My Mom's First St. Kitts Visit

My Mom finally had the chance to come down and visit us on the island in late January. She was only here for a week, but I made sure she stayed nice and busy as we explored the island together.

One of the highlights of the week was her first time SCUBA diving in 27 years! Vajai at Kenneth's Dive Shop, who did our certification, was nice enough to meet up with us early in the week and do a refresher course with her. He made sure she remembered the important aspects of diving, and made sure she felt comfortable in the water. Once her refresher was done, he gave her the ok to dive later in the week.



Before our day of diving arrived, I gave her a warm-up by taking her out on a snorkeling catamaran trip. We took off from downtown Basseterre, sailed along the island, and stopped to hop in the water and snorkel.




We didn't see much in the water, but we did see a pretty big fish in the process of eating another large fish!


After snorkeling, we had an amazing lunch on the boat, and we continued our trip to St. Kitt's sister island of Nevis. We were dropped off right next to the Four Seasons Resort, and mom and I explored a bit





We also spent some time at Sunshines Bar and Grill, famous for their potent Killer Bee drinks.



...but we stuck to the Carib instead





Mom really enjoyed the snorkeling we did on the catamaran, and I think it got her even more excited for the dive. The day of the big dive started out rainy, but the sun started to come out right after we jumped in the water at the first location.



Here she is, swimming past a shipwreck as she dives for the first time in a very long time!


Once she felt comfortable, she took my camera and took most of the pictures on the dive. Here are Cory and I down there with her...


We also saw a few cool creatures:

A giant puffer fish near the River Taw shipwreck


A small eel hiding in a tire


And some cool, random fish


I think she had been a bit nervous since it had been so long since her last dive, but she ended up really enjoying herself.


Here are some highlights from the other days of activities....


We hiked to the top of the volcano:

With Royston as our guide, we hiked up the dormant volcano. Here is the road you take up to the base of the mountain and the start of the trail




Mom liked all of the cool plants, trees and roots that you see on the way up





We thought this tree looked a lot like a giraffe


Once we made it to the top, we were rewarded with the beautiful view of the volcano's crater







It was a beautiful day, and perfect weather for the hike. Although we got a bit wet and muddy, we had an awesome time. And Royston was a great guide, as always. After getting back down the mountin, he also drove us around the rest of the island, pointing out some great spots along the way that I hadn't had a chance to show my mom yet.


One was Black Rocks, where the beach is made of volcanic rock


He also took us past the Golden Lemon Resort, and an old sugar plantation nearby





We visited Brimstone Hill Fortress:

Of course, this is a must for anyone who visits St. Kitts. Located high on top of a hill, it offers amazing views of some of St. Kitts' neighboring islands.




I made Mom sit on the cannon...everyone has to do it once!








We also visited the nearby Romney Manor, which is home to Caribelle Batik:

There isn't too much to do here, but the grounds are very well maintained and nice to walk around. They also have a huge tree on the property that is over 350 years old, and it is amazing!








We took pictures of monkeys, and more pictures....and more pictures.....

Once mom saw some monkeys, she was hooked. She wanted to get more pictures of them, but as many people here know, they do not sit still for very long, and they avoid eye contact. It took some effort, but we devoted an entire morning to driving around the southeast peninsula looking for monkeys. Here are a few of probably around 200 monkey pictures she took:






We hung out at Ziggy's for volleyball:

Mom was also nice enough to take pictures for us at our weekly beach volleyball game.






Finally, it is obvious that we took alot of pictures, but Mom got a lot of random pictures of the island that I never think to take. I have now decided that before I leave for good, I am going to give myself a couple days to just explore the island and take pictures of everything, because I will miss the little things once we are gone. Here are some of the random shots she took of the island and downtown Basseterre:
Downtown looking into the Circus


The clock in the Circus


The movie theater


The English pub that Ross students love


Random buildings downtown



Independence Square and the Catholic Church there




The taxi stand and farmers market near the water



Ha ha ha...our price of gas (that is in EC dollars. It is now up around $13 a gallon, which is almost $5 US!!!)


And finally, me drinking and driving...with my freshly cut coconut



I think she really enjoyed her time here, and is hoping to come back and visit one more time before we move at the end of the year. And I hope she is able to come back, because we had fun together, and this island still has more to offer!

Cold and Snowy Christmas in Wisconsin

Alright, time to stop neglecting the blog and catch up on lots of stuff that has happened recently!

For Christmas this past year, Cory headed home to Wisconsin, and I was actually able to get a few days off before the new students started arriving, so I met him up there as well. It was nice getting off the island for Christmas, but I was a little nervous for the drastic change in temperature I would be experiencing! Here was my last sunny view of St. Kitts as my plane took off:


I was excited to see Cory's family for the first time in awhile, and for the chance to experience my first white Christmas. And the weather did not disappoint...after arriving very, very late the night before, we woke up to fresh falling snow, which was beautiful!




It was also so nice seeing our kitty after so long. Lladra spent the entire night curled up with us.


After the one short night at Brett and Jana's house in Minnesota, we packed into the car and headed to Cory's parents' house in Wisconsin. Here are Reilly and I making our way out to the car.


It was a long car trip that involved lots of singing with Reilly, Kari and Cory. And when we finally arrived in Oshkosh, the weather was even colder!


Cory got me to come outside with him and walk onto the frozen lake behind his parents' house. It was actually my first time walking on a frozen anything!...but the excitement didn't have a chance to last much longer because the howling wind and frigid temperatures made me ready to go back in pretty quickly.









The next day we went back out again, and with less wind and more sun, it was much nicer!






Of course, having everyone together at the same time gave a perfect opportunity for some Christmas photos.




Christmas was so much fun with the Greenfields, and I wish I could have stayed longer with them. But I had to be back on the island in time to welcome the new students who would be arriving in a few days. Before leaving, I packed up some snow in a jar to bring back for Keith, who was the only one that didn't get to go anywhere for Christmas.


It was a little scary flying out in a snow storm, but I eventually made my way back to the island in time. And who was there to welcome me back in my office? A giant centepede of course, hanging out on the wall in front of my desk. Good ole' St. Kitts....


Now we are counting down the days until Marlin, Judi and Reilly come visit us in St. Kitts! The end of March will be here soon!

Surf's up!

Surfing in St. Kitts, enough said....






-Cory Greenfield

Cory's classes for 5th semester

Cory is now in his 5th semester here at Ross (time has gone by so quickly!). For those who might be interested, here is a listing of the classes he his taking currently (thanks Krista):

Toxicology - 3 Credits
The study of toxicants and poisonous plants of significance to livestock and companion animals, including their source, properties, toxicity, toxicokinetics, mechanism of toxicologic damage, detection, diagnosis, and treatment.

Small Animal Medicine 1 - 5 Credits
Topics covered in Small Animal Medicine I include the problem-oriented approach to veterinary medicine, cardiovascular disorders, clinical hematology, respiratory disorders, oncology, selected infectious diseases and neurological disorders. The important diseases of dogs and cats are discussed according to their pathophysiology, clinical signs, diagnosis, differential diagnoses, treatment and prognosis.

Anesthesiology - 4 Credits
An integrated lecture and laboratory course designed to introduce students to the principles of general and local anesthesia of small and large animals. The etiology, diagnosis, and treatment of fluid and acid-base disorders are discussed; and also recognition, treatment, and prevention of anesthetic emergencies. Laboratory sessions provide students with experience in small animal anesthesia, in addition to demonstrations of monitoring equipment, mechanical ventilation, and large animal general anesthesia.

Diagnostic Imaging - 5 Credits
This course provides an overview of the physics of diagnostic radiology, the principles of veterinary radiography, and quality control of radiographs. Normal radiographic findings and anatomy in small animals and equines is emphasized. An introduction to diagnostic ultrasound and its various applications in veterinary science is included, along with an introduction to alternate imaging techniques (magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography and scintigraphy).

Introduction to Clinics 1 - 1 Credits
The course introduces students to examination techniques of small and large animals. Aseptic techniques, neurologic, urogenital, ophthalmic and lameness exams, clinical pathology, and selected large and small clinical animal topics are covered.

It's been awhile....

Well, between all of the traveling we did in November, Cory having finals in December, and me being busy at work in December welcoming the new students, we haven't had much time to add anything new to the blog. But now that classes have started and the new students are settled, I can get back to work on new posts. I'm going to back track a bit to cover stuff that got skipped over during our busy time, and then we should be all caught up.

By the way, now that it is 2008, we have exactly 1 year left on St. Kitts! If you plan on visiting us, this is the year to do it!!!

Joey Z.

For Cory's avian diseases course at Ross, he was given the opportunity for a great learning experience by hand-raising a baby bird. His name was put on a list with others from his class, and as the babies hatched in the aviary on campus, students began getting calls that their babies were ready to head home with them. We waited and waited, wondering if there weren't going to be enough babies born this semester for everyone to get one. But just as early November rolled around, we got the call. We were getting a cockatiel! (It could have been a budgie (parakeet) or a love bird instead)

We got our baby bird at 2 weeks old, and he looked like a little dinosaur or alien!



We decided to name him Joey, partially because cockatiels come from Australia, and partially because it reminded us of our parrot in San Diego, Zoe. Officially, his full name is Joey Zissou, but we just stick with Joey.

Now here is the deal with raising a baby bird. When you first get them at 2 weeks old, they have to be fed every 2 hours. By hand. You mix a nutrient-rich powder with water, warm it up, and feed it to him through a small syringe. Not only does this make you tired because you are getting up multiple times a night for feedings, but it is not always easy! He gets a little excited, and quite demanding when it comes time to eat, and tends to make a mess.


Cory gets props for doing the majority of these feedings, since we got him when I was gone in California, and then I left for London for a week!

After a good meal, Joey would stumble around a bit, unable to keep his balance with a full belly, and mostly because he didn't know how to walk yet!



Sometimes, when he would make too much of a mess and his food would become caked to his feathers, we would bring him in the shower for a nice warm rinsing. Afterwards, all tucked in a towel, he would sit in a little spot of sunshine coming in the window and stay warm as he dried off



As the weeks have gone by, he has changed so much! He literally changed from the little dinosaur in the first pics, to fully feathered in 18 days!! Each day he seemed to have more feathers, better balance, and more mobility. Until all of a sudden, he was a fully feathered bird that could fly around the house wherever he pleased! Cory immediately emailed me in London when he had his first flight. Oh, the good ol' days. Now he has the cutest little mohawk, and pretty much runs or flies around wherever he wants.....





But although he looks different......do not be fooled. His eating habits remain the same....



Check out a game he likes to play with Cory. Cory calls it "going down the slide". Joey calls it "distracting Dad from studying"



And finally, a video montage to show off his flying skills