Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Powerless

Hi,

It looks like we’ve made it through the first day with no dramatic visits from Mr. Lag.  We went out into the world and realized so much had changed.  

The ‘Easy Monday’ on Tuesday song was “I Can’t Help Myself” by The Four Tops.  ‘Zany Day’ is an easy Holiday tune.  “__ __ __-__ __, has a very shiny nose.  And if you ever saw him, you would even say it glows…”  Hint:  It’s about a magical creature.  

The funny thing about returning to the states is that most of my observations are things that most of you already know about.  Since it’s really about the contrasts, I will press on.  For instance, when we parked the car on a busy street, there was no parking lady to collect our 12 Baht.  Instead, we had to go to a machine, tell it our space number, and insert coins into the machine.  We paid the machine twice as much for a limited time, rather than ‘as long as you need’.

I will never complain about the traffic in our little city again.  There are so many cars and they basically move in such an organized, civil way that it was like we had been delivered to ‘polite land’.  I started imagining how it would be if the driving habits from Chiang Rai were transported to the West Side.  There would be sheer chaos, with cars turning left in front of you, not stopping at stop signs, turning corners without stopping, and driving the wrong way down the street.  Oh, and let’s not forget the motorbikes gathering at the front as the cars wait for the green light, or the bikes that leave on the red, knowing the light will change soon.  Hmm, how do we do it?

One of our ‘trips’ was to the Sprouts store, where there is a lot of ‘healthy’ food.  As soon as we walked in we went to the bread section, looking for real rye bread.  Imagine my reaction when I had to walk past the holiday cookies, cupcakes and muffins in order to reach the bread.  Pure cruelty I tell you.  A deep breath and it passed.  

We had dinner with most of the Karp family.  C-Bass was out with friends, but our dinner was great.  Anna made a dish that I could eat, consisting of spaghetti squash and ground turkey in tomato sauce.  That’s a recipe we will be taking home.  During dinner we started coming up with more ideas for meals and treats to replace the things I like to snack on.  Life just might not end after all (555).

Today’s photo was probably not meant to be funny, but to the Western mind that’s old enough to get it, it’s very funny.  There is a code on the ticket that reads: ETKT.  Translation:  E-Ticket.  There were moments when it was that kind of ride.


It’s gonna be a Wacky Wednesday.

                 Peace,
                           Danny

“Do not get upset with people 
or situations, both are powerless
without your reaction.”
~Unknown

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