Enjoy

Hi,

We had another one of those 'special' days here in Chiang Rai. One might even call it 'epic'. We sipped coffee to the sound of firecrackers, received a gift New Years Dim Sum, and met the Director of the Ministry of Tourism in the office of the Governor.

The 'Easy' song was "You Really Got a Hold On Me" by The Miracles. Yeah, you knew that. (Ha) It's time, once again, to trip back to 1967 and the 'Summer of Love'. "I used to get mad in my school (No, I can't complain), holding me down, turning me round, filling me up with your rules. I've got to admit it's __ __ ..." Clue: It's from a monumental album by a major quartet from across the pond. Something has improved.

This morning we set out with a list of things to do and places to go for promotion of the art exhibit. After mailing catalogues to Lisa's dad and my mom, we went to Connect Cafe for a cup, and to see if they'd hang a poster. While we were having our coffee, two strings of firecrackers were set off. They each lasted about 30 seconds and the way they're made, there's always an extra big one at the end. All around town we could see little pieces of red paper, the aftermath of the excitement.

Our next stop was Sahapaiboon, to see our friends Atom, Jah, and Thoe. We sat in an office with Atom, and her mom came in with a bowl of Dim Sum for us to take home. We also were given some oranges.

As we were leaving Sahapaiboon we got a call from Jaffee. He was on his way to the Governor's office and needed more posters and catalogues. I made a U turn and we headed towards our side of town. As we approached the building, Jaffee merged onto the road right in front of us so we followed him in. First we went to the office of the Director of the Ministry of Tourism. He's a very cordial man with a great sense of humor. He led us upstairs to the office of the Governor. It seemed that he'd just left, but we met his secretary and his brother. We stood around talking, and taking pictures. Then we went to another office that turned out to be the Provincial radio station. We met the man in charge and he told us they would be plugging the show in the afternoon every day. This was a lot more than we expected and we're very grateful for all the attention. They gave Lisa an official letter that was basically saying the the Governor accepted and would be there on the opening.

We were glowing as we drove back downtown to meet with Kevin. He and Rachel (who designed the posters) are going to distribute some posters around town. We connected at Doi Chaang for a brief visit and then went home for lunch. What a busy morning.

The afternoon was spent on more practical, every day stuff. Buying garden hose, renewing insurance, and picking up another fan that had been repaired. The hose buying experience is worth mentioning because hoses aren't sold like they are in the states. You buy what you need. There are no fitted ends, you do that yourself. I needed 50 meters so the guys checked the weight of a full roll. That weight was then halved and they unwound hose and placed it on a scale until they got the right weight. Hmm, a novel approach but it worked. Now all I have to do is put my little system together and water the front lawn.

As I write, there are firecrackers going off behind the house, a bass is thumping somewhere in the distance, and the New Year is about to explode in Chiang Rai.

It's sure to be a Wacky Wednesday.

Peace,
Danny

"Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things."
~Unknown

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