Molly McGee's

Hello all!
The past month has been nuts. I had an interview with MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Recreation) in the beginning of October and two days later, I got a call back saying that I got the job! I am working as a waitress at a new Irish pub on base called Molly McGee's. The following 2 1/2 weeks consisted of training and we had our grand opening on the 29th. Right now we are a little understaffed so the other 15 waitstaff members and myself have been working very long hours. I have been too busy to go to the beach and I'm starting to miss cleaning the house almost everyday. However, it is very rewarding to hear the customers say good things about the new restaurant. And the tips are good too. =]

Speaking of work, I have about 20 minutes before I have to go back (I'm on my lunch break right now.) I'm sorry, yet again, for the lack of posts on this blog and I should really make an effort to post something at least once a week.

The entire waitstaff and our boss's boss.


Most of the waitstaff with our boss, Noell.


It was mandatory for the staff to dress up for our Halloween party on the 30th. I was a pub girl.


One of my little "odd jobs" that I have to do before we open is cut lemons for the bar.



Our Halloween party was sponsored by the local Harley Davidson dealer. This bike was parked inside of the restaurant.

Buster's New Friend, Date Night, and Fish Frenzy

On Friday, our friend Angelina brought her dog over to play with buster. Her dog's name is Melvin and he is about twice as big as Buster. When they first met, the sniffed each other and began to wrestle. We went to the dog park down the road from our house and let the dogs run around. Then Angelina and Melvin came over and watched a movie. As if they didn't play enough at the dog park, Melvin and Buster wrestled more in our living room.

On Saturday night, we decided it was time for a date. We went into Tumon, the tourist area of the island, and went to T.G.I Friday's. It had been pouring rain all day and after we parked the car, it looked like a monsoon. It was very windy and the streets were flooding. We stood under an overhang near the parking garage until the rain slowed down enough to cross the street. We had a wonderful dinner and we were lucky that we didn't have to wait. Afterwords, we came home and watched a movie.

On Sunday, Micah and I went snorkeling at Gab Gab and we took frozen corn to feed the fish. It was a beautiful day and it was a perfect beach day. We had fun taking pictures underwater (thank you, Scott family!) and swimming out to the drop off. The drop off is about 50-60 ft from the shore and the coral shelf literally drops off.

Yesterday, I was cleaning the house and moved the couches so that I could sweep in the corner. I ended up dropping one of the couches on my foot. I went to the ER last night and got x-rays. As it turns out, I only chipped the bone and nothing is seriously broken. Now I have a hard-sole shoe that I have to wear whenever I walk. I have to wear it for the next 3-4 weeks. The doctor said that I don't have any restrictions as far as activity. However, I don't think I'll be snorkeling for at least a week.

Buster and Melvin.




The main road in Tumon was flooded, but that didn't seem to stop the cars.


Micah and I underwater.


Micah touching the bottom of the ocean.


I was on my way up for air after touching the bottom.





The fish came right up to us.


They like frozen veggies!


This is Haputo Road look out. We took this when we were on our way home from the beach. Haputo Road is the street that leads to our house. It's awesome that we are so close to such a view!

Rainy Season

Currently on Guam, it is rainy season. This means that it rains at least once each day. Although most of the showers last only a few minutes, we have had a lot of storms rolling through here for the past few weeks. Therefore, we haven't been doing many fun things outside of the house.

Micah's friends from his last command in Virginia moved in a few weeks ago and they live across the street from us! Their names are Mike and Ashley. We hang out with them the most since they are so close. Mostly, the boys play xbox while Ashley and I play on the computer. Sometimes they boys let us play with the xbox too.

We have had a few days with out rain. Last week while Micah was at work, my other friend (who's name is Ashlee too), took me on a drive around the southern end of the island. Her husband also works on the ship and they have been here for almost three years. Therefore, Ashlee knew where she was going and knew all of the best places to take pictures.

Buster went swimming for the first time the other day. Ashley (our neighbor) and I took Buster to a beach that was off base since the beaches on base are pet-free. I didn't get any pictures, but I did get a video of him swimming. I will put that video on Youtube and post the link later. Buster wasn't a huge fan of the water, but he did seem to enjoy burying his poop in the sand.

This morning, my other friend, Ashlee, called me and wanted to know if I wanted to go snorkeling. I had nothing planned for the day so I decided to go. We took frozen snap peas to the beach with us and when we threw them into the water, the fish swarmed around us. We went out to where the shelf drops off and we were able to see a lot of awesome fish. I even got to meet Nemo!

Since it's been raining so much lately, I've had a lot of time to apply for jobs and look into school. I haven't heard back from any of the places I applied at, but I am confident that I will hear something eventually. If not, there are always more opportunities out in town. I missed the registration date for the Spring semester so I will not be starting a full course load until the Summer or possibly even next Fall.

Micah graduated from his FIT class a few weeks ago and is now working in the NDT (non-destructive testing) lab on the ship. In addition to working in the shop every day, he has to stand watch once a week which means Buster and I get the house to ourselves!

Micah relaxing on the couch with Buster during his lunch break.

A hermit crab that I found at the beach.

Mike and Gangsta Busta!

Buster (on the arm of the couch) and Ashley.

San Louis Beach (on base)

Ipan Beach

I don't remember the name of this park, but it was along the side of the road and it was really pretty!

Coco's Island (resort)

My friend Ashlee getting closer to the clown fish.

I'm not sure what type of fish this is, but it looks like it would glow under a black light. They are everywhere on Guam!


Some of the fish that swarmed around us when we had the snap peas. Sorry it's so blurry.

NEMO!

Slowly getting more settled

Hey guys!
A lot has happened since the last post. Micah received a phone call on Friday from the vehicle processing center saying that his car was here and it's ready to be picked up. He is very excited to get his car. We also went to the home gallery (furniture store on base) to buy a bed but ended up buying two couches as well! We were very lucky to score some awesome deals as far as prices. We only ended up paying $1800 for everything. Our house is coming together very quick and now all we need is a kitchen table, chairs, a coffee table, and rugs!

Micah just got home from work which means that it's time to go pick up his car. I will post more tomorrow!

-Donna

Buster is such a sweetheart. His favorite thing to do is cuddle with his mama.

Finally, a new post!

Hey guys!
Sorry for not posting anything. We have been very busy lately getting settled in our new house. First of all, the earthquake that occurred on August 10th, did not affect Guam. Even if it did, we wouldn't have to worry because Guam has some of the strictest building codes in the world. In fact, there are several earthquakes every day; they just aren't strong enough to be noticed.

Now for an update. Micah is currently in FIT which is his "indoc" class. He goes to that class instead of doing actual work on the ship. In FIT, Micah has learned general facts about the island (what fish to be afraid of, the culture, etc.) and also the "need-to-know" facts about the USS Frank Cable.
As for me I have been exploring the island, the base, and hanging out with Buster.

Everything is going great. We are having a blast. We now have internet, cable, and a house phone. Our house is now starting to look like a home.

We met a few other young couples, one of them live across the street from us. We have been hanging out with them a lot, going to the beach, and even having barbeques. When we were at the beach the other day, Micah was snorkeling and found an awesome shell. When he brought it back to where I was sitting, we realized that there was a snail/slug living inside of it!!! We kept the shell and one of our friends told us that we had to boil the shell/snail in water for about 20 minutes to clean it out. When we boiled the shell, the entire house reeked of dead fish. It was pretty gross. We plan to continue to find neat things at the beach and display them around the house.

Now that we have internet in our house, I will be able to post more often!

Love,
Donna and Micah

The awesome shell that Micah found.

This is how clear the water is here!

We have found that taking lawn chairs is a lot more enjoyable than laying on a towel!

This is Gab Gab Beach. It is currently our favorite beach and it's only 5 minutes away! There are a lot of Japanese defensive caves from WWII scattered around base and on the beaches.

Buster wearing Micah's shirt

Buster follows us EVERYWHERE! We bought him a bed, but he rarely sleeps in it because he's usually in our bed!

Our first "real" mean in our house. Cheesy enchilada Hamburger Helper and garlic mashed potatoes.

Our bed. (Micah wanted a picture of it)

New Addition to the Family

Hey guys!

Sorry, I haven't been posting anything lately. Since we moved in to our house, it hasn't been as easy to get on the internet (we haven't set it up yet).

Anyway, everything has been going great. We have done a lot of snorkeling and shopping for things for the house. When we went snorkeling on Sunday at a beach on base. We were able to see tons of fish that we didn't see at the other beaches. The beach we went to was a nice oasis after a 20 minute hike down the side of a cliff. Despite being stung by an anemone, we had a lot of fun.

Also this weekend, we were driving around and exploring the island when we decided that we wanted to look into getting a dog. We went to a shelter and looked at the dogs. We ended up deciding to get a male named Buster. The shelter said he is between 1-2 years old. He looks like a beagle-dachshund mix. All in all, he is very cute and extremely sweet. He is getting fixed tomorrow and then I will go pick him up when he wakes up from his surgery. Micah and I are both very excited.




****NOTE TO DULCI, SNICKERS, AND LEXI: BUSTER IS NOT REPLACING ANY OF YOU. MICAH AND I STILL LOVE ALL THREE OF YOU AND WE WILL BE HOME SOON WITH A NEW FRIEND FOR YOU TO PLAY WITH.*****

Our House!

Yesterday, we went to the housing office to sign up for the housing waiting list. After we filled out an application for government housing, the lady who was helping us handed us three separate keys. She then told us that we could look at 3 houses and choose which one we wanted to live in. We went to the first two and were very happy. When we went to the third one, we forgot all about the other two and fell in love with it. When we went back to the housing office to tell the counselor which house we wanted, she asked when we wanted to move in. As it turns out, we are moving in tomorrow, July 28!!!

Our house is two stories with: two bed, 2 bath, kitchen, living room, laundry room, garage, back porch, and not to mention, there are like a million closets!

If you would like our mailing address, post a comment and leave your email address. That way I can just send out a mass email.


Here are some pictures: (sorry they're out of order)

The back porch...

...stairs...

...bathroom...

...bedroom...

...garage...

...laundry room...

...dining area...

...kitchen...

...living room...

...and finally, the front of the house!