05.06.2014- In this bitty break

Hello, all,
I will try to make this as informative as possible.
If you have not heard yet, there was a military coup a few weeks ago (honestly, it was less than a week before my birthday). When you first think about it, a coup seems a bit scary, but one must examine the situation more closely. Look at the history of Thailand. There actually have been quite a few coups in the last fifteen years. So, right off the bat, Thailand is no stranger to this kind of thing. Secondly, there are not many events of radical protesters; they, for the most part, have been quite peaceful.
Now, if you want to ask, I will answer honestly. "How has the coup affected you?" My answer: It really hasn't had much of an effect, other than the curfew. Even with the curfew, if I wanted to go out, I had little difficulty to do that and have fun. What the curfew did, really, was just close down the businesses at a certain time at night. The first Saturday that there was a curfew...well, that was a little different, but after that, there wasn't much trouble. Other than the curfew, I went about my daily life activities: which consists mostly of work. That being said, I don't really have much I do that would get me into trouble, just work, grocery shopping, and the occasional dinner.

If you would like to know more about what is going on in Thailand, here is an 11-minute video which gives some good explanations behind what is going on, and the reasons to why. It is not even very violent or aggressive in speech, but rather, admitting that there is a problem, and whoever is involved is working on amending it so that stability can become more possible in the government.
Here it is
If you ignore that "war-time" music and read the subtitles, it is much less radical than you may have heard.

Second update: This is my observation week before my next section of students, will be mostly Inpatient nurses and staff. This, I feel will be exciting, because I had one session already, and I am beginning to get the hang of the lessons, and a good order. In addition, I will be working in a ptient room so that the nurses are more familiar in an environment they actually work in, rather than the setting as a classroom. Last time I checked, nurses don't treat patients in a classroom, other than at educational hospitals.
Third update: On Friday (tomorrow) I will be making mango curd for the first time (holla!) and making something else to go with it, so it should be yummy! (Aren't experiments always yummy!)

Fourth update: I had a full night's rest... kind of. By full night, I mean that I pass out around 10:30PM, and woke up around 6:30. (I woke up a few times, but that's fairly normal for me nowadays). It seems that my business is catching up with me. that being said, I still am adding more to my schedule to increase my productivity. One of the activities I would like to add into my agenda is running in the mornings, because running in the evenings, after I finish all my work isn't really too safe, and joining a gym isn't much of an option. The nice thing is that, if I choose to run in the mornings, I have an audio tape that I can use to listen and practice speaking Russian or Swedish. Of course, I would only be practicing what I have already learning, not new material because that's just crazy! (hardy-har-har). Now, when I say "running in the mornings" I actually mean that I would need to wake up around 5AM and start running around 5:45 until 7:00AM. Yes, I would have a busy schedule, and yes, I think I will accept that I might be a little crazy with my schedule (Some work days end at 6PM, some end at 8PM, and they all will start around 8AM).
This is my normal end of the work day view:

As I mentioned, that is the downside of being busy... you are always busy. The upside is that you learn a lot about your stamina and ability of time management. For example, being able to find time to work, to learn something new, to exercise, and to have something of a social life....I think a lot of mothers learn this lesson, too. (at least, I hope they do).
Now, I must plan for the future, because I need to request off a few days to visit BKK to get some other business done (flight changing, criminal background checks, etc) It all sounds so exciting doesn't it? Surprisingly enough, I am pretty stoked to go out to so these tasks. I need to change my flight, either the dates, or the location. Who knows? Not I, but that's okay. For now, I must hastily return to work for a busy day! Woohoo!

Until next time,
K.

02.06.2014-The Promoting of Others

Hello, all,

So, in my (not so) random spare time, I try to spend it meeting new people and making friends and connections. So far, I have been fortunate enough to find people who have given as much as they have received.

One of these people is the owner of a quaint coffee shop, Zamoza. After coming in, we ended up talking for a while, having a bite to eat, and enjoying ourselves, making plans for future baking. It is wonderful having a friend with an oven!

** RETURN OF THE PUMPKIN COOKIES!*

How can you not want those? And, I even tried my hand at maing lofthouse cookies. I wouldn't necessarily say they were a success, but they weren't half-bad either, look! Wit hthe help of my friend, they looked pwetty! (the circle cut) The chocolate chips were an improvised added touch, because the cookies just needed something, and when the cookies were stored in the refrigerator, they tasted much better, and held their shape nicely. There will be a Round Two go at this!

Last, I was able to make a return of the ginger spice cake, and I made Cake bites, paired with maple or lime glaze, and topped with candied ginger. Om NOM NOM.

L: Ginger Spice Cake Squares with Lime 

R: Ginger Spice Cake Squares with Maple

On the subject of online affairs, I just subscribed to a Youtube channel, called HughandJohan. Quite frankly, the two, and their relationship, possible bromance, is quite adorable in the youth and excitement each has in learning and sharing their culture with the other and the internet public. I apologize if they find me labeling them as adorable is offensive, I just can't think of another word that embodies how innocent their interaction is, as well as relaxed and overall positively feel-good.

I mean, c'mon, look at this! How can you not smile watching it and learning?

Plus, it's a package deal: you get to learn something about culture, language, and these two, while being entertained at the same time. Score.

Another greatt Youtube channel to follow is that of TheSwedishLad. This guy is hilarious. Part of his channel consists of "10 Swedish Words" videos, in which he give ten words which follow a them of some sort, such as fruit, or clothes, or bad words. One of the videos I enjoy most is the video of ten Swedish words that look like English words, and have the exact same meaning, but sound different. Enjoy

I always love watching that.

If you haven't picked up on it yet, I might have a slight inkling towards Sweden. Honestly, it's true. My mind has been stuck on the place and everything about it since January. If I have the opportunity, I would love to visit during the summer, when many people are out. I have heard many positive things about the land and cities. I think the only negative comment that has been brought up about Sweden is the "coldness" of the people, meaning that they aren't really open to outsiders. In reality, I think this might be based on the personal experiences of the travelers. Where were these non-Swedes at the time of this uncomfortable situation (city, establishment, etc.) What did they say? How did they act? Personally, I am one of those social people, who loves to talk and get other people talking. Some people might label it as an annoying trait, but without communication, we become isolated, and later, somewhat obsolete. I cannot accept that. I think, in order to try to avoid this from happening, I must learn how to appeal to the mannerisms of the culture, while also displaying a warm front that is inviting to the fellow native Swede. The problem is, I'm not sure if I should try speaking any of the Swedish I know, or speak English first to someone that I would like to create a friendship with, then try my hand at speaking terribly. I think the latter might be the better option, and I could try speaking Swedish whenever I would like to conduct business of some sort, so that I can practice my skills.

Now, onward to other adventures! As I have mentioned before, I have been working since the 21st of April. That being said, I have managed a little bit of free time. By free time, I mean that I stay up into the wee hours and wake up after a measly few hours of sleep. It's the downside of maintaining a social life and trying to be productive. Even if I want to "relax" and watch a tv show, I would need to stay up later than I should in order to accomplish this. The question at hand, though, is would I change it? My answer at the moment is: NO. I love being busy, and sure, I may slightly complain about it (by complain, I mean that I am using my business as an excuse to not go out, or as an explanation to why I can't do something/ why I'm tired/why I don't have time to go somewhere). Actually, I wouldn't change my schedule, but, if I had the ability, and capital, I would purchase a travel vehicle so that I could go to places in my own time. This especially applies to going to the parks or a fitness center so that I can exercise after 8:00PM. (Bummer!) My building doesn't have a workout facility, and I do not have access to the staff exercise facility near the hospital (I think I will need to change that soon, if possible) and traveling at night isn't the best option because it is quite dangerous to be running on the roads at night; not only is it dangerous because there is no sidewalk, but after 7:00PM, the crazier people come out. These include robbers and junkies. These people are not really my cup of tea, sorry.

The other adventures I have, are teaching lessons that pertain to cooking, and nutrition. That means I need to catch up on my outside learning. (Oh, right, don't forget that I am not only working, I'm trying to learn languages and take classes online. With that, add me trying to finish some creative projects, and then we can discuss the free time I have.) 

One thing I am using is an online study resource, called Open 2 Study. Registered, enrolled, obtaining notebooks. Challenge accepted. Wish me luck!

Until next time,

K.

31.05.2014- The break from the Hiatus

Hello, all,
A quick apology for my break, I have been a busy bee buzzing around for the last (approximate) month. Quite literally, I have been working since the 21st of April, so I have not had much time for myself, or a lot of exploring.
That being said, here are my updates!

1) I have officially moved into an apartment, as of this month. Thus, I have been residing there for a week.There are a few minor problems, but nothing that cannot be amended

• The balcony door does not have a seal on the top or bottom, which can lead to some real problems, for both the lesser and the tenant. One of them being that that cost of using the air conditioning unit will go up.
• The windows need a movable screen so that I can keep the bugs out when I want to open the window. Ain't nobody got time to deal with bugs.
• I am currently living in a serviced apartment, which means that it will be cleaned twice a week. The building also acts as a hotel, therefore, what I would prefer to have is a "Do Not Disturb/Service Please" door handle sign.

2) I am finishing my first section of students, and am about to start my next section, in June, aka, this is the final evaluation time.

3) I just celebrated my birthday, woohoo! I can scratch off "celebrating birthday in another country" off my list!

4) I have found out when two weddings of my friends are going to be, aka in 2015, so now I must figure out how I will make that possible. And another girl I have known for a while recently became engaged.

5) I have made some friends on my own, and baked with them.

6) I am working a bunch of jobs, which have a lot of opportunity for growth, which I would like to delve into more.


Again, the key reason that I have not even made an attempt towards a new post is because I have been extremely busy. Sorry, but lately, I've had little time to commit to just sitting down and blabbing about a minute portion of the workings of my brain. Just to give you an idea of my time: I actually started writing this post on the 16th... so that should give my readers an idea of my actual amount of time to spare.

Now, I do have some goals in mind that I would like to keep up with, such as reading more frequently, and learning new languages. Both, I have already started, and have been trying to keep up with, using applications and PDF downloads. The nice thing is, once I have access to these, if my internet happened to go out, I will still be able to access entertainment (aka, I don't need to worry about having to reload a video, or waiting for the internet to return.

The languages that I am trying to learn, as I have mentioned before, are Russian and Swedish.
So far, Swedish is proving to be the much easier language to learn, as it has similar symbols, and words/word stems that I am familiar with. It still is difficult, though. One of the reasons is that I need to learn the different words that associate with "ett" and "en,"  not to mention nya, nytt, and ny. I am not sure if there is a rule, or if it is is learnt word-by-word. Oh, well. I must fight on and learn this. Some of my friends know that exact reason of why I want to learn the language, but I know that I want to learn to help with my workplace. That being said, I also know that I need to learn Russian to help the translation process. It is a difficult decision: having to choose between learning a language that I really want to learn for personal purposes or learning a language I would like to learn for work. *Sigh*

Until next time (which will hopefully be soon with pictures and updates!
K.