Average to fair. Didn’t sleep for long enough again but forced myself up and to do a little 10-minute exercise and hope to start getting back into it.
I still have headaches and my voice and throat is still a little sore and croaky. I’m in a reasonable headspace though.
Health:
Physical: 6 Mental: 7
Today I’m grateful for:
My adaptability. As I’m entering details into the blog from when I started working in high school at CRPAO I can see how I have managed to adapt myself to the environment and become more flexible and understanding.
The best thing about today was:
Jet, Lin and Mai, my old grade 9 students, love touching my belly for some reason but today Lin squealed and called over Jet and they were both disappointed to feel that I have lost some belly fat.
I’m not actually sure that I have but this made me feel good that perhaps some of the exercising that I have been doing these past few years may be having some small effect.
Something I learned today?
I spoke to Hayden yesterday and he has moved into a new place, which he seems happy with. He also reckons he’s on for a new workplace which will give him a little more money and better working conditions. I hope that he gets that.
He has a few days off and is flying down to Melbourne to get a tattoo. Seems a long way to go just for a tattoo but, I guess he’ll be doing other stuff whilst there. I think his mum is still supporting him too much but he’s slowly getting there to stand on his own two feet.
Amy took this picture because sometimes we can get our grass cut for free!
These are ghosts White With bloodied teeth Dead Inside the cold room Shiver and sweat, feel along the walls Water Drip……drip…..dripping in tears Into a puddle Of blood muck Sticky in the dark Fear and fumble for the exit A midnight moon, it’s way past bedtime Shine the light back to safety
Written on a day when I was teaching (and learning) about Thai ghosts. The form is a Paiku. The Piaku form takes part of its name from the fact that the syllable count for each line matches the digits in Pi. Pi: 3.14159 26535 897 Inspired by this Paiku at Moonwashed Musings and the first line is a variation on the Karate song ‘There Are Ghosts’
Today I’m feeling:
Tired on waking, so I snoozed for an extra 30 minutes, skipping exercise.
I was sitting at House from 8am until 3.30pm. Before lunch I got a bit of reading and writing done and after lunch I finished off a couple of lesson plans and was feeling inspired to do more but had to go and pick up Amy to take her to the hospital as she will stay overnight with her dad as he is due to have his operation this evening.
Today I’m grateful for:
My usual Jetyod dispensary that had brownies and gummies in stock. I’m hoping to sleep well tonight but hope I still feel ok in the morning too.
Sometimes I still feel sleepy in the morning after eating this.
The best thing about today was:
Really getting into the flow whilst working at House today. Time pretty much flew by and I was enjoying every second of it.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
After sitting for a little while at the cafe I noticed a dull ache in my left hip joint which has gotten steadily worse throughout the day and causing me to limp a little. It is very tender to touch.
I’m assuming I must’ve overdone it with the exercising earlier this week.
I hope it doesn’t disturb my sleep and I definitely won’t be doing any exercise on it in the morning.
Something I learned today?
My students at the competition all messaged me to tell me that they had done well, coming 2nd or 3rd place, which they were all quite proud of. I’m still waiting to find out about others too.
Review your acts, Good and bad.
After I got back from the city I took some cookies to Baipad and her sister and mum. It was already getting a little dark so she wasn’t keen to practice riding the bike so I managed to twist her arm to get in her mum’s car and we just went through everything in front of her, without going anywhere.
I told her I should be free tomorrow afternoon and if it works out, we can practice driving. She threw her arms up in a semi-mocking fright but also a happy resignation that if I push her to do it, then she doesn’t have a choice.
Unrecognised alive Ash and dust Swirl around your eyes As the grim sun starves Flies start investigating The first on-scene To witness the horror
An unrecognised state Take a breath Before the bullet Where revenge rises from the shadows Books and bodies burned On the wrong side of the fence The olive trees have no branches
One day, one day God’s wrath will flood the earth again
Happy, though a bit undecided. I woke up with a start, enjoying my sleep and a sexy dream (with Amy) and struggled through my first 20-minute video exercise, which made me feel good but also on the edge of over-exertion.
At school, the kids that I regularly visit in the morning were all in pretty good moods, and we chatted and played a little. Now I’m waiting for the first coffee to kick in before heading back to school early to help Kru Tang again, and then my first class of the day with my grade 8s.
Today I’m grateful for:
Gui for allowing me credit again last month and then for getting paid and being able to pay off the debt.
The best thing about today was:
I felt a bit rushed today but still got a few things done. I got to Kru Tang at 9.30 and whilst waiting for her students to arrive, my grade 11 students were doing an online speaking exercise that instantly gave them a CEFR and IELTS score.
I tried to help them a little bit and also thought it would be a good test to do with my other students too.
Something I learned today?
As I was leaving school yesterday, a car drove by and a shout came, ‘Hey, Teacher Shaun’. I looked around and waved back to see ShinChan driving an old car. This morning I saw him and asked him how old he is, to which he replied, 15!
He told me that he lives with his dad and they have a motorbike and a car. Sometimes his dad will take the motorbike, so he has to take the car to get himself to school.
He has a motorbike license, but I don’t think he can get a car license until he is 18. He knows to be careful, but could get caught out if someone crashes into him.
It’s good that he has taken some responsibility at an early age, and I have to chuckle a little at the way things work here.
Review your acts, Good and bad.
I caught up with Anchan briefly this morning and found out that her mum should be home in a couple of weeks’ time. That’s great news for her if it happens.
Sitting with Baipad and Fahmai this morning, Fahmai said that Baipad is smart and beautiful. I told him that Baipad doesn’t think that she is and asked him why he thought that might be. He said he couldn’t understand that, and she quickly stated, ‘I’m not confident’. Hopefully, these kind words her friends say about her are remembered and will accumulate to bring her confidence in the future. Fahmai said that he is smart and beautiful, demonstrating his confidence.
Later on I was chatting online with both of them and I asked them about whether they did anything kind today which they both found something to say about each other. Well, that’s a start.
Kids playing together, July 2024. Earn, Dena, Namthip, Nicha and Fah, my old students, now grade 9.
I get the feeling you are Always impatient to arrive As to why lips are burning shut My space dreams a guttering flame Burning the world After the rain
To learn its secrets, get its power Needs no spotlight, no orchestra The inklings of chaos are cleverly concealed But how do I explain The shriek and howl of party boys In a dark, secluded spot
Good. I was having a crazy dream when my alarm went off but I was so deep in it that I instantly couldn’t remember it. My first thought after turning the alarm off was ‘What was I just dreaming!?’
I forced myself out to my room where I discovered that the exercise app I use can now generate an AI routine targeted at your choice of muscle groups and it was good. It pushed me a little more than normal and I was glad of it.
Hopefully, it is a feature that I can continue using for free as I’ve only ever used the free routines in the app.
Today I’m grateful for:
The random students who told me that they missed me. I don’t even know who they were but I’m assuming that I have taught them recently and am just not familiar with them yet.
The best thing about today was:
My class of grade 10s this afternoon, which also had a whole bunch of new students added that I had to quickly familiarise myself with, who quickly picked up on the activities that I was teaching and got a little competitive with each other.
By the end, it seemed everyone enjoyed it despite some students struggling with English and not really being interested.
Something I learned today?
Kru Tang now works in the high school and has been tasked with putting together the new Integrated Program. She seemed just as frustrated as everyone else with this task.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
I walked around the park after classes to see who was hanging where and with who. I found Baipad in her usual place with another girl I didn’t recognise but soon learned that it was Cookie, Butter’s younger sister.
I had meant to ask Baipad to introduce me to her one morning as I knew that she would be starting here this semester but then forgotten all about it.
I’ve met so many new students already this semester that I can’t even bring Cookie’s face to mind again right now.
I gave them both a candy and Baipad asked me why I always had candy. I laughingly said that it is because I am a good person and I jokingly complained to her about why she never gives me anything.
Amy took this picture because we have new housemates staying on our balcony. The plant that they have nested on is a little too close to curious cats so we raised it up on a chair where hopefully our cats decide that they are too lazy to investigate further.
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 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!
Pretty good again. Got up and exercised and am now out for coffee.
A couple of days ago when I was moving the tree I got bitten by an ant on the inside of my little finger and now it is distractingly itchy. Because of the location it’s not easy to get a nice satisfying scratch on it and it’s super annoying.
Today I’m grateful for:
Art lending me a backpack that I can use on Sunday to go to Bangkok. I also found out that Monday is a national holiday so I don’t have to worry about not being back in time to start work!
Also, a sneaky little doze whilst listening to video discussions on YouTube whilst Amy did the watering and washed the car!
The best thing about today was:
Watching more of Three Body. I’m loving the slow pace of it. It seems each April holiday is marked by watching some TV series or other whilst avoiding the heat. A couple of years back it was Narcos.
I think last year though I ended up playing Xbox more than watching TV and I actually had planned to do that this year but in the end just didn’t bother.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I was on a roll and in the zone whilst sipping coffee this morning, first reading, then inspired, then writing. But I started to feel a little dizzy and knew I needed to come home and eat. Otherwise, I would have loved to have stayed longer and written more.
Tomorrow I won’t have so much free time as we will be running around most of the day doing things for Grandmum’s 100-day ritual.
Something I learned today?
Israel’s prime minister Netanyahu is likely to have an arrest warrant for war crimes issued by the International Criminal Court. Whilst it is likely just a symbolic gesture and he would unlikely ever be arrested at least it shows the world stands against him.
Russian president Putin also has an arrest warrant issued by the ICC but that was instigated by USA propaganda and that is all falling apart.
The world is starting to rise against the genocide perpetuated by Israel on the Palestinians and supported by the USA war machine.
Also, last night I watched a video from Thai Talk with Paddy and he was presenting 12 things that he didn’t like about Thailand. Whilst many other farangs agreed with some or all of his points there were others that I couldn’t believe just how self-righteous they were.
I don’t understand how you can say someone’s opinion is wrong. You don’t have to agree but you must be smart enough to at least counter their opinion. These days people don’t bother to do that just believing that they are right.
I don’t know why this particular video and comments stood out to me, maybe it’s been accumulating for a while. I will cut out this view of negativity as much as I can because it is just a waste of time and energy.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
Noey and Natalie were in Utopia whilst I was there this morning and they were preparing for a presentation. I wished them luck.
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
I did as much of the exercises as I could this morning though I am weak in certain (most) areas. 3 sets of 60 lunges had to be cut down to 3 sets of 40 and 3 by one minute of static Superman I just held for as long as I could. But I didn’t skip or give up.
I took this picture because I’m hoping this tree can survive the move from pot to ground.
Pretty good so far. Setting my alarm for 15 minutes earlier each morning in preparation for my return to work next week. I have a slight twinge in my left lower back from too much sitting around for the last couple of days and probably aggravated by the tree moving yesterday. I got back to exercising today too.
Today I’m grateful for:
Our pumpkin! The pumpkin that both Amy and I took care of to try and get it to a size and maturity that was edible, ended up in our spaghetti dish for lunch and it was great. Well done everyone!
The best thing about today was:
Cleaning out my inbox. It accumulates quickly and I don’t get a chance to follow up everything as I would like. I will need to get on top of this when I start working again next week. Get my priorities sorted again.
I’ve already started clearing out my YouTube Watch Later list by either watching in full or watching a little and deciding it’s not that important.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I decided to sort out a hotel room for myself for this coming Sunday in Bangkok. Nampan sent me a link to one near the venue and through Google Maps it linked to an Agoda booking where it said the cost was just 419 baht. Nice. It also said that if I downloaded the Agoda app I would get a 10% discount, so I did.
However, once downloading and going through the same process the total became something like 600 baht! So I went back to the original Agoda page and went to the checkout and the actual total was about 550 baht in the end!
Well, it’s still cheap enough. Never trust the price of anything you see online. Everything is a subtle scam.
Something I learned today?
When I got home from Utopia at around lunchtime (I was there so long cleaning out my inbox) I was happy to find that Amy had ironed all my shirts! I gave her a big kiss but it was already too hot to hug for long.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
Baipad messaged me after a few days of quiet and she mentioned that she was expecting a delivery to her house in the next couple of days but is still stuck out at her grandma’s.
I suggested that she contact a neighbour or her friend Butter to pay and collect it if and when they call, or failing that she could call me and I could sort it out for her.
I’m starting to see that she has not been raised, or pursued herself, with a mind to think about how to get things done. Perhaps she’s spoiled a bit and I think the issue between her and her mum is that her mum doesn’t see any maturity in Baipad’s behaviour and actions at home, so she continues to treat her as a child that needs taking care of.
I suggested that she show her mum who she is and what she wants in her life and her mum might start treating her differently.
It reminded me of the time I asked Hayden who he was and how much he struggled with that question. Many of us do.
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
A couple of days ago I watched a video about a tongue exercise and I’ve been trying to do it once or twice a day. It’s simply rubbing your tongue between your teeth and lips/cheek in a circular motion, first one way and then the other, 25 times.
It sounds easy, and it’s not really difficult but I soon started to notice how useless my muscles involved in this exercise are, particularly my neck.
I will keep practising and hope that it helps a little with my neck problems.
I took this picture because Tigger was chilling on the terrace in the late afternoon, perhaps waiting for a storm that never came.
It’s an undisputed fact that we all consume and breathe lots of microplastics, and we have done for our whole lives. The average person probably takes in 100,000 particles of microplastic annually.
Microplastics are suspected of being dangerous in just about every way you can imagine, damaging our internal organs, poisoning us with leached chemicals, breaking down our cell walls, and causing countless diseases. A vast body of research has been published investigating these concerns.
There’s still no evidence that any of these happen. More data is always needed. More study. More investigation. And when there is evidence of microplastic interaction with living tissue — which there is, certain plastics can and do have detectable biological effects, there’s so far never been any evidence that it’s harmful.
Will you go without? Though it makes no difference To save the planet
Late start again after very good sleep. Aided by canna oil. Exercised, which sucked and was good too.
Today I’m grateful for:
Noey sending me a message at 11.30 am wondering where I was! It’s nice to feel missed sometimes, even if it is just by the baristas in your favourite coffee shop!
The best thing about today was:
Another storm blowing in this afternoon whilst I was in my room.
Two days in a row now, I got to hear the big splats of rain falling on the tin roof above the ceiling and to hear the wind banging all sorts of things around just outside.
Strangely, it hasn’t rained in the city at all whilst we’ve been lucky enough to not need to water these two days.
Something I learned today?
From a report issued by the US-based International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights:
“The breadth of the U.S. violations of the ICCPR is overwhelming. The committee found breaches of the treaty in nearly every aspect of life in the United States. We (the United States) should heed the committee’s recommendations and demand that our federal, state and local governments in the U.S. comply with our human rights obligations.”
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
In general, my exercise wasn’t too bad today, except for 3 by one-and-a-half minutes of bicycle kicks. I could do thirty, take a break and then do 15 more but that was it. I’m happy to adapt the exercises to my skill and strength level so that I don’t give up but can keep going.
How do I handle disagreements or conflicts?
Disagreements I am generally ok with, but when it comes to conflict I don’t deal very well. I’d rather walk along and forget about it.
I’ve never really cared what other people think but in the past would try to argue my point. These days I don’t feel the need. People believe the things that they want to.
I’m open to a lot of different ideas but still obviously have my own beliefs about things. Entering into conflict over these things seems a waste of time. Most people don’t want to listen to something that they don’t believe. And for many things that applies to me too.
When was the last time I felt exceptionally strong or brave?
I’ve been looking at this one for a few days already and can’t think of anything. Perhaps others looking from the outside might have considered some of my actions at one time or another as strong or brave but to me, they were just normal.
Even so, there’s no standout moment of bravery rescuing someone drowning or pulling people out of a car crash. Nothing so exciting.
What’s an aspect of my culture that I love?
This is a weird one to answer because just what is my culture? I carry traits from growing up in England, from the middle of my life in Australia and now with some influence from six years in Thailand.
Culture can be great when you are young, something to bond and identify with, but the more you experience and can take the opportunity to travel you begin to see that beyond culture we are all basically the same.
Is culture manipulated by us ourselves to keep us divided?
The aspects of my cultures that I love are that they have given me grit, taught me when to run and when to walk and taught me acceptance. And when I write that all down I realise that my mum taught me all that. Mums are culture.
I took this picture because when I arrived at Utopia, Noey told me that she had just sent me a message. I sat down and read it. It said “Where is Shaun?” and so I replied with this photo.
Lazy to get up despite kinda waking up at around 7 am when I could’ve got myself going but instead dozed until around 10 am. My body is aching in a good way.
Today I’m grateful for:
An afternoon storm today! Hooray! It was a bit of a surprise.
Unfortunately, it also highlighted that the builders that came to fix our gutters in the garage have actually made it worse than before. Sigh.
It seems impossible to get anyone to do a ‘proper’ job of anything here sometimes.
The best thing about today was:
Amy being out in the evening with Paew leaving me happily at home with the cats, Youtube and comics for company.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
After getting up late and knowing Amy was going out I decided I would only have a light lunch and then get my favourite fish dish in the walking market in the evening. I also figured I might buy another hash brownie to relax even further.
Anticipating this had my mouth watering but sadly the fish stall wasn’t in the market today and the shop that usually sells the brownies was closed!
Never mind. There’s lots of time to enjoy everything.
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
I spent the last ten minutes before getting up this morning contemplating whether to skip exercise this morning as even laying in bed my thighs were still aching from working out two days ago.
But I forced myself and even though the app keeps giving me push-ups to do I just figured to replace some of them with arm curls instead. I did some knee push-ups though. Maybe one day I’ll be comfortable doing push-ups.
Maybe. One day.
I took this picture because this is what our new gutter is like and it’s only now I see that it is so shallow that in big rains here it’s going to force water into the roof. I don’t get why they’ve done it like this. It’s just fucking stupid.
1994ever 