It's Beginning to Look a Little Like Christmas

I officially hate fake Christmas trees.  Fake Christmas trees are like little stickers on fruit.  It's taking something where the whole point is that it's alive and using something synthetic instead.  It's taking something pure and processing it.  Nothing says Joy to the World like plastic.  When you're looking for a symbol of hope and eternity, instead of a real evergreen, why not choose...plastic.

Unfortunately, real Christmas trees cost $300 here and likely last about 3 days.  And it turns out that little palm trees don't really have anyplace good to hang ornaments.  So.

We set out to find the family's 2013 Christmas tree, not by tromping out into the woods or bundling up for the crisp air of the tree lot but by piling into a pink taxi.  Lucy and Theo sang carols all the way to the mall.  When we got there we could see the display of trees in the back corner, so we wound our way through the aisles until we were gazing up at the soft glow of electric Thai Christmas.  There were three models.

"How about this one?" Chris suggested hopefully.
I hesitated. "Wait, I want to look at the others. What if the next one is perfect?"  I walked around to the back of the display- best to check them out from all sides.  It was hard to connect the trees on display to the jumble of boxes underneath, so I started calling out the serial numbers from the tags.  "2810...317..."  Theo's ears perked up.  "317?  I LOVE the 317!  Please can we get the 317?" (He started to cry, and wrapped himself around one of the boxes that he thought was a 317.)

"I don't know- Chris is our ceiling tall enough?  Maybe we could cut it off at the bottom?  Theo, what about the 2810, have you looked at the 2810?

In the end, we got the 317, climbed into another taxi and Chris slid the long box through the window and onto our laps.  At home the tree is perfect.  Too perfect, and I both love it and hate it.  But topping it with a nebula that Lucy made at school made me happy, so I am content.

I think this means Elroy the Lion is officially part of the family

let's see, what have i seen..?

so tim and i went to see the black crows the other night.  it was good, and it was sweet to only have to go 15 min to see them.  i thought for posterity, we should get a master list going of the concerts, etc. we have seen.   ready, go..

beth:  simon and garfunkel, linda ronstat, milivanili, stone temple pilots, red hot chili peppers, toad the wet sprocket, they might be giants, black crows, ziggy marley, jewel, sheryl crow, otmar leibert, U2, steve miller.  i saw les miserables, miss saigon, phantom of the opera, secret garden, newsies, stomp.  i also saw barishnakov dance, if that counts.

sarah: millivanili, linda ronstat, nsync, johnny lang, chris issac, wynonna judd, chris doughty
les mis, phantom, newsies, romeo & juliet

carrie:  Toad the Wet Sprocket, Jackson Brown, Paul McCartney, Steve Miller Band, Crosby Stills and Nash, Linda Ronstadt, The Austin Lounge Lizards, The Young Dubliners, Steve Poltz, Marc Cohn, U2, Taj Mahal, Gin Blossoms, Barenaked Ladies, Indigo Girls, Lyle Lovett, Paul Simon, REM, Neil Young, Martin Sexton, John Hiatt, Patty Griffin, Nancy Griffith, Steve Earle, Clem Snide, Wilco, Elvis Costello, Jack Johnson, Ben Harper, Ani DeFranco, Big Jack Johnson, Andrew Bird, Old 97s, Cake, TMBG, M. Ward, Joshua James, Pete Yorn, Moody Blues, INXS,

Claire: Ray LaMontagne, Martin Sexton, R.E.M., They Might Be Giants, Leona Naess, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Adrian Legg, Stone Temple Pilots, Jon Bryon, Gregory Alan Isakov and the Freight, Of Montreal, Taj Mahal, Jack Johnson, Mason Jennings, Blind Boys of Alabama, Ben Harper, Bob Dylan, Andrew Bird, Jonny Lang, The Brobecks, Nothing Ever Stays, The Swell Season, Big Jack Johnson, Jonah Smith, Corby Yates, Travis, Brandi Carlile, The Fray, Weird Al Yankovic, Jack's Mannequin, The Shins, Regina Spektor, Ivan and Alyosha

Rachel:  Johnny Lang, Maroon 5, Andre Rieu, Coldplay, Yo Yo Ma, Gunter, Martin Sexton, Andrew Bird, Ivan & Alyosha, Brandi Carlile, Airborne Toxic Event, Imagine Dragons, Joshua James, They Might Be Giants, Cage the Elephant, Muse.
As far as other plays and performances, I've seen Stomp, The Complete Works of Shakespeare, Les Miserables, The Lion King, Wicked, 1776, Arsenic & Old Lace, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, Romeo & Juliet

Vivian: Stone temple pilots, Red Hot Chili Peppers, REM, Martin Sexton, Aquabats, Custard,  They Might Be Giants, Jack Johnson, Mason Jennings, Taj Mahal, Jonny Lang, Corby Yates, Nada Surf, Zurich Philharmonic?
Also:Twelfth Night, Othello, A Mid Summer Nights Dream, Beauty &the Beast, Les Mis, Phantom, The King and I, Riverdance, Anything Goes, A Tuna Christmas (you all forgot that one!), Alice in Wonderland

A Sampling of Hal

Feed me, Seamour.

Last week was International Day at the kids' school, which is really saying something as there are 66 nationalities represented there.  It was pretty fun- the day starts off with a parade of nations, which involves a lot of people milling around and yelling things like, "Where are the Bela-russians?  Has anyone seen the Bela-russians?!" The American kids wore T-shirts with American flags on them, which is kind of a national costume, dontcha think?

Then there was an assembly with cultural perfomances, including K-pop by the Phillipinos, a Shakespeare reading by the Brits, and Thai national dancing.  After that it was on to the food hall, which also happened to be where I volunteered to help.

Folks, let me tell you, that food hall was one of the more amazing things I have ever seen.  Turns out that:
moms w/ free time + disposable income + national pride + private school competitiveness= food sampling that is off the hook.

There were forty nations represented, with tables overflowing with free homemade ethnic food stuffs, and the kids could wander around and eat whatever they wanted.  The Danes were making crepes.  The Belgians had a chocolate fountain.  The Japanese were molding sushi to look like pandas.  The French were complaining that they couldn't serve wine.  It was like a Chris Gregory Willy Wonka heaven.  The Americans did ourselves proud by making...popcorn.  Which was all that the kids wanted to eat in the first place.

Actually, that kind of sums up the whole day.  The parents were thrilled.  The kids, underwhelmed.

Theo's class.  Kids from India, Spain, Brazil, Italy, Singapore, Denmark and Thailand.

The assembly- Americans in blue, Malaysia in black, and the Netherlands in orange.

While I was stuffing bags full of popcorn, the French were busy serving quiche and pate'.

Mister

Khun Moo is terrified of Chris.  I first thought something was a little funny the day I was telling her that Chris would be returning from our vacation early, so for a few days it would just be the two of them here together.  She got very nervous looking, took a deep breath and said,

"I prefer that he stay out there and not talk too much, and I stay in here and not talk too much either."


Well, OK, Chris would prefer that too, so no problem.  But then I started noticing that she ducks down and averts her eyes whenever she comes out to put something on the table by him.  And two nights ago when he walked into the kitchen and she happened to be in there, she squeaked and fled immediately.  And LAST night I got this text, from her in her room:

"HI KHUN CARRIE IF YOU STILL WANT TO HAVE FOOD. I CAN MAKE NOODLE SOUP FOR SUPPER. I CAN NOT COME TO SEE YOU. BECAUSE MR. WAS SITTING AT DINING ROOM."

So she wanted to ask me a question, but she couldn't because she would have had to walk past Chris working on his laptop at the table.

I mean, I know Chris is always screaming and throwing things and yelling and stuff, and there was that personality quiz that advised people to keep at least six feet away from him at all times, but really?

Candyfest 2013

Halloween is not a big deal in Thailand, but our apartment complex manages to celebrate it anyway.  Which means that last Saturday night we climbed up (and down) 39 flights of poorly-ventilated stairs, making this the sweatiest Halloween that I personally have ever experienced.  At two doors per landing, the kids got a pretty good haul, although because the place is so international it is funny to look at the variety of stuff that they got- all sorts of unrecognizable fish crackers, Danish gummies and Korean jello shots.

Here are a couple of blurry photos of the costume parade around the yard, Chris and I in costumes that lasted about 5 minutes, and Athena and Indy.

 Can you tell what we are?