.  Being in one of the major river deltas of the world, the floods are a common occurrence and any land is never without water.  In times of drought fish are easy to catch and can be seen being sold on the roadside everywhere in Thailand.  During the rainy season, fish become harder to catch but during the monsoon rains and floods fish are able to get into every pond and stream. 

 

Texas is very different.  Although there is a stream and several ponds on the land I have recently purchased, we have been unable to find any fresh fish.  This is probably because last year's drought was so severe that most of the ponds in the stream dried up.  One of the things that my wife has missed most of all has been being able to get fresh fish anytime she wanted.  Today we took our first fishing expedition.

 

We first visited a local tackle and bait shop close to the horse ranch.  We bought two used rods and reels , weights, corks, hooks , earthworms and two dozen minnows.  We then went to another store where we were able to buy fishing licenses.  When all was said and done, we had invested $68 and were excited to catch a lots of fish! After being informed that most of the ponds around the area where owned privately in an accessible, we finally found one that was able to accommodate the wheelchair and was open to the public.

 

Three hours later, Maew had caught a single perch that was about as long as my pointer finger.  The fish were biting, but they were so small that they could not stay on the hook.  We had also used up half of our worms and three of the minnows.  Maew told me not to worry and that she had a wonderful surprise for me when we got home.  20 minutes after we had arrived at home, Maew had a steaming hot plate full of fried fish.  They were delicious!  She'd fried up a small perch as well as the remaining minnows, head, tail, bones and everything in between, and made a wonderful meal.  (Picture included).  We have both decided that the next time we want to go fishing, we will just go buy minnows from the bait store and return home for our feast!

 

20 years ago, I was preparing for the biggest event of my life up to that point, my high school graduation.  For me, the most difficult part of graduation was selecting a senior quote that would express how I felt and how I wanted to be remembered.  After weeks of pouring through books of quotes, poetry and witty quips, I finally found an anonymous quote that fit how I felt.

 

From quite homes and humble beginnings to undiscovered ends;

Nothing gives us joy in living like laughter, love and friends.

 

15 years ago, as I lay on my back with a broken neck and an unholy-halo bolted to my head I was faced with another major life event.  I awoke the next day with the wisdom of CAMUS taped outside my door; another quote which has, since that day, inspired me to look for inner strength.

 

In the midst of winter I found in me, an invincible summer.

 

A little more than 10 years ago, I had just graduated with my undergraduate degree and had begun law school.  Although law school was fun, it required a lot of reading, studying, note-taking and extra long hours.  When I felt like quitting or giving up, I often remembered a quote from Shakespeare that I had first heard from the key-note speaker at my college graduation.  A quote that reminds me put into proper perspective the trivial and trite versus the things which truly matter.

 

What win I if I gain this thing I seek,

A dream, a breath, a froth of fleeting joy? 

Who buys a minute’s mirth to wail a week,

Or sells eternity for a toy?

For One sweet grape, who would the vine destroy? 

Or what fond beggar, but to touch the crown,

Would with the scepter straight be stricken down?

 

5 years ago I was faced with another major life event when deciding whether to change the direction of my life by going to study tropical horticulture in Thailand.   After several months of contemplation and prayer, I received my answer.  The answer was not beautiful or profound like those I’d received in the past, but a simple and straight forward.  

 

Do It!

 

Now, on the day of our wedding, I face another major event in my life.  Again I am reminded of a famous quote, this time by a famous Kannada poet from southern India whose name I can’t begin to pronounce but whose words transcend all cultural and language barriers.

 

A sprouting seed is not accompanied by booming drums or blaring trumpets.  Nor is the rising sun greeted with crashing cymbals or banging bells; but this lack of fanfare seems to only accentuate their miraculous majesty.

 

The many events that have brought Thongsuk and I together have not been accompanied by great fanfare but are, by no means, anything other than miraculous.  We have both faced life’s winters and have found the summer within.  On this day I again ask myself, What win I if I gain this thing I seek?  My answer is the same as the anonymous author I quoted 20 years previously.  I win Joy: which is genuine laughter, true love, and a devoted friend and again I will happily and readily do it.

The wedding was beautiful and a grand success.  Maew was beautiful.  Our good friends and family from around the US were there.  If pictures are worth a thousand words, then I have a small book publ;ished.  Thank you so much to everyone who made it such a wonderful time. 

As I have returned from Thailand the speed of things has picked up.  I am planning the wedding and have decided to put all the details on my blog.  If you have any questions, please write it here and I'll address it for anyone who might have similar questions.  Not everything is planned out but will be soon.

 

 

The wedding will be held at 12:00 on December 23rd.   After careful consideration of more than 5 different venues, we selected the Hilton Hotel at the airport in Austin Texas.  We tried to plan the wedding at a convenient location and at a time when most people could attend.  Maew (Thongsuk) is Thai and is looking forward to the traditional American wedding ceremony.  The wedding colors are cream and red.  We will have a traditional 3 tiered cake as well as a groom's cake, so come hungry.  Pictures will be taken at 11:30.  The ceremony will be at 12:00.  A reception will follow immediately after the ceremony until 4:00pm.  We will have a wedding cake and groom's cake, a chocolate dessert fountain, a beautiful ice sculpture, a DJ with some dancing music, a dance floor and a lot of conversation.  There will be rooms available for those who will be coming from out of town.  Please let me know if you will be joining us so we can have enough rooms reserved.

 

 

The hotel was very accommodating, has great food and was convenient for many of our out of town guests.  The hotel is located just off highway 71 only one exit before (or after) the airport exit.  The contact information is:

 

 

The internet address is:

 

 

Free parking is available on the side of the building.  Do not valet park unless you want to pay $17.00 a day.  Take a parking pass and when you check out, just tell them you are with the Simmons wedding.  No charge!  Parking is also free for guests, just tell them you are a guest at the hotel when you leave.   

 

 

While wedding presents are part of most traditional weddings, we are not very traditional.  We think presents should be optional.    We hope everyone realizes that your coming is gift enough.  However, for those who do want to send presents, we have registered at both Bed Bath and Beyond (www.bedbathandbeyond.com) and Target (www.target.com) for your convenience.  You can find our registry either online or in the store nearest you listed under either of our names or by date and city.

Has it really been that long since I updated my blog?  Well, during the last 7 months a whole lot has happened. Where to begin?  I guess I'll begin with a story. 

 

Yesterday was another Buddhist holiday.  It seems there is a holiday here every 2 or 3 weeks, which is great for commuter traffic and poor over-worked souls who's monthly salaries equal to less than an evening out for a dinner and a movie back home.  It isn't so wonderful for anyone trying to finish work or a thesis and graduate.  I would have been great had I been able to sit at home, eat Oreo cookies and write a few dozen more pages on my thesis.  This was not to be.  Buddhist holidays, like most religious holidays, require a lot of work, time and effort.  Since I had very recently became engaged to Maew who is a practicing Buddhist (that is another story), I had little choice but to prepare for an all-day, head-first dive into the unknown. 

 

It was with this slightly negative and disdainful attitude that I awoke on the morning on July 12.  I had promised my fiancé that we would go to the Buddhist temple to say prayers, give gifts and be blessed by the monks.  I was not really excited.  I've seen my fair share of monks and temples.  I asked Lonnie if he could help me go to the temple with Maew to show our respect.  When Maew arrived, she had enough packages and presents to have sponsored a nice Christmas morning in any good, Christian-American, Pro-Life household.  She then fired up the microwave, hot-plate and rice cooker [every cooking device in my apartment; it is a bachelor pad, after all] and began creating a meal fit for a king (or monk as was the case).  Miranda, a friend studying photo journalism from New Zealand, wanted to come along to digitally capture the atmosphere. When all the dishes were ready, Lonnie, Maew, Miranda and I packed everything into a taxi and left.

 

It is Thai custom to give gifts of food and practical items to the monks every morning.  The monks have no worldly possessions and every morning walk around with small brass bowls collecting alms and food for the temples.  On holidays such as this one, they stay at the temple and the faithful go to see them with gifts instead.  In addition to food and alms, they will many times also receive practical necessities like tissue paper, soap and, my fiancé’s favorite gift, light bulbs.   People who have no food or a place to stay (and perhaps no light bulbs?) may go to any of the temples and receive shelter, food and basic necessities; a nice form of security for people who may not have access to any welfare or support system.

 

Anyway, we went to the temple.  Outside the temple was like a carnival.  Vendors were as thick as poor folks in a penny-slot casino.  Clothes, food, gifts for monks, fresh flowers, incense, candles and even sapphron robes could be found at every turn.  You could buy food to feed the fish in the mote, seeds to feed the birds in the park or entire meals to feed your family.  However, the thing that most attracted my attention was also the one thing most out of place.  There were, every once in a while, what appeared to be exotic pet venders.  They were sitting on small, rickety bamboo foot-stools surrounded by giant plastic bowls and buckets in a rainbow of colors; each filled with a small amount of water and the most unusually fascinating creatures.  One bucket contained albino cave salamanders, swimming around is a tight-knit school.  Another had what looked like a ball of tiny water snakes, all trying to hide inside the tangled weave of twisted bodies.  A third contained fresh-water eels that made the slithering of the snakes look course and clumsy. Thousands of tiny turtles circuitously marched vainly searching for an exit.  Frogs and fish of every size were held in buckets with wire mesh on top to prevent any desperate hopping or flopping to get-away. 

 

We crossed the mote surrounding the complex and made our way to the main temple.  Maew presented our gifts to the monks who were chanting out dozens of blessings at a time and desperately trying to get the novices to take away the mountains of gifts piling up.  At this particular holiday, water was blessed and given to each person who then went onto the grounds and poured the water onto a tree or plant.  This showed honor and respect towards spirits of those who have passed (whose presence can be felt in temples and nature surrounding them I am told) as well as respect and blessings toward nature itself.  Based during the middle of the rainy season, this festival was very much centered on the life giving power of water.  With such respect for nature and the sanctity of water, I couldn't understand why all those water animals were being sold at the entrance?

 

I asked the vendors why they were selling these captive animals of nature if today was indeed a day to honor just that.   One plump, very weathered old lady had the explanation.  Karma! It was explained to me that by buying these peaceful, helpless animals and setting them free, I would actually respect nature and add to my list of "good deeds done."  This would improve nature and my karma.  I looked at the numerous buckets surrounding her and each of the vendors and couldn't help but wonder how much karma they had lost by catching these poor creatures.  Shouldn't my karma gained equal their karma lost?  The old women smiled and seemed not to realize the paradox.  I then thought, "Who am I to question hundreds of years of traditions and customs?"  I still didn't feel right about buying the little things.

 

In the meantime, Lonnie and Miranda had been busy.  Lonnie was busy buying animals and Miranda was just as busy snapping photos.  He bought 2 or 3 of each and marched directly to the center of the bridge to release them all at once.  As Lonnie threw and Miranda snapped, I heard a man shouting and saw him waving his hands desperately.  The man was shouting, "NO" and seemed very upset.  I watched the dozen or so animals fall the few feet to the water.  Only then did I notice the water.  It was boiling.  Boiling with the bodies of hundreds of large catfish.  I then remembered all the kids who were buying bread and fish-food and throwing it to the fish underneath the bridge. 

 

Most of the animals were consumed almost immediately.  A tiny, quarter-sized turtle managed to walk across the heads and bodies of a few fish before finally being spotted and devoured.  One snake, grabbed by 2 fish at either end, escaped only to be swallowed whole by another, larger fish.  I also like to believe that one of the eels slipped through the frenzy and made it safely away, but I can't be sure.   I am also unsure of how Lonnie's karma will be affected.  Whatever the outcome, he tried to release the animals.  The man who was shouting "No" seemed to think Lonnie's damage was irreparable.  Lonnie seemed to think it was the coolest thing he had seen all day.  Maew only offered a nervous and uncomfortable laugh.  Miranda continued to shoot pictures.  As for me?  I rolled back to the temple and asked for a few more blessings, just in case.

 

Hello everyone,

 

Once again I got myself into quite a difficult situation.  It seems that Egypt is much cooler than I had anticipated.  It got down to about 58°C while we were visiting.  Luckily I had brought a jacket.  It also rained one day while we were in Egypt.  It is a desert!  It is supposed to be hot and dry! I don't know if that is just my luck or if there is some doom and gloom hovering over my head that follows me wherever I travel.  Anyway, on the flight back to Bangkok (which was only 8 1/2 hours versus the 10 hour trip to go to Egypt) I had a most astounding and upsetting experience.

 

Egypt was cooler than I had anticipated.  That combined with the air-conditioning on the plane meant that I was extremely cold.  I asked the flight attendant for a fund like that pillow.  She brought me two blankets and apologized because they had no more pillows available.  I put one blanket over my legs and torso.  The other blanket I draped over my head and face trying to conserve as much heat as possible.  They had seated me in the very last row and so I was sitting alone.  After takeoff, I occupied myself by staring at all the passengers in front of me and marveling at the diversity of cultures and customs presented in those 300 people.  One group of five bodybuilders from somewhere in the Middle East caught my attention because of their size and their swagger.  I noticed that two or three of them kept looking back in my direction; speaking in very soft voices.  Their eyes seem to be filled with rage.  I thought that maybe it was because I was American or because they had not seen many people in wheelchairs before.  I did not realize that, being the first person on the plane, they had no idea that I was in a wheelchair.  I dozed off.

 

I awoke about an hour later when the airline stewardesses began serving dinner.  They asked me if I wanted the Western dinner or the Muslim dinner.  I thought to myself that this would be my last Egyptian meal and so I ordered the Muslim dinner.  It was very tasty and indeed very Egyptian!  After I finished, I noticed the Middle Eastern bodybuilders were still staring in my direction, watching what I ate and every move I made.  I began to feel a little uncomfortable.  I dozed off again.

 

When I opened my eyes, about 45 minutes later, I look forward into the airplane again to see if anything interesting was happening.  I was stunned to see one of the bodybuilders staring directly at my face only 2 1/2 feet away.  He had moved to the seat directly across the aisle from me.  He was not a handsome man.  The acne scars and exaggerated bone structure of his jaw and for head were sure signs that this man had injected more steroids than your average pharmacy.  Now I began to panic!  I did not know why this man was there or why he had taken such an interest in me.  Like most people who panic, my breathing became short and rapid; my face became flushed, I caught myself blinking quickly and looking away from his penetrating stare.  I could not understand what I had done to cause this man to have such ire against me.

 

He reached across the aisle with a huge hand; calloused and cracked from years of weightlifting and began to, very softly, caress my knee.  In a flash of intelligence I realized that only my eyes were exposed.  Everything else was covered by the desert colors woven into the Egyptian Air blankets that I had covering the entire body.  What I had previously thought was hate in his eyes I now recognized as lust!  The epiphany that followed hit me like a ton of pyramid bricks: I was dressed exactly like most of the Muslim women I had seen in Egypt!  The bodybuilder was seeing me as a target but not a target of terrorism.  I slapped his hand off my knee and jerked the blanket from my head.  I then shouted in my lowest and most masculine voice, "May I help you sir?"

 

He jumped out of his seat and drew his hand back over his shoulder as if he was about to deliver a knockout blow.  Several passengers were now looking in my direction to see what I had shouted about. Luckily, he changed his mind about hitting me at the last-minute and returned to his seat in the front of the plane.  I do not know if it was cold on the plane after the incident. I did not put the blanket over my head for the remainder of the flight, but I did indeed feel the chills.  When we landed, my brother and my friend who were accompanying me commented that I seemed very quiet.  I had never been mistaken for a Muslim woman before and I pray to Allah, Buda, Jehovah and God Almighty that I never will.

Egypt was one of the most incredible experiences of my life.  Lonnie , Daniel and I left Bangkok at about two o'clock in the morning.  After about 10 hours of flying on Egypt air we reached Cairo at six o'clock in the morning.  We grant the taxi at the airport.  Before I had left, I had read that Egypt, has the highest traffic fatality rate of any country in the world.  I can now understand why.  The taxi that we got into was like an oversized penguin!  White on the front and back, black doors, a luggage rack on the top and the horsepower of a King penguin at full sprint!  We zipped in and out of traffic for almost an hour before we finally reached our hotel.  They were kind enough to let us check in early.  After dumping our bags in our room, we hired a taxi driver for the day to take us to the Pyramids of Giza.  He, of course, brought us to see is very good friends, who offered to take us on a camelback tour of the pyramids.  I opted for the horse and buggy, but Daniel and Lonnie road camels and looked very “sheik.”  The Pyramids were amazing.  The three largest pyramids were surrounded by six, smaller pyramids.  After our tour, our newfound friends kindly ushered us into a perfume and precious oils shop.  Of course, they tried to sell us on the "Viagra oils of Egypt.”  Better luck next time!  We then headed home, had an early dinner and went to bed.  I was surprised that Egypt was so cold!  The temperature range between 55 and 75 degrees the entire time. 

 

The next day we opted to go for a river cruise on the Nile.  We saw a traditional delta farm in the middle of an island in the river.  We also tried to buy fish from a local fishermen on the river, but were disappointed that he had nothing for sale.  Afterwards, we went to visit the beautiful Mohammed Ali mosque.  The size and scale were immense.  The mosque was named for the Egyptian ruler who ruled over 200 years ago (not the boxer!)  Daniel and I've been visited the world-famous Cairo Museum of Egyptology.  We spent the first hour, gawking at the amazing King Tut exhibition.  The second hour was spent in an amazing whirl of facts and dates that are still difficult to remember.  We did see the mummy of King Ramses the second (the most probable Pharaoh to have ruled over Moses.)  We also saw embalming tables, sphinxes, hieroglyphics and statues thousands of years old.  We even saw artifacts, explaining in detail that one Pharaoh was a homosexual, while another had elephantitis.  We returned to the hotel, had the most expensive burger and fries that I have ever had, and went to bed.

 

The following day we went to Alexandria.  It was several hours from Cairo, but well worth the trip.  We saw the pillar of Pompeii, early Christian catacombs and a beautiful Fort and Lighthouse based on the Mediterranean Sea.  We had a great lunch at a local Egyptian restaurant overlooking the fishing boats and the protected bay of Alexandria.  It was quite chilly, and it rained for a good part of the day.  We stopped at a local food stand on the way home and bought several of the fruits and treats that I wanted to try while in Egypt.  The dried dates were my favorites.  Several other types of dates were also delicious, but made my mouth pucker.  The small kumquats were little sour, but very tasty as well.  We returned to the hotel and ate at a Lebanese restaurant.  We were surrounded by adult males smoking hooka pipes filled with exotic aromas.  I had a lamb kebab and saffron rice.  Another chilly evening.

 

We didn't leave Cairo Egypt until 11 o'clock on the last day.  We decided to pack in as much as possible.  We went to zacara and saw the very first pyramids along with ruins and temples from thousands of years ago.  Afterwards we went to Memphis which had another museum full love statues and relics that date back to the beginning of recorded human civilization.  We then headed to the Suez Canal.  Two hours later we arrived.  During the last four days we have become very close friends with our taxi cab driver.  Our driver explained to us the history of Egypt and its military conflicts in the past with Israel England and France.  We were able to see both the Red Sea and the Suez Canal and appreciate the importance of economically and militarily to the world.  When the local port authority found out that we Americans were in the city of Suez, we were greeted and escorted for the rest of our trip by a policeman who preceded us with flashing lights and blaring sirens.  We were escorted to a local restaurant that inspected us all for bombs and metal objects.  On the eighth floor we were able to dine in luxury with an amazing view of both the Suez Canal and the Sinai Peninsula.  As we left the city with our police escort I realized how fortunate I was to have been able to see such a fascinating part of the world.

 

We arrived at the airport and received quite a bit of hassle and intense questioning by the Egyptian immigration authority.  Why they would care if we were leaving is beyond me.  There have been several attacks on tourists and tourist areas in the last several years but that was by Egyptians not Americans.  Maybe the immigration authority has some relation or responsibility for those problems.  Who knows.

 

A final note was that the trip home was extremely unsettling and disturbing for me.  I am now traumatized as I was mistaken for someone I am not in for a while fear for my life.  I will write more about that tomorrow.

 

Harry