Diary of a farang in Isaan

[HighPriority]

Yes, all those tasty little bunnies hopping around the place just waiting for some Thai to come along and take them home for dinner… and free too ! ????

When on holiday visa in Australia Mrs HP was agog to see mango trees on public land, “Can have ?” ????

[bannork]

On 5/10/2022 at 11:09 AM, owl sees all said:

Had a visit from Black Girl earlier.

 

White Boy tied up. Just as well. Those horns look sharp. A bit scary.

 

 

But Black Girl free to roam. She just loves fruit.

 

 

 

 

Mrs Owl came out and scared her away.

 

 

 

We had a lovely black cow many years ago, but she couldn't stand the heat, retired to the pond and shade come 11 am.

Loving the rain Owl, the best May I've ever known.

 

 

 

[owl sees all]

On 5/12/2022 at 9:44 PM, bannork said:

We had a lovely black cow many years ago, but she couldn't stand the heat, retired to the pond and shade come 11 am.

Loving the rain Owl, the best May I've ever known.

 

 

 

Lovely cow Bannork. We never had any cows, but did have two buffaloes (no pics). Also had a tribe of pigs.

 

Tookee and Shampoo

 

 

And their piglets.

 

 

This was in the very early days.

 

 

What happened to those shorts?

 

Old hut.

 

New house being built. Must make it clear that I didn't work at all. Just posing for the camera.

 

 

Fatty looking on.

 

 

Even fatter.

 

 

Went to Ban Dung on Thursday. It absolutely teemed down for an hour.  Left for home at three, and half way along the roads were dry.

 

Not lucky with the rain.

Edited May 13, 2022 by owl sees all

[HighPriority]

I suspected that “fatty” might have had something to do with Mildred ????????
 

Glad to hear you’ve got some rain Owl, we got a little sprinkle here yesterday, only 2.3mm at home, but Darwin and suburbs got a nice dump.

 

I came home and went for a wander around the garden and spotted something slightly out of place

 

 

I took a couple of pics of this Tawny Frogmouth, creeping in a bit closer, then backing back out so as not to disturb him. He was just cracking his eyelid to keep check on me…

I thought I’d leave him be and turned to walk away and something else caught my eye about 2m in front (formerly behind me) 

Greater Black Whipsnake, dangerously venomous as all good Australians are… ????????

And it seems that my BIL is getting ready to plant

 

Edited May 14, 2022 by HighPriority
Pics

[owl sees all]

21 minutes ago, HighPriority said:

I suspected that “fatty” might have had something to do with Mildred ????????
 

Glad to hear you’ve got some rain Owl, we got a little sprinkle here yesterday, only 2.3mm at home, but Darwin and suburbs got a nice dump.

 

I came home and went for a wander around the garden and spotted something slightly out of place

 

 

I took a couple of pics of this Tawny Frogmouth, creeping in a bit closer, then backing back out so as not to disturb him. He was just cracking his eyelid to keep check on me…

I thought I’d leave him be and turned to walk away and something else caught my eye about 2m in front (formerly behind me) 

Greater Black Whipsnake, dangerously venomous as all good Australians are… ????????

And it seems that my BIL is getting ready to plant

 

 

That bird is well camouflaged HP. So well that I can't even spot it.

 

I thought that the Tawny Frogmouth was a variety of owl. I checked it in the www and it seems that it is a separate species of bird. I am informed. Learn something new every day.

 

That snake looks as though it could spring up and grab ya nose as easy as anything.

 

 

[HighPriority]

Open and zoom the pic, the camouflage is amazing and he’s only 1 m off the ground !

I just checked and he’s in the next tree over today.

 

I was lucky with snakey, he was fairly chilled, he took the view that “If I stay still, HP won’t see me” rather than getting all antsy like a Northern Brown snake might.

[owl sees all]

6 minutes ago, HighPriority said:

Open and zoom the pic, the camouflage is amazing and he’s only 1 m off the ground !

I just checked and he’s in the next tree over today.

 

I was lucky with snakey, he was fairly chilled, he took the view that “If I stay still, HP won’t see me” rather than getting all antsy like a Northern Brown snake might.

Did as you said HP.

 

Still can't see it. Put a circle round it.

 

[HighPriority]

Howzat ?

????

[owl sees all]

Right you are HP.

 

I can see clearly now the rain has gone. Who sang that?

 

Thanks. Must get a new pair of specks at the 20 baht shop.

[HighPriority]

It’s the first time I’ve spotted him perched up during the daytime.

I see him and sometimes his wife reasonably often at nighttime.

 

Im not sure who sang it, but after the rain cleared he claimed he could see all the obstacles that were in his way, but I’m pretty sure he married that hiso Thai lady regardless…

????

[owl sees all]

Speaking of birds. Big one in Chai Badan; I think.

 

 

Dog takes a ride on the 2022.

 

 

Elephant visits our house. Back in 2008 or 09.

Edited May 14, 2022 by owl sees all

[chickenslegs]

2 minutes ago, owl sees all said:

Speaking of birds. Big one in Chai Badan; I think.

 

 

No need for a red circle around that one!

[owl sees all]

4 hours ago, HighPriority said:

I suspected that “fatty” might have had something to do with Mildred

You are not wrong there HP. About a year or so later.

 

Edited May 14, 2022 by owl sees all

[owl sees all]

Owl Log 15-05-2022 - Sunday marning

 

Yesterday afternoon - Saturday 14th - was the darkest I have experienced here in Thailand.

 

It started to get dark at 2-30 and by three is was so dark a couple of lights had to be put on in the house. Stayed like that until it got proper dark at 6ish. There was some rain and a little lightening, but the darkness was an experience.

 

Found an interesting road sign on the way to Ban Dung. Well, four signs all saying that 'Kham chanod' was 20/23k away. I think that's how ya spell it.

 

 

That's plain enough; 'Kham cha not'.

 

Next one up, just 20 metres further on.

 

 

A bit further.

 

 

Swapped the 'K' for a 'C'.

 

Lastly; just round the corner. Back to 20k and a different spelling again.

 

 

Now, this got me thinking. Is this simply the English translation of the Thai name? Pen, is also seen as Phen or Penn is also Interesting in that way.

 

Another nut cut in the week. Finished up with 19k baht (our share on 50/50 basis). The price has broken through the 10 baht a kg barrier. This is obviously good, but does it forecast the prices of fuel for the not to distant future? Also Indonesia's decision to stop all palm oil exports has a big influence on the price.

 

My last month forecast of 40 baht a litre for diesel might be arriving soon. I have to go to Udon for my 90 day in a few days. Think I'll take the bus or get on the bike. Too expensive in the pick-up now.

 

 

It wasn't all 'straight into Mrs Owl's purse' however. We set aside 30k for fertilizer. Have to shop about to see what is on offer. Ideally, it would be 50/50 46-0-0 and 0-0-60. Will check and report back in the week.

 

Got the 3 incher working. Had to get a new petrol tank. Fitted that on with little difficulty. But the cap was faulty and had to be changed. To be fair, the shop replaced it at once. Thumbs up to them.

 

The old tank was well pitted.

 

 

On with the new. Lady dropped the price tp 450 baht; just for me.

 

 

All told 700 baht.  That's a service, oil, plug and tank.

 

Had to put a roof on the budgie cage.

 

 

Not got any of them to talk yet. Just out of reach. Shame that Poo!

 

 

Had a cow visit us in the week. She ate about 20 mangoes. A bit close to my avoes there girl.

 

 

Two avocadoes were planted at the farm in the week. Mrs Owl took control of it all. As she normally does. Then leaves it to me after the easy bit.

 

 

And into their new homes.

 

 

I'll be making sure they don't go short of a drink.

 

Mildred caught a nice pla nin in the week from pond five. Was gonna eat it, but not really big enough for two, so gave it away.

 

 

Still in the dark about the pipe-work that has now finished in the village.

 

 

Asked the Mrs, but she was not interested enough to answer.

 

Investigating the big mangoes. Just love fondling them.

 

 

Buddha pond building storming ahead. It's gonna be grand.

 

 

Mildred's due to go to her new school on Tuesday. Picked up all the clothes that had to be embroidered with the name of the new school last Thursday.

 

She is still showing great enthusiasm for the art. In fact, she is so into it, that Mrs Owl can't always get her to run errands.

 

This latest one is called; 'dentist'.

 

www.mildredart.com

 

 

Some nice sunsets lately.

 

 

On the way back from the farm there is always time for sunset fun.

 

 

Mildred dear! Down a bit and move to the left. Sun it dropping fast. Will be gone in 30 seconds.

 

 

Visited one of my favourite Ban Dung trees.

 

 

Real shame about the rubbish. Although the Thais probably wouldn't see the rubbish as rubbish. Just offerings!

 

 

Can't say I'm looking forward to Mildred returning to school. Her best friend, Aom, won't be joining her. She is going to a boarding school out Loei way. Sure they will touch mobile base often enough though.

 

Plan to pump out pond five next week end. It will, hopefully, give me the chance to get out the nets, that are stuck in the mud. I'm also gonna be busy with the fertilizer for the palms. Interesting and hectic week ahead.

 

George Galloway ducked out of going onto Sonia Poulton's Rise with BNT programme. That's not good George. And what happened to that 'Batley and Spen' by-election legal challenge? Bristol vote to dump the City Mayor.

 

Footy round up.

Forest look good to make the final after winning away at the Cuttlers place. Close at the bottom. Leeds simply must win today. Lucky Liverpool win the FA Cup. In the German Bunderliga yesterday, every team scored at least one goal. Don't happen very often in any major league.

 

Fighting talk from Boris and Liz over the Ruskies. Can't get my head around the UK stance on it all. I notice that the BBC's documentaries on the Ukraine far right, that were shown on TV in 2013 and 2014, are no longer available for viewing. Taken out of the archives. We certainly live in uncertain times.

 

Sun is out. Looking lovely outside. Not too hot. Gonna sit in the sun for an hour, and tell the budgies some Thai words to imitate. I know at least 20; not counting numbers and people's names of course.

 

Is there a better place to be in the world right now than Isaan?

 

Only one thing left to say; bye y'all.

Edited May 15, 2022 by owl sees all

[HighPriority]

Owl, I feel I should offer some sage advice re coveting the lady next doors mangos… ????

[owl sees all]

25 minutes ago, HighPriority said:

Owl, I feel I should offer some sage advice re coveting the lady next doors mangos… ????

I need advice HP. Speak freely HP. Don't fear being cancelled or deplatformed.

 

At this stage of my life I look for few things. A nice cuppa in the mornings. A life of calm. A life of love. A life of caring. England to smash the Ozzies next time The Ashes are contested. And most importantly, I hope I live to see Leyton Orient win the EPL. Perhaps winning might be pushing it a bit; just getting there would be enough.

 

Oh yes! Big, well formed, mangoes. Can't beat them. And isn't there an eleventh commandment? Thou should not covet thy neighbours' big mangoes'. There is no hope for me.

Edited May 15, 2022 by owl sees all

[HighPriority]

I often wonder and hope that your home life is better nowadays than that described at the time in the BIL thread…

Ive no idea what an epl is… ????

But my Blues have made it a 7/2 start to the season and we almost haven’t won 7 in a season since 1999 !

Happy days here in Humpty Doo. 

[owl sees all]

13 minutes ago, HighPriority said:

I often wonder and hope that your home life is better nowadays than that described at the time in the BIL thread…

Ive no idea what an epl is… ????

But my Blues have made it a 7/2 start to the season and we almost haven’t won 7 in a season since 1999 !

Happy days here in Humpty Doo. 

Oh yes1 The poison BinL thread. Essential reading for any guy setting foot on Thai soil and thinking it is simply 'The Land of Smiles'. If I had my time again I wouldn't change much. If I did Mildred would not be with me now. Have to learn to take the 'rough' with the 'smooth' here.

 

Epl is English Premier League. That's proper footy. Not that Oz rules stuff or the padded up American Football. Also not to be confused with 'fuzball'.

 

Pleased that The Blues are doing so well HP.

 

Edited May 15, 2022 by owl sees all

[GarryP]

18 minutes ago, owl sees all said:

If I had my time again I wouldn't change much. If I did Mildred would not be with me now. Have to learn to take the 'rough' with the 'smooth' here.

 

That is smack-bang on Mr. Philosopher Owl. I have had some really rough times here in Thailand, but if I changed anything, I would not have my grown up son, or my new wife (is a wife of 5 years still new?). Did I make mistakes? Sure I did. But isn't that what life is about?   

[HighPriority]

I married Mrs HP 4 years ago and she’s been with me in Oz since June 2019, plenty of bumps, but she’s great when not working 7 days a bloody week… ????

Edited May 15, 2022 by HighPriority

[Mutt Daeng]

1 hour ago, GarryP said:

That is smack-bang on Mr. Philosopher Owl. I have had some really rough times here in Thailand, but if I changed anything, I would not have my grown up son, or my new wife (is a wife of 5 years still new?). Did I make mistakes? Sure I did. But isn't that what life is about?   

Garry, the man who never made a mistake never made anything.

[bannork]

Well Owl, surely your location hasn't missed out on the latest deluge? Absolute buckets since the wee hours. Still hasn't stopped. This May is definitely going to shake up your steady decline in rainfall graph. 

Might see you at Mildred's school, I pick up the in-laws and own grandchildren in the afternoon, now 3 different schools. 

[owl sees all]

2 hours ago, bannork said:

Well Owl, surely your location hasn't missed out on the latest deluge? Absolute buckets since the wee hours. Still hasn't stopped. This May is definitely going to shake up your steady decline in rainfall graph. 

Might see you at Mildred's school, I pick up the in-laws and own grandchildren in the afternoon, now 3 different schools. 

Had a decent drop in the night. Some lightning too.

 

These last two months have certainly bucked the recent trend. This is more like it was on first settling here 14 years ago. Let's hope the 'wet season' does the bizzo for us also.

Edited May 16, 2022 by owl sees all

[DaveE13]

22 hours ago, owl sees all said:

I need advice HP. Speak freely HP. Don't fear being cancelled or deplatformed.

 

At this stage of my life I look for few things. A nice cuppa in the mornings. A life of calm. A life of love. A life of caring. England to smash the Ozzies next time The Ashes are contested. And most importantly, I hope I live to see Leyton Orient win the EPL. Perhaps winning might be pushing it a bit; just getting there would be enough.

 

Oh yes! Big, well formed, mangoes. Can't beat them. And isn't there an eleventh commandment? Thou should not covet thy neighbours' big mangoes'. There is no hope for me.

Leyton orient?  Not Dagenham & Redbridge?  Bad owl ???? 

[owl sees all]

55 minutes ago, DaveE13 said:

Leyton orient?  Not Dagenham & Redbridge?  Bad owl ???? 

Good point Dave.

 

I lived for 30 years withing a couple of miles from the Victoria Road ground. Went to see them many times. But Orient was the first club I saw live. A 2-2 draw with Sheff Wednesday in the late 50s. I took to watching Spurs during their 'Glory glory' years, but turned away from them when they put a floodlight pylon where I usually stood. Orient were on the move, and did very well in getting into the top flight alongside Liverpool in 1962.

 

Ipswich had won the title that year (1961/62) and they were only promoted the year before. So Orient were gonna take the league apart as The Tractor Boys did. Alas, It was not to be. We finished a miserable last getting just 21 points. To rub salt into the wound. Liverpool won the league the following season. That could have been us!

 

So yes Dave, Dagenham were my local club. And I always look for their result (just shy of the play-off this season), but If I could pick one club to win the ELP it would be Leyton Orient.

 

Edited May 16, 2022 by owl sees all

[Will27]

On 5/15/2022 at 4:01 PM, HighPriority said:

I often wonder and hope that your home life is better nowadays than that described at the time in the BIL thread…

Ive no idea what an epl is… ????

But my Blues have made it a 7/2 start to the season and we almost haven’t won 7 in a season since 1999 !

Happy days here in Humpty Doo. 

Your Blue Baggers are doing better than my West Coast Eagles HP.

[bannork]

I had an unpleasant experience on the farm this morning. Picking unripe papayas for my daughter to sell in Ban Dung, I noticed one arm begin to itch, followed by a rash and blister type marks. The irritation wasn't as bad as the notorious velvet beans ( ma muay in Thai), but it was still very uncomfortable for a while.

I later found out the cause was the latex oozing out of the picked papayas coming into contact with the skin. I should have worn a long sleeved shirt and long gloves. 

Strange really because I've never had a reaction before.

Back to ma muay, velvet beans. Apparently it's the tiny hairs on the pods that produce such irritation, idiotically I once walked bare chested up a hill in central Thailand, my sides occasionally brushing against the undergrowth, including velvet beans. Oh,the agony!

'Rub yourself in mud!' my Thai companions urged. 

 

[owl sees all]

4 hours ago, bannork said:

I had an unpleasant experience on the farm this morning. Picking unripe papayas for my daughter to sell in Ban Dung, I noticed one arm begin to itch, followed by a rash and blister type marks. The irritation wasn't as bad as the notorious velvet beans ( ma muay in Thai), but it was still very uncomfortable for a while.

I later found out the cause was the latex oozing out of the picked papayas coming into contact with the skin. I should have worn a long sleeved shirt and long gloves. 

Strange really because I've never had a reaction before.

Back to ma muay, velvet beans. Apparently it's the tiny hairs on the pods that produce such irritation, idiotically I once walked bare chested up a hill in central Thailand, my sides occasionally brushing against the undergrowth, including velvet beans. Oh,the agony!

'Rub yourself in mud!' my Thai companions urged. 

 

Have to be careful out there Bannork. Generally I am not. Apart from a couple of injuries; one due to a bike crash and t'other when I caught my hand in a belt drive at the farm, I've been lucky.

 

I did get stung by a wasp/hornet a couple of years back. My hand swelled up so much I couldn't touch me little finger with me thumb.. Gradually went back to normal after a few hours though.

 

Shopped about for fertilizer today. 0-0-60 was on offer for 1800 baht. Same price for 46-0-0. Found a 21-5-21 on sale for 1500 baht. Some of that had been stored away for a couple if years, going by the deterioration of it and its location in the warehouse.. Probably bought it in for 500 baht a sack.

 

I'm all for going natural. Mrs Owl wouldn't hear of it.

[HighPriority]

Drive belts and hands… ????

im so glad you’ve retired from ladders Owl ????????

[owl sees all]

I'm all for going full tilt on all the poo poos, and cassava waste.

 

I'm not as one dimensional in thinking as most Thais. Get a pig poo poo source and put it around the trees big time. One 20 kg sack per tree. Mix it up with as much buffalo and cow muck as we can get hold of. Then there is cassava waste - which we used to use as fertilizer, when the trees were younger -  again; a 20kg sack for each tree. Sugar waste is a seasonal thing, and perhaps we can't get any. Not even sure if the factories are even open. I'll do some inquiries.

 

Fertilizer is going to rocket up in price; even more than it is at the moment. A lot or raw material originates from south/eastern Ukraine and Russia. So that will be under sanctions if from Russia, and full of export difficulties otherwise.

Edited May 17, 2022 by owl sees all