Rain, Rain

Rain rain go away come again another day.

I think we have finally hit the 100" mark this week for total annual rainfall. That puts us about 25" over the normal and we still have all of November and December left. I came from a place that I thought had a lot of rain. What I am realizing more fully is that Seattle has lots of gray days with rain but it certainly doesn't have tropical rain.

Tropical rain is a beast unto itself and almost a year into it I am still impressed with how much rain can come down in a such a short amount of time. Being outside for a minute is enough to soak you to the bone. Riding a bike for 5 minutes in the rain without a coat is enough to leave you miserably wet and if you have to go into an air conditioned building for any length of time miserably cold as well.

The difference between Seattle and Kwaj is that when it is done raining here it will eventually get clear; the blue sky will come out and it will get hot. Seattle on the other hand stays well, gray. The folks here struggle when the day is completely gray (doesn't happen all that often) and Kim and I find the gray days actually remind of us of home and make it feel like winter. That is of course when we step outside to 85 degree weather, then we feel like we are in the tropics.

Another major difference between Seattle rain and Kwaj rain is church attendance. When it rains in Seattle people still come to church and when it rains here people stay away since they don't want to put full rain gear on over their church clothes, drag their kids fully laden and make their way to worship. Seattle is the opposite in that when it is sunny people want to enjoy the beauty of the Northwest and stay away. We have enough sunny days here that people can still make their way to worship and then go to the beach.

Personally I don't mind the rain but if I am going to be living in the tropics I would rather have the sun.

Surfing

I have really been into surfing lately and so insted of being under the water I am on the water learning how to catch waves on my bodyboard. I really like bodyboarding since you are right in the wave and can really feel its power. I am starting to learn more about where to be in a wave and how to move around within it. Pretty fun..

Earlier in the month my friend whose is my surf "instructor" and I took our daughters surfing. The waves were small and it was a little overcast so the girls got a little cold but they had  a great time. The small waves made it perfect for learning and Sophie caught one perfect wave which was her "gem". She had a great time and hopefully she will want to go again.

Weekend Update

This past weekend was the beginning of the Halloween week here on Kwaj. The kickoff event is an almost 50 year old tradition called the Shaving Cream Social. The social is a time when they fill the ravine in the fields here with about 8-10 inches of water and then send the kids out by age group with a can of shaving cream to smear on their friends. It is a hoot. The little kids go in with their parents (Kim went in with Gavin) and then they figure out how fun it is to smear the old fashioned kind of shaving cream on their friends and then roll around in the big puddle they are in. Remember that even though it is October it is 86 degrees out with over 70% humidity so it is warm enough to roll around in a puddle.

The Second round was the early elementary age which Sophie was a part of. She and the kids didn't have parents (only life guards) and they were allowed in a larger area of the ravine with a little more water. It was fun to watch the older kids really go for it with the cream. Each age group had about 10 minutes before it was time for the next group so there was a real energy to it and the kids really went for it.

That was Saturday afternoon. Sunday afternoon was the Halloween carnival with a haunted house, face painting, story time, crafts and the costume parade. This too was timed for the different ages and thankfully are kids are still in the age group for these events so we can go as a family. The kids had a good time and it was fun seeing the kids in their costumes.

It was a fun weekend with some new experiences for us and for our kids. That is one of the things we keep trying to emphasize with our kids. Living here is only for a season and we are having some experiences we might never have again so we want to be sure to enjoy them while we are here.