Two More

More P.S.

Here are a few more of the 35MM pictures. Above, the tree across from my old house.

Pago Pago harbor.


Boats.


Kelly's house.


Boat shack.


Beach.


LJ.


Vojik's yard.


Chase and Amity.


Vojik's driveway.


Neighbor's house and view.


Vatia beach.

P.S.

So the island has a way of staying with you when you leave. In my case, it was an infected cut on my foot but also undeveloped film. I took these photos with a Holga camera on 35 mm film, which allows the picture to be printed on the full frame and over the sprocket holes. I am still working on scanning and formatting the film but here are some early results. Some of the photos were previously posted using the resources available on the island but here they are in their full unedited versions.

Above, outrigger paddles.

View from the yacht club.


Yacht club.


Pratima sitting.


The gang watching a parade.


Aiga bus.


View of one role of film on a contact sheet.


Keep watching, more fun photos coming.

Last post

Last post of the clerkship. It's all done people. Nothing more to see here.

Two weeks ago, New Jeremy and I climbed Matafao, the highest peak on the island. The 2.5 hour climb up was pretty arduous and required a lot of scrambling and cuts and scrapes. Above, me climbing over a ravine on a fallen tree.

Despite the difficulty, we had some nice views of the island.


Taking a breather.


View of the airport.


Matafao is the second peak behind me. This last part of the hike was steep and muddy and required us to be on our hands and feet most of the time.


Matafao! The "trail" goes straight up with pretty sharp drops on either side. On the way down, I fell right off one side of the peak. Somersaulted about 15 feet before grabbing onto some vegetation and crawling back up the side of the mountain. Very exciting.


Views from the top.




The rusty obelisk that greets you at the top.


Hiking partner Jeremy at the obelisk.


Next stop, the continental United States. I'll be touring California and Illinois for a while and then see where life takes me from there. Fa!

Final Days

Only two days left on the island! The last week or so has been memorable and dangerous. I fell off Matafao peak while hiking, had my truck's tire slashed, flipped an outrigger into the shark feeding area and another smack of jellyfish, was rolled onto a reef, and received an infected cut on my foot. Despite these setbacks, we celebrated on Saturday by hiring a local bus to take us bar hopping. From Pacific Karaoke to the Night Hawk, we toured the island and it's 5 or so bars.

Above, former clerk Julia, current clerk me, and new clerk Prairie. Below, Kara and Julia on the bus with our local guides.


Our own private karaoke room at Pacific Karaoke. Below in yellow, some guy we'd never met who introduced himself as Willy Johnson and was a little too touchy feely for everyone's tastes.


Me and Lisa belting out Indian Reservation by Paul Revere and the Raiders. Excuse the Coca-cola t-shirt. Prior to the bus trip I had spent 6 hours at the ER for my infected foot and didn't have time to change. Cherokee People! Cherokee Tribe!


On the bus.


Somehow K-Fed joined us on the journey, which was nice.

Goodbye court

I'm not leaving just yet but Tina (middle) and Chase are leaving this week. Here are a few photos Chase took to remember the court staff. Above, most of the staff in one of the court rooms. Below, Esther, Tina, Lalii, and me.


The glorious ladies of the High Court.

16 Hours, 15,000 calories

On Saturday, these two brave athleats challenged one another to consume 15,000 calories in one day. Inspired by the daily caloric intake of athletes like Michael Phelps and Tony Mandarich and feeling like the Apollo 11 astronauts were getting way too much press, Jer and Vojik embarked on a journey of gastronomic proportions. Since my digital cameras are dead all photos are, appropriately, old school shots taken with my Holga. Above, Jer and Vojik before the feeding began.

The day began with a weigh-in. Results: both men equally matched at 160 pounds.



Fortunately, Nurse Jamie was on hand to take blood pressure and ensure the athleats didn't eat their way into an early grave. Below is Vojik eating Carl's Jr. hashbrown nuggets while getting his BP checked.

Then the eating began. Here is a typical Vojik shot: note vacant eyes and bloated cheeks.


Most of the day involved the rest of us hanging out on Vojik's lawn and heading down to the cliffs to watch the surf. I was coaching Vojik, which consisted mostly of encouragement and counting calories.

Below, Jer's eating contest coach, Nate, and Vojik's neighbor.


Gnugnu, conjuring something.


New Lisa, watching Gnugnu conjure something.

Eating contest judge, Chase and Vojik's other eating coach, Amity.


Second eating contest judge, Pratima.


The participants hanging out on the lawn. Note Vojik's distended belly and look of hopelessness.

The athleats each consumed around 7,000 calories; about 3.5 days worth of food. Around 8 PM, however, Jer involuntary disgorged a protein shake and lost. It was a remarkable day and one I will never take part in but glad I witnessed. These guys were seriously hurting and I commend them for never giving up.

Moral: we need to find better ways to entertain ourselves.