During her visit our sis-in-love, Mindy, very slyly got us a gift certificate for dinner at one of most amazing places in Chiang Mai, the Chedi. Before last week, we'd only heard about eating dinner there! (Though they do have a very reasonable High Tea which I have had the delight to experience!)
we are still down south waiting to see if the improvement in air quality over the last couple of days will last... particulate count (amount of bad stuff in the air) has already risen since a sharp dip that followed unseasonal rain 2 days ago. authorities say burning (and the bad air it brings) could begin again at any time. we just spoke to a pollution-sensitive friend in CM who said it was great yesterday, but woke up this morning with a sore throat & runny nose again.
Warden Message
March 15, 2007
This message alerts American citizens living in or visiting northern Thailand to the need to take appropriate health-related precautions due to the unhealthful air quality northern Thailand is currently experiencing. Air quality experts report that excessive trash burning, brush clearing, forest fires and other factors have resulted in severe air contamination in the areas surrounding Chiang Mai. According to the Pollution Control Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, air pollution levels in Chiang Mai have exceeded the maximum acceptable level since the beginning of March. On March 14, the level of particulate matter in the air exceeded the “emergency” level. Measurements at or near the “emergency” level are expected for at least the next several days.
Day-by-day particulate matter (PM 10) and air quality statistics are available in English on the Pollution Control Department website at http://www.pcd.go.th/AirQuality/Regional/Default.cfm and at the consulate’s website, http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/consulcm/index.htm.
American Citizen Services (ACS)
U.S. Embassy Bangkok
95 Wireless Road, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
A picture of Mekong catfish with Mike's dad, Bill, during his visit to chiang Mai last month.
Mike with his hard-earned catch. 
When I was a little girl, I remember finding a pair of crutches (left over from some family member's unfortunate incedent) and being completely entertained the rest of the day leaping across the house with them. a few thoughts on this:
1. when you are not injured, crutches are great.
2. if you lose your balance while on said crutches, you have two good feet to land on.
3. when you get tired or your armpits hurt or the crutches are no longer convenient, you can lean them against a wall and continue regular mobility.
last weekend in bangkok, mike & i were walking back to the guesthouse from the hospital (we had our annual check ups & we are very healthy!), when i stepped onto an uneven section of sidewalk (these are plentiful throughout the kingdom)... my foot rolled outward, and i heard a loud snap. i was able to walk for a bit until the pain got too bad & mike got us a taxi for the the last 1/2 mile or so (a very well-spent dollar). i got out of the taxi & hopped into the guesthouse... then i hopped up the stairs and down the hall to our room. The next day, I hopped some more getting ready for the airport, where mike wheeled me on the luggage cart (fun!) to the airport "hospital" where a well-dressed staff person told us they did not have crutches, but could order some from a nearby hospital. After a smiling doctor examined my foot & said it was probably ligaments (only "10% chance" it's broken), my crutches arrived 30 minutes later in a flashing ambulence. Even though I gave my height in cm (165, if anyone is curious) to the hospital, and 6 well-dressed staff people attempted to make adjustments (mike ended up having to do it), as hard as everyone tried, the crutches were still too short for this giant farang (the thais call all foreigners that... it literally means "french.".. mike LOVES it). so they ordered some more crutches in a bigger size which arrived another half-hour later... they would have to do as is, because we needed to proceed to the gate. I was then escorted to my plane in a wheel chair, which was a very nice experience until i had to get out of the chair & make it down to my seat on the crutches (which were still too short). a few more thoughts on this:
1. it's hard to get around on crutches when your "good leg" is extremely sore because you've spent the last 24 hours hopping around on it.
2. it's harder to get around on crutches when one foot hurts so badly that you can't touch your toes to the ground.
3. the aisle of an airplane is not the best place to test-drive crutches, in general.
so, now i am home... resting and trying to perform the basic functions of life one must do even while "resting". it's amazing how we take for granted that our feet work & our hands don't have to contribute to the process of "getting around". more thoughts:
1. crutches are hard to get around on, and easy to lose your balance with.
2. crutches make a bad substitute for legs, but a good substitute for hands in limited situations (ex. they are good for pushing things around on the floor, but bad for carrying bowls of soup).
3. ginger seems confused, but happy in a strange way, that i now, too, have 4 legs.
we had a wonderful visit with my mom & grandmother here... Grandmother said she really felt like she'd been "immersed in Thai culture" :). Here we are on Doi Inthanon, the highest mountain in Thailand....
and wearing the silver jewelry we made at a local studio... with some training from the master jeweller, we did the designing, heating, flattening, cutting, soldering, shaping, and polishing ourselves!
we've been painting our new office.... the previous color was an appetizing cross between cooked salmon & pepto bismol. here i am jamming out to johnny cash & trying hard to paint a straight line between "brittany beige" & "olive grove" (i'm a freehander). i am also working on curtains... found a great deal on some thai cotton... under $1/yard.
gardening... we've been planting all kinds of stuff.... cucumbers, basil, oregano, LOTS of tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, a flower i can't spell (thanks for the seeds Sandy!)... can't wait to make salsa & spaghetti sauce! mike made a lovely garden in one corner of our yard.... but you'll have to wait for pics.
all for now!
did you know Thailand has the longest reigning living monarch? the country just pulled out all the stops to celebrate the 60th anniversary of his reign...
