Tuesday 29th September

Well, we’ve started packing stuff up in the office. I seem to have spent most of the past few years packing/unpacking and moving. I still get frustrated with it, or the whole concept.

I went with Tony from BJS out to the possible new site at Henderson today for a look. It’s good, off the main road on a side street, and at the back of an earthmoving equipment suppliers workshop. Huge area, they use it for storage, on a short term lease basis for anyone with large containers that need temp storage. If it all goes well, we can start moving there next week, plants and all. It’ll mean running a new line for water, and we’ll get a water meter and bill, but we’ll work out how to pay for that further down the track.

I started emptying out the big storage cupboard and packing files into cartons, it’s the cupboard that had the rat nest in, as I found when I got to the bottom shelves and I disturbed a swarm of fleas and other biting things. We had to vacate the office for a while to let the insect spray work. I ended up with hundreds of small bites on my arms and legs, with my luck I’ll get bubonic plague now.

Tiffany and I are really past it all with the problems and petty in-fighting over it all now. I have serious doubts about my project ever getting started, let alone actually being completed. I’m away with Steve for a few days next week, the boat is booked to someone else for this week, so we’ll have a bit of a discussion about other options for me. One of the rural training centres would be good, some of them have wireless internet available sometimes, so they aren’t exactly lost to the world. Although they are all rural, which here means no road in, it’s foot tracks or boat then walk to them. No shops, electricity, but given the few times I’m in Honiara now, that isn’t a big loss, although the lack of electricity without a generator may be a bit hard to cope with. It comes in handy for recharging hearing aid batteries, camera battery and laptop.

I’ve got a month or a bit longer running a training session for the gardeners at the High Court and Justice Dept once all the moving is over with. We used to look after the area there, but they decided as they were employing gardeners anyway, they would do it. Tiffany knew it wouldn’t be long till they came back to us, we know the people employed there, and they prefer to be inside in the aircon rather than outside working in the garden. But ok, at least it gives me something to do for a month or so, and hopefully they’ll learn how to look after the gardens there better than they have been for the past month. All the shrubs have been hacked rather than trimmed, and the lily and helleconia beds are looking a real mess now.
We’re slowly replacing all the crotons/ornamental pineapple in the tubs down the street with bouganvillea. It’s taken me a while to get the idea accepted, but the original ones I had done a few months back are all in flower now, and have been for a while. We get 2 or 3 tubs done each time, dig all the soil out, replace it with our compost/mulch mix, and put 4 bouganvillea into each tub. So far it is working and should look better than the crotons and pineapple plants.

The new security advisory report is out, still fairly much the same, but with a stronger precautionary warning about being out at night in Honiara, and to take extra caution in Central Market and the back streets. About the same as I’ve gathered by myself over the past couple of months. A really high unemployment level, no prospects of work happening, a totally corrupt Government, high cost of living in and around Honiara, it all builds up to a high frustration level with everyone and if you are perceived to be rich, and just being white here is enough for that, you can be in trouble very quickly.

Once you get out of Honiara though it is all different, although you are still charged top dollar for everything, it is done with a smile. And you do have some leeway for bargaining.

I went out last week with the Environmental Action Group, on a school visit to see where or what the schools had done with the Environment Grants. 4 schools took part in the campaign, it was for the upgrading of facilities and improvements as needed. We went to St Nicholas College, which is just beside me here at the Ba’Hai Centre, King George IV College, which is the oldest school on Guadacanal, White River Community School, and St Johns. A huge contrast between them all, St Nicholas has a lot of the higher level Govt and professions children, so money isn’t a problem, and it shows in the facilities, desks, computers, good equipment and resources, then King George IV, which is a boarding school, White River Community which services the White River Settlements, and St Johns which is at the bottom end of everything by Rove Prison and the Gardens.



St Nicholas had used the grants to set up a recycling centre, and rubbish transfer area, roofed, concrete floor, and proper lidded bins, King George had used it to plant border plants along the pathways, White River did a big repaint on the classrooms, and St Johns built a composting and garden area. I’ve put a few photos from the day, one of each school which shows the difference in facilities here.

King George IV is one of the few boarding schools here, they have had problems lately with the quality and committment of the teaching staff, some never turn up for class, or arrive drunk, and the students are having a few problems. It has huge ground, with the boarding houses scattered amongst trees and what was a park like area, now all overgrown and reverting to jungle again. They have advertised through VSA for another relieving Head Master to take charge and train the staff and a permanent Head. That would be an interesting assignment. A few challenges there.
White River Community has a big mix of different island tribes in the area, it is one of the first settlements alongside Honiara. The school would rate between King George IV and St Johns for resources, nice large area, but very few shade trees, and not a lot of amenities. The White River area has a strong community group but has a lot of the usual problems associated with high unemployment, Kwaso and betel nut.



St Johns has almost no resources, really dedicated teachers, great students who are really behind everything the teachers do, but are badly handicapped by the poverty and lack of teaching materials, facilities. It is a real contrast between the schools here, from wealthy schools like St Nicholas, to struggling schools like St Johns.

Sunday 27th September

Called into work after shopping at Kukum this morning. I probably should have waited till tomorrow, they always say bad news arrives first. I’m going to be having “discussions” later in the week over staffing levels, as well as having to move the nursery and office to temp accommodation, on top of keeping everyone at work thinking positively.

There is talk of cutting the staff further, down to only 5, which makes it totally impractical given the contract work we have now. Considering it will cost us $5,000 at least per person to put anyone off, I can’t see that idea going through.

I’m going to find a good solid wall somewhere this week and spend a few hours banging my head against it, at least I’ll feel like I’m accomplishing something when I stop.

Steve is meant to be taking me away this week for a couple of days visiting the rural training centres, I’ll have to make sure Tiffany is ok with everything now if I go, her and David are close to just walking away from it all. They’ve been 10 years building it all up, with constant promises of better pay and conditions once it all happens, and now this. If I can’t manage to talk some sense into a few people I’ll have to join Tiffany and just forget about everything, it won’t work and it just becomes a pointless frustrating experience.

Geelong won the Grand Final!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2nd time in 3 years! About bloody time as well, I remember the frustration in the 1990’s when we were always the bridesmaid, and never the bride. Well played St Kilda as well, it was close scoring all the way through, ok, one dodgy call for Geelong, and it should perhaps have been a 1 goal lead at the end, but the main things is, WE WON!!!!!!!!!!

I’m having fun at Kukum Fish Market the longer I’m here. There are maybe 15? 20 permanent traders there every week, and another 30 or so casual traders, and finally the permanent ones are actually talking to me, rather than just calling out the prices. Not that I buy a lot, but I find I’m going to the same people each week, even when they change their position along the street. I tried talking the eggman down this morning, he was selling at $28 per 10 tray. I can get the same eggs at my local shop for $26, as I pointed out, but he wasn’t going to drop $2 for me. Never mind, we just passed the time for a bit. Bok choy, spinach, snake beans are all dropping in price as well, between $5 and $8 per bundle which is good. I might even start eating greens again this week, well, for a couple of meals anyway. It will make a change from rice with something.

I wish I could say this vegetarian living is helping cut my weight down, but it appears it agrees with me far too much.

I’m up to 2,000 words on the science fiction story , and I’ve spent more time doing research to make sure what I’m writing has some basic physics and electrical grounding. I hate science fiction that is just impossible, and I’m not too much of a fan of the fantasy type sci-fi either. Harry Harrison, Isaac Asimov, Stanislaw Zem and Kurt Vonnegut I’ve got whole collections of, or had at some stage.

So far it is looking good, it is possible, or in theory anyway. Which is all it needs to be.

Saturday 26th September

Wednesday 23rd September
Caught up with Steve today finally. Or rather he finally called into the Gardens with my mail from the past month. So I’ve finally got the letters Mother has been writing. Thanks Mum. Still waiting on my phone to get here though but never mind.

We’re slowly getting ready to move out, making arrangements for the tools, the office stuff, and trying to get a container moved to the temp site in Ranandi. It is a bit rough at the moment, but if we can go ahead we can turn it into something workable. The only problem is going to be funding for us. The last cheque we got from the Ministry of Infrastructure for the Road Contract bounced, and it took an extra 2 weeks till the Govt had enough to cover it, in the meantime we were out $19,000, and copped a $250 charge from the bank for presenting it. I’m hoping we have enough in the bank for next week, I’m still waiting for the $7,000 I used last payday for everyone, and I don’t have enough left to cover it again yet.

I’m really stuck for stuff to do at work, we are all winding down, knowing we’re really moving now, so the urgency of jobs is declining. I had the crew do a big tidy up in the Botanic Gardens today, David couldn’t understand why for a bit. He wanted to know why I wanted it all tidied up when we’re being thrown out, and it was hard to put into words, but I feel that we’ve looked after the place for 10 years, and improved it immensely, to leave it untidy knowing Forestry will be quick to publicise the fact isn’t something I wanted to do. Well, I don’t really care what Forestry do or say, but I didn’t want the Gardens looking uncared for when we do leave.

I filled the afternoon in googling everything and anything, then found the new Triumph T100 Bonneville Classic and it was love at first sight. All I need now is $15,000 plus a few extras, like a helmet, jacket, trousers and oh yes, a bike licence and I’ll be away. Beautiful bike, Triumph have managed to keep the classic look of the 1968 Bonneville, upgraded the spec to fuel injection, disc brakes etc, and an 850cc motor which is plenty big enough for me. Although the touring bikes are nice lookers as well, but at 2100cc and quite a few kilos I don’t think so.

Saturday

We’re getting closer to moving, slowly. Monday Tiffany and I are sorting out the files and boxing stuff up to go to BJS Office, and some of the clutter as well. We haven’t heard about the container going to Ranandi yet, but hopefully that will be sorted this week.

Our lady at the Japanese Consul is having a meeting with the Honiara Mayor on Tuesday, trying to sort out the facts from the BS. According to the Mayor, he knew nothing about HBC forming an NGO, Solo Enviro Beautification, but our paper trail of letters and meeting minutes from the past 10 years shows different. Same with Forestry, it’s a small victory, it won’t change anything, but Chie thinks it may help us keep the funding as it is not our doing that has caused the problems.

Along with that, the Mayor called out to the Gardens on Thursday, to inform us we weren’t to call ourselves Honiara Beautification Committee any longer, as he is calling the Parks and Gardens Dept that. I think he will have a few problems if he tries to go ahead. The name is registered to us, plus we have a 10 year prior usage, although the way things are here that means nothing. It’s more a matter of trying it on, and if you can get away with it you do.

I can see a huge upheaval coming here soon, with the things that are happening with the present Government. There are ministers making decisions over the courts, accepting bribes blatently, well, ok, bribery is a way of life here, so it isn’t a big thing. But it is going to rebound over the next year leading up to the elections.

I’m noticing more and more the attitudes and frustrations amongst the people in town, especially around Central Market. While it is still reasonably safe there, it isn’t somewhere I’d spend a lot of time, not that I have anyway. Adrian got involved in a bit of a push and shove match the other day there. Luckily he had his small bush knife, a bit of a Crocodile Dundee one, and once he pulled that out the guys giving him a hard time changed their minds about taking it any further. It’s mostly the kwaso and marijuana sellers causing the problems, with the buyers getting drunk on the spot and then getting a bit aggressive towards everyone.

Another reason why I prefer Kukum Fish Market.

I’ve been going around the house at night lately, trying to get a pic of the fruit bats in the mango trees. All you hear at night now, is a rustle in the branches, then a loud “plop” as the mangoes fall to the ground. In the mornings the ground is littered with mangoes, all with a couple of bites taken out by the fruit bats.

I found out never park a vehicle under a mango tree with fruit on it. Fruit bats crap all over it during the night.

If anyone is following the South Pacific mini Games being held in Rarotonga, or if you aren’t, here’s a name to watch out for in the coming years, Betty Babalu. She’s a 12 year old from the Solomon Islands, races barefoot, and won the 5,000 metre race on Tuesday, came second in the 10,000 metre race in 42.8 minutes, and I haven’t heard yet how she did in the 15,000 metre race today yet.

Along with which I haven’t yet heard how Geelong did in the Grand Final against St Kilda today. I’ll check from work tomorrow when I post this.

Geelong by 2 goals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Go Cattters!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Monday 21st September/Tuesday 22nd

I know I shouldn’t be like this, but I’ve given up any semblence now of actually working. It’s just too frustrating to be making plans, not knowing if we are going to be in the Gardens, or where we can go. I’m meant to be running the final Level 2 course for the year starting this week, that hasn’t happened with the uncertainty over the whole tenure thing. Plus the lack of funds, and the length of 12 weeks for the course for which I’d like to be in one place for that time.

I’m taking tomorrow off, if I can get hold of Steve we’ll go to Solcane Furniture, they make cane and rattan furniture but don’t have any formal training or qualification system set up for it here. The owner is after the Govt or SICHE to provide the training, but I know I could write up a training programme for them up to whatever level we can work out for the trade. I’ll end up knowing as much as the staff by the end of it, which isn’t a bad thing to have tucked away in the memory banks. It’ll mean assessment schedules, assessments, training modules, all reasonably easy to write up once I get back into it.

Anyway, it’s just one of a few possibilities, the other being the rural development programmes which are probably more in line with what I’m here for. Small scale horticulture and sustainable food crops. So long as they are near a beach preferably.


Terry from the South Pacific Development Council called out today. I met him on Saturday night at Barbaras, he has met Tiffany last year when he was here. Anyway, he has $30,000 available for landscaping work in Honiara if we can come up with some ideas for it to be spent on. Tiffany and I would like to put flower beds around the trees in the main street, in an effort to stop people just piling rubbish around them then burning it. I know the rubbish will just get dumped into the gardens anyway, like all the other ones we have in town, but it is a start I suppose. It will certainly look better than just the bare tree trunks coming out of the dirt.

I’ve finally made a start on a sci-fi story I’ve had kicking around for years in my mind. I must be past the bored stage. And into the just do something before you go mad stage. I’ve set a goal of 500 words minimum a day, which is just over a page in word, or close to it. So far it runs to 2,500 words and I can see where it is going, which is a good thing when you’re writing I suppose, putting thoughts into words isn’t quite as easy as it appears though, and I keep going back and having to alter stuff as I realise the incongruity in some of the earlier facts. But it’s keeping me sane, or whatever passes for sanity with me.

If this one works out, well, I get it finished anyway enough to satisfy me, I’ve had the Story of Job in my mind for years, as a cross between JC Superstar, and drama play. I’m not sure about the musical side, but the technological side is what appeals to me for it. All I need to start is a 10’ hologram of dice, and a good sound system, plus some method of lifting people off the stage into the air over the audience. And some good speaking voices, preferably if they can sound like Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole. And a high resolution screen backdrop, and.....and......and

Plus my half finished version of The Famous Five go on Safari, which is a scam based Famous Five version. I know Marianne had a giggle over the first few chapters, I’ll have to keep at it and get it finished.

As I said earlier, I’m going spare here doing very little with my time.

Tuesday 22nd September

Well I guess it’s all over bar the shouting now. Fred from Forestry called down today, I was having a mental health day and hadn’t gone in. Tiffany ended up sending a car for me so I could be there for the meeting.

Fred got there about 11, spoke about what a great job SEB have done with the Botanic Gardens, how we should all be working together, and could we please get out by the end of next week as Forestry are moving all their office equipment down.

Right out, he meant, Forestry refuse to work with us now, in the future, at any time etc.

Then to make an insane day even more spectacular, Honiara City Mayor rang up to tell Tiffany that we are not allowed use Honiara Beautification Committee name any longer, as Council are going to form their own Parks and Gardens team and call themselves that. Which is going to go down really well with Keithie when she gets the email later today. 10 years we’ve been called that since the HBC was formed, so I think the Mayor is going to have a few problems.

I’ve been here just over 6 months now, and not achieved a single bloody thing I’m meant to be doing.

It’s no wonder Aid agencies fill up with people with a really good sense of the absurd and a slightly off beat sense of humour. You’d go crazy if you let all the personalities, the tribal infighting, the sheer bloody mindedness of the people get to you. A bit like it’s affecting me at the moment actually, but I know by tomorrow it’ll be past, and I’ll either have something else to do, or somewhere else to go.
What really annoys me most is all the work the work crew have put into everything in Honiara, and now they’re being cast aside over some tribal wantok obligation.

You may recall a few months back I had a landscape plan that Heritage Hotel wanted drawn up, and I wanted to put a waterfall, and local tribal sculptures around the main entrance. And Heritage knocked it back due to the expense, and how it wasn’t quite what they wanted.

I’ll get some pics later this week, they hired Frank Haiku, the sculptor I was talking with over my original idea, and he’s now got 7 huge statues exactly like we drew up in place there. And the landscaper at Heritage is claiming all the credit for coming up with the idea, and how it is a showcase for Solomon Island art and custom. I could almost spit sometimes. They took my design, dropped the waterfall and kept and used everything else. Bastards. I hope they have an outbreak of food poisoning in the restaurant.

Good for Frank to get his work in there though.

I have given up trying to figure out how things work here.

Sunday 20th September

Friday was the usual Zoo Day at the Gardens. By the time I left it was full of really drunken teenagers, I saw 2 fights happening as I drove out, one group of girls having a real hair pulling knock down punch up, and a few boys having a tussle, more wrestling than throwing punches. Misi said it got worse when I saw him Saturday morning, he was about to ring the police by the evening, but things settled down when it started raining. I know it’s not a good look for the Gardens, but if we throw them out, they’ll be in town, and really get into trouble, at least this way they are off the streets, there’s no real damage done apart from a few sore heads that will be forgotten about by the end of the weekend.

Adrian called in on Friday morning, as I said on Thursday, he had no memory of being in the BJS Office Wednesday and Thursday, nor any memory about trying to get the files. It’s sad watching him deteriorate like he is. And it can get frustrating trying to deal with him when he is having a fixation on something, he can’t understand what we give him to read. He can be looking at something and not recognise what it is, or what use it may be. Then he’ll have a day of being completely lucid and everything runs smoothly. He’s losing a lot of weight lately as well, he forgets to eat, or thinks he’s eaten and goes out for the day. I wish he wouldn’t drive, he gets lost at times, and doesn’t recognise where he is, and Honiara isn’t that big, 1 main road, and 1 loop side street.

The Bulk Shop finally had some Papua New Guinea Expresso Paradiso coffee back in stock Saturday, they always have the blue pack, it’s not often they have the full range. The black pack Expresso is the best of them, well, in my opinion, but I like coffee that you almost have to chew anyway. The Blue Mountain blend they do is good, it’s quite smooth, but a bit bland for me. And it’s $20 cheaper than Wings and AusMart per pack as well.

I was so bored with the week, or frustrated, whatever, I went shopping in town Saturday morning, walked around all the shops, then realised I didn’t have any intention of buying anything. I’m a bit low on money anyway, I had to take out $7,000 last week for the crews wages because the Ministry of Infrastructure and Development are short of funds and the cheque we have been waiting on from them has been held up till they could get approval to issue it. So we had a bit of a crisis over the wages. Hopefully I’ll get it back when we finally get the payment.

We had a clean up Honiara day last week, October is going to be a busy month here and Solomon Tourism is trying to clean Honiara up as much as possible. We have 400 Buddhist Monks arriving the first week of October for atonement ceremonies for all the Japanese soldiers killed here in WW2, plus the Pacific Islands Public Service Annual Conference, then a Half Marathon, and a few other things. Needless to say, by Saturday all the effort had been totally lost and the town was back to looking untidy, with rubbish everywhere again.

Barbara from NZ Aid had a small dinner party Saturday night, 6 of us from various Aid Agencies. It was good, very little shop talk, although everyone wanted to know what was happening with the Botanic Gardens, then we spent the evening swapping horror stories about our dealings with various Govt Departments. The best comment from the evening was about the lack of honesty from the politicians here, when you buy someone, you expect them to stay bought, but not here. They go with the next higher offer.

Jim and Angie from AusAid were there, I’ve nearly forgotten just how much like a buzz saw going through tin Sydney accents are. As soon as Angie started talking it was like living there all over again. Nice couple though, just the accent really grates. They couldn’t place me, for a while they thought I was English, horror of horrors.

I took the little truck to Barbaras’, we’ve just had a new battery, alternator repaired etc. You can see where this is going. The truck is still there, it had a flat battery when I went to leave, Barbara drove me home, 1 am isn’t the best time to be walking from Panatina to Kukum along the main road. I walked back this morning to try the truck again, but it’s dead. It’s probably related to us hotwiring the main fuse, but until we can get another set of main fuses it’s going to be a continual pita. I must be getting used to walking everywhere, it only took an hour to walk to Panatina Ridge this morning, and I shopped on the way back at Kukum Market.

Kukum Market is getting a lot more different fruit and veg now the dry season is bringing everything on. Mangoes are everywhere at the moment. The trees around my house are laden with fruit, they drop onto the roof all night, still a bit green, but good to eat if I get to them before the fruit bats find them. Pineapples are dropping in price, $10 to $20 now, watermelons have dropped to $5 - $50, depending on size. Lots of bok choy and watercress, kumara, and pumpkins. Coconuts are still $1 each.

Thursday 17th September

Another slow quiet day. Steve called in, asked me to try not upset the locals too much, which I was expecting. If I get too many Govt people upset my work visa is likely to be cancelled and I’ll be away to somewhere else. So I’ll just write everything up, and put it under Tiffany or get Keithie to sign off on it.

Adrian is having another alzhiemers moment, he was in Keithies office today trying to get all the files about SEB and the Botanic Gardens, I have no idea why. He said he wanted all the correspondence to read, but given his habit of getting everything wrong, and shouting off around town I didn’t think it was a great idea and asked Keithies secretary to keep everything away from him. He has days when he fixates on one thing, and there is nothing anyone can do to change or alter his mind. Hopefully by the end of the week he will have forgotten about it.

Adele has caught a flu virus, she is rather bedridden and not looking the best this week. She popped in on Tuesday evening with my books, and a couple of new ones, and she looked almost ready to collapse. Another reason why I like working out of town at the Gardens. There’s no one out there, I’m not going from aircond office to the streets where everyone spits or coughs, in 30*c temp and humidity. Although I did catch something the second month I was here that almost killed me. Well, it felt like death was a good alternative anyway.

Steve is still looking for something else for me in the provinces, as he’s realised I don’t spend a lot of time in Honiara, or rather there isn’t anything in Honiara that I really need. So long as I can find a market, fruit, veg, rice and coffee I’m perfectly happy. Somewhere to go fishing would be preferable as well.

Tessie and Renee, Tiffanys daughters are both ill with malaria and pnuemonia, the malaria is rife at White River, and from what Tiffany has said, chest infections are common. Another problem with everyone using betel nut, everyone spits everywhere, so viral infections spread rapidly here especially flu like ones. Add in the dirt roads, no sewage, open drains and rubbish everywhere I’m just surprised that most of the kids actually grow into adults.