More swimming and another trip to Sigatoka (7/21)

Today I was swimming around in the shallow Tabu area looking for sites for my next experiment. I saw an awesome octopus! It was the size of a small dog and blended in perfectly with the dark rocks all around. When I first approached, it was swimming. As soon as it saw me, it backed up against a rock like a person hiding against a wall. A “Dr. Who” hide if you will, except it matched the rocks so perfectly that it was really hard to see. As I got closer, it would turn a deep purple color with vibrant, white spots. Amazing! I floated, mesmerized, for what seemed like hours.

After spending most of the day in the field, I had to go to Sigatoka again. Last time I was there, I was on a desperate hunt for knee high stockings. They don’t exist in Fiji. It’s like trying to find sushi in Troy, Alabama. Everyone thought I was crazy. But I don’t want to WEAR them, I want to fill them with fertilizer and nail them to the reef! Jeez, give me a break people! (ha ha) Anyway, I ended up buying spandex/cotton children’s socks. They were expensive, for how many I needed, so I only bought what I thought was just enough. Nope. I needed 30 more pairs. That’s why I went again today. When I was buying them, a woman at the counter looked at me and said, “all for your children?!?” I said, “Yes. I’m very fertile.”
I found a MUCH better Internet café. It’s an obscure hole-in-the-wall that I would have NEVER found if not for Daryl and Dominiti. It’s only $4 an hour and faster (and more reliable) than the other place. There are only 4 or 5 computers and it’s run by some young (college aged) Indian students. This may sound racist, but its not. It’s just a fact. I was nearly knocked over from the thick, hot smell of multiple ethnic bodies encapsulated in a tiny, non-ventilated room. I got used to it after an hour though. But, can you believe it? I forgot my thumb drive with my paper and all of my journal entries. Damn. I think Gremlins are following me around on this trip.