A Brief Get-away (3-16)

Last week was the last week of the term at school. Students finished their final exams, and teachers finished grading them. I also finished calculating final grades and recording them in the official record books. Students had a field trip one day.

On Friday, there were special ceremonies for the graduating 6^th and 9^th grade students. I learned about this by chance when I was walking around for a bit of exercise. Typical. Since I wasn’t really doing much and I did teach one 6^th grade class, I decided to attend their ceremony. One of the teachers was the lay leader who did the chanting/praying. The other teachers there were seated around the center with him. Students sat in a circle around us. A ball of string was passed around and everyone held onto a piece of string during the ceremony. Afterwards, Sister Viphaporn and Sister Oranut came in and talked to the students. Then there was string tying. I was surprised that the Sisters participated in this. They both tied a string on me before they left to go to the other ceremony. I was also surprised when I was given a bunch of strings and students lined up for me to tie one on their wrists. When they were finished getting strings/blessings from the teachers, the students got together with their friends, and many cried. This was their last day together.

The graduation ceremony for kindergarten and 9^th grade was on Saturday. I missed that, since I didn’t know about it until I’d made plans to leave for the weekend. I didn’t feel bad about missing it because I didn’t teach those classes. Pim asked if I would be there, and I would have gone if I’d been in town.

I decided to leave for the weekend and two extra days to have a short break between the term and the summer course. (I didn’t have official permission to take two days off, but I was good and texted on Monday and Tuesday that I would not be at school that day.) It was also the last weekend for a while in which Tom would be available for a visit. Friday night I took a bus to Bangkok. My first stop on Saturday morning was the used book store where I trade books. I was able to get 11 books, only two of which I paid for. Then I met Tom and we went for brunch and a long chat. It was good to connect with him again. He’s my only American friend in the country now, and we do get along well. After he left, I stopped at the Thai Crafts show, not realizing that they closed at 3:00, which was when I arrived. However, a few stalls were still packing up and I was able to pick up a few items that I wanted to get.

Sunday I left Bangkok for Kao Yai National Park, which is between Bangkok and here. I’d arranged to stay at a guest house that offers tours and free pick up in town if you book a tour. The first tour was Sunday afternoon. I joined three young French men, a French woman, and a Spanish man. It was me and the 20-somethings, but everyone was friendly and we all chatted. Our guide was great. 

Our first stop was a natural spring where people can swim. When we got out of the truck, there was a mustached/blue crested lizard on a nearby tree branch. The pool was crowded with Thais enjoying the afternoon out; so the group decided to move on and return to swim later—after dark when it wouldn’t be crowded. This turned out to be a good decision, as it gave us more time in the cave so we weren’t rushed.

Next we went to the bat cave at Wat Sarnamai. It’s quite large and is home to several hundred insect bats. Manit knew just where to shine his flashlight for us to see them, as they come home to the same place every day. Since it was late afternoon, some were starting to fly around, getting ready to go out for the night. Manit said they don’t take tourists into the cave in the morning because it would disturb the bats’ sleep. Manit was able to pick up one bat and spread its wings for us to see. It didn’t seem to be disturbed by this. Maybe it’s the same bat he always displays; so it’s used to him. The bats migrate in the cold season, since it’s not cold enough for them to hibernate. They just returned to the cave a couple weeks ago.

The bats, of course, produce guana. Every two weeks people go to the cave to collect it. They can sell what they collect for about 24,000 bahts (about $800). It’s high in potassium and makes good fertilizer. It can also be used to make gunpowder and powder for fireworks when sulfur and something else are added.

The cave is also home to other forms of life. Manit pointed out two tarantula nests. They were holes in the cave walls that were covered with webbing so we could hardly see the tarantula inside, which was OK with us. He also picked up a scorpion spider. It really doesn’t look like either, but it is a variety of spider. Since it was still and didn’t move around, most of us also held it. The Spanish man let Manit put it on his neck. On my hand was good enough for me. Next he found a variety of centipede. It was pretty active, so I wasn’t about to handle it.

The cave is a special place; so there were a number of Buddhas and altars. Manit told us that one place is used by monks for meditation.

After we exited the cave, we were given chips and a banana and had a brief rest before moving on. I walked up to the wat. There is a nice view of the area from there.

The next stop was the evening bat cave where we waited to see the bats flying out. The cave is high on a hill. These are wrinkled lip bats. About two million of them live in the cave and fly out every evening. They looked like a long stream of smoke or a black jet stream.

On the way back we stopped again at the natural spring. A few of the people swam. I sat with my feet in the water, which was relaxing. No one else was there; so the quiet was nice.

Monday I joined the French woman and Spanish man again, a Polish couple, and three young American women who are doing a semester at Khon Kaen University. The latter were interesting to talk to. This was our day in the national park, which is a World Heritage site and is known as a refuge for wild elephants and hornbills. Again, we had an excellent guide who loves the wildlife and loves taking photos. He often took our cameras to get close up shots.

At the first stop, we looked for and saw a hornbill. We heard birds and gibbons but didn’t see them. Just listening to all the sounds was amazing. We saw a hornbill in a distant tree and two flying. Then there was a movement in the trees. Our guide was excited, as this meant an elephant was there eating. After a bit, we saw the elephant’s back. The guide ran up the road and motioned us to follow, which we, of course, did. From there we could see the elephant move toward the road. Then it turned and went another direction. That elephant lives in that territory and is often, but not daily, seen. So we were lucky.

A little farther down the road another elephant emerged from the forest and crossed the road. So we now had seen two wild elephants. We were happy.

As we drove on the next section, there were monkeys along the road. Some of them ran along the road after us. 

Then we got out of the vehicle and walked for a bit, looking for gibbons. There are a couple that live in that area, but they were not visible that day. So, back to the truck and on we went.

Next was our first long walk in the forest—about an hour and a half. The tour provided leech socks for this walk, but I wore the ones Jackie gave me. They were recommended on the website; so I had them with me, not knowing they would be provided. Besides, it gave me an opportunity to finally use mine. Some of the trail was wet, and the leeches live on the wet ground. We also walked through water and mud in some places. We saw leeches, and the guide picked a couple up to show them to us. It was interesting to see how they move with their front and back ends down and the middle in an arch above the ground. When they move, they elongate and become thin. The guide carried a big telescope so we could look at the animals he located. We saw a blue and yellow bird and an orange bird. 

There was a viper (poisonous) on a fern. It was very close to the trail, and the guide put our cameras under the leaves so he could get close up shots of the viper’s head. We saw gibbons swinging high in the trees. When we went back to the road, there was a barking deer lying beside the road.

We ate lunch on a log along the road. Then we went to the trail for our next walk—another hour and a half. When the guide said we were going to go looking for crocodiles, I thought he was joking. But when we came to a river, there was a crocodile sunning on a log. As we walked on, there were several signs warning people in Thai and English to beware of crocodiles. 

At one place there were a lot of butterflies gathered drinking. The guide said they are drinking the minerals in the water there. Some of them were very attracted to one woman’s shoe. The guide took our cameras again and took close up shots of the butterflies. It was a lovely place to relax for a while. After relaxing there, we headed up the hill to the road and our truck.

Next we went to Haew Suwat Waterfall. This is famous because it is the waterfall that was jumped off of in the movie The Beach. So, I’ve now seen the beach and the waterfall featured in that movie but haven’t seen the movie. Unfortunately, the pool beneath the waterfall was closed for swimming. Apparently, the water is not clean now. So we relaxed for a while and then moved on.

We headed up the road in search of the evening elephants, but they were not out that night. We saw a number of droppings along the road but no elephants. So, we turned around to go back to return to town. Then we turned off the road and stopped along with a couple other trucks. The gathering of tourist vehicles reminded me of such gatherings in Africa. The guides communicate and let each other know when something has been sited. There were also a few serious photographers with huge telescopes with cameras attached to the lenses. 

They were viewing the hornbills in the trees. 

The other tourists were also viewing a bearcat in a nearby tree. Our guide was very excited to have both animals there. We watched one and then the other. He took my camera to take photos for me. I got some good ones on my own, too, even though the birds were quite far away. The photographers were waiting for the moment when the hornbills would fly out of the trees. They apparently knew that that would happen, and it eventually did.

In one place on the way out of the park, there were a number of monkeys sitting along the side of the road. It reminded me of people in villages and in Ninh Binh sitting outside their homes in the evening. It was a great day. I was really glad to have taken the tour and to have given myself this small getaway.

Monday I spent the whole day coming home. When we arrived in Pak Chong, I was lucky and got on a bus to Korat immediately. There I had an hour and a half wait till the bus to Ubon left. When I got on the bus, I knew it was not going to be a great trip and would probably be a long one. The bus had been there for a while, and I had thought it was a bus before mine. When I finally figured out that it was my bus and got on, there were no available seats. I got off and told the man that, and he got on and found a place for me on the bench at the back. It was right beside the toilet, which is not a good place to sit, and there was a slight odor already. But, as the bus filled up even more, I was happy to have a seat. When we left, there were about twelve people standing. They stood for the first two hours when the bus stopped and some people got out. New people got on and stood, and the two men in front of me were still standing. Fortunately the toilet was not being used; it may have been out of order. I realized after a while that the odor was from the dog in a box near where I was sitting. At the first stop, a huge package was loaded and put in that place and the dog and its odor were moved. We arrived at the first stop in good time, but after that the bus went off the direct route and arrived at the second stop an hour later than usual. After that, we went on a tour of small towns, dropping people off. When we arrived in Ubon after nine hours (A direct trip takes five and a half.), there were only ten of us on the bus. But I was home.

At school Wednesday I learned that I hadn’t missed anything. Most of the time we’re just hanging out and doing our own thing. Thai teachers have their records to do, but we are finished. There was a little work to do entering grades into the official computer and computing the 20% to give to the class teachers. The fact that we foreigners teach 50% of students’ English classes and it counts for only 20% of students’ grades still irritates me. Why should the students care what they do for me/us when they know they will most likely pass the Thai teacher’s part of the class and it is most of their grade? Our work is not valued or considered to be important. (I don’t care about the science and math, as I don’t think the part taught in English should be part of students’ grades in the subjects. In fact, I don’t think they should be studying those subjects in English.)

Friday I suggested to Kate and Lovely (Tony took Thursday and Friday off. We old native speakers are bad.) that we go out for pizza. We were lucky, as the restaurant was having a buy one, get one free promotion. The pizza was really good.

The summer course schedule was made, but they had to wait for Sister Viphaporn to approve it before distributing it. After lunch Friday, we learned what classes we will teach. I will teach 5^th and 6^th grades, sharing with Kru Irene. I tried to see her to talk about this, but she was not in her room. So I’m being very loose and not planning anything until I talk with her to see what she wants me to do. We had our assignments but no daily schedule. After school, the class schedules were posted on the bulletin board. 

I learned that summer hours are 8:00 to 4:00 (instead of 7:30 to 5:00). It is nice to go in later and get home earlier.

House Warmings (3-8)

Last weekend was a weekend of housewarmings. Saturday morning was the housewarming for Khun Dakom’s cousin’s new addition. She and her mother have rooms for rent and just built a new building with twelve more rooms. After the monks prayed, we had a seven-course breakfast that was quite good. Lots of fish. I was sent home with three bags of food, which is enough for the week for me.  

Sunday we went back to Khun Somlan’s for the official housewarming for his new house for his mother-in-law. Khun Dakom seated me at a table with people I don’t know, which was a little disappointing and uncomfortable, since what I enjoy about these events is hanging out with my friends. I realized later that he had done this to take care of me, as usual. They ate upstairs, sitting on the floor, after the monks finished eating what they wanted of the food offered to them. I started eating earlier and was seated on a chair at a table. The breakfast had nine different dishes. I practically ate a whole fish; so I didn’t need much food for the rest of the day. After eating, the karaoke began. I tried to sing a song, but the man wanted me to wait until a woman was finished and then the men started singing again; so I missed that opportunity. My contribution to the entertainment was dancing. I had a good time doing that, as usual. I danced with a woman who is a good Thai dancer. I can mimic the hand movements—sort of. I need to concentrate and, as I’ve said before, my hands will never be Thai. She kept trying to make my wrists and fingers bend back like hers do. Mine don’t. I told her my hands are American, not Thai. But we had a good time together. Other people kept telling me how well I dance. Well, maybe for a foreigner. I do enjoy it, though.

I started with a new student on Saturday. She is Khun Tang’s niece. Her parents came to see me last week to make arrangements for me to teach her. She’s in 4^th grade. They don’t know I’m leaving in two months, but I can work with her until then. One of her main difficulties seems to be lack of confidence. She seems to have a good vocabulary base, but, of course, she can’t speak much and isn’t used to thinking. My other three girls are still coming. I’ve written a number of simple dialogues and am running out of ideas for new language to use. They’ve gotten good at discussing what they do each week. It’s hard getting in gear to work at 5:00 after not working all day, but I enjoy them once they arrive and we get going. They come later and later; so I think we’ll all be ready to finish at the end of the month.

Wednesday was a holiday for Makka Bucha Day. On Saturday Khun Dakom had asked if I wanted to go to the village. I said I was thinking about going on Wednesday. So I went Tuesday evening for dinner—a wonderful meal of fish from their pond cooked by Khun Toy. She also made the special soup I like with leaves/herbs and ant eggs. We ate at the outside table. It was really nice to be there with them again.

As Khun Toy was getting my room at the cottage ready, we saw a rat go up the corner of the wall into the ceiling. It was a big one. Then, when I put my towel on the rack, I noticed one of the really big spiders behind the rack. Khun Dakom got a mop and chased after it and killed it. Fortunately, the rest of the night went without seeing any critters.

Wednesday morning Khun Toy and I left at 5:30 to go to Wat Hua Don. When we drove in, I noticed that the walking Buddha statue now has an umbrella. 






























We walked to the old temple to see progress on the roof. Then we joined the group for feeding the monks and a brief talk by Pra Tong. When we were eating, a woman came to talk to me in English. She was with the group from the Rice Research Institute who were there for the morning service. They were having a week-long conference in Ubon. Most of the people in attendance were with that group. I did see several of the old woman I knew from before, and they were all happy to see me again.

Pra Tong was giving out new t-shirts advertising the wat’s new website. All of the guests received one, as did we. Recipients had to complete a form. Khun Toy took shirts for all the extended family and completed everyone’s forms. Pra Tong told me that the wat is the heart smile group. I liked that name.

We returned to the village and visited friends before going to lunch at Khun Suwit’s farm. Khun Kasemsri invited me to the tamboons she’s organizing next month: one at her house for her daughter who just got a government job and one at the wat in Lue Amnat to build a Buddha in one day. The latter includes sleeping at the wat in our white clothes, which I haven’t used since I moved. She also invited me to join her and Aemmy to go to a special tamboon in Chaiyapum. It’s a three-day retreat that will be another opportunity to wear my white clothes. It will be nice to have some time with her in the car as well as to share that experience with her.

Khun Ying was also very happy to see me. She gave me some kao tom (sticky rice steamed in banana leaf). We went to my old house where she picked several low-hanging mangoes from the tree. I’d been missing them, as mango season is beginning and I no longer have a tree. When we were leaving, she wanted to give me some rice—about 20 pounds of it. Since I don’t eat white rice at home and I have enough other rice, I graciously thanked her and turned down her offer, saying I have enough rice. Khun Dakom had also asked if I need rice.

Lunch was at Khun Suwit’s farm and featured fish from his pond. Their granddaughter was there. I hadn’t seen her since I moved, and ten months is a long time in the life of a 26-month-old; so she didn’t remember me and looked at me like I was the strange-looking foreigner I am. After a while, though, she warmed up and we played peek-a-boo with the chair. When Khun Toy was picking leaves off tree stems, we both helped.

On the way back to the house, we stopped to visit Baibua, Khun Toy’s 8-month-old granddaughter. She was sleeping but they woke her up for our visit. It was good to see her again.

A couple minutes after Khun Dakom dropped me off to get a bus home, a car stopped and a young woman greeted me like she knew me and asked if I was going to Ubon. She and her friend gave me a ride. One of the young women is Khun Teamjan’s niece, whom I vaguely remember meeting one time, and the other is a daughter of another teacher. Sometimes it’s good to be recognized.

Being back in the village and spending the night and day with my friends reminded me how much I’ll miss them when I leave, and that time is coming soon. I started to go through this a little bit last year when I wasn’t sure what I would be doing, but now I know for sure that I will be leaving. Leaving my friends here will be hard, and I will miss them greatly. When I think about that, I know I miss friends in the U.S., but many of my good friends keep in touch by e-mail. And I know I’ll see them again. When I leave these friends, I won’t hear from them, and I may not see them ever again. That’s the difficult part. It will be the end of these connections, even though we’ll always remember each other in our hearts.

Exhibition Day at School (2-25)

Sunday morning Khun Dakom called to invite me to go with them to Wat Hua Don. I knew they were staying at Khun Kwan’s house for the weekend, as Kru Oy was in Chiang Mai, and I was thinking about calling and inviting them to lunch. But going to the wat was just as good. Even better, as I didn’t have to prepare lunch. Of course, I was given plenty of advanced notice: He said they’d pick me up in 20 minutes.

The first stop was Khun Somlan’s house for breakfast. I learned that the housewarming for the house he’s having built for his mother has been delayed till March, since the house isn’t finished yet. At breakfast, 9:30, I was told that we would have lunch at the wat. I wondered what the occasion was, since the feeding of the monks is usually early for breakfast. Khun Toy couldn’t answer my question; so I waited. Another car with some relatives and Khun Dakom’s mother (age 85) also arrived when we did. They got out pans and food to make Korean barbecue, and the monks started cooking their meal. The women also started cooking for the rest of us. The group was only the people who came in our two cars. I guess they had arranged to feed the monks that day. After a short time, at 11:00, I was told to eat lunch. I decided to walk around the forest first, as I wasn’t ready to eat again yet. And I do enjoy the forest.

After lunch we walked to the old temple so everyone could see the new roof that is being put over the foundation. Khun Dakom’s mother went along. I marveled at how strong she is now—walking and chatting. She really looks good. I remembered the first times I saw her when she was not well and could hardly sit up for more than a few minutes. She was so frail that it didn’t seem like she’d live much longer. And here she is. She recently returned from visiting the son in Chiang Mai.

In addition to the new roof, the wat has two other changes since I was last there. The first one I noticed was the addition of a green jade Buddha on the altar. Then I noticed that there is a new building beside the main one. Later Phra Tong took us in to see the new library.

This was the first time I’d been to the wat since I moved. When they go from the village, it’s out of the way to pick me up and bring me home. I have missed going there, as it is one of my special places here. So I was really happy for the opportunity to be able to go again. It was really good to be out of the city and to walk among the trees. And to see Phra Tong. And to hang out with my good friends.

And I got to see them again on Friday and Saturday. After school Friday, Khun Dakom called to tell me to walk to Khun Somlan’s house for a housewarming. I was surprised, as he had told me it would be on 4 March. I was tired and hot at the end of the day, but there’s nothing like a call from a good friend saying to come for dinner to lift the spirits. And then a student’s mother picked me up and drove me to Khun Somlan’s house, which was an added treat on the very hot day.

When I arrived, I learned that this was the moving in ceremony and the house blessing will be on the 4^th. He has had a beautiful house built in back of their house for his mother-in-law (age 93).

 Friday they moved her things from their house into the new house. People carried items and we walked around the house three times. Then we put the items into the appropriate room: water and some food in the kitchen, pillows and altar items in the bedroom. 

There was a bowl full of flower petals and coins that were spread on her bed. Then she lay down for a few minutes. Afterwards, the two young boys were told they could search for coins, and they were happy that they found a handful each. Then we all ate dinner.

Khun Dakom told me that we would make our bi-monthly trip to the hospital on Saturday, as the scheduled date is on the 4^th and we’ll be at the housewarming. I was surprised to see that he stopped drinking around 7:00. He sat next to me and said he stopped drinking because he had to have his blood checked on Saturday. He also went home early, as he wasn’t drinking with his buddies.

Saturday morning we arrived at the hospital at 7:20 and had our blood taken half an hour later. We then ate breakfast and waited to see the doctor. It was noon before our numbers came up. It was a new doctor again, but she said next time I will see the one I saw in December. Next we waited to pick up our meds, as we finally left at 1:30. Then it was time for our reward: lunch at the Chinese duck soup restaurant, which is always a treat.

Khun Dakom told me that Khun Yindee had reported that I plan to teach in Vietnam. When I explained that I will do that for two or three months and return here in September, Khun Toy was very happy. That confirmed again that it is important for them that I be here, and I’m really glad that I will be. I wondered if they had thought I would be teaching and would not return. What I’m actually doing is keeping busy until September so I can be here for her retirement.

Friday was exhibition day at school, so no classes. There were exhibits and activities most of the day. 

The opening ceremony included a few dances, as usual. 

Then everyone walked around the exhibits. Several were selling food students had made. The math department was selling the geometric balls students had been making for two weeks. I don’t think many were sold. The science department had students doing science “tricks.” The English department sold sandwiches made to order. They also had a booth where students could shake a stick out and identify the flag of an ASEAN country and/or read the word for greeting in that language. Kate and Lovely worked there. When I went to relieve them, they said they wanted to stay. So I hung out in the office for half of the day. My interest level in these exhibitions is about three hours. I went back down and walked around and asked if I could help a few times and went down for the closing ceremony.

At the end of the day, Khun Toom gave me the schedule for exams. I’d been trying to get it all week so I would know what classes I have to teach next week. It turns out that they’ve moved exams again and everyone will take them on the same days; so I have to teach all the classes Monday to Thursday. I’m done teaching and the students are done learning. So I’ll review yet again and basically give them the exam questions to study for those who bother to study in or out of class. I do what I can to help them.

When I was walking home Thursday evening, my eye was caught by what looked like me. It is me. I’m featured on the new banner advertisement for the school. There’s one on each corner. Two weeks ago I was called out of class to have my photo taken in the Sound Lab. I had no idea what it was for, but it was urgent, as Sister Viphaporn wanted me there “now.” The banner focuses on the Sound Lab with a picture of me teaching and students listening. I suppose they are advertising their Sound Lab and native speaker teacher at the same time to appeal to potential parents to enroll their students next year.

The weather cooled down early in the week. I had to get the comforter out again for two nights and wear a jacket to school two mornings. But it’s back to being hot—near 100 degrees—again. The fan stays on all day and night these days. It is time for the hot season to begin, and it’s here.

Happy Valentine's Day (2-16)

Life has been pretty quiet recently. A few highlights.

Monday morning Kru Tang was very excited to tell me that the school is a champion in Hero Mission. I had a vague memory of hearing about this project before and Kate confirmed it: Hero Mission is a Facebook contest. Kru Tang had asked me to vote, but I was not able to do it. Nine teachers at the school won and will go to Bangkok next week for some special recognition. At the school, each of the nine teachers was given a framed certificate and an artificial bouquet during the morning assembly.

Tuesday was a big day: Valentine’s Day. It was also Lovely’s birthday. Students had been making cards for the occasion all last week. Tuesday morning three of my 7^th grade students came to the office and gave Lovely candy and an artificial bouquet for Valentine’s Day and her birthday. I jokingly asked why my students were giving her gifts and not me, their teacher. When the students left, Lovely explained that they try to talk to her when she is tutoring in the garden after school, and she had told them it would be her birthday. She is also much younger than I. A few minutes later the students returned with a rose for me. I felt a little bad for having shamed them into giving me something, but it was very sweet of them to do that.

During the day I was given small candies by several of the 7^th grade students. On Monday I had told them that in America people give chocolate on Valentine’s Day and I wanted chocolate. One girl who often gives me little candies gave me a Hershey’s nugget bar. It was really sweet of her to listened and acted on what I said. A few of the other students gave me little flowers in an envelope with a couple candies. The 8^th grade girls gave me a bunch of sunflower seeds in the shells. That may have been because they were eating them when I walked to check on them; so they gave me some.

Since it was Lovely’s birthday, she invited us to their house for dinner. When I arrived at 7:30, she was cooking and there was a lot more cooking to be done. We snacked on the fried chicken bits she was cooking while she and a few friends cooked more chicken, pork, fish, and hot dogs. While they cooked, we listened to Carpenter’s music, which all of them grew up with because their mothers and grandmothers love it. It was fun to hear it again. We sat down to eat at 9:00. Lovely had also made chicken in a Filipino sauce. It was quite tasty. One of her friends brought two big pans of brownies. She sent some home with Tony and me. It was a pleasant evening.

It’s officially hot. Temperatures have been around 35 degrees C, which is close to 100 degrees F. Hot.

One of the 7^th grade boys has been helping me after class, carrying my bag to the office for me. On the way, he chats a bit to use questions he has learned from an English book he studies when he finishes his work. And probably other times, too. It’s nice that he now feels comfortable trying out his new English questions and tries to respond when I ask him the question.

Hanging Out with Friends (2-5)

It’s been a pretty quiet two weeks. Last Saturday I had a personal care day. It started with a hair cut at 9:00, which I had arranged on Friday. Because it was Saturday and I had time and needed to get the little pieces off my head, I also had it shampooed after the cut. A shampoo includes a vigorous scalp massage that was quite nice. Then I headed for a massage. I stopped at the place on the main road I’ve seen, but the door opened into a long hallway. I think the doors in the hall may have been for massage rooms, but no one was visible and it felt strange; so I went to the mall to patronize the massage place I’ve seen there. There was a one-hour wait, which was not a problem. After having a pad Thai lunch, which was also on my agenda for the day, I had a foot (up to the knee) massage. It was wonderful. It also took care of the small shoulder ache I’d had for a few days. Cost of haircut and massage: 280 bahts (about $9)

Sunday morning Khun Toy called to invite me to go with them to visit her brother in the hospital. I quickly agreed. The week before she had invited me, but I had misunderstood where they were going and thought they were going to Udon, which is about five hours away, not Det Udam, which is only an hour away. (I was tired and ready to go home and have some alone time when she asked me, and my understanding of Thai is worse than usual in such circumstances.) We laughed about that. I’m sure I’ll hear about it again. After she called, I quickly ate breakfast, as they were about twenty minutes from Ubon. Our first stop turned out to be Khun Kwan’s house, where we ate breakfast—again for me—and changed vehicles so Khun Oy could drive us to Det Udam. Khun Kwan was wearing a dress, which I’d not seen her do before and was not going with us. When I asked what she was going, I learned that she is going to weekend classes to get a Master’s degree. We dropped her off at the university on the way.

After visiting Khun Toy’s brother, which included taking him home from the hospital and hanging out a bit, we returned to Ubon and had lunch at Khun Somlan’s house. On the way there, we stopped at the market and bought fish and shrimp. When we arrived at the house, we had a cooking party. Khun Toy, Bitoy, and I cleaned the shrimp. Then it was decided that I would do the frying while Bitoy arranged the fried shrimp on the plates. The men made a delicious fish soup. In half an hour, lunch was ready. It was fun to help with the preparations, which I don’t often get to do.

This Saturday was Khun Dakom’s 65^th birthday. He had planned to have dinner together but changed it to lunch, partly so I would not have to cancel my students. It was a small group consisting of Khu Kwan’s family and the usual group of good friends—me, Khun Suwit and Khun Teamjan, Khun Somlan and Khun Toy, and another good friend I’ve seen a few times. Khun Oy picked up Khun Kwan at the university so she could join us. She was wearing a dress again. I guess students in her class really dress up, unlike those in the U.S. We ate at a fancy Chinese restaurant in their small room. The room has a big TV on which the men watched Thai boxing. 

We had eight different foods: a crab dish, spicy soup, spicy chicken claw skin salad, fried fish sausage, mushrooms, a special duck dish, fried rice, and a special mixture in a “bird’s nest.” The latter was delicious and had cashews, water chestnuts, mushrooms, and Chinese fruits. 

The duck dish was also a special one I’d not seen before. It came as a deep fried mass with a layer of duck on the bottom and a mixture of rice and other white foods on the top. The mushrooms and duck were chosen for me. Khun Dakom had me look at the pictures and pick out what I wanted. I chose the mushrooms and said duck would be good.

School is winding down. Only one month of classes left before final exams in early March. Most of the students are done trying to learn. Attendance in 8^th grade is down, and many of those who are there aren’t even trying any more. Now instead of copying their friends’ work they hand in blank papers. Even a few of the better students have stopped doing their best. Khun Toom told me that her 6^th grade students, whom I have for math, have stopped studying and just want to talk about their futures and write in their friendship books. They’re still doing the work for me so far. 7^th grade is still doing OK. I’ve actually noticed that a couple of the students who used to copy everything are starting to try to do the work themselves. One boy has even asked for help a few times to make sure he knows what to do. This was a nice surprise.

I remain content with my decision not to stay here another year. There have been days or moments (usually after a few good lessons, which does happen) when I think that I could teach here again and it would be easier because the students are used to me now. But I know the overall situation will not change much. The good 7^th grade class will probably be divided into two classes. They are really two classes but are together because there aren’t enough students for the school to have two classes this year. But the school will take in new students for 8^th grade, and the new students will be mostly those who have had problems or failed at other schools. (That happened this year, and many of the new students are the ones who are big problems in the 8^th grade classes.) This will, of course, change the dynamics of the “good” class. I’m just not interested in dealing with that. Last week they changed the students’ seats so they are now separated into the two classes, one on each side of the room. I wondered if this is in preparation for dividing them into two separate classes next year.

I will miss some of the 7^th grade students, though, as they’ve been a good class and they have become “mine.” It helps that Bank  tells them to be quiet sometimes and translates when I tell them how “bad” they are being. It has also been good because I teach them English four hours a week instead of two because the school didn’t have enough English teachers to assign a Thai teacher to teach the class. This gives them a consistent English program instead of having one program with me for two days and a different one with the Thai teacher for two days. So they have really made progress and learned what I’ve taught.