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Last sights of the Pohnpeian islands
    As I wrote in my last entry, I wanted to keep this blog going for another month or so, writing on my life post-Pohnpei.  Obviously, I failed miserably.  I have been plenty busy though!

    Like I expected, leaving Pohnpei was bittersweet.  Seeing friends and family back home and enjoying some modern amenities (i.e. hot showers, orange juice, etc.) were very welcomed.  Needless to say though, I miss all the friends I made in Micronesia very much.  Not to mention the weather.  Even when I got back on the last day of May, I was freezing!  My blood very much thinned out and I’m still recovering!  Since leaving the island though, I have not had a shortage of adventure.

    My flight from Hawaii to San Francisco was delayed, making me miss my San Fran-NJ connection and hang out in the airport for seven hours, waiting for the red-eye.  If I recall correctly, I was traveling for about 33 hours, being awake for 40 hours straight since I couldn’t get any shut eye on the plane.  Unsurprisingly, the jet lag kicked me in the butt.  The reverse culture shock kicked in the second I stepped in the Hawaii airport.  The amount of people, most of them being white, was a slight adjustment, although it wasn’t earth-shattering.  When I first got in the car leaving the Newark airport I forgot my seat belt since no one wears them on island.  Then traveling in speeds over 70mph took me aback. 

    Despite these little things I had to get used to again, I had no major reverse culture shock for my first month back.  Everything changed though when July arrived and I moved down to Washington, DC.  Searching for housing in a relatively unknown area is a daunting task in itself, but it was especially so after having spent the previous eight months on a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific.  I was very blessed to find a house with three other solid Christian guys and finding a solid group of friends.  Throughout July and August though there were many moments when reverse culture shock was literally paralyzing. 

    One that sticks out is a normal grocery run shortly after moving in.  There were so many options, so many people, so much of everything.  I ended up getting the bare minimum and leaving as fast as possible!  Another memorable experience was going to a local church service.  The summer before my senior year when I was interning in DC, I attended this young adult service called Frontline.  In particular from those services, I remember the worship being awesome - drums, several guitars, lights - the whole shebang.  I was looking forward to returning to these services and participating in corporate worship again.  Well, be careful what you wish for.  The noise, the large group of people, the intensity (they even have a fog machine!), was overstimulation to the max.  It felt like I wanted an appetizer and got a 20-course meal instead.  It took months for me to get used to it, and even now I'm still adjusting.

    Other changes were more subtle that impacted my psyche.  My office has been on the 9th floor, surrounded by buildings well over 40 stories.  In comparison, the tallest building on Pohnpei is three stories – and there’s just one of those.  The best word to describe everything is overwhelming.  To those who will go through reverse culture shock in the future, my advice is simple – just get through it.  Lean on friends and family, put your head down and do what’s necessary.  With time, everything gets easier until it’s normal again.

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Arlington, VA - My office building on the right, surrounded by what to me, were skyscrapers
    Despite being thousands of miles from Pohnpei, the lessons I learned and experiences I had visit me every day.  I have worked intentionally to visit my memory bank, but most often, Pohnpei comes back with no prompting.  When riding my bike back from the Metro in the dark, I get flashbacks of riding on the Pohnpeian roads.  Once, I saw a big dog and instinctively got in protect mode, wishing I had a stick, and ready to fight the dog.  I then remembered I was in Suburbia, USA and the dog was on a leash.  In restaurants, several times I have received perplexed looks after saying “Kalanghan” (Pohnpeian for “Thank you”) when the waiter brought me water.  I also had folks thinking I was cursing after I screamed “KARAKAR!” after touching a hot pan (“Karakar” is Pohnpeian for “hot”). 

    So what have I been doing?  Over the past six months I have been leading the Good Steward Campaign, an initiative organizing young Evangelicals (i.e. young adults) around environmental stewardship and climate change.  Our target states are Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina.  I have been traveling around these states organizing students, campus ministers, and clergy.  My favorite part has been organizing events, bringing in various speakers to lecture at college campuses and church services.  If you want to check out the blog I transitioned to maintaining after this one, go here!

    Since I left, MAHI International’s English program has been going on strong!  The 40 iPads we acquired are being put to good use and three new volunteers for the English program will be arriving on island shortly.  Suffice it to say, I’m very jealous of them! There’s no doubt that I want to go back to Pohnpei again someday.  Whether that will be a mere visit or a longer-term stay is to be determined.  For now though, I’ll look forward to the next time I find myself back on Pohnpei, and will continue to carry the memories of the people and the experiences with me every day.
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Speaking at my alma mater, Dickinson College, in November for the Good Steward Campaign
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With my brother and Dad at a Rutgers-Temple football game in Philly
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One of the biggest things I have missed since Pohnpei is getting out in open space. Great Falls in northern VA has been a welcome place to retreat to
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My housemates and I after cutting down our Christmas tree
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My college roommates and I in NYC
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How I long for wide open spaces like this! Standing on the reef looking towards Pakin Atoll
 
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MAHI International and friends at the recent volunteer appreciation dinner
_

I have been working on this post since I first arrived in Pohnpei.  There were just so many things that were unique and distinct to Pohnpei that I started compiling a list.  Every time I thought of posting it I would find something new and crazy, so I decided it was best to post it shortly before my departure.


I would like to say that if you ever plan on coming to Pohnpei, I'd recommend not reading this.  Before I came I talked with my friend Alex who introduced me to Pohnpei.  I tried to pick his brain to learn as much as I possibly could about this place and I consistently received vague answers.  His response was essentially, "You just got to experience it for yourself man."  While I might have been slightly frustrated at the time I'm very glad Alex allowed me to discover Pohnpei and all its idiosyncrasies on my own.  Even if I did know all of this before I arrived though, I would still have to experience it.  For example, I can tell you how there are crazy dogs all over the roads, but it’s entirely different when you have to walk home a mile at night in the pitch dark, navigating through all the dogs and beating off the aggressive ones with a stick.

That said, here’s a little taste of what makes Pohnpei, Pohnpei:

-Locals talk with their face.  It’s very difficult to have a conversation with someone without having eye contact.  I don’t think I’ve ever heard a local respond to a question with “yes.”  Rather, they raise their eyebrows.

-Why did the chicken cross the road in Pohnpei?
a)      It was being chased by a naked child with his fingers covered in Kool Aid
b)      It was being chased by a pregnant dog
c)      It was about to be run over by a beat-up pickup truck
d)     It didn’t have a reason – chickens are incredibly stupid animals
e)      All of the above
Correct answer: E, all of the above

-98% of all people wear zoris (i.e. flip flops) all the time.  The other 2% is cowboy boots.  (I'm not counting the few people who just go barefoot.)  A trend among many Pohnpeians is the desire to be a cowboy.  I find it very amusing every time I see Pohnpeians listening to country music.

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A teacher in one of our adopted schools rocking cowboy boots!
-To show the size of something with your hands, you don’t hold your hands a certain distance apart.  You put your hand on your arm for the distance of whatever object is from the tips of your fingers.  So if you caught a fish a couple feet long, you would put your hand on your opposite arm a couple of feet.

-There is a Facebook epidemic here.  Every time I walk into any place with computers, over 95% of the time Facebook is on the screen.  The other 5% there’s some sort of computer game.  Apparently, before they had Internet, solitaire was the king time drain.

-If Pohnpeians lived in New York City, many would be seriously injured if not killed.  What I’m referring to is the Pohnpeian tendency to walk in the middle of the road without a care.  Crossing the road?  Take your time, what’s the rush?  There are hardly any sidewalks anywhere and most roads are narrow as the jungle has creeped in on both sides.
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Students walking home using the local path, I mean road
-If you ever come to Pohnpei, don’t be surprised or “weirded out” when the locals stare at you and continue staring after you make eye contact with them.  First of all, you’re a “menwie” (men-why), i.e. a foreigner, so you don’t exactly fit in around here.  Sometimes I feel like I should get that t-shirt that says “Keep Staring, I Might Do A Trick.”  I got used to it pretty quickly though.

-You don’t need to iron clothes in Pohnpei.  It’s so humid, no matter how wrinkled your clothes are, if you spray some water on them, the wrinkles will come out within 10 minutes or so.

-The multiple hairstyles here are awesome!  Pohnpeians can rock the craziest hairstyles, I love it.  I have multiple pictures to back up this claim, but here’s a couple:
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Slight mohawk with a mullet twist. Classic.
_-It’s not unusual to see a male, at any age, taking a leak on the side of the road, at any time of the day.  (Sorry, I don't have any pictures of this!)

-I’m willing to bet that around half of the cars on Pohnpei wouldn’t pass a general vehicle inspection in the States.  Some cases are more obvious than others!

-Abandoned cars litter the roads all over the island.  Most of the time these vehicles become part of the jungle environment as plants start growing in and around them.  Occasionally, like in a picture below, the cars are taken away by a recycling facility here.  In addition to cars, the Kolonia harbor is also littered with abandoned ships.  All of it contributes to what makes Pohnpei, Pohnpei.
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You can see a tree clearly growing directly in the car here!
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We had some cars moved that were close to our property - you don't see this every day!
-It is perfectly acceptable and appropriate to spit at any place or time, regardless of age or gender.

-Occasionally when driving along the road you smell the strong odor of burnt hair.  It’s rather gross.  It’s actually not the smell of burning hair, it’s the cooking of turtle.

-Many guys wear female clothing and accessories, not knowing they’re associated as girly things.  I’ve seen guys wear female rings, earrings and paint their nails.  The funniest part is it’s usually the guys who are going for the “tough guy” image that make this mistake!
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One of our students rocking the flower over the ear
_-Every day on the road I see doors of moving cars open, whether passenger or driver (sometimes both at the same time!).  The person then sticks his/her head out and spits a giant stream of red juice onto the road.  These people are chewing betelnut – a local nut that is combined with lime and cigarettes.  An extremely addictive habit, many locals are constantly chewing betelnut.  As a result, the roads, parking lots and sidewalks are littered with red stains.

-The 100m world record will likely never be held by a Micronesian.  The 100m while in flip flops world record, would most definitely be held by a Micronesian.

-You don’t go more than a couple hundred yards on any road in Pohnpei without seeing an animal.  Literally, I’ve tested this.  Most of the time its chickens, dogs and cats, but every now and then pigs, goats and ducks come out to play.
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The most common animal found on the roads are dogs, but here's a rather large pig, along with a chicken in the brush to the left of the pig.
_-Pohnpei has something that brings me back home to New Jersey – you can’t pump your own gas.  The world really would be a better place with more Petroleum Distribution Engineers!

-When Micronesians get new appliances or electronics, they don’t take the plastic coverings off, ever.  By keeping the plastic on a stove or printer for example, others think you have new things, which Micronesians find appealing.

-Why on earth many young Pohnpeians wear beanies is beyond me.
-While you drive on the right side of the road, cars are from both the US and Japan, so some cars have the steering wheel on the left, while others are on the right.  I've driven cars with the steering wheel on the right and it takes a little bit of getting used to - everything is the opposite.  I hope I didn't look too stupid when I put the windshield wipers on instead of the turn signal!

-Bob Barker would not be happy with this place. 

-Many Pohnpeians have interpreted “backpack” to mean “chestpack,” wearing a backpack on the front instead of the back.  It looks a little silly if you ask me.
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A girl rocking the chestpack on the left
-Having to set the clock multiple times every day is just a normal part of Pohnpei life thanks to the frequent power outages.

-It’s not uncommon to come back to your car and people to be leaning or sitting on it.  I always wondered what it would be like to bring some Micronesians to the US.  If you’re caught leaning against someone’s car in the States you might get your head blown off.

-There is a high degree of copyright infringement here in Pohnpei.  Here’s a short sample: Wall Mart, Cost Go, and South Park Hotel
-Despite being one of the rainiest places on earth, only on a handful of occasions have I ever seen a Pohnpeian carrying or using an umbrella.  No matter how hard it’s raining there are always locals walking around like it’s a beautiful, sunny day.

-Speaking of rain, the phrase “when it rains, it pours” must have originated in Pohnpei.  Hardly ever does it just drizzle in Pohnpei – most of the time it’s an absolute downpour.

-There's no limit to how many Pohnpeians can fit into the back of a pickup truck.  It's hard to count when they drive by fast, but it's fair to say that I've seen pickups with at least ten people in the back.
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This is only a glimpse at how many people can fit in the back of a pickup. This truck has a big yam inside so that's taking up a lot of space. It's not fully shown, but the truck on the right is a more accurate representation of how many people can be squeezed into the small space.
_-It’s not unusual to see two people walking down the street holding hands regardless of gender.  If it is a male-female duo, they are not “together” – they are just friends or maybe brother/sister or cousins.  The same goes for male-male or female-female.  As a relatively conservative country it would be considered very inappropriate to publicly express solidarity in a homosexual relationship or even in a heterosexual relationship.

-Pohnpeian “billboards” aren’t exactly kid-friendly!


So there's my list.  I'm sure if I stayed longer I would find new things to add to the list and I'm also sure there are plenty of other things those who have been in Pohnpei with me have noticed that I missed.  But I hope this list gives you a slight taste of what makes Pohnpei such a crazy place - and I mean that in a good way!  Below are some pictures that I have taken over the course of my service here that are just so incredibly random!  I love walking out the door here and never knowing what I'm going to see.  I'm going to miss that.  Too much of the same is plain boring.
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I call this the "Box Hat." This guy is trimming the bushes and found an innovative use for a pizza box to get some extra shade!
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Mr. B and I were driving to Pohnlangas Elementary School and were stuck behind this truck for a good while. You can't tell from the picture, but a couple of those rocks were tipping whenever the truck hit a bump. This was just a little sketchy. If one of the rocks managed to roll out Mr. B and I would have been squashed.
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I LOVE this picture, and took it just the other day. I call this "Pohnpeian Groundskeeping." This is at the local softball field in downtown Kolonia. That is a government vehicle raking the field. Incredibly random, incredibly Pohnpeian!
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This is at Pakin, where I mentioned in my last post there are more pigs than people. Here are some piglets hanging out on the basketball court.
This picture above says SO much.  Here - read the story behind it.
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Think you'd ever see this in the States? Here's a man outside a funeral walking with a leg of pig. An image that will forever remain in my head, that I failed to capture with my camera, is a ten-year old boy lugging a pig head on his shoulder. Crazy.
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This is a Pohnpeian BBQ. It works very well. A cleaned-out 55 gallon drum with a little welding work to cut out a whole to feed the fire.
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Colorful reef fish alongside chicken

It's hard to believe but I have less than a week left in Pohnpei.  While I'm looking forward to seeing friends and family, I'm going to miss this place incredibly - in large part due to living in a place that is so unique, as evidenced by everything above.  I'll leave the rest of these thoughts until my next post. 
 
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Completed solar panel unit on Pakin Atoll
__     This time last year I was graduating from college, reflecting on how much I had learned and grown over the previous four years.  I was still hearing people say “Microwhat? when introducing my plans for the future, but I was excited for my next adventure.  A long summer later and I was in Pohnpei.  It hasn’t really sunk in yet, but I only have a little over a week left in Pohnpei.  While reality will soon smack me in the face, I have been reflecting again on how much I have learned and grown over the past year.  In the midst of this reflection, I realized that in a way, I’m “graduating” from Pohnpei.  Let me explain.

    When I first talked to John, the Executive Director of MAHI International, about volunteering in Pohnpei, I was first introduced to the solar project on Pakin Atoll, an outer island approximately 30 miles from Pohnpei.  I researched grants and started fundraising for the project, excited at the prospect of transforming the life of the residents of Pakin, who have never lived with power on their island.  While things changed and I shifted my focus to education here on Pohnpei, I was always excited at the prospect of contributing to this project in any way I could.  I’m happy to report this past week we installed 16 solar panel units on the school roof in Pakin!  This power will be used primarily for an ice machine and freezer which will revolutionize the economy of the island as the main source of income is fishing.  There is a lot of extra power as well which is exciting as it might lead to future projects such as a computer lab for the school.

    On Pakin I also had the chance to help with health screenings of the islanders, assisting Ben, a doctor who is volunteering for MAHI International.  There are about 60 people living on Pakin, a number which inflates during the summer months when high school students return from Pohnpei.  We screened 40 adults and were able to educate them about many health issues about everything from quitting smoking to diabetes.  Life on Pakin is a different world.  One thing is for sure, most of my city friends wouldn’t be too comfortable.  There are more pigs than people, no running water, and if you want to eat dinner it’s a plate of rice unless you get in the ocean and catch a fish.  Many people see pictures of places this and wish they could live on a beautiful island paradise.  While it is absolutely gorgeous many overlook how tough island life actually is.  I have a tremendous amount of respect for these people on the outer islands and their incredible toughness.

    Once we got back from Pakin it was back to the grind.  I was really excited for Friday morning when we had a meeting with an embassy here regarding a certain grant application.  Back in December I wrote a grant to receive 16 iPads for our education program.  We heard very positive feedback from this embassy after a long delay and re-writing the grant for 40 iPads, with the assistance of Ap, the Peace Corps volunteer on Pakin.  We were a little worried however when they asked to meet regarding our application.  We were able to get our hands on an iPad on island and showed them an application we plan to use and answered all their concerns.  The grant was re-submitted with the very minor additions and the grant is all but set in stone (as it isn’t set in stone, I have not mentioned the embassy – once it is I will heap praise on their awesome nation!).

    When John, Ap, and I walked out of the meeting, it was then I started thinking about how I’m “graduating” from Pohnpei.  We have worked tirelessly to receive these iPads and it’s becoming a reality!  Any college student, past or present, can recall the intense satisfaction one feels after submitting all their work or finishing that last exam to finish a school year.  I felt a similar feeling when we realized the iPads are actually coming – a long period (over a semester long this time!) of work, dedication, and persistence culminating in a moment of where we could revel in our achievement.  These iPads aren’t the final answer – there is no silver bullet – but this tool will be an incredible addition to our education program.

    Speaking of graduation, this is our last week in the schools.  While I’m sad to leave our students I’m very pleased with the progress made this year, especially amidst our limited resources.  As I reflect on all that MAHI International has accomplished during my time here, I will be very proud of the solar project on Pakin and our acquisition of the iPads, but I will be most proud of our student’s increased English proficiency.  I’ll let the graphs below speak for themselves.

    In the fun department throughout this past week, my roommate Ian and I were able to snorkel on the reef next to Pakin.  No picture or video could capture the beauty of this place.  You snorkel in water about five feet deep along the reef, then boom! – a drop down into the ocean so far you can’t see the bottom.  The blue is the most vivid color I have ever seen and there are fish with the most vibrant and striking colors swimming everywhere.  I felt like I was in an aquarium.  I know what most mothers, including my own, are thinking at this point – where are the sharks?!?  Yes, we stumbled across some.  When there was just one shark, maybe four feet or so long, it caught our attention but we were more interested in observing it than feeling any sense of fear.  When there was two of them we backed off a little bit, but continued about our merry snorkeling way.  When the third shark showed up, this time maybe five feet, we stopped moving around and decided to stop diving down for the time being.  Only a little bit later when the fourth and decidedly biggest shark arrived it was time to take a break and hang out on the reef!  I might be willing to take some risks by entering shark infested waters, but I’m not crazy!

    This past weekend I was also able to visit Kepirohi Waterfall, which is likely the most breathtaking waterfall I’ve seen on Pohnpei just from the sheer size of it (pictures and video below!).  While you can’t jump off it due to the lack of depth at the bottom, there is a place you can sit underneath the falls.  It was incredibly loud but really fun to be on the other side of the tumbling water.  It was also especially beautiful thanks to the 6.5” of rain we received in one day (5/18) a couple days prior.

    Just FYI – my next post I have been working on since the day I arrived on Pohnpei.  You won’t want to miss it!

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Locals helping install solar panels on Pakin Atoll
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Pakin man with an epic beard looking out over the lagoon
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Hello there, friend
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Picturesque Kepirohi (pronounced Kep-roy) Waterfall
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Can you see me under there?
 
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A view of Pohnpei from Ahnd Atoll
     I was introduced to an interesting theory this week regarding the slow pace of life in Pacific island communities.  The theory states that there is a lack of urgency that pervades the culture in climates without winter, as people never have to prepare ahead for anything.  Pohnpei would certainly fall into the category of being “winterless” as the daily low and high temperature for the day never vary by more than five degrees all year.  Never does a Pohnpeian have to worry about being snowed in after a big storm, or plan when they want to plant and harvest their crops – every day is like the last and tomorrow will be the same.

    While I had read plenty about “island time” before I arrived in Pohnpei, the slow pace hasn’t really struck me until lately.  Perhaps it has just been a bad week, but I have been particularly frustrated by how long everything takes.  Take a normal meeting for example.  A meeting that should take five to ten minutes often takes 30 minutes to an hour.  People drive very slowly as well.  The island speed limit is 25mph, but it’s rare to go more than a mile without someone driving between 5-10mph. 

    Beyond just daily inconveniences there is no sense of urgency to solve any of the pressing issues present on the island.  From healthcare to infrastructure, energy to education, every problem can be solved "lakkup" (i.e. tomorrow).  Of course this is a generalization, but on the whole this is the culture of Pohnpei, and from what I’ve heard, all Pacific island communities.

      Given all of this it’s interesting to think that Pohnpeians, Micronesians, and all Pacific island communities have a lifestyle that is directly impacted by the weather.  For those that don’t know, I come from a family that loves snow.  No matter what the season, snowmen decorate the house.  My brother still recalls the Blizzard of ’96 with childhood wonder and my father can cite snowfall records from the past century by memory.  Indeed, he is legitimately a “snow expert” specializing in global snow cover.  They were quite confused when I decided to live somewhere for a year where it has never snowed – ever.  But I’m sure they would be overjoyed to hear that according to this one theory, which I believe holds some legitimacy, the world’s prosperity and development owes its existence to snow. 

      As always, we have been very busy with our education program.  We have a very exciting plan in store that I look forward to sharing within the next week or so.  It has been a challenge to comprehensively address the great number of issues we found in the schools, but I am confident our plan will make a great difference for these students.

    This past weekend was a lot of fun camping on Ahnd (pronounced “Ant”).  Check out some pictures of the island beauty and fishing heaven.


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My favorite shot from the weekend: a fallen palm tree being lapped by waves at dusk.
 
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I can't recall going a week during my time on the Dickinson campus in Carlisle, PA without hearing someone complain about how much it rains.  In fact, during all four years, I only heard one person speak positively towards the rain.  He's from LA and I laughed when he said "I like it here, you actually have weather."  I always took pride for some strange reason that I was planning on going four years in the Carlisle weather without a rain jacket.  I accomplished the feat, though I did give in a little bit and often used an umbrella senior year.

Well, to all those in Carlisle, take a gander at this graph comparing the average precipitation between Carlisle and Pohnpei.  Carlisle is in blue and Pohnpei is red, being one of the wettest places on earth.



...I bought a rain jacket.