Arriving on Jackel Island

Path from ocean to Main Campus

June 5, 2012

So much has happened.

I arrived on Jackel Island around 3:00.  It's now a little after 5:30.  Dinner is in a little less than an hour.  This is the first chance I've had to write, now that it's finally quiet, now that I'm finally alone.

When I stepped off the smaller boat and onto the dock, the humidity and thick flower smell (jasmine, I think) overpowered me.  Most of the people I will be working for were standing on the beach waiting for me.

I met Tom, who's kind of like our leader.  He heads the Administration department.  Well, it's only a 3-man (or woman) department.  Tom is tall, thin, mid-thirties, outgoing, and made me feel very welcome.  His assistant (and also his girlfriend) is Darcy.  She's the one who I've been writing to when I was back in the States.  She's just a couple of years younger than Tom, and has crazy wild thick hair, red red lips, and looks very lively.  I can tell we'll be good friends.  At least I hope.

I really like the doctor, doctor Jim.  He's so very kind.  He's about 50, and it's as if I've known him for a long time.

Adrian is Chief of Security.  I don't know how to describe him.  He's quite striking, tho he's twice my age, at least.  But he's built like a Marine, and he walks with such an air of confidence.  Seems he's always smirking.  Seems I really notice Adrian.

His assistant is Grady, and this guy is a flirt.  A big one.

There's a cute little boy on the island, Joel's 9-year-old son.  He's half Asian.  He's adorable.  Joel (the boy's father) is Tom's twin brother, but holds himself so differently from Tom.  Both these guys are good looking with jet-black hair, but Tom is all open and friendly, and Joel is introverted and quiet.

I have yet to meet Earl, my boss at the stables.  He wasn't there to greet me.  Darcy told me that Earl said there was too much work to do.

I followed everyone from the beach along a short path in the woods, and saw this giant of a man, a black man, chopping wood.  He looked real serene.  He said nothing.  After 5 or 10 minutes of walking along the path, we reached our settlement, our camp (called Main Campus), where I saw all our cabins, our large stone lodge, and a some buildings.  Tom pointed out what was what, but after the 3-week voyage on the ship, meeting all these people, trying to get the lay of the land... my head is swimming.

Oh, and one more thing before I go to dinner... I just met Jeremy and Brian.  They knocked on my door about a half hour ago.  Two blond boy-men.  Jeremy's 20 years old and a goof, and Brian's 25 and a love with kind eyes, but he seems awkward and a little shy.

I gotta' go to dinner in about 15 minutes.  I'm kind of scared to open the heavy lodge door and enter a room with about a dozen or more people I don't know.  I really wonder sometimes what I've gotten myself into, accepting this job assignment.