Campus Bloopers

Yep. I am going to lay them all out. But don’t worry I won’t use names so relax. I remember one time…(this sound like a scene from the “American Pie”) well this is the cleaner version anyway.

I figured that if I was going to spill the beans on my classmates, I might as well start with one of my own campus bloopers. That’s funny, I can’t seem to remember any of mine…just kidding. Mine is actually not a blooper, but a real event. Sad to say, I did break many rules in Bethan. I had just been caught with two other girls for chewing betelnut on the Orrekim and therefore, called to Mrs. Tem’s house. Anxiously, we sat outside on three rows of chairs, right beside her door, waiting to see what would be our fate. Well, Mrs. Tem came out and I will never forget what she did next as long as I live. After getting into trouble too many times, she had it with us (mainly me). I never forget how she looked. She had one of her allergy attacks and was all puffy eyed, red runny nose, and sniffing with a towel on one shoulder and hair all out of order (few as they were). She came out, saw us and just lost it. She started hitting us with her towel. Now, she’s not a strong woman and the towel was not hard or anything, but it was wet, from her blowing her nose on it all day long. The times she managed to whack us on our heads and faces, I felt the slimy wetness at the end of the towel hit the back of my neck, my head and my face. Eeeew! Goosebumps! That is one unsanitary experience I do not want to dwell upon. I don’t know about the other girls but after our ‘beating’ I felt really dirty and went to take a shower.

Another time, during a picnic to Ngerchur Island, we had gone up very early to walk to Urung Dock. Well, early for us was when the sun had yet to break the horizon. On our way to Urung, it suddenly dawn on me that we might be out of betelnut and I made a stop along the way to check out the betelnut situation beside that big mango tree along the way. I asked a classmate to go with me and be the look out while I climb. Well, in the forest, it was still very dark and I couldn’t find a ‘bekobk’ for ‘ngebtakl’. That’s a rope to use for climbing for the non-Palauan readers. Anyway, finally I asked my classmate for her t-shirt to use as a ‘ngebtakl’. I hadn’t count on the betelnut being a little too long and by the time I was at the top, my classmate, standing at the bottom in her bra, was being attacked by mosquitoes, nervously slapping the critters away and telling me to hurry up. After, quickly stuffing the betelnut into our pockets, we rejoined the group walking, and I guess that the adrenaline was still pumping through my veins I almost got run over by a truck if it weren’t for another classmate pulling me out of the way.


During Senior Year (for crying out loud) in Nazareth Dorm, I woke up from a loud thump from the bed across the aisle. Someone had fallen off her bed! And from the top bunk! I jumped down from mine and quickly went over to check if she was okay. Well, she was okay, a little confused for why she was on the floor, but otherwise okay. I made sure she was okay and got her back on her bunk before I went back to sleep. Well, less than ten minutes into my sleep…she falls again. This time, a lower grade girl got up and said that my classmate has fallen again. Evidently, she was awake the first time she fell. I was too tired and so I told her to go and check if my classmate is still breathing, and if she was, leave her on the floor. There is no point in waking her up to have her fall back on the floor again. She might not be so lucky the third time. Well, in the morning, we found her sleeping safe and sound, under her bed, with her washing basin! There was no happy place for that girl…Makes me think of that short chorus that goes, “la la la, roll over the ocean, roll over the sea…” only this time, it’s ouch, ouch, ouch, roll out of bed and roll under the bed (2x). Smile girl. You’re terrific!

Assistant Corner

Here is our change to gripe about the assistant service back then. I have no complains though. They have a pretty good idea on what I was up to those days and I still live in fear of them reporting me for the things I did more than ten years ago.

I remember that every time we walk into the kitchen, Meked starts shutting cabinets, locking doors (even the icebox had a padlock!), closing sugar containers and watching us like a hawk to see that we do not ‘grab’ things. She would shout ‘mroroch’ (that’s Yapesse for ‘hurry up hands’) at us every time we come ten feet within the kitchen area. I don’t blame her. We once licked the sugar container empty. Drank their ice coffee, and ate the raw bread dough (that did not agree with my stomach one bit). If those weren’t enough to put Meked on guard, then there was Bonnie who used to work at the storeroom. Boy, it was like Christmas every time after work. I believe our favorite was peaches and sardines. Where else would I get all those empty cans to cook our clam in when I go fishing?