When It Rains, It Pours

If there is one thing that you can count on in American Samoa, it is rain. At least once a day, it rains. Sometimes it is a light sprinkle, other times its a absolute down pour. Luckily, rain never lasts very long here. I'm talking about 10-15 minutes, tops! So it is actually quite enjoyable and refreshing, especially on the hot and humid days. So far, I've only gotten caught in it once. I had just bought a new phone (Yes, I officially have a phone. If you'd like the number and the international call fees, just e-mail me and I will send you the number) and I was in the middle of talking to my parents. Luckily, they understood when I hung up rather abruptly and made a dash for cover.
The real reason I mention rain, though, isn't so literally. I'm currently writing this post, almost four days after I had initially intended to, from another volunteer's computer. If you're worried...you should be.
So, even if I had wanted to write a post four days ago, any effort to post it would have been futile because the internet was completely down. Of course, I'm going to have to get used to that because it is going to happen rather often. While American Samoa is certainly developing, it is a slow and steady process. Luckily, the internet has returned! But why am I borrowing someone's computer, you ask? Well, the answer is quite simple. Two days ago, out of nowhere, I went to turn on my computer to discover that it could not find the hard drive and, no hard drive, no blog posts (or anything else, for that matter). I know that the humidity does some funny stuff to technology here but, to be honest, it is a 4 year old computer with a 2 year old hard drive. I wouldn't be surprised if it was on its way out long before I got here. Anyways, I've taken it to the only computer store on island and I'm waiting to hear their diagnosis. Hopefully they can fix it within a week. Otherwise, my computer is making the long voyage home via USPS and I wont see it again for another three weeks. I'm really hoping for the former but I recommend preparing for the worst. Even if you don't hear from me for a while, know that I am having a fantastic time here, I am learning a ton, and I will soon be purchasing my first i'e faitaga (a.k.a. formal male skirt). Yes, I will be taking pictures. :)

'Til the rain stops, fa'afetai!