A News Worthy Moment

Click the links below to read about one of the girls from our Youth Group, Star, who left last week to accept a volleyball scholarship at Western Texas College in Snyder, Texas.  We are all very proud of her.  She is missed here back home on the Island.

http://www.christianchronicle.org/blog/2012/01/church-member-in-american-samoa-gets-volleyball-scholarship-to-texas-university/

http://www.samoanews.com/?q=content%2Ffetuao-fa%E2%80%99asavalu-attend-snyder-college-full-ride-volleyball-scholarship

My Little Buddy Noah

I was looking through some old material when I came across this gem.  Noah loves to tell jokes and I love to hear them.  What do you think of this classic?  I think he has a career ahead of him in standup.

My apologies to Noah’s parents.  You know who you are.  And so do some of my readers. I am a bad friend.

 

Disclaimer:  No animals were harmed during the filming of this feature.  I’m five years old on the inside.

McNabbed

Maybe you remember how I was talking about some of our crazy driving laws a while back?  The other day, I was pulling into traffic and putting my seatbelt on when I was blindsided by a “seatbelt trap” the cops had set on a lazy saturday afternoon.  Ironically, numerous trucks overloaded with people in the back drove by as the officer lectured me on safety.  I’m $35 poorer and none the wiser I suppose.

Yes Mom, I almost always wear my seatbelt and keep the Beast under the 25 MPH speed limit.   I promise.

The Beast v. The Rain

According to the American Samoa National Park website, we receive 150-300 inches of rain per year.  I don’t think this is much of an exaggeration for this year so far.  We are currently in the “rainy season” more commonly known as the “rainy-er season”.

In a competition between the Beast, aka my old Ford Ranger, and the rain forming puddle aka the Lake, the Beast always wins.  Probably has something to do with the “skilled” hands guiding the beast, right??

Working the Church Property

My home church is working on constructing a building just off the “main road” (that’s right, many roads do not have official names).  The land is not level, so the hard working members at our church are dedicated to filling in the crater at in the center of the property (I am deathly allergic to hard work).  Jerry, one of our “senior” members, keeps postulating that there is a volcano lurking in there somewhere.  Let’s hope so not.

We are tremendously excited by all the possibilities of the future.  Privately owned land is very hard to come by here since most land is community owned, so we know how blessed we are here.

Episode VI: The Return of the Dressmaker

OK, remember how I was having dresses made for my two dear sisters?  Well, they turned out nice.  When I picked them up, I was so proud of them, I felt like I had made them myself.

I have playful pictures of my siblings modeling their new threads.  But, they made me promise that I wouldn’t upload the pictures to my blog — you know how they get when a extra inch or two of flesh is showing.  Anyways, they are supposed to be getting some mild alterations done and then send me some more “modest” pictures.  Anyhow, that hasn’t happened yet…I’m still waiting…I never signed a waiver…you’re on notice.

In the meantime, you can imagine them in their dresses.

I’m not dead yet…

Faithful readers, I am still here.  I may be fat(er), lazy(er), and short(er?), but I haven’t forgotten you.  Get ready for a ultra-mega-gold-platinum update.

I Can’t Help It, That’s the Way I Was Raised

You can’t fight against your inner nature and the genetics God gave you, right?  In this scene, a preacher preaches, a dancer dances, and student studies, and an observer observes.  I am a clown because that is the way my parents raised me.

The Colonel’s Kernel of Genius

Two chicken legs (original recipe of course), a regular mashed potatoes and gravy, small mountain dew, and two cookies = one kid’s meal at the local KFC.  Priced under $6, it is by far the best value on the menu, and enough food to keep this growing boy happy.  No, it doesn’t come with a toy, but the two bones make nice keepsakes.

Local Artist: Sven Ortquist

The local Catholic Cathedral has a collection of carved reliefs done by a local artist named Sven Ortquist.  I believe he is half Samoan and half Scandinavian, so he is brown just like me.  I can’t help but think that our brownness ties us together somehow…

I do not know if he is alive still.  I have made a few inquiries and have heard that he is both living and deceased.  If he is still around, I would like to meet him.  Regardless, a piece of him is in each of these gifts.  My pictures can’t begin to capture the level of detail and the 3D quality.  It’s just something you have to see for yourself.  Ortquist is famous for incorporating Samoan facial features into his carvings of Jesus, as seen here.  There are about a dozen or so of these plaques throughout the nave depicting the moments leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus.  I am not sure what the numbers mean, but they may correspond to the stations of the Via Dolorosa/Stations of the Cross.  I will try and get a complete set of pix one of these days to share.  Better yet, come see for yourself.  Admission is free.