Discontent

Hi,

That pitiful forecast for rain was just that.  My theory is that if it’s less than a 60% possibility, it’s not going to happen.  My bookie agrees (555).

The ‘Middle Song’ was easily recognized by a few readers.  I know that more of you know this tune.  Here’s the third verse:  “Ha!  They say that I won’t last too long __ __ (__ __).  I’ll catch a Greyhound bus for home, they all say (__ __).  But oh, they’re dead wrong, I know they are, ‘cause I can play this here guitar, and I won’t quit ’til I’m a star __ __ (__ __).  Clue:  We’ve gone from the roof to under the boardwalk with this group and they’ve never let us down.  The subject of this song is where we can see some musical theater.  

It occurred to me that since I wear a mask everywhere I go, there is no need to shave.  As long as it doesn’t become a beard that breaks the feeble seal the mask provides, who cares?  Actually, it gets uncomfortable after several days and I shave anyway, in desperation.  Lisa stopped putting on lipstick for the same reason, plus, it gets all over the inside of the mask.  I can’t recall the show, but I remember a recent sci-fi show that had a virtual mask that would protect the face, but was invisible.  Now that’s pretty cool.

Every 90 days we have to check in with the immigration office to confirm our residence.  The time was approaching,  and we were told that we’d have to do it using an ‘app’ provided by immigration.  The app wasn’t working so we found a form on the internet.  After a call to our local office, they told us to mail the form to the Mae Sai office.  We took the completed forms to the post office and discovered a drive-through service.  Great idea in these times.  After we got home, Lisa saw an alert in the Bangkok Post stating that they had extended the check-in period to the end of the month.  Oh well, it’s done.

In today’s photo I’d like to introduce you to another little friend.  He lives in our bathroom and seems to like it there, although I don’t think he can get out on his own.  He’s about 3 inches long.

This afternoon we went to Mae Chan to see Dr. Mark.  We were both moaning around the house with aches and things.  Most of it brought on by our lovable ‘puppy’.  We firmly believe that the outburst will cease once the cone is gone.  Anyway, we had some interesting conversations about life changes from a doctors perspective.  You can know something, like the tension that must be in a doctors life, but until you see it in the face and hear it in the voice, it doesn’t mean the same.  All health care workers are living in fear, even if they do manage to suppress it.  Much respect must be given to these heroes.

So, here we sit in isolation, caring, worrying about family and friends.  Multiply that around the world.

Have a Thrilling Thursday.

                       Peace,

                                 Danny

“Discontent is the first necessity

of progress.”

~Thomas A. Edison

Vision

Hi,

Our Wednesday was another one of those brutally hot days.  The air got a little better, meaning it moved to ‘Unhealthy’ from “Very Unhealthy."  We’re all getting a buzz just imagining that it will rain tomorrow.  There is an even greater chance for Sunday showers.  

The ‘Easy Monday’ song was “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” by The Supremes, and covered by Vanilla Fudge among others.  This week’s ‘Middle Song’ may bring back memories:  “They say the neon lights are bright __ __ (__ __).

They say there’s always magic in the air.  (__ __).  But when you’re walkin’ down the street, and you ain’t had enough to eat, the glitter rubs right off, and you’re nowhere.  (__ __).”  Hint:  Song is about a famous street in a famous city.  It’s sung by a group with many hit tunes to their credit.  The cover was by a guitarist-turned-singer.

Things have really changed around here.  Our airport now has only 1 flight per day going to Bangkok and nowhere else.  The buses no longer run between Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai, and you have to have a very good reason to be on the highway in a private vehicle.  This morning we went to Top’s Market at the mall. They take your temperature then give you a cloth face mask if you don’t have one.  They also have a shallow box that you step into to disinfect the bottom of your shoes.  Hmm.  After we picked up a few things, we noticed the escalator was moving up towards the main floor of the mall.  Being adventurous, we got on, just to see what was happening.  It was mostly closed stores and counters.  A few restaurants were open, only for people picking up take-out orders.  The cell phone providers were open as well as Power Buy, a smaller version of Best Buy in the States.  

Today’s photo was taken at Centra Plaza Mall.  Say ‘Hello’ to my little friend, made from Spanish Moss.

Last night we talked with Cat.  She’s isolated in her new apartment.  There is a ‘7-11’ in front of her apartment building, and take-out nearby.  She spends a lot of time with Netflix and texting with her friends from school.  Her year of practice teaching has been postponed until it’s safe for Thailand to reopen schools, which means she doesn’t know.  The biggest problem with all of this is the delay of her graduation until the ‘practice’ year is done.  She told us that her sister is staying in her little house in the village, and that she likes to go into the forest and collect things to eat.  Everything from bamboo to greens to fish is available.  It’s very handy to know how to gather from the forest when your job is gone.

It feels like a Wacky Wednesday.

                            Peace,

                                      Danny

“Where there is no vision,

there is no hope.”

~George Washington Carver

Misery

Hi,

We made it the the triple digit temp today.  I hardly noticed since I stayed inside.  The latest forecast for rain is 40% on Thursday.  Hmm, not holding my breath, but remaining hopeful.

‘Easy Monday’ was a slow day.  A few of you knew it right away.  The song opens with a ‘Morse Code’ figure on guitar.  Today’s lines are from the second half of the second verse.  The last line is one of those ‘sing-along’ fun lines.

“You say although we broke up, you still just wanna be just friends.  But how can we still be friends, when seeing you only breaks my heart again?  And there ain’t nothin’ I can do about it.  Whoa-whoa-whoa, set me free, why don’t you, baby?….”  Clue:  Five words in the title implying that the ex is ‘stringing her along’.  

We had every intention of going to Top’s today, but got sidetracked babysitting JaiDee.  He was in a very loving mood, but didn’t want to take his usual morning nap.  If we just left him with Natcha, she would have been interrupted from her work.  These days, nothing is so pressing that it can’t be done the next day, he said (555).

An interesting thing is happening here in our area.  While there is no national 24 hour curfew as yet, rumors are flying that there is one in place.  Because some communities function with a certain autonomy, a village west of town has been put under a curfew because they had three positive tests for the virus.  The head of the village declared the shutdown, which seems to be the best way to stop the spreading.  It’s a pretty bold move, showing a lot of initiative.  We don’t know how long the village will be isolated.

We have two contacts at local hospitals that we stay in touch with and neither hospital has had any cases of covid-19.  The few cases reported in Chiang Rai province are all being treated at the government hospital downtown.  

Before things got serious with this pandemic, someone mentioned that money was something that no one talked about in terms of passing on the virus.  Before there was a virus, Gong was washing his money.  He is a very clean guy.  Now it has relevance.  Today’s photo is money drying on the kitchen faucet.

Have a Happy Tuesday.  

                          Peace,

                                    Danny

“When will our consciences grow so

tender that we will act to prevent

human misery rather than avenge it?"

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Pretend

Hi,

The weather has been the same:  Super hot.  We have been getting ‘threats’ of rain, with the percentages getting higher into this coming week.  Maybe this is worthy of a betting pool (555).  

The ‘Old School Friday’ song was “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes.  It was covered by the group Simply Red.  This next one will be an ‘Easy Monday’ everybody should know (555).  “Set me free, why don’t you, baby?  Get out my life, why don’t you, baby?  ‘Cause you don’t really love me, __ __ __ __ __ __

You don’t really need me, but __ __ __ __ __.”  Hint:  Original recording was by three young women.  The title is 5 words, but the first time it is sung and extra word was added for emphasis.  It was 1966, somewhere in Detroit.  The cover recording took the song to a new dimension and became a hit.  Group name is a confection.

Life behind the walls is not so different these days than before the self-isolation.  The only difference is, there’s no place to go.  It should be noted that ‘life behind the walls’ is also a term used for living in prison.  Hmm, I suppose one might liken this to that.  We do get to visit the outside world if it’s important enough.

Today it was important to leave the compound.  We needed supplies from Browney Pet World.  JaiDee, also known as ‘Wild Thing’, ‘Big Head’, and other terms of endearment, needs lots of treats while he’s wearing his ‘accessory’.  The doc ordered another week of the cone to keep him from hurting himself.  He’s still being a mix of sweet dog and handful.  

We made a second trip to The Wanderer to pick up our special order of chicken curry puffs.  It was like days of the speak easy.  We drove up to the kitchen door and the small box of puffs was handed to us through a partially opened gate.  We paid online so there was no exchange of money.  The main gate was closed and it was a very sad sight.  

There are little things that make this whole thing bearable.  Today’s photo is one of those moments.  Nitchanan and I hanging out.  She pretended to talk on Natcha’s phone, and then typed in the code and unlocked it and went to her video section.  Four going on fourteen.

Have a Great Week.  Wash your hands.

                         Peace,

                                   Danny

“People discuss my art and pretend

to understand, as if it were necessary

to understand, when it’s simply

necessary to love.”

~Claude Monet

Friday Funnies

Hi,

The temperature was very hot today.  It’s like that every day.  The air is still ‘soupy’ and a weird gray/orange color. We did find a place to go and get away from it all.  It’s called The Big Brown House.

The ‘Middle/Zany Day’ song was “With A Little Help From My Friends” by The Beatles, and covered by Joe Cocker.

That brings us to ‘Old School Friday’ and a song that some of you may remember:  “__ __ __ __ __ __ __, you will never, never, never know me.  All the things that we’ve been through, you should understand me like I understand you.  Now, girl I know the difference between right and wrong, I ain’t gonna do nothing to break up our happy home.

Oh, don’t get so excited when I come  home a little late at night, ‘cause we only act like children when we argue fuss and fight.  __ __ __ __ __ __ __, you will never, never, never know me…”  Hint: It’s an R&B ballad by a group that was led by a singer who didn’t sing lead, but got lead billing.  The color blue is involved in their name and the cover was by a group whose name was based on the color of the singers hair.  The song is about having an understanding of one’s partner after a long period of time.  Whew.  

Here we are, at the end of another week of so-called ‘isolation’.  We went out again today to pick up an inflatable color to try on JaiDee.  Our friend Lisa was waiting for us in the driveway, and held the bag with a tissue, trying to be extra careful.  On the way home, we went on a little adventure.  The bypass highway on the western side of town has been finished for some time, but we’d never taken it.  Today I found some courage and we took the turn onto the big new road.  It takes a little longer to get home, but there were hardly any cars and we saw countryside that was new to us.  We could have taken this road all the way to the airport, but that’s another story.

When we got home, I inflated the collar and Lisa put it on JaiDee.  Needless to say, he didn’t like the idea and it was off in under 2 minutes.  Back to square one and the big plastic cone from hell.  

This afternoon we hung out with our friend John, using FaceTime.  We talked for an hour and a half about everything under the sun.  You could say we had some catching up to do.  While discussing the options for getting food and deliveries, he told us that Food Panda and Grab could not deliver to their house because they are just off the grid for Google maps, which is their guide to the city.  There is a dirt road that put them out of bounds in some way.  We’re going to try and meet on a more regular basis since we have no where to go.

Today’s photo is a place we really miss.  The Wanderer is closed for now, but making special ‘Curry Puffs’ that we will be enjoying next week.  Just wish we could eat them in the woods.  

There are many place we liked to visit that may not be back.  The economic ripples from the pandemic are hard to foresee, but it’s becoming obvious that a lot of small businesses will not be able to return.  We’ll support the ones who do because they have become friends.  

Have a Wonderful WeekEnd.        Time for the ‘Funnies’. 

                        Peace,

                                  Danny

Nature

Hi,

Another bad day in Smogville.  It was so bad that my right eye had a hangover from yesterday and has been stinging all day.  I took out my contact but that didn’t help.  Writing this without the aid of my super eyes.  My editor swears she will make it look like nothing is rong (555).

This week’s ‘Middle Song’ was familiar to a few of you.  I’m guessing you’re holding back (555).  Let’s take it to the bridge:  “Do you need anybody?  I need somebody to love.  Could it be anybody?  I want somebody to love.  Would you believe in a love at first sight?  Yes, I’m certain that it happens all the time.  What do you see when you turn out the light?  I can’t tell you but I know it’s mine.  Oh, I get by __ __ __ __ __ __ __…”  Clue:  The cover artist was a part of a pack of mad dogs, or so it is told.  The song title is about surviving with the assistance of ones comrades.  (Once you get the title, you’ll see how hard the clues are to make up.)

As planned, we went to Top’s this morning.  They have a new thing they do.  After they scan your forehead and certify that you have no elevated temp, you put a tiny orange sticker on you so they know you’ve been checked.  I guess in case of a wild ‘outbreak’ in the store, they can chase down the person without the sticker.  I know, but things are so heavy these days.  We shopped and left without incident.  On the way home we stopped at the pharmacy for a few things and got home before lunch.  Now we're home.

Well, we have a little trip to make in the morning.  Our friend Lisa has an inflatable cone-type device that might fit JaiDee and be less of a hazard.  We’ll drive out to her house and pick it up in the most careful fashion.

The latest news from here is that the nation is now under a curfew from 10pm to 4am daily.  It doesn’t mean much for us, just that we’ll have to creep home after the late night parties (555).  The 4am part is because this is an agricultural region and a lot of people get up early to begin their work day.  There are also travel restrictions between provinces and some provinces will not accept visitors at all.  Strange times are upon us.  

Today was moving day for Cat.  She found an apartment off the Super Highway that sounds like a good situation.  The landlords live on the premises and she felt very comfortable with them.  I’m not sure how she will move everything she has with a couple of motorbikes, but I’m sure she’s figured it out.  One of the ‘features’ that she mentioned to us was the wall separating the shower from the rest of the bathroom.  In some apartments it’s just one big room.  When you take a shower, the whole room gets wet.  We spent the night in a hotel in Bangkok years ago, with that kind of set-up and it came as a big, wet surprise.

Here is a memory from December of 2015.  Notice the blue sky.  The ultralights have not been seen this year.  Poor visibility I suppose.

Nitchanan has added to her ‘Goodbye’ by adding, ‘See you later’.  Little kids like to have little signature greetings and partings.  Her goodbye is growing.  For weeks it was ‘Bye Bye’, in various silly voices.  Now it’s a sentence, said not once, but repeated as often as you are willing to indulge her by sending it back.  What a joy during captivity.

Have a Thrilling Thursday.

                         Peace,

                                   Danny

“Nature is the source of all true

knowledge.  She has her own logic,

her own laws, she has no effect

without cause nor invention without

necessity.”

~Leonardo da Vinci

Popcorn

Hi,

The temperatures went even higher today.  It was over 100° and will be the same or higher tomorrow.  Stay inside, run the air/con and try not to think about it (555).

The ‘Easy Monday’ song was “Handy Man” by Jimmy Jones, covered by James Taylor.  Our ‘Middle Song’ is also a bit zany :  “What would you think if I sang out of tune, would you stand up and walk out on me?  Lend me your ears and I’ll sing you a song, and I’ll try not to sing out of key.  Oh, I get by __ __ __ __ __ __ __, mm, I get high __ __ __ __ __ __ __, mm, gonna try __ __ __ __ __ __ __.”  Hint:  Most people will recognize this song of support originally given to us by those four lads from across the pond.  Oh, and somebody from their homeland did a wonderful cover.

This was another day with the lovable ‘Hell-dog’ himself.  I know he can’t help it, but sometimes one feels like there is no escaping ‘crazy.  Today JaiDee tried everything he could to get the cone off.  Most of his efforts were trying to remove the extension that keeps him from biting his tail.  By this evening we had used up all of the duct tape in the house and he still managed to undo the thing.  This also involved periods of manic behavior that were kind of scary.  Then he’d snap out of it and get mellow.  We have to deal with this until Monday, when the doctor says we can free him from his torment.  I am confident that once the hoodie is off, our dog will return.

So, with nowhere to go, it means there’s not much to tell you about Chiang Rai, except that it’s been fairly quiet out there on our road.  No music at night, and no illegal late-night parties.  That happened last week, right here in our quiet little city, when police raided a group of 22 people and a load of drugs.  In some parts of Thailand, cities are imposing curfews.  Some range from 11pm to 5am, or 10 to 4, depending on the community.  Not knowing what really goes on at night these days, my guess is that this wouldn’t be a major hardship here.  Some cities have steep fines for breaking curfew.  We don’t have one yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if eventually all of Thailand has a form of curfew.  So much easier to stay in one place.

The hard part about all of this is the isolation from close friends and loved ones.  We talk to Cat every evening and it’s not easy for her living whole days alone.  Even the place where she buys prepared food has taken away the chairs, so it’s just ‘take away’ style.  These days, her companion is Netflix.  Having someone to share the isolation with is a big ‘plus’.  Grateful for the privilege of being ‘alone’ with Lisa and the  family.

Today’s photo is another memory.  This was taken by the Night Bazaar in Chiang Mai.  A yogurt Tuk-Tuk, amazing.

I’ve decided to wait until next week to take photos of JaiDee chasing the water.  It will be much more poetic without the cone/hoodie flailing around his neck.  You’ll see the beauty of his movements, blah, blah, blah.  Stay tuned.

Feel like a Wacky Wednesday.

                         Peace,

                                   Danny

“The laziest man I ever knew put

popcorn in his pancakes so they 

would turn over by themselves."

~W.C. Fields