am still in awe of my awesome surroundings, and it seems that some of my students are beginning to understand that more. We had a great day, and I am beyond happy with my first field trip from the teacher perspective.  Now we shall see if it works out and I can get some more students out there.

Go check out the National Park Website if you're interested. http://www.nps.gov/npsa/index.htm There's lots of cool stuff up there. Also, if you have Facebook, you should go "like" their page. Just search "National Park of American Samoa." You can see more photos there, and I learn all sorts of things as they make different posts. Okay, okay... enough of my plug for the National Park for one day :-)

Headed home during my prep period after speaking with my administration about my field trip and finding out that we were no longer having the planned staff meeting after school. Did a few things on my computer, but then spent the rest of the afternoon into evening on my bed sleeping away more of my cold.

Saturday morning made a stop at the post office. Then ate some pancakes and drank 3 cups of coffee at Matai before checking out the wellness fair going on in Utulei. There was a pretty good turnout, lots of free goodies, samples of some healthy smoothies and salads, and exercise taking place. Didn't spend much time in town, though, as I had plans to watch TV and movies for the afternoon. I did end up feeling much better that afternoon though and got a little ab workout in, which felt great!

I was being picked up for little dinner with the Southern Baptists at 5:45 that I was looking  forward to - something a little different to get me out of the house. One guy who has been joining them for church as he is currently working for the Power Authority here had invited me to this dinner at his house. He is leaving within a few weeks and wanted to have the group over. His name is Mike, he lives in Tampa, and is Jamaican. His house is up the mountain by Pava'ia'i - nice view for sure. Good little dinner with fruit for dessert! Mmmm.

"Jessica, do you play card games?" Haha, I sure do :-) My family all knows that well enough. Then, we played this card game for a couple of hours - O' No 99. They tell me it comes from the 70s. It was a lot of fun. They sure did table talk a lot, though. "This is the most table talk I've seen in a card game, ever." They all laughed. haha

Hope you all have a good week. I am down to 5 weeks as this week begins. Hopefully a couple more field trips in some shape or form, a few lessons on conservation, a few guest speakers, some standardized testing, review, finals, and who knows what fun and adventures in between. :-)