Hi,
We had another beautiful weekend in paradise. If you consider paradise very hot with thunderstorms and aftershocks. (555) Seriously though, it was great weather.
The 'Old School Friday' song was "Do You Love Me (Now that I can Dance)?" by The Contours. Now you know.
Time for 'Easy Monday' and a song that everyone should know: "__ on a Sunday afternoon. Really, couldn't get away too soon. I can't imagine anything that's better, the world is ours whenever we're together. There ain't a place I'd like to be instead of __..." Hint: One word describing a mellow time.
On Saturday, Cat returned to Chiang Rai from her village. I picked her up at the Song Taew 'Terminal' in the big market. It's a little parking lot where all of the covered pickup trucks with benches in the back, stage for trips to various parts of town. Most of them go to distant areas, providing cheap transportation for shoppers. Cat was happy to return, with just one week before school starts, it's time to get into 'school mode'. She had many stories to tell regarding the earthquake and how it impacted her village. Many people lost their homes, her old school was damaged, and it will be a long time before things return to normal.
There have been over 500 aftershocks from the earthquake, and it's not over yet. There is no 'getting used to it' when it comes to your world being shaken. For many, this is an experience far beyond their understanding. The quake 3 years ago was centered in Burma, just across the border. There were some aftershocks, but they were not as heavy and didn't last this long. Having grown up in an area of the world where we were taught about quakes and safety, it is not as mysterious. Hopefully, there will be a new understanding for the need to educate the population.
Saturday was also a day for house repairs. Khun Mahn brought a crew and they set up scaffolding so he could seal the upstairs studio windows and begin the roof inspection. I was just glad he brought steel instead of bamboo. There is nothing more precarious looking than two stories of bamboo with men climbing around on it. On Sunday they returned and made some adjustments to the roof tiles. We've had two big rains since then with no leaks.
Saturday afternoon we went to an annual membership meeting at Art Bridge, where we got a financial report and elected the chairman of the board. Cat went with us and served as translator, which was a great help. Everything was in Thai and we would have been lost. It was good to see some of our artist friends and find out about plans for the future.
Sunday was an election day in local politics. It's interesting to note that during voting hours, the sale of alcohol is prohibited in Thailand. Hmm, good idea. The streets of Chiang Rai will be a little quieter with the election over. Over the last month there were many 'sound trucks' slowly driving around town with posters for candidates and recorded messages blasting into the neighborhoods. The trucks will still be around, selling products, but there will be less noise.
The parade of dump trucks carrying dirt has not stopped. In fact, it seems like we're seeing more of them. It struck me today that a lot of dirt has been moved around this city over the last year. It's pretty amazing when you consider that most of the dirt is going to fill in what was once a farm of some sort. Ah, the price of progress.
Have a Great Week.
Peace,
Danny
is probably the work you should be doing
for the rest of your life."
~Jessica Hische
Gettin' Funky, Thai Style
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