Void of Inspiration

Wake up or you get thrown in the kava bowl!

Posted on September 24, 2011 by Author

Since Richard and Arnaud left to visit a friend on another island, I have had the great pleasure of catching up on sleep and doing those things I love – reading, painting and lounging around. Of course, I changed my work schedule so I am working through the weekend so it also means a ton of work!

Tonight was particularly special however, for Rafa, Sosiceni and I decided it would be the perfect night to have a crab race! While I caught up on sleep, Sosiceni went out and collected a bunch of crabs for us to race. Rafa whipped out the kava bowl while we set everything up. In the spirit of games, we declared that the crabs would be named after countries – The UK, the US, Japan, Fiji and India.

At first, in the race to 21 wins, the UK looked good, however fell asleep sometime after its 9^th win and often had to be threatened being thrown into the kava bowl if he didn’t wake up. India didn’t wake up until half the race was over, no matter how hard we tried to convince him that the rain was gone! Fiji, unfortunately, went missing in action early on… there is currently still no sign of him. The US was slow but steady and finished well in 2^nd place. Japan woke up in the middle of the games and didn’t stop until he finished all 21 wins making an excellent comeback! Eventually the UK woke up, fearing the kava bowl, and finished his race. As of now, still no sign of poor Fiji…

1^st Place: Japan
2^nd Place: US
3^rd Place: India
4^th Place: UK
5^th Place: Fiji (Still MIA)

“It is one of the strange discoveries a man can make that life, however you lead it, contains moments of exhilaration; there are always comparisons which can be made with worse times: even in danger and misery the pendulum swings.”
– Graham Greene, The Power And The Glory

“The gold bangle on the bony wrist was like a padlock on a canvas door which a fist could break.”
– Graham Greene, The Power And The Glory

“A tent, above all for a solitary traveler, is troublesome to pitch; and even on the march it forms a conspicuous feature in your baggage.”
– R. L. Stevenson, Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes

Posted in Project | Table, Project | Ellipsis | Tagged Fiji, Nadi, Taveuni | 2 Comments

I’m just here, on my island…

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Author

The past few days were just spent lounging around, catching up on sleep and relaxation on this beautiful island. Taking the long journey to the nearest store for food and stopping off to play a few games of billiards. I honestly used to be fantastic at the games we have been playing but I think so much travel has seriously made me lose any skill I had! For this post, I decided to add some pictures Richard and Arnaud took of us that I think came out simply fantastic.

“Outside our conscious awareness, an advanced illusion rearranges events in time.”
– Tor Norretranders, The User Illusion

“What matters is not saying as much as you can. It is thinking before you speak.”
– Tor Norretranders, The User Illusion

“Life will forever be open to us. We will never know that it cannot be expressed more beautifully. The beauty in the world is growing.”
– Tor Norretranders, The User Illusion

Arnaud’s Pictures:

Richard’s Pictures:

Who puts coral up mountains, honestly?

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Author

Arnaud, Richard and I decided to check out the 3 waterfalls up the island. It was a very bumpy bus ride along the coast, spanning about 45 minutes, through several villages, and then a long journey up the side of the mountain. At first it didn’t look like too much work but we quickly realized it would be a hell of a hike through the jungle path! So many frogs to look out for and oddly enough… defensive purple crabs that live all the way near the top! Halfway up we all took off our flip flops as it was way too muddy at some points to continue on. Walking along the tiny path, slipping and sliding and hurting ourselves on massive amounts of coral that lined the walkway, we finally made it to the 3rd and most beautiful waterfall where we all took a swim and a nice rest before making our way, barefoot, back down the side of the mountain.