17.10.2016 Being Led A-stray

Hello all,

So, although it has been a very long time since my last post, I find this a pertinent time to make a post, with all the events that have recently happened.

As much of the worlds had become aware, His Majesty Bhumibol Adulyadej, passed away on the 13th of this month, and it has cast a dark, dark cloud over this wonderful county. you can see masses of people adorned in black, white, or other solemn colors as you walk about the city of Bangkok, or even the local Tesco Lotus.
Now, I'm sure many people are aware of the role the King had in Thailand, but really don't understand the extent of how important he was to the people. Myself being a foreigner, I am not as knowledgeable about the history, but I do know that in the eyes of the people, he was and is the emblem of Thailand. Living here for three years and counting has given me a bit more perspective on
the live and respect held for him. And with the respect, when the news made its announcement, I did not feel nothing. In fact, the best way I could describe the feeling would be as if something stole the breath from you.

As for the effects of his passing, the country of Thailand is holding a 30-day mourning period. What this means, as many have read, is that activities in Thailand have quieted down, especially the party scene. Many events that were scheduled to the 13th of November have been either cancelled or postponed. Since I had bought tickets to two separate events, I can feel that effect, but I didn't feel as disappointed as quite a few foreigners coming to Thailand.  
In fact, quite a few seem to be quite disgruntled about the situation, claiming it ruined their holiday. Article can be found here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3838673/Western-tourists-complain-death-Thai-king-spoilt-holidays-nightlife-shut-month.html

As much as I understand the disappointment of coming to a country for holiday and plans being cancelled, that kind of response to this situation is utterly disrespectful. Life is not all about parties and getting drunk. That, and there will always be another party. 

Besides the hushing of nightlife, and sea of black, there hasn't been too much change in this country. So, for any foreigners planning to visit in the next year, don't be too worried, just be respectful. You may see people wearing black ribbons or armbands as well as their clothing, and it just means they are in mourning, but life will be normal.

With this going on in Thailand, there also have been misfortunes back home. One of my college friends lost her youngest sister just days before the the King of Thailand. Losing one of your family is always hard, and even more difficult if they are younger then you, or your progeny. One quote resonates within my memory:

They say when a parent dies, a child feels his own mortality. But when a child dies, it's immortality that a parent loses. 

Yes, I did pull the quote from American Horror Story, but that does not make it any less relevant or powerful. In this case, many of the people in Thailand probably feel their own mortality as the Father of Thailand has passed on, and the mother of my friend losing one of her own,

In other news, of last week, on Tuesday, the 11th, was my first encounter with a dog behind my home. At first, I was terrified because he was blocking my way home, but then I saw that he wasn't walking well, and he did not seem okay, overall. Possible victim of a car accident. I did manage to contact a dog rescue group to come help him and was fortunate to have them come pick him up to get the medical care he needs. I even made public posts to Facebook and Instagram to garner attention and, hopefully, some donations. Oddly enough, out of all my Instagram posts, this one definitely gained the most attention. I am not one familiar with having more than 20 or so likes, but here, I got over 100. Weird things. Maybe I should start posting more pictures of dogs I see everywhere.

For those interested in seeing the post, and possibly giving a donation, here you go!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BLpjSl8BKDX/

In all honesty, many unfortunate things have happened last week, one has to hope that there will be a shift in balance of the world's fortunes.

But for now, I will see what the future has in store. 

Until next time,

K.

1.4.2016 Time to make a Post... or Is It?

To all,

It's been ages, I get it. I suck at posting. I quite enjoy talking to myself, let's get real about it, since that's what I've mostly been doing anyways.

Now, let's get down to the nitty gritty of updates. I haven't been paying attention, because at this point it's unnecessary.
Since my last post: I traveled a bit, the Kanchanaburi, to Chiang Mai, to Pattaya, and a lot of Bangkok. Reasons? I jumped into the dating pool last year, and at the beginning, pulled on a rope to get out.

About personal life, I share it enough, and I find no reason not to follow routine, but I'll make it short an sweet, because who has time for that? It was a decent thing going on, lasted a total of 6 months, was goo for the first 3 months, but crumbled more with each month following. Compatibility wasn't there, we wanted different things, and neither of us were willing to bend for the other, as much as our words said it. We tried talking it out, multiple times, (every month, in fact), but by the end of the year, there really was nothing left to build up on. I realized how much anger and resentment I was holding on to, which lasted for maybe 2 and a half months. The thought of them gave me anxiety, stress, anger, and talking about them made me flustered and ruffled. Around this moment, I have less of those feelings, and maybe that's a sign of me moving on.

Now, onto other personal stuff! Lately, I've been trying to improve my life, health, emotion, business, and such. I started working out regularly, improving my eating habits, picking up more private work, as well as working in the development of my educational program for where I work, as I've had another renewal of my contract, and it's gone through!.

On the topic of working out, there was one problem looming over my head: my schedule. my normal work day runs 8AM-8PM, including my private work, so imagine how that affectd my capability to work out! Well, lo and behold, a solution: wake up at 5AM, start exercise around 5:30, come back and shower, and peace off to work. Difficult to start? ABSOLUTELY. But it soon became manageable. It became moreso once I started seeing result: less exhaustion throughout the day, better mood, less waking up throughout the night.... the list could go on. Am I going to give it up? Not any time soon. It's still tough, especially if I have a long night, but it's working for me. Plus, I get to eat more fun stuff, and see some nice muscle tone. I don't know about you, but I'm looking towards some legs, stomach, arms, and butt. In the lyrics of that Meghan Trainor song, "I'm all about that bass!"

On the topic of diet, well, I started getting on the breakfast train. Since I was waking up early enough to exercise, that also gave me more time to start preparing my own breakfast. One of the things I was looking at was how to make a good meal that would sustain me until noon, or 4-5PM when I had enough time to eat the next meal. Well, turns out that the answer was chia seed! You know, those tiny things that almost look like poppy seeds? And then you water them, and they expand, and are kind of crunchy and jelly-ish? Yeah, those. Let's just say, they work as well for yoghurt as they do for most other liquids. Chia seeds, probiotic yogurt, flax seed/meal, and the guest fruit whenever I have some fresh fruit (from my private students, they love to feed me ;D ). There's one hearty meal! That, or a using oatmeal instead of yogurt, when I'm feeling for a hot breakfast. Both kept me full for a good amount of the day, and helped with my digestion. (Who can object to having good digestion?) I used to be quite bloated and uncomfortable throughout the day, but now that's settled out. The only thing is that consistency is KEY; if I forget to make this breakfast for two days, maybe even one, it's a noticeable change to how I feel, not to mention my mood. Now, about the yogurt, that's a tricky thing, as a lot of food in thailand has wayyyyyy too much sugar. Thankfully, there is a yogurt product called "Butterfly" Probiotic Yogurt.

(pulled from Supermarketthai)

And let's say, it's an interesting thing. It's a lot thicker than many drinkable yogurts I've had, and not very sweet. Not only is it not too sweet, there are a few otions (Original, low fat, low fat/lowsugar, Vanilla, Chocolate) for a price of 38THB, which is about $1.05 USD. not entirely a shabby price when we're talking about benefits! Whenever I see it in stock at one of the markets (FamilyMart, one of the only locations in Rayong, if I don't want to travel to Bangkok just for my specialty shopping).

On to the next topic: work. That's had its high and lows. but you've just got to roll with the punches. New concept: trial groups, each group has a set of students that must be... consistent, so that success can be measured. More materials will be made for students, workbooks, mini pocketbooks. The downside is that they would only get about 13 hours of lessons, not my personal preference, but again, work with what you get. We'll see how it works!

And... on to my last topic, I finally got a motorbike, (well, it's a loaner for now), and it's been interesting. After more than 2 years of living in a place that has poor public transportation, I fiiiiinally got this bike. Should I mention that it's a manual gear shift contraption? Yeah, and I've been learning how to drive it. It's an interesting thing, because the first step is trying to get over my fear of being on a motorbike (well, driving one, a scarring memory of when I was 8 and learning how to drive a minibike), and that of the drivers in Thailand. They are super crazy... no consideration of ow driving works, or traffic laws. So far, so good.. and safe-ish. For now. The snazzy thing? I have a helmet to match with the color of the bike. Not too shabby. can't say I don't know how to accessorize. This isn't the firt time, as I have a pair of shoes that match my phone.... unintentional, of course, as was the helmet, bike combo.

As for the social life, I had been going to Bangkok more frequently, met a bunch of new friends, been spending more time with older ones, and really getting more into my old groove of being a social butterfly. I haven't realized how much I've missed it until lately, when I've met a lot of amazing people. And my schedule has turned from a clean slate to a little open space. Cool stuff. Of course, it does take a little bit of a toll on my bank account, so I need to get back onto the budgeteering. Good thing for private classes, and putting a nicer price on my work.

Now, back to the thing I call life. It's Friday, and I've got nothing planned, for once... except relaxation, learning how to drive, preaparing for my first test group, which starts on Monday! 

I think, soon, I will start posting progress about my exercise and health progress, in addition to work. Who needs to know about my social life? It's already awesome.

Until next time,

K.