"The Breeze"

this is my prized possession of my first 1/3rd of service in neiafu. i bought the boat for $300 samoan tala, and my neighbor threw in a fine mat, weaved by his wife from pandanus leaves (valued at around $200 tala). one pic is of his wife and a friend weaving a mat similar to the one used in my purchase. nearly every women in the village weaves these, and they are can be used for anything from paying village fines, wedding gifts, funeral offerings, and of course to buy things like boats, virtually anything . sharing the boat has worked out fine, since i can use it whenever i want (daytime) and my neighbor can use it whenever he wants (nighttime.) the paint job is of my own doing. i happen to think it looks damn good. sadly however "the breeze" no longer exists. at the rate at which it gets repaired (i've wrecked it twice) and repainted, it was too tough to keep the paint job up, so just a plain coat of red covers the body now. not to mention the superstitions of having a boat in samoa with an american flag paint job. not that i beleive in superstitions, but the samoan seas can be tough enough, so i sure dont need any extra karma against me.