Unbelievable

A week and a day later: monkey tales

It's been a week since I have wrote a blog post. I am failing at this challenge but I do reflect on my day daily, but I just get so lazy to actually write something. This last week was interesting. It was the last week of school before holiday. I completed a term and got through summer school so I am proud of myself. 😀😀😀😀 To celebrate, Waldo and I went to the club. D&D music hall. There are two club in Nakhon Sawan, my city, and I went to the one that is over the highway! Another thing that I am proud of is that I am finally getting comfortable on my bike. After my accident I thought I was going to give it back but I was reading a life blog and one of the bullet points stated that you shouldn't live in the past and if something goes wrong. Get over it. So I felt like God was telling me to suck it up and get back on the road. 

When we were at the club it hit me for real that I live in Thailand. I knew about 70% of the songs. That is a lot. I even made a request in front of the club and the club roared. They couldn't believe a farang ( foreigner) knew anything let alone request songs.  It's crazy because normally I don't like the spotlight but I cant help it here. I am constantly being stared at and pointed out so you might as well give them a show. Anyways, I had a real good time! 

 

Today, we went to a monkey temple. Me and animals don't mix but I knew that I had to try and start to check things off my list of things to do. We took a tuk tuk there. And I am sure you know how I feel about tuk tuks( earlier accident) but it was the only way to get all of us there. It took about a hour and a half to get there and once we arrived there was hundreds of monkeys everywhere. There was a few carts to buy food and snacks to feed them. I immediately freaked out. I thought I was going to be attacked and had a panic attack. So I quickly prayed because I knew that I couldn't ruin the time for the other guys. 

So you wouldn't believe what happened next..... a MONKEY JUMPED ON ME!!!!!! Out of all of us the monkey jumped on me! Maybe I was the only one that looked like them lol.  Everyone started dying. I couldn't control myself but I didn't react the way you would think. I was a G seriously. I couldn't believe this animal was really on me. I chopped it up to God finding a way to calm me down.  After that I was able to just enjoy the monkeys and the nature I was experiencing. It's so crazy how things work out. So I definitely tried something new! I like this feeling I am experiencing. I am shaving off layers of fear that have been hindering me. I need to get the picture and video from one of the girls or Waldo. Will post later! 

 

Tomorrow I leave for my mini vacation within the vacation. Circus school here I come. I can't wait to lay, chat with backpackers, juggle, and play with fire. I will make sure to document this adventure.  Lol 

Weekend, Day 4-6

I did a lot of nothing this weekend but it was just what the doctor ordered. On Friday, we had a girls night. We were tired  of being around the boys and watching them get aggressive and Loud over the pool table so we just chilled on the roof of one of the other foreign teacher's house. It was nice had wine and pasta. I didn't realize how calming the stars are. Not to get too deep but you realize that you are just a small part of this world. Things aren't that bad, time passes, and you move on. There is more to my summation but I don't feel like going into it. The part of Thailand that I am in doesn't have as many stars as I would think. I guess pollution is higher than normal. 

Jo, my coworker, is so funny. Glad that she is super cool and we mesh well. I feel like she can understand my personality. I don't feel the same way about a few people but it happens and you just adjust according to the situations. I was talking to Waldo and he said that I should never explain and he was right so I may distance myself from the people that make me feel a type of way. Problem solved. 

On Sat, I was domestic and finally cleaned my room. I figured out how to mop efficiently. It was challenging for me and I am not sure why lol. I stayed in for a little and started the breaking bad series. I got thru the first season, after attempting six or seven times before. It's good! I am waiting to fall in love like everyone else but I can feel it coming. After I was done being a bum I decided to go for a ride and had dinner with my Thai friends. Sooo happy to say that I have Thai friends lol. I am so lame! 

Today, I went to church and then went to the market to find some potatoes because I was in charge of the mashed potatoes for the weekly dinner. So fun and a great way to keep in touch with everyone even though we work with each other. They came out good. Its not hard to mess them up it was still great that people enjoyed them. We had paprika chicken, rice, cabbage, and truffle.  I'm currently listening to Justin Bieber's Christmas album. Def time for me to go to bed lol. Class in the morning and guess who didn't even plan her lesson! 

Day 3

The day is almost over and I wanted to write a quick post. I finally saw a group of cute Thai men. I also think that they weren't Thai but live here now. They were dark and actually looked like men. Facial hair and muscles. Thai people fear the sun! They wear long sleeve shirts, walk around with umbrellas, face masks, and 70% of all products can be found with whitening agents in them. It really is comical, but I guess all countries have their thing. A lot of the time, Thai men look like girls to me. They are wearing skinny jeans and dyed bangs. I don't like that mess! so it was refreshing to finally see some. Too bad they don't speak English. I tried to carry on with someone that didn't speak English before and that was a fail.com. So I most likely wouldn't try again lol.

Day 2

Today was an interesting day. The craft was a triangle/ witch so I decided to make witch hats which was a complete fail. It was so ugly but when you are 3 you don't even care. Thank God for that lol. So those wont be hanging in my class. 

There are a few teachers leaving this break and I am really going to miss them. I only met them two months ago but they are so fun. Great personalities and share in my struggle so it's going to be sad to see them go but I am so happy they are going to fulfill their traveling dreams. At lunch, a bunch of us gather to have a lunch date with them so they could hit a few restaurants before they leave Friday morning and guess what decided to join us. 

At first the cat jumped on my lap. Walked across them and then nudged itself between Jay and I.  I guess it felt safe enough and took a cat nap. Stretched out and all. As much as I hate animals, I think it is something that I am just going to have to get over. 

Another thing that happened was this man came up to us and asked if we could play volleyball with his son. I thought it was cool because I haven't played in so long and consider myself to be a pretty good player. So we are all set up to go and the father tells us that he only plays with girls. So my friend, Waldo, has to sit out. As the time is passing he asked if we would play with him while he went to work. I thought that was crazy so I lied ad said we had to go but I mean really now. My Thai is passing and your son speaks no English. That was weird I thought he was about to run and I needed to bring him son to the police because he never came back. Maybe I watch too much tv or they are very trusting but I thought it was funny. 

Peace! 

Day 1

So today is the first day of my challenge and I decided that I needed to narrow it down and choose 4 and continue this over a few 30 -day challenges. The four I chose were:

1. Write a paragraph and picture daily 

2. Focus on a long term goal

3. Exercise 30 mins a day

4. Read a chapter a day 

5. Selfless act a day 

Well I guess I chose 5 but anyways I was able to hit them all today which was a nice way to start strong. I found a yoga studio that has combat ( kickboxing ) and Zumba classes. So on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday I will be getting my workout on. I hope to drop a few kilos. Funny that I am starting to get used to the metric system. I almost can figure out what the temperature is in F from celsius without trying to use the whole conversion formula.  

Since I have a break in a few weeks. We are doing Halloween early and I am not the most creative person, but I am trying my hardest. Lol. I love themes and stuff like that so I decided to take my picture of my new classroom that took me over and hour to decorate. I had the kids make pumpkins on Monday and Frankenstein today! Overall, I had a good day and I resisted the roti ( fried dough with condensed milk and sugar). Good night! 

30 day challenge.

Today is the last day of the month and I really want to start a challenge and do something different. I want to really become one with myself. I have been in Thailand for two months now and I am a friggin teacher.  Who would of thought it. Teaching is a lot harder than I thought. I am always looking for ideas/ games and constantly nervous that my kids aren't going to learn. I think that I am way harder on myself than I should be but that is just how I am. But at the end of the day I really love my kids. They are so cute! I am a kindergarten teacher so I am in charge of two classes, K1 (3 year olds) and K2 (4-5). Even though teaching is not for me, I am going to enjoy the cuteness of these children. One thing that I love is that kindergarten is a forgiving age. They don't hold things against you and you can't hold things against them. 

I have a whole new perspective and respect for teachers. I never really was a bad student so I don't feel like I didn't respect them, but Lord teachers should get paid a lot more and valued! I can't believe that America treats them the way we do. 

I have really adjusted. Hmm maybe I should say that I am about 60% adjusted. I am starting to understand the way the Thai people act and conduct business. It is a little difficult for me because I am such a strictler but I know that I will have to let that go. They have a really relaxed attitude for the most part. I have met a few shady ones but that is normal. My landlord is a little shady but what can you do. I rather pay an extra 3 baht (Thai currency) for electricity than have to deal with a lot more bugs and animals. I can't deal and that will never change. While in the subject of animals. I really think that there are more stray dogs in my town than people. I can't turn a corner without seeing one. So, to solve that problem I got a motorbike. There are a few reasons but that is my main one. I needed the freedom. I hated waiting on people and feeling like a nuisance. It was just better for me to get one and I am renting the bike for 1000 baht which is amazing! Normally You would have to pay about 2000 but I am renting it from my boss so that is why it is so cheap. But in true Samantha fashion I crashed my bike. I had to learn the rules of the street the hard way. I bet I won't make that mistake again. But any-who, I am going to try this for my 30 day challenge: 

Use words that encourage happiness. 

Try one new thing every day.  

Perform one selfless act every day. 

Learn and practice one new skill. 

Teach someone something new every day. 

Dedicate an hour a day to something you’re passionate about.

Treat everyone nicely, even those who are rude to you. 

Address and acknowledge the lesson in inconvenient situations.

Pay attention and enjoy your life as it happens.

Get rid of one thing a day for 30 days. 

Create something brand new in 30 days or less. 

Don’t tell a single lie for 30 days. 

Wake up 30 minutes early every morning. 

Ditch 3 bad habits for 30 days.

Define one long-term goal and work on it for an hour every day. 

Read one chapter of a good book every day. 

Every morning, watch or read something that inspires you. 

Do something every day after lunch that makes you laugh.

Exercise for 30 minutes every day for 30 days. 

Get uncomfortable and face a fear every day. 

Spend 10 minutes every evening reflecting on what went well. 

Have a conversation every day with someone you rarely speak to. – People are interesting creatures.

Pay down debt and don’t create any new debt for 30 days. – Live well below your means. 

Let go of one relationship that constantly hurts you. 

Publicly forgive someone who deserves another chance. 

Document every day with one photograph and one paragraph. – For 30 days bring a camera with you wherever you go. 

(Marc and Angel blog) 

I am in love with the last one and I am really going to do these all. Or at least try my best. I am also going to teach two weeks of summer school and then for another two weeks I am off. I am going north to a town called Pai. It seems like I am getting signs and it should be cheap since I still haven't been paid my full salary due to all the regulations. I need to start the research on my trip and get ready for my challenge. Yeaahhhhhh!