April 6, The Rush Begins

So this morning I woke up and to Bell yelling for me in front of the house. Turns out that every time her or Ben opens the gate Cookie, our spasmatic crack addict puppy dog, takes off down the street. I don't know when or why this has started happening but I am the only one she will come back for. So I walk out onto the front porch in my boxers and nearly disintegrated Grapico tee shirt and yell down the street. Cookie comes flying back into the gate onto the tiled porch and crashes into shins with all the force a twitchy little puppy can muster. She then lays on her back and shakes as though her body was not her own but was being controlled by some drunken brain parasite. She does this until I pet her, smack her, or go back inside, in which case she wines until I go back outside and do one of the first two options. Makes me wonder why she loves me so much. I am the only one who beats her. I usually do this a few times a day because she is chewing on or eating everything, or she digs random holes of varying depths and widths all over the yard. I don't think I love God with half the passion that my puppy loves me. He disciplines me far less than I deserve and loves me much more that I am worth. Thanks for the example Cookie.

Any way after that I got dressed and drove my motorcycle up to the mountain where I buy my tea. I bought 2 kilos for while I am in the states and as gifts for relatives that Bum and I are about to visit. I drink a lot of tea and it is a lot cheaper here than in the states. I payed about $30 for the tea I got today verses about $100 for the same type and quality in the states. I was going to have some pictures of the mountains and views (this is one of my favorite places in all of the North of Thailand) but it is the end of burning season and visibility is next to nothing and a gray haze covered most of the scenery. The drive was still very enjoyable however.

After I got home I spent the next several hours packing and sorting and thinking and sorting and packing some more. This is probably all I will do while I am at home for the next few weeks. I will not be home that much though. We leave on the 9th to go to Bum's parent's house (8 hour drive) to take the first load of our stuff down plus stuff from the house that they wanted that we will not sell. we are also taking some stuff from Bell's dorm while she is on summer break. Bum's dad will drive his truck and Bum and I will be in our tiny Dihatsu Mira. Then we will go down to see her grandmother, aunts, and uncles in the south (13 hour drive). They live on the far side of a 10,000 square rai (a rai about the size of an acre) palm grove on the Thai-Burma border. After that we drive to Phuket (pronounced with a P) to see another aunt on the way back to Bum's parent's house (with the detour I am guessing about 16 hours of driving). Then Bum and I will use her dad's truck to come back to Chiang Rai and get the rest of the stuff that we need to take down to her parents before we leave (another 16 hours round trip). During all of this we will be home for about 5 or 6 days starting the 7th. Please be praying that we get done all we need to do before we leave.

We are going to be very busy but I will try to post one more time before we leave. We will not have internet access at her parent's house so it will be on the 20-23rd. Thanks for reading and please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Thai fun fact (this is more of an observation than a fact): The average speed on the highway in Thailand is between 50-60mph (85-100kph) for most cars and trucks. Bum's dad tends to drive a little slower than average and I drive a little faster, so between the two of us we get where we are going the same time as everyone else.
Motorcycles (most of which are 100-125cc) average about 40mph (60kph). I tend to drive about 50mph (85kph) on my little 100cc Honda Dream. I am going to miss my hog.