Soften

Hi,

The weekend in Chiang Rai was just like every other day last week.  There is an odd cloud cover that comes in the afternoon, but it never brings rain.  

The ‘Old School Friday’ song was “So Fine” by The Fiestas.  Here’s a clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAGUvYWifPE   It’s ‘Easy Monday’ time.  “I’ve paid my dues, time after time.  I’ve done my sentence, but committed no crime.  And bad mistakes, I’ve made a few.  I’ve had my share of sand kicked in my face, but I’ve come through.  And we mean to go on and on and on and on.  __ __ __ __ my friends, and we’ll keep on fighting till the end….”  Hint:  Although it didn’t start out as one, it has become an anthem for many sports teams.

The weekend activities were basically around art and nature.  Good stuff to be surrounded by these days.  Friday night we went to Art Bridge for an opening of a large group show.  Many in the group were the ‘senior’ members of the art community.  For the sake of balance, they held a workshop for young artists and some of their work was also featured in the exhibit.  In one of the conversations that evening, we learned that the first round of little painted elephants had one showing in Bangkok and then went into storage.  Apparently a company in the U.S. got a copyright on painted elephants and sent a letter to the promoters, warning them of infringement.  What?  How dare they?  There have been lawyers and letters and a lot of blah, blah.  The new ‘999 Elephants’ exhibit is a bit of a protest.  More will be revealed.

Saturday we had a bit of a reunion with our friend Bpooi, who we met at the Night Bazaar when we first arrived in Thailand.  She and her husband Jimmy moved to Australia, but have recently returned to stay.  She has a little tea shop very close to us.  We went back on Sunday with one of Lisa’s paintings and she has it on the wall.  Her mom gave us the baby banana tree that has produced so many new plants.  It’s nice to have her back in our lives.

Sunday morning we went to Chivit Tamma Da and just hung out for a while.  There is something about sitting under huge trees, watching the river that has a calming effect.  

Throughout most of the weekend my mind was occupied with thoughts about a pending surgical procedure that I have to have for a hernia.  Being around friends, and hanging in natural settings has been good.  This morning we went to our local hospital to see a doctor for a consultation.  He confirmed that surgery was needed, but told us that I could have a laparoscopic method performed in Chiang Mai.  They don’t do it in Chiang Rai.  Wednesday we’ll take the bus to Chiang Mai for an appointment at the Hospital there. My mind is more at ease knowing it will be less painful and I’ll have a shorter recovery time.  Sometimes quieting the mind is a full-time job.

This afternoon we went to get our bus ticket, but forgot that they have torn down the bus station.  We got there and found a tiny little temporary ‘box’ for the Green Bus company.  The traffic was intense as buses, Tuk-Tuks, and Song Taews all jockeyed for position on a one lane strip of the parking lot.  Some of the buses are real antiques.  Lisa got the tickets while Blue and I made our way through the lot to the street and back for another round of crazy. 

Our reward for enduring the bus station was a trip to ‘The Wanderer’.  Our Doi Chaang friends are still working on things like the kitchen and the coffee shop, but the ‘forest’ area and the gardens are close to being finished.   It’s like visiting a forest on the edge of town.  Khun Noot took us to another plot of land where she grows fruits and vegetables.  Rows of lemon and lime trees, a tree with giant papayas, and things we don’t know made it feel like we were on a farm.  We met a man who helped Khun Witcha when he started planting the trees 30 years ago.  He is a forester and has been helping Noot with the project.  Today’s photo is an incredible palm of some kind.

Have a Great Week.

                Peace,

                          Danny

“Acquaintance softens prejudice.”

~Aesop