Wandering In Thailand: Stephen Cysewski
I will be on Sabbatical in Thailand. I am interested in how adults learn
and apply computer technology. I will share my experiences in Thailand, share some of my life in Alaska, and document my sabbatical. I will post photographs,
links, thoughts, and resources.
Saturday, September 03, 2005
We are in Thailand but marginal Internet
We are in Thailand, I have written many posts and have
some pictures but the Internet access is very poor. Have gone to a couple
Internet Cafes. I just got an account with ego in Thailand; it is working,
but because of the phone lines is pretty slow. I have not forgotten this
blog, and it will be updated when I get some Internet access. The trip is
wonderful and I am learning an immense amount about IT and the Internet and
also about Thailand. Please be patient I am will be posting soon.
Sunset, in the park right next to Jit's house.
Stephen Cysewski
Jit's house. She has been working all year to build this house for her folks.
It is great, still a little more work to do, but it is very comfortable
Stephen Cysewski
Another picture of Jit's house
Stephen Cysewski
9/1/2005 @ 7:51 PM
Peanut butter and jelly sandwich for breakfast, sort of like Jit having soup
for breakfast
Last night it rained and a black hairless dog slept on the doorstep.
In the morning we went to look for the lizard, we heard it. We continued
walking to the abandoned part of the park and found a large observation
tower, as we walked up to the tower the black dog came running down, weird.
There is a girl in the village who has a little cerebral palsy, she was
carrying a sling shot, I wonder what she was going to get, fish, dog, or a
bird. I teased her a little bit.
When we were walking we talked to a person who prepares lunch for the bike
tour. She said that the reason the park is falling apart is no money. The
people who try to maintain the park have "no life". We also found
the house where the worker stays, pretty interesting. There are guards that
guard the gate for the park and only residence can drive in, it is still
beautiful, in fact the overgrown part of the park might even have more appeal
because of the return of a natural, undisturbed, environment. There is much
to explore. At night, and during the day, I see people jogging, exercising,
and today even a remote controlled boat. The boat was stuck on an island and
the boy swam over and turned it around.
In the village there is a group of women who create a dessert that is covered
in banana leaves, it is great to watch the enterprise. The first time I came
it was working, the next time no enterprise, and this time it is working
again. The people work hard for money, everywhere. There is even people who
sell fish food to the bike tourists. I think that the bike tour is a sign of
hope for income for the community.
Watching people build the house is an education, welding, cement work,
improvising, the people have real skills that they have picked up from their
dads and mothers. Thinking of computer training again, good internet access
and examples of successful usage is the key to technology. Everybody has cell
phones and they meet a real need, computers, without Internet access meet a
marginal need.
The post office that I observed yesterday was Pak Lat.
As I think of IT I think of same and different, is the use of computers in
small business any different in Alaska?
When we took the bus from Bangkrachow to Papradang it was an old Mercedes
with a whole in the floor, pretty derelict, but it worked.
There is a whole herd of buses at Bang Krachow waiting to run the route to
Papradang, pretty picturesque.
This morning we took a motor bike tour around the Bangkrachow peninsula. We
saw many docks and many Wats and also where the Banglapoo flouting market is
on the weekend. Sound like another sign of hope for the communities on this
peninsula.
We went to the Papradang this morning and caught the Bus 6, non air
conditioned, Jit wanted an air conditioned bus but I wanted to go on the
other bus because the windows are open and it is like a carnival ride, you
can see, hear, and smell everything and because the windows are open you can
take photographs, it was great. I want to take Bus 4 because it goes through China town.
We got off Bus 6 by Kho San Road and Banglapuu. Walked around and then took a
taxi to the far end of the Sky train. We rode on it to the other end. The
difference in the experience of the Sky Train is an order of magnitude
different then riding in an non air conditioned bus. It is like being in a
different city. If I am visiting I think I like the bus, if I live here I
will like the Sky Train.
We backtracked on the Sky Train and got off at Pak Nam and went to the Tesco
Lotus and bought some stuff from home, I bugged Jit because I did not see how
we could carry it all home, but we did, Taxi to Klong Toe dock, boat across
the river, and then ridding motor bikes home. Pretty fun exploration, seeing
many new places and posing a million questions. I wonder if I will ever be
able to know where I am in Bangkok, each street is another world.
The dogs howl in this community like Alaska huskies on a winter night, it
sure is an echo experience.
Tony, Jit's brother was at the house when we got back. He makes me
uncomfortable. I do not trust him and it makes me feel like we must lock and
protect everything. After long and emotional discussion he finally left, I do
not think I want to leave valuable things here as long as he is around. He is
really at a sad state saying he needs money for his baby in the hospital and then
answering phone calls in English that sounds like he is being pressured for
money, not a good situation.
Jit spent a long time talking with the communitee leader, Lek, it was loud
and persistent, he had the courtesy to listen. I can pick up a vague sense of
context.
I went to the park to get away from Tony, it was beautiful watching the
sunset and the people enjoying the park.
At night there were a group of people in the village shelter who were sharing
a meal, it was a warm situation.
I also finally got a good Bangkok map that shows the whole metropolitan area.
I found where STOU was, it is near Ko Kred, and also could see some of the
places we have been exploring.
I wonder if the Black Hairless Dog will show up tonight.
They are still working on iron railings around the house, the welder is
powered by two bare wires pushed into socket, electricity here is 220. People
really make do.
Date: 8/31/2005 @ 3:49 PM
IT Observations
Post Office small, two old computers, looks like one was contacted to the
title screen of a dedicated program. I am sure main post offices have more.
There was not a terminal screen at the front counter.
An observation1
A country without a reliable post office will have a hard time competing in
globalization. People say, and my experience confirms, that if you send money
it will not get to its destination. I foolishly sent two packages by Air
Postal, I hope they arrive. Anyway even though information can travel
virtually, stuff must actually be delivered. Customs and the post office must
be above reproach. I send many things internationally through eBay. It has
always worked, but I sure feel better sending to Singapore and Hong Kong then
to Turkey. Britain is the only one that caused a problem, but the camera was
eventually, eight months later, was returned. Cost of the delivery is also
important.
Around the Tambon, phone service is very noisy, I will be amazed if it works.
At the Internet room that I delivered the connection was slow. Some teenagers
playing games, probably eighty computers, well laid out and they looked like
in good shape.
Rather then investing in computers the government, if it wants to encourage
Internet literacy would provide subsidized broadband Internet access as
widely as possible. They have demonstrations of what can be done for business
and for fun. I would love to show the people the satellite picture of there
area. The problem is not having a computer it is the motivation and pay back
from technology. To excite people you need broadband access. Excitement leads
to usage.
Date: 9/2/2005 @ 4:55 PM
I got a new notebook today, really. I am using a small 3 X 5 notebook to
carry with me and make notes and observations as a travel around. I then
transcribe or amplify the notes using either my T3 Tungsten and a Palm
keyboard, or I use my Notebook computer. The Palm and Notebook synch using
the same application. I am using Natura DayNotez which has both a Windows and
a Palm application. It is very useful.
Date: 9/2/2005 @ 4:58 PM
In the morning there was lightening near and far. See, listen, count, a few
of the lightening strikes were almost instantaneous. Most were ten to fifteen
seconds. The lightening was in all directions. Above and on all four sides,
pretty exciting. After the storm the morning was beautiful. I went and walked
around the park. I was told by Peesean that lightening does not strike in
Bangkrachow, maybe, there are many more attractive options like ships and
docks in the area, but some of the strikes were very close and my scientific
sense says that there is no guarantee that lightening will not strike.
There was no black dog last night, but the new gate was installed and locked.
We saw the dog in the morning, it sure is ugly, a no haired black dog, I do
not think we exist in his awareness.
A great name for a blog on traveling in Thailand would be "Thinking too
much" everywhere I go with English people Thai speakers the term comes
up, you are Thinking too much, meaning you are analyzing too much. For Alaska a similar name would be "Without a beginning or an end." At the first
circumpolar conference in the early 70's there was some Sammi singers from Finland. There was laughter that there songs and Alaska songs shared the common trait of
being without a beginning or an end. I think the people of Alaska see
themselves as without a beginning or an end also.
I was looking at a magazine today and there were pages of ring tones, themes,
and even Videos to download to cell phones. Just another indication of the
impact of cell phones. The value of the end drives the means for education
and for IT. If the end or need that is being met by a tool is valuable and
centered on human need the technology will be adopted. To me the key to
technology adoption and training is broadband internet access. Governments
should do everything in there power to make broadband Internet universally
available to their citizens. From Internet access with come technology
adoption. In Turkey, and in a school in Thailand the traveling Internet bus
idea seems to be working.
Means and ends, why before how, purpose drives training. People need a reason
to adopt tools, and if you can create a commitment to the purpose the means
or skills will follow. Digital cameras have to be designed for many needs,
simple record shots for family and travel memories to people who use
photography for personal expression. Cameras have a range of controls to meet
various needs. Ironically the attempt to make a camera meet different needs
makes it more complex.
The ends that drive technology adoption are based on core human needs, the
need to communicate, the need to express, the need to know, the need to
understand. When I revise my courses I will try to focus on ends that drive
needs. I do that in an ad hex way know with my projects, but I can use this
idea with much deeper force and clearer intention. Watching technology
adoption and use is really making me think.
Jit says that the reason people do not by computers is money, I think that is
sort of like exercising, people know it is good but something has to tip the
motivation to action. Computers and technology are "good for you".
I think the question in not computer it is the Internet!
I tentative idea, if I can arrange broadband Internet, it would have to be
satellite, I could make the Internet available and show people some uses.
Google Earth, the information on the Bike tours, Google tools, put up a web
site of photographs, and then support the development of curiosity. This is
an idea that I will sort of nudge along. I would love to see one of the WiMax
villages to see what is happening.
Date: 9/2/2005 @ 5:28 PM
Today we went on the Chao Pharea express with Peechon, a
cool person. Started by riding with her younger brother, we fit into a pickup
truck. I realized a little into the trip, that he was a little drunk. He
drove well though. We came to a police checkpoint and they wanted to pull us
over, it was because I was not wearing a seat belt! He kept trying to pull
over, or seemed so, and then just kept driving. Later that day we were in a Taxi
and there was another checkpoint, we all .grabbed our seatbelts and faked it
because there was no way to lock the other end of the seatbelt, it was stuck
under the seats. In another taxi on the way home there were no seatbelts at
all. Hmmmm.....
When we were in Northburi we bought fruit and had some great noodles at a
noodle shop. As we were leaving I saw three, then four, then five people walk
by coughing. Then I started coughing. Somebody in a shop two doors down was
cutting peppers, I wonder if that is what pepper spray does to bears. Anyway
another experience.
The Chao Phry express is as different from the Sky Train as the Non-air
conditioned buses. It is a great way to travel and should be the first thing
that a tourist does to experience Bangkok. It is a great trip. It takes about
an hour and half one way and it cost about a dollar. Really great. I have
many pictures to share in the blog when I get Internet access.
I have been using my Ricoh GR1v and it seems to work great for street
photography. I have also been using my Canon S70 for park pictures and also
pictures on today’s boat trip. It also is working much better then expected.
I need to find a good place to develop and scan my film. One thing at a time.
Saturday 9/3
Woke up to rain this morning, but no storm, it has been a
sort of cool morning, around 80 degrees. Sure do not need a furnace here, or
even hot water. The kitchen will be a cement platform outside, with a short
wall and a rough, really open. When we were in Fairbanks she always wanted a
seperate building for the kitchen, it actually makes sense when the climate
is like this.
We moved the large clothes storage furniture into Jit's room and into her
Dad's and Mom's room. It looks like they will move in soon. We are going to
have our own permenant room here. I think I will leave many things when we
come back to Alaska, like shorts, tee shirts, and all sorts of summer short
sleaves stuff. This house will be our Thailand home when we move back and
forth from Alaska to Thailand.
Went for a walk in the park. The sounds were wonderful. I walked to the back
area of the park and heard a Dharma talk in the distance and children singing
in another direction. I think it is from the two buses of kids that came
yesterday. A small lizard ran when it saw me, I would have ran too! The birds
sounds are unique, a rising Whoo Whoo, no Raven sounds though. The Robins,
that are not Robins, are not Robins. I looked closely, as closely as I can
with my eyesight, and there markings and mannerisms are slightly different.
The two hang out on the lawn and peck the ground though. My mind says they
are Robins until I realize they are not. I can hear chickens in the distance,
and behind everything, almost ignored, is the low rumbling sound of Bangkok,
sort of like the power plant sound in Fairbanks.
A women tour guide, I saw her badge, and a couple maybe from Germany or Britain rode by on bikes. An older women on a collapsable bike rode by also, Sawadee. The
tourist couple fed food to the fish and the fish all swirled around. In so
many places in Thailand feeding the fish is a tourist thing. I am not sure of
the kind of fish, sort of a large gold fish kind of thing. Sometimes at
temples they feed bread instead of fish feed pellets.
I was think about the trip on the river yesterday, a majority of the docks
are in Wats. The Wats serve community functions in so many ways. They really
are integrated into the everyday life. The floating market for Papredang is
at a Wat and the access is Ko Kred is through a Wat.Wat's are public places.
Another blog title idea, maybe for IT or also for cross cultural "Same
and Different"
Internet Access 1
I tried the Internet access that Pan gave me, after a few
times I could get a connection but I did not have the appropriate ID. I need to
find out how to do that, but I do not have my trusty Google. I need Internet
access to find out how to get Internet access. Hmmm....
Actually this is a common problem with getting on the Internet.
We found out about DSL. The phone line is marginal, but might work. The cost
for the cheapest DSL, not counting $100 for the modem, is $12 a month for
256k. The maximum speed is 4mb at the cost would be 2,200 baht or roughly
$60. For everyday people these costs are prohibitive. A taxi driver, for a
one hour ride, and a fairly long distance only get $3.00. The reason things
are cheap in Thailand is that the wages are very low.
Internet Access 2 Success
Tried to get on the Internet today. I used the information
Pan gave me but the username and password were not recognized by the domain.
Jit asked one of the village kids who used the Internet, she came over and
told me she used e-go. You can buy a card at 7-11. We took a motor bike over
to the 7-11, a much longer ride then I expected, fun and a little crazy. Anyway
we got a card for 50 hours at 378 baht, around $9. After a little fussing it
worked, but very slowly, the phone line is pretty noisy and I thought I was
sunk. On a whim I tried another phone line between the modem and the wall. I
got a good connection at a useful speed. I guess the principle here is that
if you want to know something ask the person who is successfully using it.
Also my old favorite "same and different" which allowed me to find
a poor phone cable. Anyway I am on at a useful speed. I think that I can use
it where ever I have a phone connection. I am lucky also because the service
does have an English page. When I got the card though I thought it was
hopeless, there was a sticker in Thai over the usernane and password, I
thought I would have to type in Thai, but it was only a scratch sticker. I am
back in business.
Sunday 9/4
Many more amazing experiences today, after we got the ego
card we rode on motor bikes to the Banglepheu floating market. It is a real,
not tourist market so that the tambons of Phrapradang can sell there goods.
There were some One Tambon, One Product items there. Jit got some Nam
Prick(sp) and some fish sauce. We all ate there and it was excellent and hot,
not adapting to my poor mouth, thankfully. Jit let some fish and snails loose
into the canal for merit. There were some large turtles that could also be
let loose.
I saw some cool things today, a couple gathering some kind of nuts from the
canals with a long bamboo pole with a net on the end. I also saw the person
that went with us to Ranong last year, it was good to see him. More and more
people are visiting. The feeling of the community is very different on the
weekend. The kids are home from school and so are the parents. There is a
sense of life and activity, people working, fixing up their houses, and
having fun.
Jit's friend that went with us on the river boat yesterday came over and
visited with three of her grand kids. Some of them spoke English words well,
boat, smile, face, ABC's, probably 1 to 3rd grades, we all went to get some
kind of iced treat and then walked around the park and fed the fish. The
large lizard was swimming again in the middle of the lake. I am really
curious about the lizard and want to see it up closer. As we were walking
home we say by a community volley ball game, it was really relaxed and fun, I
chickened out on playing. Everybody asks if I speak Thai and I can feel their
disappointment that I can not speak Thai. My motivation is sure increasing.
If I am going to be surrounded by people who do not speak English with any
comfort I better learn to be at least monosyllabically functional. I sure do
not have much confidence in myself though.
Another beautiful storm cloud sunset, it started to rain around 7:00. I can
not imagine why people would want to leave the comfort of the community here.
There is a sense of how people should live. Small town Thailand is not like Iowa, or even Auburn where I grew up.
As I wander around I get offered a drink of whisky at the most odd times, we
were at the market and one of the vendors that Jit was talking with offered
me a drink. Oh well, I am glad I quite, a little over 20 years ago, because
if I didn't it would be very easy to waste your life away with alcohol.
I keep watching the dogs. Where I am staying the dogs are confident, seem to
always be going someplace intentionally, and are wary of humans. They will
watch to see if it is safe to pass me. The state of the dogs health are
sometimes poor, but their psychology seems excellent. Just watching a dog walk,
with a sense of purpose in interesting. Learning to train our dog Ava has
given me a new appreciation for watching dogs in their natural state.
Oh today I also saw kids hula hooping, I have not seen that in years. I could
never do that, even when it was a fade many years ago.
I will be writing a few hundred entries in this blog from thousands of
experiences.
So many experience.....
So many experiences.....
The women's name who went with us on the river trip is Keenom. Hearing and
spelling are a real problem for me. I just do not hear the distinctions
between names well. I also find that I need to see something writing down to
really remember it. Oh Well, on with the show.
I realized that the little girl who shoots fishes with slingshot is around
the community when the other kids are in school. has a slight case of cerabal
palsy, I think. It is like one of her hands and legs are not working well. I
asked Jit and she mentioned that she had a hard time writing in school. I
guess one of the things that I take for granted is educational access for
people with disabilities. On the other hand the girl is loved, surrounded by
friends and family every day and is not isolated. Ideally having education
and a real place in the community would happen, but given the choices being a
loved member of a community is a better choice.
I spell things differently all the time, for now we live in the Bangkrachow
tambon of the Phrapredang aumper or district. I am sure there are a hundred
different ways to spell. The floating market is Bangnamphung Floating Market
The park that is next to Jit's house is the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park. You can search on Google and get some information or search within the Thai Blogs web
site.
We motorbiked to the Bangnamphung market again this morning, what a wonderful
place, it is completely non-tourist, there are many unique and excellent
products. Jit mentioned that it was like the Farmer's Market in Fairbanks in that only local or Thai products could be sold. We had some excellent food
again, and I had some Thai waffle like things that were great. I know they
would be an excellent product in Fairbanks for breakfast or at the Farmer's
Market/
When we got back we were invited to a meal with some of Jit's relatives, it
was in a traditional Thai house, the owners were teachers at a school, the
man taught Thai dance and the women lab science. The food of course was
excellent but the feeling of community was what was unique, at least from my Fairbanks life. I feel like an idiot sometimes because I do not know how to eat somethings.
How do you eat a large sprig of parsley like vegetables? You sort of roll it
into a ball and the eat it, leaving the stem base. I am watching everything
to try to learn not to be an idiot. I can tell people are disappointed that I
do not speak Thai.....
If facing many experiences in Thailand I need to accept that my normal
caution must be relaxed. I need to say Yes or No to experiences like riding
on a motorbike with no helmet, crossing a large river with no life jacket, and
riding stuffed into a car with a driver that is a little stressed. So I
accept the risk for the experience, so far it has been worth it. I think I
would need to live in a hotel and only go on packaged tours if I did not say
Yes to risk.
I saw Ah again, I had met her last year, she is an Architectural draftsmen
and also has majored in English. I told her that I had a million questions.
She said she would answer them.
We went to the Queen Sirikit Convention Center for a home show, took the
small boat across the river to Klong Toey and then took a taxi to the center.
There was a Japan Education show and an Australian education show there. Both
shows were recruiting Thai students. It was interesting. The Japanese show
was manic, there was even a hyper women in angel wings trying to encourage
people to do something. In the United States we are suspicious of foreign
students while other countries compete for them. We are going to be really
hurt as a country by limiting the inflow of talent. In a sense we are trying
to create a protected environment. The result of a closed environment is poor
quality and a lack of competition. We need to open the door to talent. A
closed environment leads to absurdities like that East German two cycle car,
or the Hindustan in India. Viewed from outside our country our government is
embarrassing. Enough of that...
On way back, by the Klong Toey 7-11 I saw this devastated young women,
dressed in black completely disheveled. Sometimes images are haunting. Also
sometimes I do not have the courage to take a picture. I do not know if she
was mentally ill or severely addicted. It was just haunting though to see
somebody so lost.
At the home show there were many small refrigerators and washers and driers.
I wonder if there would be a market for some these things in the United States. There were also compact, and really neat, modular units for kitchens.
In the evening one of Jit's relatives, she is related to just about eveybody,
invited us over to sit with us. After answering some probing questions about
my life and motivation we just visited. She has seven fish tanks, with
tropical fish set up outside, under a roof, so you can sit on a bench and
just watch them, pretty interesting.
A couple came by to visit in the evening. He spoke some English, they took me
into the park to look for fireflies. It was dark and the clouds were
beautiful. We did not see any fire flies, but it was a great experience. I
also got to see a Lumpoo tree. Unforgettable, and the sense of community
again.....
When I got back Jit was visiting with two younger people, they know some
English. I asked a lot of questions about computer and Internet use. She said
the adults used there kids for computer use, primarily to type documents.
People use the Internet for school work. In the villages, and even though we
are in Bangkok, this is a village, there does not seem to be much Internet or
computer use. One perspective is that people are busy all the time with work
and home. I asked some questions of how they perceived the Internet. Did they
see the Internet as a source of information to search for answers. The answer
was a little ambiguous, but I do not think so. Bangkok proper is probably different.
To be continued.....
Catching the small boat to Bangkok
Stephen Cysewski
The Noodle Shop by the Grand Palace
Stephen Cysewski
The Noodle Shop by the Grand Palace
Stephen Cysewski
The Noodle Shop across from the Grand Palace
Stephen Cysewski
Non-air conditioned bus, just starting out. The Windows are open and it is a
great way to see the city, if you get a seat. It will be standing room only
later.
Stephen Cysewski
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
It just started raining....
I just started raining, it is just a shower, BUT Jit had
the cloths out to dry, so I just ran out to get them. It just stopped
raining...oh well.
I have seen a few Citroen CS's around. One place near here has five of them
in the yard. The Citroen was a very advanced and temperamental car with an
oil based suspension. Everywhere there is a detail or a curiosity. Thailand is visually, very rich and full of questions. It is not boring. I am not sure of
the spelling of Citroen, but the Internet is so marginal that I do not have
my faithful Goggle.
Yesterday was busy, we took the small boat across to the Klong Toey Pier,
took a non-air conditioned bus to the Grand Palace and the City Pillar. Every
time Jit is home she prays at the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. I almost know
what to do know. Took a lot of pictures, trying to take non-obvious pictures
at the Grand Palace, which is pretty hard to do. I am pretty much using
digital know because of the instant feedback. I hope my packages that I sent
from Alaska arrive soon.
We went to a medieval noodle shop, it looks like the walls have not been
washed since it opened. The shop is lit by fluorescent tubes. It is almost
black inside. The pictures make it look lighter then it is. I put my digital
camera on the table and did time exposures. At the front of the shop is where
they cook, surrounded by propane tanks!. The food was excellent and it was
crowded with local people. When I peer in some shots they are so dark, and
unpainted that, for me, it would be depressing.
We took the river express back to Phrapradang and took the taxi back to
Bangkrachow. Busy and interesting day. We had another meal that Bung
prepared. Bung has cooked for the Royal Palace before, it was excellent.
I have been thinking about Internet usage, today it has been a total hassle,
getting kicked off, having a slow connection, then having a good connection,
it can be a little frustrating, but it is what I have..... Anyway, if you are
a member of an active community the Internet is an isolating experience, you
become separate from the community. If you are isolated the Internet can be a
way to join a community. In Thailand, at least where I am, people have a
strong community and it is hard to make time for the Internet. I do not know
if this is a general observation, but it seems true to the small area that I
am participating in.
I am starting to write down a few words that I hear a lot. Unless I write the
Thai words down I can not remember them. I also am starting to write peoples
names down. It will help. My goal is really listening comprehension. At least
it is a beginning.
A tree in the park next to Jit's home
Stephen Cysewski
Shadows on the walk
Stephen Cysewski
Jit and her friends preparing Kow-Tom-Mud
Stephen Cysewski
We did not go anywhere....it was a full day.
Yesterday we did not go anywhere! I started out the day
reading the Bangkok Post and the Nation that I got yesterday, it was a
beautiful morning. Both papers are full of interesting information. You can
go to their web sites. The Bangkok Post also has an RSS feed that you can
subscribe to. I also visited some of my old haunts like 2bangkok.com and
thaiblogs.com. It was odd to view these sites from Thailand.
I emailed Richard and asked for an appointment. It looks like we might visit
tomorrow. I also added many blog entries to my blog. I am getting caught up.
I still get kicked off the Internet consistently, but at least I can make
contact. We also had contractors putting up eaves on the house to catch the
rain for irrigation.
I am adding to my list of Thai words, it will be slow. I hope my Rosetta
Stone Thai training CD comes soon. It will be two weeks this Thursday since
we mailed the packages.
Jit helped some of her friends make Kow-Tom-Mud for resale. It is quite a
process, preparing the leaves and the stuffing, wrapping the leaves around
the stuffing and then cooking everything in big round stainless steel pans. I
took some pictures of the process. Some of the pictures are on film since I
needed a high speed lens. In Thailand, if you want to use natural light, you
need fast lenses and high speed film. Many places are dim.
I want to see more Monitor Lizards. My Lonely Planet book says they are hao
chaang, but the people in the community call them toue thong. Anyway seeing a
large reptile swim in a lake is a very new experience to me. I have seen them
twice.
Jit bought a new phone, it is a desk phone that has a crazy musical ring tone
and a color display. Sort of adding cell phone features to a desk phone. I
need to look at it more carefully.
Bung, who cooks for the royal family invited us to dinner again, the food was
varied and excellent. I learned that I had eaten frogs after the fact. When
we were in Ranong we saw frogs being raised. The desert, some sticky rice in
a banana leaf, with a yellow custard was excellent. I want some now!!!
When we were leaving one of the girls, about 12, was playing her xylophone.
It was a large wooden xylophone that was suspended between the ends of a
large wooden body, the body almost looked like a boat. It was great. When we
got home we could hear the xylophone playing through the garden. I asked
where she learned to play the xylophone and she said in school. An education
system that can effectively pass on cultural traditions has something going right
for it.
Early this morning there was a very heavy rain and thunder storm. It is still
thundering. There is also a lot of noise from the port, something is being
loaded into ships. Some times you can here the ships very clearly.
Today we will also stay around the house and community.
Some of the IT related places that I want to visit are a WiMax demonstration
community, the Virtual Hill Trip Museum, the Internet bus, and Richard Barrow
Paknam Web Network. There are previous links on this blog that document these
locations. From my very brief experience a traveling Internet station might
be a valuable tool to share web resources. Equally important would be to have
practical and useful tools to demonstrate the value of the information on the
Internet.
Bung, the excellent cook, and some friends
Stephen Cysewski
I finally saw the Lizard close up, The name, I think, and probably
misspelled, is Torut Ghen Tone Thang. The name in the book is hao chaang.
Anyway it was great to finally see it close up.
Stephen Cysewski
Kow-Tom-Mud being cooked. It tasts good too...
Stephen Cysewski
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Homepage
for Sriwittayapaknam School in Thailand
We will be visiting this school tomorrow. I will also get to meet Richard
Barrow who has created Thai-Blog.com, one of my favorite sites. I will post more
information tomorrow when we return. I am really looking forward to this
visit
Thursday, September 08, 2005
PCWorld.com
- Lenovo Finds Success With Cheap PCs
An interesting article. Again though the problem of training, Internet
access, and intended use, is unclear. It is a bit of a fraud to tell people
it will help their kids, without training, software, and Internet access.
There are many computers stored in garages that were bought for similar
reasons. In the United States the educational software market has died. Last
night I saw people doing home work on the floor, the computer was not being
used. The family that we have been visiting gets up around 5:00, get in their
car to go to school and work at 6:00, and does not return in the evening,
until 7:00. I have a lot to learn on this Sabbatical.
Friday, September 09, 2005
Paknam Web: Thailand's
Leading English Language Web Portal
Yesterday we went to Samut Praknam to visit Richard Barrow at Siriwittayapaknam School. Richard also took us to see the "corporate offices"
(his home) of paknamweb.com. We took the large boat across the river in the
morning, took bus 102 to Samut Praknam, explored the market in Samut Praknam,
and then visited the school and the Erawan Museum. From Samut Praknam we took
a boat across the river Phrapredang and then took a taxi to Bangkrachow.
The visit with Richard Barrow was unforgettable. We talked a lot about
education and IT. I believe he said that 65% or 70% of the homes had Internet
connections. Richard is a very creative person who has created many
innovative applications of technology for education. He also has empowered his
students with the ability to communicate their own distinctive views. I was
impressed and inspired by his accomplishments and perspective.
The Siriwittayapaknam school was also a revelation, the students were working
hard, had a great spirit, and seemed to enjoy school. Jit took many pictures,
and the entire experience will become a reference point for my sabbatical.
Sometimes when writing a blog I have so many experiences that I do not know
where to start and where to end. At the very least I want to be able to look
back on a blog entry to be able to rekindle memories and insights. This entry
is one of those where I enter a few words for many experiences.
Thank you Richard and we do hope that you visit us, maybe we can see the
large monitor lizard.
Questions of values, belief, and culture
Wednesday evening Bung, Nuk, Jit, Tuk, and I had a
thoughtful conversation. Four questions were especially interesting. "Do
I believe in spirits of the dead trying to contact the living?",
"What religion am I?", and "What do I think of the Thai family
culture with everybody living together?" and "Do our children have
an expectation of taking care of their parents?"
I know that many people from Thailand believe in spirits and
"ghosts". When Sutep died I can to see the respect people have for
spirits. Even now Suriwan leaves tea and food for Sutep. I believe and
respect that peoples experiences are real. I want to understand that
experience. I, though, am afflicted with a scientific pre-disposition. So I
believe in the experience, but do not have evidence of the fact.
I am in fact, Christian, I was raised that way, and have spent much time
thinking about and experiencing Christianity. The question though is hard to
answer, because so much of what is done in Thailand and Cambodia in the name of Christianity is embarrassing. I believe in the greatest commandment, love
God and do on to others as you would have them do onto you. As it says in the
Bible all the commandments are based on these two greatest commandments. I
also believe in St. Augustine's idea of ordered love. If we do not love God
or a higher power we can be dangerous to ourselves and to others. My answer
was that I was a little bit Christian, which is probably true from some
peoples perspective.
Thai family life and American family life are very different. I have worked
hard to support my both my daughter's individuality and independence. It
makes me proud and happy to see them fly on their own. I do not expect them
to support me unless my health fails and I have not other choice. These are
beliefs of my culture. On the other hand seeing Thai culture work, seeing
people care for each other in an extended family, and seeing the elders and
children supporting each other, makes me realize some of the human community that
we miss in the United States. I only have a very superficial understanding of
Thai culture, but from what I have read and seen it seems like a very healthy
way to live.
I love conversations and questions like these
A final picture from Siriwittayapaknam School. The color photographs are by
Jit.
Stephen Cysewski
One of the computer labs at the Siriwittayapaknam School. The school has
excellent resources and applies technology in practical and innovative ways.
Check out their web site. There is a link in a previous post.
Stephen Cysewski
The Erawan Museum is also in Samut Praknam. The museum has excellent art
work, and is educational and thought provoking.
Stephen Cysewski
Another picture from the Samut Praknam market
Stephen Cysewski
Samut Praknam has an excellent market with a wonderful selection of sea food.
It is well worth a visit.
Stephen Cysewski
It was fun answering questions from the students at Siriwittayapaknam School. They have an excellent technology department. Richard Barrow is the technology
coordinator at the school
Stephen Cysewski
We had a wonderful visit at the Siriwittayapaknam School yesterday. Richard
Barrow was a wonderful host and we learned many valuable things.
Stephen Cysewski
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Sabbatical
Resources Stephen Cysewski
I have been going through my printed notes and clippings. I am preparing for
my first meeting at STOU on Monday. I am supposed to meet Ann at the flagpole
at 10 AM. I am excited about beginning. In addition to my responsibilities
and opportunities with STOU I have some personal academic goals. This is a
list of projects and locations that I have read about in the last year and
half that I want to visit. This is an edited version of the web page that I
have created previously. There are links documenting these locations on my
Blog and on my Clipping web site.
1. I want to visit the Cyber Bus at Wangtongpittayakom School in Phitsanulok
2. I want to visit Richard Barrow of Patnam.com and the Siriwittayapaknam School
3. I want to visit the Virtual Hill Tribe Museum project in the Chang Rai
area.
4. I want to visit the Srisangwan School in Bangkok and the Young Digital's
Christian Association Technological for Life Center" in Chiang Mai. Both
projects were funded by Samsung.
5. If the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has opened vocational centers
for the poor I want to visit one.
6. If the Education Ministry has developed mobile PC facilities for rural
sites, I want to visit one.
7. I want to visit Father Joe Meier's project in Klong Toey. I am interested
because of the article that I read about Tew Bunnag and his book of short
stories, Fragile Days.
8. I want to visit the ICT National Learning Center at Central World Plaza at Ratchadamri Road and/or at ICT Cities in Chiang Mai.
9. I would like to visit with Srinuan Wongtrakoon at the Sam Kha Village of
Mae Tha in Lampang.
10. I would like to visit the Non-formal Educational Center in Lampang
11. I would like to visit the WiMax demonstration project at Samkha village.
The village is located near Lampang city.
12. I would like to visit Ko Kret and meet with the abbot again. I would like
to do this because the last visit was so enjoyable and in honor of Sutep. If
I get invited again to do the morning rounds I will accept.
These are my goals for the Sabbatical in addition to activities and projects
with STOU. I expect that I will also have many unexpected and valuable
experiences in addition to this list.
Run and her co-worker at the Rajinibon school. It was a very competitive
volleyball game.
Stephen Cysewski
Run at the the Rajinibon School
Stephen Cysewski
Bangkok for the non-air conditioned bus.
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The Bangkok port, or at least a small part of it.
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Getting on the larger boat to Bangkok.
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Jit arriving at the dock with Oy. Riding on motorbikes is a great way to get
around in more rural areas. I am not ready to do the same thing in Bangkok traffic.
Stephen Cysewski
The good news our packages from Alaska arrived, the bad news we had to go
through customs!
The good news our packages from Alaska arrived, the bad
news we had to go through customs!
What I thought was going to be a simple process, become a complicated
"educational" experience.
Run called an said the packages had arrived and we needed to pay duty. It is
hard to insure packages without declaring a value, but at least they were
here. We took the boat and Taxi to Run's school, Rajinibon School, in the Dusit area of Bangkok. The Rajinbon school is an expensive and prestigious
private elementary school in Bangkok.
During lunch we ran to the local post office, silly us. We were told we
needed to go to the main post office customs department at Hua Lonphong
station, the main Bangkok railway station. We jumped into a taxi and, after a
few questions found out where we were supposed to go, a dim chaotic place
with seemingly multiple places to get approvals. I had to stay out of the
way, because they would charge me more. Anyway after multiple signatures and
approvals, showing of business cards, and even Run getting a 6 pack of water
as a gift we got our packages. It took about three hours. I would have had no
idea about what to do with out Run and Jit. There was even a lady, with a
small typewriter, filling in forms for people in the waiting area. What a
powerless experience. We ended up having to pay only 1500 hundred Baht
instead of 6000 Baht.
Run is amazing, on the last trip we were caught in a traffic jam at
Prapredang. Ran got out of the van, went and got us some snacks, and got back
into the van. She is unstoppable. Run is a PE teacher, when we visited we saw
volleyball competitions, and swimming, an amazing person with seemingly
limitless energy. While at the school I saw a game, Shairbon, which is sort
of like shooting hoops, except that the basket is held by a person on a
stool. The person can move the basket to catch the ball. It looked like fun.
After getting back to the school we watched after school activities and then
ran through the rain to try to get a taxi. Run wanted to take us to get a
cell phone. Couldn't get a taxi so we got a bus, traffic jam, but eventually
it worked. While waiting for the bus I had a good talk with a student who
spent last year in Missouri. She wanted to come back to Thailand to graduate. I asked her about her parents Internet usage and how they perceived the
Internet. My interpretation of what she said is that they saw computers and
the internet as an educational tool for the kids, but had little interest in
it themselves. Her Internet usage was IM, music, hotmail, the normal stuff.
Also MP3.s. Here use of Google was mostly for school assignments. On our last
trip we visited with her family in Ranong. Interesting. So far, I do not see
that the Internet, or even computers, are having much impact on everyday
peoples life.
As we were in the traffic we went past Bobay market and the Prince Palace hotel where Margaret and I wandered around and took many photographs last year.
It seemed much less chaotic and strange. I think I am changing. I recognized
the context for many of the photographs at my Wandering In Thailand web site.
I also visited a couple Internet shops, email, games, instant messaging, and
CD duplication. They were not busy.
Back to the bus trip, we ended up at a very modern and large five story mall,
just like any large central Mall, with a few changes. There were many very
busy cell phone stores with multiple options. There was also a couple
computer or tech stores that were not as busy. Notebooks seemed to attract
the most interest. The cell phone shops were packed. Run had a discount
certificate so we got a cell phone with prepaid service. Non-Thai people have
a difficult time getting cell phones without the right permits and Visa's. I
had forgotten my passport, a crazy thing to do. Anyway I got a cell phone,
read the manual last night, and wished for a class on how to use all it's
options:>. I am having Tone, Jit's nephews, enter a bunch of phone
numbers. Hmmmm....
Sunday, September 11, 2005
Richard's
Life in Thailand - Floating Market in Samut Prakan
An excellent description of the area around Jit's home, the Bangnamphung
floating market, and of Sri Nakhon Khuankun park.
Grass at Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
Stephen Cysewski
Plants at Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
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Fallen leaves at Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
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Fallen Palm Leaf
Stephen Cysewski
Coconut Paranoia
The Coconut trees here are very tall, I see coconuts fall
on a regular basis. They make a whistle when they fall, and then plunk.
Coconuts are large and heavy. I asked Jit and she said she does not worry
about it. Her comment was that if you get hit with a coconut you have bad
luck, which I guess is true. For me though I watch where I stand. The bike
tourists go right down a walk under large coconut trees. Last night I went
for an exercise walk through the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park with one of our
neighbors who speaks English. He said that getting hit by coconuts was not a
common occurrence. I guess coconut paranoia is just my active imagination,
but I still will watch where I stand.
I spent time this morning re-reading and consolidating my sabbatical
clippings. I will go through my blog postings and Evernote clippings this
morning. I want to have an organized list of specific sabbatical goals before
I go to STOU tomorrow morning. I have posted my current list of places that I
would like to visit in a previous post.
Yesterday, and today, there are builders all around the house building the
kitchen roof and the floor for the laundry. When the builders are pounding
cement posts into the floor for the foundation they get on a log and jump up
and down, they sings a chant, it is really cool to hear and see.
Another thought, when I ask people about virus protection and spy ware the
people who I have been asking do not seem to have software to prevent
attacks. I think this is because people are not on the Internet much, and
because they use dial up connections. At schools, internet cafe's, and at
homes with broadband connections the protection is better.
There were three different bike tours through the community and the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park. There is a real opportunity for the community with the park and
the natural environment here. There is a clear demand to see what the area is
like, and it is unique within close proximity to Bangkok. I know Jit has many
ideas.
Jit spends a lot of time taking care of her mom while we are here. The house
is for her dad and mom. Her mom is hesitant to make the move, She is used to
her current home. She needs a wheelchair to move around, she has paralysis on
the left side of her body. It is wonderful for her mom to have Jit here to
help out.
A motorbike came through the community ringing a bell, he was selling Thai
ice cream. I am not sure how it is made, but it tastes like coconut. There is
a sprinkling of peas, corn, and peanuts on the top. It is good.
Ton, Jit's nephew went to Bangkok to get an MP3 player. He said there are places
by his school where he can download music to his MP3 player. Ton is Jit's
nephew and Tony's son. Jit pretty much raised Ton. Ton is about 19 years old,
he is taking medication for HIV and it seems to be working. He is so innocent
and hopeful. Ton is a victim of ignorance. It is sad.
There was a large thunderstorm last night, it started when the workers were
finishing, we gathered on the porch waiting for the rain to slow down. It was
pretty relaxed.
I must admit sometimes I do feel overwhelmed by all the new experiences and
not being able to communicate, I just need to take things one step at a time,
and to keep a perspective, but sometimes I just want to talk with somebody
that can understand.
Building the kitchen roor and the laundry floor
Stephen Cysewski
Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
Stephen Cysewski
Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
Stephen Cysewski
Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
Stephen Cysewski
Getting Thai Ice Cream
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Ton, Jit's Nephew
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Jit
Stephen Cysewski
Jit's Dad and a friend.
Stephen Cysewski
Monday, September 12, 2005
1967 and 2005
When I came to Alaska I was a VISTA volunteer. I lived in
Shaktoolik Alaska. The experience in rural Alaska anchored my perspective in
my future career. Living in rural Alaska also changed my values and
perspective on life.
Living in Jit's community, getting a taste of a more traditional Thai life
style, is also anchoring my experience in Thai cultural values. At least I
have some experience in non-urban life. I am thankful to have this
experience. While I am on sabbatical my experience in Bangkrachow will,
hopefully, allow me to anchor my thoughts and ideas in the experience of
everyday Thai life.
Anne was our guide for the office of International Relations. She was wonderful!
Stephen Cysewski
Media production and desktop publishing shop at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open
University
Stephen Cysewski
Printing shop, only a small part, at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University
Stephen Cysewski
Nednapa at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University
Stephen Cysewski
Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University
Stephen Cysewski
STOU Sukhothai
Thammathirat Open University
The website does not capture the excitment actually visiting STOU, but for
the curious it is a good place to start. I was too busy listening today to
take any pictures, but Jit took many pictures, I will post pictures later.
Imagine a huge Center for Distance Education
Imagine a huge institution similar to the Center for
Distance Education at the University of Alaska Fairbanks that has an entire
building dedicated to printing and producing books using offset and
electronic technology, that delivers 75,000 course packs a year, that has 10
regional centers and many tutoring areas in libraries and schools. Imagine
that the huge CDE has a faculty and grants degrees, but that it has no
classrooms because all the courses are delivered primarily by correspondence.
Imagine that the center has an excellent advising and tutoring service and
that you have a telephone advising center and web board staffed 12 hours a
day. Imagine that there are four studios for TV production and, I believe
four sound labs for audio production. What you have imagined is Sukhothai Thammathirat
Open University. Today was our first visit and I was impressed by the
dedication and commitment of the staff to meeting students needs.
Today we meet with the Educational Broadcasting Production Center, The Office of the University Press, the Office of Educational Services, and the National Printing Technology Training Center. Tomorrow we will visit with the Office of
Documentation and Information and the Office of Registration, Records, and
Evaluations. On September 22nd we will visit a Regional Distance Education Center and Nakhon Nayok.
We have an excellent person give us an orientation and who will be able to
provide support to us during the time at STOU. Her name is Warakanya (Anne).
I have her cell phone number listed at number one in my phone book, of course
her name begins with A so that helps also. The person who leads the
Counseling Section of the Office of Educational Services, Nednapa, reminded
me of Michele Stalder. She even mentioned providing one stop service for her
students.
I will have an office cubical with a computer, I asked for Jit to be
considered my full partner in my time at STOU, and the idea seemed to be
accepted. It also looks like we will be staying at Bangkrachao and commuting
to STOU. There is an express way that goes from Klong Toey dock to STOU. It
costs roughly 250 baht to go each way, including toll fees, roughly $6.00,
which is fair price.
I am excited about the first visit to STOU. I also gave Anne my list of
places that I want to visit, and she seemed interested in what I was trying
to do.
I am thankful that I was invited to STOU for my sabbatical.
Oh yes, I need to tuck in my shirt tails, or get a special kind of Thai
shirt. Dress, and the style of dress for faculty and staff is very
consistent. Jit clued me in.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Another day at Sukothai Thammathirat Open University
We had another very informative day today at STOU, but
before I describe the highlights of today I forgot to mention that many
courses at STOU have a seminar component. For the seminar, students come and
spend two or three days at STOU, near the end of a course. STOU even has a
seminar center, which is like a small hotel, for the students. Another
important difference between Thailand and Alaska, relating to distance
delivery, is that the transportation choices to distance sites are more
varied, and cheaper, then in Alaska.
Today we had an informative tour of the Documentation Center and Library. As
part of the Library there is an archive of information about King Rama VII.
King Rama VII was the king who provided the basis for a constitution in Thailand. It was an informative tour which revealed valuable information about the history
of Thailand.
I also got to visit with the Office of Registration, Records and Evaluation.
We had an excellent, in-depth discussion. I met a women who will be going on
Sabbatical next year to New Zealand. She will be studying how to evaluate
distance delivery courses. I hope to continue discussions with her. I emailed
her the URL for the Center for Distance Learning at UAF.
There is fundamental difference in how courses are taught and evaluated in Thailand. The evaluating, testing and grading of a course is distinct from teaching a
course. Professors will submit question to be included in a test, but the
order and specific questions actually included are chosen by a content
expert. All students in the courses are given the same test. Non-test work in
the courses only counts for 20% of the grade. This is a very different model
then in the United States, but it does have some similarities to professional
certification like CISCO and Microsoft. Having evaluation and testing
distinct from the teaching of a course stimulates many interesting ideas.
I also asked about competencies as a method of evaluating courses, but most
of the effort seems to be in creating relevant testing for the courses
provided.
I also found out that the enrollment at STOU is declining because of
competition for face to face education in the distance learning centers. Just
like in Alaska some students prefer face to face delivery of course content.
The meeting and discussion with the Center for Registration, Records, and
Evaluation was thought provoking.
I also met with the Director of International Relations. There is chance that
I might get to work with the Office of Educational Services, which is similar
to the TVC Student Support Services. I hope it works out. My underlying
interests do not rest with technical IT anymore. I am interested in teaching
applications and student services. My time at STOU, combined with my own
projects relating to computer skills training and support, will provide me
with valuable new perspectives when I return from Sabbatical.
Coming back from Bangkok, and getting on the boat to cross the river, I can
feel myself start to decompress. Bangkok can be overwhelming. Tomorrow I am
going to consolidate and summarize some of the information that I have
gathered.
Today was very productive.
Meeting with the Office of Registration, Records, and Evaluation.
Stephen Cysewski
A tour of the Library and Document Center at STOU
Stephen Cysewski
Learning about King Prajadhipok and Queen Rambhai Barni Document Center Project at STOU
Stephen Cysewski
Wireless
technology enables isolated Alaskans to "Computercate" with the
world
An example of how to provide Broadband access to the Internet in rural Alaska. I wonder if the effect will be similar in Thailand.
Toksook
Bay Online
An excellent example of the power of the Internet for a small rural community
in Alaska
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Wireless
internet usage surges
Another fascinating article that links the concepts of wireless Internet
access and cell phones. What does all this mean for Alaska? I think it should
be a high priority for the state of Alaska to provide broadband Internet
access to every community in the state. Broadband Internet access is the key
to education, business, and economic development. Technology is developing
that makes it feasible to provide broadband Internet access to rural areas.
AsiaMedia ::
KOREA: Internet creates haves and have-nots
Another article confirming Korea's policy on Internet availability. Searching
on Google will bring up many other examples.
South
Koreans face digital divide | Tech News on ZDNet
A brief article with some statistics about Korean Internet usage. Korea seems to be approaching technology in an effective manner. By providing low cost and
extensive broadband Internet access Korea is stimulating broad and deep usage
of technology. Korea is an evocative proof of the concept that broadband
Internet access drives technology adoption, not the distribution of computers
without training, Internet access, or support.
Rain....really!
Imagine a thunderstorm in Fairbanks. Usually there is peak
of rain intensity. Imagine that intensity lasting for hours. That is what is
was like last night and this morning. It is still raining. On the news there
is flooding in Bangkok, but that is normal. Up north, where there are
mountains and streams I can understand how flash floods suddenly appear. It
is the rainy season, but usually it has been thunderstorms and rain at night
and the early morning. This rain is very different. Another experience.
I need to get caught up on a few experiences. Sunday Jit's mother came over
from the other house. It was good to see her over here. I managed to get a
few pictures of Jit's mom, Run, and Jit. I will post them later today.
Jit and I walked around the park and dropped in to park headquarters. Jit had
a long talk with two women who were working there about the park and the
community. Many people care about this park, it is sad to see park leadership
that is not maintaining and developing the park, even in its current state of
neglect the park is a wonderful place to relax and explore. I will be posting
pictures, and when I return to Alaska, a web site about the park.
There is a large building in downtown Bangkok that is of the Assumption University school of architecture. It has a capital dome on top, and cathedral
window above the entrance, and many other random classical motifs. Like Assumption University it is almost surrealistic. But, think of the USA capital in Washington DC, and think of many universities in the United States, they to have
Greek and Roman architectural influences randomly pasted together, it is the
same thing. I think the use of classical architecture conveys authority to an
institution. When I see something as strange , odd, or different, I need to
step back and try to use the same perspective on what I am used to, what I
think as normal. When I do that I often find more similarity then difference.
Bandwidth matters, I was going to share my Creamers field web site to show
the seasons of Alaska, but the bandwidth was too slow, it took forever to
load. In the future I will try to create two web sites, one for low
bandwidth. I think it will be easy to do, use the same structure and use
Adobe Elements 3 to save them at a different level of compression. I was
surprised at how slow the web site was. Another lesson.
Jit's Dad, he is always working around the house and farm.
Stephen Cysewski
Jit's mom with Run and Jit
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Jit at home.
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Assumption School of Architecture......
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Another picture of the building.
Stephen Cysewski
Thursday, September 15, 2005
The National ICT Learning Center
After the storm yesterday it was pretty cool this morning.
When we took the boat across the river there were many weeds being washed
down the river from Ayutthaya. We went to the National ICT Learning Center in Central World Plaza. Because of energy conservation the mall and learning
center do not open until 10:30. The ICT learning center was created to
support technology adoption in Thailand. The center includes a seminar room,
a professional demonstration center with exhibits by CISCO, Sun, Computer
Associates, and Microsoft. There is a training room that can be rented, a
digital arts training center, and a large well arranged and supplied room of
computers for internet access. There is also a lab of Macintosh G5 computers
for graphics arts. The center was well organized and seemed to be well
supported. There were many people taking advantage of the internet access.
The prices for internet usage were nominal. There was also an e-learning
library that looked well stocked. Next to the ICT learning center, and funded
by a different government agency is the TK Park with stands for the Thailand Knowledge Center. The Knowledge Park is supported by the Office of Knowledge
Management and Development. The Park looked like it was targeting parents of
children, it was better attended, there was a tour going on, and it looked
like it was well organized and fun to use. All the software that I saw being
used was Microsoft based. I am not sure what happened to the People PC
emphasis on Linux, but I have seen no everyday evidence of its use.
Overall I was a little disappointed in the learning center. Many of the
services provided should be provided by any large hotel. The Knowledge Park looked a little more useful, but its scale was small also. I guess every
little bit helps, but it did seem like a pretty small enterprise for such an
important need.
After visiting the ICT learning center we went to the Peninsula Plaza to change our plane tickets and to make our return trip reservations, we will be
returning February 19th, the mall was very upscale with jewelry stores
selling ornate diamond necklaces and a live piano providing music. The
pianist was playing Moon River. It was very, very, upscale. I do not think I
have seen so many expensive stores in one place. I sure do not remember
seeing such luxury in Seattle. It was an experience.
We also decided yesterday that it was not work it for Jit to return to Alaska for a month of employment. The cost of the trip did not balance with the potential
income. I also need Jit here, I still got pretty overwhelmed by Bangkok.
I still can not get over how Thai people love uniforms. Last trip we stayed
at a hotel for one night. There was some kind of meeting going on in a
conference room. I saw this man with a white uniform, braids on his
shoulders, many campaign bars on his chest, an impressive militay hat, I
thought he was an admiral----he was the elevator operator. As a has been,
anti-authoritarian, egalitarian believing, hippy I have a hard time with this
love of uniforms. Jeans and a tee shirt are not acceptable in a professional
work environment. Oh well, I can sacrifice my fundamental values for awhile.
The components of the ICT National Learning Center
Stephen Cysewski
National ICT Learning Center
Stephen Cysewski
Saturday, September 17, 2005
A Saturday evening community "potluck".
In the evening there was a community shared meal, like a
potluck, where people were honoring a person who was graduating. The food was
great and so was the atmosphere. We then went over to Juke's family's home
and shared some more food. Jit took a pinto over. A pinto is a stack of pans
that are held together by some kind of clamp. You can carry a whole
multi-course meal in a pinto. A pretty cool device. The community reminds me
of some of my experiences in rural Alaska. I am learning a lot.
A final picture from the Saturday evening potluck at Jit's home.
Another picture from the community gathering.
A community gathering or potluck. The food and atmosphere was great.
A very busy Saturday....
I can not find 3X5 lined cards or spiral notebooks. We
have looked at all the super stores, I will need a new system. I was looking
forward to using the 3X5 cards as my memory tool for names, places, and
words. I do need a memory tool!!
I finally saw two Monitor Lizards on land. The Lizards are very observant.
They will slip away or freeze. They are very aware. It was great to see them.
I love to observe nature and to earn the right to see wildlife. Just like Alaska patience is rewarded. I will keep trying to understand how they life and to learn to
watch them.
Yesterday I used film, I have 8 36 exposure rolls to develop, but no
predictable place to leave them yet. It felt good to use film. Lately I have
been using an Olympus 7070 that I have set for hyper focal distances. I am
very happy with how the Olympus works and prefer it to my Canon S70. The Olympus really does capture the moment. I recommend it highly.
I have been trying to contact other places to visit. I found two emails for
the Srisangwan School but both of them bounced. I will need to keep
searching. I also sent an email to visit the Father Joe Meier's project in
Klong Toey. No response yet.
Richard Barrows is coming to visit our community next Sunday. It will be
great to have Jit show him around.
I have had a continuing email conversation with some people from STOU. I am
hopeful that I will be able to work at the advising center. I will be meeting
with Nednapa Intong Monday after I meet with the director of Continuing
Education. I also have been emailing Sirirat Wipassilapa about evaluation. I
sent her information about UAF Program Review and Program Assessment process
from the UAF Provosts web site. I think there are some exciting opportunities
to collaborate and share at STOU.
Gmail just added the Thai language as an option, pretty cool, for Thai people
anyway!
A family friend, Oy, drove us to Bang Na to see the Index Home Center and a huge open tile store, I think it is branded Boothavorn. Some of the tiles
were really beautiful. We got some tile for the kitchen and some things for
the house. The Index Home Center was expensive, very high quality, and made
me want to be rich!
We also got in touch with NANA and BP this morning, it was Friday in Alaska. It looks like everything will work out. Jit will be able to return to work when we
return. I am so crazy I am already planning for when we return home. We have
been here just over three weeks.
A busy day!
Oranges, even though they are green in color they taste great.
The 7-11 near the Klong Toey pier. We pay bills and buy "stuff"
there before we cross in the boat.
Getting ready for the day, as soon as we cross the river the whole pass of
life changes.
The road from the pier to the taxi or bus. It is usually much more crowded,
but this is early Saturday morning.
Crossing the river to the pier.
Catching the small boat to Bangkok and the Klong Toey pier.
Going to Bangkok on Saturday morning.
One of two Monitor Lizards that I saw in the morning.
The Lizards waves as it slips into the water.
By the path to Jit's home.
On the front porch of Jit's home.
A broom, everything is interesting in Thailand!
It is hot, but fans help.
We bought these at the local floating market.
Another picture around Jit's Home
Around Jit's Home in Thailand
Around Jit's Home in Thailand
Monday, September 19, 2005
World
mobile subscribers top 2 bln: study - Yahoo! News
Another piece of the puzzle. As cell phones add features will they become the
means for people to use the knowledge available on the Internet? Will cell
phones provide the bridge across the "digital divide"?
I know the "digital divide" is a cliche, but it does express the
economic and educational gap that limits peoples use of technology.
Sunday, a black dog, and some thoughts on the community college mission.
Sunday morning, early I went walking in the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park. The light was beautiful and the low light showed the texture of
things. With the sun raising and falling in such an abrupt manner there is
little time to catch beautiful cross light. In the winter in Alaska it is all cross-light, or no light at all. As I was walking I heard cadenced chant
in the distance, one, two, three etc... People seemed very serious and
committed to their exercise. I have only heard this on Sunday, I do not know
if it is everyday, but I doubt it. There was boom box music from a remanent
of last nights celebration playing in the community.
Joggers and speed walkers were using the park. Even at 5:30 or 6:00 people
are using the park for exercise. It is also cooler then. On the weekends
there are many people having picnics and feeding fish. The Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park is well used and appreciated.
Yesterday I finally got a picture of the black dog that slept on the porch
and that was at the top of the observation tower in the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park. The dog definitely has a personality.
Every Sunday at the entrance to the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park there is a
market. There are fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, it is fun to go. Jit's mom
came with us to the market. Ton wheeled her, it was good to see her out and
enjoying herself.
On Friday we rode in a taxi cab with a pretty aggressive driver, there were
clues. On the dashboard of the cab was a model of a silver race car, a
Japanese Super Tourer. Also the cabs steering wheel was replaced with a
smaller racing size wheel. Normally there are Buddha's garlands, and other
signs of fate, but not in this cab, we survived.
We went to STOU today, Anne as usual was a great help. I very much appreciate
what she is doing, I am thankful for her help. I had a somewhat awkward
meeting with Associate Professor Tanit Pusiri the Director of the Office of
Educational Technology. He had squeezed us in for a half hour meeting. There
was not time to establish rapport. We talked a little about learning objects
and Scorm.
Sometimes I do not think that some people in Thailand have an appreciation
for practical education for adults. I have not meet anybody, except the
wonderful people in Counseling section of the Office of Educational Services,
that understands my purpose. If there was ever a country where the Community
College mission would be valuable it would be Thailand. STOU does have some
similarities in its stated purpose to the community college mission, but I
think the faculty might not be ready for the challenge and difficulty of
fulfilling that purpose. There is not a perceived prestige in meeting
community needs, even in Alaska, we have to constantly educate the faculty
about our meeting community needs. Keeping the Community College mission
alive in a university environment is always difficult, what I do not see is a
comprehension of the importance of the community college. The Thailand technical colleges are not like community colleges. This is just my current
impression, and I might be mistaken, in fact I hope I am mistaken.
I had a wonderful meeting with Nednapa. She showed me how she is using the
web to share information and to do advising. She is using a Web Board, a
threaded discussion software application, to do advising. I think a similar
idea would work great at Tanana Valley Campus. I would like to experiment
with this idea when I return. Nednapa is a gifted computer user, she creates
her own web pages and is an excellent independent learner. I was impressed.
Tomorrow I will meet with the Office of Educational Services department. I am
looking forward to the meeting. I feel comfortable there. We will be defining
ways that we can work together. I will be eager to share some of this
experience with Michele Stalder when I return.
I always need to look at my experiences from different perspectives. Imagine
that somebody from Thailand came to TVC, they spoke sub-minimal English.
Assume that person wanted to share and collaborate. What would we do at TVC?
The only difference in this scenario, and the one I am in, is that in Thailand many people know significant English. In any case it would still be hard to meet
the person from Thailand's expectations with an opportunity for significant
contribution. My hope is that I could find a person with a similar vision,
and a knowledge of the Thai language to collaborate with. To me that person
will be Jit! She is being a great help, and does understand what I am doing,
especially since she has experienced how Tanana Valley Campus works.
I do not want to be a burden or an obligation. It is hard to explain that I
have my own agenda and that STOU is only a small part of my purpose in Thailand. It will all work out, but I do not want people to feel obligated to fill my time
or to meet my needs. My sabbatical plan was always broader then STOU. I am
still hoping to find somebody to collaborate with on my specific agenda. I am
not sure that I will find that person at STOU, but if that does not happen I
will still accomplish my goals.
Sunday, September 18, 2005
A very cool looking bike at the Sunday market at Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
Sunday market by the entrance to the Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park
Sunday Market by the park entrance.
The Hairless Black Dog who climbed the observation tower and slept on our
porch.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
A Bunch of Stuff!!
Last night I had my first remembered dream about Thailand. Something, as usual about flying up through many phone wires and cutting my way
through some kind of plastic wrap to allow me to fly. Actually it was a
pretty cool dream. I sort of look at dreams as information as to my state of
mind. I was definitely responding to the challenge.
We went to STOU for a 2:00 meeting with the staff of the Counseling section
of the Office of Educational Services. I will be working with them for
awhile. The meeting went well, I have many new names, and nicknames, to
remember. For me remembering means to write it down! I might be working on
creating some documentation for new computer users, but we are still
discussing this idea. The computer that I am using at STOU is running Windows
98!
Before we left, one of our neighbors was biking by the house, she went too
slow, lost momentum and fell into the canal. It all worked out, nobody was
hurt and it was handled with good grace and good humor.
I have been working on learning Thai. I have made some flash cards with
English on one side and Thai on the other. I carry them with me and sort
through the words that I recognize and those that I do not. Again to remember
I need to write it down. I also am using the Rosetta Stone CD. I have asked
Richard Barrow to bring some Thai learning materials from his store Sunday
when he visits.
At STOU there is a wonderful coffee shop that is run by a young couple. They
both speak some English. When we are waiting for meetings or appointments Jit
and I hang out there. It is relaxing and the coffee drinks, iced, are
excellent. The best part of the place though is watching the grace and joy of
the couple. Sometimes seeing happy, healthy people is a contagious
experience. When we were leaving STOU today they were leaving on their
motorbike also.
I absolutely depend on Jit when I am in Thailand. When we were going to STOU
this morning the cab got lost, we ended over by the Impact Center and the cab driver needed to get instructions. Going back to the Klong Toey dock the cab
driver took an alternate route because of traffic. I am going to need to
travel alone, but language is such a difficulty. Most places I go and visit
the people are not English speakers.
I worry about imposing at STOU. I know I have a lot to offer, and I am
confident that I will be of value, but sometimes it feels that I am imposing
on peoples time. Nednapa is so courteous . I am thankful for her. After the
meeting we spent about an hour talking about advising and education. My next
goal at STOU is to learn more about the academic and curriculum process. I am
curious and using the concept of "same and different" I am sure I
will learn a lot.
With talking with Nednapa about community colleges she mentioned that there
is some exploration of that area. The problem is that the four year college
and universities might not accept the credit. I think I am being diplomatic,
the actual impression that I got is that the colleges would not accept the
credit. Some things in the United States, that we take for granted, we really
should be thankful for.
At STOU there is no mandatory advising and I do not believe that the faculty
has a formal advising responsibility. I need to explore this in more detail.
Again I am thankful for UAF's mandatory advising requirement.
In Thailand the government is heavily involved in setting curriculum. My
impression that the constant pressure to improve curriculum and to revise
courses is not a part of the normal Thai curriculum. This is just an
impression and I will be exploring it further. In Alaska we are under some
pressure for control of the curriculum from the statewide administration, the
state of Alaska, and the Federal Government. If we want a creative adaptive
curriculum that is revised to meet the needs of the community and the
students we need to keep the faculty role in curriculum creation and
approval. There is a tension between standards and creativity. The tension is
valuable.
Next week I will get to go to see a STOU regional center at Petchaburi. I
also will be at STOU three days to work with the counseling center. After the
next two weeks we will evaluate the next step. I am still working on my
original sabbatical goals.
I sure am gaining empathy for students on this sabbatical. I feel like an
ignorant child sometimes. I think beginning students depend upon their
teachers. I know I am sure required to depend on people in Thailand. Living for a long time in a different culture, with a different language, is an order of
magnitude more challenging then being a tourist. It sure is a growth
experience.
Yesterday I got to do some computer support. Nuk's computer was hanging at
the welcome screen. With Jit translating I finally figured out that she had
attempted to install an anti-virus program. The problem was that the Trend
Micro Virus program was already installed. I finally got the computer to go
into Safe-Mode after multiple attempts and used MSConfig to turn off the new
virus checker. It booted once and then it started looping again. Sometimes it
wanted to scan the disk and other times it just kept re-booting. I finally
gave up for the night because I did not have a Windows XP disk. I went over tonight,
the computer booted, I got into safe mode and turned off the Trend Micro
Virus Checker. The computer booted and seemed to work, but when I restarted
it still wanted to scan the disk. I think there are still problems with
corrupted files, I also told them they need to re-install the Trend Micro
Virus Checker. The way I understand it is that the school where Juke works
has a Microcomputer center that will provide support. There is a waiting
period. The computer had a good set of software and even had the Microsoft
Anti-Spy ware utility. The operating system was Windows Service Pack 2. I am
glad I did not have to mess with the XP disk because of all the updates and
very slow Internet access. The computer configuration and software
installation looked very well done. The reason that I knew what to do with
msconfig is that my daughter did the same thing to her computer and Dave
helped me correct the problem. Sometimes experience is a great teacher.
Coming back from Bangkok I saw a young man with a little boy riding his
motorcycle cooking cart to the dock. He was going to sell sausages that he
cooks on the cart. I saw him on Sunday at the market selling his sausages
also. I wonder if he is a single parent. He sure seems to be including his
young boy in his activities. He is also very young.
Almost everyday, when we go through the Klong Toey dock I see the devastated
women in the black filthy dress. She is not old, but she seems very intense.
She is always wearing the same thing. I sometimes wished I could ask her how
she got so lost. What happened? Her intensity scares me. I watch for her each
day.
There is American professional wrestling on TV! There is Thai commentary, but
I can also hear the American original. How depressing!!!!
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Prickly Heat and Vague Progress
I love Prickly Heat Powder. It is a kind of mentholated
powder that feels cooling and drying at the same time. The official name is
Snake Brand Prickly Heat Powder. The powder is made by the British Dispensary
in Thailand. www.britishdispensary.com I can not help but think of colonial England when I read the can. We got some sent to use in Fairbanks, but unless it is a hot
summers day, it does not have the same refreshing appeal.
I have noticed two people from India that ride through the community on
bicycles. The way I understand it is that they sell items, like a shirt with
time payments. Then they come to the village each day to collect a payment on
the debt. I am not sure of the accuracy of this, but it is what I was told.
Sort of odd.
Every day at 7:00 in the morning and 6:00 at night the Thailand national anthem is played on TV and the radio. All the books say that people pause and
stand up when it plays, I have never seen that happen. Maybe at public events
it is different? If so it is a similar response to the national anthem in the
United States. I will continue to watch and learn. In any case I do not
observe a significant change in peoples behavior when the anthem plays. Of
course in the United States I do not see much response either. At first I
felt uncomfortable when I heard that anthem, like I was supposed to do
something.
Today I spent the whole day, except for a brief walk in the park, studying Thai. I am using the Rosetta Stone exercises and many notes and books. At least it is a
beginning. I assume I will be spending many days working at this.
Si, who works for Pan, is finishing the kitchen roof. I think I provide much
entertainment when I attempt to say something in Thai. Memorizing is a lot of
work.....!! I haven't had to memorize in years.
Tomorrow we go to Nakhon Nayok regional center with Anne. We will need to get
started early to get to STOU on time.
My brain is full today......but I have a vague sense of potential progress.
That is a pretty cautious, but accurate, sentence.
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Nakhon Nayok
Today we visited Nakhon Nayok, one of the ten STOU
regional centers. Next Sunday we will visit a provincial center at
Petchaburi.
When we left today it was raining hard. Both of us got on the back of Oy's
motorbike and rode to the dock. We made it. By the time we got across the
river the rain had stopped. The taxi drive to STOU was a little fast and
there was no seat belts. We arrived a little early and had a Thai breakfast.
We then all got in a van and drove to Nakhon Nayok. We were joined by Robin,
who is from England. Robin works for STOU International Relations. It was fun
talking with him. We also were joined by Shaiful Alam a Professor of
Agriculture from the Bangladesh Open University. It was valuable to share
perspectives with him. He is at STOU to study the agriculture curriculum. He
is staying at the conference center.
At Nakhon Nayok we got to see a video demonstration, it worked well when we
connected with Lampahng. They are using eMeeting from French Telecom. The
video is not currently being used for educational purposes. The current usage
is for meetings. The quality was very good.
I got to spend some time talking with the person who provides computer
support at the center. I asked him how he learned his skills and he said from
technical colleges, workshops, and self training. It does not sound like he
provides training or support to the local users. At least, through
translation, that was my impression. They do have a wireless connection set
up, but I was not clear who was using it.
I found a press release about STOU adopting a state of the art Juniper
network. I did see some Juniper equipment while I was there.
I have not seen the diversity of delivery of distance education that we see
in Alaska. I do not think that they see the possibility of synchronous
distance delivery, at least they are not implementing it. Again, this is an
impression, not a fact. The prime model of course delivery is correspondence,
supplemented by technology, and seminars. Final tests are the prime method of
student evaluation and course completion. There are many caring and creative
people, committed to lifelong learning and distance delivery, but I do not
see the full spectrum of delivery methods that we use in Alaska.
Correspondence dominates the delivery of courses.
In the lobby of the regional center there was a ThoThai paid internet
station, interesting.
There was a seminar of community (village) leaders while we were visiting.
The subject was providing preventative health at the local level. It was
interesting to see the people and the presentation.
One thing that was curious, is that I saw no students. We were there in the
morning, but the regional center was also in a somewhat isolated rural area
next to an army base. The setting was beautiful. The Professor from Bangladesh also mentioned the location as a little odd. It was explained that the land was
donated. Again these are not conclusions just impressions from a very brief
visit. I assume at other times that the center is well used.
Returning on the boat I saw a very young mother riding across the river with
a very young baby. She looked very worried. A man gave up his seat so she
would not have to sit in the sun. Here worried look was very striking. I can
not help observing and feeling for the people that I see.
We just added some cement to expand the front walk to Jit's families home.
One tree is surrounded by cement. I can not see how it will survive, but an
odd thing is that there a sponges and pieces of rubber sort of tied to the
tree. Jit said that her dad believes that it helps plants grow.
There are many ad-hoc stores in our community. Two of them provide Pepsi with
ice, it only cost about 25 cents. At one store there is a protective dog.
When customers go there, they settle the dog down or take it for a walk. Our
dog in Fairbanks has a similar temperment. Their dog is really beautiful and
I would like to make friends with it. It is one of the only real owned dogs
that I have seen in the community.
I also asked Anne to see if she could arrange a meeting so I could learn
about the academic decision process at STOU. I am very curious based on my
experience on curricular affairs and the CRCD academic decision process.
A good and productive day.
Wandering in Sri Nakhon Khuankun Park Wednesday morning.
Wandering in the park, Wednesday morning.
Wandering in the park, Wednesday morning.
Visiting Nakhon Nayok. It is a poor photo, but it at least captures some of
the meeting participants.
Visiting Nakhon Nayok. A poor photo but it is at least a record of the
meeting.
Sabbatical reflections and revisions
I wrote this last night.
I have been here for over three weeks and have had many visits and
experiences exploring IT. I also have some experience with STOU. It is time
to think about my sabbatical intentions.
My goal for this Sabbatical is to learn and reflect.
I am looking for experiences in:
Technology usage
A new culture
A new language
Technology adoption
Technology training
Technology support
New perspectives on the use of technology and training.
Comparisons and contrasts between the University of Alaska Fairbanks College
of Rural and Community Development Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University.
My methods are interviews and observations.
I adding a few new items to my interview/visit list.
I want to interview the computer support people at Jukes School
I want to spend some significant time at Pantip Palace and even arrange some
interviews
I want to interview somebody at STOU about the academic and curriculum
process.
I want to interview computer support people at STOU
My goal at STOU is to learn how the institution works and to see how that
changes my perception of UAF and CRCD. I do not see having a meaningful or
significant job at STOU because of my lack of ability in the Thai language. I
think through discussion and interviews that I can be of some value.
When I return from my sabbatical I want to return with a richer perspective
and a new pool of experiences and examples to draw upon. I already feel my
sabbatical has changed me. My life is not boring, predictable or in my
control, it never was, but it seemed that way.
I also am personally am finding creating blog entries valuable. Just keeping
notes of my observations stimulates more observations. It is like
photography, the more pictures you take the more you see.
Another aspect of this sabbatical is the empathy that I have for students.
Not being able to speak or understand a language is a humbling experience. I
need a Thai Mary Earp!
When I return I want to work in student support and teach. I would like to do
tasks that make a difference and that are significant. I expect to work four
more years.
I am writhing this blog using my Palm. There is a storm, thunder, lightening
and intense rain. The temperature is cooling and I can listen to the storm as
I fall asleep. It is not a spooky Halloween storm.
Tomorrow we will visit a regional center at Nakhon Nayok.
Friday, September 23, 2005
One of the trees planted by a friend of Jit's dad
Old men planting trees
Old men planting trees. Jit's dad and his friend from up
the path spend time planting trees. When I look carefully at how they arrange
the trees and plants they are beautiful.
Today I got to do some film photography of the community making a peanut
sesame candy. It was great. I need to get the film developed and scanned as
soon as possible. Hopefully we can get a ride with somebody to do some
grocery shopping.
Spiders in the house! I have seen a couple large spiders in the house, Jit
sweeps them out. Jit has seen a few more. I am much more alert when I get up
at night, I turn on the lights rather then wander in the dark. We do not know
where they came from. Si said that when they were working on the house they
saw a mother spider. The spiders are large, but at least as clearly as I can
discern, they are not poisonous or anything. Another experience.
I have seen a couple of new bug zapper devices shaped like tennis rackets.
They use the same principle of a normal bug zapper, but they are in the shape
of a tennis racket. You swing the racket at the bug or mosquito and then zap.
Might be useful in Alaska. I can imagine some kind of sporting event,
mosquito badminton or something like that.
The c |
