Tuesday 4th August

153 pages of drivel. I’m doing well, if I edit it all down, I’d probably have a book about 5 pages long including index/introduction and 3 pages of photos.

The truck passed certification, we have to do few more things before the next certificate, fit a number plate light, and put the number plate lower at the rear, but other than that it was all good. David vanished for 4 hours with it today, he took it for certification, then took it for a drive to all his wantok showing the tray off. It is a distinctive truck in Honiara now, the only one with a wooden tray and deck, David said he had people coming up and checking it out where ever he stopped, I think he is quietly pleased with it, being the foreman of the work crew he can say his crew made it, which gives him a lot of mana in his community and wantok.

He is going to boil down some coconut meat for oil, and give the tray a good coating of coconut oil to bring up the colour of the timber and help preserve it. Andrew, Emory, and Thomas are really pleased with it, it has made a huge difference to them from what Adrian had them doing before I came. I get them measuring/cutting, drilling etc, if they make a mistake, well, ok, it’s a mistake, fix it and keep going, no point in getting upset. Slightly different to Adrian having a fit and shouting at everyone.

Plus they learn quickly, I know they could build another deck without my help, without the little mistakes we’ve made with this one. I could see the change in all of them as the time went by, from being hesitant about using the drill or skilsaw, to almost fighting over who was going to use it. Well, ok, not fighting, but certainly wanting to be the one using it. And thinking ahead as we went as well. I’ll have to do drawings for the next project though, they couldn’t get used to the fact I had it all in my head, and was just making it up as we went.

We are getting some responses to the letters I sent out last week asking people to pay for the community garden work we do. The Central Police Station Superintendant phoned today, and I have an appointment tomorrow to discuss how much for how much. What we have been doing there so far is $1500 a month of work, I’m going to try for the grounds inside the fence as well, and work out a better price and deal for it. Every $2,000 a month we can get means another persons wages plus the overhead fixed costs are paid each month, which gives me a lot of incentive. I hate having the crew on short weeks, it makes it hard on them and their families.

Plus an appointment tomorrow afternoon with the Japanese Consul to convince her that we have sorted out the problems and have suitable land and guaranteed tenure finally. Just not at the Botanic Gardens.