Here are a few updates and anecdotes.

The cell phone thing is still a nightmare. There are problems with text messaging; because Cable and Wireless runs a different and older system than Digicel, you can’t text message from a C&W phone to a Digicel. For me, I don’t care, because I don’t use text messaging. But it’s big among the secondary school set.

And the newest trick from C&W is that they intermittently block calls to Digicel phones. I’m sure they officially throw up their hands and say "what on earth could have caused that?!?!" but I don’t trust them and I think they’re doing it on purpose.

I’m still planning to get a phone, but many models are now sold out. Also I’m hoping that when the market force of AT&T arrives on the scene officially next week, this business of blocking calls will be over.

Here are a couple interesting encounters with me and the girls and locals.

At the beach…

Last weekend I was at the usual spot on the beach with Sam and Shan. We were lying there minding our own business. The place was pretty empty, but there was a tourist couple sitting kind of behind us, about 10 or 15 feet away. They weren’t speaking English. These two young guys came by selling cassava bread. Cassava is kind of like a potato, it’s a root vegetable that they grate and treat to make into a dense bread. I had never seen anyone selling cassava there before. Anyways, Sam bought one and these guys went away down the beach. About an hour later they came back and sat down in some chairs behind us, not far from the tourist couple. As could be expected, the guys start chatting us up. Shan was not having any of it so she made up a big story. She said our names were Suzanne, Catherine and Lisa. (Although Sam wanted to be Olga from Switzerland). Naturally the guys asked if we were married, and we said yes, and our husbands are playing golf at the golf club. Then we had a typical banter about could they have our phone numbers…no…why not…you’re losers…. They just didn’t get it. We spared no niceties on these guys. Shan told them several times to get lost in no uncertain terms. But they kept trying to weasel themselves back in. They asked us where we were from (Florida), and if this older couple here were our parents. We said yes. The guys didn’t believe us, but this woman chimed right in and said, "yep, these are my daughters. Actually the one isn’t, but she is married to my son. Their husbands are playing golf but will be here later." She didn’t miss a beat. I had seen her listening in, and I could tell she knew what was happening, but I didn’t know she understood so well. Apparently this was too much for the guys so finally they left. Only to be replaced by a pair of drooling Venezuelans, but that’s another story.

Then this past weekend I was targeted by a loser at the bar. He kept coming up and dancing right behind me. He was not smooth, but tried to strike up a conversation. He asked where I was from, and I said I live here. I usually say that to see if it can turn the focus of the conversation away from my personal life. But he said, no, where was I FROM. I said the US. Then he goes "US….us…..us…. which one?" I wasn’t feeling nice, so I said the only US that there is. Then he said "no, which state, there’s more than one, there’s fifty-two!!!" I about fell over laughing.

Actually I’ve heard that other times. I think people consider Alaska and Hawaii as the extra two.

This weekend I was coming home from the beach on the bus. We stopped and picked up a guy and when he shut the door behind him, it fell off. It was an utterly ghetto moment. We had to sit there for about 15 minutes while the driver and another guy tried to put it back on.

Also, it’s very common for the entire bus to sing along with the radio. Especially if it’s Bob Marley or something sappy like Celine Dion.