Chillaxing

Well the excitement has died down since my vacation travels. I have done a good bit of lounging and enjoying having many dates with my bed. And I have clean sheets and blankets, which makes me feel extra special. My apartment had a good bit of cleaning forced upon it, which means it looks a whole lot prettier now. I have also noticed that I have pretty much won the Ant War for the past few weeks. Believe me, I know I am too excited for this.

One of my farang friends came to visit me the other day. We enjoyed trading music and I bounced ideas for lesson plans off of him, which meant that really just talking aloud to him led me to my lessons, with only a little bit of input from him. Sometimes it is just good to speak and think aloud with another person present, even if they don't speak. We also took a ball out to the field across from my apartment. They had just cut the grass too. It was so nice to kick a ball around even if I was in shorts with a belt, sneakers and the ball was flat. I'll take it anyway. Then the Thai guys that I enviously watch playing on my walk home showed up to play, eying us like we were clowns on stilts trying to play futball. Some of them even were *badly* trying to show off. Poor things could learn a thing or two from me if they would acknowledge me for something beyond my lady bits. But still, to play, to run, to get sweaty FOR A REASON OTHER THAN IT BEING HOT, was all very nice.

Today I had dinner with a University student from the Ivory Coast. She is super sweet. She also brought me Chinese apples on our first meeting, so maybe I am a little biased as to her awesomeness. So yay for a female farang friend! 

So yes, life is sweet. Plenty of friends, the weather is slowly cooling down and it is raining less and less. I can have a good life and manage to get things done that I need to without stress. I have rough lesson plans for all my classes for the next month. I have tea from America that I bought in Chiang Mai to give to my teachers since they did not get a holiday and I think I will go into work, just for a few hours later this week or next week. I need to make some worksheets anyway. I am also on the hunt for a school appropriate witch costume for Halloween. Last year the teachers did ghosts and zombies. This year I think we shall do witches since the school staff is 95% female. I am currently in search of ghost story with simple English, that is short and scary but funny, upon request from my teachers.

I think how much and yet little time I have left here before I travel to America. It is holiday season, which is my favorite time of the year. Also, there are many Thai festivals in November and also a huge reggae festival in a hippy town here called Pai that I cannot wait to attend. My Thai has expanded bit by bit and I have learned that Thais believe when you sneeze, it means someone is missing you. I have also taken to hoarding water since they are working on the pipes nearby and the water goes out at least once a day. And the water is warmer now; what's the deal? I have gotten used to my frigid showers so I am genuinely confused by the warmth. Though, that is probably one of those things I should just be thankful for, and not even question.

That is all :-)