I am getting closer to getting online from my room. Hopefully tonight I can really get things rolling. I will be spending the next two days in an orientation and tour of the base and the island. I will eat some more Chamorro food and see some of the sights. I wonder if I should post some pictures somewhere? Or maybe I'll wait till our Northern climes are covered in snow before I send in pictures of me lolling on the beaches.

Mark, I expect I will be sending some quality time in Hawaiilater on this year. There are a number of meetings that may require my presence. Hold open a place in the circle.

Cool Beans, I work with a Fred Crisostomo. I'll ask if he knows him. Is there any real world name I can give him?

Yesterday I sat down to lunch with some of the office staff. they invited me to share their meal. It was corned beef hash cooked up with onions and hot peppers served over rice with fine dene sauce. Fine dene (pronouced feenay dehnhe)is a vinegar and soy sauce mixture with a combination of onions, peppers and spices in it. Very tasty. None of them had ever heard of eating hash and eggs for breakfast.

I mentioned a number of the stories I'd heard before arriving on the island. We all got a good laugh out of them, including the snake density. While the brown tree snake is an ecological catastrophe none of the locals have seen them more than a few times. One of the gus mentioned being bitten once but you have to go looking for them to find them. On the other hand I have seen the rare Guam Rail, a flightless bird, twice now (at least I think I have).

I'm planning to go snorkeling this weekend. I hope it doesn't rain on me... [GRIN]