4-3-07
It was so hot today we couldn’t get the house cooled down with both ACs going. Bummer. I am sweating as I write this in our bedroom with the AC on. When I was at the IC (internet café) I checked the temperature here today and it was 86 but with humidity factor it feels like 99 according to Weather.com. It is supposed to be in the low 90’s the rest of our time here so with humidity factor I reckon it will be hot, damn hot!
Ron worked all day on his proposal. He sent it off late this afternoon. Around 1:00 o’clock, the window blinds crew showed up. We ordered wooden blinds for the bedroom. They goofed on measuring two windows. Ron had suggested that the blinds be hung above the windows so the inside screens can be opened in order to open the windows and clear the blinds when raised but below the arch that is above the window so you could see the arch. When the man came to measure, he didn’t take into account the thickness of the slats so the blinds ended up being about 15cm short. It is what we call an ‘oh shit’ and I would imagine he said something similar in Thai when he saw what had happened. So one set got hung and two went back to the shop for adjustments.
Ron and I walk to the Internet café (IC) that is about three blocks from the house. There are twelve computers in the shop and usually it is filled with kids 12 years old and younger playing games. The bad news is they are playing violent games with soldiers, who have assault rifles, grenades, bayonets and handguns. Oy, if their mothers only knew the research on the effects on kids watching violence their little hinnies wouldn’t be in there. Some kids play a game with dancers. Yesterday I saw a game that at first looked like a pastoral scene with green grass and cute little animals. Then a pony-tailed girl comes onto the screen with some kind of stick weapon and beats the living daylights out of the cute little animals. Lovely. So far I have only observed three games but the place is packed every time we go. Today there were no computers available when I went in the late afternoon. The other awful part of this place is the noise. Bullets flying, grenades exploding and dance musical at a crescendo. Jeez when did I get so damn OLD? I am going to try and go at 9:00 a.m. when kids are hopefully in school and the place will be quieter. We went early today and had quiet until about 9:30 when two guys came in on motorcycles. The other funny thing that happens here is people take off their sandals outside shops and homes usually. But at the IC they take them off right as they step into the doorway so you have to watch your step as you walk in or you will stumble over a myriad of sandals.
One of the truly great pleasures of being in the tropics is the fruit. Tonight we had fresh mangoes off the trees on the property, rambutans, mangosteens (eat your heart out Larry) and another fruit whose name we don’t know but it looks like a small mango but has a different flavor. It was a feast!
After dinner we drove to an area of town we aren’t familiar with, it is a main commercial area that Jeap showed us on Saturday. We thought by walking around we could discover more of what is here such a dry cleaners, barber shops, etc. It was hotter than at the house due to the heat radiating off the asphalt and concrete from the heat of the day but we enjoyed exploring and will go back again to explore more streets. We did find a good size grocery store that is much closer than the Big C, which is way out of town. It has many of the staples we use but no produce. There are very few people who look like the Bergmans. I have seen one white person in Phetchaburi and he looked like a burned out hippie from the 60’s. I on the other hand am an aging hippie but not burned out! HA!
4-4-07
Out dirt was delivered this morning. Unfortunately the truck could not get to the house because earlier in the year Noi have put a carport roof over the drive near the front of the property and neither our moving van nor the dump truck can fit under it. Bummer. They will have to haul the dirt by hand from a very long way up the drive. The dirt quality here is quite different from home. At home you can get any mix you want with compost, sand, etc. There is even a grade called landscape grade. Not so here. We paid for a better quality dirt and got something that looks like clods of clay with roots, twigs, and god only know what else is in it. Such is life in the tropics. We will buy some compost in bags at the nursery to amend the soil. The bad news is we can’t bring compost or any plants to the back of the property until the drive way is cleared of the dirt and that may take awhile. One step forward, two steps back. A good lesson in patience for Americans who are so use to ‘having it my way’.
This afternoon we went looking for trees at a couple of nurseries. We are hoping to find some good shade trees. We didn’t find any that were suitable but we found a charming garden bench. It looks antique and will sit against the front of the house looking out at the river. The nursery offered to deliver it and we suggested Saturday hoping that by then the driveway will be cleared of the big pile of dirt. Things move slowly sometimes so we shall see.
We then went for a foot massage and thoroughly enjoyed it. That is the other wonderful thing about Thailand that I forgot to emphasize: massage. Thai body massage is usually 90-120 minutes and costs $10-$14. It is a clothed massage on a mattress that is on a raised platform. It is a very physical massage where you are manipulated or moved into various postures. The foot massage often goes way beyond the foot and includes the leg up to or above the knee. Sometimes, like today our arms, shoulders and head were massaged also. Pretty darn wonderful. Ron says we are sluts for massage!
Our fruit snack tonight was the best watermelon imaginable. Yum. That’s it from the land of tropical fruits, beautiful women and 99 degree hot weather.