where's waldo or the 7-11 jenga

so i'm really bummed out. i am having the worst time uploading photos here. i mean i uploaded them to kristina's computer, but they are to large to load onto my photobucket site. i don't think kristina has a program to resize them, and anyways she needs her computer for law school applications, so i don't have a lot of time to be taking it from her.
we've come into town today specifically to use the internet and the two things i need to do i am unable to...pooo. well i'll figure it out.
this whole week or almost week has been very mellow. i have been living the semi village life, full of bugs and water that will shut off at any moment and refuse to turn back on. it rained the first few days here, heavy and long keeping us indoor, but actually we have been in door by choice as well. kristina has a lot on her plate, but we spend time getting to know each other again. we have been friends for about 20yrs now and she described me as the "where's waldo" of her life. for the majority of the important events i was there, lost in the crowd amongst all her friends, continously sticking out because i am not like her or any of her friends. it's funny i've been described as a lot of things...a few of my favorites are "5 feet of heaven", "dreadlocked aphrodite", and "creative maniac", so i don't really know how to wear the "where's waldo description.

as i mentioned there are more than a few bugs out here in the sticks, in fact there was a flying walking stick like creature that pearched on our door the other night wanting to pop in for a bit of chang beer. there is also of course the flying roaches in plentatude, jumping spiders, geckos from the size of my little finger to the size of small children, ants, and millipeds or centepieds (yeah i know my spellings fucked). all of these wonderful creepy crawlies has lead me to the revalation that i don't think ugly things should be capable of flight. it just doesn't seem fair. i mean let's forget about poverty, famin, and terrorism, let's get down to the real travisties of the world...nothing ugly should fly. yup. that's now my mission in life, if you are an ugly scary creature you will be grounded, so that i can squish you, or at least jump onto some furniture and be safe from you.

i don't know if i shared you this with you yet but i found out that the thai have one setting for AC, and that is blizzard. everytime i walk in somewhere that has the ac on i begin to shiver befor the sweat has actually dried and it is a comfort to get back out to the stiffiling humidity. it is no wonder thai's are so small, i think anything would shrink in this kind of heat! i am beginning to deal with it, and the rain has brought a little bit of relief. i have learned to coat my entire body with powder after a shower, and this helps to keep me cool, and soakes up a little sweat when it does start. so little tricks here and there. i stupidly waited on buying bug spray, and have recieved more bites in the last week or so than i have in my entire life. i am now religiously coating myself yet am still being bitten. this morning i woke up with a huge welt on my wrist, actually it looks as if i have no wrist at the moment just a hand attached to a forearm. very very cute i assure you. it is a fashion i want to bring back to the states.

i took a walk through the village this morning befor we caught the bus so that i could photograph the area, and while walking down the road i was not only followed and viciously inspected by a small black poodle, but i was chase by a cow.
yup. in hindsite i think it was trying to play with me. so i'm walking and there's this young cow, it is what i think is called a brahma cow, or the kind you see being worshiped in india, it is a baby but it is big. it's head stands a few inches above mine, no horns thankfully, and then it has a cow body behind it with a lot of extra skin. it's chilling mooing by the side of the road and i go over to take it's picture. like the little kid on swiss family robinson i'm like "come here little cow i won't hurt you"...i get closer and closer, about 2 feet away, and it shy's back from me, i take my picture and back away. as soon as i turn my back to it the cow runs out of the bushes towards me. i spin around to face it and the cow stops, he jumps back, and then advances. we actually bad a full circle in the middle of the road because i wanted to pass him, and he wanted to kill me. everytime i turned my back he came towards me, and when i turned around he stepped back, but then would begin to advance. i thought about a nepali lady that had been gored by a water buffalo in town and was thankful once again that this baby didn't have horns. i did end up passing him, and i'm sure i put on a good show for the villagers but it was a little scary because he was so big. i did have to walk back that way, and when he saw me coming he began to run towards me kicking up his heels and bouncing like a funny dog. i keep my wide stance from him, and luckily he didn't cross the road to see me.

so i thought america had a lot of starbucks, like 2 on one block in some areas, that is nothing compared to the amount of 7-11's that can be found here in thailand. i think i even saw a 7-11 next door to another 7-11...just kidding but it is that bad. kristina has a theory about the 7-11's in thailand being like pieces of the game jenga. now i've never played this game so it's a little hard for me to fully visulize, but i liked the metaphor and thought i'd pass it on. so now i make it a point to frequent these 7-11's because if one is shut down that the whole economy of thailand may collapse and i really don't want that on my head.

this is a lot for today, tomorrow i load up on a bus and head north to nong khai...