Karaoke and more

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Here is a link to pictures Annie took of some karaoke Thai-style last weekend. For our first night of karaoke we really did it up as we went to the Sofitel (the expensive and very nice hotel downtown KK). It is something like 1000 Baht to rent out your very own karaoke room-we had 10 or so people though. There is rarely karaoke in front of strangers because you always rent out a room for you and your friends. Meredith, Annie, Liz and I went with some of Annie’s coworkers.
It was a really fun time and Annie has some crazy coworkers. There was a mix of farang and Thai Ajarn so there was a mix of songs. We had wars, Thais vs. Farang, where we would try to sing a better song in our native tongue. The Thais took home the trophy but it’s pretty unfair when the American songs were not sung by the real performer and did not have the original music video. Imagine singing Britney Spears “Hit Me Baby One More Time” with a fixed picture of a high school hallway and gym. Or a Backstreet Boys video replaced by various shots of a Disney World parade. WHAT!?
I knew the night was coming to an end when we started singing Thai songs. Eventually we stopped trying to say every word and would just try to say the right last word on the screen. Even that was pretty tough. I think we’re in need of some major Thai classes.


In other news:
-Liz was asked by a man on a street to pose for his Thai Bridal Shop advertisements. A question to ponder: Would you say yes?
Thai women tend to wear whitening cream so their skin looks lighter (the objective is to have pale skin like ours). Do white women as models in an Asian country perpetuate an ideal standard of beauty?
-I am penny pinching as it’s the end of the month yet I don’t expect a paycheck for at least a couple of weeks. I am trying not to take money out of my savings because I want it for traveling, not my day to day living expenses!
-Annie and Joey both came down with some colds this week.
-I way overpacked since many things I was told I NEEDED to bring was not quite true. I went to Tesco-Lotus, which is Britain’s answer to Wal-Mart, and there was anything I could ever want!
-Any cartoon character is cool here. Think Hello Kitty.
-The sketchy older white men who have Thai wives/girlfriends/sleeping partners are now called Patricks by us. They are all too common and I am afraid I am creating a poor image of all older white men in Thailand. Yes, it could be love. I remain skeptical though. Especially with Bangkok’s sex tourism industry creeping into all of Thailand.
-Went to a movie theater with Jordan and Joey. If you get there early enough you can choose the language of the film. We watched “Dreamgirls” on the big screen in our own private movie theater. There is seating for 10 and the seats our comfortable chairs and couches. So much better than our usual movie on a laptop screen!


I miss:
-road trips for concerts
-Minnesota
-my kitties
-Des Moines (you can laugh)
-my record player
-everyone at Montessori Children’s Center
-phone calls!
-sweatpants
-cooking
-Law and Order
-fireworks next week
-Earth Week stress (Alcyn, am I going crazy?!)
-my car
-having a yard

I love:
-Milk Bars
-the rainy season
-motorbikes
-the vegetarian options
-the kids playing on our street
-the animals on our street
-summer clothes
-the students who want to learn
-walking all over
-the energy of freshman
-the constant opportunity to travel
-reading and watching movies
-time for myself
-trying to explain my life to you
-figuring out the songthaew system
-not knowing the date
-forgetting where I am