I am the baby at work and some of the Thai women at work like to look after me. At the top of that list is the little lady in the kitchen, Ba Moo (rough translation, Auntie Pork). This is a short little woman, maybe 4’10”, who is in her mid fifties. She’s a peculiar woman with several tattoos on her arms and I’m pretty sure she has two fake teeth that she takes out from time to time. Her appearance isn’t Vogue material but her personality is quite charming, and that is what I’ll miss (her food is not as memorable). Everyday I ask Ba Moo what we’re having for lunch, so I know if I want to eat it, and she always explains to me in detail (and in Thai) what we are eating. I usually have no idea what she’s saying, sans for maybe a handful of dishes I understand. After she tells me what we’re eating she always talks to me. I never know what she’s saying. I always pretend to understand and nod in agreement. Sometimes I utter, “Jing jing” (it means, really?) to make her feel like I’m listening, but I can’t decipher anything she says. After a few jing jings and head nods, I smile and go back to work. My morning just doesn’t feel complete without my AM Ba Moo interaction.

These little pseudo conversations aren’t the only thing I will miss about Ba Moo. What I will really miss about Ba Moo is that she is so worried that I never get enough to eat. She loves feeding me. She always wants to know if I’ve had enough to eat and offers me seconds and thirds. Ba Moo knows the word big, so she always points to me and says “Big, big” and points to food and says “ow mai?” (you want?). It always makes me chuckle how worried she is that I’m being fed enough.

An example of her generous hospitality occurred today. I didn’t have time to eat so I came into the kitchen at 2PM and asked her if she had any food for me. Ba Moo naturally was surprised that I hadn’t eaten and was a bit worried. She scurried to the back of the kitchen to whip me up some food. When she returned she sat down with me as I ate. While I ate she conversed with me. As I ate contently and smiled with satisfaction I realized how much I would miss Ba Moo. After I finished my plate of rice, I wiped my mouth and put my dishes away. Just before I went back to work, in classic Ba Moo form, she pulled out a cookie from her apron…a special treat just for me.

It’s just dawning on me that my time in Thailand is winding down. I’ve been putting off the thought of my departure because of the sadness it’s going to bring me. It signifies another milestone in my life, the end of an era and beginning of a new journey, where ever that may be. It’s that same anxious feeling right before high school and college graduation. While I am sad about leaving the friends I’ve made in Thailand, I’m equally excited about the new adventures I will embark on when I come back to America. To commemorate my time in Thailand and to begin my countdown to the United States, I will be writing a six part “Things that I will miss about Thailand” blog entry. It’s the best way I can think of to punctuate my blog of international adventures.

It’s been chilly here in Thailand for the past few weeks. The calendar will soon roll over to December and the temperature will drop even more. The days of 95 degrees Fahrenheit are all but memories of April, May, June, July, August, and September. Now I wake up and walk to get a taxi and feel the crisp chill of a 75 degree morning.

(Pause for your cursing to subside)

Yes I know what I just wrote and I realize how ludicrous that sounds. I am a Wisconsinite; I wear shorts in the spring when it hits 58 degrees (which is almost 60, which is almost reasonable shorts weather). In December, a 50 degree day feels like a tropical treat (courtesy of global warming) and I deem jackets optional. How easily I forget having been surrounded by this paradise for the past year. It’s been over a year since I’ve seen snow. The only ice I’ve seen has been at the bottom of my cocktail glass and I don’t feel the need for air conditioning anymore. The only possible explanation is that I have been in Thailand too long.

I’m sure I will look back at this entry with the same envy you have right now. I return to Wisconsin January 28^th, just in time for that thick Wisconsin snow. I will see my breath, lose feeling in my ears and toes, develop a sniffle, and yearn for those “chilly” Thai mornings.

* The forecast for Saturday is 88 degrees, so I guess I can bring out my shorts again.

In a previous blog I rambled on about the poor educational system in Thailand. I noted the diluted field of teachers and the incompetence that erodes the system. Well, that system took a turn for the worse. I am now in charge of imparting knowledge onto the next generation. AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHAHAHAHA!!!!!! Weep for the children…I sure do.

Recently a teacher quit and I had to pick up her Social Studies classes, which consist of three two hour classes a week, ranging from 3^rd grade to 6^th grade. I have a little experience in education (my first three semesters in college I was a pre-Ed major) so I wasn’t too worried. After my first five minutes in class all the reasons why I ended my pursuit of an Education degree came screaming back. The students were loud and obnoxious and not too interested in Australia’s history (we use Australian textbooks). I came in determined to “make a difference” in their lives. I began by quizzing them on previous lessons to gauge their prior knowledge. After about three minutes and a bunch of blank stares I pondered what was going on. As I was asking the class about Aboriginals and the early colonization of Australia by English convicts it hit me. I was quizzing the 4^th grade class on the 5^th grade material! I had read all the textbooks the night before and all the material was all jumbled in my head. No wonder they had no idea what was going on. It was quite embarrassing on my part but I rebounded quite nicely.

I am awful at lesson planning and have no idea how I am grading my students. One time during class I arbitrarily shouted out that the homework is worth 10 points. I have no idea how to assign 10 points to their assignment. In fact, I have no idea what homework I assign to each class, I kind of just make it up on the spot. I don’t have answer keys for some of the textbooks so I have to do the assignments myself before hand. Well, Monday I did the wrong homework! Trying to correct their homework was hell. I apparently assigned them a review sheet and part of it had to do with a map of Australia. I had no idea where the Murrumbidgee River was in relation to Wagga Wagga. I had to take them to the computer lab and Google an Australian map. Well, it turns out that finding a map with all the physical features we were looking for was quite the task. After about 20 minutes we finally were able to answer the three questions directly related to an Australian map and class was over. Again, weep for the children.

* My students think I assign too much homework. Wait until they take my mid term exam, they are going to HATE me!!!!! Muhahahahahahahah!!!!!

I was having a really bad Friday. Just a whole lot of crap was going on. My head was spinning; I was on the verge of punching out several teachers at school, the students were running around making me crazy. It was not my day; I don’t think I smiled all day. At the end of the day, it was only me in my office. Four little students came in, two girls and two boys, ranging from first to third grade. First of all they were not supposed to be in my office, but I was feeling apathetic towards rules at that moment and they were too cute to kick out. I started to show them pictures on my computer (which was a risky choice) which progressed to my music selection. I asked them if they knew iPod and the dancing shadows commercials. Obviously they had no clue, so I had to fill them in. I started to blare The Ceasers Jerk it Out song (from the commercial) and started to dance. Soon the children took after me and I had four wild children dancing their hearts away to the music. Someone, I don’t know who, taught them the “Dance like an Egyptian”. Now the four kids are in a line recreating hieroglyphics. When they were done with this dance I started to teach one of the little girls salsa and the spins. She loooved getting spun around. I must have played the song five times before someone’s parents came to pick them up. Each time I played the song the kids got more creative with their dance moves, their giggles turned into uncontrolled laughter, some falling to the ground unable to stand. I’m defiantly smiling at this point. Little kids can be the source of a bad day, but they can also turn a bad day into a pretty good one afternoon.

* Note: students in this picture were not the same students but you get a visual and understand why you can’t stay upset forever.