Monday Ramblings

While the rest of you are enjoying the aroma of turkey, turducken, or whatever else tempts your palate, I toss out the cream in my fridge because it has gone off. Not gonna try any coffee today. My mind plays little games with me, and after looking at that lumpy mess I cannot face using the new stuff - for fears of more of the same.  Sometimes a vivid imagination is not a blessing. Right now I am trying to imagine the aroma of a turkey in the oven and just when I think I have captured it, I get a whaft from outdoors - one of those stenches that drifts in from who knows where.  I better not keep telling you this; I will never have guests come to visit if I do.
What did I do to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving yesterday? Bought the happy palm tree, sweated like a labourer wrestling it out of the car, and then took myself to the salon for a luxury hair wash. After my beautiful self coiffed, I drove to the hot spot of Kota Tinggi at 6 pm on a Sunday. KFC, world hunger meal was my menu choice.  For some reason, everyone was staring at me.  Maybe because I was all alone on a Sunday night, maybe because I looked radiant with the clean styled hair, or maybe because I was different.  But I am not so different any longer to many. The cashiers at the til know what I will order, and fight over who will wait on me, knowing too that I want a knife and fork (stainless steel) with my china plate. And on my way there, I was in a shop picking up some plumber tape.  I had snagged an electrician to fix the(2nd) garden hose I purchased.He came to my house to install the water heater for the shower a few weeks ago.  I assumed he was a plumber, so asked for help. Later discovered he was an electrician. For some reason, garden hoses are not something to take for granted here.  It comes as a long hose with no connectors on either end. Then you purchase a joiner for the tap, and then a screw on plastic thing to screw on a sprayer head. When I bought this one I prefaced the purchase with you need to build this for me before I buy it.  They did, but not well.  Attaching the thing to the tap and turning it on resulted in more water on me than on the plants.  Defeated, I turned it off and changed my clothes.  Anyway, the electrician did not do the job well. It still sprays all over me, even wrapped in a towel, it manages to get me wetter than the patio I am cleaning or the plants I am watering. But magic plumber tape- I bought 8 rolls, should do the trick.  The hose will be white instead of green by the time I patch it.  While buying this tape, an old fella came up to me and said more shoes? Turns out he was the dude that sold me the birksenstocks for RM8 several months ago. I was wearing them when he talked to me, so a broad grin on his face showed his delight in my purchase.  Those were the shoes he and his buddy punched several holes into the straps to make them somehow fit my feet. It is kind of nice to become a part of a community where others greet you and even if we cannot talk each other's language, we can figure out something pleasant to say to each other.  I have now had to add more faces to the hard drive in my head. Now with 5 new schools and countless teachers, administrators, and Head Masters, I am the known one, while I try to sort out who is who and from where. I met a couple of new faces in the Giant Mall on the weekend, who came up to me and spoke. I could not put a face to either so had to admit my ignorance. Both turned out to be new teachers from two of my new schools. 

Well, I can see that I have a need to blather these days. Now that gmail has cut me off on my phone calls, I guess this is where I would have called someone and babbled about this drivel. You get to see it in print my friends. A sunny day - no rain in sight, it must be Monday. I recall weekends in Canada that rained for two days and then brought back sunny skies once we were all back at work. Not a big deal here. It is always hot, so even the rain is not a bother - until it floods. Better get ready for work now and don the duds and drive the drive.

I wonder why Malaysia does not celebrate Thanksgiving. Surely they must have been assisted by the natives here once landing in this tropical paradise many years ago. But then, finding food was probably not a big deal. It grows all around you.  I have a massive coconut palm across the road from my house. I would not want to stand under that tree when they are ready to fall. A big concussion could  be the result. Banana trees are everywhere, and of course the coveted durian is still being sold by roadside vendors. I am going to have to pick up one of the bamboo rice things on my way home from work one of these days. I just don't know how to transport it. I can imagine a fire taking place in the car on the trip home once I do pick one up.And how the heck do you even hold it? Better ask some teachers - I am sure they have suggestions.

Bon Apetit Canada - and for those of you blessed with being Jennifer's guest, I know you will be well fed and fed well.