JANUARY 2013

JANUARY

Not much is happening except being quit cold and a couple of small rains.

On the plus side are these flowers they have grown about 10 meter in two directions

In two years and they are very colorful.

https://www.google.com/search?q=PYROSTEGIA+IGNEA&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=fQB&tbo=u&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=rcs&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=EpYMUajID8LorAfA-ICQBw&ved=0CDEQsAQ&biw=1247&bih=537

I am amazed with the cheap prices on fruit and vegetables here about half price of what I pay in town even eggs and fish are very reasonable price wise.

Price are going up in Thailand but still quite low compared to Europe.

Days are slowly getting longer which is good since I am a very early riser 04-05 in the morning.

Still reading a lot of ebooks , about 5 hours a day, also magazines  electronically

that cuts price in at least half.

My bicycle is on the blink so I have to look for a new one soon.

DECEMBER WINTER 2012

DECEMBER  WINTER  2012

Month began with me going to IKEA in Bangkok for 3 items .I got help from a sales girl who took me from item to item through shortcuts otherwise it is quite a walk around the whole thing I was done in 15 minutes. But picking the stuff up (3 Carts) and cashier took an hour. When it came home it was a bit of tinkering the easiest piece was the one I dreaded the most was the  sofa .Only 6 bolts and the legs to tighten the cushions was more work to put in their covers.  So now I have a place to be a couch potato. All instructions they give are very clear but you still have to a bit of attention to what are doing .

600 kilometers in a day in Thailand is a bit much for me  and living in the jungle and coming to Bangkok is a bit overwhelming

In the garden the stuff that actually likes cool weather stars sprouting and flowering. Daytime about 4 days  in the 20c but almost every night below 

20c or even down to 14c which is not pleasant for me but I sleep good when it is cold. It looks like January is not going to be as cold as last year.

Did Santa come of course he did even if I had to buy most of it myself

Have to play it safe.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

WINTER IS COMING

NOVEMBER  2012

Winter has started at least night time. Day time is still summer warm mainly because of clear skies . Oddly enough the month is endin with three  four heavy rains which is unusual at this time of the year .

The weathermen are predict more to come, but the good thing it is very hard and quick.

One part of the garden  is staring to bloom and the other is going to sleep. My fish in the pond have not gotten used to colder water so they are not that eager eat but they are getting along OK.

Maybe not so much the two cat teams my cats and the new settlers mainly hisses and a few jabs more squabbles then anything else.

This has been animal month two snakes one mouse and several lizards.

Only two snakes have I found myself the others the cats  located ,I amazed that I  have only gotten two mice in two years time .

Mice and the lizards are always brought into the house as trophies and toys you be amazed how high they flick them up in the air and then dive at them when they land. I am going to BKK in two days time , it is almost a year since last time . It is confusing there they have to many things that you want specially food wise and you can not buy all of it , that is probably the draw back living in the forest.

Anyway I going to IKEA and buy some furniture , you have to have a hobby and IKEA furniture is that . It is going to take awhile to screw it together.

OCTOBER 2012

OCTOBER 2012

The climate is odd first the rainy period have stopped yet the very first day this month I got 82 in 3 hours the most for the whole year.

Secondly the weather have cooled down at night to 21-23c  but daytime is very hot more so then in the summer ,

No clouds and a very clear sky , at least in the summer you have rains and clouds. One thermometer could not take the heat and broke it was in the sun but could not take the heat.

On the animal side new species a rooster and his harem of one chicken

Comes in to the garden and start redecorating things, had to put up a wire mesh so I down get the whole place dug up.

The mother cat has sort of left the house and only comes for breakfast and dinner and then leaves. I think she is shacked up with the cows , a bit embarrassing being dumped like that. Still 4 cat that likes me and 2 that only uses me.

The fishpond is now cleaned and filtered it took a bit over a month clear.

If you see the normal tap water here you would understand ,it is muddy 30% of the time. I will have  my water well checked out to see how good the water is ,all I know is that it is very clear and a pleasant temperature ,use it for the garden when needed.

We have had boat races in the Mekong and Buddha holiday witch is quite noisy , worse in all the firecrackers that go off some of them sounds like loud explosions.

I have started eating breakfast not only coffee as before. Started with  oatmeal porridge and the have improve my stomach quite a bit, so healthy  

and very cheap and I even like it.

Still bicycling , now everyday since there are no more rains.

Getting up at 5.00 do my email read the news breakfast , biking, reading for about 5 hours a day, gardening and 4-5 hours tv in the evening.

So I am kept busy enough.  

SEPTEMBER 2012. I think the rainy period is over a few rains is still going to come but nothing much, and dropping night temp. Snake 15 was found but nothing about 1 meter thin harmless thing. I think I been adopted by 1,5 cats 1 almost blind male that is here most of the time belongs to the neighbor , but his father is pretty bad to him that’s probably why he comes here. Very nice and gentle but because he is not very active so his claws are very sharp he does not really claw or climb trees that’s why. He sleeps under something that is a big half moon shaped rattan thing so he father can get at him during the night. He does not seem to mind it. The half cat is his sister that has a bad history first got a plastic line around the body in a noose like grip. so she looked articulated (like a wasp) and on top of that pregnant with something hang out her bum. Toke is to the vet that first had to remove the string and then let her rest a few day before cutting her open and we are talking cut the belly and take out the dead kittens. Now she is quite OK but very shy And small 1 year old and is half size of a cat that age. Booth of them scare easy and the leave a small trail of diarrhea. My cats tolerates them but they are not playmates , yet anyway. Have been trimming tree and it does not matter if you make a mistake same as a bad barber after 3 weeks it is OK again, it grow so quickly the garden seems to change daily. I am going to write one more blog because I have written about everything there is to write about. How interesting can the cats , garden and shopping at the supermarket be.

August 2012

The prison

Now it is finished with the windows and doors having burglar bars.Which was something I did not want but felt I needed after the break in. So now I am looking for a magnetic window cleaner so I can cleans without the bars interfering .

It has been quite rainy this month which is sort lazy good I do not have to bike, but I am thinking of a exercise bike for rainy days, then I can look at beautiful roads on YouTube while I am biking and maybe spray some forest smell to make it more authentic.

Animal , the cat like the burglar bar because they can come and go as the please.

Snake 14 visited ,the first of these skinny one made me feel macho when I picked it with bare hands now it is nothing I need something bigger as a challenge.

The other thing that I do not need are all the ants and bugs whom seem to like the house during the rains, specially the ant the tiny buggers that you can not slap kill you have to drill them into the skin before the die and the are mean they bit but the good thing is the sting does not last long.

Cleaning the pond from 2 years of debris and I can not empty I because I can not get all the fishes out and they are my buddies so I do not want to loose them. I never had a filter , now I have a simple but effective 20 liter filter, but it is a lot of silt in there .   

I also have to cleans some of the walking areas of slimy slipper fungus or whatever it is called it is dangerous stuff it is like ice when damp.

Neighbors give me mango and avocado , the corn is like a full meal , dinner and desert all in one nice and sweet.

JULY 2012 NOT MUCH

JULY  2O12

 

About the break in , what me a bit upset was that the thieves used one of my bags , what if I had not had a bag what then.

Amazing thing I am please with the insurance company , my new locks cost $250. and I was paid $225 quite amazing.

10 days in the bush without a car is very frustrating , difficult to do your shopping ,but now I am hooked up with the world again.

The cat got snipped finally but it has cause a problem in the cat family first with the other two cats after 2 weeks only the mother that is a bit cautious and does not want to be around him. But from the man of the house to Katoey is going to upset any mother I guess. I think the Cat like any parent have decided that the kittens are now grown up and should leave the house , so she treats both of them a bit harshly.

Why I am writing so much about the cats ,you have to understand where I live. So reading , biking cats a, garden and going to the supermarket is my lives excitements. OK now we have the Olympics that spoils my sleeping habits because of the time difference.

I have this weird thing with my sheet metal roof over the kitchen, when the sun is shining hard , it sounds like a drizzle of rain because of expansion and contraction no problem but it sounds odd when you are standing close to it.

This have been a hot , overcast and rainy month so the garden is thriving it grows quicker then I can cut it. Now I am starting to know where and how to cut I am even going to try to do grafting later on this year.

I got this search engine from a friend   http://duckduckgo.com/

Very nice and clean.