5th Episode of Bangkok nights and days

27th July 2006
Today was an ‘easy’ day I went to ‘Tops’, the supermarket at the end of the Soi, bought a tub of Haagen dazs, green tea flavoured ice-cream and the Bangkok Post. Actually I bought two tubs of ice-cream, but when the cashier showed me the total I realized that I only had enough cash for one and I put the other back in the cabinet. This caused a slight melt-down as the check-out lady did not have the authority to process a return, but with help from a duty manager it was resolved with a smile that lacked a little of it’s usual sincerity. I have learned one Thai expression that is used to describe some ‘farangs’, particularly the French, basically it translates as ‘pigeon poo’ but the meaning is ‘little shits’. Interesting that cursing transcends language and cultural boundaries.
We were not booked into any gym or pilates, to my relief, but Sheila was keen that we do a work-out in the gym on the ground-floor, followed by a swim. We did some treadmill and weights before I said enough and I rested while Sheila had a swim.
Dinner was roast pork with various U.G.V.O’s, (Unidentified Green Vegetable Objects) followed by bags of semi-dried fruit. The favourite is semi-dried strawberries. The flavour is so intense it is difficult to stop at half a dozen. Adam picked up another ‘yellow’ dried fruit and asked Sheila what it was; “lemon it’s nice” was the reply.
“It doesn’t have any peel, does it, I hate peel,” enquired Adam.
“No it’s lemon it’s great” was Sheila’s reassuring retort.
That was not nice Sheila it did still have its peel on and it was with some difficulty that Adam swallowed the ‘bitter pill’. The comment from Adam that: “Peel makes me want to throw up” produced only giggles from Sheila, not nice Sheila, and I suspect that revenge will not be sweet or long coming.
Discussion included my observation that I had heard a film critic on the radio in Australia nominate as her ‘best of all times’ film as ‘Fargo’. Adam and Rosalind had a copy and as Sheila and I had not seen it we watched ‘Fargo’ and enjoyed it very much, a bit scary and not one I would say was in my top ten, but worth watching. I especially liked the pregnant lady cop character.
After the film Adam and I watched the Brazil/Ghana football game and I thought that Ghana were a little unfortunate not to score a couple of times, but one always had the feeling that Brazil were cruising and only pushed the accelerator a couple of times to show that they could any time that they wanted. Adam had dropped off to sleep just before the third Brazil goal, and it was the second time that he had missed the last goal scored in a match. Not surprising given the hours that he works.
28th June 2006
Sheila awoke at 0500 asking me if I could hear a cuckoo. “No darling I can not hear a cuckoo.
“I am sure I heard a cuckoo”.
“No sweetheart, you did not hear a cuckoo, and neither did I.”
Sheila got out of bed in response to a different chirping and announced: “that was my mobile phone telling me to put it on the charger, you don’t mind if I put the light on do you?” click.
“No ever-loving of course I don’t mind.”
“That was not the cuckoo, that was a different sound.”
“By the way what time do you think it might be” I enquired?
‘Click’ light back on “about five fifteen why? Sheila responded.
“No real reason, it’s just that I feel a need for about another two and a half hours sleep my little dreamboat.”
“Sorry I will try and get back to sleep, but I feel wide wake now and want to talk.”
“Ah right, now what was it you wanted to talk about?”
I forget the conversation, but I think I must have said the positive and negative responses in the appropriate places until some gentle snoring marked the end of the dialogue.
I had just managed to get back to sleep when I felt my shoulder being shaken accompanied by the urgent enquiry: “did you hear that cuckoo again?”
“No I did not hear that cuckoo again, because I did not hear it the first time either or the second or the third, my sweetheart!”
“Dit doo, dit-doo” as I dropped off to a fitful sleep I heard the bloody cuckoo inside my bedside table.
It was my mobile telephone registering it’s need for a feed via the charger. My large cuckoo was in clear and present danger of being sent onto a swift flight across the balcony to someone else’s nest. But insanity prevailed and I arose and inserted the charging cable with more than a little venom and urgency.
About 0800 Sheila asked “would you like a cup of tea?” “Yes that would be nice,” I responded as my thoughts focused on an undisturbed opportunity to get back to sleep.
“What do you think of the tea, I think I have managed to get the tea making right at last?”
“Yes, great it must have been hard with the different type of tea and water, you have done very well!”
Sheila retreated to the kitchen to chat with Rosalind and Khun Noy while I retreated into my pillow until my normal time for breakfast and ablutions.
Sheila went to a Pilates class, Rosalind to get a new ‘sim’ card while I went to see my mates the Soi dogs and get a Bangkok Post. The dogs were getting more friendly, with two of them letting me ‘scruf’ their heads and ears, though I must admit that a few pieces of roast pork may have exerted a little influence on our relationship. I had also asked Rosalind to tell me the Thai word for ‘sit’. It sounds like ‘nang’, but the dogs did not nang, I am told that Thai is a very ‘tonal’ language so either my tone was incorrect or they have not been trained. Perhaps more roast pork will assist the translation/interpretation.
My usual newsagent was sold out of Bangkok Post so I went to another lady and I thought I had given her a twenty baht coin and a five baht coin for the paper, I was made aware that there is no twenty baht coin and her smile did not appear until it was matched with the appearance of another ten baht coin from my pocket.
On the way home I joined the local DVD library/shop and took out on three day ‘lental’ a copy of ‘Narnia: the Lion Witch and the Wardrobe’, Rosalind, Sheila and Adam have not seen it yet and I am happy to see it again, though I must admit that the real reason I joined is that I am fascinated by setting myself these little communication hurdles. I know little things please little minds and joining a video store “whoopee”. But it keeps me amused, and all the spaces I had to fill in on the form only had Thai captions so I just guessed and the assistant seemed happy with having at least some writing in each box.
Adam and Rosalind went out to dinner with one of Adam’s clients from Singapore. The client’s wife also went so it was good for Rosalind to have another female to talk with rather than just witness the male banter.
Lunch time Khun Noy asked us what we would like for dinner; it is a bit of a hassle having to provide our dinning preferences to the housekeeper, but Sheila rose to the challenge and suggested that we might be able to cope with Thai prawns and salad. It may sound alright having a housekeeper cooking dinner every weeknight, and clear-up, but it can be quite taxing having to provide direction and think about what the next meal should be, though a whole lot better than having to worry about where one’s next meal might come from.