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27 December: Am I still on the same planet? (You don't know how many former high school teachers, classmates and fellow citizens have asked that exact same question of me for my entire life -- in slightly different contexts of course.) Writing in this date of late December is a shock, because in this time of year I was usually ice skating, x-c skiing or ice climbing, yet here I am turning on the fan and lighting mosquito coils for the doorways. It is a latitude-leap, a climate-warp.
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However, last night really was cold. I turned the fan off before midnight. In our winter I sleep with long pj bottoms and a hooded top, with a blanket to cover my bare feet if the fan is too cool. But it was cold -- down to about 60*F -- a Two Cat Night, requiring two cats huddled around one's feet to stay warm. Taking a shower this morning without hot water was a real wake-up call. (We have never had any heating system for the house nor any hot water system.)
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Today we took a trip through insane Bangkok traffic to visit a shopping mall. We walked a bit before getting a taxi, but it was an air-conditioned ride to the a/c mall and theater. An a/c taxi back home at sunset; back into swim trunks and flip-flops after turning on the fan; I didn't sweat once today, and that is very unusual.
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I just read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2005) by Stieg Larsson, and I could not put it down until finished. The film, in its English language version, will be in our theaters soon, so I wanted to read it first. It is a dark story and a bit edgy and twitchy, so it's not for everyone. Delicious. The DVDs of the original Swedish films of the trilogy are available here, so I will later view them.
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The day after finishing the above book I started reading Dan Simmons' Flashback (2011). I love anything Simmons writes, and so far I'm not disappointed.
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-Zenwind.
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27 December 2011
26 December 2011
St. Stephen's Day and the Wren
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26 December: St. Stephen's Day. Hmm... I didn't know that our cats were Irish. But it appears that one or more of them have observed the ancient St. Stephen's Day tradition by killing a wren (or another species of bird).
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This morning before Tuk went to work I was out on the open area on our second floor, and I saw some bird feathers. Not wishing to ruin Tuk's day by telling her of this evidence of a possible murder, I said nothing. She doesn't like it when the cats commit such "sins" because it will tarnish their karma and not bode well for their future re-births here in samsara. My reasoning that it is just a natural feline instinct does not impress her.
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After she left I had a closer look. There were many more feathers than I had originally thought under the table -- sure proof of a bird's murder -- and I swept them up and disposed of the forensic evidence.
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"The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
St. Stephen's Day was caught in the furze...."
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-Zenwind.
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26 December: St. Stephen's Day. Hmm... I didn't know that our cats were Irish. But it appears that one or more of them have observed the ancient St. Stephen's Day tradition by killing a wren (or another species of bird).
.
This morning before Tuk went to work I was out on the open area on our second floor, and I saw some bird feathers. Not wishing to ruin Tuk's day by telling her of this evidence of a possible murder, I said nothing. She doesn't like it when the cats commit such "sins" because it will tarnish their karma and not bode well for their future re-births here in samsara. My reasoning that it is just a natural feline instinct does not impress her.
.
After she left I had a closer look. There were many more feathers than I had originally thought under the table -- sure proof of a bird's murder -- and I swept them up and disposed of the forensic evidence.
.
"The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
St. Stephen's Day was caught in the furze...."
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-Zenwind.
.
21 December 2011
Boat Trip to Bookstores
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21 December: It is winter solstice, and a fine day it has been. Temperatures were in the mid-80s F and the direct sunlight was hot, but the humidity was comfortably low. Finding a shaded seat on the boat, I enjoyed the north wind blowing down the river. I went into the center of town to get some things for Tuk and to raid a bookstore or two.
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Last Thursday I met up with my libertarian friends, and I used that day's trip to first visit a big bookstore in that part of town. I saw some titles that I have long been looking for, so today I returned and loaded up my rucksack with books. Among my purchases were the Diamond Sutra in Red Pine's translation and, unexpectedly, Dan Simmons' lastest novel, Flashback. My piles of unread books are getter bigger, and deciding which to read next is tough.
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Returning north on the boat was surprisingly comfortable, with the north wind in my face.
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Blessed coolness. Zen delight.
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-Zenwind.
.
21 December: It is winter solstice, and a fine day it has been. Temperatures were in the mid-80s F and the direct sunlight was hot, but the humidity was comfortably low. Finding a shaded seat on the boat, I enjoyed the north wind blowing down the river. I went into the center of town to get some things for Tuk and to raid a bookstore or two.
.
Last Thursday I met up with my libertarian friends, and I used that day's trip to first visit a big bookstore in that part of town. I saw some titles that I have long been looking for, so today I returned and loaded up my rucksack with books. Among my purchases were the Diamond Sutra in Red Pine's translation and, unexpectedly, Dan Simmons' lastest novel, Flashback. My piles of unread books are getter bigger, and deciding which to read next is tough.
.
Returning north on the boat was surprisingly comfortable, with the north wind in my face.
.
Blessed coolness. Zen delight.
.
-Zenwind.
.
09 December 2011
A Great Day for a March
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9 December: The temperature at midday was only in the high 80s, and the humidity and dewpoint were much lower than usual – although the sun was blazing hot – so with such a comparatively cool day I did a long march beyond my normal neighborhood walking circuits. I still returned home wringing wet with sweat. (The fact that Christmas is in two weeks is almost incomprehensible here.)
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I walked for the first time in recent months through the area further south of us that was completely flooded a month ago and impassible then to all but big military trucks. This area lies much lower than our neighborhood, so when the levees broke they got hit hard. The watermarks from the floods were sometimes chest-high at the sidewalk level, and what impressed me most today was how very low many storefronts and homes were. Many of them were flooded up to their ceilings. Complete devastation.
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In our near neighborhood, garbage piles are still appearing overnight after the cleanup from the day before. Massive amounts of furniture and belongings are ruined and thrown out. It is a rag-picker’s windfall.
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There has been a homeless family or two living on the sidewalk under the big bridge since the first flooding. Lots of little kids were running around until this week when school finally started up the new term. They have a tent for mosquito protection at night, as well as some chairs and couches. Notably, they hooked into a nearby outdoor electric outlet, and they have a huge TV set there in their little urban campsite. Life is simple in its basics, but there are priorities. (Yet I would have chosen differently: a radio and a big bag of books.)
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-Zenwind.
.
9 December: The temperature at midday was only in the high 80s, and the humidity and dewpoint were much lower than usual – although the sun was blazing hot – so with such a comparatively cool day I did a long march beyond my normal neighborhood walking circuits. I still returned home wringing wet with sweat. (The fact that Christmas is in two weeks is almost incomprehensible here.)
.
I walked for the first time in recent months through the area further south of us that was completely flooded a month ago and impassible then to all but big military trucks. This area lies much lower than our neighborhood, so when the levees broke they got hit hard. The watermarks from the floods were sometimes chest-high at the sidewalk level, and what impressed me most today was how very low many storefronts and homes were. Many of them were flooded up to their ceilings. Complete devastation.
.
In our near neighborhood, garbage piles are still appearing overnight after the cleanup from the day before. Massive amounts of furniture and belongings are ruined and thrown out. It is a rag-picker’s windfall.
.
There has been a homeless family or two living on the sidewalk under the big bridge since the first flooding. Lots of little kids were running around until this week when school finally started up the new term. They have a tent for mosquito protection at night, as well as some chairs and couches. Notably, they hooked into a nearby outdoor electric outlet, and they have a huge TV set there in their little urban campsite. Life is simple in its basics, but there are priorities. (Yet I would have chosen differently: a radio and a big bag of books.)
.
-Zenwind.
.
02 December 2011
Normal Exercise Again
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2 December: I started lifting (light) dumbbells again after a long, long lapse. I don’t even know how long ago I last lifted weights in a fitness routine because my old lifting log sheets are still lost amongst the chaotic piles of stuff we hurriedly brought upstairs when we were flooded. But I started lifting again this week, and I’m taking it slow and easy at the start-up, so the muscle pains are not too bad – and not nearly as bad as the aches and pains from moving heavy sandbags and appliances during the flood. Our all-too-brief winter here is the best time to exercise because the humidity is not at its brutal normal.
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I took a taxi to a shopping mall today, needing a haircut, some electrical cords, and any books worth getting. It is the first time I’ve been down that way since the flooding, and this area south of us was hit very hard. I saw the high-water marks on buildings and walls, looking like a dirty bathtub ring but at chest level or sometimes higher. Many shorter shrubs and bushes were killed by being under water for too long, making our normal green streets less colorful. People are still shoveling out their homes and drying stuff in the sun.
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On the way home I had a taxi driver let me off way short of home so that I could have a good long walk the rest of the way. With all the exercise I’ve been getting lately, I’m hitting the sack early tonight. Our cats agree that this sounds like an excellent idea.
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-Zenwind.
.
2 December: I started lifting (light) dumbbells again after a long, long lapse. I don’t even know how long ago I last lifted weights in a fitness routine because my old lifting log sheets are still lost amongst the chaotic piles of stuff we hurriedly brought upstairs when we were flooded. But I started lifting again this week, and I’m taking it slow and easy at the start-up, so the muscle pains are not too bad – and not nearly as bad as the aches and pains from moving heavy sandbags and appliances during the flood. Our all-too-brief winter here is the best time to exercise because the humidity is not at its brutal normal.
.
I took a taxi to a shopping mall today, needing a haircut, some electrical cords, and any books worth getting. It is the first time I’ve been down that way since the flooding, and this area south of us was hit very hard. I saw the high-water marks on buildings and walls, looking like a dirty bathtub ring but at chest level or sometimes higher. Many shorter shrubs and bushes were killed by being under water for too long, making our normal green streets less colorful. People are still shoveling out their homes and drying stuff in the sun.
.
On the way home I had a taxi driver let me off way short of home so that I could have a good long walk the rest of the way. With all the exercise I’ve been getting lately, I’m hitting the sack early tonight. Our cats agree that this sounds like an excellent idea.
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-Zenwind.
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