This is a page for haphazard sentiments, views and other salmagundi -- mostly about Thailand -- that does not fit elsewhere. Jump back to 2004.

2005

December 29: Livin' In The Past
There is a great little western food restaurant in Si Saket. It is operated by Frank, a friendly German chap, who has lived in the area for many years.
The name of it is Livin' in the Past and it is on a small soi off the road beside the Si Saket police station.

Frank makes excellent real Italian style pizza, burgers, sausages and lots of German style food. He also bakes his own bread, pies and cakes.
He is more than happy to cater to the needs of folks with a different kind of diet. I am a vegetarian and he frequently makes suggestions for things that I can eat so he can make them for the next time I stop by.
Local expats drop by daily, especially in the afternoon, so you can have a chat and meet some other farangs.
I will put a page up with the menu soon.

December 20: Cold
It has been quite chilly here lately. It is 8:30 AM as I write this and the temp is 64. The other day when I woke up it was 58. That is super cold. On top of that it has been windy most days. If you are visiting or moving to this part of Thailand, you will want to have some long sleeved shirts, long trousers and a light jacket if you are coming this time of year.

December 19: Still Like It
Well I have been here in this small market town of Khukhan is Si Saket province for six months now. I love the area and, for a guy like me, it is much better than Bangkok. If you need your farang stuff, it might not be to your taste, but I have a need for piece and quiet and a lack of traffic.

November 30: Thanksgiving
We celebrated Thanksgiving last night - five days late but still fun. I found a place to buy turkeys and helped my wife cook it, even though I am a vegetarian. I also had pickup up other stuff - cranberries, stuffing and gravy - while in Bangkok.

November 4: Repairs are cheap
My pickup truck heated up badly today. It turned out there were several small holes in the radiator. I took it to a shop and the guy repaired it. The bill was $12. Now mind you, sometimes these folks don't do a great job, but usually mechanics here are OK. And you sure can't beat the price.

October 24: House
Still plugging away building the house. Hopefully we will be in there next month - meaning it will have taken us about twice as long as I figured. About par for the course here.

October 9: Busy is a four letter word
But this is what I have been. Most of it I enjoy. The new university I teach at in Si Saket has wonderfully nice students. I continue to be impressed with their manners (traditional Thai style) and desire to learn. It is a vast change from my experience in Bangkok. The pay, of course, isn't as good, but it is quite cheap to live here and there are far fewer hassles.

September 14: Rain, Rain Go Away
Man is this depressing. It has been raining for days. On those occasions when it stops, it is cloudy. Such weather has always depressed me. The temps are cool relatively speaking. Sometimes I feel downright cold. Yesterday it didn't even make it to 80 degrees.

I have continued to teach my son's first grade class every Monday for one hour and it has remained a pleasure.

September 5: Teaching Again
I am now teaching full time again. This time it is at a private college in Si Saket. The students are polite and most are motivated. While their English is not great, the experience so far has been positive.

August 23: Teaching Kids
Well, I taught kids for the first time yestereday. The idea of it had never appealed to me, but when my son's first grade teacher asked me to teach for an hour, I couldn't say no.

It was actually a pretty good experience. The kids were polite and motivated. I have a feeling that has a lot to do with the fact that they are rural kids who, in general, are more polite than their urban counterparts.

I was asked to come back every week and agreed to do it.

August 18: Internet in Rural Thailand
Surprizingly, here in the small town of Khukhan in N.E. Thailand, I have broadband internet and MOST of the time, it is far better than what I could get in Bangkok - and, when all factors are figured in, cheaper as well.

There are, however, many problems and some of them are frustrating. While I USUALLY get what I pay for, there are several days a week when the connection is much slower that it is supposed to be. Thre are also numerous hours where I can't connect at all.

Technical support is also poor, consisting of people not answering the phone, putting me on hold and never coming back, passing the buck or telling me to wait one hour and see if it is better.

My overall grade for the service is 6.5 out of 10 (with 10 representing proper international standards).

August 13: Rental House
Yes, the house we rent is adequate. I can't knock the price - 1,500 baht a month. The neighbors are friendly. I already mentioned the toilet and the leaky roof. It can handle an ordinary rain, but when we have a downpour, the water cascades in. Yes, I HAVE mentioned this to the landlord. But, afterall, this is Thailand and things get done ------- when they get done.

August 11: Slow going
Progress on the building of my house is slow. Very slow. Partly that's because of the rain and partly it's because it is rice planting season.

Meanwhile, I'm reasonably happy in this little rental house. Yes, it has a Thai style toilet and the roof leaks when it rains, but I can live with that.

What I AM looking forward to is more land so I can plant more vegetables.

August 2: A break
Well, it has been one of those times where I took a break from making entries. I vowed when I started this that I would never feel bad about it and I don't.

Life has gone on, with the main focus being getting the new house finished and keeping body and soul together with my meager income from the internet. One way we do that is through my wife Gin's website, so I will shamelessly plug it here. Please take a look.

I like life here in this small rural market town, but it is not for everybody. I know a guy in Bangkok that would last about two days. That's not a criticism because two days in Bangkok now is just about enough for me. Different strokes.

June 18: Westerners
I have seen a few western faces in Khukhan since I got here, but not many. I'm not sure whether any westerners live here or not. I wouldn't say I am lonely, but I would say I miss having native English speakers to talk to. I've been much better about emailing my friends lately and that helps.

June 8: Building a house in Thailand
How not to do it: Find a contractor and let him start building while you show up once in awhile to check to see how things are going (or worse, live a long ways away and only rarely check on things.). If you do it this way, there is a 99% chance you will be cheated and a 99% chance the materials and workmanship will be well below standard. There is a 75% chance you will have something(s) done totally differently than you expected. This isn't pessimism or cyncism, it is a fact.

How to do it: Find a Thai architect to do plans from your ideas. (This is not expensive.) Buy the building materials from outlets in large towns as near to you as you can. Buying them locally can cost you a fortune. Someone you trust (generally your wife) needs to go to those outlets with the big cheese in charge of building the house. Make 100% sure you are not buying too much of something (eg, floor tiles) because you can't return them in most cases. Someone (wife) has to be there when the stuff is delivered to check to make sure you get what you want and it is all there. Get and keep receipts for everything. Someone (wife) has to be at the property nearly all day every day to watch, check and listen.

No, I am not paranoid. I have built two houses in Thailand and have many friends who have built houses. Be warned!

This is going to be hard work for someone -- probably your wife. In fact, it is best if you keep your distance. Generally, a westerner hanging around around and especially getting angry and misunderstood will make thing worse. You will need to support you wife because she needs to be strong. Stronger than many (young?) Thai women are used to being. (I am expanding this entry into an article rather than continue it here. You can find it at Building A House In Thailand.)

June 7: Farang
A couple of thoughts on the word "farang" - which Thais use for Western foreigners (not Japanese, Chinese or other Asians).

First, it should be noted that the status of Western black people in terms of being a "farang" is unclear. I haven't ever heard "farang" with reference to a black person.

Second, the word can be offensive but most of the time it is meant quite harmlessly. Usually, I ignore it but sometimes it gets up my nose.

For the moment, I want to point out to any Thai who may be reading this, that my mother tongue is English - not farang. There is no language called farang - there is German, Polish, Italian, Russian and many others -- but not farang. No one on earth speaks the farang language. (French people speak "farang set." )

June 6: One horse town
Actually, I don't think Khukan has any horses. It has one bank, one post office and one traffic light though. There are never traffic jams. There are, however, long lines at certain places during certain periods of the day -- the town's two ATMs and the post office are the worst. However, there are often long waits at government offices.

June 4: Moving along
I have internet now -- high speed internet which works pretty well and is actually better than I had in Bangkok. We transferred our cable TV so it is the same as it was. However, with my new greatly reduced income, we will probably have to stop the premium service -- that means ESPN and CNN. Our 6 year old son Matthew has adjusted just fine to the house and new school.

June 1: Running on Steam
Well, we seem to be up and running here. One never knows about the internet, email and such things -- especially here in the jungle. But it is promising so far.

May 27: Movers and Shakers
Tomorrow the movers are coming.

Tomorrow night we will camp out at the house and then Sunday go to the market to get some western food that can't be found anywhere near where we will live. Yes, sometimes I do need a dose of western eats.

Then we will head up the road for the new challenge.

We're supposed to get internet installed on Wednesday, but being Thailand, keep in mind they didn't say which Wednesday of which month or even which year.

May 11: I'm All Set
The last time I was in Khukan I spent my first night in our funky little house. I was sleeping upstairs where, of course, there is no bathroom. I generally have to go to the toilet a couple of times during the night. The stairs to the toilet downstairs are treacherous -- steep and small -- resembling a ladder more than stairs.

I determined that I needed to do something about that. The next day I bought pot. That night when I went to bed, I took the pot with me. I was all set and now can rest assured that, as a matter of actual fact, I have a pot to pee in.

May 8: Weather
If you visit my Homepage, you will notice the weather gizmo now reflects the weather in Khukan (actually Ubon Ratchathani, the nearest city -- about 50 miles away).

The weather is hotter than Bangok this time of year but the heat index is lower and it actually cools off a tad at night. The weather in the rainy season can be cool and in the "winter" it is almost chilly in the morning.

May 1: So, I'm Moving
When?
The end of May.

Why?
I am not a city boy but I have lived in Bangkok for over 10 years. Doing anything here is monumentally difficult. Even if I didn't have had job, it is hard work, replete with pollution, crowds, dangerous drivers and more, just to live here. At first it was tolerable, now it isn't.

Where?
Khukan in Si Saket Province. The Northeast part of Thailand near Cambodia. 300 miles from Bangkok. This is the REAL Thailand. Yes, it is poor and suffers from droughts and floods routinely. In spite of that, the longsuffering farmers of this little piece of the planet are laid back and fun loving.

For now we will live in a small rental house while we look for something more permanent. The rent is $35 a month.

Work?
I have several baskets. Most of them are small - like the website editing I do for a couple of people. There are other baskets, but they are in need of repair and only have a couple of eggs in them. Because of those simple and fragile baskets, I know the move is right. But more importantly, I have received several signs from the Lord and go into this with virtually no trepidation at all.

Yes, teaching is a potential basket but I have put no eggs in it yet. I will probably be very fussy about how much importance I place on that basket and how many eggs, if any, I put in it.

April 25: Another Load to Khukan
In a couple of days we taking another pickup truck load of stuff to Khukan. As a temporary stoop to leave our shoes in front of, we have rented a nice little house for $35 a month. Yes, it has a Thai style toilet, shower and kitchen. I've been there and done that and didn't mind it even a little. I may find squatting a little harder than 10 years ago, but it will be good for my flexibility.

April 15: Country Roads
I am not a city person. For all practical purposeds, Bangkok is the only city I have ever lived in. While it is not without its problems, as a city, it is vibrant, exciting and has a lot to offer.

At least two of my friends have told me they don't know how I will be able to stand living in the small town of Khukan. Frankly, I don't know how they stand living in Bangkok. Visit Bangkok. Absolutely. Live in Bangkok. No thanks. That's not to say anything personal about my friends. By the same token, I don't take it personally when they say they couldn't stand living in Khukan.

April 8: Thai Diaper System
Here, 99% of the time we don't use diapers and half the time kids run around totally naked or naked from the waste down. They do their duty where they will. It's easy enough to clean up. Since beds are not all that common, it doesn't matter much if the baby soils the blanket or pad they are sleeping on. It is easily washed. When a friend happens to be holding a baby who proceeds to pee pee or poo poo on him, there is great laughter, especially by the victim. Lest you think the Thai system is totally ecologically friendly, a compromise IS in order when visiting a hotel. Alas, disposable diapers are often used.

Perhaps most of this comes down to the weather.

March 29: The Fat Lady Starts to Sing
I gave the university I teach at notice that I would not be renewing my contract. That means my responsibilities there will end May 31. It has been a good run, but it is time to start a new chapter.

March 12: The Fat Lady is About to Sing
There's very good chance that my university teaching days are coming to a close. Burn out has set in. I won't go into details because it would be too much like complaining. Heck, it would be complaining. The move would be to the boondocks but this time a town -- Khukan -- not a village -- Ban Sakool. This time there are more baskets and more eggs. The light at the end of the tunnel has been switched on. More baskets and eggs as well as a brighter light would be nice. But I'm 95% sure I'm going to give her a go.

March 8: Utilize Sutalize
Could we please stop USING the word UTILIZE when the word USE is perfectly adequate? I mean why oh why do we need this puffed up language? Consider this sentence from a description of a software program. "This program is software that utilizes your unused CPU power to aid in medical research." Why doesn't it just jolly well UTILIZE the UNUTILIZED CPU power?

March 7: Going Postal
People can say what they will about the Thai Post Office. I will remember that a letter addressed exactly as below reached me.

Zeizing, Mike
POB1 U of Thai, COC
PO Bangkok 10325 Thai

There is almost nothing about this that is correct, including my name. God knows how they figured out that COC means Chamber of Commerce -- especially when they don't even use the same script that we do. But they did!

February 22: Writers
At couple of writers who were very important in the past to me died recently -- Arthur Miller and Hunter S. Thompson. Miller, in particular, influenced my life and helped me get interested in literature. I first read him as a freshman at Yuba College in Marysville, California in 1965. A lovely older lday (probably about my age now that I think of it) taught the class. She also introcued me to Thomas Wolffe and Ernest Hemingway.

February 11: Tunnels, Switches and Baskets
At birth, everyone is assigned a tunnel. Later in life we have to find that tunnel, and then the light switch. It is very important to bring some baskets. We need more than one. While in the tunnel, we are afforded the chance to pick up eggs. We can't see them unless we've turned on the switch ourselves. As we collect the eggs, we must remember not to put them all in one basket.

February 5: Kids and Sleep
I'm kind of mystified by why Americans insist that it is important that kids go to sleep in their own beds, in their own rooms, at specified times.

Here, kids sleep in their folks' beds until the bed gets too small. After that, they sleep in their folks bedrooms until they want to sleep somewhere else, and assuming there is somewhere else.

My son Matthew (soon to be 6) sleeps in our bedroom but in his "tent." We have another bedroom, but it is beyond me why I should force him to sleep there alone.

As for waking up. Kids wake up when their parents tell them to. Usually this is because they have to go to school. If they don't like it, they wake up anyway. This, by the way, is a great way to help them go to sleep at a reasonable hour.

January 30: An Old Friend
I heard from a dear friend the other day -- someone I hadn't been in touch with for some time. She wondered, among other things, whether I had gone to the next place. I haven't, but I am making serious moves in that direction; the direction of Si Saket - Khukan.

She told me my cat Nick, who became her cat Nick when I came to Thailand, had died; at the ripe age of 18. Jeez, he was a great guy.

I told her my dog Blind Whitey had died. The best dog I ever had. Born blind, he never needed the services of a seeing eye human. Heck, the only way you knew he was blind was that he sometimes ran into things. He had the most beautiful blue eyes you ever saw. He housebrock himself. Only had one or two accidents in the house when he was a pup. I expect he's hanging out with Nick in the Happy Hunting Ground.

January 8: The M Word
Supposedly, John Barry said something along these lines. I can tell you in one word why the human race never has, and never will, make any progress. That word is "meetings."

Hyperbole perhaps, but a nugget of truth regardless of who said it. I detest meetings. Most people go to hear themselves babble. The Thai staff at the university I teach at adores meetings. While many of the ex-pat teachers allege a distaste for meetings, once there, they talk too damned much. One ex-pat teacher actually RELISHES meetings! For heaven's sakes he PREPARES for them -- sending out memos, outlines, proposals, manifestoes, pronunciamentoes and promptings. Derisory! And once the meeting commences, he holds forth. He pontificates. He lectures, requests and even occasionally asks questions. This is folderol. If one is trapped or cornered or duped into enduring a meeting, there is only one rule. SAY NOTHING!

Supposedly, John Donne stated something about life and sound and fury and it all signifying nothing. I don't know about that. I do know meetings signify nothing. Accomplish nothing. Mean nothing. And change nothing.

January 1: Party Time?
I've never been much of a party person. The older I get, the less I like parties. I'm not crazy about going to expat parties and I especially don't like Thai parties. The most uncomfortable ones for me are at the University I teach at. I go to great lengths to avoid them. First, they don't involve any alcohol. Second, they usually involve some silly embarrassing games or karaoke that I would hate even if I could get a beer. Last, people are so unbelievably nice and helpful that it makes me squirm. I can choose my own food thanks and yes, I do know that is fried rice. No I didn't try the pork. I'm a vegetarian. No. Really. I'd rather not play musical chairs. God bless party goers of all stripes, but I prefer to stay home. That's where I spent New Year's Eve.

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