Friday, May 23, 2008

Birthday and Driving

Thanks for all the birthday wishes. We had a really nice party on the NCL beach north of the anchorage. Teuta and Ruby came down and Tonera and family from the fuel depot came to as well as Bold Spirit, Swell, Elise and Southern Cross.

There was too much food, Trinda made a chocolate cake with fudge icing, beef & onions over rice and hearts of palm salad. others brought raw coconut fish, fried tuna and other small fish, octopus and Te Varo spaghetti, fried breadfruit and several more. We made a bonfire on the beach and drank a little wine, beer and green coconut (mui moto) plus lots of water.

While I was looking for wood for the fire, mostly dry palm tree parts, I scratched my shin a little. I didn't notice it at first. We went spear fishing the next day and I swam for maybe 3 hours. Yesterday I noticed the scratches were large, red and angry looking so I started on antibiotics and salve. It will be a few days before I can get it wet again.

Tearibwa and husband came yesterday, just as we were trying to decide if we should borrow the NCL bikes and pedal down to see them. It has been 2 weeks since they last came. They brought a large stalk of green bananas. Trinda and she crocheted all day. He doesn't speak hardly any English, so he watched me epoxy a broke lamp/flashlight back together. We fixed them a nice lunch. We had a steak in the freezer that was thawing out so we had to eat it. They loved it. Not much beef here since there is
no refrigeration since not much electricity on the island. Also pancakes, fresh squash (pumpkin) from Ruby, rice and octopus.

We took them back across to the other side and waited with them for the school kids' truck. We discovered they like to play cards! So next time we get together we'll play cards instead of me and her husband just sitting while Trinda and Tearibwa sew.

Today Tauta drove down to deliver a ladies church group to the ferry to go to the other side. He wanted to go fishing so he asked me if I could drive a car. I said yes. He asked if I would wait for 2:00 and drive the ladies back to his house then. He said (I'm almost sure) that he would fish and take his boat back up to his house and I would meet him there.

Well we had a nice ride up. It is about 5 miles, but the road is so bad that it took just over an hour to get there without throwing the old ladies out the back ouf the flatbed truck! It is a 2 ton Toyota. Then we found Ruby at her school. She had no idea why I had her truck. I explaned then we went to her house to wait, since Tauta wasn't there yet. We had tea and dried breadfruit soaked in boiling water with shreaded coconut and sugar. We also had a kind of smoked/dried tuna. It was a nice snack.
Still no Tauta. At sundown we went to the beach where he is supposed to bring his boat. No one has seen him. Ruby is getting worried. We drive back to her house and another truck pulls up and says Tauta is waiting at the ferry dock beside our boat!

So Trinda and I drive his truck back. Bold Spirit and Swell have fed them supper and kept them entertained while they waited. They and caught several tuna and gave us a nice fillet. I just had some sushimi.

What we had here was a lack of communication!

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