(13) Monday
I had a very slow start today crawling out of bed at 6am to make some food potatoes and eggs with ketchup... not bad... then up to the computer lab to sit and watch some grade 9 kids typing.
Most of them really just wanted to look at facebook or the web. I don't really care if they do. I saw them sneaking peek at web pages. It is funny they think they fooled me or something.
I was on skype for a bit with my family. My niece Mila has made a crazy costume I took a photo of it and will post it online as soon as I have it transfer to my laptop.
evil-possessed-teddybear: My Niece is hilarious. I think.
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When I get back to the twin cities we will have to go to haunted houses she is a chip of the old scary block. I miss my family. I wish they could come here but the flight and cost the stress of it would be too much. Mila would love all the crazy adventures we could have here. I realize a ton of things by having time to think about them... without all the noise I usually have in my US life. Not many people are going to bother getting to know a person like family... I mean most people break it off if they get sick of you but family they forgive and forget and stick around when the its not so great. Pretty obvious probably but I did not know how good I have it.
Let's see what happened today... well I got to show a friend of mine, a tv show, for bit today... that was fun... Broad City episode 1. Then we took a cab to LCM I bought some cereal (eight bucks a box) and had two bowls as soon as I walked in the door back home, it was great. And I am almost broke again foolishly of course... I think I have 15 bucks until payday but it was worth it.
Tomorrow I have a morning class with year 9 then one at the end of the day same thing. I will have to try to get into town and see if the fridge is fixed. I just feel like I know what I am doing better if I have food waiting safely inside my house. The fridge is the best defense against bugs as well... Oh well not that big a deal.
If only I can get one of the admin people to help, to let me show them the website for the school and get them to help fill it in the content on the blank pages... all of them are blank. That would be great. I really want them to have cool website to promote the school. It is really turning around it's whole shitty decline and fixing things up. I can see this place in a few years being way better than it is now if only they continue on this path.
Midnight, and I can sleep but I don't. It seems pointless... why not work on a story for a few hours then sleep. I watched some twin peaks... man I forgot how strange and interesting that show was. I recall though that season 1 was great and season two a big let down... I dunno... maybe.
(14) Tuesday
I slept first time in forever. I can't remember the last dream I have had. Used to get crazy dreams all the time.
First class completed at 8:30 am and then I checked on my fridge nothing doing... said maybe tomorrow afternoon. Not likely. Betting next month more likely. But if I keep on it every other day I am sure it will trim the wait time down a few weeks.
I worked a bit teaching I guess... babysitting a computer lab is not much of a teaching gig but I sat there and let them using the typing program and once they got bored with that I let them use encarta or just tool around on the web. I personally think we should a fun class like gaming or something. If only this country could get into the modern age they could use gaming as a legit class for testing/debugging programs. Oh well... thinking way too big again.
After class I checked on my fridge and then watched the rest of season one of twin peaks. I forgot how strange that series was. And it was fun watching it without commercials and having to wait a week between each show. I could never keep the series strait when I saw it back when it came out. Impossibly complex with a ton of possible killers.
Whew... this country has the biggest cockroaches ever. Just saw a monster outside. Thank god I put mesh on all my drains and blocked them out.
(15) Wednesday
Last day of teaching I hope... I don't know what I am doing really and I hate the curriculum so much that if I were forced to teach I would basically ignore their rules and just do my own thing. Microsoft is not IT... it is a bad excuse of a reason to even use a computer. Sorry had to yell that once.
8:41am... tiny tiny earthquake... felt like a giant shovel my house a little.
Bowl of cereal and then teaching... Tomorrow I go to Ratua island and Malo to check out a site for a internet project. So excited... I hope I get to eat there again. That would be AMAZING.
Long day of nothing. Teaching if you want to call it that was not interesting at all.
Fridge is maybe going to be fixed in a few days.
But the best part of the day was writing something decent I think I have something worth writing. I have not had anything exciting to do creatively in ages. I look forward to getting some canvas one day and painting something. That will help my mental state immensely. Also excited about getting some prescription sunglasses I hope they work out right.
(16) Thursday
Went to Ratua today... and here are a ton of photos.
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This is the old generator at the Malo site... it needs to go and be replaced by a newer one.
Might be able to sell it. The dude here is named Rod Newell. He has been working/living in this country for some 35ish years. I was amazed at how razor sharp his mind was. He was tossing out power numbers like a bookie at a race track. I could not keep up. We might try building this project in phases.
Phase 1:
a) Get old generator out of the shed and put a new one in. Hook it up and power the lab.
b) Put in windows in classroom,
c) Build tables, chairs and or work stations for the computers.
Phase 2:
a) Do prototype / feasibility study on pipe/ground cooling system
b) If we find it works then we dig trench for pipe cooling system
c) Install the pipe and hook it up to fans in classroom
Phase 3:
a) Install more lights in other classrooms
b) Install lights around the school site outside to improve visibility around site at night
c) Power other items if power allows (Fridge, and more computers)
d) Work on coconut oil production to reduce fuel procurement cost.
Being at Ratua is fun. I love the project they have going at Malo at Nandiutu. They received the click grant and will get 20 computers. Which is a miracle. I think we are very lucky they approved of it so we can build them a great a lab.
Oh when I got home... my repaired Fridge was sitting at my door. WooHoo I can cool things again.
(17) Friday
I spoke with my family at 5:30am... getting news from back home is nice even if all the news is not. Really hopeful I can find a renter for my condo asap versus having to spend money out of pocket for an empty unit. And I am getting some small canvases in my next package and xmas lights so excited for small odd things. The sun glasses will be the best. The sun here seems more powerful than back home. How is that possible? Does the smog of the cities enough to block out some of the sun?
I was told sometimes my blog sounds a big down... that is not always intentional. There are moments that I think I have a purpose here, like building a computer lab at Nandiutu on Malo island and working with people that are super excited and appreciative like Isabelle... then I go back to my school and do next to nothing interesting like fixing dead computers from scrap parts and being given the yeah yeah.. I will watch you fix that next time, from counterparts. But that is how it is here. Some want to learn and do stuff and others just rather do nothing and watch. I am not mad about it... its just observations. Main thing is not to take it personally. Some people give a shit about learning other not. Their loss.
It is now 9 am... I slept again. I think it was the rain... it just tapped on the tin roof all night like a uncoordinated pianist and blocked out all the animals, babies crying, roosters everything. It was peaceful. I had a dream about a being in a maze and the only way out was climbing up this narrow severe slope of loose grave with no railing or means to prevent sliding off it to my death. I made my way up and once at the top there was a locked door and I left my keys somewhere I could not find them. Then I woke up.
Ok back to working on a short story. This is might actually be a decent story.
Short pit stop in town led to having a grill party night at my place... small gathering last minute.
And I got to talk to Lindsay and Annie... and took this photo on skype: at 3pm
Should have took a photo or two of the steaks we made they were fantastic.
(18) Saturday
Slow start its almost 7am and I am making some coffee... Mike Stafford stayed over, slightly chewed up my the mosquitos last night but no migraine this time... my brother used to get those all the time... he said I caused them heh kiddingly sort of.
Elise is visiting today no clue what are going to do.
(19) Sunday
I have work about the plan we have for the site in Malo:
Nandiutu School Computer Lab.
Stages of total project.
- Refurbish computer room, desks chairs etc, glass in windows.
- Room cooling by passing air through pipes just below sea bed. At present concept only, detailed feasibility and engineering to be done.
- Lighting to rest of school by using truck alternators driven by the same engine to charge a battery bank. Distribution at 48 VDC and then down convert to 12 V using converters made for electric golf buggies. Probably one small battery (12 V 40 Ah) at each classroom block and then 12V LED lights.
- Train islanders to make coconut oil as a fuel. Use some mechanization to increase productivity. Make desiccated coconut by using a small hammer mill and extract the coconut milk with a small powered press. The hot water from cooling the engine can be used to heat the coconut milk to have a batch of coconut milk separate in 16 hours instead of 2 to 3 days. If the engine load averages 6kW, then its fuel consumption will be about 2l/h. Therefore a fuel consumption of up to 16 l per day can be expected. For the computers alone at 3 kW, fuel consumption should be about 1 l per hour.
- Improve hygiene of school inhabitants by using co-generation to collect the waste heat from the engine (exhaust and water) to provide a hot water supply.
- A machine to be built by Rod to lift engines off the barge and also transport to the engine room.
Rod.
- Finalize pricing for Generator set and installation at Nandiutu.
- Get pricing for internal wiring of computer room.
- Find price of glass or Perspex for class room windows, 24 pieces approx 700 by 500 mm.
- Contact Onesua Presbyterian College to find if they are interested in buying the original generator.
- Start engineering design of possible air cooling system by cooling air with sea water.
- Design and build No 6 above.
4:32pm
Just got back from Riri and here are some photos:
This little kid was going crazy to get into the water making these ridiculous faces hard to believe how funny unless you saw it.
Hopefully there will more sunny perfect days at this location again. There are two blue holes we goto and a third one that does not really count... Riri and Matavulu. The twin pools of Santo. And I am writing a short story using twin peaks as a genre style.
We were lucky the sun was out while we were there. When the sun actually is out when you get out of these cold blue holes you can dry off quickly. Which feel a lot better than being cold and wet for 20 minutes. There was a ton of mosquitos near the water as well but that is how it is when near fresh water. Lost a pint of blood. Not really but got bit up nicely.
After grilling I got to take a hot shower at Hibiscus. First hot shower in six months or more. That felt great. Then Elise and I watched a movie and the others slowly made their way over. We then bottled the home brew and we started making philly cheese steak sandwiches. A Ni-van dude named Jerry joined the crew at my place... pretty nice guy but he kept messing with my grilling, sticking his fingers into the food and flipping them.... until I told him him to stop because he was irritating me. I almost lost it. Don't mess with the grill master ARgh.
Movie night was fantastic again. Tomorrow we are having a taco night at Kate and Bryan's after ultimate frisbee.
My counterpart showed up at the same time the grill party was happening... glad to see him back so I can avoid being in a classroom "teaching" anymore.
