Sunday, August 31, 2008

Thank you for the party






from Wendy
What a fine party it was on Saturday for my 70th birthday. About forty of us celebrated with a beautiful feast at a villa in Pacific Harbour with so many relatives from different branches of our family. It was a sunny day so the children had a good time swimming in the pool. Thank you to my lovely daughters-in-law for the care and planning and to our eldest son for insisting that the sometimee shy grandmother be the centre of attention for a day! Vina'a va'alevu to Nau Kisi, Teca, Pinky, Talei and Robin for coming on the ferry from Labasa, Wendy Junr from Vomo Island and Carpenter from Ba. What pleasure it was to talk to family members that we do not see often. Here are a few pictures. Lots more will be on a DVD for the family.

Manuku's wedding in Mali Island

from w
Recently Manuku married Mosese in the village of Nakawaqa Mali Island.Many of the tribewanted gang attended the wedding. Here are a few photos taken by Manuku's mother, Rinieta.


The custom of tevutevu



from w
Perhaps the gift-givers from Geelong who collected colourful materials and sewing kits wondered what happens at the other end of the Donation in Kind boxes sent to places like Fiji. Many women in Geelong gave me many boxes of goods that were sent on and I was pleased when Rinieta from Labasa showed me photos of pillowcases made for her daughter's wedding from some of the gifts.

The tevutevu is a ceremony where a room is prepared with bedding for the bride and groom, dozens of pillows, mosquito nets, blankets and so on -not that they need so many! The gifts later are shared out between relatives and only the best kept for the newly married couple!

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Kids on school holidays in Suva


There are some really nice photos on flicker of Suva

from Andrew,
we went to MHCC first. We went to Extrem to by DVDs. We ate chiken and chips and fish and chips. We saw Grandpa walking on the road and we was in the taxi than we came home.
from Elijah,
We went to eat fish and chips. And we went to Extreem and shopping at MHCC.
from Robin,
I was going to town. We was eating fish and chips.
from Mereoni,
We went to Suva and we waited for Uncle to go to the bank from there to the DVD shop From the DVD shop tne to the restaurant to eat fish asnd cips. Afterwards then to Extreem to buy some movies. And then to the bookshop to buy books and pencils, from their we came right here by taxi.
from Talei,
We woke up in the morning had a prayer and went by taxi to Suva. We bought some stuff at MH went to a DVD shop and came back home by taxi.
from Jordan,
I went to town to go shopping. We went to one bank to go get money for our spending. We went to eat fish and chips. Then we went to Extreem to buy some DVds. Then we went shopping at MH. Then caught the taxi home.
---------
While they were away three of us women had a silent flat so had a good snooze! Now the kids are back, it's full on with lots of chatter, video games, etc.and the little boy from the upstair flat is happy to play with the kids again.

Charter Chatter in all the papers

from w
It's hard to get away from the media chatter about the 'charter' as the Methodist Church has come out firmly stating its position. Don't know the meaning of the photothough in today's Fiji Sun taken on the steps of Centenary Church!

August 26, 2008

From the Methodist Church in Fiji

The Methodist Church Conference has decided to reject the draft People’s charter on the ground that it cannot support a process and outcome that is not based on the rule of law, has no basis in the Constitution and where the enacting authority has no mandate from the people.

The Conference has decided instead to urge the interim government to honor the promise by interim Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama to hold a general election by March 2009.

“The Conference is very concerned of so much suffering and poverty and the Nation and people must not be subjected to any further hardships which could result from further sanctions by our neighbors and the international community” says the General Secretary Elect Rev Tuikilakila Waqairatu.

In its submission to the interim Prime Minister in June 2007, the Methodist Church had asked that the interim government put a stop to its intention to enact a charter.

Rev Waqairatu says “In their annual meetings last May, fifty of the fifty divisions of the Church Fiji-wide have indicated they do not support the charter. The Church’s decision to reject the charter proposal is based on such mandate.

“While the charter proposes some noble principles, the Conference is of the view that the interim government and the National Council for Building a Better Fiji do not have any moral or legal authority to impose it on the people.”

“The draft charter proposes to develop a moral vision for the common good. However, there are numerous historical examples of the failure of moral declarations to create a good society. The inquisition, the repressive laws of fundamentalist states and coups that persecute and terrorize the community in our times are part of historical evidence which confirm the inability of human law to enforce morality in any society. True justice and morality cannot be created by legislation and coercion. It can come only as the fruit of free moral choice. Declarations in the charter and laws that are written in statute books but not in the hearts of people are not worth the paper they are written on.”

“The Conference holds that it is in all our interest to support the rule of law; any attempt to impose and legitimize the charter outside the Constitution and by an authority which does not have the people’s mandate is morally unacceptable. It defies God’s authority because it lacks any legal basis; and it limits the free choice of the people to act according to their conscience”

With respect to proposals in the charter to de-racialise politics by removing communal seats, Rev Waqairatu says: “We believe that the most powerful influence that drive communal politics is not race, but the perception of racial economic inequality. So de-racialising politics in Fiji cannot be successful without first de-racialising the perception of economic inequality between our racial groups. Therefore, any insensitive reforms to merely decentralize political communal representation will not lead to unity, but could instead be a cause of future contention.”



Rev Waqairau added: “The Conference holds that in our multiracial, multicultural Nation, it would be to our own detriment if race based, constitutionally allowed affirmative action and communal-based electoral systems were dismantled contrary to the expressed will of the majority and contrary to the rule of law and the Constitution.”



Concerning the proposal for interfaith services and dialogue, Rev Waqairatu states: ”The Conference affirms the pivotal Christian belief that Jesus Christ is the only way to God and salvation. So while the Methodist Church supports peaceful dialogue and a harmonious community, it cannot support a document which, for the sake of political correctness, sacrifices the very essence of the Christian faith.

On the proposal for a common name for all the people, Rev Waqairatu says that the Conference was of the view that the term ‘Fijian’ quite clearly refers to indigenous people of Fiji as stipulated in our Constitution. “The term ‘Fijian’ refers to the legal ownership of land and other assets. It would be more responsible if the NCBBF had instead recommended for more frank and good faith negotiation with the Fijian community on the matter of a common name.”

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Monday in Deuba

from w
My niece's daughter Mereoni and I got off the bus at Pacific Harbour while Peceli went on to Lautoka. We had a lovely day and a half there with my relatives, swimming in the pool and going to the beach nearby. I made three drawings to post here.




But Tuesday night and Wednesday - forget it! I have been very poorly after eating some suspect 'chicken' in a dump of a cafe Tuesday afternoon back in Suva. Should have known better. Thanks to Doctor Jone at the medical clinic next to the Fiji Medical School. He was very reassuring and gave me some salty kind of mix to rehydrate and some glug to help with a kind of heartburn. A free clinic. The family doctor was out of town and fortunately my niece had worked at the Medical School and knew the ropes! I'm still wonky but have to be ready as another five people will join the household tonight. (Already there are nine here plus a small Indian boy from the upstairs flat who is here from 6.30 a.m. until dark. It's all about a birthday party.)

Monday in Lautoka




from Peceli
On Monday I took the bus to Lautoka for a couple of meetings, one being a visit to Koroipita,the Donation in Kind village on the outskirts of Lautoka. I usually visit this special village when in Fiji as several Geelong Rotarians and friends have assisted with projects. Peter Drysdale is the driving force behind this village development and that's why it's called Koroipita. Here are some photos from Monday.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Ordination and a surprise



from w
Fiji Times reported an unusual incident at the Ordination Service on Sunday at Cententary Church. I asked Peceli about it, as he went to the Ordination, mainly to support his friend, the minister from Mali Island (and what a photo opportunity lost) and he said, yes, this happened. What a lovely symbol it was, I said. This homeless man who was originally from the Rakiraki area and is a well-known beggar on the streets of Suva joined the well-suited Ordinands at the front to take Communion. In my view, this is the point where the church should be - not about status, top of the table, loud preaching, but being alongside those who are poor and troubled. Jesus as mentor to people of faith certainly practiced such care for dissident and difficult people.

Beggar inspires new ministers
Monday, August 25, 2008

A homeless beggar who walked into the Methodist Church's ordination became the message to ministers yesterday.

Eneri, as he is commonly known in Suva, joined ordained ministers during the holy communion to the surprise of the worshippers.

Church assistant general secretary Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu said it was coincidence that a homeless man came into their midst.

"This is a lesson to us, ministers that we must always look after the poor and unfortunate in the society," he said

The homeless man who is originally from Ra, then sat with the newly ordained ministers and met worshippers when the service ended.

Meanwhile, the Navuloa Methodist Church choir was announced the winner for the annual choir competition which ended at Furnival Park on Saturday night.

A total of 43 choirs battled in the Class One category which saw the Nakasi-based choir emerge victors. Nadawa Methodist Church was announced the second place getter while Narere was third.

Church assistant general secretary Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu said a total of eight choirs received prizes from the competition. "It was a tough competition but Navuloa stood above the rest and was declared the winner," he said.

Last year's winner, the Centenary Church in central Suva, lost out in the competition.

-----
Also, I picked Navuloa -what I saw of them - as an outstanding choir. But the group that took my attention was of course the Hart Fellowship Choir, which I wrote about in a previous post.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

More photos from Furnival Park







from w
Here are some more of Peceli's pictures taken at Furnival Park where the Methodist choirs and singers performed. He went there everyday and met many friends, including Rita from Darwin. I went yesterday morning and enjoyed watching the soloists, duets, and some of the choirs. Today Peceli has gone to Centenary Church downtown for the ordination service. The minister from Mali Island is one of the ordinands. Then he and some of our family here will join in a dinner party at Tacirua. The name Furnival Park reminds me of my teaching colleague and friend of many years ago, Phyllis Furnival, who was at one time principal of Dudley High School, a woman who had a passion to help young women to achieve scholastic excellence and she died tragically. I wrote a story about that time and my story was published in Tales of the Blackboard.

Labasa girls study in boys' career

from w
It's good to see that girls can now enter professions that were formerly described as only for the men, just as young men are now entering professions such as nursing which used to be thought of as for the girls. Way to go.
from today's Fiji Sun
Girls in a male dominated territory

8/19/2008

Meet Melania Tabuakula and Maraia Kalouvou who are automotive engineering course students at the Labasa Arya Secondary School. They have quickly adjusted to the real world of work in automotive engineering where they find it challenging and interesting.

Melaia who hails from the island of Kia in Macuata spoke on why she decided to pursue a career in a profession that dominated by males.

Q: What made you choose this course as most females would like to work in offices and take up lesser masculine work?

Melania Tabuakula: I took up the challenge and I want to prove that females are as good as males.

Q: How do you find the course?

MT: Challenging and interesting. I’m learning something new.

Q: What do you plan to do after completing the course?

MT: Find a suitable job and also pursue further studies

Q: How will this course be relevant to you?

MT: We travel by outboard motor vessel to our island. The knowledge I gain from here will enable me to maintain and repair outboard motors anywhere, anytime.

Q: What kind of support you get from your male colleagues and teachers?

MT: They are indeed very supportive and helpful at all times.

Q: What advise would you give to other females who might be interested to take up this course?

MT: Take up the challenge. Don’t give up. Stay focus and rely on God to pull you through.
--
Note: Kia Island is west of Labasa, not far from Vorovoro Island.

Birthday party in a Fijian village

from w
Yesterday afternoon Peceli,Mereoni, Jordan, Iliaja, Andrew and I crammed into a taxi to go to Navuso village for a birthday party for a little four year old girl Mere. We hadn't seen her since she was two weeks old. We had to cross a river by boat then walk up a muddy path. We were warmly welcomed by relatives and the party took place in a vakatunuloa (temporary shed) decorated with plaited leaves, balloons etc. It turned out to be a party for two little kids as a one year old also had a special cake.



Many youth mothers brought their infants and the barbecue cooked by the teenage boys was enjoyed as the men drank kava and told stories in one corner. We left after dark using a torch to find the river, the boat, and to negotiate the puddles to go to the main road. It was a beautiful starry night and one of the kids said, 'Grandma why don't you do a drawing of those trees, the sky and the stars?' This was in the middle of the river!

A 15 seater minibus, with a side door that opened and shut at every bend, picked us up to go the 20 minute trip back to Namadi. It was a lovely occasion of catching up with stories from the extended family of our grandsons.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Thank you for the music



from w
We have just returned from Furnival Park where the Methodist Choir competition is still in progress. We left early because we are going to a birthday party. What a rich variety of voices we heard this morning, soloists, duets, and choirs. The winners will not be announced until perhaps tonight but I have already picked my favourites - a 12 year old girl wearing a silver dress, confident, engaging with the audience, singing like an angel, and the Hart Fellowship Choir which reminded me of the Australian Choir of Hard Knocks. (Hart refers to Housing Assistance and Relief Trust which is assistance to the very poorest of people in Fiji. The Choir of Hard Knocks was started in Australia by a Geelong singer who gathered men and women from the streets of Melbourne - the fringe dwellers, to form a choir that eventually performed concerts and made CDs. Their song 'Alleluia' has made Leonard Cohen's song well known in Australia.) Many of the Fiji singers were people with disabilities or perhaps were very poor. And the Gau choir, I hesitate to say of our tauvu , but they were really good. One photo is of the Mali Island choir because they are in the Labasa area, Macuata - that is, babasiga. We were privileged to sit right at the front of the stage in comfortable seats and a cooling breeze and we also had the very best view of the performers. I was reminded of the Adelaide Conference we attended and Esther King (Litia Daveta) and her ten points in judging a choir competition. I wrote about it on this blog on July 14th. Of course I don't really like to pitch one singer/singers against one another as they all have some kind of excellence or provide a moving experience connecting with the listener.

I hate plastic!

from w
Okay it’s nice to be cool and look on the bright festival side of life in Suva and go to Hibiscus special events, but there is another side that makes me burn bright with anger and passion. There is plastic everywhere. Supermarket stuff. Fresh vegetable market. Everything is put into a plastic bag. So where do the bags end up? Some must accidentally go down waterways, creeks, rivers, into the sea, and cause gross damage to sea life. I hate plastic.

What can we do about it then?
Refuse to accept any item in a plastic bag.
Take recycle bags everywhere you shop and put everything straight in. No plastic. Teach children the same, and never to throw plastic items into the sea, into a garden, into a river.

A few years ago I was angry when I walked along a Macuata coastline, a pristine area I thought, then I saw lots of rubbish entangled in the mangroves. The culture just has to change.

I noticed a story about plastic discussed briefly on the tribewnted website. It was from a Vancouver publication - full article here.

August 14, 2008
Waves of disaster By Roberta Staley
(some of the article)

They are called lantern fish, silvery navigators of the ocean’s deepest depths, bug-eyed, blunt-nosed, and gap-mouthed, with close-set rows of pointy teeth. Every night around the globe, at least 600 million tonnes of these finned creatures, along with a few related species—which make up as much as 90 percent of deep-sea fish biomass—swim upward from their dark hiding places to near the ocean’s surface to gorge on zooplankton, made up of organisms that are often too tiny to be seen with the naked eye, such as the shrimplike krill, jellyfish, and arrow worms.

As they forage, the lantern fish, up to 15 centimetres in length when mature, are snapped up by larger marine creatures: seals and whales, squid, and commercial fish like yellowfin tuna, swordfish, mahi-mahi, sharks, and salmon. A handful of commercial fisheries around the world also catch this small delicacy to sell to consumers in Asia and Eastern Europe.

Just a simple fish tale? Unfortunately, no. Rather, it is a tale of environmental and human-health disaster in the making, as the lantern fish’s bounteous numbers give it an importance in the global food chain that far outweighs its diminutive size and prosaic appearance.

For the past half-century, the ocean has been a dumping ground for human detritus, most notably plastic. Nonbiodegradable, plastic doesn’t readily decay and can last upward of 1,000 years. It is made of molecules, called monomers, that are created from petroleum. Linked together to make plastic, monomers become polymers.

When plastic is discarded in the ocean, these polymer chains start to break apart, creating a floating confetti on the surface. These minute red, blue, and clear pills are mistaken by lantern fish for zooplankton, says Charles Moore, founder of the Long Beach, California–based Algalita Marine Research Foundation, a private ocean-research organization that is affiliated with the University of California at Irvine and the University of the Pacific in Stockton. In some areas of the ocean, plastic outnumbers surface zooplankton six to one, Moore says.

This is more than unappetizing—it’s poison. Plastic is oil-soluble, and it both absorbs and releases poisons: PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, a persistent environmental pollutant; dioxin, a known human carcinogen; and gasoline and other petroleum-based products. These substances end up in the ocean through illegal biochemical- and garbage-dumping (despite international conventions against polluting), oil spills, and sewage and street runoff.

Lantern fish have no “genetic ability to differentiate between zooplankton and plastic”, Moore says. “We have been screwing up the ocean with plastic for 50 to 60 years. The fact that we’ve done it so fast and that it has penetrated so low into the food chain is alarming, but we’re just beginning to make a scientific assessment of what this means.”

This year, the Algalita laboratory conducted necropsies on 600 lantern fish caught in the Pacific Ocean. More than half of these fish had plastic fragments inside their gastrointestinal tract. One Algalita technician found 84 pieces of plastic in the stomach of a 6.3-centimetre lantern fish. Moore says these findings are “statistically significant”.

Not only are these fish being poisoned, they are not putting on fat stores needed for reproduction, says Moore, whose findings on plastic consumption by lantern fish will be published this fall in the prestigious scientific journal Environmental Research.

Plastic has usurped the wise simplicity embedded within the evolutionary food chain, in which each link nourishes the one above. Plastic bits are consumed by lantern fish, which are consumed by larger fish like tuna that, in turn, end up in tin cans in the kitchen cupboard. ……

How did plastic come to rend the natural cycle of the ocean, the womb of Earth whence all life, from plants to insects to humans, sprang, perhaps four billion years ago? And what are the implications for humans as our oceans are churned into a soup of chemical and plastic?

Frederick vom Saal, professor of biological sciences at the University of Missouri at Columbia, is a world-recognized expert on the effects of plastic-related chemicals on fetal development, growth, and sexuality. Creatures like the lantern fish are, vom Saal says, the “canary in the coal mine. People should be concerned about the degradation of the aquatic system, because if it goes, life as we know it is going to go.”

Some of the chemicals used to make plastic cause an array of problems in laboratory animals, including metabolic upset, obesity, lowered sperm count, prostate tumours, accelerated sexual maturity, breast tumours, and miscarriages, vom Saal says. These findings can be extrapolated to all species, he says, because cellular mechanisms are virtually identical in “mouse, fish, rat, or human. The mechanisms developed over hundreds of millions of years of evolution and are extremely similar across all vertebrates. If they can be harmed, so can we.”

……Despite warnings—it has been known since the 1930s that BPA is an endocrine disruptor—nothing has been done to initiate a comprehensive recycling program with the ultimate objective of achieving zero garbage output, Moore says. “The ocean really needs us to embody a zero-waste culture on land,” Moore says. “That’s the only way she is going to heal herself.”
.......

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Fiji scenes





from w
Formal and natural backyards in Suva and nearby: a swimming pool in a back yard and trees near the balcony in the suburb of Namadi Heights. And a pic my grandson wanted to colour in my quick feltpen pic. More Fiji sketches are on Geelong Visual Diary.

Not everyone plays politics with Fiji

from w. While the noise-makers carry on in Niue about Fiji and want to further treat Fiji as a naughty boy in the corner - and perhaps rightly so, there are also New Zealanders and Aussies getting past politics (which hurts ordinary people) to bring some health and wellness to Fiji society. Such an example is Dr Brown who went to Labasa to restore sight, a wonderful gift. I read this in the Fiji Times this morning from the flat in Namadi and though it worthwhile to find it on-line to post here. Again I reiterate my view that developing relationships between people in Fiji and those in other countries is a very good thing to do.

Dr Brown's gift of sight by THERESA RALOGAIVAU
Friday, August 22, 2008

FOR eighteen years Dr Michael Brown has made a journey that takes him across the Pacific, past the jet setting, luxurious resorts of Nadi and into the heart of the cane fields of Labasa. His long journey is motivated by giving someone the invaluable gift of sight.

I first met Dr Brown in a little, crowded office of the Eye Department at the Labasa Hospital. He had just been past a long fortnight of attending to more than one thousand patients with eye ailments from around the Northern Division but his friendly smile hardly betrayed that fact.

"It's just been great to be back working with the rural communities here. My services are needed here and that brings me back every year," he said.

That was his response to my question on what motivates a man for 18 years to leave behind the comforts of home and life in Christchurch, New Zealand.

His philanthropy story began way back when he was a child growing up with a mother who could only see out of one eye."I've been an optometrist for 33 years and it all started when I realised that mom could not see out of one eye because she had suffered a retina detachment," he explained the reason for his career choice."But mind you all six siblings couldn't get away with anything because she always found out," he joked.

So began a determination to succeed as an eye doctor and to give to someone what he couldn't help his mother with. "From then on I was motivated to give to someone the gift of sight. That's why I always come back to Fiji because I know that my services are so needed here," he said.

Dr Brown is a member of the Voluntary Overseas Ophthalmic Organisation and when he comes to Fiji as part of the Sight First Project of the Lions Club of Labasa, apart from just helping with corrective eye surgeries they also distribute spectacles to hundreds of people. "Some cannot afford to buy even a pair of glasses so when they are able to see the world anew with a new pair it delights us," he said."As always the highlight of my trip is when the bandage is removed from someone's eye and they see for the first time or after a long time.It is a traumatic moment, the transition from the dark to the light within the space of a few seconds when their eyes register. It's a beautiful moment that always drags me back to Fiji. I know that we cannot help everyone, but if we can change one life than it's all worthwhile in the end, because if everyone did a little than a little bit becomes a lot."

The most common eye problem in the division is cataracts mainly because of the high level of sunshine all year round.

"They are exposed to a lot of the ultraviolet rays of the sun and because they don't wear 'sunnies' or protect their eyes it gets affected," he added.

Working in the rural areas always leaves an indelible mark.

"I learn a lot about hospitality, friendliness and the good nature of the community that accepts their quarter in life with a lot of heart," he said. "On these trips I come and help but I learn a lot in the process like working together as a team in not the best of conditions. There's always a new lesson to take home at the end of the trip." But the best reward that lingers in his memory until he returns a year later are the smiling faces and teary eyes of those he has helped to see again.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Donation in Kind in the Pacific



from w
A couple of weeks ago our friend Joy Baxter addressed a Rotary Club in Geelong about her recent trip to Fiji and the unloading of a container with goods for Vanua Levu, mainly for the Dreketi area. I was disappointed a few weeks ago to read in a Fiji Paper a statement by someone in a NGO that criticized the Uplift Fiji project of providing bras to the women in inland villages and settlements. Their argument was that this encourages a dependency situation. I don't think so. The women who started this project thought the gifts would be good medically not just socially. The donors that I know and the volunteers at the Geelong depot work very hard and those who do travel to the Pacific Islands on work-camps develop a good relationship with the local people. I do not think it is about dependency but about relationships and good will.

Donation in Kind particularly focus on schools, hospitals and rural projects. so, is it desirable to give computers to the children of the South Pacific? Yes, I think so.

Pictures from Davuilevu and Mokosoi





from w
Here are some more photos Peceli took the other day at the Davuilevu 100 years celebration and at Mokosoi, Pacific Harbour where he preached last Sunday. He can write the details when I can get him to sit at the computer for five minutes instead of going to meetings and talking with old friends! They have produced an excellent historical book detailing the training of Methodist ministers over the years and listing all of the talatalas from the early days of Tongans such as Joeli Bulu. It is sad to read so many names of people we have known over the years who are no longer with us.

Mokosoi is not a traditional village but a settlement of workers who once upoa time were working at the Art Village and nearby. These days many travel the 40 minutes each way to Suva to work. One photo is of the Talatala Qase of Cuvu.

Yesterday I went into Suva city to have lunch with Peceli, with Mereoni with the task of taking some photos for me, and also buy a reader to transfer photos to the computer. We went to Morris Hedstrom (rebuilt after the fire) and it is very smart indeed. We ate roti and curry up at the third floor going up by escalator. Then we found Dick Smith's shop in the Midcity Plaza, another very clean new shopping area. Way to go! Then we explored the Suva market to buy bila (fermented cassava sticks) vakalolo, fruit and kumala. Peceli had a long day with a meeting then yarning with friends at Furnival Park.

Then the rain really came down after three weeks of dry weather. Torrential rain really drenched the city and the catchment areas out of Suva surely will no be filling which is very good news as there was a threat of restrictions. It poured and poured and the little creek below our back yard is raging today. The kids of course still want me to take them somewhere for swimming etc. but four are a handful so I'll just take two to town to meet with Peceli. Maybe.