Lazy to get up but I’m enjoying the ache in my body from exercise. I’m already reminiscing about the lost time of this holiday despite actually being more productive than last year. I’ve got into the groove of taking it easy and am now feeling anxious about getting busy again in the next couple of weeks. Though I know well that I can deal with it easily enough.
Today I’m grateful for:
A brief small storm at around 7pm that whilst not hanging around for long meant a drop in temperature that even allowed us to turn the aircon off for a while!
The best thing about today was:
Tigger coming for cuddles about 7 or 8 times. He’s getting more affectionate with his age.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I didn’t get a chance to read more of my book today as I ended up busy with other things. I did get some comic reading in and a chapter from another book that I delve into every now and then.
Something I learned today?
A US senator was complaining that a bag of steel brackets needed for weaponry was costing 90,000 dollars. A Chinese seller responded offering to sell the same thing for 8 dollars! And the reality is that US Defence spending from Chinese sources has quadrupled over the last few years. So the US military is becoming dependent on parts for war with China that are….made in China!
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
I sent Anchan a little more money so that she can get back to Chiang Rai as she is stuck in a village outside Chiang Mai at the moment.
I helped Amy moving around some furniture on the terrace as she wanted to change it up. It looks good and change is good.
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
Despite the last two days of not enjoying playing guitar I picked it up again for about 20 minutes and was a little happier with my ability.
What are my thoughts on growing older?
In the last couple of years, I’ve enjoyed the wisdom that age has brought me but recently, with the feeling of time disappearing too quickly, I’m pining for the days of boredom I used to endure as a teenager.
Too much knowledge is a dangerous thing? I know it’s just the way of looking at it. Perhaps I am bored now but don’t really know it?
It can’t be helped to wonder about being able to live your life over again but now I have to take a positive attitude with me with what remains.
I took this picture yesterday and along with other garden pictures sent them to Sharon and Rob.
Pretty good again though getting up was a struggle but I did it and made it to my room to exercise. Hopefully, the positive effects of that become apparent to my brain today, or I may just nap!
Today I’m grateful for:
The Mad Muscles app that I downloaded but cancelled because it really isn’t much better than the free app I use.
As I had paid for a month though, I will keep using it and take that as motivation. I’ve adapted the exercises to allow for my weaknesses and sore bits too.
The best thing about today was:
Watering the garden in the late afternoon. The ground is so dry that it’s difficult to even see how just a little bit of water from our hose can make any difference to the bigger trees.
The many mangoes that budded are starting to suffer and shrivel up so I want to try and give that tree more attention. I’m jealous of a couple of small mango trees I saw last week that had loads of healthy fruit. I want that too!
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I sent a couple of tapes to a customer in Australia a couple of weeks back. They contacted me today saying that they’d received the package but that it was open and empty.
As I had run out of tapes with that order, I asked the bands in Bangkok if they still had copies and asked them to send a replacement which I’m grateful for them doing immediately. I transferred the cost straight away too. Sorted.
I had another order to send to the USA and included a second tape as a freebie. I took it to the post office expecting it to cost about 250 baht ($10AUD) but it was 463 baht! It’s doubtful I’ll be able to sell much online anymore with shipping prices too expensive now.
Also, I guess what I wrote below applies here too.
Something I learned today?
Sadly, Anchan found out today that her mum will be in prison in six months.
Earlier in the afternoon she asked me to send her some money because she was desperate to contact her mum. She said she needed 300 baht, along with 200 baht that she had, to be able to talk to her. I didn’t question this but can imagine it being some kind of backhander needed to make the call. If she had another use for the money then let it be.
Anchan is pretty sad about the whole situation and it isn’t one that a 14-year-old should be in.
Despite all that, earlier in the day she wanted to contact her program leader at school to make plans to welcome the new grade 7 students at the beginning of the semester. I put them in contact.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
Helping Anchan (see above).
Running Amy around in the stinking heat to get her food. First to the bingsu shop which was closed (we ended up at a different, disappointing dessert shop). Then later to get her noodles for dinner.
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
I can probably write this every day that I exercise but there was a point this morning where I wanted to give up. I made it through.
I got frustrated with guitar again today. I did keep going for a little bit longer but not too much. Never mind. I did ten minutes I guess. A little bit every day.
I took this picture because I wanted some photos from around the house to send to Sharon and also Rob. The frangipani trees seem to revel in the dry heat.
Some things are indefensible We all make mistakes The idea is to learn and grow No matter what it takes
When genocide repeats itself What was the fight for? When the persecuted rain down Their own hypocritical war
When destruction becomes immoral What must a soldier do? Take a big bite of courage To get the message through
Propaganda no longer hides The truth of all this killing To turn a buck for a belief In a society no longer willing
Today I’m feeling:
Good, after forcing myself up and to exercise. I really wanted to sleep more so I’m happy with myself and my motivation.
Today I’m grateful for:
The local hospital and Dr Poom, my medicine dispenser. I was able to get straight in today with barely 5 minutes wait, despite it being very busy. I also asked about information for my students who are struggling and what to recommend them if and when they go to the hospital.
It occurred to me today that after Baipad tried to overdose on paracetamol all the hospital were concerned about was her kidney health. It seems like maybe no one even asked her why she did it!
Anyway, the info from Dr Poom was useful as they have a child psychiatrist there and psychotherapists too.
The best thing about today was:
My energy levels being great for most of the day due to that morning exercise. I felt energetic and inspired through all of the day and though I wasn’t doing much strenuous work since the morning I just kept going from one thing to another.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
As mentioned a couple of weeks ago there has been a change to access the full replay of the AFL matches online and whilst I was able to access it with a VPN last time, today it didn’t work and I was getting wound up by it while trying to figure out a way around it. Eventually I just had to resign myself to watching the 15 minute mini-match highlights. Disappointing but all I can do is shout at the clouds.
Something I learned today?
I learned that it is costing the USA 200 million dollars an hour to keep the genocide rolling in Palestine. Or as the USA likes to call it, defending Israel.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
I sent pep messages to Anchan and Baipad this morning. I also chatted a little with my other students, Freya, Winter and Wipping.
I beeped at the annoying BMW in front of me that failed to move at the traffic lights, meaning that we all missed it and couldn’t go anywhere. I was frustrated for a minute.
Did you do something difficult or challenging today?
I picked up the guitar again today and it sucked! But I persevered even whilst continuing to suck. I need to change the strings too. They sound dull – much like my playing! Never mind. I won’t be deterred.
I took this picture because this was the view from our dinner table on Saturday, looking over the Mae Khong to Laos.
Pretty good. Did some exercise again and thankful for it as I can feel my lazy muscles trying hard to pull my body together.
Today I’m grateful for:
Getting out of the house for a day as Amy suddenly came up with the idea to drive to Toeng, so after coffee, we set off, ate huge prawns in Toeng, cake in a rice field cafe somewhere, dropped by to see Wan in Chiang Khong, up to Chiang Saen for some snack shopping in the walking street, and finally a Maekhong riverside fish dinner before getting home 9 hours after leaving.
It was good to be out, but I’m looking forward to tomorrow and staying in!
The best thing about today was:
Having a quick video call with Hayden before our lunch was served. He’d just come off a 20-hour shift with one of his difficult clients but seemed pretty chipper.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
Amy is pre-menstrual so whilst she was pretty good today she also got a bit wild every now and then.
Something I learned today?
Crispus Attucks was an American whaler, sailor, and stevedore of African and Native American descent, who is traditionally regarded as the first person killed in the Boston Massacre, and as a result, the first American killed in the American Revolution.
I took this picture because…. cake! The photo was better than the cake.
Understood Testing time not trivial Gather round for greater good
Trivial As seen through separate eyes Man made more material
Submitted to Writer’s Workshop Prompts and NaPoMo and practising writing the Treochair form – An Irish form consisting of tercets (3-line stanzas) of any number. It is syllabic with 3/7/7 syllables per stanza and a rhyme scheme where the 1st and 3rd lines of a stanza rhyme. Heavy alliteration is expected with all 3 lines within a stanza.
Today I’m feeling:
Tired but good. Amy was up with the light and turned the aircon off so I knew I would have to get up soon because it quickly gets too hot to sleep.
I forced myself up and into my room to try this new app for exercise. I realised that it wasn’t any better than what I already use though but was happy to have tried it as it motivated me up this morning at least.
Today I’m grateful for:
There being no damage done. (See the story below)
The best thing about today was:
The bull! This actually happened late last night.
Maybe at around 10 pm I thought that I heard something on our terrace, maybe our cats chasing lizards or something like that. I turned on the lights and peaked out but there was nothing obvious so I went back to watching TV.
A little later I heard the moo of a cow in the distance. It didn’t sound close so I didn’t think much of it.
At about 11.20 pm I heard the noises again and turned on the lights and peaked out. Still nothing. So I thought I should go out and investigate.
Stepping onto the terrace I heard a wet blowy breathing sound and standing there in our entertainment area was a pitch-black bull as tall as me. I jumped back and stepped inside to grab my phone so I could use its torch to herd it back out to wherever it belonged because it certainly didn’t belong with us!
When I came back out the bull had jumped the small wall out of the entertainment and started wandering off around the garden, obviously not too happy to be confronted. I went off to the gate to open it and returned to where I guessed he might be. He wasn’t there.
The wind was blowing the leaves a little and the shadows from the house lights were dancing around and put me on edge. As I came around the back near the kitchen I jumped in a frightful expectation but it was just shadows.
Around to the back and then to the garage and around to the gate again. Where had this bull gone? Maybe it jumped over the fence? That seemed unlikely as this thing was massive.
My phone torch barely penetrated the darkness in the far corner of the garden but I guessed he was there, invisible with his colour. I nervously stepped forward and even though I was expecting to see a huge animal at some point it still shocked me when the stood-still bull opened its eyes in my direction so that I could see it clearly and it was less than a metre away. My arm hairs bristled and I stepped back in fright, now able to make out its fearsome shape. He gave me another wet breath for good luck.
I steeled myself and went around to its back and it didn’t need much prompting, seeming to know where the gate was already. Like it was just fucking with me.
I chuckled to myself as I closed the gate again. Tonight, I will do a quick check-around before closing our gate for the night.
Something I learned today?
A little bit of the history of Canada through reading The Decline of the British Empire. Building a nation-spanning railroad was seen as a way of keeping the USA at bay from expansion.
Since looking a little deeper it was also surprising that Canada only became a totally independent country in 1982.
The crying cats woke me up to feed them at 8.30 so I got up and did that but knew I wanted more sleep. Back in bed and I eventually got up at around 11.30. Hooray for a good long sleep!
I think I ended up sleeping at around 2am last night as I was reading comics til 1am and then listening to the Henry and Heidi podcast about Rollins Band.
Today I’m grateful for:
A guy called Pran. He is Baipad’s mum’s boyfriend and he got in touch with me today because he wants to understand more about Baipad because they may end up all living together.
Baipad put us in touch and was ok for me to tell him everything. I kinda understand why she doesn’t want to tell him directly. Baipad seems to like him so I hope he is a trustworthy and good guy.
The best thing about today was:
Getting back to some guitar practice. This holiday has been on and off for me, not wanting to go out into the oven of my room in the afternoons. But today I told myself to get back to it. It was a struggle to play and I know that it just needs more practice and that the more I do, the better I will get.
I also told myself that I need to get back into exercise too. I downloaded a new app to try out for motivation and will start tomorrow.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
Nothing wildly out of control. I accepted that I woke up late and was even happy about it as I got enough good rest.
At various times throughout the day Amy would order me to do something and I was in the mood to acquiesce without complaint.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
With Baipad’s approval I told Pran everything that I knew about Baipad’s experience and also gave my suggestions as to what might help her. I also told him that I understood Baipad’s mum too.
Anchan said that she wanted to go to a friends house and bake. I told her to stop thinking and get going. Later on she told me that she had a good time.
Momo took this picture last week because I asked her to. With me is Baitong – a funny favourite of mine.
Similar to yesterday in that I feel like I have an oncoming cold.
Yesterday’s trip to the hospital doesn’t seem to have fixed up Amy’s skin allergy so we’ll go to the city this evening to see her doctor who usually is able to help with issues like this.
Today I’m grateful for:
Amy’s specialist skin doctor who advised exactly what she thought her problem was and prescribed medicines to help. Amy trusts this doctor and was much more upbeat after seeing her.
The best thing about today was:
Finding out which classes I will teach next semester. Some new challenges for me that have got me thinking already.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
When Kru Karn first showed me my new classes I saw that I would teach my two most testing groups of students again. Ah well, I can deal with it, I thought to myself.
As it turned out it wasn’t my classes and I found that I don’t have to teach them at all!
I haven’t exercised for over a week now due to not feeling well and also due to the toxic air. I don’t want to be gulping down big gasps of it, trying to catch my breath whilst exercising.
Something I learned today?
A Boeing employee was giving evidence in court blowing the whistle on the company (for what I’m not exactly sure). Boeing’s lawyers asked him to stay an extra day to add more detail and answer questions. However, the following morning he was dead by supposed suicide! And he had already told colleagues that if he was ever found dead it would definitely not be from suicide. Will corporations in the USA still be allowed to get away with murder?
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
I messaged David that the new class lists were available so that he could go and get it from school and start preparing for next year too.
My vile deed today was cutting into traffic at the annoying traffic lights near the hospital. Minus a karma point or two.
It was a missing tooth Some wayward hair A smudge of a nose That almost wasn’t there
It was a crooked smile Dry cracked lips An inch too much Sitting on her hips
It was a minor lisp One leg longer A scarred wrist Now grown stronger
No, she’s not perfect As far as all could see But it’s all those little faults That has attracted me
Today I’m feeling:
Pretty good. I did some chest and arm exercises this morning, trying to avoid straining my shoulder and also hanging for a minute to stretch myself out. Had my first cold morning shower of the year, which was a bit of a challenge but sure woke me up properly.
Today I’m grateful for:
Nong Ploy for saying that she wishes I was still her teacher because she enjoys writing in English the most, which is something I like to have the students practice. And then have them read from what they’ve written.
The best thing about today was:
The winding down and relaxing feeling of the end of the semester.
I was trying to put myself in my student’s shoes about how they must feel each day, being amongst their friends at school all day and then going home to their families each evening. They obviously enjoy being at school and being with their friends but suffer the having to study part of that.
I was trying to remember what it was like for me at their age. Usually, I was excited to get out of school because when I got home I was usually out again after eating dinner and having even more fun with my friends.
The situation here feels different both because of the family set-up in many homes and the availability of mobile phones and internet. It makes for an experience that I only understand as an adult, not as a growing child.
Something I learned today?
“OpenAI’s latest model takes text prompts and turns them into ‘complex scenes with multiple characters, specific types of motion,’ and more, the company said.
The text-to-video model allows users to create photorealistic videos up to a minute long – all based on prompts they’ve written.”
As AI improves, and it seems to be doing so quickly, this could go either way. Folks could create and post anything that conforms to their narratives.
For example, the BBC could post footage of concentration camps in Xinjiang, where they keep insisting they exist. People could easily believe it, especially when it is reinforced with pictures and videos.
However, I also want to look on the positive side that due to this new capability journalists will be forced to detail, verify, check and double-check and be held legally accountable for what they publish. It’s optimistic but that is the way it must go.
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
At the morning flag ceremony KanomBang was crying heavily as her beloved dog had died. She was inconsolable so I just put my arm around her and gently patted her arm. Other students were still laughing and playing and I’m not sure what they were saying but Nomsen gave her some sympathy and support too. She was ok by the afternoon and showed me a picture of her dog and told me it had been hit by a motorbike which is a common occurrence here unfortunately.
I called and messaged Khaofang as her jumper was in the classroom where she lost it the day before yesterday. When she came to collect it she was very appreciative.
What was peaceful about today?
It’s difficult to find peace when you are surrounded by thousands of students. So perhaps the first hour of the day, having just woken up and quietly brushing my teeth before going to exercise, feeding the cats and then hopping into the shower, all the while the sky slowly lightening into the morning bloom. Then I eat some breakfast whilst reading a little and the sun finally appears over the mountains and it’s time for the peace to end.
At the end of the day, post-shower and into bed. Amy on her side, me on mine and Cap swapping between us, Amy quietly scrolls through Facebook and I read books and comics until we both give in to the joy of sleep.
25 THINGS ABOUT LIFE I WISH I HAD KNOWN 10 YEARS AGO – 18. Give Without Expecting Something in Return. Don’t keep score. You will become a bitter person if you do that. Give solely for the joy of giving. If you get something in return, great, if you don’t, great.
I may not give out too much but I expect and want little from anyone else.
Over the last few years, I have started giving out gifts as random acts of kindness and my only hope would be that the receiver will pass on the kindness to someone else.
Whether they do or not is out of my control.
What was my Ween discovery timeline?
I had read about Ween often in Flipside and was curious when their first album God Ween Satan came out so I picked up a copy. It started off well and punky with You Fucked Up but I was unprepared for everything else that came on the rest of the album. Slowly it worked its wackiness on me and I enjoyed its eclecticism over time.
So when the second LP, The Pod, came out I was looking for more of the same and it didn’t deliver for me. This seemed like weird droning moaning music and so I gave up on them, even selling both discs.
I occasionally heard them on the radio when I was living in Australia with their ‘hit’s Push The Little Daisies and Voodoo Lady but didn’t think on much further about them.
Around 2010 sometime, my friend in Melbourne, James McGauren had met and fallen in love with a Swedish girl and was making the move there and he decided to sell off a big chunk of his music collection. He had all the Ween albums.
Fuck it, I thought, I’ll give these guys a go again and picked up the whole catalogue for cheap. Slowly I worked my way through each album and fell in love with them all. I scoured the internet to find quality live shows and all their demo recordings and ended up with about 50 discs worth of Ween to enjoy.
Listening back to The Pod these days, I can understand why I didn’t enjoy it at the time but now I rate it as a favourite.
I never saw them live but have their live DVD and whilst I appreciate their entertainment abilities I prefer the quirkiness of their records.
I took this picture because this old man was looking relaxed when I got home.Fatman report
You can’t keep your dreams under a mattress Where they’ll be surely forgotten and flat They have value worthy of investment There’s really nothing better than that
First line appropriated and the rest inspired by a thought from David Elikwu’s newsletter
Today I’m feeling:
I woke up tired but was able to easily plough through my abs workout because I had things on my mind. I feel a little in and out of depression too but it’s very vague and dissipates quickly. I think some days I wonder if what I’m doing is actually worthwhile. It happens.
Today I’m grateful for:
Nancy and Aob at TLC for helping me get my visa sorted out since I forgot to get the re-entry permit last October! Despite the hard time they give me and the amount of money they make off me I still appreciate what they’ve done to help fix this.
The best thing about today was:
Getting another year’s stay in Thailand with my new visa. Though whilst I was sitting there watching the officer stamp and shuffle papers I started to brood on the fact of how much longer am I going to go through this annoying process. Tomorrow I’ll probably forget about all this until next November when I’ll have to start preparing for the next application again.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I got the message that next week I have to help in the Primary school for Scout week. It probably will be pretty easy but not as preferable as doing nothing, or even as a regular workweek. Still, a change can be good.
Something I learned today?
From The Jimmy Dore Show on YouTube:
The Internet was abuzz recently after MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid, while showing a video of Joe Biden, was caught by a “hot mic” revealing her true feelings about Biden by saying “… starting another fucking war.”
Of course, Reid would never have intentionally said anything so overtly anti-Biden on the air, so she was forced to apologize, although she only mentioned having dropped the “f word.”
Review your acts, and then for vile deeds chide yourself, for good be glad. — Discourses 3.10
As I passed Rista after class on the third floor of building six I saw that she had some rubbish to throw away. As I already had my coffee cup to take to the bin I offered to take hers too for which she gave her appreciation.
25 THINGS ABOUT LIFE I WISH I HAD KNOWN 10 YEARS AGO – 10. Pick an Industry, Not A Job. If you want to become good at something, you need to spend years and years doing that. You can’t do that if you hop from industry to industry. Pick an industry you love and start at the bottom. You will find the perfect role for you eventually.
It seems kind of incomprehensible to me that I would ever have a choice of the kind of work or job I would do. When I left school at sixteen any job was considered good and a starting point. There were also more jobs available back then too.
When I started my first long-term job it wasn’t something that I was particularly interested in (electrical wholesale) but I did enjoy the hard work when I was a storeman and did work my way up to be the buyer. I wasn’t interested in progressing any further though, which would’ve meant becoming a manager.
With the opportunity of moving to Australia, I discovered an interest in computing (beyond just playing video games) and was able to spend a year or so studying for that. Then I got in at a low level and worked my way up and sideways for the next 18 years. Once again I was not interested in (or offered) a management role.
While working an office job I knew one thing and that was that I loved coffee! After getting laid off it was a simple step to take courses learning to be a barista or bartender and I got into making coffee until injury stopped me short.
Moving to Thailand then forced me to make the decision to become a teacher because there are only a few things that a foreigner is allowed to do here for work. With each change of job or industry, I’ve always pushed myself to work hard to learn what I can about it. Teaching has really tested me but when I get it right I do love what I’m doing.
As I mentioned above though, there are times when I am unsure of myself and can’t balance the effort-to-reward ratio properly in my head.
I feel that the idea of this question is a little privileged. Many, maybe even most people, don’t have choices a lot of the time and just have to take the opportunities that they can get.
Always the winner, always on top The sun shines from their behind If outsiders looking in would ever stop The legend would be hard to find
Because they suffered just like us Made many mistakes along the road But when life threw them under the bus Determination is what they showed
So the legend came to be on the lips Of those who needed inspiration And everybody followed the tips For the legends in preparation
Today I’m feeling:
Slooooow to go. Turned off my alarm when it went off and enjoyed a delirious sleep, probably aided by a couple of drops of cannabutter last night which also made me enjoy some guitaring that flew by in a couple of hours. My thought to exercise a little on waking at the weekend didn’t come to fruition but I guess I have to listen to my body sometimes.
Today I’m grateful for:
Nick at Utopia for not only giving me credit today (run out of money!) but making me two fantastic coffees with perfect texture for me.
The best thing about today was:
Despite just wanting to stay home all day when Amy suggested going to Oshinei for lunch I initially said no but quickly changed my mind and I’m glad we got out and enjoyed some food at a two-for-one discount. I was still tired and not really thinking about anything much but just enjoying the moment.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
After lunch I tried to resist the afternoon nap for as long as I could by reading, finishing the first chapter of the Decline and Fall of the British Empire and then a couple of comics before finally giving in and accepting my fate. It was an enjoyable nap though.
I took this picture because Cap was sitting on the cushion by the bookshelves when I got home yesterday, though he got up as soon as I laid down to take pictures.
1994ever 