Kiwi Livin'

NZ # 3

Hello!

It's been a while since my last post. I've been caught up with life and such, and I've also been too lazy to sit down and pump one of these out. Also the video took forever to make.

Per usual, everything is sunshine and rainbows here, and that is not meant in a sarcastic way. I've been here 8 weeks already, but it's felt more like 3 or 4 weeks, tops. Roadtrips, rugby, motorcycle, sight- seeing, working, exercise... it's all pretty perfect.



Things that Happened Since Last Time:

• Played rugby.
• Met another American. Sup, Vance!
• Crushed my motorcycle license test. (Bet you read "crashed my motorcycle")
• Got my motorbi- excuse me, motorcycle license.
• Moved a lot of hay bales.
• Discovered The John Butler Trio
• Got a real bed. Goodbye cot.
• Cooked food.
• Apparently Cam Newton is a good Quarterback?
• Started watching the show, Hannibal. Gives Dexter a run for its money.
• Soldiers captured in Iran? That's no good at all. Gonna have to go hop on the newsfeeds now.
• Continued swiping right on Tinder.
• Made a spreadsheet. Felt good.
• Defiantly drove on the right side of the road. Because 'Merica.
• Bought groceries.
• Finished watching Deadwood. Go away, Skyler/Mrs. Bullock!
• Really missing Chipotle. If you come visit me, bring a Chipotle burrito - I'm serious, don't come without one. 
• Got a tour around Nelson-Tasman.
• Gained some weight back finally!
• Did two backflips.
• Went white water rafting.
• Joined a touch rugby league. It's co-ed.
• Drank some beer.
• Watched my mates play rugby on TV.
• Started saying "mate" instead of buddies.
• Trimmed tomato vines for 8 hours.
• Plucked leaves off grapevines for 12 hours.
• Learned that "face only" pics on Tinder are not a good sign.
• Got rejected for 12 different job openings.
• Found that a college degree doesn't mean too terribly much. 
• Played 30 seconds in a 7s tournament.
• Sprained my ankle after 30 seconds of playing in a 7s tournament.
• More barbecues.
• More beach visits.
• Checked my bank account balance...
• Worked on the assembly line at a cider brewery.

Video Recap

(volume is important for the rafting section)

The Third Hog

Riding a motorcycle is totally awesome.
I now have a New Zealand driver's license, with my picture on it and everything. It's pretty legit.

I certainly don't look like your typical biker, often wearing brightly colored tank tops and rugby shorts, but that's my style yo!

The max speed limit in my area is 100kph (I believe that's the max legal limit countrywide) but most of the areas are 80 and 60kph.
Richard, the guy who sold me the bike, said it's not a great idea to go over 80kph for extended periods, so I take some of the slower back roads instead of the main highway. No worries, I drive slow anyway, as most of you know. The Third Hog hurries for no one.

Luckily, her speedometer is in MPH, so I know how fast I'm going in American. For the sake of the police here, I do the conversions in my head when I check my speed.
The bike seems to like a nice cruising speed of about 40 mph or 60 kph, so when I don't have anyone behind me, I cruise around that speed.

Dad, if you've seen the video above, you're likely jealous of the scenery and roads I ride on every day. Yes, they do rent Harleys here.

In all, I'm having a blast with the bike. It reminds me a bit of the ole' Danger Ranger.
She's a bit older, she doesn't have the biggest motor in the world, and she's not the fastest on the road, but she has the heart of lion.

Rugby Updates

First off, our team is nicknamed the Wizards - super awesome.

Team Hat

I've been asked by multiple people about how my rugby has been going out here, and some have asked about the level of play here - it's awesome.
Others have asked whether or not I'll be a starter - to this, I answer with a resounding "I have no clue."

I'm not sure where I'll fit in with the team here yet, as far as position and playing time are concerned anyway.  It's not something Coach and I have discussed yet, and I'm sure he's waiting to see what I've got - frankly, so am I.

Both flankers on our team are also on the regional representative team, which is basically a regional allstar team, so they will be tough to beat. Gonna give it my best though.
If that doesn't work out and I am a reserve for two allstar flankers, then so be it - I'll learn a ton from them. And who knows, if I work hard enough maybe I'll find another position on the field.

Overall, rugby is going well. The skill level here is definitely a step up, but I think I'm doing alright so far. Still working on shaking off the cobwebs, but it's starting to come back. I'm not playing with my normal confidence yet, but that will come back with time.


In the past few weeks we've been training for 7s, and we had a tournament this weekend down in Christchurch. A 4 hour van ride in the morning, 5ish hours of playing, and 4 more hours in the van going home. The trip was full of typical rugby roadtrip shenanigans - dirty jokes, bare asses, disgusting farts, beers, and a healthy dose of bathroom stops.

I managed to get 30 seconds of playing time before getting hit by a ghost sniper and spraining my ankle.

I am currently nursing my sprained ankle as best as possible, in hopes of being able to strap up and play in the club nationals next weekend in Wellington.
Fingers crossed!
If not, I'll be watching the boys play from afar on TV.

Regardless, it felt GREAT to be back out on the field with the ball in hand. I am 100% certain that I am a happier person when I have rugby in my life.

Living Situation

Could you tell that dudes live here?
DominBro's pizza, Brotein, AminBros, and Blender Brottles

I'm still in the same apartment, but we've had a bit of rearranging in the recent weeks. Vance, the other American guy, showed up two weeks ago and has been sharing the living room with me. We each have a bed in opposite corners of the room, and it works out quite nicely.

My half of the living room. I'm a tornado of cleanliness and organization.

While this living arrangement was all fine and dandy, the time has come to change. Chile moved out the other day, and I am taking over his room.




I will have my own private room for the first time in...5 months? No offense to K-dawg and Vancy Pants, but it will be nice to have my own spot again.
No longer do I have to tell Tinder girls that my room also has a kitchen and a front door in it...not exactly sure why I told them that in the first place. Maybe so they'd know where the kitchen was, and then where to find the exit?

Look, Mom, I cooked!

Found some work!

None of the restaurants would hire me because I don't have any experience. I blame sexism.

A temp agency specializing in white collar work told me they only place people with at least 2 years' experience in secretary/admininstrative work. They wrote me a nice long email explaining the situation and thanking me for all the time I spent registering in their database.
All I saw was "Sorry, but go f#@k yourself."

Greenhouse Worker
I got 1 day's worth of work in a tomato greenhouse. It was shit work, and I absolutely hated it - but it allowed me to pay a week's worth of rent. They said they'd call me if they liked my work and wanted me back the following week - they must have lost my number, because that was 3 weeks ago... darn.

Like a woman who's bitter after not getting a call back from a guy, I'm a bit bitter that I wasn't called back after my tomato vine trimming job - it's the principle of the thing. I thought I did an okay job trimming 3 leaves off a branch, moving to the next, and repeating. I really gave it my all! And after doing this several thousand times, I really thought I was getting the hang of it. We had some good laughs, seemed to have so much and common, and they said they'd be in touch...
Guess not.
Well, suck it, greenhouse growers. You missed out on an overqualified, whiney, white collar worker with sweet thighs. Bet you're super upset!

Vineyard Worker
A week or so later I worked in a vineyard for a day and a half. This work was similar to the tomato greenhouse, but even shittier.
It was similar in the way that I was very slowly and meticulously hacking away at crops. It was different because the vineyard has you bent over all day in the sun hating yourself and questioning your life choices.

Most vineyard and orchard work is on contract, which means you get paid for how much crop you pick or vines you de-leaf. For fast workers, this can be kinda lucrative.
Those who know Travis, know he is not a fast worker..
Each row of vines is over 200 meters long and took me roughly 4 hours to get through. Each row got me close to $40 worth of pay. So that's $10 an hour, which is below the $14.50 minimum wage here.

This is half way...

After a day and a half, I'd had enough and resolved to tell the boss the next day that I was done. I had another temp job lined up, so I didn't really need this one anyway.
On the third day I showed up to hand in my paperwork and tell the boss thank you for his time, but I wouldn't be working there anymore.
He basically told me he was happy with it, because I was too slow anyway. Plus my rugby got in the way. So at least the break-up was mutual this time.

The one positive is that I got to wear rugby shorts.
The shoes came off shortly after this picture.

After all that BS, things started turning around.


Cider Brewery - Bottling Line
Thanks to the efforts of a teammate (thanks Sione!), last week I was brought on as a casual worker at a small cider brewery, working on the bottling assembly line.

The name of the company is Redwood Cider, which is the maker of Old Mout Cider (in case you ever see it/hear of it). They were recently bought out by a company called DB brewing, which is a subsidiary of Heineken. No, I don't get discounts/perks. Besides the perk of getting a paycheck.

So far I've gotten 5 full days' worth of work, and depending on the status of my sprained ankle, I may have a few more days this coming week. This is great news because it means I am able to pay this month's rent and buy groceries. Score!


The people are all pretty cool and sociable, which makes a potentially monotonous job much less monotonous.

We start work at 6am, and finish by 2:30pm - it's pretty sweet.
There are 3 positions I work on the assembly line. We rotate every hour.

1. Bottle loader - I load bottles onto the assembly line. It requires the IQ of a monkey, yet somehow manages to be quite challenging at times..
2. Box filler - I whip up a cardboard box in record time, slap it on the conveyor belt, fill it with bottles of booze, and send it off into the sunset.
3. Box stacker - I pick up boxes recently filled with booze and sent into the sunset, and stack them on a pallet. This is the best station, because I get to use a machine that spins the pallet around which can be quite fun.

I'm basically a pro at putting bottles into a box and stacking said boxes on a pallet.

I prefer working with the plastic bottles - they're lighter, easier to handle, and they don't seem to shatter in terror when confronted with my muscles like the glass ones do...or when my muscles drop them and they confront the concrete floor...
Strangely enough, the bottles must have adapted to this fear, as fewer bottles broke with each subsequent day. The bottles are learning.

After doing some quick and dirty math, I figure I touch about 4,000 bottles and handle close to 1500 boxes over an eight hour shift.

It's pretty interesting working in a manufacturing setting, which is entirely foreign to me. As my eyes glazed over while stacking boxes, I started remembering efficiency formulas and metrics from my operations classes and starting measuring my work - it kept me occupied.

I also got to see how useful slack time is in a production setting. In my classes and simulations I always pushed production to 100% and never allowed for slack time with the mentality that anything below 100% was due to laziness - work, you lazy dogs!
Now I see that slack time is very important - machinery breakdowns, delayed deliveries, sneezing, reaching down to tie my shoe, running to the bathroom... very important.
If I'm ever a project manager in the future, I will have a time slot dedicated to bathroom time.

Starting in late February, I've got a 3-month gig stacking apple crates at a local orchard. Again, this employment was arranged by a teammate - thanks E! - and will provide me with a nice steady income for a bit.

Learnings
After spending so much time in college getting a business degree, I've always envisioned myself working in an office doing...I dunno, business stuff. It's pretty cool living and working in a rural area where white collar jobs are few and far between, because it's forcing me to do things completely out of my comfort zone.

I'm no stranger to manual labor, but it's real interesting working with people who do it for a career.
It's certainly a different breed from your office workers and store clerks - more bawdy banter, taking the piss out of each other (giving people shit) and less political correctness. Kinda like a rugby team at work. I'm getting to see how an entirely different sect of people live and work, which is a really cool experience.

Working these jobs is also a good reminder that I don't want to do manual labor my whole life. While I'm young and exploring the world, it's no problem - I kinda like having callouses on my hands. But when I'm a bit older and want to settle down, I better use my degree to get something a bit better.

In the meantime I'm pondering getting my forklift license so I can be more valuable in my jobs/job search out here. I like driving tractors, and forklifts are pretty much the same thing, right? Career advancement!

White Water Rafting

The guy who's responsible for landing me here in New Zealand, Ant Holder, took Vance, another American named Miklos, and myself on a white water rafting trip the other weekend.

From left to right:
Miklos, Vance, Raft Guide Matt, Ant

When Ant called to invite me along, I told him I couldn't afford the $160 it cost. His response:
"That's fine, you'll just do some work for me and be my slave for a while. I already booked it anyway."
To a guy who is largely unemployed, this was an awesome deal.

We asked for the guide that would give us the wildest ride, and our guide, Matt, did not disappoint.
The rapids certainly got our adrenaline going and extracted from us our best manly grunts and roars while dominating nature's powerful forces.
The slow spots in between were filled with ridiculous conversation, ribbing, and other assorted man stuff. MAN STUFF!
And of course I took my GoPro.


Touring the Countryside
After the rafting, Ant took us to a lake not too far away, which was pretty incredible. It's a big area carved out by glaciers up in the mountains which made for some pretty sweet views.

There's a ton of hiking trails and backpacking to do out in this area, and I certainly plan to conquer a few of the available paths. I mean, if you come to New Zealand and don't do any backpacking, what's wrong with you?

And here's a few pictures of another place Ant took us to a few days before the rafting trip. This park was about an hour away from where I'm living.

Pretty much everything in New Zealand is postcard-worthy. The trick is learning to only take pictures of the super nice stuff, otherwise you'd be standing around taking pictures and never moving.

Sprained Ankle

Yeah, I know. I'm bummed too.

I got in the game with 2 minutes left.
Woo! Finally back in a real game, time to show what I can do!!
Touched the ball, made a short pass, hit a ruck, then the sniper struck..
After 30 seconds of play, the ghost sniper sighted me in and squeezed the trigger - I went down like a ton of bricks - a very attractive and graceful ton of bricks.

Kankle

I wish I could say I got hurt while making a heroic game-saving tackle, or during an 80 meter breakaway run...but no.

I hit a divot in the field while backpedaling for a penalty and sprained my ankle. The ball was on the other side of the field, nowhere near me. Sigh...
My teammate/roommate, Gus, couldn't help laughing as he recounted watching me crumple to the ground unexpectedly right next to him, for no apparent reason.
Everyone laughed.
I laughed a bit too.

But hey, it's not the end of the world. I heard a pretty loud crack when I did it, which really worried me at first. But after examination, it doesn't seem to be anything worse than a grade 2 sprain. The trainer said that even though it's a pretty bad sprain, there's a 50/50 chance that I'll be able to play in next weekend's tournament - even if that is a bit optimistic, I'm hopeful.

Update: Sadly I was told by our physio (trainer) that I will not be fit for the upcoming tournament this weekend. The good news is that I'll be ready to rock for 15s season.

This picture is before they put the boot on me

My real concern is that I'm not reppin' America very well at the moment. Don't worry, Ole' Red White and Blue, I'll make you proud next time.

Trusting Kiwis

New Zealanders are ridiculously trusting.

Here are a few Examples:

Example 1. I went to pick up Gus' car from the shop, and when I told them I wasn't sure how he intended to pay for the services the mechanic said:
"Ah, just have him come in later this week and we'll sort it out."


Example 2. You pay for your gas - they call it petrol - AFTER you pump it. "Hi, I just pumped $30 on pump 13. Now I'd like to pay for it."
There is absolutely nothing stopping me from pumping my gas and taking off.
Some gas pumps have little signs on them saying "It's wrong to steal gas."
I try to never use this word outside of gaming but....LOL
I asked the station attendant what was keeping me from just driving off without paying.
She asked why anyone would do that.
I paused for a moment, then told her that was a very good question and left it at that.


Example 3. I went to the hospital ER to get some crutches as my trainer instructed me to do. Upon arrival I showed the nurse my trainer's paperwork - which gives me healthcare coverage - and asked for some crutches.
The nurse said it would probably be a 3 hour wait to see a doctor and go through all the steps. I didn't want all that. Neither did she.

Instead, she left the room and quickly returned, handed me some crutches, made me promise to return them, then shooed me out of the room before anyone noticed.
No name, no phone number, no address...no personal information.
There's even a note on the crutches that reminds people to return them when they are done.
These people might be nicer than Canadians..

Awesome

I think part of the trusting atmosphere comes from the fact that everyone around here knows everyone. So I guess if you did something dickish, they'd know how to find you, so maybe that's the deterrent. Whatever it is, I'm loving it.

Gaining Weight!

Finally!
When I left the Philippines, I weighed in at 82.5 kilograms, which is 181 lbs in American. Last week I weighed in at-
...Drumroll....
86.5 kilograms, or 190 lbs in American.
Wooooo! All aboard for the Gain Train!
I know, I know, 9 pounds isn't THAT much. But after 3 months of precipitously losing weight in the Philippines, this is a nice change of pace. The last time I lost weight that quickly it turned out I had a serious stomach disease, and we don't want that again.
My goal is to get 200 pounds. We'll see.

I'm not where I want to be yet, but it's certainly a step in the right direction.
Another positive is that I'm way more fit than when I arrived. So not only am I bigger, but my cardio fitness is also way up - sweetness.
I'd say I'm a bit above the fitness level I had when playing for Sac State, but after training with these guys, I've learned that I have a bit more to give than that. It frustrates me that I had more potential to give back then, but oh well.
Again, not where I want to be, but getting there.


Fifteens season starts in 8 weeks. 8 weeks!
I'm also in an 8-week challenge with a few of the boys on the team, trying to see who can make the best improvements in their training over 2 months.
This sprained ankle may be a little setback, but I'll get back on the horse soon enough.
I will make America proud.

Worked the bar during some horse races

What's Up?

I'd love to hear from those of you that are keeping up with my escapades, I quite enjoy reading emails from friends and family back home. Judging by the number of views these blog posts are getting, I might not even know some of you that well, but I'd still like to hear from ya'.

Send me a suggestion to write about, a question about New Zealand, or even just send me a short message with something stupid you've done recently.
I'm not homesick by any means, but a taste of home now and then is always a good thing. It may not look like it, but these entries/videos take a good amount of time and effort, and I'd love to sit back and hear about someone besides myself for once.

My email is: Trevelyan18@gmail.com
Or shoot me something on Facebook.


Alright, that's enough from me.
Hope you enjoyed, look forward to hearing from you.

As always, thanks for reading.

See ya next time.

Hogs Wild

New Zealand #2 - A Blessed Life

I don't deserve the life I have.

I didn't deserve to be born into an American, white, middle class, loving family.
I didn't deserve to be given the brother I have.
I didn't deserve to be given a piano by my grandfather.
I didn't deserve to be given the athletic and intellectual abilities that I have.
I didn't deserve to be given the game of rugby, and every single soul that wonderful game has put me in touch with.
I didn't deserve to be given the chance to travel the world.
I didn't deserve to be given the lifelong friends I've met.
I didn't deserve to have any of this.

I've been GIVEN an incredible life.

And by God, I'll continue making the most of what I've been given.

Thank YOU for being part of my unimaginable gift.

Merry Christmas, from New Zealand.

Thankful Hogs Wild.


So..I was a bit overcome on Christmas and did a little introspection again. Luckily for all of us, this time it was much shorter.
The last introspection took weeks of compilation and hours of writing. This one took 5 minutes - much nicer.




Anyway....

Hey from New Zealand again!

I've been here 3 weeks now and...excuse me, I just received a text saying dinner was ready. Back in a bit.
.......

Back now, and dinner was great. But now New Year's Eve is catching back up with me. I'll come back and write when I'm rested.

...Some 20 hours later...

Alright, the hangover is officially flushed by way of sleep and a sweaty ass workout.

Things that happened since last time:

• Bought a motorcycle!
• Christmas
• Barbecues
• New Years
• Failed miserably to record anything with my GoPro
• Showed my new friends how a real American man drinks. And pukes.
• Beach visits
• Discovered the secret to keeping a tan
• Took motorcycle lessons
• Still looking for work
• Got a haircut - Gus is a barber
• Started watching Deadwood - Raylan Givens!
• Had my first encounter with the New Zealand police
• Still haven't seen the new Star Wars...
• Jedi braid fell out
• Wrote a list of things I don't deserve in my life
• Swiped right on Tinder
• Downloaded all of Eminem's old albums and almost drowned in the ensuing wave of nostalgia. 
• Haven't played a single video game in 4 months

Video Recap

I'll be the first to admit my videos from NZ have been quite weak so far. I haven't taken much footage, and it shows.  It's a little different carrying a GoPro around in a fantasy camp like the Philippines, compared to toting one around in everyday life in New Zealand. Still, I will do better in the coming entries.

New Years BBQ

Settling in:

I don't know if it's the smaller town mentality, but the people here are so willing to help me, it's almost scary. In my last entry I touched on this same subject, and I'm only becoming more convinced the longer I stay here that this place is heaven. The Philippines was a fantasy camp - no responsibilities except diving every day, working on my tan, and flirting with Zoe the Turtle. I always knew it wasn't real, and I understood that.
But this place, it has the feeling of being grounded in reality, while still being a paradise. Rugby, good people, beaches, beautiful weather, barbecues, teammates...
Quite frankly, if I couldn't be at home in Sacramento, Nelson New Zealand wouldn't be a bad second choice.

Christmas: My Adopted Family

This was my first Christmas away from the Haugen home - the original Hogs' den.
As I mentioned in my last post, I was invited to join my coach and his family on Christmas - Sam (Coach), Sharyn (Sam's Wife), their three daughters, and Gus.
The invitation was humbling, to say the least.

Christmas morning Sam and I went and got a quick workout in before the festivities.
After cleaning up, I walked over to their apartment with presents for the girls, Annaihah (7) Sienna (4), and Aneeva (1). Apparently Santa  delivered their presents to my apartment by mistake..

Gus, me, Sam

In Islander fashion (they're Samoan), I was given a formal lava lava to wear along with Sam and Gus  Way cool.
We had breakfast, and the girls raced all around the apartment trying to contain their excitement while we adults took our sweet time with our food and tea - presents were next. I can relate to this pent up excitement, and thoroughly enjoyed being on the other end of it for the first time. Muahahaha, you will WAIT while we sip our tea and relax after breakfast!!!

Presents: After a seeming eternity - for the girls - it came time for presents.

As the girls tore into their presents, squeals of excitement and glee mixed with the sounds of tearing paper were in no short supply.
I tried to take pictures/video, but there was simply too much activity for my cheap phone's camera to register. Scooter, rollerblades, Frozen-related things, frisbee, nerf vortex football (which Gus and I commandeered at the beach).

Here's the kicker though: There were presents for me too.
What?
Not only was I given the gift of not being alone on Christmas, the gift of food, but... presents too?
No joke. I had a present from each of the girls, as well as a couple from the Gibbens family.
I was shocked, and a little lost for words.
Luckily, after many years' worth of practicing the art of repressing my emotions, I managed to hold it together and act manly.

Sam had heard me talking about how much I liked the jogger jeans I saw everyone wearing, and got me a pair. I also scored a few fancy shirts, an NZ shotglass, a deck of cards, a SWEET ass keychain, and some chocolates.
The keychain took the cake. It's a mini All Blacks jersey with a little rugby ball connected to it. It will go perfectly with my motorcycle keys.
In all, I CLEANED UP!
Humbling doesn't even begin to describe it.

After presents, we all went to church and listened to a nice Christmas service. I also really enjoyed going out in public in my lava lava.
After church we came back home and readied ourselves for the beach.

Yep, the beach. On Christmas. It's summer here, yo!
The boys went ahead and claimed a spot and set up the tent, and promptly started drinking black russians while we waited for Sharyn and the girls to show up.
Sharyn made a FEAST - lamb that fell right off the bone - and we stuffed ourselves while enjoying the ocean breeze and summer sun.

After feasting, Annaihah and I spent a good hour crashing through waves, seeking out only the biggest ones to conquer. By the time we were done showing the ocean who was boss, the rest of the gang had packed up our camp, and it was time to head home.

All in all, it was a very memorable Christmas. Here I was expecting to be alone on Christmas, and ended up being welcomed into a family with open arms.
It was a pretty great day, and it started me thinking about what I do and don't deserve in my life...

The Third Hog

Get your mind out of the gutter.
I am officially the proud owner of a brand new - to me - 1974 Honda XL175 motorcycle. Or I guess motorbike, which is what they call them here. Need to teach some American lessons here too I guess.

I found the bike on Trademe.com, which is basically New Zealand's version of Craig's List. As soon as I saw the listing for this beast, I was hooked. Vintage, unassuming, some rust spots, and way cooler than some stupid race bike. So McQueen.

Gonna see if Gus can cut my hair like this...

A few days later I met up with the seller at his workplace. Turns out he's the head mechanic at a Honda motorcycle dealership - nifty. He spent 10 minutes telling me about the bike, then promised to ride it into work the next day so I could see it then.

The following morning I turned up and sure enough, there she was, in all her glory. Just looking at her, I could tell she was hungry to be out on the open road, ripping and roaring down the highway, tearing up pavement and never apologizing to nothing and no one.

The seller, Richard, told his boss he'd be back in a few minutes, grabbed a bike off the showroom floor, and we took off for a test drive. He led me around town while I followed on the future Third Hog. Between riding my dad's old dirt bike when I was 16, and the help of a few Youtube videos beforehand, I managed to make it around town without crashing or stalling. The bike felt great - some sweet Hog on hog action, it was glorious.

Look Mom, a helmet!

Turns out Richard was given the bike last year by a satisfied customer, and he decided to rebuild the motor as a labor of love. Now he was selling it to simply recoup the costs of the rebuild.

Richard's a real cool dude, and was very upfront about all the intricacies of the bike. He showed me a lot of parts that had been added throughout the bike's life and I nodded my head while pretending to understand every word - the truth is, I just wanted the motorcycle. Kinda like talking to a girl at a bar and nodding your head as details fly by. Except in this instance, the end result was that I actually got to ride the motorcycle...


We talked price after the test drive, and I tried to play hard to get by low-balling him, but Richard was set on his price and could not go any lower. I was fully prepared to pay his asking price, but my male ego would not be satisfied until I tried to bargain over some sort of motor vehicle.
Man stuff!

He told me he would be happy to hang onto the bike and give me a chance to make a bid if anyone else made any offers on it. I told him I'd be in touch sometime after Christmas when some money from the bank cleared, and I'd make him an offer. This wasn't total bullshit, because I still needed
to transfer the money from my US bank account to my NZ one..but I had no doubt about buying the bike.

I visited a few other motorcycle shops and talked with some experts on the subject, and they all raved about the bike and told me to buy it ASAP.

A couple days later I called Richard and told him I was prepared to offer him $1600. He wanted $1800, but agreed to the sale on the condition that he could keep the extra parts advertised with the bike and sell them to make up the difference. I asked him if he was okay taking an initial loss on the bike - because I genuinely like the guy and was not interested in screwing him over.
His response: "No worries, mate. You're keen on the bike, there's no denying it, and you need some transportation. I'm good with that."
Damn.
This guy's an example of the good, honest, genuine human spirit that exists in the world. Someday I'll have to make sure to pay it forward and help someone out like Richard has done for me.

Two days later we met up at the post office and signed the bike over into my name. He told me to give him a ring when it was time to change the oil and do any other maintenance, and he'd help me out.

For the equivalent of $1100 US dollars, I got a bike with 600 kilometers on it, and possibly the best warranty/maintenance program you could ask for.
The blessings just don't stop.

Class 6 License - Motorcycle

This will allow me to ride a motorcycle alone, up to 100kph, and not between the hours of 11pm and 5am. I am forbidden to carry any passengers for one year - so basically, no picking up hot dates on my bike like Steve McQueen.

Sadly, none of this..

Damn, what a stud

To get a motorcycle learner's license in New Zealand, you need to provide a valid driver's license (my US license counts), pass an accredited motorcycle handling test, and pass a road rules computer test.

Valid License: Check.
Besides driving on the opposite side of the road, it's pretty much the same. Except way more roundabouts....ugh.

Handling Test: Check.
I paid $250 to get a very useful 3 hour training on basic handling techniques, and then 1 hour practicing the test, culminating with me crushing the test like a pro.
Basically I had to ride around in circles - rather dizzying - and do some figure eights, and prove I could use a blinker. It's not exactly a piece of cake, but I'd say it's easy as pie.
When I told my trainer what kind of bike I was buying, he told me:
"Mate, what a score. That bike will still be running when you die of old age."
Awesome.

Road Rules Computer Test: Almost check.
Currently waiting for the licensing agency to get off their fat holiday asses and open back up so I can come nail the test and get my license.
Upon completion, I'll be road legal.... can you say HOGS WILD!!?!?

Job Search

"Hi, my name is Travis. Know anyone who's hiring?"
This is the line every person hears upon meeting me.

At the moment I've got two leads, with about 25 other applications floating around in the job-seeky space.
One is four days' worth of work ripping out tomatoes on a local farm, with the potential for some part time work afterward.
Another is at the fish n chips place across the street, but their hours conflict with rugby, so that probably won't pan out. When I handed the manager my resume, she looked at it and frowned.
"I hope you understand, this job isn't going to pay as well as the others I see on this list."
"That's fine, maam. Something is better than nothing."
"Did your business degree teach you to use a deep fryer?"
"Haha, no maam, it did not. I bet I can figure it out though."
"We'll see. I'll be in touch."

The great thing is, I'd be perfectly happy frying fish and making burgers as long as it funds my ability to pay rent and play rugby. New Zealand is worth it.


Another great example of Kiwi kindness is the fact that at two separate businesses, the managers stopped what they were doing and picked up the phone to call their friends and see if they had any work for me.

While buying my motorcycle helmet, I asked the manager if he knew of anyone hiring. The manager promptly called one friend and gave me the number of another who works at a temp agency, - all while I stood there, a complete stranger.

While stopping in at the auto shop to make an appointment for Gus' car, I asked the manager if he knew anyone who may be hiring. Without a moment's hesitation, he picks up the phone and called three different people, asking them if they had any use for a young, fit laborer.
The first two calls yielded nothing, but the third guy said he might be able to offer some work building fences in February.
The call went like this:

Manager: "Hey Phil, got any use for a rugger looking for work? Guy looks fit and his hands aren't TOO soft." He chuckles.
Phil: "If he's a rugby player, I'll do my best to find something for him. Give him my number and tell him to call in early February."

This Phil guy has NEVER met me, and the manager he's talking to on the phone just met me 5 minutes before.



Okie doke, time to get my ass off the couch and get a workout in. When you're unemployed and have unlimited access to a field/gym, you better finding a way to get something done each day. Between that and

Thanks as always for reading.

New Zealand!

NZ Week 1

On top of a bus!

Things that happened this week:

• Rode on the roof of a bus
• Left the Philippines
• Got an aisle seat on every flight, with no person in the middle seat.. Score!
• Arrived in NZ!
• Ate my first hamburger in 3 months
• Got the flu
• Ate my first meat pie
• Drove backwards
• Bought a keyboard
• Began my job search
• Got a cell phone again - ugh
• Met new people
• Got my ass kicked in a 7s training session
• Porched it hardcore after 7s training
• Went to a restaurant
• I sill have my jedi braid

So long, folks

My time in the Philippines is over, and now it's time for me to get to the big cheese and start my adventure in New Zealand.
Before each volunteer leaves base, the CCC gang makes a goodbye card consisting of some memorable pictures, and then everyone signs the back.

It's a little like signing a yearbook back in high school, except better cuz we are "adults" now.
Some recurring themes from the signatures on my card:
America
USA #1
Freedom
Jokes
Hairy Moonfish (my ass underwater)


My favorite entry starts off with, "Travis, when I first saw you I thought you were a real American patriotic rugby asshole." Thanks, Lea.

The pictures on my card are a great way to sum up my trip - puppies, dressed like Hitler youth, pizza, Team America, diving naked, and so forth. The bottom middle picture is actually a shot of me on my naked dive, but since I'm so white, I blend in with the white sand beneath me and you can't even tell.

CCC guys/gals, it was an amazing experience being with all of you, and I doubt I'll ever have anything like it again. It already seems so long ago, like some distant memory.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again - that place wasn't real.
It was a fleeting dream, it didn't follow the rules of time and space, it went beyond imagination - but we sure as hell made the most of our time away from reality.

Weekly Video Recap/Tour

From Philippines to New Zealand:

After 5 hours of bus/van travel - got to ride on the roof! -  I arrived at the Tacloban airport and promptly ate a hotdog and three donuts - my American habits were returning quickly.

On top of a bus!
Check out Dude in the background workin that Batman tee.

I briefly caught sight of Lea as she was heading for her plane in Manila - that scarf/shawl thing is hard to miss.
During my layover in Cairns, I was subjected to yet another security screening, even
though I was re-entering the same exact plane - thanks Australia. There isn't free internet in this airport either - come on, Aus.

When I landed in Nelson, I was picked up by someone who only knew I had blonde hair and I'd be wearing a black jacket.
No phone numbers, no names. Super hardcore like that.
Ended up being picked up by last year's team captain, good dude named Trey (Trail, Tray? It was late and I'd been traveling for 30 hours)
He asked me if I was hungry, and I said I was starving. The only thing open at that hour was McDonald's.
Regardless of how much McDonald's sucks....the West tastes so good..

Afterwards, Trael (I have since confirmed the spelling) dropped me off at the apartment I have been/will be staying in.

Brightwater

For any who don't know, I've been hooked up with a rugby club out here in Brightwater, New Zealand, just outside of Nelson. My goal here is to provide myself with the best possible environment
to give rugby my best shot possible. Where better to do that, than in the best country for rugby in the world?
The name of the club is the Brightwater Wanderers, and from the look and sound of it, they're pretty damn good.
To be clear, I'm not here on any sort of contract or getting paid - I'm just here to play rugby and learn from some of the best in the world. These guys were nice enough to take in an unknown, unproven American dude with a jedi braid.

Outside View

Everyone here is super welcoming, and ridiculously large - their hospitality is proportional to their size. (I thought I had to gain weight BEFORE seeing these guys. Now it's a whole new ballgame...)

Within 12 hours of arriving I had already slept 9 hours and done a workout with a few of the boys, and given the keys to a car so I could go check out the town.
(Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go cruise around in the wrong lane in a car I've never driven before)

Don't worry, I survived.

I've currently got two roommates, Gus and Chile, and I've set up shop in their living room. Yes, that's a down comforter on that cot.

My "room"

Gus has been my main link to figuring things out and finding my way around. Real chill dude, super helpful, good gym partner, didn't get mad when I gave him the flu... It's a good fit so far.

My other roommate, Chile - I don't know his real name, but everyone calls him Chile - is from Chile. Bet you never woulda guessed that one. He isn't around as much, due to his work schedule and such. He's kinda gigantic, but luckily he seems like the gentle sort of giant, which is preferable to the non-gentle giants.

All the fellas here have been great at making me feel accepted as one of the boys - inviting me to workouts, helping me look for work, making weekend plans, taking me out to see the town, etc.
As much as I'd like to think it's because I'm just that awesome, I have a strong feeling they would have done the exact same for anyone else.

So far, these guys seem like a good bunch of dudes. On one hand, they're a bunch of characters who know how to have a good time. On the other hand, they take their rugby very seriously and train hard. So basically, they're rugby players.

Sunday Morning Stairs with Gus

The team gym is right next to our playing field, which is a mere minute walk from my apartment living room - including the time it takes going down the stairs.
This is a blessing and a curse. With a nice field and gym within a 60 second walk, I have absolutely no excuse to not be fit.

Club Gym

Our Field and Clubhouse

A Warm Welcome

I wasn't kidding when I said everyone is super welcoming. It's like Southern hospitality, except without disgusting sweet tea and Nascar.

Example: Our coach (Gus' older brother) has not only arranged for me to eat dinner with his family every weekday, but he's also invited me to spend Christmas with them as well.

Another example: Gus let me have his car for an entire day so I could go run errands. Not only have I never driven in this country, the dude's only known me for a couple days!

Yet another example: Within 20 minutes of meeting our club manager, Diane, she threw me in her van and took me into town to do some grocery shopping and set up a bank account.

For reals, the generosity here is ridiculous.
(The cynical side of me is waiting for the moment when I'll be expected to repay all this kindness by giving up my firstborn child or something.... Eh, worth it)

10 minute drive from my apartment

Job Search

As of now, I haven't figured out my employment situation, but it sounds like it will be getting sorted out soon - no idea what I'll be doing yet.
In the meantime, I've taken the last few days to watch a boatload of Game of Thrones and run a few errands.
Saw Robb Stark pay for his sins at the Red Wedding and bought a new phone, keyboard, beard trimmer, etc. Successful days.

I haven't completely squandered my time so far - I've sent some job applications here and there between my other activities.

Jobs I've Applied For:

• Shepherd (just cuz)
• Tree trimmer
• Librarian
• Orchard worker
• Front desk clerk
• Peanut Butter Factory
• Assorted factory jobs 
• Wait staff
• Sawmill worker
• Assorted labor jobs

As for transportation, Gus is graciously loaning me his ride while he's at work during the days. I am looking into getting a cheap motorcycle and seeing what it takes to get a motorcycle license here. Got my eyes on a sweet 1974 Honda. Fingers crossed.


Cell Phone..

After going 3 months without a cell phone, I was really enjoying not being tethered to a device and other peoples' whims. Unfortunately, now I'm back in the real world - debatable, because New Zealand is Middle Earth, which isn't technically real either - and I have to be responsible again.

Within 20 minutes of walking into a store, I picked out a phone and a cheap month's worth of coverage, and I was set. Prepaid is the way to go!
No more sitting around in a store for 3 hours, signing 10 different documents to pledge your loyalty and servitude to your phone carrier. I paid the equivalent of $13 USD for my cell phone plan this month. Sweet.
No more carrying around a big bottle of lube on the off chance your mobile carrier decides it isn't quite satisfied.

A few initial impressions:

The people of New Zealand are quite laid back. For instance, a neighboring town's motto is, "It's all good." That pretty much sums it up.

People here are large

Construction workers often walk around in work boots and rugby shorts, it's pretty inspiring.

Between their inherent friendliness and my accent, I think I've already gotten away with some pretty stupid interactions with my new friends and neighbors.

There are sheep everywhere

Lord of the Rings was totally filmed here

Coins here actually matter.
$2 coins, $1 coins, 50 cent coins, and on down.
I keep paying for things with a $5 bill and can't help feeling ripped off when I get a few coins back as change, even though I know full well I am owed a few dollars.
I want that cash money!

The coins below are worth $17

Some cool stuff they say here:

Have a feed - eat (my favorite)
Have a sleep - sleep (like Flight of the ConChords!)
Bro - but with the accent, it's pronounced more like "brew"
Sweet as - This is used like "sweet as, mate" to mean "right on, dude." Or "hard as" to mean "hard as hell". I've heard some people in the States say similar stuff, but it's not cool cuz they're not New Zealanders.


The Little Things

Here's a few things I have sorely missed about Western culture.

• Good internet. I almost closed down my internet browser so I could save on data usage...nope! 
• Hot showers
• Naked showers
• Alone in the shower
• No mosquitoes
• Stores
• Food that isn't 100% sodium.
• No chickens outside my window to wake me up.
• No more mosquito nets.
• Sinks with running water.
• Driving a car.
• White women
• Unlimited cereal

You may have noticed I haven't said anything about the toilets. I am not that stoked about flushing toilets. I rather enjoyed the intimacy of personally flushing the toilet with a bucket of sea water, and then triumphantly striding past my peers on the porch with two empty buckets in hand as I marched to refill them in the ocean.
I will miss that.



Alright, that's enough for now. Suffice it to say, I'm really gonna like it here. The people rock, the food is good, the rugby is kickass.. Can't really ask for more.

As for this blog, it may not be a weekly thing now that I'm here in New Zealand. Soon I'll be working full time and playing rugby, which may not leave too much time to sit down and pump out a write up every week. It may turn into a biweekly, or even monthly thing. We'll see.

I'll work on getting more/better pictures of the surrounding area and such in due time. Until then, watch Lord of the Rings and you'll get the idea.


Thanks from New Zealand!

Hogs Wild

Week 12 - So long, Philippines!

Weeks 11/12

Week 11 didn't exist, because this place is a wormhole. Week 10 was 5 days late, Week 11 didn't happen, and Week 12 was a blur, so the last two are being mixed together.

This was my last week here in the Philippines with the Coral Cay Conservation gang. The term "bittersweet" gets overused, so I will not be using it.
This week has been sweetly bitter.

Saying goodbyes, packing up, going on my last dive - it's still not hitting home. Because this place is some sort of ethereal heaven and isn't real, it almost seems like I never arrived in the first place - like some fleeting, surreal dream. In a few months' time, this blog will likely be the only real proof I was even here.

Not actually from these two weeks, but this picture rocks. Team AMERICA!

Things that happened these two weeks:

• Won Dick of the Day 5 days in one week for alleged crimes against a few bathrooms. 
• Lea got everyone sick.
• Adam has left base. The man who won Dick of the Week 4 weeks in a row - mostly due to his smugness. Stay out of San Francisco, Adam. The storm might be catastrophic.
• Passed my Divemaster exam with flying colors. 
• Got my ass kicked by a German girl (see video)
• Finished my Divemaster!
• Won Dick of the Week. (see Dick hat below)
• Finished the last Star Wars movie, watching them all in chronological order. The second half was infinitely better.
• Waterfall trip.
• DuDong gave me his hat.
• Gave DuDong a diving hood in return.
• Left the Philippines

Week 12 Video Recap

Master of the Dive:

As of Saturday, December 5th, at 11:50 am Philippines time, I have finished my Divemaster training. Three months in the making, and now it's finally finished.
Hell Dives, tests, quizzes, 4 books' worth of reading, tying knots, navigating, learning search patterns, practicing 24 unique skills....
It's over. 
No longer must I relax with that angry, gray cloud of "you should be studying right now" hanging over my head. It's quite similar to finishing your last exam on finals week.
It's over.
It's been a journey and I've learned a ton of stuff, and I'm now a relatively competent diver.
Plus, I can now be employed as a dive professional if I so choose, offering potential income as I continue to travel and delay adulthood.

But most importantly, I now officially have MASTER in my title!!

(Excuse me, my ego just exploded out of my head - I need to go clean up the mess.)

Guerrilla Shitting

Ever since Week 4 when a secret/private bathroom was unfairly requisitioned for living quarters, something strange has been going on.
Someone has been slowly and systematically making use of everyone's toilets without their knowledge or permission.
Guerrilla style. 
Early American Freedom Fighters learned it from the Natives and used it to destroy the British, giving birth to the greatest nation on Earth.
Those brave forefathers may be proud to know that three British toilets have been destroyed with the same tactics.

Some mysterious and strange happenings have been reported.

• Someone "escaping" out of a window in the dark of (K)night.  
• White lies about "using the person's bathroom scale to track weight loss."
• Five minutes after our Project Scientist left for home, it is suspected that the culprit was on her toilet. When she came back for her passport, she reported sensing a presence nearby, but could not identify it. She may have come within mere feet of discovering this outlaw-vigilante's actions. To remain discreet, this freedom fighter, this Patriot, must have stifled a hearty laugh as he heard her footsteps just outside the door. The world will never know.

Daylight robbery is a bold move, but it can be a bit risky.
But the culprit was careful.
They always brought their own TP and water bucket, and left things just as they were before leaving the scene.
This outlaw was getting quite good at it. Imagine a mixture between Solid Snake and Sam Fisher - two master assassins/spies with ridiculous premises for their missions of revenge.
In and out, without a trace.

Then one day, the culprit got careless - they left a toilet seat up.

After being away for the entire day, our Field Base Manager, Olly, stormed into the science room while several volunteers were taking a test and demanded,
"Did you shit in my toilet!?"
Unfortunately there had been some suspicion building in the previous days, so the list of possible culprits was quite short.
The outlaw knew his time had come.
He pretended to be absorbed in his test and didn't respond.
Olly: "The toilet seat was up, I never leave it up."
Me: **Silence**
Olly: "I know it was you."
Me: "(Sigh)...Yeah, I took a selfie too. You'll see it in my blog this week."

Since being outed, I have been continuously voted Dick of the Day and I have been placed on a Watch list.

While none of them know the full extent of the abuses their bathrooms have been subjected to, most are aware that a plunger was involved.

I have since been rightfully dubbed "The Guerrilla Shitter."

To you Coral Cay folks wondering if I got your toilet too:
Yes, I did.

Waterfall

Sunday we went to an amazing waterfall/swimming hole outside a nearby town. After an hour-long hike of crossing rivers and climbing steep hills, we found ourselves in a little paradise.

Cool, refreshing water, waterfalls, rocks to jump off, backflips to be done...it was fantastic. We brought Shrimp along, and as soon as we let him off his leash, he was running around like a mad dog enjoying every bit of his freedom in this new and wonderful place.

This swimming hole, as any other, was what every twelve-year-old boy (me) dreams of finding and keeping it as his secret oasis.  Heights to jump from, waterfalls to scale, additional avenues to explore, treacherous paths to walk, vines to climb, pools to relax in... heaven.

Tine was forward-thinking and generous enough to prepare a picnic lunch for us the night before, so we snacked on some German-made bread, veggie patties,
and CAKE!

Sundays are normally spent lounging around base and getting rid of our hangovers, but the waterfall hike and swim turned out to be a much more productive method
of remedying our self-induced misery.

K-dawg, I'm sorry dude, but you missed out. Hope Italy was worth it.

DuDong

DuDong is one of our local Filipino staff members. DuDong is the man. Nice as can be, DuDong is one of the quieter staff, mostly due to the language barrier, but his English is still quite good and doesn't stop him from delivering a joke now and then. He lives just up the hill from base, in the Napantao village - we exchange salutes every time I go by on my morning jogs.

He is working to pay for his Divemaster course with us, which he has almost finished. He is in charge of filling all our scuba tanks throughout the day, which is a full day's work. When he isn't filling tanks, he is either joining us in our training dives or assisting our boat captain when we take the boat out. He's the best person to have as your rescue victim, because he doesn't pull any bullshit and try
to make your life harder like everyone else - he's just that cool.

He's completing his Divemaster with the hope of being able to find work on a nearby dive resort so he can continue to provide an income for his family if/when Coral Cay moves on to another operation site.

Because DuDong is Filipino and doesn't have an ounce of fat on him, he is always freezing cold within 10 minutes of being underwater. The poor guy wears the older suit that Coral Cay provides and a little skull cap on his head, but don't seem to do much to keep him from shivering in the first few minutes of his dives.
Something that should be understood about our local guys that work on base: They live in rural Philippines with meager income compared to Western standards, even despite the above average wage CCC pays them, which doesn't leave them the option to go and buy a new wetsuit - they have families to feed.

After diving with the guy for 3 months, getting to know him, and watching him freeze his ass off, four of us decided to do something nice for DuDong as a going away gift. We pooled some cash together and bought a brand new 5mm wetsuit - the super thick, warm kind - as an early Christmas gift and token of our appreciation.
When we presented him the wetsuit, it took a bit to explain that it was his, and not just a loaner. In his quiet manner, he was blown away and said he might cry.

DuDong sporting his new Wetsuit

The Hat

DuDong had this awesome hat and I always complimented him on it when he wore it (see above). It's pretty awesome, and I was always super jealous of it.
Two weeks ago, DuDong asked me how much longer I had in the Philippines. I told him I would be leaving on the 9th. DuDong replied, "On December 8th, I give you my hat, for remembrance." Shocked, touched, flattered - pick whatever word you like, I was one of them.
He knew I liked his hat, and without me ever asking for anything, he offered it to me out of pure kindness.  DuDong is just that awesome.
I told him I didn't want to take away his hat, but he insisted, so I stopped protesting.
Then on December 7th (he sneakily moved it up a day) he surprised me when I dropped off my scuba tank and gave me the hat. I thanked him, told him how much it meant to me, and that I would never forget it.

The next day my gift for DuDong arrived. Along with his new westuit, I personally gave him a new diving hood attached to a vest, to further aid his fight to stay warm while diving.

I wanted to get him something he could use and that he could keep for a long time, and hopefully his hood and vest will serve him well.
It's not often that I give a good gift, but when I do, I really love the feeling.
It does not match the gift he gave me, what with the sentimental value attached to it, but he was very grateful and was again overcome with gratitude.  

DuDong sporting his new vest/hoodie

Goodbye

One big sign that things are starting to wind down is when people start losing their dignity.
Right now, two people next to me are having a photo contest about whose cat back home is cuter. One of themis a guy.
They are trading cat pictures and saying things like:
"My cat wins"
"My cute beats your cute, bitch."
"That's not even a cat.."

This is the kind of stuff I imagine two 40 year-old single, pathetic, bitter, spinster women to be arguing about, not two 18 year-olds in the tropics.

That being said, every minute of my time here in the Philippines has been incredible. I rode on top of a bus today on my way to the airport!!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, it's the people that make this a great place. Guys, you know I don't get gushy, so I'll just say that I've enjoyed my time with you all, and I may think about missing you in.... 10 years.


Things I will miss:

• Zoe
• Bottled Pepsi
• Pretending diving was my job
• Bucket flush toilets. I'll see what my landlord in NZ thinks about installing one when I get there.
• The porch.
• Puppies.
• Mango floats.
• Calling everyone nerds.
• Rainbows that ACTUALLY touch the ground.
• Karaoke.
• Living on a beach.
• Wearing rugby shorts and no shirt 24/7

Things I will not miss:

• Doing laundry by hand.
• Mosquito nets.
• Watery oatmeal.
• Limited internet.
• Scrounging for food on Sundays.
• Milk and cereal scarcity.
• Nothing being on time
• Losing weight like a Biggest Loser contestant - seriously, I'm down 19 pounds since I arrived.
• I am 181 pounds, or 82.5 kg. I haven't been this light since high school. Wtf...
• Being lean is cool and all, but not when you're trying to go play rugby in a foreign land..

In 2 months' time, I plan to get back to man-weight

Okay, I gotta cut this short, I have a flight to New Zealand to catch. Thanks as always for reading, it's been a true pleasure writing these up.

NEW ZEALAND HERE I COME!!!


Hogs Wild

Week 10 - 100th Dive!

Week 10

Life is tough

I have 7 more days here in the Philippines. Can't believe it, but I've already been here for more than 10 weeks now.
I am nearly done with my Divemaster course, and should have it completed by the end of this week. Very exciting.

Things are starting to wind down here on base, as more people leave and all the extra gear and equipment goes back into hibernation to await the next season.
Base officially closes down on December 16th for the Christmas holidays, a week or so after I leave.

It's kinda sad to think that my time here is almost over, as everyone starts talking about going home and their holiday plans, what food they can't wait to eat, how much they're looking forward to stable internet and beds without mosquito nets, and so on.

While it's a bummer to think this paradise is coming to an end soon, it's still not over. I still get 7 more days of laying out on a lawnchair and typing up my blog,
7 more days of living next to a tropical ocean, 7 more days of diving in a tropical ocean, 7 more days of annihilating mosquitoes with my bare hands, 7 more days playing with puppies, 7 more days of diving in rugby shorts with a big ass knife strapped to my thigh, 7 more days of avoiding watery oatmeal, 7 more days of outdoor showers, and 7 more days of bucket-flushing toilets.

And once those 7 days are up, I have something else to look forward to.
In just one week I will be on my way to New Zealand where I'll start another adventure: rugby.
For a whole year!
Suffice it to say, I'm excited. I'm leaving one paradise to go to another.
Try not to be too jelly.

Week 10 Video Recap

Things that happened this week:

• Got lost again. (At least I wasn't alone this time.)
• Played basketball in the village.
• Finished reading The Shining. Hopefully now I will be able to sleep again. 
• Started reading Ready Player One. It's about video games!
• Swam with a Whale Shark!
• Watched all 3 Batman movies.
• Lost a battle with a jellyfish.
• Got Kieran to start reading the Dark Tower series. When I asked him where he was in the book, he said, "Roland just killed a bunch of people and then met a boy named Jake." He has no idea.. I envy him.
• Ran out of internet. Hence the delayed post.
• Got a fresh new haircut with even more racing stripes.
• Got a jedi braid.
• Hit my 100th dive!
• We lost Kieran and Shannon, as they both return home. These two will be sorely missed, and base life will not be the same without them. Team ScoMerica #1!

The Disgusting Haircut Continues

CNN

Here's the link for the CNN story that was done on us. There's a little write up and a video. Have a look! 

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/11/30/asia/philippines-coral-reef/index.html

100 Dives!

As of this writing, I now have 101 logged dives. My 101 dives equates to 4922 minutes or roughly 82 hours of diving.
There is a tradition in diving that your 100th dive is supposed to be done naked.
Seeing as that did not quite meet my standards for modesty, as well as those of the people I am living with, I opted for a slightly more conservative option.
Using an elastic band, I fashioned an undergarment using my boonie hat that resembled a rather revealing speedo. The backside was left almost entirely bare.
Rocked it like a champ.

It just so happened that my 100th dive occurred on the equipment exchange dive, in which we have to exchange all of our gear with our partner underwater.
There is no real practical use for this exercise, other than acting as a stress dive for those involved. My lack of clothing certainly added stress for some of the others.
Tine was my unfortunate dive partner for most of the equipment exchange, and she endured a great amount of stress. Poor girl.

I would like to say the footage of all this is hilarious.
But, since I'd rather be employed at some point in my future life, said footage is not available because it does not exist.
Even if it did exist, all photography of this dive would be used only for educational purposes, and would be distributed under strict license as I saw fit... but it doesn't
exist.

Hoop Dreams:

The only way you can really get a full 5v5 game of basketball out of the Filis is to put up a bet on the game - the standard bet is 100 pesos per game, roughly $2 (same price as my last doctor visit).

We show up to the court in town lookin all tough, tell the guy on the bike that we want a game,
and he goes to round up the village ballers. While we wait, we show off our stuff on the court - skills that will most certainly pay the bills.
With a combination of free-throws, left-handed layups, and only two airballs, we proudly boast our Shooty Hoops prowess. Seeing as we had two Americans on our team, and America rocks at basketball, we felt pretty confident.

Our lineup:

• Kieran, aka "K-dawg": He's our shooter and all-around best player. American, of course.
• Adam, aka "Smugness": Standing at a towering 6'2 in the Philippines, his height is a major advantage in the paint.
• Yann, aka "Bastard": With fast hands and shifty moves, he slices through the defense like Swiss cheese. Get it, cuz he's Swiss?
• Random Filipino kid, aka "Hey kid!": Quick fast breaks, impressive defensive plays, this guy was a flash - even while wearing flip flops.
• Travis, aka "Rugby Dude": Rugby!

For those who don't know, Street Ball - as we street toughs call it - is played by 1s, and 2s for three-point shots. Fouls are settled off the court after the game, with knives.

With Yann bringing the ball up the court, Kieran on the perimeter, Adam and myself down low, and our Filipino kid roaming, we had the semblance of a team who knew what they were doing.

Kieran dropped a few sweet J's, Adam had strong rebounds and put-backs, and Yann delivered some sick drives and silky smooth assists. And myself...well...when the Hogs charge down the lane, there's no stopping the stampede - whether or not the ball goes in the hoop amidst the frenzy is irrelevant.

We started strong and hung tight with the Fili team for most of the game. Some of us were in better physical condition than others, which started showing later in the game.
(All those morning 5k runs were supposed to help!)
Unfortunately, Filipino defense includes 1 player cherry-picking at all times - shit that should never fly on the streets - which we couldn't manage to counter very well.
Between a few fast breaks and well-aimed two-pointers, we fell behind late in the game, and lost 18-21.

The second game was a similar story, except with a shorter game to 15.

I am now 0-3 against Filipinos in basketball and down 150 pesos.
They're just so quick!
I'd gladly challenge them to an underwater dunk contest though. I think Kieran and I have that on lock.

Also, just kidding about the knife fights after the game. That doesn't happen. We all went and got ice cream after.

Getting Lost (Again):

I got lost during another mapping exercise.
Tine' and I have been tasked with mapping a sea wall to the south of our base.
We have attempted this 4 times, and our record is as follows:
1st Attempt: I got lost and had to abort the dive.
2nd Attempt: I over-profiled (went too deep) and had to abort the dive.
3rd Attempt: Tine' over-profiled and had to abort the dive.
4th Attempt: We both got lost together, and therefore DID NOT have to abort the dive. Still embarrassing though.

We were not aware that a second sea wall connects to the one we were supposed to be mapping, and inadvertently mapped the second wall as well as the first.
You know, just going above and beyond.
Aided by a lovely current, this exercise took us really far from base, well around a corner where we couldn't be seen. This is not ideal.
After surfacing and asking each other where the hell we were, we realized we were ridiculously far from base. We briefly argued over whether we should swim or walk back and we each concluded that the other person's idea was stupid.

Luckily, a local dive boat pulled up and offloaded its divers right next to us. Tine, being the
hitchhiking expert she is (hippie), asked for a ride, and the dive boat graciously gave us a lift back to base. It would have been an unbearably long swim/walk, against current/rocks, so this was a blessing.

While everyone back at base was expecting us to be swimming back any minute now, we arrived in style on a sweet ass boat.
Amidst confused looks and questions from base staff, we jumped off the boat, swam to shore, and yelled "Divers up!".

Deservingly so, Tine' and I have earned the nickname of "Dream Team" anytime we are paired up together.

Whale Shark!

These nerds here are crazy about Whale Sharks, and get giddy if one is even mentioned. Any time a Coral Cay member sights a whale shark, they get to sign the Whale Shark bar here on base. For example: after seeing a whale shark, one of our German girls, Lea, said she "could die happy."
Total nerds.

Whale Shark Bar with over 5 years' worth of signatures

On Wednesday we went Whale Shark hunting in Sonok.

Whale Sharks are quite rare, and are tough to spot/follow. According to our base scientist, whale sharks are "data deficient" on the endangered list, because we can't keep track of them well enough to study them properly.
They are not typical sharks, in the way that they are not vicious carnivores like your stereotypical shark. Whale sharks are omnivores, and mostly eat plankton and other small organisms that flow into their huge mouths. They just swim with their mouths open and gobble up everything in their path.
They have the typical gills on the side of the body like sharks, except more massive.

We hired a few professional spotters to tail behind us in our boat and find the sharks for us, and they found one within 30 minutes - what luck!
Whale sharks can grow up to 18 meters long, and weigh a ridiculous amount. The one we found was 6.5 meters long, which apparently
means it was a juvenile. IT WAS FU**ING HUGE! See the picture below with the woman swimming below the shark's back fin. Ridiculous.

This is a JUVENILE whale shark

Once they spotted the shark, we hurried to pull on our fins and masks, and waited for the signal to jump in. When the signal came, we launched ourselves off the boat and started looking.
The spotters kept yelling "Look down, look down!" but we didn't see anything - just dark coral on the ocean floor.
Then a few seconds later, we realized the huge dark mass below us was not coral - it was a whale shark!
All at once everyone started squealing through their snorkels and scrambling to turn their cameras on.
Okay, maybe not everyone, but I certainly was - but in a really manly way.

As the shark moseyed along, we had to swim pretty hard to keep up with it. Filipino law says we have to stay 4 meters away from it and we are not allowed to touch it.
The shark was roughly 12 or 13 meters below us most of the time, but it came up a few times and gave us some pretty great views. One time I didn't realize it was coming up and I dove down to get a closer look and found myself 4 meters from it and almost shit myself - the thing is huge! It's tail fin (caudal fin for the nerds) could easily bat me like a fly and leave me unconscious or dead.

As for recording ability/quality, I suck at holding my breath, so my shots of the shark are very brief. The one time the shark came to investigate our boat was the best footage I got, and gives a great view for perspective.

We swam with the great beast for the better part of 20 minutes, but eventually it got bored of being filmed and decided to move along and go about its Whale Sharky business, and we were forced to give up chase. Alo, we were really tired.
In all, it was a pretty great experience getting to witness a whale shark in person, with only a few meters of seawater between us. I'm no Marine Biology nerd, but it was pretty freakin' cool.
Plus, I got to sign the Whale Shark Bar.

Couldn't help myself

This week was a bit more eventful, due to my Divemaster training starting to taper off. As usual, I am quite busy with my dive training/studying, which keeps me on my toes at all times.

After a tough day of Whale Shark Hunting

Kieran and Marlin Shanbro left us this week, which is a real bummer. Not sure what Shrimp and I are gonna do.
Luckily, I only have to endure 1 week without them, which is do-able.
I'll have to console myself by sitting out on the lawnchair while drinking from a coconut, 5 meters from the ocean.
There is one upside: Now that Kieran's no longer in the room, I get the fan all to myself. I can finally sleep without sweating all night.


One week left!

Thanks as usual,

Hogs Wilder