I was riding my bike home today when I crashed into another bike. I'm not sure exactly what happened. I was thinking about something as I was riding, when suddenly there was another bike in front of me blocking the entire bike lane.
I'm not sure if the bike was exiting the subdivision or had been there a few seconds, but I had not time to react. I crashed into the other bike, sending the rider and bike to the ground. I was actually able to keep my balance and did not fall.
The other rider was a eleven or twelve year old boy. Although he was initially a bit shaken by the accident, thankfully he was otherwise okay.
Later in the afternoon, I was again riding and saw that there was an accident involving a motorcycle and a car. No-one seemed to be seriously injured, but there were guards filling out reports.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Aleena Swimming Update
Aleena’s swim lessons have definitely taken a turn for the better. As you may recall, the first lesson ended with me jumping into the pool in my shorts in order to coax Aleena into the water.
Her last two lessons have been remarkably different. She is really enjoying herself, and is picking things up rather quickly.
One of the reasons for her attitude change is that her pre-K friend Mari is also in her swim class. Aleena can be a bit shy when she is by herself, but if she has a friend with her, she tends to cast her fears aside. Last semester, Aleena and Mari did not play as much together, but this semester they seem to have hit it off.
Her last two lessons have been remarkably different. She is really enjoying herself, and is picking things up rather quickly.
One of the reasons for her attitude change is that her pre-K friend Mari is also in her swim class. Aleena can be a bit shy when she is by herself, but if she has a friend with her, she tends to cast her fears aside. Last semester, Aleena and Mari did not play as much together, but this semester they seem to have hit it off.
Jacob's Soccer
Last Saturday was the tournament for Jacob's soccer league. Throughout the regular season, his team, Polyplus, went undefeated. The only "blemish" on their record was a tie in the final weak.
The tournament was a round-robin affair, with each game lasting fifteen minutes. The two teams with the best records would then play in the finals. Jacob's team was 2-1-1 going into the last round of the round robin. They won impressively, and then had to play in the final against the team that had defeated them earlier in the day. The finals saw Polyplus dominate, with them attacking ninety percent of the time. I think the other team ended up taking one shot on goal that entire game.
Jacob played goalie for three of the six games, and did a nice job. He was very happy, of course, to have collected another trophy for his efforts. He ended up getting three for soccer this year; one for participating, one for winning the league title, and one for winning the tournament.
What's Happening
The next few weekends promise to be busy. This Saturday is the Cub Scout Pinewood Derby. Jacob is still painting his car. I have a "backup" that I decorated with some Bear Scout stickers that I purchased this summer. I thought I had bought some stickers for his derby car, but I can't find them.
Next week, I am going on a three day trip to Sukhothai to take photographs. No kids or wife on this one, just me, my camera, and whatever light and sights are available. Sukhothai was the first Thai capital, and boasts a number of ancient ruins.
The following week is the Cub Scout camp out. The entire family is going, so it should be fun. We have a room and a tent, so we will not be entirely at the mercy of the weather.
Next week, I am going on a three day trip to Sukhothai to take photographs. No kids or wife on this one, just me, my camera, and whatever light and sights are available. Sukhothai was the first Thai capital, and boasts a number of ancient ruins.
The following week is the Cub Scout camp out. The entire family is going, so it should be fun. We have a room and a tent, so we will not be entirely at the mercy of the weather.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Boat People
One of the big stories over here is the alleged human rights abuse of Rohingya boat people. The Rohingya people are Muslims from western Burma. Many of them flee Burma because they are abused by the Burmese government. Many of them pay human traffickers $300 per person to help them illegally enter Thailand. They then often pay almost another one thousand dollars to sneak into Malaysia.
Recently, a tourist took some pictures of some one hundred and twenty-six Rohingya boat people being detained by the Thai military. The pictures show the detainees bound with their hands tied behind their backs. Some witnesses say that the Thai military forced some of the boats back into the water, despite the fact that they were severely short on food and fuel.
The press and the international community have expressed outrage at the treatment of the refugees. The Thai military has denied abusing the refugees and further denied that it sent some boats back into the water. The Thai government has pledged to fully investigate the matter. I would be very surprised if the result of their investigation shows wrong doing on the part of any Thai; at least wrong doing on the part of anyone with any real authority.
This is really not the distraction that the new Democrat-led government needs. Their plate is already full with an economic down turn and protests from the UDD. Their government is somewhat fragile, relying on two dozen former Thaksin allies to maintain their majority.
Recently, a tourist took some pictures of some one hundred and twenty-six Rohingya boat people being detained by the Thai military. The pictures show the detainees bound with their hands tied behind their backs. Some witnesses say that the Thai military forced some of the boats back into the water, despite the fact that they were severely short on food and fuel.
The press and the international community have expressed outrage at the treatment of the refugees. The Thai military has denied abusing the refugees and further denied that it sent some boats back into the water. The Thai government has pledged to fully investigate the matter. I would be very surprised if the result of their investigation shows wrong doing on the part of any Thai; at least wrong doing on the part of anyone with any real authority.
This is really not the distraction that the new Democrat-led government needs. Their plate is already full with an economic down turn and protests from the UDD. Their government is somewhat fragile, relying on two dozen former Thaksin allies to maintain their majority.
A Few Pictures
Earlier this week, the kids and I walked around the neighborhood a bit and took some pictures. Nalin and Aleena received cameras for Christmas, so all four of us were armed with bits of glass and image processors.
After about five minutes, Aleena wondered why her pictures were all blank. Nalin looked and discovered the sticker that Aleena had placed over the lens.
The garbage cans have the name Nichada Villa (our subdivision name) on them. The girls thought that this was picturesque and kept taking shots of them. The kids favorite targets, however, were some of the neighborhood dogs. There were three or four dogs out on walks, and the kids politely asked the owners (or maids as was usually the case) for permission to take pictures.
Here is a picture of my band of novice photographers.
After about five minutes, Aleena wondered why her pictures were all blank. Nalin looked and discovered the sticker that Aleena had placed over the lens.
The garbage cans have the name Nichada Villa (our subdivision name) on them. The girls thought that this was picturesque and kept taking shots of them. The kids favorite targets, however, were some of the neighborhood dogs. There were three or four dogs out on walks, and the kids politely asked the owners (or maids as was usually the case) for permission to take pictures.
Here is a picture of my band of novice photographers.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Warmer
The cold front that was making things so pleasant seems to have passed, and things are starting to warm up a bit. Today the high is expected in the mid-90's. Oh well, the beautiful weather was not going to last forever.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Austrailian Author Jailed for Defaming Thai King
What if you wrote a book that no-one read, but you were jailed for it? Sounds like a nightmare, right? Harry Nicolaides, author of the 2005 novel "Verisimilitude" is living that very nightmare.
Yesterday, Nicolaides was sentenced to three years in jail because he was found guilty of lese majeste; insulting the monarchy. Authorities charged that a paragraph of this novel insulted the king, the crown prince and the royal family. The charges actually carry a six year sentence, but the judge halved the sentence because Nicolaides pleaded guilty. Pleading guilty for a halved sentence is a common practice here in the kingdom.
Nicolaides, who has been in Thailand since 2003, was leaving the country when he was arrested last year. It is not known why the authorities waited so long to after the book's publication to arrest him.
Verisimilitude is anything but a best seller. Only seven copies of the fifty printed were ever sold. While CNN reported Nicolaides conviction, they refrained from reproducing the offending paragraph because to do so would have resulted in the prosecution of their staff in Thailand on the same charges. I will not repeat them either, but they are not hard to find on the Internet.
I am pretty critical of the lese majeste law. I think that it actually hurts Thailand as it inhibits a full and frank discussion of its political future and that it has been used as a tool to attempt to destroy one's political enemies.
Despite my misgivings about the lese majeste law itself, Nicolaides is either incredibly stupid or reckless. Nicolaides' claim that he meant no insult and is surprised by all of this is highly dubious. He didn't write something that would be benign in the U.S. or Australia (his native country) but insulting to Thais because of cultural differences. His writing would be considered offensive, although not criminal, in the Western world.
The other thing that makes his actions so unbelievable is that he lived in Thailand for two years prior to writing the book. Nicolaides was a writer, blogger and university lecturer. I have no doubt that he knew about the lese majeste laws when he penned his novel.
Despite the fact that he had to know the law and that his words would break it, he went ahead with his book. I don't know if he thought that the authorities would not learn of it because it was written in English, or perhaps that his falang skin would cause the police to look the other way. In any case, he was wrong, and a little throw away paragraph in a novel that sold seven copies just might cost him the next three years of his life.
Although his attorney stated that no decision had yet been made, the next logical step is for Nicolaides to appeal for a royal pardon. In the past, foreigners who have run afoul of the lese majeste laws have been successful in obtaining Royal forgiveness. They are then usually expelled after their release.
Yesterday, Nicolaides was sentenced to three years in jail because he was found guilty of lese majeste; insulting the monarchy. Authorities charged that a paragraph of this novel insulted the king, the crown prince and the royal family. The charges actually carry a six year sentence, but the judge halved the sentence because Nicolaides pleaded guilty. Pleading guilty for a halved sentence is a common practice here in the kingdom.
Nicolaides, who has been in Thailand since 2003, was leaving the country when he was arrested last year. It is not known why the authorities waited so long to after the book's publication to arrest him.
Verisimilitude is anything but a best seller. Only seven copies of the fifty printed were ever sold. While CNN reported Nicolaides conviction, they refrained from reproducing the offending paragraph because to do so would have resulted in the prosecution of their staff in Thailand on the same charges. I will not repeat them either, but they are not hard to find on the Internet.
I am pretty critical of the lese majeste law. I think that it actually hurts Thailand as it inhibits a full and frank discussion of its political future and that it has been used as a tool to attempt to destroy one's political enemies.
Despite my misgivings about the lese majeste law itself, Nicolaides is either incredibly stupid or reckless. Nicolaides' claim that he meant no insult and is surprised by all of this is highly dubious. He didn't write something that would be benign in the U.S. or Australia (his native country) but insulting to Thais because of cultural differences. His writing would be considered offensive, although not criminal, in the Western world.
The other thing that makes his actions so unbelievable is that he lived in Thailand for two years prior to writing the book. Nicolaides was a writer, blogger and university lecturer. I have no doubt that he knew about the lese majeste laws when he penned his novel.
Despite the fact that he had to know the law and that his words would break it, he went ahead with his book. I don't know if he thought that the authorities would not learn of it because it was written in English, or perhaps that his falang skin would cause the police to look the other way. In any case, he was wrong, and a little throw away paragraph in a novel that sold seven copies just might cost him the next three years of his life.
Although his attorney stated that no decision had yet been made, the next logical step is for Nicolaides to appeal for a royal pardon. In the past, foreigners who have run afoul of the lese majeste laws have been successful in obtaining Royal forgiveness. They are then usually expelled after their release.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
What Happened Today
Tim left early this morning to attend a ceremony to create a statue for their company. She had to finish up some work before she left, so I think she got up at 3:00 a.m. The ceremony is pretty much an all day affair at a place a few hours from the city. The entire family went to a similar event last year, and it really isn't very much fun for kids. Top and Tham also went today, but left their kids at home as well.
Another reason that we didn't go is that Jacob has his last soccer game today. I misread the schedule and we showed up at 8:00 a.m. for a 10:40 a.m. game. The kids just played at school until game time (of course the girls played during the game as well).
The game ended in a 3-3 tie, and Jacob's team finished in first place in their league. Jacob was goalie for the first half of the game and gave up only one goal. He had stopped a shot and was holding the ball. His coach yelled for him to drop the ball in front of a particular teammate with a strong leg to kick it. Jacob didn't understand what he was saying, and handed the ball to his teammate. Of course, when his teammate touched it with his hand, it was a penalty. The other team got a penalty shot with no wall and scored.
During the second half, Jacob played defense and performed pretty well. With about five minutes left in the game, his team went down 3-1. They rallied with two goals in the final few minutes to preserve their undefeated season.
Jacob was very happy after the game, as each team member received two trophies; one for finishing in first and one that everyone in the league receives. As we were walking to our bikes, Jacob informed me that he liked to collect trophies.
It turns out that my blog on the end of my daughters' dancing "careers" was premature. Nalin changed her mind and decided that she wanted to the jazz class again. I also ended up signing Aleena up for a dancing and singing class.
In the afternoon we went to the pool at the Nichada Club. I'm a member of the club, which includes use of the gym, pool and the back gate with easy access to the expressway and Chaeng Wattana. The kids had fun playing at the pool in the adjacent sand box. Sand box does not quite do it justice, it contains two soccer goals and I imagine that is big enough to play beach volley ball on it.
Apparently Jacob made some new friends who did not speak English. The good thing is that Jacob talks enough for three or four kids. Yeah, I know where he got it from.
I cooked dinner tonight. I picked up some pre-made crusts and made pizza for the kids. Additionally, I made "home-made" ravioli and pasta. Making pasta is surprisingly easy, just egg and flour. When I was back in the states I bought a pasta roller and cutter, which makes getting the right shape and consistency a lot easier. I filled some of the ravioli with sauteed mushroom and others with fake crab. Everyone really liked the dinner, so I guess I didn't do too bad of a job.
One thing that is very nice about cooking here is that I don't have to clean up. Booah cleaned the dishes and even helped me a bit. Stuffing the ravioli took longer than I thought, so she played soush chef.
After dinner, the kids did their routine and watched a little television (Star Wars the Clone Wars, episode 13). By eight o'clock, Tim and the kids were sleeping, while I was photo editing and blogging. Not the most exciting day ever recorded electronically, but it was pretty nice.
Another reason that we didn't go is that Jacob has his last soccer game today. I misread the schedule and we showed up at 8:00 a.m. for a 10:40 a.m. game. The kids just played at school until game time (of course the girls played during the game as well).
The game ended in a 3-3 tie, and Jacob's team finished in first place in their league. Jacob was goalie for the first half of the game and gave up only one goal. He had stopped a shot and was holding the ball. His coach yelled for him to drop the ball in front of a particular teammate with a strong leg to kick it. Jacob didn't understand what he was saying, and handed the ball to his teammate. Of course, when his teammate touched it with his hand, it was a penalty. The other team got a penalty shot with no wall and scored.
During the second half, Jacob played defense and performed pretty well. With about five minutes left in the game, his team went down 3-1. They rallied with two goals in the final few minutes to preserve their undefeated season.
Jacob was very happy after the game, as each team member received two trophies; one for finishing in first and one that everyone in the league receives. As we were walking to our bikes, Jacob informed me that he liked to collect trophies.
It turns out that my blog on the end of my daughters' dancing "careers" was premature. Nalin changed her mind and decided that she wanted to the jazz class again. I also ended up signing Aleena up for a dancing and singing class.
In the afternoon we went to the pool at the Nichada Club. I'm a member of the club, which includes use of the gym, pool and the back gate with easy access to the expressway and Chaeng Wattana. The kids had fun playing at the pool in the adjacent sand box. Sand box does not quite do it justice, it contains two soccer goals and I imagine that is big enough to play beach volley ball on it.
Apparently Jacob made some new friends who did not speak English. The good thing is that Jacob talks enough for three or four kids. Yeah, I know where he got it from.
I cooked dinner tonight. I picked up some pre-made crusts and made pizza for the kids. Additionally, I made "home-made" ravioli and pasta. Making pasta is surprisingly easy, just egg and flour. When I was back in the states I bought a pasta roller and cutter, which makes getting the right shape and consistency a lot easier. I filled some of the ravioli with sauteed mushroom and others with fake crab. Everyone really liked the dinner, so I guess I didn't do too bad of a job.
One thing that is very nice about cooking here is that I don't have to clean up. Booah cleaned the dishes and even helped me a bit. Stuffing the ravioli took longer than I thought, so she played soush chef.
After dinner, the kids did their routine and watched a little television (Star Wars the Clone Wars, episode 13). By eight o'clock, Tim and the kids were sleeping, while I was photo editing and blogging. Not the most exciting day ever recorded electronically, but it was pretty nice.
UDD Rally Picture of Signs
When I went to the UDD rally a few weeks ago, I noticed that there were quite a few signs written in English. I can only assume that these were intended to attract the attention of a foreign audience.
I created a Picasa album with some of the pictures of the sign.
http://picasaweb.google.com/edwardbrianvogel/UDDRallySigns#
I created a Picasa album with some of the pictures of the sign.
http://picasaweb.google.com/edwardbrianvogel/UDDRallySigns#
Port-a-bus
When I was back at the UDD rally in December, I took a number of pictures. I'm going to be publishing some of them in my picasa web albums over the next day or so.
Below is a picture that I wanted to include directly in the blog. Not even the most dedicated protestor who is totally committed to his or her cause can overcome the basic human body functions. There were food and drink vendors on the perimeter of the rally, offering hungry and thirsty Thais relief. But what is a protesting Thai to do when he has "processed" his food and beverages.
In the U.S., one might expect to see a line of Port-a-potties at such an event. Instead, the rally had what I can only describe as a port-a-bus. In this case, I think the photograph will help you get the "picture".
Below is a picture that I wanted to include directly in the blog. Not even the most dedicated protestor who is totally committed to his or her cause can overcome the basic human body functions. There were food and drink vendors on the perimeter of the rally, offering hungry and thirsty Thais relief. But what is a protesting Thai to do when he has "processed" his food and beverages.
In the U.S., one might expect to see a line of Port-a-potties at such an event. Instead, the rally had what I can only describe as a port-a-bus. In this case, I think the photograph will help you get the "picture".
House Pictures
Here are a few pictures of our house. I took them using my wide angle lens and have not done a lot of editing.
Other half of the living room. Its actually a pretty big room.
Dining room.
The master bedroom.
Front of the house.
Living room shot including hallway to dining room and kitchen.
Other half of the living room. Its actually a pretty big room.
Dining room.
The master bedroom.
Front of the house.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
No Dancing
Well, my dreams of long hours at dance recitals, enduring endless hours of other people's children performing in order to see mine for five minutes took a serious blow this week. Yesterday Nalin informed me that she didn't want to continue taking dance classes. She said they were too boring.
Today, Aleena decided not to continue taking ballet lessons. The deciding factor for her was that her friend McKayla was no longer going to take them.
Actually, I really don't mind that they quit dancing. Nalin has been on again off again, while I think Aleena was never quite into it. Aleena's ballet class was a bit too serious, with McKayla and Aleena sometimes entertaining themselves to the dismay of the teacher.
Today, Aleena decided not to continue taking ballet lessons. The deciding factor for her was that her friend McKayla was no longer going to take them.
Actually, I really don't mind that they quit dancing. Nalin has been on again off again, while I think Aleena was never quite into it. Aleena's ballet class was a bit too serious, with McKayla and Aleena sometimes entertaining themselves to the dismay of the teacher.
For the sake of completeness, Jacob does not dance, nor has he ever expressed any interest in taking lessons. If he ever wanted to take dance lessons, I would not stop him, but its not something that I would ever push him towards.
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