Good morning, another beautiful day greets us.

I got up to take a few pictures and then made some coffee, and hard boiled eggs for Kater's breakfast. We finished what was left of the coconut (not much). I have some laundry going and I'll be trying to clean up here a little before I go anywhere. I've been thinking about walking down to the water to sit and draw for a while, maybe take some more pictures.

Nothing much to comment on so far today, I just wanted to put up a couple pictures. Currently the weather is 81 degrees with a breeze from the ESE of about 10 mph. It's sunny with a few scattered little clouds. The UV index today is a 2 right now which is very low. It has been up to 8 the past few days, or "the few days gone" as they would say here. The forecast says we might get a scattered shower this afternoon, but I would doubt it. It almost always says that and we've only had rain once.

This afternoon: Maybe a walk, the VIP group is getting together for flag football, looking for more coconuts! Who knows.

That will be it for now. More this evening.

I have tamed my first coconut! My hands are sore, even bleeding in a few spots. I feel that cracking into a coconut is kind of like a lobster, it takes some fighting but it's always worth it. You definitely appreciate it more, having had to work for it.

I found the coconut while helping my friend Harley take care of his neighbors dog. She (his neighbor) has been away for a few weeks so Harley has been looking after the dog, Buster. In the back yard were a few palm trees, and many coconuts scattered around. I shook the first one I saw and heard the milk inside- the mission was on!

I've known about an abandoned jeep at the bottom of the parking lot near our building. The jeep only has the windshield, and all other windows are missing. I spotted a machete in there a few days back when I was out for a walk, so I borrowed it today.

I felt like I was splitting kindling back home, hacking over and over again into the thick husk. After possibly 20 minutes, I finally had the husk off and cut a small hole at the top, I could hear a whoosh of air into the coconut when I finally got through.

When I got back into the apartment I grabbed a glass and filled it about half way with the milk, Kater was first to try it.

It was good!

I spent another 15 minutes cracking the rest of it and prying the meat from the shell. I cut my thumb on the sharp edge in the process. Finally, I was able to separate all the pieces and rinse them off. I put them in a container as a snack for later. If Kater can help herself from eating it all tonight, she might be able to take some to class tomorrow.

This may be the best tasting coconut I've ever had. And there is more where that came from!

Otherwise today, I went out to Reggae Beach with Harley and his son Damon, to show his sister in law around the island. She's here until Sunday on a short vacation.

Reggae Beach, is part of Cockleshell beach, at the far end of the island. It is well know for it's large (600 lbs) pig named Wilbur:

I've never seen Wilbur do anything other than sleep... but rumor has it that he'll occasionally walk down to the water to splash around. You'll notice in the picture the other, smaller pig. I don't know his name but he is a jerk! He hassled us today for no reason, following us around and grabbing at my shorts and trying to pull my ID out of my pocket. We shoed him away several times and he left for a while. Not long after, though, he returned and continued his harassment! He went over to Jen's (Harley's sister in law) bag and starting shaking it around. He was really a piece of work, and after he was done with us he was being a nuisance to other beach goers too.

I have to say, it was pretty funny. I've never been hassled by a pig before, especially a sea-pig:

This guy must have had his fill of messing with the people, because he decided to cool off and splash around for a few minutes before disappearing back into the shade behind the shacks.

I spend nearly all my time under an umbrella today, due to a little too much sun yesterday. I did take a quick dip to cool off, but mostly I hung out with little Damon while he played in the sand.

On our way home, I stopped at the grocery store for some milk and cereal. I got back right around the time Kater was getting out of class, and we met up for a very short walk. We returned and that is when I began to tackle the coconut, and the rest is history!

Wednesday... has been a good day. The usual for the morning routine; Kater up early getting organized for the day. I sluggishly follow and try to be helpful. We have coffee and putter around and then she is off for the day. I followed her out the door today to meet my friend Chris to go snorkeling. We went into Bird Rock, to a place called "Rocky's" which is a really nice little cove. The whole area is tucked away and somewhat hidden. There is a dive shop and a restaurant with a nice (small) sandy beach. Chris and I put on our gear and dove it. This particular area is great because it has a manmade jetty that protects the beach from big waves. The bottom is scattered with boulders, so it makes for a very fun snorkel spot. I saw a huge variety of different fish, shells, and coral today. The fish here are brilliantly colored, from black and yellow, to iridescent blue/purples with orange. We saw a small puffer fish but it wouldn't puff! I swam through schools of tiny silver minnow size fish, which was amazing and sometimes blinding when they turned and reflected light. We found some huge conch shells, and a few small ones. I also found for the first time ever, a sea biscuit!

It was so brittle however that it broke when i tried to pick it up... too bad. Swimming around, I got close up looks at fan coral, fire coral, brain coral, and others I don't know the name for yet. This is a place I will definitely recommend, and take visitors to. Probably one of the best so far.

After a few hours there, we packed up and headed for Shipwreck, my favorite beach spot. I've posted pics of this place before, but I am again- it's deserving.

We sat and talked with one of the bartenders for a while, then got back in the water for more snorkeling. This place has a lot less to look at but tons of sand dollars to find. Our swim was shorter than the last and we spent a little time under those wonderful palm shades, catching the breeze.

Chris and I had a little time to spare before the girls (Kater and his wife, Heather) got out of classes for the day, so we went into port to the open market area. The 'market' is rather a few produce and meat stands along the main road. There are only a few vendors selling fruits and veggies, as well as fresh fish. I bought some potatoes and chatted with the locals for a few minutes before getting back in the car for campus.

At campus, as it turns out, there were more market vendors selling the same items. Wednesdays apparently are the days when they bring food to campus for the students. Kater and I also bought fresh eggs and some hamburger, as well as tomatoes, cucumber, pineapple, and an avocado bigger than I've ever seen.

The studying began for Kater, who explains that the sheer amount of material can be a bit overwhelming at times. The 80 lbs back pack she carries around is proof that this place is no joke. She's doing great though, and staying focused. I'm trying to be as helpful as possible but taking on the everyday chores so she can focus on why she's here, TO BE AN ANIMAL DOCTOR! I'm so proud of her, she is a hard worker.

I'm writing this wishing I had more photos from the day to put visuals to my words. I will be better about it! Good night to all.

After that great sunrise this morning, we sat and had some coffee and did a few sudoku's before Kater was off to her second day of classes. I was able to get my Visa paperwork squared away, so I should be good to go for the next few months.

I met up with my friend Harley, also a VIP, and we took a drive over to Shipwreck beach. We sat around and had a drink, and chatted a few hours away. He drove us back to campus around 2:30pm to drop me off and pick up his son from daycare.

(Harley, his son Damon- 2yrs, and me on the catamaran trip the other day)

I went back to our place, changed, and went for a jog. Today was the first day in which we had rain, so it was relatively cool when I started running. About 15 minutes into the run the clouds began to clear and it got hot again. I zig zagged through campus and went up the huge set of stairs that runs through the middle. I was toast! You don't realize how out of shape you are until you attempt something like that. Wow... but I'm happy I did it. I'll try to go for a run a few times a week. The gym on campus should be opening in a few weeks and that will be a great way to stay active too.

Kater finished classes around 3ish. She, two other, and I, went for a walk off campus and up into the fields across the road. We saw some piglets running around and a bunch of monkeys bouncing around in the trees following them looking pretty entertained. When we got to where they were, they were gone- too bad. Not to long after we saw an American Kestrel, I got a rather lame picture of it:

I realize it looks like any old bird, but I (and Kater- the certified bird nerd in the group) agreed. I've found some crazy thorn bushes during our walks, but today I found a whopper. It would be a serious problem if one were to fall into one of these. The thorns are easily a few inches long as you can see from the picture:

We followed the trail back across the road and down towards the water. We all jumped around on the rocks and watched some boats go by. A brown booby flew by a few times, and some common terns. We saw a long large fish jump out of the water several time after a few small ones. It has been a good day for wildlife.

While sitting and enjoying the view, Kater and I decided to invite our friends over for dinner. I made rice and steamed broccoli, cauliflower, and green beans. It was a modest but tasty meal and they seemed to enjoy it. Looks like they are having anatomy books for dessert...

GOOD MORNING

(6:50am+/-)

We woke early-ish this morning, I decided to try to get some pictures of our sunrises. They are spectacular almost every day. Keep in mind we are one hour ahead of home time (eastern).

(7:05am+/-)

(7:09am+/-)

(7:15am+/- ; a good shot of Nevis on the right)

(7:16am+/- ; if you look close there are a few boats heading into port)

It's 7:40 and Kater just left for class. I like these quiet mornings a lot and I'm starting to get into somewhat of a routine. I get up and get coffee going for Kater and myself, open up the windows for the great breeze- it's rather strong. I'm going to try to take sunrise photos. I fire up the computer and see if there is anything interesting to read or write about. I read up on the UV index this morning to get a better understanding of how it works. At 8:15 I listen to Boston's WBCN Senseless Survey, which is good for a laugh. Check the weather, check some blogs I like to read. I have a little workout routine I've been doing and then take a shower. After that I get into any work/art projects and/or meet up with other VIPs.

That's basically it so far... not very exciting.

I may be going over to the beach for a while today, I'll put up any good pictures if I get any.

Have a great day.

Today begins Kater's official training in the field of veterinary medicine! I attended her 'White Coat Ceremony' where all the students took the veterinary oath, and were given the coat that they would begin their journey with. The ceremony was very much a graduation, only shorter. Each students name was read and they went on stage and received their coat.

(Kater, John, & Kalahari, right after ceremony)

(Left to right: Susan, Kristina, Kater, Kalahari, Erica, Lance, Becca, Penny, Sarah, & OL Chrissy)

Afterwards there was a reception outside and we took more photos of the group. There was food and drinks, As we started to leave, we felt a few rain drops and a rainbow appeared, I'm thinking it's a good omen for this class.

(Hard to see, but look closely and the rainbow is there)

We watched another beautiful sunset as we walked back to our building.

Kater is busy studying. I've been checking in on her every once in a while- she's very focused.

While Kater was at classes today, I met with my VIP(very important partners) group and got to know some non-students. We talked about life on the island for spouses, supporting each other and our partners, keeping active and staying involved. It was a good meeting, I feel good about the people I'll be spending some time with.

After the meeting, I did some laundry, took out the garbage, and got to work on some art projects. My first was creating an avatar image for Kater's cousin Hans, who will be using it to represent him during his presentations. I'm working on a few versions, and it's been fun. I'm hoping that his colleagues will be interested and want one of their own.

I'm setting up a routine and work schedule to keep busy and focused on my art, I'm hoping the free time will allow me to strengthen my skills and learn new ones. My goal is to be able to transition into the graphic arts field when we return to the states.

Tomorrow Kater has a full day of classes, and labs. I'll be heading out to spend some time with, and get to know more of my fellow VIPs.

I guess that's for now.

Today was a relaxing day. We all allowed ourselves to sleep in as much as possible, and to wake up on our without any alarms.

After a leisurely start, we called our driver Phil and went down to the Marriott to use the pool and relax in some shade. We thought it would be nice to get some sun/shade without the sand today. The pool is lagoon like, and varies in depth but doesn't get much deeper than 5 feet. Around the pool are several bars and grills offering pretty much whatever you could want.

We all basically sat around and enjoyed the breeze. The idea was for the students to have one more stress free day before classes start tomorrow.

On our way home our driver insisted that he buy us all a drink at his favorite place. Phil took us to the Rock Lobster, which is a little bar/grill with a nice seafood menu and a view of Timothy Beach (I believe it is). We sat and socialized for a little while, Phil expressed interest in having me do some lettering for his van which will say "proper ting," a caribbean phrase. I'm not sure but I would venture to guess it means something along the lines of "the real thing, or the real deal," etc.

Back on the road we went, and yet again Phil slowed the van, only this time for a disheveled looking man selling sugar cane. We all experienced sugar cane in the raw for the first time. It was a dozen stalks prepared for eating and cut into 8inch lengths. One enjoys this treat by biting into it and sucking the juice. It's an incredibly dense stalk which allows it to retain a lot of water. With a little effort you can bite down and release the sweet water, or chomp of a chunk and chew it. Just spit the pulp when your finished! It was pretty good. Phil said if you let it get stale (after a few days) it will taste like rum.

When we got back to campus Kater went off to print some things for her classes, and I got to work on making dinner. I cooked rice and green beans, and tossed the green beans in some roasted fresh garlic. It was pretty tasty.

None of us have much in the way of plans for the evening, except for staying on campus. We'll probably get together for cards or a movie.