I think I live in a zoo

Ya know...yesterday, I walked out of my front door and I almost stepped on a frog while feeding the fish while I chased a dog out of the carport while I swatted a bee, saw another monster snail, had a gecko drop off the ceiling and land right next to me. I had to stop and laugh at this little zoo that I live in. Then about that time, 2 cats with no tail came by and chased away a bird that was sitting on our gate. Just a normal day around here, I reckon.

Work is keeping me super busy and as Court mentioned on her blog, we're getting ready for our first guest from the states! She'll arrive in about 5 days! WooHoo! We're excited to see a familiar face!

Work is keeping me crazy busy! I'm glad I really enjoy doing web design day in and day out! Good times!

Our neighbor, Khun Nit, left town for a month to take care of her parents. Not sure how old they are, b/c Khun Nit is 65!! So...anyways...now that she's gone we've realized how much we miss her. In fact, as I'm writing this, I'm compiling a list of things that I personally miss about Nit.

1. I miss the way she screams at her dog in Thai. She can hit these low notes and squeal all the way up the scale! KhanoooooOOOOOOOOn!!!!!!!!!!
2. I miss the way she always asks us where we're going or where we've been. She always has to know!
3. I miss her always asking if we've eaten yet.
4. I miss her coming over to our rose bush and clipping the dead roses off before we can even get to them.
5. I miss her enthusiasm when we say all the Thai words that we know! She's a great cheerleader. She's pretty hard on us when we don't know what she's saying.

Our neighborhood has not been the same! We like Nit. We really do. In fact, when you get a nickname, you're pretty much in. Last week, I started calling Nit, P. Nitty! I kinda like it and I think it's gonna stick. I'm not planning on sharing this news with her...I'll just entertain myself by referring to her as P. Nitty.

A Run for the Border

No, I didn't make a late night stop at Taco Bell, I actually did make a run for the REAL border! This past week, Court and I rode up to the Thailand/Myanmar border to get our visas renewed. We will have to do this every 90 days. Fine with me! This means that every 90 days we can stop in at Charin Garden on our way up and have a delish lunch and pie and coffee to top it off! It's a cute 'lil place with a lovely relaxing view.

So, about 4 hours later, we reached the border. Those were some long and winding roads up yonder! I'm telling you! It was good to finally arrive! Anyways...we had heard some horror stories of peeps having some bad experiences with wrong stamps, no stamps, and out-the-roof charges. So, we were as prepared as we knew how to be. We walked up to the counter, handed over our passports, and flashed our best smiles. When our passports were stamped and returned, we did not leave that counter until we verified that we had everything we needed to leave Thailand and walk 100 yards away to the Myanmar border stop. When we walked out of the Thailand side, we were rushed by peeps wanting to sell us everything you can imagine. We just smiled and kept walking. After doing paperwork on the Myanmar side, we walked around this little building and then down the steps to a little market--just so we could see a little bit of the scene here. Well friends, I've never seen so many young guys in long skirts trying to sell American cigarettes! It was really weird! We saw some of the best rip off brand name clothing we've seen yet! We saw more sunglasses and fake DVDs and CDs than New York can shake a stick at! It was really hot and we were over this pretty quick. We were ready to roll back to Chiang Mai! Goodbye Myanmar! We'll see ya in another 3 months!!!!

Nature's Candy

First off, I'd like to apologize for leaving you hanging...I know you've been sitting around, holding your breath, waiting for me to detail another outrageously exciting adventure! But the truth is, I've been so busy that I haven't had time to catch my breath for the past couple of weeks. So, with that said...I'll proceed with today's post...

Ah yes...Nature's candy. Did your Momma ever try to entice you to eat your fruits and veggies (usually the ones that you don't want to eat) by describing them as nature's candy? Well, mine did, and in fact, she still does. I'm not so sure that I ever had a problem eating much of anything with the exception of raw tomatoes, cucumbers, kiwis, strawberries, and any other fruit with tiny seeds. I refused to believe that these nasty things could ever be anything remotely described as candy. I wasn't buying it! But, this nature's candy bit worked on my little baby bro, Quinn! Yep, he fell for it and he ate beets! Ha! She got him! Now, that's something else I won't touch with a 10 foot pole!

Anyways...today at lunch, some friends and I were having some laughs over a twig of Lychees. Please refer to this photo for a visual reference for what a twig of Lychees actually is. Well, I insisted that the Lychees that I've had, have had a hint of onion taste to them...so I didn't want to have another disappointing experience with them. Thanks, but no thanks! Actually, I have this experience with a few of the different fruits I've eaten here. There's a vague whisper of an onion in some of fruit here, I promise! Well, that's what I thought until today. After refusing to eat another piece of fruit from Thailand, I began to hear my Momma's voice in my head. "Try that thang...it's nature's candy. Go on!" With the fear that she would come out of that thought bubble in my head and put that Lychee right in my mouth for me, I thought I'd better give it ONE more shot. If indeed I DO find that it IS a piece of nature's candy, I'll be blown away! I peeled that little bumpy outter shell that protects the little pearl of fleshy fruit inside. I starred at it, threatening it under my breath--"You'd better not have the faintest hint of onion. You'd better be nature's candy!" With confidence that I could prove my Momma wrong (again) I threw back my head and popped that Lychee right into my steel trap of a mouth. I took a moment to take a deep breath to detect an onion....but I DIDN'T! It was deliciously sweet and enjoyable! I did it! I found a piece of nature's candy!!!! And I LOVE it! I LOVE NATURE'S CANDY!

Rain, rain, go away...

I was really enjoying the rainy season. However, I made that assessment after only the first week of rain. It's now been rainy for 2 weeks and I'm not so sure I like it as much as I did. It's been raining all night every night and then for most hours of the day too. When there's a break in the rain, everyone rushes out to get where they're going before the next downpour! Here's the sky before it rains.

Then, what happens next is this...

These are both shots of streets that we walk every day! The same shops are still open, the same dogs are still lying in the street, and the same trash cans are still out. Oh yeah...what smells worse than trash? Give up? WET trash! What's worse than wet trash? Wet trash on a 95 degree day! So, just because it's raining doesn't mean that you don't get out and carry on your normal life...you just do it a little wetter than usual. Some days I wonder why I even bother blow drying my hair!!!

What's the weather like where you are? Drop me a comment and lemme know!

When it rains it pours!

The rainy season has officially begun! I love it...so far! It has rained every day since last week it's been awesome! Before that, I hadn't seen rain since I moved here. So, this has been a nice change! I now have to roll up my britches to keep from dragging them through 4-inch deep puddles...but that's ok.

In celebration of Cinco de Mayo (which means nothing here in Thailand) we found a great Mexican place here in town and had an amazing Mexican meal...nachos and quesadillas and tastey salsa!!!

Then, we caught a songtau and headed to the mall. When you catch a songtau, sometimes you just never know exactly how long it will really take you to reach your destination. You pick up peeps along the way and if their stop is before yours, well, they get dropped off first. Sometimes it's a LONG ride. Today was one of those rides. Good thing we had our handy dandy camera with us to entertain us while taking the scenic route to get to Airport Plaza.

HOT HOT HOT

Don't get me wrong...Chiang Mai is a cool place. But, when it comes to HOT things...Chiang Mai's also got it goin' on!!

1. Our temps: For the past few weeks we've been sittin' around 100 (and hotter) degrees consistently! When it rains, even the rain drops feel hot!


2. Our concrete: Don't plan on going outside without shoes! The little pads on your paws will get scalded!


3. Our food: Why is it that when it's over 100 degrees outside, we still go to a noodle shop (that's outside in the heat) and eat hot soup with hot noodles in it? Then, we load it up with hot chilis? We must be suffering from heat exhaustion!

We got our air conditioners (we only have them in our bedrooms not in the whole house) serviced this week because they had been working so hard that they had used all of their cooling stuff. So yeah...we're chillin now!

As those of you in the states enjoy spring, think of us often--we're counting on you take in a deep breath of every cool breeze that blows your way.

Christmas in April

After 4 weeks of waiting and dreaming of tostitos chips, taco bell salsa, tostitos cheese dip, JIF peanut butter, hand sanitizing wipes, and some other items, a BIG box came TODAY!!!! It was quite a bit of drama for it to get here. Since it busted open in transit, it got held up once it reached Bangkok. It literally took twice as long for it to come from Bangkok to Chiang Mai as it did from Richmond, VA to Bangkok! That's typically how quickly things over here happen...slow as cold molasses. Well, anyways...it was worth the wait! The box had busted open and the post office put it in a plastic bag. I carried it home over my shoulder like Santa Claus!!!

Check out our latest photos! Although it may look like it's Christmas morning, it's just another great day here in Chiang Mai! Thanks to our friend that sent this that would probably like to remain anonymous. >>Click here for photos