Words

Hi,

Everywhere we go it’s hot.  Bangkok was in the mid-90s, Chiang Rai is in the mid to high 90s with very nasty air.  Patiently waiting for rain.

The ‘Old School Friday’ tune was “Stay” by Maurice Williams and The Zodiacs.  Here’s an ‘Easy Monday’ tune that has been a winner for years.  “__ __ __ __ __, the rain is gone.  I can see all obstacles in my way.  Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind.  It's gonna be a bright, bright Sun-Shiny day.”  Hint:  See, I told you it was easy.

First, some of you may have noticed that I neglected to post a photo in the Friday message.  The curious thing is, no one mentioned it, which makes me wonder if you even read this (555).  I know you do because you thank me for the cash prizes (5).  Anyway, here’s the one I was going to send on Friday before I got distracted with the trip.

Our flight to Bangkok was pretty routine, although we did see a bunch of ArtBridge guys at the airport in Chiang Rai, on their way to BKK for the same exhibit.  Our friends Nita and James had made arrangements for their driver, Khun Boonrit, to pick us up at the airport, and that was much nicer than a taxi.  Since it was lunch time by the time we got to their house, the four of us went to a place simply named “Chicken and Rice”.  It’s a traditional Singaporian dish and this place had quite a following.  We even took some home for a late snack.  After lunch we had a foot massage and then relaxed until time for the exhibit.

We used a service called ‘Grab’ to get to the exhibit.  It’s very much like Uber, and it worked well for us.  Khun Somluk’s exhibit was held at a small complex of three galleries.  ‘Artist+Run’ was the gallery with Somluk’s work.  The title of the show was ‘Courage in Clay’ and consisted of large canvases using clay as the medium.  He literally painted with clay, using different kinds of brushes.  The work is abstract and the various clay tones gave it a sort of magnetic quality.  It was hard to look away as the browns and grays played tricks on the eyes.  I wish the gallery was closer so we could visit the exhibit more.  

Construction is an ongoing reality in Bangkok and most cities.  What surprised me was the giant cranes working on Sunday.  Seven days a week there was work going on near where we stayed.  We couldn’t hear it, but I watched the crane moving around high atop the building.  I wonder how they get the crane down when they’re done.  Hmm.  Anyway, at some point on the horizon, you can see construction happening.  Where there is construction there are workers, and they are not always Thai.  Apparently it is a common practice to bring in workers from Burma, and house them in makeshift dwellings for the duration of the job.  Zoning is seemingly non-existant, which doesn’t always sit well with the neighbors.

On Sunday morning Juan, the osteopath, came to the house and James and Nita had him work on my back, and it turned out to be very beneficial.  In the afternoon we got to swim and that was great.  In the evening we went to a place called ‘Common Ground’, which has maybe 10 or 12 different food outlets.  You order at a counter and then sit in a common area.  We’d been there once before and it’s fun.  You can mix your meal to suit your taste.  There was a DJ playing some very cool stuff and it added to the ambience.  I’m pretty sure we were the oldest folks in the place, but it didn’t matter, I was diggin’ it.

This morning Khun Boonrit took us back to the airport and after we checked in, we went to our gate and were surprised to see the parents of our friend Atom waiting for their flight home.  They had been in BKK for the week. We had the longest visit we’ve ever had with them (all in Thai), saw pics of their grand-kids and had a chummy time.  

Daku and Chopper gave us warm welcomes.  Chopper has changed in the three days since we’ve been gone.  He wasn’t as bitey and he responded better to our commands (to not attack Daku).  Everything was a little less urgent, which is good for Daku.  It’s good to be home.

Have a Great Week.

                     Peace,

                               Danny

“No matter what people tell you,

words and ideas can change the world.”

~Robin Williams