Because we have so many things to be proud of in the Marianas

This is my boss Ed. He pays me well above minimum wage. Wait, how much are frozen margaritas? Anyway, I recently got promoted from writing stories about local produce to actually doing a piece on a real person. Hopefully next time when he lets me out of the barracks I can write another story for his magazine. I really like my boss Ed. He made me say that.

Check out the new MP Magazine. Locally owned and locally printed. It's what you call a coffee table magazine because it's so pretty you can use it for decoration and it's so well done you'll have to keep drinking coffee because you won't be able to put it down. He didn't make me say that.

Music & Musing

Where did the time go? I swear, I barely blinked.

He's finding his niche in this world. I didn't want it to happen so quickly, but he's becoming a man. When we meet people he no longer hides behind me, grabbing on to my skirt. He shakes hands and says, "hey man, how's it going?" and he's learning to drive now. Sometimes he lets me borrow his jacket and sometimes he steals my socks. This morning he stood at the mirror behind me and announced he was taller than me. His passion for music began in SSHS, with the help of an amazing maestro, Mr. Will Dewitt.

My son is going to Beijing with 4 other musicians from the Saipan Southern High Manta Band and the Pacific Winds Orchestra. They'll be playing in the marching band during the opening of the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2 1/2 years he will be applying for the Berklee College of Music. If destiny and his own yearning for home and mother kick in, he'll be back to pass on his love for music to students in the CNMI. In the meantime he's still my little boy.


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“Ah, yes, divorce ... from the Latin word meaning to rip out a man's genitals through his wallet.”
Love is grand. Divorce is about ten grand.
My husband and I divorced over religious differences. He thought he was God and I didn't.
Did you see the new Divorced Barbie Doll? She comes with all of Ken's stuff.
When a man steals your wife there is no better revenge than to let him keep her.
Instead of getting married again, I'm going to find some woman I don't like and give her a house.
Sir, if you were my husband I would poison your drink. Madam, if you were my wife, I would drink it.

I got a special delivery today. A nice gentleman came to my office to hand deliver something in a manila envelope. I wondered if I'd been subpoenaed and what for, but when I opened it up I was pleasantly surprised to see handmade cards by Tami! OMG! LOL! LMAO! They were exactly what I needed to relieve the pre-divorce hearing anxiety I'd been having for days. Whoever said there was such a thing as an easy divorce must have been lying. There are just as many things to consider and plan for, just like a wedding. The only difference is you're spending all your money in court rather than on a reception. My STBX once told me that a divorce is just a funeral for a dead marriage. Oh well, I guess the only thing to do now is wait for the autopsy report. LOL. Hey, you gotta laugh right?

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In other non-divorce news....

"Work like you don't need the money.
Dance as if no one was watching.
And love like you've never been hurt before."

For whatever we lose (like a you or a me) it's always ourselves we find in the sea. e.e. cummings

I used to live in Chalan Piao. It took about twenty minutes to drive from there to work. My commute along the way was always juxtaposed by peace and desperation. Beach Road offered two vignettes. To the right of me at most times were poker arcades, strip clubs and small businesses on the verge of collapse. Ah, but to the left was the ocean: the vast, beautiful, and boundless sea. I rolled my windows down and let the ocean wind and salt season the start of each day.

We islanders always find our way to the sea. It is where we live, fish, gather to play, go to cry; it is where we look for and many times find ourselves. The ocean does not separate us from the rest of world, it connects us. But, unlike it's reach, the bounties of the sea are not boundless.

I support The National Park of the Sea for the same reasons everyone else has stated. It will be good for our economy, eco-tourism makes sense for our locale, it will highlight the beauty that is the Marianas and of course, it will bring much needed protection for our natural environment and animal habitats. Future generations will hopefully be able to jump into our waters when they want to learn about marine life and not be forced to just read about it in Science books because of our negligence. But, the main reason I joined this blog candy contest is personal.

I am enthralled with the thought of a sanctuary. Sanctuary. Say it with me. A hiding place. A place of refuge. I can't remember how many times I've needed safe harbor. There were countless times I found my solace near the water's edge, looking out into our horizon, knowing that I was inextricably tied to it.

It's more than heritage or culture.
The ocean defines us.
It is more than our responsibility to care about it.
Out of respect and awe, we must protect it.

When Ed Implies That I Am Boring

Not only does Ed spread nasty rumors that I am years older than my youthful 37, he also implies that my blog is zzzzzzzz...boring. It has moved me to update on this beautiful sunny day when I could otherwise be outside really living. Some people are not surgically connected to their Blackberries you know.

Some people go out with their friends and family and make horrible fools of themselves singing karaoke.

Some people make it a point to surround themselves with beauty and warmth. Or wait, was that booty and umph?

They watch the kids simply enjoy growing up together. Play date anyone?

They don't mind getting splashed by a wiggly three year old even after swim time is over.

Sometimes they say "heck with the diet" and eat all the fries they want because it means sharing them with special people.

Sometimes it means letting go and watching their babies become wonderful friends.

Like me. Nah, not boring at all, just living life. Almost to it's fullest. Life is good.