2nd December

At times I just want to pull the sheet back over my head and stay in bed for the day. Usually after I’ve got up, and gone to work.

2 high points of the day, Adrian and Kiwibank. I use “high points” in the sense that they were significant, not necessarily beneficial or enlightening.

Adrian decided to take Tiff and get some chain to secure the truck battery in place this morning, I forgot to mention yesterday that the truck battery was stolen from the road outside Tiffany and Davids house, well, ok, track not road, and Adrian wanted to take half the crew yesterday morning to help put the spare one off the chipper into the truck. At 8.30, just as we’re trying to sort out who was going where. I still had the small truck to take everyone around, but Adrian was having a major panic over the battery instead. I had the battery down the list about #29, deal with it later, at the moment we need to get the crew working instead of sitting around watching Adrian have a panic attack. Anyway, Tiff and I got the crew sorted, and loaded into the small truck, Tiff went with Adrian to put the battery in, Adrian wanted to take 2 of the guys as well, when I asked why he said to help put the battery in. I looked at Tiff, looked back at Adrian and told him Tiff could lift the bloody battery with one hand, why take the crew?

Ok, Tiff is built like a match with the wood shaved off, but she’s a Solomon Island girl, never challenge one to arm wrestle, you’ll lose.

That was yesterday, today Adrian wanted to buy some chain to secure the battery in with. I told him, Tiff told him, we don’t have the money for it, so he goes and buys some anyway, $166 worth, and 2 padlocks, $578.50, and wants to be reimbursed. We tried again to tell him that we haven’t any money in the SEB account, it’s all going into the Nursery, and if he wants to go and spend his money without authorisation from Tiff, me or Keithie, well, tough.

I’ll end up paying him from my account, then maybe Tiff and I can get it reimbursed, but he’s like a loose cannon at times, you never know what or where he is going to be, he saw the girls walking through town yesterday, instead of asking them where they were going, he got them into his Rav 4 with all the rakes, tools etc, and took them back to Ranandi. He doesn’t understand pijin very well, and couldn’t understand what the girls were telling him and made the decision that they should be back at Ranandi. Instead of walking through town to the next roundabout to work on. Which Tiff and I didn’t find out about till 2pm, when he came into BJS to ask why we weren’t out at Ranandi with the crew.

He’d sent them all back there. For why I have no idea. So Tiff had to drive out to Ranandi, and get them all bought back into town to finish the work for the day. I really need to sleep in some days.

Today, after the chain buying episode, he went into Central Market, saw a young kid fixing his bicycle, and being Adrian, he had to go over and help (take charge), when a few of the rastas in the market decided to have a bit of a play, and started joking around, so Adrian pulled a knife out, threatened the guys, and the police got involved, which is always a good look when your wife works for RAMSI. He called into the office late today with the news that Coralie (his wife) is suggesting he might be better off back home in Australia. Hello???????

That was high point #1

Kiwibank surpassed themselves today. Please, if you know anyone working for Kiwibank this is not a criticism of the people that work there, they have been unfailingly helpful and have really tried to sort out the problem. Samantha from Kiwibank rang back today, I had all the paperwork with me, so it was quick, painless, she reset a password, made sure I had it correct, wished me well, apologised for the 6 months we have been trying to sort it out, and left me to it.

So, logged into Kiwibank, entered the details and got locked out in less time than it took to open the page. First attempt got the “You have entered the wrong information 3 times. This account is now locked, please contact HelpLine etc”
I think Kiwibank have an IT problem, and I don’t mean Information Technology, I’m talking Idiot Technicians.

I give up with it, ANZ have hooked me up with internet access, so when I finally get back to NZ, Kiwibank will lose another customer, and I’ll make sure VSA warn any other volunteers that it isn’t a friendly bank for overseas customers trying to log in.

All I want it for is to pay my credit card in Ireland with, I’ve tried transferring my Visa Card to NZ, but that is up there with World Peace, curing AIDS, paying off the US deficit and solving the Israel/Palestine conflict. When they wanted me to go to the branch in Ireland where I opened the account and confirm my identity I realised it was just a bit too much trouble. So Visa slog me in exchange rates every time I use it, and I haven’t had enough time with a bank in NZ to get a card there. More people to put on my list of “First up against the wall when I’m King”.

We got told today that someone is too busy to write up the German Embassy Funding Proposal, so as we don’t have a lot on at the moment, could either Tiff or me write it up before Friday please. Guess who has power at home, and who doesn’t.

If Zoe is reading this, please accept my humble apologies for the last couple of weeks, I haven’t figured out which way is up yet.

I dropped the parts list for the irrigation off at Island Enterprises this morning, I knew as soon as I got to the office I’d left stuff off it, but that’s ok, I’ve got more quantities than really needed, so I can fudge the actual figures later, and substitute stuff. I hope we can get this to work, I’ll put a retail garden section in, and start bringing in irrigation supplies, it is too small a market for Island Enterprises at the moment, but I can see it growing over the next few years and SEB might as well be the ones making something off it.

I still haven’t found anywhere in town that sells postal packaging, so I’ll do the Solomon Islands packing and use cardboard cut up for wrapping, and I’ll get everyones Christmas presents posted this weekend.

I’ve managed at odd times to upload more pics into webshots, http://community.webshots.com/user/VWKombi if anyone wants to see more pics from here other than the ones I’ve posted in this.

Hi to Gytha, Zoe, Rhonda, John, Carlos, Jerome, Damian, Tarsha, Jesse, Hayden, Lou and Scott, Kelly, Makayla

Edit. Thanks Dimitri and Samantha at Kiwibank, I've just tried again, and it is all working. I appreciate your patience and assistance. Thanks once again. Warren