This is a page for haphazard sentiments, views and other salmagundi -- mostly about Thailand -- that does not fit elsewhere. (Jump to 2005)

2004

December 31
The unfortunate tragedy caused by the tsunami in Southern Thailand and many other parts of Asia reminds us how fragile life is and how important family and friends are. I pray for all those who have been affected by this incomprehensible event. My thanks to all those who wrote to check on our well being. We are fine, although deeply saddened by the death and destruction.

December 27: Christmas
Christmas went well for us. Unfortunately for many people in southern Thailand and other parts of the world, it didn't go well. There were awful tidal waves in many parts of Asia and thousands were killed.

One place in Thailand that was hit was Patong Beach in Phuket, a place I used to live.

December 23: I Woke Up at 5AM
Journals. Well, some people start their journal by telling us what time they woke up in the morning. Heck, to be honest, a lot of people do that. Next they tell us they ate and went to school or work. This is followed by informing us what they did at school, which usually means they studied something or another. That is generally followed by what they ate for dinner and how they occupied their time after dinner. The last sentence recounts what time they went to bed.

If this serves the purpose of a journal writer, groovy! But why oh why do such journal writers want to share this drivel with others? Like the whole world. Like everyone on the internet.

But yes, I do read some of this shyte because it bucks me up. It makes me believe I have a life. It makes me feel alive.

And, oh yeah, just a couple of questions. Do the 5AMers ever think? Feel? Honestly, I don't know.

Note: Personally I think a list of what one has done during the day is a diary. A journal, on the other hand, expresses feelings, thoughts and opinions. One WRITES a journal. One CATELOGS daily events in a diary.

December 5: The Fashion Police
All Thai students, from kindergarden through university, wear uniforms. Well, are supposed to wear uniforms. Most of the powers that be take this rather seriously. The university I work at has two people whose job is to check that all students coming to school have their uniforms on. If they don't, they are warned or even sent away. So seriously is this taken that one of the questions on the teacher evaluation form asks whether the instructor enforces the dress code.

Do I take the dress code seriously? Not at all.

November 16: Update?!
It's been a spell since I made an entry. Do I feel bad about that? No. Am I going to make an effort to update more often? I plan to update when I feel like it.

Highlight of the last couple of months? A visit to Mukdahan -- in Isaan, on the Mekong River. It's worth a visit.

Plans? Hoping to move from Bangkok to the countryside by June of 06. It is getting to a point where I've had about enough of living in the Big Durian. Great place to visit, in my book, but hard work living here.

September 27: Difficult Semester

The first term of the school year is over. It has been my most difficult first term in many years. The main reason for that was the workload -- teaching 22 periods a week. (A period at the school I teach at is one hour and fifteen minutes long.) Normally, I'm not crazy about the second term because many good students finish their course work early. Let's hope it is my BEST second term in years.

September 11: Speaking Thai

Do not be put off by Thais who don't understand you when you speak Thai or who laugh at you. There are only three possible reasons for this: 1) They aren't listening, they are SEEING -- your face (and can't believe a farang is speaking Thai, 2) They don't like the fact that a farang can speak Thai (they find it threatening because they are a worker in a field who depends on farangs being ignorant of the Thai language), 3) Your Thai is truly bad and you should improve it.

September 5: Catholics

There are approximately 250,000 Catholics in Thailand. We usually go to Holy Redeemer Church but sometimes go to Our Lady of Fatima. Our son goes to school at the latter.

August 29

The blatant anti-Americanism at the Athens Olympics is disturbing. Don't get me wrong, I am not a big fan of politicians but, for heaven's sake, these are athletes who have nothing to do with national policy. If an athlete competes unfairly, shows off or behaves arrogantly, fine, boo them. If they win fairly and squarely and are polite and well behaved, applaud them. Don't boo them strictly on the basis of their country.

July 29

The ants weren't in my pants, but they were in my shirt and I was riding my motorcycle on one of the busier roads in Bangkok. They were the little kind of ant that leaves a welt about 50 times bigger than they are. Several of them had gotten me already. Fortunately my wife was riding behind me and scratched and rubbed through my shirt until I was able to pull over, take the shirt off and shake it out.

July 15: Traffic

Bangkok traffic, as you probably know even if you don't live here, is a nightmare. Here are a couple of modest suggestions for improving things a bit. Start car pool lanes. Cars in those lanes should have at least 4 people in them. Encourage, rather than the present policy of discouraging, motorcycle use. For example let motorcycles use center lanes and tollways.

June 27: No, not those kind of bars

Bangkok is famous for its bars and nightlife (although slowly -- VERY slow -- it is getting tamer). The Big Mango, however, as well as other cities in Happyland, have another type of bars -- bars on windows. Nearly everyone, except the poorest of poor, has bars on the windows of their homes and steel shutters on the front of their businesses.

Memorial Day: My Dad's WWII Memorial

In a windswept valley in the brown and dry San Joaquin Valley of California you will find the resting place of my father. He is in the National Cemetery there with thousands of other veterans. Their graves, all of them, are marked with small granite memorials perhaps 12 inches by 6 inches. They all stand an inch or so above the hearty grass that struggles to grow. The stones are notable because of the uniformity of their appearance.

My Dad’s memorial reads exactly as follows:

BENEDICT V. ZIESING
LT. COL. U.S. ARMY
WORLD WAR II KOREA
SEP. 28, 1914 NOV. 4, 2000
LOVING HUSBAND AND FATHER

Centered above his name is a plain Christian Cross. There is no other ornamentation. In the upper right hand corner is his plot number.

My Mom will eventfully join my Dad there and not merely because she was an Army wife. She is a WWII veteran herself and, in fact, they met in the Philippines where my Mom, an Army nurse, took care of her future husband after he was wounded.

A number of years before my Dad died, he and Mom took a trip to Washington, DC. Because my Dad was a career Army Man, he and Mom – and later my brother Mark and me – saw a lot of the world. Mom and Dad’s trip to Washington though, seemed quite special to them. You can see the happiness and pride in all of their photos. On my last trip to the States, Mom, as she has ever since the trip, commented on how meaningful the visit was for them.

Mom and Dad visited all the memorials in Washington – including the historical ones and, of course, the Viet Nam Memorial.

Never once – not one single time – did either one of them mention the fact that there was no World War II memorial.

My Dad and Mom did their duty. They didn’t need, want or expect a memorial.

I’m quite certain that Dad’s small gravestone is more than enough of a memorial for him. My Mom, I know, feels the same.

I’m grateful and proud that there is a memorial to WWII vets in Washington DC now. If I have the chance to go, I most certainly will.

But most of all, I am grateful for the service my Dad and Mom unconditionally gave. I am grateful that they are my parents and that they taught me lessons about loyalty, responsibility, love of country and concern for others.

The small unassuming memorial in that valley on the other side of the earth from where I live is fitting because, after all, my Dad was a soldier.

Rest in Peace Dad and God Bless America.

May 26: Bikes are for riding

I'm always surprised when a student or friend asks me if I ride my motorcycle when it rains. Of course I do. Many don't and I actually have a good buddy who goes so far as to leave his bike where ever he has gone and take a taxi home if it starts raining when he's out. Hey, I'm not a macho biker dude but I do believe that motorcycles are for riding -- rain or shine.

April 26: Pat Tillman

In memory of Pat Tillman.

April 4: Stranger in a Strange Land

Soon I will pay a visit to the USA -- the place of my birth. I love America but the longer I stay in Thailand, the less comfortable I feel in the States and the less I know what the hell I am doing. It has been two years since my last vist and even then there were times I felt lost. Wish me luck in finding my way around (not to mention driving on the correct side of the road).

March 14: Truck Drivin' Man
I regard American truck drivers among the best drivers in the world. I am taking being polite and considerate into account, as well as skill. Thai trucks drivers are, with only a few exceptions, exactly the opposite. Not only are they usually poor drivers, but they are rude (never move over so you can pass) and their rudeness in manifested in a dangerous might makes right attitude (I'm bigger than you are, get out of my way). In addition, and this one I can't figure out, the percentage of trucks on the road here is far higher than in Western countries. When driving in Thailand, expect the worst from Thai truck drivers.

March 4: Machines
I have been beset by computer problems the likes of which I have never known. Yes, at the root of it was a toasted hard disk. The frustration of not being able to "play" on the computer paled in comparison to the pressure of not being able to live up to responsibilities.

February 16: The Second Term
Every year, at the end of the second term, I get emails similar to this one, which I just received: "My name is So and So and my student number is 123456789. I am a student in the fourth year. I sent this E mail becaues I would like to ask you to give me B+. If I don't get B+, I won't graduate this semester please give me B+ and Thank you very much sir." Often, when I employ my usual procedure of not responding to such emails, I get follow up messages and, occasionally, personal visits in my office where the student begs for a mark. It all falls on deaf ears, but saddens me.


February 16: School is Out!
The school year is over. The second semester is always more difficult than the first. Fatigue has a lot to do with it. Also, many of the better students finish after the first semester (having taken 3 and a half years do their studies). There were other reasons for this being a tough second term. Let me just leave it at this; one class I had was not the best of my 30 years of teaching.

February 4: Balance
Some stuff I am particularly grateful for: My son Matthew sleeps all night. He eats his meals without a fuss. My wife does far more than her fair share of taking care of stuff. I usually sleep pretty well at night. It doesn't snow here.

January 29: Weather Comparison
The high temp today in Bangkok was 93 degrees. The high in Moorhead, Mn., where I got my BA degree, was  -14 degrees. The low here in BKK tonight will be 76 degrees. The low in Moorhead will be  -28. Nuff said.

January 22: Highlights of 2004 to Date
It ain't a bad start, but neither is it great. The traffic isn't any better but we've had some nights cool enough for me to save 800 baht on my electric bill. The internet isn't any better here, but there is promise of affordable broadband this year. I didn't win the lottery, but I have sufficient income to lead a comfortable life. Students still perambulate a tad slower than a turtle walking backward, but I have some nice classes.

January 11: The Nite Owl Calls it a Day
Bernard Trink, the night life columnist for the Bangkok Post since the Sukothai Era, wrote his last column prior to the New Year. He slowly reduced himself from an Icon to an Ican't. In recent years his writing had deteriorated from lively and controversial reports of Bangkok's famous bars, pubs and go-goes, into a cut a paste job from the internet, erroneous urban legends, recycled jokes from the internet and self congratulatory emails from readers. Probably his lowest point was cutting and pasting, for years, the slogans from Burma Shave signs. Or was it buying into urban legends like rat urine on your beer can will kill you or erroneously attributing to Andy Rooney a sappy essay about why older women are better? In the end, the only reason for reading him was to see how far the powers that be at the Post would let him fall before letting him go. He hit bottom as the New Year dawned.

January 1: Happy New Year
Welcome to 2004 which feels pretty much like 2003. There were no great events during 2003 but many small miracles. Among those was getting a part time IT job. What makes that a miracle is that up until shortly before I came to Thailand I was a quasi-Luddite. Furthermore, everything I know about computers (which isn't much if the truth be known) I taught myself with the help of friends. I want to thank my friends Mike for recommending me for this position and Joe for having faith in me.

2003
December 29: Christmas
Christmas came and went with hardly a blink of the eye. The clock punching machine was activated at school on the 25th and two Western dudes actually went in and punched it. To that I must say, no matter that you may find the phrase irritating, GET A LIFE! School resumes on Jan. 5 but most Thai teachers of English will cancel classes because there is a New Year's party for the department. The New Year's party for the University is Jan. 6 so more cancellations. Those attending the parties will, no doubt, punch in and out even thought they don't teach. Since I have a life, I will meet my classes on those days and forgo the parties. No great sacrifice, I assure you. Happy New Year.

December 19: Midterms and Christmas
It is midterm exam time. For the past couple of years, they have coincided with Christmas, thus giving us a day off. In the past, it was a teaching day. Since I have a family now and have returned to the Church, I am grateful for the change.

December 9: Take it easy
You have a class to teach. You're late. You head out the door and do the best you can to walk fast. You can't hurry because there are so many students in front of you perambulating at a snail's pace. Eventually you come to a group of pupils walking side by side at a tempo so sluggish you can't manage it. It's too slow. They are blocking your path, but eventually you manage to squeeze by. As you pass and glance back there is a realization. They are your students. The very students you are rushing to go see. Easy does it dude.

December 5: Happy Father's Day
Today is Father's Day in Thailand, in honor of H.M. the King whose birthday it is. The King is a wonderful, kind and intelligent monarch who is revered by all.

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