Chicken vs scooter

Alright, so remember how I promised you a story about a chicken and a motor-scooter? Well here it is:

So on my second day in Timor, Carrick (Connor's older brother, if anyone missed that) approached me and said: “Would you be interested in learning how to ride a scooter while you're here?” I told him that I was very interested, that I had always wanted to learn how to ride. He said: “Good, let's go!” This, I was a bit taken back by, for I didn't think he meant right that instant. But off we went into Timor's intense sun, in helmets and protective clothing.

Carrick drove us out to a large salt-flat where it was open wide and the ground was soft and silty. He hopped off, and I slid forward on the scooter so as to be in the driver's seat. He went over all the controls and mechanics of the thing, showing me how to change gear and break. I asked way too many inane questions, mostly so that I could drag out the classroom session before it switched to on the road time. Carrick quickly grew wise to my games and told me to just try it out in first gear and if it got too scary I could always just bale off the bike and into the sand.

I honestly can't say what I was so scared of because by the time I had finished my first lap of the salt-flat I was feeling great. The tricky shifting was still giving me some problems but I just seemed to absorb everything else. Round the flat I went, weaving in and out of prickly, sun-bleached skeleton trees and avoiding large ruts from riders past.

Carrick finally flagged me down and I quickly went to him. “Now try it with me on the back!” and I responded with an oh so elegant: “...uh. What?”

“Don't worry, you'll be fine!”

So he hopped on and I tried to take off like I had been before, but let me tell you, having another person on the bike completely changes the dynamic. It changes the balance and the way you pick up speed, it changes the way you shift and drastically alters how much you have to turn the handle bars before you change direction. The answer: not very much! One tiny alteration from strait and you find yourself headed towards a tree or a giant manure pile.

After the practice we decided to head to a nearby shore line and walk the beach for a bit before heading back. It was at this point that we checked our phones to see the time and found that we each had several missed calls, all from Connor. I call him back to find out that he got back from his work orientation early and has been locked out of the house for three hours. He was not very happy. As we walked back to the bike Carrick said: “I'll get us back to the main road, but then we'll switch and you can drive us home. After so little practice I didn't want to drive the main road and so I used Connor as an excuse. “Connor's pretty mad that he's been locked out for so long, I think you should just drive.”

“Oh it's okay. You don't drive much slower than me, you'll be fine.”

So we shot off to the main road and when we arrived there, Carrick hopped off and I slid forward, just like before. Honestly, it wasn't that scary. Smooth beach roads with the occasional pothole, but plenty of room to maneuver around them. I like to think I was doing pretty well. That is until we approached the corner of chicken doom.

We were just passing a row of quaint little houses with stone fences, coming up to a turn that first went out slightly to the right and then a hard left around a blind corner. I was just approaching the soft right when I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and heard and horrible “BUCAWK!”. That's when the attack came, not from the front, but from the side, from a chicken that I didn't even know was there.

I was mostly dealt a glancing blow off my left shoulder, but Carrick caught most of the feathery furry in his left shoulder. The ordeal had me flustered and I hadn't seen them until it was too late. Two gigantic potholes around the blind left corner, each about the size of a manhole cover, each a few inches deep. I only saw them just before impact and didn't have time to avoid them. I hit them both, doing about 30 miles an hour. Carrick almost bounced off the back, we were jostled so hard.

All the bouncing and slamming had kicked the bike out of gear, so when I tried to accelerate the bike through the rest of the corner, I got nothing but a revved engine.

At that point I calmly pulled over to the side of the road and Carrick said: “I have never heard of that happening before to anyone. Do you want me to drive?” To which I calmly replied: “Yes thank you, I'm a bit too flustered right now.” So he took over and drove us home.

What a fun first riding experience! Not one I'm likely to forget.

Why did the chicken cross the road? To get taken out, mid-air, by me on a scooter.

Hope you liked my story! I'll have to tell you of my battle with the ants in the new house next time.

P.S. This is the view from our balcony at the new house.

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In Timor!

Hello friends and followers! Long time no update, I know. In my defense I have moved to another country since my last blog post and I believe that should allow me some lenience in my online-ness. Let me tell you, the internet situation here in East Timor is absolutely bonkers! There aren't really any hard lines unless you're somewhere fancy like the US embassy, the President's palace or an internet cafe, so everything is done wireless. To get access to the 3G you need, you have to get this little USB stick and a special SIM card. You buy your internet before you use it at a place called Timor Telecom and they apply it to your SIM card which you then put into your internet stick. Once you hook it up to your computer it then connects you to the internet via satellite. Because of all this rerouting and satellite connecting, the internet speed here is equivalent to dial-up from ten years ago. For any of those who are really dependent on the internet for happiness, DON'T COME TO TIMOR!

One of the many interesting things about this place is that you basically prepay for everything. Internet, electricity, air-conditioning, gas, water, it's pretty crazy. The power grid is also pretty messed up in that sometimes the power will go out for absolutely no apparent reason for an undetermined amount of time. Sometimes for three minutes, sometimes for three days. I've only experienced one of these so far, it lasted for about eight or nine hours. Because there was no power, the AC was out as well, so Connor, Carrick, Sharanya, and myself woke up sweaty and annoyed. The whole day was sweaty and dark (opening windows can let in more heat and mosquitoes) so it was better to just sit, grumpy in the cave.

Mosquitoes are especially dangerous here because many of them carry the virus known as Dengue. It's a slow-burning sickness that causes your skin to become painful to the touch and discolored, it causes fever, joint pain, and headaches that could shatter your teeth. It, in general, is a horrible thing that, unless treated, will result in death. It actually killed around thirty locals and one Australian a few months ago when there was a bit of an epidemic. Carrick is super concerned about our health and always asking us how we're doing and feeling. I've gotten a couple of mosquito bites since I've been here, but so far no death virus for me.

So that's just a few things I've learned so far while here, but I know why you all come here to read my blog (… pity... support...), the knitting!

Knitting is basically all I've been doing so far here (which I'm totally happy with Carrick!). It's a great way to spend days while Connor and Carrick are at work (Sharanya is currently in Bali with her sister and her sister's new husband). I've just been lounging in the AC, watching all kinds of shows and movies whilst working on various projects. Thus far I've finished a shawlette that's basically Holden with a scalloped edge and I'm about half-way through a “Snowdrift Mobius Cowl”. You should look it up on Ravelry when you get a chance. I'd post a link but I'm currently not even online! I'm really writing this on a word document while offline, so that I can copy and paste it onto blogger later and not use up three dollars worth of internet!

That's just a really quick rundown of what's up in Timor currently, I'll have to post again soon with more stories and real live pictures. I even have a story lined up for you about a chicken and motor-scooter. Guesses? You'll hear from me soon!

Tokyo!

What an adventure. When I have more time I'll have to fill you guys in on what happened during those crazy seventeen hours. For now I have to board another plane, this one to Jakarta. 8 hours but the airline is ANA and I've only heard good things about them (apparently their economy class is like United's first class). So I have to go for now but Connor and I are safe and having a blast. With love!

The End of an Era.

You as my loyal followers may or may not remember that Boyfriend and I are moving to East Timor for five months so that he can teaching English and I can... Do something I'm sure. Well that adventure starts tomorrow. Our first flight leaves from PDX to LAX at six in the morning, and then it will be a fun four days of flying and traveling until we finally get to Dili, East Timor. Our itinerary is as follows: Portland, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Jakarta, Bali, Dili. That is a lot of time in the air. I shall spend it knitting, sleeping, and freaking out over the fact that I'm miles above the surface of the earth in what is basically a tin can.
But besides all that, I've been spending the last few days with my family, convincing them over and over again that I will, in fact, be fine. I also taught my mom how to use skype so that she can fawn over me, even if it's only through a webcam image. That should keep her from missing her baby too much.
So last night, almost as if it was a grand send-off for Connor and I, the whole family went to Cirque Du Soleil, ovo. Not sure what Cirque is? It's basically the most amazing thing that is ever to be experienced. It's not a circus like you'd think; smell of popcorn and elephant poo, claustrophobic tent, and sticky floors, no. It's an event that combines the most skilled athletes in the world and puts on a show that will absolutely blow your mind. Here's a taste:





Yeah, three hours of that. Plus we were VIP's so we got to go into a fancy tent before the show and during intermission where they fed us treats and liquor for free! Can you say, "open bar"? We had an amazing time, and I thank my mother and step-father endlessly for taking us on such an adventure. I even dressed up fancy for it! I'd give you proof but my computer does not want to cooperate with the photo, and keeps telling me that it doesn't exist...
Anyway, we set off first thing tomorrow and communication after that might be iffy depending on the internet in Dili. I want all of my friends and family to know that I love them and I'll be missing them every day until I return. It doesn't matter if I'm seven miles away or seven thousand, my heart is always in Oregon.

What was that about dread?

Went to the dentist today; wasn't as bad as I remembered it being. In all likelyhood, that is probably due to the Diazepam I was on. I'm not a fan of mood altering substances (besides chocolate of course), but when it comes down to it, I would rather be a bit loopy and calm than be constantly on the verge of jumping out of the chair and fleeing the building as if I'm on fire. Good thing I found something that works for me too, because I get to go back again for more work on Wednesday! Now doesn't that sound exciting?
Fun news everyone, Holden is back on the needles and almost finished! Yay! Just a wee bit longer and I'll have beautiful pictures of her up for you to enjoy. That's all for now, I know it wasn't much but I'm still a little loopy and don't want to say anything I'll regret later.

Dread.

Hello my lovelies, I am sending you this post from what's left of my boxed and sorted apartment. That is also the reason I have taken so long to post anything. All of my waking hours recently have been spent packing, or laying on the ground, wishing I didn't have to pack. Let me just tell you, the latter is not productive at all and those who want to keep packing (namely Boyfriend) will remind you of that. A million times.
So I don't have any pretty pictures for you to look at, mostly because I can't find a suitable backdrop in these shambles of an apartment for any of my photo shoots. I can't do it in the bedroom because of clothes currently being sorted into piles of "keep" and "donate" (those piles just happen to be on the floor), I can't do it in the kitchen because we haven't done dishes in forever and a day, and I can't do it in the living room because it is now a sea of boxes. I could go out onto the back deck and take pictures where it is sunny and only slightly damp, but who am I, Dorothea Lange? Besides, photography isn't really my bag.
Anyway, no pictures for you. At least not now. I will let you know though, that I have been spinning my own on my drop-spindle and I made a passport cozy with my first batch of hand-spun! Well actually, my very first batch of hand-spun was so completely rubbish that it went to the bin. But my second batch now cradles my wee little passport, warming it before it's long journey ahead. I'll put pictures of it up next time. I've also restarted Holden. The hurt could only last so long and I need a transportable project for "on the road" knitting. I'm about halfway done with the stockinette stitch section and I cannot wait to start the lace. Last but not least, I started a pair of entrelac socks. Socks totally used to be my thing, but I haven't cranked out a pair since Mexico and that was almost five months ago! I need to get back to it.
Anyway, so you may or may not have noticed the title of this post is "dread". Why, I hear you ask? Because there are about two weeks left before we go to Timor and I need to see a dentist before we go. Guess who has a crippling fear of dentists? This gal. Last time I went to the dentist, I started crying before the doctor even took a look. I'm pretty sure my dentist thinks I'm a nutter. Dread is just kind of my go-to emotion recently. Wish me luck, I'll have pictures for you next time.