Margaritas and 18 Holes

Last weekend marked the mid semester break for all Ross students. With that said, parties and relaxation were on the agenda. Saturday, our Texan friends Matt and Lindsay threw a marvelous and successful margarita party at their pool. We enjoyed great drinks, food and were able to make new friends. That night we headed to the Marriott for Pizza and college football. On Sunday, Eric studied to catch up in all his classes, as well as study for his micro anatomy test that he had on Wednesday (and he did very well on it BTW).

On Monday, Eric and I played golf with Matt & Kevin at the Royal St. Kitts golf course. Lindsay and Lindsey were golf car riders and captured fabulous pics of us playing. It was a beautiful day for golf, and the scenery on the back nine was breathtaking. It was a tough course with lots of water and sand traps, but over all, we played decent (ok, and by decent, I mean we only lost about 10 balls! :) ). Eric and I both parred a hole. (not bad for it being 6 months or so since we last played)!

Now, back to the reason we are really here on the island...Eric started his second round of tests this week, with one down and three to go. He will face anatomy on Monday, physiology on Wednesday, and then nutrition the following week. He wakes up around 6 am and studies, goes to class, then attends TA sessions or tutoring, and studies more until around 11:30-12 am. Gotta admire someone with that drive! (but that's how it is if you want to pass vet school).

So, the popular thing around here is the countdown to when everyone flies home for Christmas vacation. We are all ready to see our families, friends and furry critters. This semester has flown by, so it won't be long before we are back home for a visit! Below are pictures from the margarita party and golf game.

We hope our family and friends are doing good back in Texas, as well as those that are out of state pursuing higher education. And everyone please say a prayer for a speedy recovery for our Me Maw (Alice Desormeaux). Wish I could be home to help and see her, but she is in good hands! Until next time...

Chillaxin' at the swim up bar

Me and Linds, the party planner

Matt & Eric

Future Texas DVMs

Friends Enjoying Pool Time

Getting our Grub On

A big thanks to Matt & Lindsay for hosting such a great party!!

Back Nine meets Atlantic Ocean

Me, teeing off

Check out that form...watch out Tiger

Eric driving one from the fairway

The Metteauers

The Vodehnals

The back of the club house...Amazing

Our Dogs that We Miss and Can't Wait to See in December! Hopefully they will be St. Kitts bound with us in January!

Max Metteauer

(pomeranian with a crew cut)

Shea Metteauer

(red heeler)

The Beach and The Beach House

On Wednesday, a few VIPs decided to have a cookout on Gong Beach. MMM BBQ Chicken on the grill! This beach is awesome because right now, there are no facilities or food venues...just beach. Gong is located on the Atlantic side of the island and is beautiful! (the seaweed was a little bad on this day though). The sad part is, in about five years, there will be a community of homes, a hotel and restaurants surrounding this beach. Some of the crew went snorkeling here, and saw many tropical fish, a stingaree, an octopus and a big-bad-barracuda.

Ok, I know what you are thinking. Must be nice to lounge at the beach while Eric is stuck in class and studying. While this is so true, and I am not taking a moment of my beach time for granted, Eric is so supportive of me getting out of the dorm and hanging out with others. Living on and island + not being able to have a job = finding something else to do to keep myself sane. So Eric studies, I go to the beach, and we are both happy. But...I am around to support him, cook & clean for him, and listen to him when he needs to vent about classes and professors. Good thing I love the saltwater, sand, and sun!

Melissa, Kevin, Kori, Lindsay, Blake & K-Fitz (Kevin)

Lindsay & Me

Melissa with the coolest cover-up ever! (I have that exact one, different color)

Gong-Breathtaking

On Wednesday night, some friends from our orientation group and a few others went to The Beach House Restaurant to celebrate Ellen's birthday. Everyone had a great time, and the food was To-Die-For! Eric and I finally had a steak, after being beef deprived for 8 weeks on the island. That is a long time without for the Meat Man himself! Thank you Beach House for cooking our steaks just like we like! Medium rare Porter House for Eric and Medium Rare NY Strip for me.

The Birthday Girl! ELLEN!

Catamaran Trip with First Semester Students

As promised, here are a few pics from our school sponsored Catamaran trip on Sunday. Our group of around 50 students boarded the Cat, Swaliga, and the other 90 students boarded a larger Cat, Irie Lime. We left port around 10 am, stopped at Shitten Bay for snorkeling and lunch, then headed to the Sister Island, Nevis. The Catamarans were able to dock on the sandy shoreline, and we hung out on a beach in Nevis for about 45 minutes... And of course we had to taste the highly recommended "Killer Bee" drink (I guess it is a Nevis specialty). Boy, did it have a sting! We arrived back to the St. Kitts homeland around 3:00 pm with exhaustion and sun burns... but a fun, time-well-spent feeling.

Our Cat, "Swaliga". Swaliga is an adaptation of the Amerindian word Soualiga, "Land Of Salt", which is the native name of the island of St. Maarten/St. Martin located in the East Caribbean.

The other Cat, Irie lime, with Kitts in the background.

Awww, finally a day to spend together!

Sailing up to Nevis

Nevis Beach

Me and Jakki (VIPs for life!)

This is a picture of Eric and I the night before the Cat trip. We enjoyed a lovely Kittitian dinner at Bobsy's, and then headed to Bary's bar to meet up with friends and listen to a band. Great night!

O, and did I mention....8 weeks until we fly home for Christmas Vacation! We can't wait, considering we miss our family, friends, and furry children dearly.

Livin' de Life

We are now ending week seven here on the island. Eric is finished with his first round of tests and did great on all of them. He has had a little more time to hang out with me, but has already started hammering down for his second round of exams. Tomorrow we will embark on a Catamaran adventure with all the first semester students. It should be a great time of friends, sun and snorkeling.

This week I have stayed busy hanging out with other spouses, snorkeling at various beaches, cheer/gymnastics, and of course my domestic duties. Below are a few random pictures for you to enjoy. More pics of the catamaran trip to come soon...stay tuned.

This is a drink my dear friend and fellow VIP, Lindsay, introduced me to. It is titled, "Green Flash" (named after the infamous green flash at sunset I spoke of before), and it is YUMMY. Breakfast of most VIP champions. :) This was taken at Shipwreck Beach, the day we went snorkeling for shells.

This is a picture of the Gazebo located at the shoreline of the Caribbean Sea on campus. Someone has decorated the stairway with bits and pieces of Conch Shells. This is a place where I sometimes go to find shells when Eric is busy studying.

I added this to the blog for my friend and one-time OT colleague, Jessi. She is a traveling therapist, and is from Nebraska (but has now settled in Texas...YIPPEE!). I spotted this Husker's flag at one of the beach bars here on St. Kitts, and couldn't resist posting. This one is for you Jessi!

This is a picture of a British Naval Ship on the Caribbean Sea. Even though St. Kitts is no longer under British Rule, they still patrol these waters. (I guess St. Kitts is sort of like a Common Wealth of the UK? IDK for sure...need to do some more research on that one). I have yet to see Jack Sparrow's ship, but I will keep searching!

Green Vervet Monkeys

Here on St. Kitts, the green vervet monkey equals ~35,000 in population. That is almost 1 Vervet to every person here on the island. On this day, our little friend was trying to get close to our table to see what was on the lunch menu. We were stationed at Shipwreck beach. You can often find these monkeys lining the streets of the Southern peninsula on a cool, cloudy day.

Six Down, Ten to Go

So, week 6 here on the island is coming to an end, and we feel like we have accomplished so much already! Eric made really good grades on his first three exams (anatomy, histology, and physiology), and has one more to go for the first round on Tuesday; this test being nutrition. I am sooo proud of him, and if he does really well on nutrition, which I know he will, we are going to treat him to a nice round of golf next weekend!

We have begun the process of getting Max and Shea prepped for doggy passport/import protocols, purchased a vehicle, and signed a lease on a condo for the next year. We will move out of the dorms in December, and move into our apartment in January when we return to the island. Everything seems to be sailing smoothly for us here. We miss each and every one of our family members and friends back home, but keep perspective of why we are here.

I am still teaching cheerleading and gymnastics to some of the prep school students, playing basketball, playing beach volleyball and hanging out at the beach and with other spouses as much as possible. I do at times find it difficult not to be practicing OT, but keep telling myself a job will be there for me when we get back home. Right now, this is all about Eric pursuing his dream, so that we reach a common family goal in the end.

The school has scheduled a catamaran trip for the first semester students a week from tomorrow. The catamaran will take us to Nevis as well as a spot for snorkeling. This was the trip that was cancelled during orientation secondary to Tropical Storm Erika. We are looking forward to this time with friends, away from school.

Today, Eric has buried himself into a private study room in the library, prepping for his nutrition exam. We will spend the afternoon together with friends, and then head off to the Marriott Casino to watch the LSU/Florida game. (Geaux Tigers!) The Aggies are playing OSU as I type. BTHO OSU, please.

Until the next blog... thanks and Gig'em.

Our New Kittitian Car

Eric and I finally purchased our vehicle today. It took ~ 2.5 hours to run by the bank, get the title transferred, get insurance, TT&L, and new plates. We are both excited to finally have wheels on the island. It will definitely take some getting used to driving on the left hand side of the road, on the right hand side of the car. Note to self...if you are the driver, keep yourself in the middle of the road. (Gotta remember that!)

Earthquake and Electrical Shortage

So yesterday we learned of some very interesting news. See the excerpt below from St. Kitt's local newspaper.

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts-PERSONS throughout St. Kitts-Nevis were surprised this afternoon as a mild earthquake caused the ground to rumble for a brief period.

Initial reports reaching SKNVibes indicate that tremors were felt for 10-20 seconds in downtown Basseterre, St. Peters and other areas throughout St. Kitts around 12:30 p.m.

These reports were shortly thereafter confirmed by the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre located in Trinidad.

According to that institution, the earthquake occurred east of St. Bartholomew at 12:28 p.m., with the epicenter located at 17.94°N, 62.55°W.

The seismological event was recorded as a 4.1 on the Richter scale, and reportedly occurred at a depth of three kilometers.

Tremors were reportedly felt in St. Kitts, Sint Maarten and Anguilla, but no reports of damage have surfaced as of yet in those or any other territories.

The Seismic Research Centre advised the public that “these results are preliminary and may vary slightly when additional data is processed”.

~Eric and I did not feel the tremors...he was on campus, and I was at a friend's house in Frigate Bay. I have heard that a few Ross Students did feel the mild tremors. (Max, we're not in Texas anymore!)

We also stumbled upon this interesting tidbit of news...(which does not affect Eric and I firsthand, just yet, because we live on campus...and the campus is equipped we generators that kick in once the electricity goes out).

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts-OCTOBER has proved to be an unlucky month for electricity generation in St. Kitts, as it has once again been announced that the island will be entering a load shedding period due to engine repairs at the Needsmust Power Station.

The announcement was made via a press release sent from the Electricity Department yesterday (Oct. 4), which stated that engine KV12 #1 “developed a problem which resulted in the need for extensive maintenance which could last in excess of one month”.

Because of the “extensive maintenance”, the department stated that the island would once again have to return to a load shedding schedule, as the engine coming offline would dip the supply below the 24.5 megawatts needed during peak demand hours.

The announcement was made just days after the one-year anniversary of a fire at the Needsmust Power Station that extensively damaged two Mirrlees MB 430-series generators.

Following the damage to the generators last year, St. Kitts was placed on a month long load shedding schedule.

According to yesterday’s release from the Electricity Department, the new load shedding schedule is expected to last around one month as well until “the process of installing and commissioning a new MAN 4.0MW Holeby engine”, which was brought into the Federation last week, can be completed.

On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays the areas from Taylors Range to Bayfords and Palmetto Point to Gibbon Hill, Dieppe Bay will be without power from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Then from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. the areas of Canada Estate to Dieppe Bay and Bird Rock will be taken off of the grid.

In the afternoons on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., Buckley’s Estate to Palmetto Point and the northern section of Frigate Bay, including Half Moon Bay, will be without power. Then from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Malone Avenue to Buckley’s Estate and the southwestern portion of Frigate Bay, including Horizon Villa and Calypso Bay, will be without electricity.

The release further states that on Tuesdays and Thursdays all “business generators” will be shut down from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Electricity Department indicated that the new load shedding schedule would be for shorter durations than the same period in 2008, as it “expects that no area will be without electricity for more than three hours at a time”.

A manufacturer’s representative who assessed the damaged KV12 #1 engine suggested that it and two Caterpillar 3616 engines, which have been damaged for nearly a year, be “decommissioned and replaced” as the department works to bring stability to St. Kitts’ electricity supply.

It was also indicated that the electricity generation system is a “dynamic one”, and any changes to the load shedding schedule would be communicated to the public in a timely manner.

The department apologized to the public for any inconvenience that may be caused by the loss of power, and asked for patience as they carry out the necessary repairs and upgrades to the system.

(Now where were the warning flags for these minor occurrences in the Ross pamphlets when Eric first applied to this vet school?!?! At least we made it safely through hurricane season!)

~newspaper excerpts taken from http://www.sknvibes.com

Week Five Down...September, where did you go?!

This past week has flown by! Friday, October 2, marked 5 full weeks of Eric and I inhabiting the island. Eric has been diligently attending classes and studying hours upon end for his upcoming exams. He will face the much talked about and highly feared anatomy exam tomorrow, followed by a physiology exam on Wednesday. Eric finally took a break from the books and campus yesterday evening, allowing us to enjoy a fabulous barbecue dinner at the beach with our Aggie friends, Emily and Brandon. We then drifted to the Marriott Casino to watch our fellow Aggie football team lose to Arkansas. It was a good time anyway, and we managed to drown our sorrows at the black jack table (Eric) and I at the video poker machine (with better luck than the Ags had).

I decided to try out for the women's Ross basketball team this past Thursday. I had no idea what I was getting into! I thought it would be a time filler, good exercise, opportunity to meet people, and a few pick-up games here and there! It is definitely all of the above, but also so much more. We will have practice twice a week on the court, and conditioning practices as a team 3-4 times/week. In the middle of November, our team will fly to St. Martin (neighboring island) to engage in tournament play with other collegiate teams on their island. So essentially, we will be representing not only Ross University, but St. Kitts as well. I am really looking forward to playing with this team and will be glad when my muscles have once again become accustomed to the 'o so long ago' familiar routine of bounding up and down a court a mile a minute.

Friday night our VIP volleyball team was victorious on the sand court at Timothy beach, bringing our semester record to 1-1. It was a lot of fun! Maybe one day I will get a team picture and post it on our blog. (I have become really bad about not taking pictures here lately on my outings).

Saturday during the day, a group of my lady friends, aka...'The Real Housewives of St. Kitts', went to lunch at Port Zante, followed by some serious shopping/bonding in the port shops. (I seriously need to contact BRAVO t0 pitch our story line to them and see if it is TV worthy). Every Saturday, the port harbors a Caribbean cruise ship, and the tourist shops are busy with cruise-ship shoppers. I am loving the prices down here and Emily and I are getting pretty darn good at bargaining with the shop owners (Ross students get a discount at all the shops!). Notice my "99.9% original" Coach purse in the picture below for 12 US dollars!

Below is a picture of The Housewives after eating lunch.

L to R: Jakki (from Oregon), Me (Texas as you all know), Karen and her 10 mo. old son Isaiah (from Pennsylvania), Emily (from Texas and an Aggie! :) ), and Jen (from New York, NY).

Jakki, Emily and Jen are all teachers at the prep school on campus. Karen is actually an occupational therapist like me! (But unfortunately we cannot practice in our respective field here on the island) There is definitely a need for OT services on the island, but St. Kitt's health care system is behind on medical advances, resources, and availability of the many venues of health care professions we are blessed with back in the States.