Garden 2.0

I made this because I was thinking of my Grandmother's
house, her porch, and morning coffee with her and mom.

I was worried about my plants.

I found evidence of insects, and Google told me I needed to act fast or risk my whole garden.  They were little red monsters trying their best to kill my water plants.... my lotus, my water lillies, my green circle plant thing, all of the aquatic plants.

I also had something of a sun problem.  Yes, I know, it's Thailand and the equator is right next door.  But, there was this one strip in my garden where I kept the full sun and desert plants.... and they were still just dry all the time, more dry than they should have been.

There was an added worry about time and energy.  This week was crazy busy, and I just didn't have the time or the energy to spend in my garden.  Plus, leaving for Cambodia gave me limited time to worry about these things.

I waited until I saw my man at the weekend market, the wonderful man that I owe the majority of my garden to.  I bought some insect killer from him, soil, all the things of garden tending.  I maybe bought a few more plants as well (I have a problem!!).

Then, I went to go pick up a package at the post office.  It took me about an hour to get all the steps together to get there.  I biked up to the road, caught the special truck to the wat, grabbed a moto to the post office, and did the whole thing in reverse with a giant box.  So exhausted from the sun, I stopped at my favorite coffee shop for a pick me up scone and coffee.

I saw an umbrella.  I wanted an umbrella.  I asked for an umbrella.

Before shot.  SUNSHINE OF DEATH ALL DAY.

I got three umbrellas.

Well, I found the umbrellas in the back of the shop and asked Kang (like Kangaroo) if he wanted to sell them.  He refused to take any of my money.  Apparently, he was hoping for more space, and I helped clear out some of the old things that he just didn't want to get rid of.  They came back on my bike, because I'm brave or stupid or both.

Then, I hung them on my roof, which again.... brave or stupid, I'm not sure.  It involved a lot of me standing on the white wall.  Balance.


Then, plant man came over and helped me repot a bunch of plants, because they had coconut husks instead of soil in them.  This means that they get very very dry easily.  He must have spent 45 minutes with me, helping me repot plants and gardening with me.  Gosh, this dude is nice.  Best part?  He heard the song "Rock and Roll" on my shuffle and said, "Oh, Led Zeppelin, I like them."

Garden 2.0 is complete.

Awesome, though, huh?

All the plants found new homes based on their needs.

Side wall.

After gardening for 7 hours (or so), I had a nice mark on my forehead from pushing my glasses up.

Fat, not Fit

I should have known better than to have a fitness assessment at the gym.

Honestly, what was I thinking?

I know what I was thinking; I feel like I am in decent shape.  Sure, I've eaten more pizza in Bangkok than I care to admit, and I'm more dedicated to burgers and ice cream than I was in the past.  There's no Aaron here to make sure that I'm eating home cooked meals that he so lovingly prepares.  Plus, I work in a school of stairs and feel like I'm consistently walking around to get to this place or that.  So, I thought to myself, what is there to lose?

Hm.

I scheduled this for a Friday night.  I met up with this girl trainer, very sweet, with very little English, with her hot pink shoes.

She tells me to get on the scale, and I do.  I'm heavier than I thought, which doesn't shock me that much.  She then asks me my height, in centimeters.

Yeah, I'm American.  We don't do the metric system.  I know about my centimeters, but I'm almost certain I have no idea how many centimeters tall I am.  I say, I have no clue.  And the frenzy begins.  She went seeking information, there was a calculator involved, things going on, chaos reigning.  We finally figured it out, though somehow gained a stray male in the process.  She inputted the height and got some printout about how much of my body was fat and bone and water and clipped it to the paper.

This is what I consider the main drawback of the gym that I attend: men.  This slovenly looking dude with glasses falling off his face was chatting in Thai to the woman attending to my fitness test and looking at my paper.  My anti-cheating reflexes, honed after years in education, rushed to intervene and I told him to back off.  He spoke English, and mumbled some apology, but it took two or three more snarky comments before he actually left the area that we were in.

Dudes.  I was annoyed.

Then I had to run 2.4 km, and I was more annoyed.
Then there were push ups and sit ups.
Then I had to test how strong my hand was with this little tool.

Then I was told I'm fat.

Now, before the affront sets in, allow me to say that I'm not offended.  I was called fat even at my skinniest in Cambodia, because it's just the word that means big, or bigger than what you were, or bigger than whoever the speaker is.  News flash: most people in Asia are quite slender.  After so many years not hearing that, it was a bit of a shock to my system.  But, honestly, I know where I am as a person and as a fit human.  In fact, according to the lady, I have to lost about 10kg to be within the really healthy range, and that is about what I guessed as well.  She also told me to work out 2 hours a day, 4 days a week, which I think is a bit excessive, but the rest of her advice was sound.

I came to the conclusion, though, that I really don't enjoy males in my gym space.  I don't like lifting weights with a bunch of dudes lolling around.  I don't like classes where I'm one woman in a sea of testosterone.  I like supportive females around me.  I really enjoyed the fitness classes I was in in Pittsburgh for that.  Kickboxing only had a man here or there, Boot camp too.

Either way, I feel like I proved myself to the lady when we went around to try machines.  I know, and now she knows, that my arm strength is minimal.  Push ups aren't my thing.  But, when you see me on the leg press, you find out that my legs are very strong.  So, she did tell me after that observation that I was "Fat but strong."  It's not that far off the mark.  I have work that I could be doing, and will be doing, as long as I can keep dancing it off with Tor+ (This is his name in the schedule because of a Thai tonal issue) or getting ab killed by Kwang.

Basically, I like the crazy classes that I go to, but they don't compare to the awesome ILKB studio.  I was in Body Combat on Friday.... with the man that wanted us to yell whenever we hit the air.  It was hilarious.  So, for now, my goal is to trim up and try to work on my tummy.  I think I can do some good things with the support of the gym, and hopefully someday I'll be considered fit instead of fat to the machines that teach my classes.

On Birthdays

I haven't had a great birthday in such a long time.  Last year, I can't remember what I was doing, but I don't think it was wonderful.  I think I was with people who didn't quite appreciate me.  I worked on my birthday.  Worked both jobs that I had, in fact.  That's, of course, only some, but it wasn't a great experience.  One of my good friends came to visit me and brought me a rich chocolate cake, though I couldn't relax enough to enjoy it.  The year before was similar, in a new city and unsure how to create my path.  This year, there is no way I could complain.

I enjoyed two little kid birthday parties on opposite ends of the week.  The first was Aisha's, Kim's little girl, who threw a beautiful pink pony themed event.  Just now, I'm back from an Egyptian themed kid party, where I was holding a newborn and enjoying the energy of this very awesome family that I am now friends with.  I also had the opportunity to go out with some of the other new teachers for a Mexican dinner (and a margarita), and they put candles in the brownie that I blew out.  I received cards from my family, beautiful cards.  A card from my mother put in me tears.  She said she was so proud of me for going to a far away land and thriving there.  The card from my grandmother also put a tear in my eye.  She said my adventures were like a Bob Hope and Bing Crosby movie.

I feel so lucky to be where I am today.  I feel blessed at the people that I have in my life, and the times that I'm already enjoying despite being in this village for such a short time.  I think that this work and this place will be great for me.

I miss my family.  I miss the sailboat in Pella, and the Wilson's pizza, and grandma's Sunday dinners.  I miss Aaron, and my friends in Pittsburgh, and the life that I finally carved out of that world.  I miss many things.

But, my birthday was a very positive one.  It has been a long while since I've had such a beautiful birthday.  My lotus is blooming.  My garden looks positively amazing.  And, I'm going to Cambodia in a short time to see all the people that I love from my old home.

Oh!  On my actual brithday, I went to get a Thai massage from the awesome ladies who trade me Thai phrases for English ones.  I had a birthday burger at the local cool kids joint and was mistaken for a 24 year old.  Oddly enough, I also got mistaken for a 35 year old at school the same day.... something about being tall and confident in my work and my school life.  I can't help but laugh at being mistaken for different ages 10 years apart.  I can only say that the massage must have taken 10 years of stress from my back.

I live a blessed life.

Thank you all for every moment that your life intersected with my own.  I'm a better human with every interaction.

The trials and tribulations of gardens

We had a huge wind storm that blew half of my plants over.
My dangle plants are swinging and moving about.  

But, then I had this gorgeous water lily.

And this phenomenal Hibiscus. 

And my lotus is a few days from gorgeous,

Rizza loves the shade of the Frangipani.

My ylang ylang is almost in full glorious yellow and there are several more buds on the way.

This interesting plants collected some water.

These were waiting on my doorstep on Saturday night ... after a glorious little kid birthday party.

They are a special herb, a Butterfly Pea, that makes tea.

And they were a gift from the man that sold me many of my plants.

This is the Balloon flower, and it is so awesome.  Look at the color!

My gardenia is in bloom, and it smells ... ah.

This is the new addition; a Bromeliad.  It likes water.

It was a hard week.  But this garden is thrilling me with all the things I see.  I take immense pleasure in every moment I spend tending to these plants.

My Garden is the Best Garden

This weekend was an introvert weekend.  

And I filled my weekend with the buying of plants.

Now I hear birds chirping around.  

Next weekend, I may go to the Home Pro store to acquire some nighttime mood lights.

This is the view from my seat at the table.  I have a whole selection of plants that bring the joy to my garden.

A second view.  I have plants on the ground, flowers, vines, things hanging, and a plethora of flora and fauna to enjoy.

This is the view as I walk in from a hard day of work.  There are some fragrant flowers that greet me as I walk into the gate.

This is the coolest thing I got today. It has these little pods that (I would guess) trap water in the forest.  It is strictly non-sun.

This tree is the tree that Buddha was born under.  So, I got too.  I need all the Buddha I can get.  He says it gets to be very very large.

I have this orchid and another orchid.  I hope they don't die. 

This is my very fragrant Jasmine flower.  It is called mali, just like in Cambodia.

French Music in my Ears

This is Arno... Les filles du bord de mer.

I'm currently obsessed with this song.
It's about girls on the seashore.
The word he repeats may be "Joie" (life) but not sure.

Can Asians Think?

I've been reading this book with this mighty shocking title.  The author (a Singaporean) talks about Asia as.... everything.  I expected the book would be more about education, but it centers mostly around economics and politics.

He talks about the west being somewhat hypocritical in their methods of approaching other nations.  They believe so much in democracy, so they force it onto countries without the economic stability to reinforce or take ownership for.  They forget that their method doesn't work everywhere for everyone.  They forget that their method barely works in their own country.  They forgo involvement and moral concerns when they aren't threatened.

Some interesting pieces:
(57-64)
Good government doesn't necessarily mean democracy.  In many Asian nations (including the one I currently live in), the nature of the government is very different.  There is a King who is encouraging development and the health and wealth of his people.  Thailand has come a long way under this King.  The government, while not without issues, is pretty darn good, and it is considerably different than the US.

He mentions that the West often is putting the ideals of democracy prior to the goal of economic development.  It's difficult to live up to; without every person having a stake in their economic development, neither will succeed in the way the West hopes.  He goes on to say that Japan is a good example: they underwent a huge transformation after the war because of reforms imposed by MacArthur.  No democratic leader could have instituted those reforms and (therefore) the growth that they created.

I think he has a point.  Cambodia has "democracy" that the West implemented with the early 1990s... and look what has happened.  It is corrupt and unable to stand on its own two feet.  It's neighbors have had so much more economic growth with their varied political structures.

(87)
In Singapore, criminal behavior is dealt with fairly harshly.  As he puts it, the common interest in safety rises above the ideas of due process.  Singapore made this choice and lives with this choice.  The West prefers to wax poetic about their democracy as they allow the sale of drugs on their street corners, which is another choice.  However, they have no right to judge others for their choices and the consequences that are faced.  In this, he gives an example.  He visited the newspaper offices of four great American newspapers, and realized that if he left at night and walked 3 blocks in the wrong direction, he could find himself in a great deal of trouble.  In Singapore, crime near the newspaper office in nonexistent.  The West goes to other countries to try to instill their morals, despite not being aware of the hypocrisy inherent in their judgments.  The US is far from perfect; education and health care, just to name a few, could be vastly improved.  It would help if the US learned from other places and peoples... and listened and changed... but instead they try so often to walk into other countries and say how things should be done.

(99)
Speaking of which, the US cannot continue on this trend.  The US is facing enormous fiscal issues, and turning its back on solving the problems.  Mahburani calls it "massive social decay," the fact that violence, single parent homes, and divorce rates have risen at an alarming rate.  And yet, still, they parade into other countries, especially the East, where social institutions and families are a backbone of society, to preach democracy.  There are huge troubles in the future of the States, and they seem unprepared to deal with them.

(178-192)
Cambodia.
The chaotic era of the Khmer Rouge is directly related to the West and their business in SE Asia.  This essay is called "Pol Pot: the Paradox of Moral Correctness."  He begins by talking about meetings between Churchill and Stalin, and the fact that Churchill's dealings with a genocidal ruler have not tarnished his reputation.  However, Thatcher never met with Pol Pot, because the west 'didn't deal with genocidal rulers.' Even though the actions that took so much from the Cambodian people were condemned by those in power, no steps were taken to try to come to a peace agreement.  He talks about the Paris Peace Conference in 1989; the Khmer Rouge weren't invited to come to a peace meeting because they were condemned by so many leaders, but by not coming to the conference, no peace was to be found.  Instead, the Vietnam invasion was accepted.

There were power plays that the West was blind to; Vietnam and their invasion was seen as a rescue of Cambodians, though that wasn't the case.  They refused to deal with the Khmer Rouge and it led to a greater evil.  The prime minister (who is still in power) tried to start riots and confused the Western media (most of them, at least).  The UN was brought in to hold elections, which appeared to be a nice decision, though rumor has it that the UN brought more disease than stability.  This essay places a lot of blame on the West, for appearing so distraught, then refusing to help where and when it counted.  Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, as well as Hun Sen, were (and are) well funded through various channels in the country.  The non-communist parties couldn't raise enough foreign investments to become viable candidates.  The UN couldn't gather the appropriate funds, even as the tragedy was all over the Western media.  It says something about the appearance of morality.

I'm no expert on this, not at all.  This was a painful read, though.  I think of how the West is operating in Cambodia.  They give millions of dollars in aid, a bulk of which lines the coffers of the wealthy and powerful.  They are running a tribunal which wasn't instituted by Cambodia, spending millions on prosecuting those who are almost too old to be on trial.  The country is visibly corrupt, and it is shocking to me as I live here in Thailand, how much more apparent it is for me.

I've heard that before Singapore gained their independence and began planning their city, they came to Phnom Penh to see one of the best cities in Asia.  Cambodia had a golden era, full of art and music and film, and it was all destroyed.  Between Vietnam, and the West, and the forces that were taking hold of the country, that golden era didn't stand a chance.  And look at them now... I am crushed at what once was and what it has become.

fin

The book is wonderful.  It is an enthralling read for anyone in development, especially in Asia.  There are pieces about the UN as well that I found interesting.  Money, economics, influence, power... these things are all in here, and they are well written and thoughtful.  I highly recommend this book (considering I just wrote an essay for fun about it).