Friends and Toilet

Talofa lava. Leva na fai lo’u blog. Na ou e pisi tele. Greetings, i haven’t posted in a while. I’ve been busy. Last week was my group’s Close of Service Conference. We talked about jobs, school, and all the things that come after the Peace Corps. In just a few months we are headed back to America and her bounty; reliable mass transit, wild Oregon blackberries, racial diversity, running water, and RESTAURANTS. But, also jobs, apartments, student loans, medical insurance, and GREs. Samoa’s has her own miss-list; i’ll post it in time. I know my PC friends will be at the top of that list. And here are some photos.

I received a 500 USD grant to build a dry composting toilet in the village through Appropriate Projects. We’ve finished phase 1 of 2: the lower vault. Ben, Jim, Spencer and Trent came over to help with the construction. My neighbors, Usu Fetinai and Saaga, thankfully showed up to help with the masonry. It requires an expert finesse i did not expect. The rest of the village helped prepare the site, gather supplies, prep concrete, and host my guests. As with any Samoan consruction site, there was ava. And, though I’m not shown working in any of the pictures (I’m holding the camera, Mom!). I did work, and i did drink ava.