Tag: Baipad

Two Silver Obols – 6th June 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 18 Comments

Haunted by the diminished
Sapped of all resolve
A painting left unfinished
Starting to peel and dissolve

Find the strength, one last push
A viral life-infected
Hope unseen in the burning bush
Smouldering and neglected

A final thought to deliver
No more liaisons, just goodbyes
Taken back unto the river
With pennies placed on the eyes

Submitted to Writer’s Workshop Prompts – strength and Shay’s Word Garden – haunted, neglected, liaisons, pennies

Today I’m feeling:

Up early again and feeling a little brighter and more positive after yesterday’s relative successes.

My first class went well as they had been suitably chastised by their homeroom teacher so they were quietly obedient for the first 30 minutes or so. As they got more comfortable though they soon fell back into their playful selves. At least I was a little more relaxed about it this time.

After that, my grade 12’s were a breeze and they surprised me a little with their capabilities. I’m guiding them slowly through IELTS speaking practice and whilst their speaking skills aren’t in place yet, I’m happy to see that their thinking skills are. Much as I am with Thai, they can understand more than they can speak, so I will let them build on this slowly.

I ducked out to House and managed to pen a couple of poems that I’m proud of and I think that my skills in this regard are improving too, so that was a good break for me – though not long enough!

Back into it for the last class of the day, which is always a struggle. I made sure the kids knew that I wasn’t messing around and when they finally got in line, they listened, helped each other and were able to finish. I rewarded them by letting them go early.

At home, things are quiet, though slowly returning to normal (I think!). With my lack of money, I can’t do some things that I had hoped to surprise Amy with to try to help things along. I’ll have to use my imagination.

Today I’m grateful for:

Meeting Nay at House this afternoon. She was there with friends when I arrived and I jokingly asked her if she could make my coffee, to which she laughed and declined.

The best thing about today was:

Probably the delicious curry that Amy made for me when I got home. My day was pretty good all round. I felt not too tired and quite upbeat.

I wasn’t particularly hungry but knew that I soon would be and I scoffed the lot. Actually, I’m not a scoffer, I take my time over food, but I did eat every last scrap.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

After the struggle of my first class (grade 8s), the pleasure of my second class (grade 12s) I was both delighted and frustrated to see Kru David’s class of grade 7s all diligently listening and paying attention.

Maybe they will start acting up the more comfortable they get, but good for David, as he has struggled with the grade 8 and 9s that I constantly battle with but love so much.

Something I learned today?

UK paratroopers recreating the D-Day landings for the anniversary were forced to immediately go through French Passport Control since the UK is no longer part of the EU. All of this was captured on video.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

Baipad messaged me this evening that her Thai teacher for the subject of health education starting showing gory videos at the end of their class. She wrote “He says something positive and then opens a video where the man got eaten by a bear and says don’t think too positive” WTF!

I can understand the message that he wants to teach but surely not the best way to go about it!

Baipad said she had to look away as he played more and that other students felt traumatised by it.

I told her that she should tell her homeroom teacher in the morning but that I will talk with her and the other students first to see if they want to make an issue of it or not. It’s very typical Thai style to not stand up for yourself though.

Maybe One Day – 29th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 4 Comments

Maybe one day
I’ll laugh on my birthday
Devour the cake you made
As you got drunk
Waiting for the sponge to rise

Maybe one day
We’ll be lost in love again
Taking photos in the park
Fresh-faced
And newly dyed hair

Maybe one day
I’ll bring flowers to your work
And your colleagues
Will look at you with longing
To be just as loved

Maybe one day
To scratch the travel itch
We’ll be taken away
In different directions

Maybe one day
All the plans I made
Will be forgotten
Just lists on fading paper
A reminder

Maybe one day
We’ll look at each other
And celebrate together
This journey made
Surrounded by our comforts

Maybe one day
The cats long gone
I’ll push you along
Complaining about my knee
And we’ll chat about the future

Submitted to the Weekly Prompts Challenge and inspired by When You’re Gone by Colleen Looseleaf

Today I’m feeling:

A little tired but was able to push through to do some exercise again – another AI-generated one that I ended up running through twice as it is quite short.  My abs were burning but feel ok now.

It’s super humid this morning which is energy-sapping and my first class were difficult to keep engaged and under control but I didn’t let it bother me too much.

Nomsen was messaging her mum online and then burst into tears for some reason.

After she calmed down I told her that she shouldn’t be talking with anyone outside the class during the lesson and that if she does some study it will take her mind off things.

She complained of a headache and I know she finds English too difficult but I just tried to push her to not give up.

Phu was also sleepy in the class and he also struggles with English.  The kids told me that he was up late working last night but that’s not my problem.  I guide and encourage him as best as I can but expect very little from him.

Today I’m grateful for:

My 4-hour break between classes during the day.  It gave me lots of time to catch up on some things that I wanted to read and some writing too.  I won’t have much free time for the next two days so it’s just as well.

The best thing about today was:

Hmm…nothing stands out in particular but it was a pleasurable and consistent day that I enjoyed very much.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

I haven’t managed to get to my room to play guitar for a couple of nights now and I really want to.  

I’m doing a bit more lesson planning in the evenings because I’m worried that I don’t have enough things prepared for all these new classes – and I’ve hamstrung myself a little by asking the students what they want to learn about rather than just giving them canned lessons.

Something I learned today?

I talked with S* again today about what she told me on Monday about sometimes showering with her stepdad when she’s tired.  And she confirmed it and the way she described it does seem to be completely innocent and is not some kind of regular thing. Like a naturist family or something like that.

I warned her to be careful who she tells about this and she said she understood that and only mentions it to me because she trusts me.

Because of her exposure to Western culture, she considers herself only 10% Thai.  Maybe as a Westerner, she was testing to see how normal this situation was.  I told her it was pretty unusual.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

As Amy flew to Bangkok to visit Nong Mai and Yaya today and will be away until Sunday I have to find my own food.  No problem, I thought, as the market would be on at the University.

As I knew that Baipad’s mum was still away, I asked if she and her sister wanted to come with me to get some food there and so I picked them up and we drove up to the Uni but because most of the students had gone home for the end of the semester the market was cancelled.

We drove around and eventually found a cheap Korean shop to eat at.

When was the last time I felt a sense of freedom?

The one time that I felt it really noticeably was on my trips to China.

On my first visits, I was surprised to see how free the environment was and I likened it to being at a large free music festival with folks just getting on with what they needed to do.  It was a far cry from my corporate work environment and the nanny state society of Australia.

Of course, for me, I was a tourist and enjoyed the freedom of being on holiday but I sensed it amongst the people in general there.  For them, it was probably just business as usual and normal.

I guess we tend to see more freedom outside of our own environments as we count every negative against us with more weight and take for granted a lot of other things.  It’s a reason to consider that one culture cannot be better than another.  Just different.

I feel this freedom living here in Thailand too but do understand that it is only in comparison with my experiences elsewhere before.

I’m really anti-stupidity laws such as jaywalking, which was enforced in Sydney CBD with a brutal crackdown and over-the-top fines.  On my first trip to China, I remember watching as pedestrians grouped together and slowly forced the cars on the road to stop and let them cross.

I imagine it is much different there now, with probably fifty times the number of cars on the road since but it showed me that people don’t need a law to counter stupidity.  If you are hit by a car whilst trying to cross the road you only have yourself to blame.

Same with holes in the sidewalk.  If you are not looking where you are going it’s your fault if you fall in.  Don’t blame the folks that made the hole.

Yes, things could be better and safer but not everything needs a law and its enforcement.  I mention enforcement as in Thailand there are many laws but they are laxly enforced.  Sometimes, this makes sense.

Which place from my childhood do I most fondly remember?

Without doubt that would be Forest Cottage – my home from aged 9 until about 20.

Most particularly my bedroom, where a lot of partying went on along with all the other ups and downs that teenagers have to struggle through.  It was my space to invite others in or shut them out.

I took this picture last week because… well, it was a pretty evening as I rode home from No Name and the reflection in the lake attracted me enough to stop.

Flesh – 26th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 8 Comments

Far into the future food will be hard to find
But will have evolved with an ever-greater mind
Time travel will be normal but only to the past
Once the first one comes, it’s sure not to be the last

Back all those million years, so much free-roaming meat
Bring it back to the future for everyone to eat
But our future selves became so filled with greed
Making the same mistakes, taking more than they need

So supplies were running out, there was only so much flesh
Standards demanding that everything must be fresh
Man still not smart enough to know it’s all interlinked
And so that’s how the story goes, the dinosaurs became extinct

Submitted to Reena’s Xploration Challenge #332 and inspired by the 2000AD story ‘Flesh’
26th Sep 2024 – Submitted to Ragtag Daily Prompt – dinosaur

Today I’m feeling:

Still tired and a little slow.  The weekends with no stress or early morning commitments means a big wind down.  So, it’s been a little bit of a quiet day.

Today I’m grateful for:

The workers working on the road.  As the rains have gotten heavier the way out from our house to the road has completely muddied up (even a big truck got stuck out there this morning).  Amy asked them to fix it for us and they did.  I haven’t seen it yet but will find out in the morning.

The best thing about today was:

Playing guitar and feeling like enjoying it again.  It’s been a struggle for the last few weeks but today felt good and spent nearly an hour playing traditional songs in Yousician and then another 30 minutes smashing out punk tunes in Capo.  I’m still terrible but today it doesn’t bother me.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

Amy is a little short with me because I took her cookies to Utopia and to Baipad this morning and I think she’s thinking that I care too much about other people and/or that I don’t like her cookies and so giving them away.

I’m trying just to be normal and carry on and Amy is also busy with her student’s assignments.

I love Amy more than anything but also need to think of ways to keep showing her that.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

I wasn’t going to do much of anything today but after I got home from coffee I was surprised to get a message from Baipad asking if I could take her and her sister to Big C as they wanted to go see a movie.

I asked her if her mum was ok with it and if she was then I could take her.  She said her mum was ok (but I’m not certain that she was!) and so I went to pick them up.  It was there that they told me that their mum was in Bangkok!

Well, I put my trust in Baipad and dropped them off and hoped for the best.

Later in the afternoon, she said that they got back home (by Grab I guess) and everything was fine.

I got sent this picture because it seems Little Art and Noey enjoyed Amy’s cookies.

Dancing In The Street – 25th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 5 Comments

I used to enjoy the dance of days
Seized each second in many ways
Yet the sunshine never stays
– And here I am contemplating

I’d foxtrot my way through the rains
Tango a message that explains
Until only a rumba remains
– To leave the fat lady waiting

Waited she did until too late
I could not escape this certain fate
And ever since that fatal date
– I walk the streets alone

Thinking of a flamenco strut
Dressed and shaved, hair clean cut
Nowadays I’m anything but
– Can’t even dance on home

Submitted to No Theme Thursday and Ovi Poetry Challenge 49

Today I’m feeling:

My usual Saturday morning tired already.  It’s only been a three-day workweek for me too.

Last night I felt kinda invincible. Throw anything at me and I can do it.

Come the morning and I can feel my brain struggling to connect things together. As I was reading about John Lee Hooker and BB King I was thinking about something else entirely and I can barely remember either.

Quick coffees today as we will take Nong Na out for lunch to thank her for taking care of our cats last weekend.

Today I’m grateful for:

Taking the time to go to the city for lunch, picking up Na on the way.  We got to the hotpot restaurant at 12 and I couldn’t believe that it was 2 pm when we had finished.  Time went so quick and I was very relaxed.

The best thing about today was:

The mix of the hotpot soup that soaked into the rolled-up tofu sheets, then dipped into a peanut and sesame oil sauce with chopped garlic and then a sip of some Chinese milk drink to take off the heat.  Awesome!

The staff were concerned that the soup would be too spicy for me but to be honest I could’ve done with some more Sichuan peppers in there!

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

As seems to be getting more normal these days, time is out of my control and disappearing faster than I would like.  I sat in my room after lunch and started investigating a cento poem, which required looking through lots of other people’s poetry to pick out lines from.

Doing that and catching up on some other poetry reading evaporated 3 or 4 hours and I didn’t end up coming up with anything for the cento yet.  I still need to collect more before trying to put it together.

Something I learned today?

The USA has threatened the capability to shut down chip manufacturing in Taiwan if China should invade.  The short-sightedness of the threat is incredible as it would mostly affect USA products such as Apple, nVidia etc.

There’s a lot of crazy in the world right now, perhaps I should stop looking.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

We drove to pick up Nong Na this morning as there was a bit of rain around and I drove us to the city and back.  Whilst Amy paid for lunch I paid for the durian bingsu dessert.

I also picked up a couple of 20 baht Japanese toys for Baipad and NamHom whilst at the bingsu shop.

Nong Fah took these pictures because Anchan was sleeping in class like this! I asked her later about it and she told me that Kru Ren doesn’t know anything about teaching and is difficult to understand! The kids are smart enough to know their education sucks but don’t know how to get out of it and the culture here is not to question those seen as above you.

In Search Of Dry Land – 22nd May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 2 Comments

A song sung of departure towards a journey of woe
Giant squid squirt inky dark blinded to the flow
No fuel until Friday, at least the captain is saying so
A panorama of the horizon begs which way to go
Neglected were the whispers, part of the ocean’s show
Set light to the sails, watch the flames aglow
From officer to pilot, knowing what’s to know
Clouds clot to bring the storm and finally the blow
Graduating to the ground to see the mountains grow

A multi-prompt catch-up poem. Departure – Squid – Fuel – Panorama – Neglected – Flame – Officer – Clot – Graduate

Today I’m feeling:

Feeling tired and tense.  After finally getting up, the two Utopia coffees kicked started my brain but not my body!  Hence the feeling of tension.

Amy is wound up about the useless builder that has ripped us off for the guttering.  I’m trying to divert her focus but she’s out for blood, and obviously frustrated.

It’s annoying for sure, though I blame myself.  I got the feeling he was useless almost immediately but didn’t go with my instinct.

It’s been an average day that hasn’t seen me brighten up particularly and at only 8.15 pm I’m going to bed!

Today I’m grateful for:

The AI assistant in Quizizz that can quickly put together questions based on a text.  It’s very useful to speed up putting new lessons together.

The best thing about today was:

Writing, and enjoying writing, a new lesson for my new HAP grade 12 class.  It also inspired me to come up with more ideas that I will try to turn into more lessons.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

After dropping Amy at Cafe No Name for P’Berm’s birthday celebration I picked up some watermelon for Baipad and popcorn for her sister NamHom for her birthday.

I took this picture because Piti was chilling at the coffee machine.

Returned – 19th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 8 Comments

I was part of a story that I didn’t understand
From glacial mountaintops, the water ran to the sea
Among green valleys, men farmed and planned
And one day a place was made for me

I saw fun and fire as we flew our kites high
We dug at the soil to see what we’d find
There was a balance we kept as time went by
That ensured the longevity of all animal-kind

We remained assured we knew what we were doing
But our values changed that we gave to our space
Eventually, realising that there was trouble brewing
And we’d no longer be welcome in this place

By the time I understood my part in the story
It was too late to make changes of worth
But the rocks remain in their lonely glory
And all humankind returned to the earth

Today I’m feeling:

A little lazy and relaxed. With nothing much to do this morning, we dozed and lazed until Amy decided she wanted to get out. So we’re off to a cafe for a couple of hours before coming back to get ready for the wedding this afternoon.

Today I’m grateful for:

The old lady staff at the cafe who rode a motorbike a fair few kilometres to get a taxi to come and pick us up. We gave her a bit of extra cash.

The best thing about today was:

The coffee at Little Tree Cafe was awesome, which was a bit of a surprise. Beautiful surroundings, must be a very rich owner, tons of staff and quite a few customers. I guess people want to get away from the city.

We accidentally got dropped off at a house next door to the cafe where the huge room was covered in antique furniture and the lady owner was lounging around listening to jazz. She wasn’t phased that we were looking for the cafe. What a life.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

This cafe we came to is out in the jungle and now no taxi wants to come and pick us up! Waiting

Something I learned today?

Today is Baipad’s sister’s birthday. She’s 9. I think Baipad is a little bothered by how much more affection her sister gets than her.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

Was it good or vile that I left Amy with a few of the wedding guests at a bar opposite the venue? Nong Mai dropped me back to the hotel and said she would look after Amy. 

Amy wanted to go off somewhere to carry on but Nong Mai convinced her not to, thankfully. 

Quote

“Anyone can do any amount of work, provided it isn’t the work he is supposed to be doing at that moment. ”

— Robert Benchley
I took this picture because Amy was impressed with the cafe and this room in particular.

Smooth Sailing – 18th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 4 Comments

Love is a lantern in the sky
Taken by the winds of change
Not knowing which way to fly
Along the jet stream strange

Caught in this whirlwind gale
A vortex within your hold
Around you, I smoothly sail
Balanced by the hot and cold

From trade winds, east and west
We made our world distinguished
The Roaring Forties try their best
But this light is not extinguished

Submitted to WDYS #238

Today I’m feeling:

Exhausted so far. Skipped my alarm and slept deeply for another hour. 

It’s the past week catching up, and it only involved two days of teaching! Thursday and Friday are my busy days now so Saturday will be a regular sleep-in I think.

Today I’m grateful for:

Nong Na coming to stay at our house to take care of Cap and Tig for the next two days for us.

The best thing about today was:

Ending it being in Bangkok again. 

The weird thing is though, it didn’t seem to take much effort or organising (though admittedly Amy was taking care of all the details for this trip). 

I even got a longer-than-expected afternoon nap that Amy woke me from saying ‘We have to leave in 20 minutes!’

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

I took some jackfruit to Baipad’s with the intention of giving it to her mum,  hoping that Baipad would still be sleeping but she was in the shop playing with her sister. 

I gave her the fruit and she said ‘I don’t like jackfruit!’ I said that was fine and to give it to her mum, which she did. 

I will talk to her sometime about thinking about something better to say!

Anchan sent me this picture and I’m happy to see her enjoying life. Her friend is my old student Pompam who is a good kid.

Early Bird – 10th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Egged out, we must survive
Enthusiastic push to thrive
Finally, no one gets out alive
That’s the way we all go

Early birds catch the worms
The voice inside us turns
In turn, the worm learns
That that’s the way we all go

One day, in a different way
Here tomorrow, gone today
Even the early bird will say
That’s the way we all go

Paraphrased and plagiarised (in the nicest possible way) from various majestic Cardiacs songs.
Submitted to Ovi Poetry Challenge 47

Today I’m feeling:

Good again though that 6 am alarm was tough.  It had to be done though.  My leg workout was too much, supposed to be 3 x 64 reps of lunges but I could only manage 40 by which time my skinny thigh muscles wanted to explode.  But 40 is better than none.

Today I’m grateful for:

Matt, who kindly donated me some magic mushroom capsules as he tried them but didn’t enjoy the experience.

The best thing about today was:

Enjoying a whole day out of home even though I could’ve just gone to school, signed in and come home again.  I had planned to do this anyway but it was made even more desirable because when I was leaving this morning Auntie Sue told me that the electricity would be off today as they are moving the lines to the new poles.  Great – no reason to come home early.

After signing in I spent the morning reading and writing at House whilst enjoying three coffees and even getting another lesson done for the classes on Presentations.

After that, I dropped by Central to buy a gift for Funfai as it is her birthday today and she told me she would be playing tennis at 4 pm.  I got her a notebook, pencil case and pen.  I also got the same for Anchan.

For the afternoon I went to see Matt as planned and we talked for a couple of hours catching up on each other’s lives.  He also showed me his guitar setup and pedals, all of which sound fantastic but not within my price range or even within my time limitations for being feasible.

I left at around 4 pm to head to the tennis courts though I could see in the distance very dark clouds and the wind started picking up dramatically.  Baipad messaged me that it was storming in our village as, after cancelling bike riding yesterday due to a storm, we had rearranged for today at 5 pm.

I got to the tennis courts and there weren’t many people around and the wind was already making it difficult for those there.  No sign of Funfai so I messaged her and she told me that her lesson had been cancelled.  Ah well, no worries.  I used the opportunity to go and clock out of school which I haven’t bothered to do so far this week.

As I drove back home it started to rain though nothing storm-like.  It had already blown through by the looks of things.  I figured Baipad wouldn’t want to ride and a wet road would have made it more difficult for her too, so I thought I’d drop by and see if I could chat with her a little more in-depth.

As I passed by our soi it was still blocked with electricity people running around so I assumed the power was still off at home too.  Amy also called and said that she couldn’t get home earlier when she tried as the road was blocked then too.

So I hung out at Baipad’s for an hour and did get her to open up a little more and whilst not confronting any of her issues, started to get her to think about them a bit more.

She feels comfortable to talk with me though she still lacks the maturity to know how to express herself.  I can report though that she is not happy with herself and does want to change, she just doesn’t know how and I can feel that her mum doesn’t know how to teach or show her either.  Her mum obviously has her own struggles.

Anyway, I’ll try my best to support, motivate and teach her some skills that can bring up her confidence.  It’s all valuable reminders for me too.

I came home around 6 pm and it has been raining most of the time since, 3 hours now, with a comfortable temperature again, which I, and most probably everyone, is grateful for.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

I got my new teaching schedule today.  It has changed a little bit from what I was expecting, with me being given 24 hours instead of the 22 that the other teachers get.  I’m not going to complain though.

I like being in the classroom, with the kids so another couple of hours is fine and it might also encourage me to stay each day and sign out like they want me to!

After arriving home I found that our internet wasn’t working, probably due to the work going on with the poles in our soi.  I hope that our provider knows about this work, but I can also easily imagine that they don’t.  At least I can still hotspot and connect with my phone tonight and we’ll be out most of the day tomorrow.

Something I learned today?

Both Jet and Praewa sent me messages today because they got their study schedules and they were upset that I won’t be teaching them this year.

Did you do something difficult or challenging today?

Any of the minor challenges that I’ve mentioned above didn’t feel that difficult at all (except the lunges) and my state of mind was good enough to accept everything as it came.

I took this picture of the Utopia FB post and sent it to Noey. She wanted to know where I was because she hadn’t seen me today. I should be there on Sunday though.

What kind of artist were you when you were young?

When I was about 5 or 6 I always got told off for drawing castles instead of writing.  I tried to compromise by writing something that allowed me to also draw a castle!

In my teens, I got deep into punk iconology, cut-up style and sloganeering.  I made many posters like this, including a huge one that I submitted for an art assignment.  I also painted a picture of a faceless punk in a three-piece suit, crucified on a cross.

My forays into the artistic world ended up more around words but also into producing booklets, fanzines and posters.  I don’t have the creative drive anymore to do this, perhaps hampered by a lack of time due to other endeavours such as writing.

Did you paint, colour with crayons, build things with blocks?

Painting and colouring yes but I had an aversion to building things.  Other kids had Meccano but I could never figure out what to make with it.  Similarly, with Lego, it seemed like too much effort to make a shitty version of a house or something like that.  My imagination didn’t run in that direction.

What kind of creative acts did you enjoy?

When the punk ideology hit, the ‘anyone can do it’ attitude, I wanted desperately to be the singer in a band and so set about writing lyrics.  This was from about aged 11.

A little later this also turned into writing brief poetic thoughts of which I was constantly churning out.

I always enjoyed doing that though somewhere along the way in my 20s, I stopped writing those until I started again in 2020 when I remembered how much I enjoyed it and got back to doing it again.

When did you write your first poem?

I guess it would have been in 1984 when I was 15 or 16 though I probably had some before that, written for an English class.  The earliest things that I held onto were from 1984.

What was it about?

Poems from that time were about petty thoughts and trivialities of a schoolboy’s life.  It turned serious though as depression sunk in and the future looked bleak.  Back then though I could write about any little thing that sparked my interest.  It was fun.

How did you come to poetry?

As described above, through writing lyrics.  I still consider what I write mostly as being lyrics rather than poetry.

Don’t Tell The Monkeys – 9th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 3 Comments

Don’t tell the monkeys that we understand
Let them think we’re stupid and dumb
Otherwise, they’ll force us to work
And their rat race sure looks no fun

Don’t tell the monkeys we understand
Our nature is just to laze and play
Let them think we’re too stupid and dumb
To be forced to an office job all day

Don’t tell the monkeys we understand
Can you imagine us wearing suits!?
We’re happy right where we are
Still closely attached to our roots

Don’t tell the monkeys we understand
We chose to communicate with grunts
The monkeys have forgotten now
That that’s how they were once

Apparently there is an old Indonesian myth that says that Orang-utans have the ability to speak human languages, but choose not to, because they know if we caught them speaking we would force them to get jobs.

Today I’m feeling:

Pretty good so far though I’m disappointed to find my weight has still increased despite doing exercise and getting lots of steps in at the weekend.  I’m sure it will regulate back down to around 79kg once I get back into the teaching routine.

The exercises in the Mad Muscles app that I’ve been using for a month take a little longer than my normal app as it’s not possible to skip the rest times and jump ahead.  This means getting up a little earlier than before.  

The subscription runs out soon though and I’m not sure if I will try it again, I actually just wanted the chair yoga exercises but got leg and arm exercises instead.  Maybe when I get paid again I will check it out again, otherwise I will stick with the free app I’ve been using.

Today I’m grateful for:

All the Nat Geo books that arrived at the school a couple of years ago and are still sitting around waiting to be used.  I didn’t use them last year but can see that they will be useful for one of my classes and will save me time as I already have lessons written for them.

The best thing about today was:

The books I bought at Dasa on Monday arriving and having forgotten about them, rediscovering what I had bought.  The library grows way faster than I can read!

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

When I got home I stuck a load of washing on as I was running out of underwear.  I had to spin it twice as there were so many other clothes too and I started hanging it out at around 3 pm.

I joked to myself that it was so hot that some of it might be dry by the time I finish hanging everything and sure enough a couple of shirts were already dry.

A little while later I was preparing to head out to my room to play a little guitar but Amy called because she had forgotten to submit an assignment for one of her students.  As I waited for her stupidly slow computer to load, login and open the web browser I heard a bang outside and when I looked around there was a huge wind blowing through and I ran outside to our washing which was now scattered around the garden!

I furiously gathered everything up and shoved it into the kitchen, also worried about any rain that might come with this wind but an hour later, the skies are still dark though nothing else.

I eventually got to log in and sort out uploading Amy’s assignments whilst marvelling at what a piece of shit Microsoft Windows is.

Something I learned today?

I watched an interview with the economic advisor to US President Biden who couldn’t even explain how his own economy works.  

He made lots of confusing statements and then actually said ‘I don’t know how it works, but it does!’  

I checked to see if it was April 1st – it was THAT unbelievable.

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

I gifted some Thai candy to Baipad, her mum and Butter.  We didn’t go and ride because the storm that blew in kept threatening though predictably it didn’t rain at all in the end.

Did you do something difficult or challenging today?

Push-ups as part of my morning exercise.  The routine required different types of push-ups but my upper body is so weak that I could only do a few push-ups and even then, by the end of the sets I couldn’t do them all.  But I didn’t quit the routine, at least.

I took this picture at the restaurant yesterday because it’s a pretty wild and interesting painting!

Plucky – 7th May 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 2 Comments

Pray tell me, where it is you go
Lady of this loveless moon
Underneath the stars on show
Could it be considered too soon?
Kisses taken nice and slow
Youthful daring saw this romance bloom

Submitted to RDP – Plucky

Today I’m feeling:

Exhausted (at the end of the day).  I got through the morning exercise easily, hurting my legs further after two 10,000-step days.

I kept running ok throughout the day but once home in the afternoon, I flaked pretty quickly.

Today I’m grateful for:

Kru Keng and Kru Bright, who provided me with a table to store my stuff in their room in the new building, where I will generally be teaching now.

The building is a little removed from the rest of the school but if I keep parking out by the cafe it means I will have to walk through the canteen and the main playground so I will be sure to still meet many of my students.

The best thing about today was:

Meeting the new teacher in Primary. He’s an Aussie ‘activist’, obviously a weed smoker and hinted at being a conspiracy theorist.  He was quite interesting to talk to for a while as he had been in China around the same time I was there and knew some of the bands.

He mentioned how much he was looking forward to teaching here but I got the feeling from his personality that he won’t last long.

12th Dec 2024 – I found out later that he didn’t even make it a full week!

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

Back to school, back to disorganisation.  There was a message about the Songkran blessing with the school directors and I was told it would start at nine, so I got back from coffee at that time but then the word was that it would be somewhere between 10 and 11.

I contemplated going back to the cafe but instead decided to check out where I could put my things in the new building and after moving my things, the teachers there told me it was just about to start.

No sign of George or David (though I had heard he was spotted there in the morning) so I was the only representative of the high school English teachers.  Hopefully, someone has noted that somewhere that I have been a good boy!

Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10

A customer at House left their charger in the wall and I alerted Ying, the latest new staff there, who ran out and gave it back.

I also dropped the word search book around to Baipad this afternoon.

After I closed the gate this evening, Amy ran out asking me to take her to the twenty-baht shop to buy a gift for Yaya, Nong Mai’s daughter, who we will meet tomorrow.  A minor annoyance but at least the 200 metre ride to the shop was nice, cool and refreshing!

Did you do something difficult or challenging today?

Back in long pants and long sleeves, I was heating up quickly and easily today.  I didn’t complain though and just got on with everything.

I should have been doing more lesson plans but ended up writing more poetry and updating the blog.  I did scan over what I still need to update and tomorrow, I will work on the next couple of IELTS lessons and Thursday, more of the presentation lessons and then Friday figuring out what else I need to add.  I just put the seed in my mind for today.

My old student from grade 7, Yaya, sent me this picture because I asked her to. I usually send her a message once a year to see how she is doing since she moved away. She was another smart kid and I’m happy to see her doing well. She appreciates my asking after her too.