Ramblings

Feb 14, 2011

Ten Things I Did On My Birthday

Birthday weekend, that is. (Yes, I like to stretch out my celebrations.)

01. Enjoyed a four-day weekend.
02. Had a party with my students.
03. Had a family dinner at Kovachi’s.
04. Bought myself a new purse. And new shampoo.
05. Played with the iPad my parents bought me.
06. Enjoyed the gorgeous weather with the windows open.
07. Ate the biggest piece of red velvet cake EVER.
08. Watched the Ellen show for hours on end, thanks to DVR.
09. Slept in very late four days in a row.
10. Got a billion lovely birthday wishes from friends and family.

The big 2-9 has finally arrived.

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Jan 12, 2011

Getting An Inch Of Snow Is Like Winning 10 Cents In The Lottery

I’ve had three days off school due to snow and ice. Truth be told, it was only about 3 inches of snow with an ice coating, but we in the South don’t know how to handle cold weather. Today’s big news story involved tips on driving in winter weather… If I was motivated enough to leave the house, I’m sure I could prove my theory that all the stores are now empty of bottled water and canned goods.

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Jan 1, 2011

New Year’s Resolutions

01. Write more.

02. Hone my photography skills.

03. Keep going strong with my weight loss.

04. Read 50 new books.

05. Watch 50 new movies.

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Apr 11, 2010

In Violence, We Forget Who We Are

“I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.” ~Mahatma Gandhi

The situation in Bangkok is getting worse as the anti-government protesters clashed with police yesterday, ending in casualties on both sides.

The Red Shirts have succeeded in closing down most of the city, including public transportation and shopping areas, but they have not succeeded in making any political headway.

True democracy doesn’t work this way.

True democracy doesn’t blow the other side up when it doesn’t get its way.

True democracy doesn’t bribe and pay the uneducated masses to protest something that most of them don’t even understand.

The Thai people claim they want democracy, but this isn’t the way to go about it. Until the corruption ends on both sides of the line, these sorts of violent reactions will continue, bringing absolutely no peace to Thailand.

See all of my Red Shirt pictures here.

Joy Ramblings, Travel 3520In+Violence%2C+We+Forget+Who+We+Are2010-04-11+03%3A00%3A35Joy

Feb 11, 2010

Pigeons: Harbingers of Evil

That’s right, I said pigeons. They’re evil.

Don’t try to argue, this kid will prove you wrong.

But this isn’t about you or that kid, this is about the Evil that has infiltrated my balcony and my life.

I’ve never liked pigeons much. Aside from the fact that they are dirty, disease-ridden birds, pigeons have absolutely no qualms about attacking innocents (which we learned from the great Alfred Hitchcock), and they will look right at you with those beady yellow eyes while they do it. (Their EYES are YELLOW. That’s a sign right there.)

Trivia: The most enormous (and correspondingly the most evil) pigeons are found in London’s Trafalgar Square.

This pigeon of which I speak is the very same pigeon that yesterday tried to peck his way through a glass door and into my apartment. Oh sure, he tried to cover his intentions with what he clearly thought was an innocent coo, but I knew what he was up to. Immediately I ran for cover (and my camera) while coming up with an escape plan, but the demon’s supersonic hearing kicked in and he flew away to the next balcony. I was safe… or so I thought.

The demon returned. For a while he hid out sniper-style on the balcony across the way, consorting with his pigeon friends and plotting other ways to torture me. This particular pigeon sensed my fear and returned to my balcony again and again, cooing his evil coo and flapping his enormous wings. Finally night fell and I thought the psychological warfare was over…

But this morning, there he was, the Devil’s Spawn himself, waiting on my balcony. He was just biding his time until I was sitting on my couch, leisurely eating Special K and daydreaming about a pigeon-free day.

If only my life were that simple.

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Jan 22, 2010

Reply All: A Love/Hate Letter

Dear Reply All Button,

I must start this letter by admitting my undying devotion to and simultaneous hatred of you, dear Button. You are the thorn in my flesh and the apple of my eye. Your power to do both good and evil is never-ending. I only wish that all had the same respect for you that I have.

Almighty Button, you hold our secrets in your hands; one click and you can either elevate us or destroy us. Jobs can be lost, careers decimated, friendships severed with one false move… but glory awaits he who channels your powers correctly. One can never underestimate the power of a well-placed remark, sarcastic or witty, but even the mighty sometimes fall. The shame of being discovered by the target of such a remark is enough to keep my mind clear and my hand steady.

Unfortunately, many lack the clarity of mind and steadiness of hand that should, by rights, accompany your presence on the email interface. How carelessly they toss their words about, clicking with reckless abandon and cluttering up my inbox with their foolhardiness and inane annotations. Too often have I reveled in that glorious sound alerting me to new mail, only to have my hopes dashed by a brainless response to a missive that had nothing to do with me in the first place. Oh, hated Button, how you have betrayed me time and time again!

However, I remain hopeful that good shall prevail. Those who know and respect your strength have often provided me with countless hours of amusement and delight, and for that, I thank you.

On behalf of all who have felt the sting of shame, exultation of glory, or pain of chagrin that comes with knowing you, I vow to never abuse your powers, but only to use them for good… and for the occasional sarcastic comment.

Respectfully yours,
Joy

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Sep 28, 2009

Let It Rain

I haven’t been having much luck with transportation lately – even my walks to school have been fraught with peril (beyond the usual, of course).

This past week has proven to be the worst rainy season I’ve seen yet during my (almost) three years in Bangkok. Aside from the horrible thunderstorms and ridiculous downpouring of rain, the area where I live and work is one of the lowest points in the city, so that means flooding… and I don’t own any galoshes.

Usually my walk to and from work takes about five minutes, but when you have to slosh through flooding sewer water as cars splash by and motorcycles try to run you off the also-flooded sidewalk, it can be a bit of a challenge. By the time I get to school, I usually look and smell like a drowned rat.

Of course, the flooding takes a toll on both driver and pedestrian – today, for instance, I waded through the water to catch a taxi to the mall. Unfortunately the taxi wasn’t in good condition to begin with, and the deep water didn’t help, so about half a mile from my destination, the taxi starts to rattle and shake and make all sorts of terrifying noises. It finally died on the overpass, so the driver coasted to a stop on the side and got out to look… not only had the engined konked out, but he had a flat tire to boot. Needless to say, I was kicked out of the taxi and had to catch another one for the rest of the journey (and I had to pay for both).

Last week my friend Helen and I got stuck at school during a particularly bad rainstorm and eventually had to brave the floodwaters so we could get home. Naturally we took the time to video our experience.

And that’s only the tip of the iceberg… at one point during the week we were in another friend’s car, driving through the flooded street in front of our school, when water started pouring in through the floorboards…

I would like to take this opportunity to point out that the water is NOT clean and does NOT smell good.

Tomorrow I’m breaking out the hazmat suit.

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Sep 11, 2009

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: Bangkok Edition

thai-elephants-maneuver-their-way-through-a-bangkok-traffic-jam-in-downtown Today was one of the most ridiculous transportation days of my life.

It started off in the usual way – dodging kamikaze sidewalk-hijacking motorcyclists while trying to walk to work – but started going downhill once I left my safe haven.

After a full day at school, my friend Robin and I were expected to be downtown at 4:00 to perform at a charity event that was raising money to help underprivileged children. Knowing it was a Friday afternoon in Bangkok, but also knowing that we had to work until 3:00, we planned to make a mad dash as soon as we could break away. An hour would be cutting it close, but we would just hope for the best.

Nearly three hours later, Robin and I were still in the taxi and had still not arrived at our destination. “Well,” we said, “that’s just Friday afternoon traffic in Bangkok… maybe they won’t start the show without us…”

And then the driver kicked us out. He apparently didn’t want to go any farther in traffic and claimed that we’d only have to walk two blocks (yeah, try six, buddy). So we climbed out and started our hike among the trecherous sidewalks of Bangkok.

We finally made it to the concert venue, horribly late and sweaty and soggy from all the post-rainstorm puddles. Miraculously the show hadn’t started yet, so I was able to perform and eat a muffin for charity (I’m always willing to sacrifice for the greater good). Unfortunately I got hit with a migraine after about an hour at the event, so I decided to skip out early and head home.

This time I had a plan: skip the taxi through downtown traffic and take the skytrain instead… If only it was that simple.

The skytrain was, of course, totally packed – I got groped several times, and the guy next to me had clearly forgotten his deodorant – but it got even worse once I got off the train and saw the line for taxis, which stretched out for at least two blocks.

At this point my migraine was raging, my feet were soaked, I was sweating like a pig, it was dark (I hate the dark), and my cell phone battery was completely dead. So, like the genius that I am, I decided to walk a few blocks and see if I could catch a taxi farther down the road.

I really should know better by now.

After about half an hour of standing on the corner waiting for an open taxi that never came, I gave up and started looking for a bus to hop on instead. Of course, I had no idea which bus to take (and no phone to call anyone with), so I just got on the first one that stopped – and with a stroke of luck, it was the right one! In the home stretch now, I settled into one of the shockingly uncomfortable seats for another thirty minutes of smelly transportation.

Finally the end was in sight. I was only a mile from home, thinking longingly of my soft bed and the good night’s sleep I was going to get… when suddenly the bus stopped.

In the middle of eight lanes of traffic.

And just like the taxi driver, the bus driver kicked us out.

In the middle of eight lanes of traffic.

Needless to say, I was quite a bit freaked out. I had to run across traffic to make it to the sidewalk (by this point laughing hysterically at the ridiculousness of my life) where thankfully there was an open taxi (where was he an hour ago?) who took me the last mile home.

So now, as I sit in my nice warm bed, I have to laugh at the fact that my life may be many things, but dull certainly isn’t one of them.

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The Traveling Teacher

ramblings of an adventurer. teacher. traveler. writer. photographer. singer. webmaster. bibliophile. fangirl.