i. saw. an. octopus.

ive been slack again. apologies. i suppose ill just have to talk your ears off.
the past few weeks have been pretty damned busy, but in lovely and amazing ways. after reading my last blog entry, just to orient myself a bit, i realize you better get comfy.
my period of vagabondage finally came to an end about a week and a half ago, and i have an apartment. after nick's couch, with its kittens and mosquitoes and salad bowls full of weed, i moved to duncan's couch-- in a VERY small little apartment that at the time was home to 5 aussies and kimberly and i. laura, mel, katy, duncan, alex, kimberly, and i nestled rather snugly in a 200 sq. ft. den, and coined the humble abode, the palace, for its figurative grandeur and apparent resident harem. after duncan's we moved to pat's which certainly provided the most in the way of creature comforts. real floor, not slats, real shower, complete with water. amazing. anyway, all three places were amazing, and i have to figure out something to do for those guys. kimberly, if you get this, sorry for the carpetbagging.
at long last, i was able to move into our place... sheer perfection. i live in a little place overlooking half moon bay with three other dmt GIRLS. trust me, we're few and far between, and the setup is amazing. katy and i are dmts at west end, and marika and carrie are dmt's at native sons. i know, its kind of latin, but its a beautiful place, and its OURS. ill try to post pictures.
as mentioned, i started my divemaster traineeship-- a modern form of slavery. peer-inflicted and mostly voluntary, but grueling and challenging here, nonetheless. my day: i wake up between 6:30 and 7:30, and katy and i make tea and some sort of breakfast, or breaky, as she would call it. mangoes, granola, cereal, croissants, or balleada's, depending on the mood and the events of the previous night. we chit chat and get bathing suits on (underwear is rarely worn on this island). we then head to west end divers where we're occupied until at least 5. diving, teaching, being taught, leading dives, doing academic work, cleaning equipment, suiting people up, setting up/breaking down equipment, talking, reading, eating, sitting in hammocks, and drinking beer are usually the order of the day. after that, there is shower, dinner of sorts, and laid back beach bars. sometimes there are girls nights and sunset swims and barbecues and snorkel tests. i must tell you about snorkel tests.
its good stuff.
now a diving update. today, not on a dive, but under the west end divers dock, which might be cheating, i saw an octopus. pish posh, some might say, but not so. theyre in my top five favorite animals and theyre fucking amazing!!! beautiful and smart and eccentric as hell. i got to HEAR HIM EATING. sooo rad. i also saw two scorpionfish, a rare lizardfish, and a ton of fireworms. look em up, they kick ass. the other day, thanks to mel, i also saw a harlequin pipefish-- rare, tiny, and amazing, as so many things here are. sorry, im boring the snot out of you, but these little high points are a good taste of my joys here. i have to go in a sec, but im attaching a picture of one of my all time favorite animals, i saw on the discovery channel. apparently, they live right under me right now, 2000 ft down off the reef here. his name is dumbo.