Weather is a bit cooler here now. It’s trying to squeeze out rain, which is about a month or more late. Rice farmers are in drought and anxious. It actually got down to 83 degrees a few nights ago, and hovers around 96-99 daytime. Amazing how the body gets "used" to it, whether we prefer it or not. So a few of us went to a Saturday "Thai Cooking" school. Made about seven dishes from scratch, ate half of them, took home doggie-bags and a cookbook!


School closed a week ago. Many people left for their home passport country (as we call them). I work at a desk beside a white South African, a Thai born Chinese, a Korean pastor's wife, a Californian :), soon perhaps a Brit and a Mauritian Islander. Talk about multi-cultural!

Sometimes we have a good laugh over language. E.G. a biscuit to me is a cookie to my South African friend. And Thais learned desserts from expats like me, and they don't often like it too sweet, preferring fruit. In fact, my Chinese-Thai co-worker totally dislikes chocolate! How UN-natural!

Two fun books ya'll might like to look for, which give insights to another (this) culture:
1. Letters from Thailand, by Botun, historical fiction letters from a Thai immigrant to his Chinese mother, on the new culture and life's changes in the mid-20th Century. Fascinating.

2. Mai Pen Rai, by Carol Hollinger, a hilarious journal of an American consultant's wife and children during their first year in Thailand in the 60s? Insightful, funny, poignant. MUCH crazier than me!

Pray for Gary and me as we take on new responsibilities and reconsider our time-frame. In addition to web writer for our three sites, I'm Interim Recruit Coordinator, pending a permanent replacement. At church I'm now SS teacher/helper Coordinator and 4-6 grade summer teacher. Gary will work with sound & A/V at church and is helping install a "virtual" VM Ware server at the school and prepare for summer upgrades to Windows 7.

If you haven't yet read a few Grace International School stories w/photos, visit: http://www.gisthailand.org/ Good, short pieces! :) Penny