Thursday, September 11, 2008
Adam's Final Thoughts:
People do change no matter what anyone says. They grow, learn, and behave differently as time goes on. But not all change is good, and not all change is bad. Its how you handle the change that not only makes you the person you are, but what makes other people the person they are.
Lynn Sue
"Beauty bestows it's bewilderment upon me and in my confusion I find the answer: Love"
This was adapted from a chick flick/play but i think it can be attributed to all types of love and beauty not just physical.
p.s. dad, good post the other day!
This was adapted from a chick flick/play but i think it can be attributed to all types of love and beauty not just physical.
p.s. dad, good post the other day!
Railay Beach, Thailand
I have spent the past week on the most beautiful piece of land in the world. I'm talking about the kind of beautiful that makes you not want to go underwater because you are afraid when you surface you'll find yourself in the Platte. The type of beautiful beach and environment that finds you straining your eyes not to blink. I went there with Allison our friend who just got over here about a month ago we were planning on going to a few islands but could not leave this little piece of Heaven. So naturally I thought a lot about God, life, future, past, love, hate, and football on this trip!
There are a lot of metaphors and analogies for the beach and spirituality...I like them all. But more then that the one quote that kept coming to my mind had nothing to do with a beach it was this: "If you want to hear God laugh tell him your plans". For some of you that may strike a cord or maybe you can even relate, to others I'm another babbling idiot...so this next message is for "the others": YOU ARE RIGHT! :)
Being in Thailand it's hard not to get sucked into the meditation, body cleansing, yogic, spiritual hustle and bustle, and i'm not saying that's a bad thing. Unfortunately it's a little hippie for me but I must say I did do a little Michauditation while I was at the beach...but better then that I got a response. Michauditation has a little in common with meditation but basically it is just listening to the waves...and that's it. Just listen to the waves. But while I was doing this listening a great contradiction came about:
"There is such a contrast in the places where I've seen God on my travels. In school aged children playing in the streets of Cambodia and begging on their spare time, to this incredible scenery that only God Himself, ever the Artist, could have created." (from my journal) And of course looking at this contrast seeing God in two different ways also got my curiosity going: "I've never experienced beauty such as this. But am I truly closer to God now because I have experienced this? I don't feel any closer. Is it because there are people back home that have shown me their love in so many ways. Or could it possibly be all of the European women with impossibly small swimsuits hugging them very tightly?" But what is the real point? I see God, I see him in every song, smile, frown, word, syllable, embrace. But I don't feel any closer...is the sunrise in Nebraska that much worse than in Railay...can a sunset get you closer to God? Does a child have to suffer for you to find God?
"I know when I go back they will ask me what I did, what I saw, what did I find? But in truth it's the experience. It is the willingness to go and the courage to come back [from paradise]. It is the realization that big dreams are small and fleeting thoughts can change a persons life. I can tell them about the people I saw, the disappointingly few people I helped, I can attempt to describe to you the blue green waters in contrast to the luscious jungle and mountains that shoot out of it. I'm sure I'll have a funny story or two to tell but NONE of it justifies the experience. And that's what I have realized...it's the experience that matters. The old Nike slogan comes to mind "Just Do It" so that's my advice to any of you young and old that are on the fringe of the unknown; Just Do It and have faith in yourself that even in the dark we can land on our feet!
I know you want to hear more about my trip what I did and what I found...but in reality I spent a lot of the time in self reflection and making new friends. In true Michaud fashion after a few hours of internal deep thoughts and writing and a few seconds after attempting to befriend a beautiful Italian woman (who coincidentally was there with her new husband) I ran down to the water slipped, stubbed my toe and had to chuckle at how unfortunate it is that I'm so much like my dad. Who by the way slipped running down to a lake and dove into the sand completely missing the water...there are many witnesses but for the majority of you that either know me or my family I don't think it's that much of a stretch.
I keep waiting for this defining moment in my life...some great sign that gives me freedom or noticeable change from "everybody else". Some mood that creates harmony around me. Nursing my sore toe I realize I've been waiting for that sign for a long time. It's as if I expect God to prove Himself to me (yes I know the story in the Bible that says it's not right to ask God to do that). It's as if I renounced my Lincoln life and due to this I deserve some sort of enlightenment...I mean come on God look what I had going for me and I left it all to come help You (because He obviously needed it here) and look at all the good I'm doing...i'm not asking for payment but how about a little enlightenment...basically I had the brass to say to God "Throw me a frickin bone here will ya?"
So as I said; on the beach talking with the waves asking myself why we see God in sunsets? Is it the reflection in the water the symbolism of a ray of light in a vast omniscient field. Is it because sunsets produce colors that are impossible to duplicate? Colors that can only be seen in nature. Maybe it's the clouds that sneak in, in an otherwise clear sky. Adding the finishing touches to a landscape that can only be created by the universes greatest Artist. The old adage comes about "If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans". We see God, we feel God, and in all of the New Age books I read and the horrific yoga translations I've tried to comprehend I've decided that contorting myself in an uncomfortable position, traveling to Heaven on earth, or watching kids less fortunate find joy in themselves we feel and see Him in accordance to how hard we look for Him. And here's a tip: You don't have to look that hard!!
Okay enough of this I know a lot of you that read this cringed when I even mentioned God so let's get to the all Powerful the all Knowing the Universal Connector: Football! That's right I was able to watch the University of South Carolina Vs. Vandy game! And it was a great game!! As Allison and I were getting ready to go out I flipped through the channels and saw that we got ESPN in this remote place of the world, not only that but a football game was on. We promptly got up bought some beers and spent a night in Heaven on earth, in our hotel room watching football. I think I was a little more joyous then her.
However besides that our nights were filled with making friends, talking music, smoking hookahs, and trying to decipher which Thai was a guy and which was a girl. We had a blast but unfortunately Allison got really sick and we barely made it home. Not only due to her health but our bus broke down in the process.
During one of our late night conversations I had a reflection that filled me with oddity: I have talked politics with Israelis, I've talked about hunger and poverty with Thais, honor killings with a Pakistani, complete suppression with a Burmese, the "untouchables" and the caste system with an ex-monk, drug legalization with a girl from the Netherlands, I've debated basic Human Rights with international graduate and doctoral students, empathised with New York teachers about special needs education, I learned about underground movements against oppressive governments from those that are leading the movements. Not only this but I've played ate and petted a squirrel, ate with a chicken and rooster as I was probably consuming their cousin, fed a baby elephant, and had lunch with a monkey trying to figure out the wonders of a salt shaker.
I guess what this comes down to i have realized that it's not about articulation, the moments you can share with others so they might have lived it...it's the experience. It's looking for God and smiling as you see Him right in front of you. It's about not having excuses, not having consuming worries, and always having an alibi! It's about boat drinks not what "they" think.
Most of all it is the realization that any question you have ever asked always has one momentous answer: Love.
I hear the Huskers are looking a little sluggish but better then last year, that the political debate is disturbing as ever, and hurricanes are threatening all of us again. Well I suppose my prayers go out to all of them/us.
Brooke and I are planning on having some sort of fundraiser during one of the football games coming up. Goodwill is trying to produce pamphlets that they can give to their students about sexual rights, lawyers, and ways to get out of the life they have found themselves in or the life they have recently left. Basically my parents will be having a tailgate and I as well as them would appreciate you stopping by donating 5, 10, 20 bucks whatever you can afford. I really don't have a whole lot to offer but a few beers. However, I'll get you more of the information as it solidifies. Goodwill needs to generate $30,000 for this project and I've taken the challenge on and would like to see my friends and family help. I will attempt to send something more formal soon...but it would mean a lot to me and to those at Goodwill if you would donate.
Hope this gave you all something to do while at work!
Here's to you,
-Michaud
There are a lot of metaphors and analogies for the beach and spirituality...I like them all. But more then that the one quote that kept coming to my mind had nothing to do with a beach it was this: "If you want to hear God laugh tell him your plans". For some of you that may strike a cord or maybe you can even relate, to others I'm another babbling idiot...so this next message is for "the others": YOU ARE RIGHT! :)
Being in Thailand it's hard not to get sucked into the meditation, body cleansing, yogic, spiritual hustle and bustle, and i'm not saying that's a bad thing. Unfortunately it's a little hippie for me but I must say I did do a little Michauditation while I was at the beach...but better then that I got a response. Michauditation has a little in common with meditation but basically it is just listening to the waves...and that's it. Just listen to the waves. But while I was doing this listening a great contradiction came about:
"There is such a contrast in the places where I've seen God on my travels. In school aged children playing in the streets of Cambodia and begging on their spare time, to this incredible scenery that only God Himself, ever the Artist, could have created." (from my journal) And of course looking at this contrast seeing God in two different ways also got my curiosity going: "I've never experienced beauty such as this. But am I truly closer to God now because I have experienced this? I don't feel any closer. Is it because there are people back home that have shown me their love in so many ways. Or could it possibly be all of the European women with impossibly small swimsuits hugging them very tightly?" But what is the real point? I see God, I see him in every song, smile, frown, word, syllable, embrace. But I don't feel any closer...is the sunrise in Nebraska that much worse than in Railay...can a sunset get you closer to God? Does a child have to suffer for you to find God?
"I know when I go back they will ask me what I did, what I saw, what did I find? But in truth it's the experience. It is the willingness to go and the courage to come back [from paradise]. It is the realization that big dreams are small and fleeting thoughts can change a persons life. I can tell them about the people I saw, the disappointingly few people I helped, I can attempt to describe to you the blue green waters in contrast to the luscious jungle and mountains that shoot out of it. I'm sure I'll have a funny story or two to tell but NONE of it justifies the experience. And that's what I have realized...it's the experience that matters. The old Nike slogan comes to mind "Just Do It" so that's my advice to any of you young and old that are on the fringe of the unknown; Just Do It and have faith in yourself that even in the dark we can land on our feet!
I know you want to hear more about my trip what I did and what I found...but in reality I spent a lot of the time in self reflection and making new friends. In true Michaud fashion after a few hours of internal deep thoughts and writing and a few seconds after attempting to befriend a beautiful Italian woman (who coincidentally was there with her new husband) I ran down to the water slipped, stubbed my toe and had to chuckle at how unfortunate it is that I'm so much like my dad. Who by the way slipped running down to a lake and dove into the sand completely missing the water...there are many witnesses but for the majority of you that either know me or my family I don't think it's that much of a stretch.
I keep waiting for this defining moment in my life...some great sign that gives me freedom or noticeable change from "everybody else". Some mood that creates harmony around me. Nursing my sore toe I realize I've been waiting for that sign for a long time. It's as if I expect God to prove Himself to me (yes I know the story in the Bible that says it's not right to ask God to do that). It's as if I renounced my Lincoln life and due to this I deserve some sort of enlightenment...I mean come on God look what I had going for me and I left it all to come help You (because He obviously needed it here) and look at all the good I'm doing...i'm not asking for payment but how about a little enlightenment...basically I had the brass to say to God "Throw me a frickin bone here will ya?"
So as I said; on the beach talking with the waves asking myself why we see God in sunsets? Is it the reflection in the water the symbolism of a ray of light in a vast omniscient field. Is it because sunsets produce colors that are impossible to duplicate? Colors that can only be seen in nature. Maybe it's the clouds that sneak in, in an otherwise clear sky. Adding the finishing touches to a landscape that can only be created by the universes greatest Artist. The old adage comes about "If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans". We see God, we feel God, and in all of the New Age books I read and the horrific yoga translations I've tried to comprehend I've decided that contorting myself in an uncomfortable position, traveling to Heaven on earth, or watching kids less fortunate find joy in themselves we feel and see Him in accordance to how hard we look for Him. And here's a tip: You don't have to look that hard!!
Okay enough of this I know a lot of you that read this cringed when I even mentioned God so let's get to the all Powerful the all Knowing the Universal Connector: Football! That's right I was able to watch the University of South Carolina Vs. Vandy game! And it was a great game!! As Allison and I were getting ready to go out I flipped through the channels and saw that we got ESPN in this remote place of the world, not only that but a football game was on. We promptly got up bought some beers and spent a night in Heaven on earth, in our hotel room watching football. I think I was a little more joyous then her.
However besides that our nights were filled with making friends, talking music, smoking hookahs, and trying to decipher which Thai was a guy and which was a girl. We had a blast but unfortunately Allison got really sick and we barely made it home. Not only due to her health but our bus broke down in the process.
During one of our late night conversations I had a reflection that filled me with oddity: I have talked politics with Israelis, I've talked about hunger and poverty with Thais, honor killings with a Pakistani, complete suppression with a Burmese, the "untouchables" and the caste system with an ex-monk, drug legalization with a girl from the Netherlands, I've debated basic Human Rights with international graduate and doctoral students, empathised with New York teachers about special needs education, I learned about underground movements against oppressive governments from those that are leading the movements. Not only this but I've played ate and petted a squirrel, ate with a chicken and rooster as I was probably consuming their cousin, fed a baby elephant, and had lunch with a monkey trying to figure out the wonders of a salt shaker.
I guess what this comes down to i have realized that it's not about articulation, the moments you can share with others so they might have lived it...it's the experience. It's looking for God and smiling as you see Him right in front of you. It's about not having excuses, not having consuming worries, and always having an alibi! It's about boat drinks not what "they" think.
Most of all it is the realization that any question you have ever asked always has one momentous answer: Love.
I hear the Huskers are looking a little sluggish but better then last year, that the political debate is disturbing as ever, and hurricanes are threatening all of us again. Well I suppose my prayers go out to all of them/us.
Brooke and I are planning on having some sort of fundraiser during one of the football games coming up. Goodwill is trying to produce pamphlets that they can give to their students about sexual rights, lawyers, and ways to get out of the life they have found themselves in or the life they have recently left. Basically my parents will be having a tailgate and I as well as them would appreciate you stopping by donating 5, 10, 20 bucks whatever you can afford. I really don't have a whole lot to offer but a few beers. However, I'll get you more of the information as it solidifies. Goodwill needs to generate $30,000 for this project and I've taken the challenge on and would like to see my friends and family help. I will attempt to send something more formal soon...but it would mean a lot to me and to those at Goodwill if you would donate.
Hope this gave you all something to do while at work!
Here's to you,
-Michaud
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Update
We have received a few e-mails from concerned people due to the unrest that’s going on over here. However, for our Lincoln friends it just so happens that all of this is going on during the first week of football and as we all know the world revolves around the Big Red Machine at this time.
Here’s a quick recap: the ex-prime minister Thaksin was ousted and charged with corruption and a whole slew of other allegations. His wife has already been tried and charged. They allowed both of them to go to the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in which he fled to the UK. He is absolutely loaded and is the owner of a soccer team there. Pretty much this guy is pretty unsavory and will likely be put to death if he ever comes back (hence the UK won’t extradite him). So this new PM has been in power for only about 9 months and the PAD (People’s Advocacy for Democracy) says that he is just Thaksin’s puppet and want him to resign. Well the PAD organized and stormed in and took over a state run television network, they are camped out and protesting in the Government’s House (which is the PM’s residence). Friday they demonstrated in the airports at Krabi and Phuket and the railroads have all shut down in support of the PAD. It’s been largely non-violent except for a little incident where there was a skirmish. There are warrant’s out for the head PAD leaders as well as a mandate to get the protesters out of the Government’s House. So far the King has had a special meeting with the PM (he usually stays out of the politics of this country) and right now there is a parliament meeting to discuss how best to go about everything. As of now the military is with the PM but an ex-general with power wants him out so if the military is swayed he’ll be out! Good news is the king won’t allow a bloody coup…meaning they won’t go into a civil war or anything. Believe it or not this one man has that much power. Today the airports opened back up but the railroads are still closed.
It’s a little volatile right now but as long as you stay away from the troubled spots you are fine. With that said Allison and I are headed to Krabi tomorrow!! J (don’t worry mom it’s not bad down there, just at the airport). We were planning on taking the train which is the way to go, but we obviously can’t do that now so we are taking a 14 hour bus ride. We will go and visit a bunch of the islands and relax a bit.
I know I’m not making good with my promises on posting more believe me it’s not due to a lack of things to report but I’ve been very busy with ActionAid Thailand and now with Allison here only one of us can be on the internet at a time so it gets a little difficult to manage. But everyone is fine and dandy over here and we are excited to hit the beach!
Saturday we went to a Muay Thai match and it was one of the craziest things I’ve been too. Matt and Brooke knew a guy from the movie set they worked on together so we went with him and he knew the owner of the gym so we got in for free and sat literally 10 feet away from the ring. We saw 6 matches and these guys are crazy as is the crowd…you had everything from bookies, low-middle class people to the mob and people that were throwing down 300,000 Baht on matches. No, we are not betting the way they do it is impossible to understand. We saw a kid get knocked out and another one broke his shin. Definitely an intense intense sport.
Besides that I went to Laos for about 3 days to the capital. It was very sad, for the capital of a country and there was nothing going on there! I can’t believe how much I take for granted the little knowledge I have of Thai…because in Laos there is NO Thai or English spoken. It was very difficult to communicate and almost starved because I couldn’t order food. But it was an experience at the least. I met a few people on my travels, as always, and unfortunately I see them and it scares me that these people are out in the world. It amazes me how people twist and turn and try to cover-up who and what they are. Then the next guy behind them is proud of who and what he is and does. However if you are buying human lives I suppose your conscious has gone out the window a long time ago. It only fuels my drive to help ActionAid and the things they are trying to accomplish.
Also Brooke went on a 10 day meditation retreat where there was no absolutely no talking. Obviously not something I can do but she said it was amazing and wants to do another one. It gives you a unique insight into yourself and helps you to figure out your internal problems. Something we all probably could use but few have the ware withal to go about it.
I hear our football team won but didn’t look to impressive, I only hope that you all had a beer for me and cheered extra loud. Hopefully we will come around. I miss football so much and will let you know if I find a place to watch it.
Thanks again for your concerns and keeping tabs on us! We are all fine, safe, and having a blast. I’ll be sure to post something once I get back from the island! For more information on the political unrest over here
Here’s to you,Ryan
Here’s a quick recap: the ex-prime minister Thaksin was ousted and charged with corruption and a whole slew of other allegations. His wife has already been tried and charged. They allowed both of them to go to the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in which he fled to the UK. He is absolutely loaded and is the owner of a soccer team there. Pretty much this guy is pretty unsavory and will likely be put to death if he ever comes back (hence the UK won’t extradite him). So this new PM has been in power for only about 9 months and the PAD (People’s Advocacy for Democracy) says that he is just Thaksin’s puppet and want him to resign. Well the PAD organized and stormed in and took over a state run television network, they are camped out and protesting in the Government’s House (which is the PM’s residence). Friday they demonstrated in the airports at Krabi and Phuket and the railroads have all shut down in support of the PAD. It’s been largely non-violent except for a little incident where there was a skirmish. There are warrant’s out for the head PAD leaders as well as a mandate to get the protesters out of the Government’s House. So far the King has had a special meeting with the PM (he usually stays out of the politics of this country) and right now there is a parliament meeting to discuss how best to go about everything. As of now the military is with the PM but an ex-general with power wants him out so if the military is swayed he’ll be out! Good news is the king won’t allow a bloody coup…meaning they won’t go into a civil war or anything. Believe it or not this one man has that much power. Today the airports opened back up but the railroads are still closed.
It’s a little volatile right now but as long as you stay away from the troubled spots you are fine. With that said Allison and I are headed to Krabi tomorrow!! J (don’t worry mom it’s not bad down there, just at the airport). We were planning on taking the train which is the way to go, but we obviously can’t do that now so we are taking a 14 hour bus ride. We will go and visit a bunch of the islands and relax a bit.
I know I’m not making good with my promises on posting more believe me it’s not due to a lack of things to report but I’ve been very busy with ActionAid Thailand and now with Allison here only one of us can be on the internet at a time so it gets a little difficult to manage. But everyone is fine and dandy over here and we are excited to hit the beach!
Saturday we went to a Muay Thai match and it was one of the craziest things I’ve been too. Matt and Brooke knew a guy from the movie set they worked on together so we went with him and he knew the owner of the gym so we got in for free and sat literally 10 feet away from the ring. We saw 6 matches and these guys are crazy as is the crowd…you had everything from bookies, low-middle class people to the mob and people that were throwing down 300,000 Baht on matches. No, we are not betting the way they do it is impossible to understand. We saw a kid get knocked out and another one broke his shin. Definitely an intense intense sport.
Besides that I went to Laos for about 3 days to the capital. It was very sad, for the capital of a country and there was nothing going on there! I can’t believe how much I take for granted the little knowledge I have of Thai…because in Laos there is NO Thai or English spoken. It was very difficult to communicate and almost starved because I couldn’t order food. But it was an experience at the least. I met a few people on my travels, as always, and unfortunately I see them and it scares me that these people are out in the world. It amazes me how people twist and turn and try to cover-up who and what they are. Then the next guy behind them is proud of who and what he is and does. However if you are buying human lives I suppose your conscious has gone out the window a long time ago. It only fuels my drive to help ActionAid and the things they are trying to accomplish.
Also Brooke went on a 10 day meditation retreat where there was no absolutely no talking. Obviously not something I can do but she said it was amazing and wants to do another one. It gives you a unique insight into yourself and helps you to figure out your internal problems. Something we all probably could use but few have the ware withal to go about it.
I hear our football team won but didn’t look to impressive, I only hope that you all had a beer for me and cheered extra loud. Hopefully we will come around. I miss football so much and will let you know if I find a place to watch it.
Thanks again for your concerns and keeping tabs on us! We are all fine, safe, and having a blast. I’ll be sure to post something once I get back from the island! For more information on the political unrest over here
Here’s to you,Ryan
Monday, August 11, 2008
Adam's Final Thoughts:
We all know everyone makes mistakes. We all learn from mistakes and adjust accordingly. But how do you learn from a mistake you don't know you are making? One of the worst things you can ever be is selfish, because in their eyes they do not make mistakes and therefore can never learn from their actions.
A few good ones:
It is a mistake to look too far ahead. Only one link of the chain of destiny can be handled at a time.--Winston Churchill
“Do or do not, there is no try” –YODA
“Events in our lives happen in a sequence in time, but in their significance to ourselves they find their own order the continuous thread of revelation.” Eudora Welty
You must be the change you want to see in the world
Mahatma Gandhi
Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
Mahatma Gandhi
The main things which seem to me important on their own account, andnot merely as means to other things, are knowledge, art, instinctivehappiness, and relations of friendship or affection.
Bertrand Russell
“Do or do not, there is no try” –YODA
“Events in our lives happen in a sequence in time, but in their significance to ourselves they find their own order the continuous thread of revelation.” Eudora Welty
You must be the change you want to see in the world
Mahatma Gandhi
Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
Mahatma Gandhi
The main things which seem to me important on their own account, andnot merely as means to other things, are knowledge, art, instinctivehappiness, and relations of friendship or affection.
Bertrand Russell
Update
Okay, Okay, Okay, I know it's been awhile since I've given you an update. Yes, I'm still alive. I have been spending more time getting reacquainted with an old friend, doinga whole lot of research for the future, and walking around aimlessly in Salaya and Bangkok. I was prompted to get back in the groove and write on my blog after drinking a Carona the other day. It tasted like Florida...
As for volunteering I am meeting with ActionAid on Friday to see what kind of projects are going to be needing my help, I am in contact with Friends For All Children an adoption agency in Bangkok as well as Project L.I.F.E. Foundation which has a whole range of programs that I'm interested in.
As for the future, I've been thinking a lot of what I'm going to do after my Thailand trip. I've come up with some unique options and have searched endlessly on the internet. Some options include Graduate School abroad or domestically in the Social Sciences field, attempt to find a job in the Social Development, philanthropic, or Human Rights fields, and last but not least I'm looking into Officer Training for the Air Force. I know for some of you you might see the military as an odd option but talking with Matt and my Grandpa it is something that I've decided to look into. Of course there is always the option of attempting to find a job in my field of Marketing. So a lot of broad research is being done to figure out my best options.
I don't know if I've told all of you this yet or not but Matt and I dined on crickets, grasshoppers, worms, and some giant type of flying cockroach. They all went down okay but I about lost the flying cockroach because I was laughing so hard. Matt and I decided to put the whole thing in our mouth and chew...well all of the Thai's around us started laughing and we had no idea why. Turns out you are supposed to take the wings off before you throw them in your mouth. It was a very interesting experience.
I wanted to thank all of you for the Birthday wishes, cards, and even phone call. We are having a good time here and hope all of you are over there. I have gotten a few responses to my 24 questions so I thank those of you brave enough to offer your opinion.
I will try and post more regularly!
Here's to you,
Ryan
As for volunteering I am meeting with ActionAid on Friday to see what kind of projects are going to be needing my help, I am in contact with Friends For All Children an adoption agency in Bangkok as well as Project L.I.F.E. Foundation which has a whole range of programs that I'm interested in.
As for the future, I've been thinking a lot of what I'm going to do after my Thailand trip. I've come up with some unique options and have searched endlessly on the internet. Some options include Graduate School abroad or domestically in the Social Sciences field, attempt to find a job in the Social Development, philanthropic, or Human Rights fields, and last but not least I'm looking into Officer Training for the Air Force. I know for some of you you might see the military as an odd option but talking with Matt and my Grandpa it is something that I've decided to look into. Of course there is always the option of attempting to find a job in my field of Marketing. So a lot of broad research is being done to figure out my best options.
I don't know if I've told all of you this yet or not but Matt and I dined on crickets, grasshoppers, worms, and some giant type of flying cockroach. They all went down okay but I about lost the flying cockroach because I was laughing so hard. Matt and I decided to put the whole thing in our mouth and chew...well all of the Thai's around us started laughing and we had no idea why. Turns out you are supposed to take the wings off before you throw them in your mouth. It was a very interesting experience.
I wanted to thank all of you for the Birthday wishes, cards, and even phone call. We are having a good time here and hope all of you are over there. I have gotten a few responses to my 24 questions so I thank those of you brave enough to offer your opinion.
I will try and post more regularly!
Here's to you,
Ryan
Sunday, August 3, 2008
24 Questions from a 24 Year Old
If you have any questions to add...please feel free! I also reserve the right to chane and/or edit my questions!
1) Why can't we all live by the beach?
I've never had a bad time while I was on the beach.
2) Why don't Priests use please and thank you's when talking to God?
I've been taught to always use please and thank you's with everyone and I never understood why we almost demand God for forgiveness or strength.
3) If high heels are so uncomfortable why to people wear them?
4) Why are children starving?
There is enough food in the world there is no reason why there should be kids starving. I read a disturbing article where a man wanted to explain away starvation by an almost Natural Selection phenomenon. As if we shouldn't do anything because the weak are dying which will make the strong stronger...I don't know if I have ever read anything sadder in my life.
5) Is it possible to forgive and forget?
6) Is it a coincidence that the two hardest things to say are both 3 words long and have more power over people then any other phrase in the English language?
"I am Sorry" "I Love You"
7) Why can't you realize that it's not your intentions that cause reactions but how your message is perceived?
8) Why don't we sing more?
I know I can't sing, I know I have no musical talent...but I don't think you should have to be a good singer to sing. Sometimes people just want to sing!
9) Is this year the beginning to Nebraska's return to dominance?
If so, tape the games for me!
10) Why don't we give more to charity?
How much is too much? $5, $50, $5,000, $50,000, $500,000, ??? At what point did you consider those numbers to be a ridiculous sum to give? Instead of that extra beer, that monthly pedicure, instead of that purse you've wanted or that fight you were going to order on t.v. donate to a charity!
11) Why is it so hard to volunteer your time?
12) Why are the foods that taste so good, so bad for you?
13) Why is it so hard to stay in touch with friends with family?
14) Is a job the means to do something you'd like or is a job supposed to be doing that thing you like?
Read it again and slower...does it make sense? This is an important one!
15) How much planning can we do for the future if the future is yet to be determined?
Why do we worry about things that are so far in advance ,when we are not even guaranteed that we will see tomorrow or that our best laid plans have somehow become irrelevant.
16) Does the end always justify the means?
17) Why is it so hard to admit to being wrong?
18) Why is there always drama with some people?
19) How come it is so hard for us to believe we deserve happiness?
20) With so many memories stored in our brain why is it that certain ones creep to the conscious?
I have recently gotten in touch with an old friend...a friend that, together, we've created many many memories. I find it pleasantly surprising the things I remember and tragically unfortunate the things I can't recall, but I look forward to trying to recover them with my friend.
21) How come we can go off to war and fight for our country but we can't have a beer until we are this age?
22) Is it considered selfish to pray for yourself?
23) Why do those closest to you sometimes hurt you the most?
We have such high standards for our loved ones... I can't figure out why they say and do things that seem that the only objective of that action was to hurt us. In order to "push somebody's buttons" you have to make a conscious effort to lift your hand and push it...you can't accidentally push a button!
24) Why don't we toast more often?
Every drink, toast to me, to you, toast to those that aren't with you, toast to health, laughter, and happiness, toast to love lost and love found, to those that said no and to those that said yes, toast to family and friends, to the ability to watch a Husker game, toast to the bartender or the next table over, toast to those that are at work, to those that can't toast, toast your troubles away, toast to the smile of a friend, and to the laughter of a child, toast to birthday's and to Wednesday's, toast to Peterbilt trucks and Cat engines, toast to a new school year or a new patient...toast to memories!
Here's to you, PROST!
Michaud
p.s. If you have any answers to my questions please let me know! I will spend the rest of my life trying to figure them out...and odds are I'll ask you your opinion about one or two of them anyways!
1) Why can't we all live by the beach?
I've never had a bad time while I was on the beach.
2) Why don't Priests use please and thank you's when talking to God?
I've been taught to always use please and thank you's with everyone and I never understood why we almost demand God for forgiveness or strength.
3) If high heels are so uncomfortable why to people wear them?
4) Why are children starving?
There is enough food in the world there is no reason why there should be kids starving. I read a disturbing article where a man wanted to explain away starvation by an almost Natural Selection phenomenon. As if we shouldn't do anything because the weak are dying which will make the strong stronger...I don't know if I have ever read anything sadder in my life.
5) Is it possible to forgive and forget?
6) Is it a coincidence that the two hardest things to say are both 3 words long and have more power over people then any other phrase in the English language?
"I am Sorry" "I Love You"
7) Why can't you realize that it's not your intentions that cause reactions but how your message is perceived?
8) Why don't we sing more?
I know I can't sing, I know I have no musical talent...but I don't think you should have to be a good singer to sing. Sometimes people just want to sing!
9) Is this year the beginning to Nebraska's return to dominance?
If so, tape the games for me!
10) Why don't we give more to charity?
How much is too much? $5, $50, $5,000, $50,000, $500,000, ??? At what point did you consider those numbers to be a ridiculous sum to give? Instead of that extra beer, that monthly pedicure, instead of that purse you've wanted or that fight you were going to order on t.v. donate to a charity!
11) Why is it so hard to volunteer your time?
12) Why are the foods that taste so good, so bad for you?
13) Why is it so hard to stay in touch with friends with family?
14) Is a job the means to do something you'd like or is a job supposed to be doing that thing you like?
Read it again and slower...does it make sense? This is an important one!
15) How much planning can we do for the future if the future is yet to be determined?
Why do we worry about things that are so far in advance ,when we are not even guaranteed that we will see tomorrow or that our best laid plans have somehow become irrelevant.
16) Does the end always justify the means?
17) Why is it so hard to admit to being wrong?
18) Why is there always drama with some people?
19) How come it is so hard for us to believe we deserve happiness?
20) With so many memories stored in our brain why is it that certain ones creep to the conscious?
I have recently gotten in touch with an old friend...a friend that, together, we've created many many memories. I find it pleasantly surprising the things I remember and tragically unfortunate the things I can't recall, but I look forward to trying to recover them with my friend.
21) How come we can go off to war and fight for our country but we can't have a beer until we are this age?
22) Is it considered selfish to pray for yourself?
23) Why do those closest to you sometimes hurt you the most?
We have such high standards for our loved ones... I can't figure out why they say and do things that seem that the only objective of that action was to hurt us. In order to "push somebody's buttons" you have to make a conscious effort to lift your hand and push it...you can't accidentally push a button!
24) Why don't we toast more often?
Every drink, toast to me, to you, toast to those that aren't with you, toast to health, laughter, and happiness, toast to love lost and love found, to those that said no and to those that said yes, toast to family and friends, to the ability to watch a Husker game, toast to the bartender or the next table over, toast to those that are at work, to those that can't toast, toast your troubles away, toast to the smile of a friend, and to the laughter of a child, toast to birthday's and to Wednesday's, toast to Peterbilt trucks and Cat engines, toast to a new school year or a new patient...toast to memories!
Here's to you, PROST!
Michaud
p.s. If you have any answers to my questions please let me know! I will spend the rest of my life trying to figure them out...and odds are I'll ask you your opinion about one or two of them anyways!
Monday, July 28, 2008
There will be more on this...
It's odd: ghosts from the past, skeleton's in the closet...how past experiences are intertwined with death; after all isn't it past experiences that show us how to live?
Monday, July 21, 2008
Another John Allen Qutoe
Money does grow on trees: It is planted by ambition, watered with the sweat of your brow, nurtured through determination and hardwork, and with a little luck it might sprout just enough to get you through life. Trouble is not too many people are willing to go through the planting process, they just want the harvest. However it's the process, not the spoils that are the real rewards.
I thought this was appropriate since I had my wallet stolen.
I thought this was appropriate since I had my wallet stolen.
Adam's Final Thoughts:
This is a new segment and one which I hope you will find as heartfelt as I have:
"The only certainty is Death, and the only surprise is Life. Everything else falls in-between and it's up to you to decide weather you want to focus on certainty or let life surprise you."
"The only certainty is Death, and the only surprise is Life. Everything else falls in-between and it's up to you to decide weather you want to focus on certainty or let life surprise you."
Koh Samui
Well Matt, Brooke and I headed out to Koh Samui this weekend...it was a mixed trip. Absolutely beautiful I will attempt to get pictures up today. Now, the trip down was a little difficult. I won't bore you with the details but from the time we left our apartment until the time we got to our hotel it was about a 20 hour trip and we timed it to be about 8 1/2 hours drive. There was a lot of waiting during this trip. Matt and I didn't sleep the whole way down so when we arrived at the coast naturally we had a few beers (it was about 5:00 in the morning). But, thankfully we got there and our bungalows were right by the pool which is right next to the beach.
Again, Matt and I couldn't wait to get into the ocean so I prepared to do my customary run and jump. As I jogged out to the ocean I coldn't help but see Matt stop and look back at me...this is where my instincts kicked in and I realized something very very bad was about to happen. I put on the brakes only to find out that I was about 6 inches away from a giant rock under water. Our beach was littered with rocks and unfortunately the water wasn't so clear that you could see them. I didn't realize it at the time, but it turns out that that near miss was a huge blessing because I would have missed out on one of the coolest things I've ever done. But I am getting ahead of myself, as Matt and I gingerly made are way out to the deep Brooke called us in and was waving her arms. We rushed in as we saw what she was pointing at. IT WAS A FOOTBALL!! Granted it was rubber and oddly formed but it was red and white (excuse me scarlet and cream) so I had to buy it. I got the beach peadler down to 200 Baht from 500! So Matt and I were happy and played with the football for basically the rest of the trip. However, it did turn out to be very difficult with how slippery the ball is. That night we hung out at our place and drank off the bottles that we had brought and as they took their customary early old married couple exit I headed out to the beach and poured my boozed up thoughts into my journal.
I will have to admit that Friday was one of the best days I've had in a long time. We started out by deciding that Brooke would be our guide and we weren't going to pay someone to take us to this waterfall (we all know if Matt and I tried to get us there we would be in trouble). So we hopped a taxi to the road leading to the waterfall, of which, there are many pictures on facebook. Very Very Very steep and a lot of fun. Along the way there was a elephant excursion and so we took many many pictures of these SUV's of the jungle. There were signs pointing to the scenic view of the waterfall so naturally we took that road. It was definitely a path not for the faint of heart. It wasn't necessarily steep but there were slick spots and rocks where you had to be a little careful. However, I really do believe it would be worth the trek and I think anyone under the age of 65 could do it if they really wanted to. We get to the top and there is this little shop that we stopped at for a beer (not knowing what lie ahead of us). You'll see in those pictures the little hut was a little scary! Held together by little sticks it was pretty scary for our Fat American Behinds!! The bottom of the waterfall was beautiful but nothing necessarily to write home about. Then we saw a sign that said "to the top of the waterfall" and so we thought we'd check that out. This is where our trip took a unique turn. A guide was waiting about 100 yards up, took Brooke's hand and started up the mountain. And yes, when I say mountain we are talking a legit mountain in a legit jungle. Matt had a backpack on his back and I had a handbag in my hand with all of our beach toys in it. So he was hauling that up the mountain and I was climbing one handed. I wish I would have more pictures of the actual trip up and not just the reward of the view and swimming hole...however we couldn't really breathe at the moment so getting our cameras out was the last thing on our mind. Now I'm sitting here going up this mountain with an ex-special forces guy and a yoga instructor both of who work out religously. At one point, while I was in the middle of the two, I stopped and asked if I was the only one breathing hard, thankfully to my relief they both said they were breathing hard and this was a hell of a work out. I can't tell you the sense of accomplishment we felt once we got to the top and there was the heavenly cold swimming hole and mini waterfall that we spend at least a half hour at. After treking up on what they called a "trail" it was painfully obvious that not very many people can go up the way we did. Later we were to find out that there were many paths and our guide took us on the hardest one up and down, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It goes down as one of the top 10 things I've ever done.
As we made our way down we stopped for a well deserved beer at the little hut and headed back down the steep road to the main road. Luckily for us and are wobbly legs a man in a truck stopped and asked us if we wanted a ride for 300 Baht and we were happy to oblige. We went to a different beach that was miles away from ours (one that Brooke had been to on her last journey). No rocks, so a lot of football tossing, body surfing, and Matt and I making up stupid games in the water while Brooke lay on the beach. We decided to call it a day and head up to a bar for a drink where Matt bought the equivilant of a 5$ drink and I bought a $8 bottle (it was very small). The only reason I bring this up is because his little flowery drink was gone in a second and we made fun of him for the rest of the night as he helped me finish the bottle. We then cruised down the beach and looked at the seafood possibilities. What they do is take all of the days catch and display it out front on the beach with a bunch of ice surrounding it. Very cool, we kept going until we met this Italian guy who was a character! We sat down to a Shark, Baracudda, Squid, and crab platter which was amazing. Only to be followed up with some of the best spaghetti and pinapple curry I've ever had. At this time I'm one happy camper well with a waterfall trek and elephant sighting behind me, a few spirits, and some seafood I've never had. So we went for a walk to find a bar. Though it had stormed while we were eating there were still quite a few people out and Brooke was the expert so we went until we found a bar where we didn't think we would get hassled by katoi's or prostitutes. I wanted to get a few games of pool in so we went to this Irish pub that said it had pool but the upstairs was closed. We talked to the owner who let us up there and we basically had our own private upstairs of a bar and balcony. Again we snuk our our own booze in to bypass the outrageous prices. I should reiterate that, these prices our outrageous in Baht terms we are still only talking about 3$ for a 32o.z. beer that has more alc % as a Budweiser. After a few games of cut-throat we decided to find another bar. On our trip back we saw a giant lizard and a monkey on a guys arm. As we stumbled on they noticed my awe and the guy practically threw the monkey around my neck at which point I think I started to cry. Just another day in Koh Samui. We found ourselves at a bar with some burly soccer and rugby folks and me being me I went to talk to them. Apparently that wasn't a good idea because Matt told me we were leaving. Truth be told I thought things were going well but I don't think I would ever live it down if some wussy soccer players took me out! Right Adam!
We got home and I found myself on the beach spilling my thoughts out onto the journal once more.
We awoke to a day of laying on the beach and consuming as much water as possible. We knew we had a hell of a night in front of us. Some of you may have heard of the Full Moon Party that is legendary here! On the van ride over to the beach that we meet the ferry to take us to the island we talked to a group from Ireland and England. We had to wait about an hour until the ferry picked us up and as I talked to the Irish and English Matt and Brooke went off to sit down...me being the idiot I am thought they just wanted some alone time. Turns out Matt really really didn't feel good, in fact neither of them were able to go to the Full Moon Party. After I decided to wait it out and see if he got better they insisted that I go. Which, I regrettably did. I met up with Mo the English guy who helped me finish the bottle and we had a good time for the first few hours there but unfortunately Mo can't hold his alcohol very well and ended up almost falling into a fire. This is where we parted ways. Now, after seeing Mo's debacle, knowing that I was on my own over here, and having the warewithal to know myself I decided not to get Michaud drunk and to take it fairly easy. So I switched to beer...let me paint this picture for you: about a half mile of beach that is absolutely packed and every single person is either on a drug or at Mo's state of drunkeness. There are fire shows going on everywhere as well as fireworks. People are painted up in body paing and I'm proud to say I got 6 girls to paint either a stock of corn or a N on their body. Go 'Skers! At about 5:00 in the morning I was walking to the other end of the beach, which is still packed, at which time I did what I customarily do about every 15 minutes...check for my wallet which was gone! Yes, I was pickpocketed. I am trying not to get to down on it because there isn't a whole lot I can do about it now but it is a pain in the ass as you can imagine. Anyways, with no money and a half a beer in my hand I decided to call it an early night. Made it home around 6:30 or 7:00.
The rest of the trip and the past few days have involved trying to figure out how to live without a wallet, taking care of all of those precautions, and recovering from the weekend.
I find that there is no better way to clear your head then listening to the waves crash onto the sand. No cure-all like the moon illuminating a black ocean in the middle of the night. yes, I have a romantic interest in the beach life or at least the beach way of thinking. And again being me I had some incredible thoughts float into my head on that 3 hour ferry ride back to the coast...but looking at my pictures I think you will find how the scenery demands a sort of poetic thought in even the most stoic soul.
I realize this is a long one but hopefully it will get you through a few minutes of work!
Here's to you,
Michaud
Again, Matt and I couldn't wait to get into the ocean so I prepared to do my customary run and jump. As I jogged out to the ocean I coldn't help but see Matt stop and look back at me...this is where my instincts kicked in and I realized something very very bad was about to happen. I put on the brakes only to find out that I was about 6 inches away from a giant rock under water. Our beach was littered with rocks and unfortunately the water wasn't so clear that you could see them. I didn't realize it at the time, but it turns out that that near miss was a huge blessing because I would have missed out on one of the coolest things I've ever done. But I am getting ahead of myself, as Matt and I gingerly made are way out to the deep Brooke called us in and was waving her arms. We rushed in as we saw what she was pointing at. IT WAS A FOOTBALL!! Granted it was rubber and oddly formed but it was red and white (excuse me scarlet and cream) so I had to buy it. I got the beach peadler down to 200 Baht from 500! So Matt and I were happy and played with the football for basically the rest of the trip. However, it did turn out to be very difficult with how slippery the ball is. That night we hung out at our place and drank off the bottles that we had brought and as they took their customary early old married couple exit I headed out to the beach and poured my boozed up thoughts into my journal.
I will have to admit that Friday was one of the best days I've had in a long time. We started out by deciding that Brooke would be our guide and we weren't going to pay someone to take us to this waterfall (we all know if Matt and I tried to get us there we would be in trouble). So we hopped a taxi to the road leading to the waterfall, of which, there are many pictures on facebook. Very Very Very steep and a lot of fun. Along the way there was a elephant excursion and so we took many many pictures of these SUV's of the jungle. There were signs pointing to the scenic view of the waterfall so naturally we took that road. It was definitely a path not for the faint of heart. It wasn't necessarily steep but there were slick spots and rocks where you had to be a little careful. However, I really do believe it would be worth the trek and I think anyone under the age of 65 could do it if they really wanted to. We get to the top and there is this little shop that we stopped at for a beer (not knowing what lie ahead of us). You'll see in those pictures the little hut was a little scary! Held together by little sticks it was pretty scary for our Fat American Behinds!! The bottom of the waterfall was beautiful but nothing necessarily to write home about. Then we saw a sign that said "to the top of the waterfall" and so we thought we'd check that out. This is where our trip took a unique turn. A guide was waiting about 100 yards up, took Brooke's hand and started up the mountain. And yes, when I say mountain we are talking a legit mountain in a legit jungle. Matt had a backpack on his back and I had a handbag in my hand with all of our beach toys in it. So he was hauling that up the mountain and I was climbing one handed. I wish I would have more pictures of the actual trip up and not just the reward of the view and swimming hole...however we couldn't really breathe at the moment so getting our cameras out was the last thing on our mind. Now I'm sitting here going up this mountain with an ex-special forces guy and a yoga instructor both of who work out religously. At one point, while I was in the middle of the two, I stopped and asked if I was the only one breathing hard, thankfully to my relief they both said they were breathing hard and this was a hell of a work out. I can't tell you the sense of accomplishment we felt once we got to the top and there was the heavenly cold swimming hole and mini waterfall that we spend at least a half hour at. After treking up on what they called a "trail" it was painfully obvious that not very many people can go up the way we did. Later we were to find out that there were many paths and our guide took us on the hardest one up and down, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It goes down as one of the top 10 things I've ever done.
As we made our way down we stopped for a well deserved beer at the little hut and headed back down the steep road to the main road. Luckily for us and are wobbly legs a man in a truck stopped and asked us if we wanted a ride for 300 Baht and we were happy to oblige. We went to a different beach that was miles away from ours (one that Brooke had been to on her last journey). No rocks, so a lot of football tossing, body surfing, and Matt and I making up stupid games in the water while Brooke lay on the beach. We decided to call it a day and head up to a bar for a drink where Matt bought the equivilant of a 5$ drink and I bought a $8 bottle (it was very small). The only reason I bring this up is because his little flowery drink was gone in a second and we made fun of him for the rest of the night as he helped me finish the bottle. We then cruised down the beach and looked at the seafood possibilities. What they do is take all of the days catch and display it out front on the beach with a bunch of ice surrounding it. Very cool, we kept going until we met this Italian guy who was a character! We sat down to a Shark, Baracudda, Squid, and crab platter which was amazing. Only to be followed up with some of the best spaghetti and pinapple curry I've ever had. At this time I'm one happy camper well with a waterfall trek and elephant sighting behind me, a few spirits, and some seafood I've never had. So we went for a walk to find a bar. Though it had stormed while we were eating there were still quite a few people out and Brooke was the expert so we went until we found a bar where we didn't think we would get hassled by katoi's or prostitutes. I wanted to get a few games of pool in so we went to this Irish pub that said it had pool but the upstairs was closed. We talked to the owner who let us up there and we basically had our own private upstairs of a bar and balcony. Again we snuk our our own booze in to bypass the outrageous prices. I should reiterate that, these prices our outrageous in Baht terms we are still only talking about 3$ for a 32o.z. beer that has more alc % as a Budweiser. After a few games of cut-throat we decided to find another bar. On our trip back we saw a giant lizard and a monkey on a guys arm. As we stumbled on they noticed my awe and the guy practically threw the monkey around my neck at which point I think I started to cry. Just another day in Koh Samui. We found ourselves at a bar with some burly soccer and rugby folks and me being me I went to talk to them. Apparently that wasn't a good idea because Matt told me we were leaving. Truth be told I thought things were going well but I don't think I would ever live it down if some wussy soccer players took me out! Right Adam!
We got home and I found myself on the beach spilling my thoughts out onto the journal once more.
We awoke to a day of laying on the beach and consuming as much water as possible. We knew we had a hell of a night in front of us. Some of you may have heard of the Full Moon Party that is legendary here! On the van ride over to the beach that we meet the ferry to take us to the island we talked to a group from Ireland and England. We had to wait about an hour until the ferry picked us up and as I talked to the Irish and English Matt and Brooke went off to sit down...me being the idiot I am thought they just wanted some alone time. Turns out Matt really really didn't feel good, in fact neither of them were able to go to the Full Moon Party. After I decided to wait it out and see if he got better they insisted that I go. Which, I regrettably did. I met up with Mo the English guy who helped me finish the bottle and we had a good time for the first few hours there but unfortunately Mo can't hold his alcohol very well and ended up almost falling into a fire. This is where we parted ways. Now, after seeing Mo's debacle, knowing that I was on my own over here, and having the warewithal to know myself I decided not to get Michaud drunk and to take it fairly easy. So I switched to beer...let me paint this picture for you: about a half mile of beach that is absolutely packed and every single person is either on a drug or at Mo's state of drunkeness. There are fire shows going on everywhere as well as fireworks. People are painted up in body paing and I'm proud to say I got 6 girls to paint either a stock of corn or a N on their body. Go 'Skers! At about 5:00 in the morning I was walking to the other end of the beach, which is still packed, at which time I did what I customarily do about every 15 minutes...check for my wallet which was gone! Yes, I was pickpocketed. I am trying not to get to down on it because there isn't a whole lot I can do about it now but it is a pain in the ass as you can imagine. Anyways, with no money and a half a beer in my hand I decided to call it an early night. Made it home around 6:30 or 7:00.
The rest of the trip and the past few days have involved trying to figure out how to live without a wallet, taking care of all of those precautions, and recovering from the weekend.
I find that there is no better way to clear your head then listening to the waves crash onto the sand. No cure-all like the moon illuminating a black ocean in the middle of the night. yes, I have a romantic interest in the beach life or at least the beach way of thinking. And again being me I had some incredible thoughts float into my head on that 3 hour ferry ride back to the coast...but looking at my pictures I think you will find how the scenery demands a sort of poetic thought in even the most stoic soul.
I realize this is a long one but hopefully it will get you through a few minutes of work!
Here's to you,
Michaud
Monday, July 14, 2008
John Allen
Okay last one, sorry...I've become a fan of his...this is an excerpt from "Swallow's Song"
"...Sing your song sweet swallow
I know your heart's been pierced by indecision's cruel arrow
You're always Leading never do you follow
Please, do not waiver do not wallow
I am here to take away your sorrow
The bleeding wound I will mend
No limit on the time I will spend
It is your soul I do defend
With great love and care
No stone or log I will spare
To find your smile again
To put the wind back in your sail
Sing your song sweet swallow
Without it this world is hallow..."
"...Sing your song sweet swallow
I know your heart's been pierced by indecision's cruel arrow
You're always Leading never do you follow
Please, do not waiver do not wallow
I am here to take away your sorrow
The bleeding wound I will mend
No limit on the time I will spend
It is your soul I do defend
With great love and care
No stone or log I will spare
To find your smile again
To put the wind back in your sail
Sing your song sweet swallow
Without it this world is hallow..."
Brian L. Weiss
"...Wisdom is achieved very slowly. This is because intellectual knowledge, easily acquired, must be transformed into 'emotional,' or subconscious, knowledge. Once transformed, the imprint is permanent. Behavioral practice is the necessary catalyst of this reaction. Without action, the concept will wither and fade. Theoretical knowledge without practical application is not enough..."
Excerpt from "Many Lives, Many Masters"
Excerpt from "Many Lives, Many Masters"
John Allen
I am Fanatically Fractured
Permanently Put Together
I am Stained with Disdain
And Immersed with Content
I am Starved for Food, Knowledge, and Care
I am Them, I am You, I am Rare
Permanently Put Together
I am Stained with Disdain
And Immersed with Content
I am Starved for Food, Knowledge, and Care
I am Them, I am You, I am Rare
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Simply Settling
So much to blog so little time. I know I've e-mailed a couple of you some "interesting" e-mails about some deep thoughts. Truth be told, I was sitting in a coffee shop talking with Brooke who I'm almost completely convinced is my Muse. She definitely empowers me, pair that with some tough love one drunken night with Matt and Brooke a new outlook has emerged. I read the book "Many Lives, Many Masters" by Brian L. Weiss. For those of you with an open mind I don't think I could recommend a better book. It creates a timeline of your life that is unique and liberating. I use the word liberating because the more I am here and this new view of time that I am slowly learning to understand is...liberating. It allows life to be a venue for you to be yourself, whoever that may be, instead of life being the beginning middle and end. Instead of conforming and worrying about others views of you, you're free. However, another huge variable in this equation is the friend factor. If you don't have a core group of people that will love you no matter what you say or do, no matter if you're up on a table dancing, in a coffee shop sipping on a drink that you can't spell, or getting shot down by the prettiest girl in the bar. The unfortunate truth is that this has all been said, written about, and preached multiple multiple times. And, a lot of people pretend that they've had this view of life and completely understand what I'm saying. That's fine, but the proof is in the pudding (we've been hanging out with older people).
Speaking of which, Matt and I were thrown into probably the gayest situation we've ever encountered. (second gayest for me, I'm still never setting foot in Wyoming). We went to a fundraiser at Brenda and Daniel's and it was a sing-a-long. Unfortunately I didn't know any of the songs except Moon River and I think that was because of my grandparents. The proceeds went to Mercy House an orphanage Brenda and Daniel are involved with. It was fun and we had a great time but to put it in perspective there might have been 4 blue shirts in the crowd and the other 60 people were wearing pink. I think Matt and I did okay and didn't embarrass ourselves too bad, but we'll see. Brooke was in her element working the room like a pro! We learned about a dance class we could take, cooking classes, and heard some great stories about the Katoi's (Ka-toy-i's) lady boys. I bring this up because in Nebraska this lifestyle isn't as accepted, yet here it's just another way of life. But it's not a strain to say that Bangkok and Lincoln may be a little different.
I was also lucky enough to have lunch with Ali (successful Thai business woman), Kim and Siarra two exceptional writers, but more then that two of the most selfless people I've met. In fact they were nice enough to get me in touch with Ali who knows an ex-monk that runs an orphanage in town. I will hopefully be going on Wednesday to meet with ToTo or Tanto I can't remember his name. Kim and Siarra are currently traveling around the world to find a place to call home base. Unfortunately they are leaving Bangkok shortly but I will claw and fight to get their e-mail addresses to stay in contact with them. Extremely funny, generous, and some stories that you wouldn't believe. I think it's safe to say that my teaching career will never lead me to Dublin in the school Siarra taught at, her stories of teaching beat my one awkward stance in front of Thai sophomores.
Settling...something I've thought about for years and even more so now. As I said before I feel much more empowered now. I have a sense of pride not only in myself but in friends and family as well. I've recieved a few e-mails that implied that I had inspired them to do, write, or say things they didn't think they could. As a friend or family member I can honestly say that this talent or this grandoise idea was there long before now. The only thing I did was break the norm, break the "Nebraska Cycle". I'd like to think that I helped people to take that leap into the unknown. If you think about it that's the only reason we are afraid to do things that we want to do. We don't tell friends and family members our fears and ambitions due to the fact we don't know how they will react. We don't leave jobs and travel across the world away from family and friends because we don't know if we'll hack it, we don't know if we'll be okay once we get back. We don't go meet strangers for the simple fact that we are afraid they won't like us. But why settle? Why be okay with comfort? Be uncomfortable, put yourself out there! If you have that core group of friends, if you can only see that this time we have is our time and nobody else's. If you can see that perhaps those fluttering thoughts in the back of your head are encouraging you to do something don't stomp them out. There may be a lesson in their flight path, a previous debt to be paid, or a talent yet to be explored. I believe our problems lie in the fact that we never believe we deserve any better, we never believe we deserve happiness. Or that this happiness we have is as good as it gets. I'm no smarter then I was when I left, no more insightful, and no I'm not on drugs. But I have made the conscious decision not to settle for anything...I believe I owe that to myself, to my parents, to my brother, and to you. I believe this will be a tough path to follow: ruts and stumps, windy ridges, and a beast around every bend. But I never want to wake up someday and say, "Could I have done more with my life?" Meeting people like Kim and Siarra and knowing Brooke and Matt just shows me how much more is out there and how many more stories are to be told.
As I said I am in a unique spot right now hence the unique perspectives. As they say "changes in lattitudes changes in attitudes". Wednesday I have an important meeting and then Thursday Matt, Brooke and I are off to Koh Chang island...2nd biggest island in Thailand. I'll keep you updated and you keep the e-mails coming!
Here's to you,
~Nebraska
Speaking of which, Matt and I were thrown into probably the gayest situation we've ever encountered. (second gayest for me, I'm still never setting foot in Wyoming). We went to a fundraiser at Brenda and Daniel's and it was a sing-a-long. Unfortunately I didn't know any of the songs except Moon River and I think that was because of my grandparents. The proceeds went to Mercy House an orphanage Brenda and Daniel are involved with. It was fun and we had a great time but to put it in perspective there might have been 4 blue shirts in the crowd and the other 60 people were wearing pink. I think Matt and I did okay and didn't embarrass ourselves too bad, but we'll see. Brooke was in her element working the room like a pro! We learned about a dance class we could take, cooking classes, and heard some great stories about the Katoi's (Ka-toy-i's) lady boys. I bring this up because in Nebraska this lifestyle isn't as accepted, yet here it's just another way of life. But it's not a strain to say that Bangkok and Lincoln may be a little different.
I was also lucky enough to have lunch with Ali (successful Thai business woman), Kim and Siarra two exceptional writers, but more then that two of the most selfless people I've met. In fact they were nice enough to get me in touch with Ali who knows an ex-monk that runs an orphanage in town. I will hopefully be going on Wednesday to meet with ToTo or Tanto I can't remember his name. Kim and Siarra are currently traveling around the world to find a place to call home base. Unfortunately they are leaving Bangkok shortly but I will claw and fight to get their e-mail addresses to stay in contact with them. Extremely funny, generous, and some stories that you wouldn't believe. I think it's safe to say that my teaching career will never lead me to Dublin in the school Siarra taught at, her stories of teaching beat my one awkward stance in front of Thai sophomores.
Settling...something I've thought about for years and even more so now. As I said before I feel much more empowered now. I have a sense of pride not only in myself but in friends and family as well. I've recieved a few e-mails that implied that I had inspired them to do, write, or say things they didn't think they could. As a friend or family member I can honestly say that this talent or this grandoise idea was there long before now. The only thing I did was break the norm, break the "Nebraska Cycle". I'd like to think that I helped people to take that leap into the unknown. If you think about it that's the only reason we are afraid to do things that we want to do. We don't tell friends and family members our fears and ambitions due to the fact we don't know how they will react. We don't leave jobs and travel across the world away from family and friends because we don't know if we'll hack it, we don't know if we'll be okay once we get back. We don't go meet strangers for the simple fact that we are afraid they won't like us. But why settle? Why be okay with comfort? Be uncomfortable, put yourself out there! If you have that core group of friends, if you can only see that this time we have is our time and nobody else's. If you can see that perhaps those fluttering thoughts in the back of your head are encouraging you to do something don't stomp them out. There may be a lesson in their flight path, a previous debt to be paid, or a talent yet to be explored. I believe our problems lie in the fact that we never believe we deserve any better, we never believe we deserve happiness. Or that this happiness we have is as good as it gets. I'm no smarter then I was when I left, no more insightful, and no I'm not on drugs. But I have made the conscious decision not to settle for anything...I believe I owe that to myself, to my parents, to my brother, and to you. I believe this will be a tough path to follow: ruts and stumps, windy ridges, and a beast around every bend. But I never want to wake up someday and say, "Could I have done more with my life?" Meeting people like Kim and Siarra and knowing Brooke and Matt just shows me how much more is out there and how many more stories are to be told.
As I said I am in a unique spot right now hence the unique perspectives. As they say "changes in lattitudes changes in attitudes". Wednesday I have an important meeting and then Thursday Matt, Brooke and I are off to Koh Chang island...2nd biggest island in Thailand. I'll keep you updated and you keep the e-mails coming!
Here's to you,
~Nebraska
Friday, July 4, 2008
The Declaration of Independence July 4, 1776
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Idiotic, Intense, and Ironic
First off the visa run went fairly smoothly, it took from about 6:30a.m.-8:30p.m. but that's the price you pay I guess. We went out to Cambodia on a nice bus watched some movies, listened to music, and wrote in my book. As I was crossing the border (you don't have to do this but I figured if I made it this far I want to cross). Not a whole lot on that border town except it seemed like the Cambodians were a lot smaller then the Thais. Coming back across the border kids kept asking for Baht "1 Baht, 2 Baht" and didn't think a whole lot about it. Well, a kid behind me gave them a Baht and the child jumped off the bridge!! We are talking about an easy 40 foot fall down into the brownest water I've ever seen in my life. But apparently instead of just begging these kids jump off bridges for their money. This may sound insensitive but I actually think that you do what you have to do to survive and these kids have found a niche...
That night I was dead tired and walking back to the apartment and Matt and Brooke were walking out. They said they were going to have a few beers with his classmates so very reluctantly I went with them :)
We went to a place they normally go where you sit on the floor, not easy for me! I talked to a person working in Burma (not Burmese) and strangely enough actually got recruited to go work in Burma as well. At least that's what it sounded like...in reality he is part of the pro-democracy group that is there. They print fliers, teach classes, and spread as much awarness as they can about Human Rights. It was very interesting and a little more cladestine then I'm used to. (Don't worry mom I'm not going over there anytime soon). After a few "towers" of beers we decided to check out this new joint that is called Vintage. We walk in, and they offered us front row seats, well none of us knew what that meant because we thought it was just a bar. Low and behold a metal rock band comes out and starts jamming away. As much as I tried I couldn't help it and 3 songs into their set I yelled "Play some Journey Man". Yes, I'm sorry to all of you for that! I made friends with the lead singer and he said as long as we (about 8 of us) keep coming back they will learn an english song for us. Matt and I will undoubtedly get up there and rock out with them. You haven't been to a concert until you've sat front row at a Thai metal concert, drinking 100 Pipers and water.
Now for the real interesting part. I'm sitting here typing this blog at a computer lab in one of the most prestegious high school's in Southeast Asia. Don't believe me? Tomorrow, the Prime Minister of Thailand is visiting this school! So, how did I end up here? The girls from Loyola that I met in Koh Samed work here and told me to come visit and sit in on some of their classes since I'm so into working with kids. Granted, these kids get dropped off my limos and some of them actually own their own resorts (another story for another time). As I get to this school after 5 hours of sleep, hungover, and a long long walk after the bus dropped me off at the wrong place I met with the head teacher. Little did I know that I was interviewing for a job today. Luckily I had worn my suit, without the jacket. I talked to her, then filled out an application and sat in front of their board members trying to fill up 30 minutes for the only question they asked "tell us about yourself". After this they took me up to a very cute teacher and introduced me. I was then informed that I needed to teach a class of 60 Thai boys about Standard Deviation...and yes, the class starts in 30 minutes. That's right...MATH! I assume if you are reading this you know that Math is Adam's thing NOT MINE!! Math is easily my worst subject and they wanted me to teach this to 10th graders. Not even little kids!! And to top it off I had 30 minutes to put a lesson plan together on something I'm sure I cheated on throughout high school. Let me tell you something...I A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E-L-Y BOMBED IT!!! They all stood up and in unision said hi to me, welcomed me, and kept standing and starring at me. Again me being the idiot I am didn't realize they were doing this to me and I thought they were doing it to the other 6 teachers in the room that were evaluating me. So I stood there like an idiot for about 10 seconds and managed to mutter p.p.please sit down? More of a question then a command. After the beginning jitters I started to get going and talked about myself and my background as much as possible so I didn't have to talk about Math. Now all of this is after three of the Math teachers told me I was cute and asked me out to lunch. Don't get me wrong I"m not bragging it's just that I kind of had a lot on my plate at the time and that just made me even more flustered!! I eventually got through it all and ended nervously but proud that I finished. I thought if nothing else the folks back home won't believe that I taught a Math class.
I'm going out with all of these teachers for the 4th of July...I hope all of you are having a great time and a great 4th! Drink one for me!
Here's to you,
Nebraska
That night I was dead tired and walking back to the apartment and Matt and Brooke were walking out. They said they were going to have a few beers with his classmates so very reluctantly I went with them :)
We went to a place they normally go where you sit on the floor, not easy for me! I talked to a person working in Burma (not Burmese) and strangely enough actually got recruited to go work in Burma as well. At least that's what it sounded like...in reality he is part of the pro-democracy group that is there. They print fliers, teach classes, and spread as much awarness as they can about Human Rights. It was very interesting and a little more cladestine then I'm used to. (Don't worry mom I'm not going over there anytime soon). After a few "towers" of beers we decided to check out this new joint that is called Vintage. We walk in, and they offered us front row seats, well none of us knew what that meant because we thought it was just a bar. Low and behold a metal rock band comes out and starts jamming away. As much as I tried I couldn't help it and 3 songs into their set I yelled "Play some Journey Man". Yes, I'm sorry to all of you for that! I made friends with the lead singer and he said as long as we (about 8 of us) keep coming back they will learn an english song for us. Matt and I will undoubtedly get up there and rock out with them. You haven't been to a concert until you've sat front row at a Thai metal concert, drinking 100 Pipers and water.
Now for the real interesting part. I'm sitting here typing this blog at a computer lab in one of the most prestegious high school's in Southeast Asia. Don't believe me? Tomorrow, the Prime Minister of Thailand is visiting this school! So, how did I end up here? The girls from Loyola that I met in Koh Samed work here and told me to come visit and sit in on some of their classes since I'm so into working with kids. Granted, these kids get dropped off my limos and some of them actually own their own resorts (another story for another time). As I get to this school after 5 hours of sleep, hungover, and a long long walk after the bus dropped me off at the wrong place I met with the head teacher. Little did I know that I was interviewing for a job today. Luckily I had worn my suit, without the jacket. I talked to her, then filled out an application and sat in front of their board members trying to fill up 30 minutes for the only question they asked "tell us about yourself". After this they took me up to a very cute teacher and introduced me. I was then informed that I needed to teach a class of 60 Thai boys about Standard Deviation...and yes, the class starts in 30 minutes. That's right...MATH! I assume if you are reading this you know that Math is Adam's thing NOT MINE!! Math is easily my worst subject and they wanted me to teach this to 10th graders. Not even little kids!! And to top it off I had 30 minutes to put a lesson plan together on something I'm sure I cheated on throughout high school. Let me tell you something...I A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E-L-Y BOMBED IT!!! They all stood up and in unision said hi to me, welcomed me, and kept standing and starring at me. Again me being the idiot I am didn't realize they were doing this to me and I thought they were doing it to the other 6 teachers in the room that were evaluating me. So I stood there like an idiot for about 10 seconds and managed to mutter p.p.please sit down? More of a question then a command. After the beginning jitters I started to get going and talked about myself and my background as much as possible so I didn't have to talk about Math. Now all of this is after three of the Math teachers told me I was cute and asked me out to lunch. Don't get me wrong I"m not bragging it's just that I kind of had a lot on my plate at the time and that just made me even more flustered!! I eventually got through it all and ended nervously but proud that I finished. I thought if nothing else the folks back home won't believe that I taught a Math class.
I'm going out with all of these teachers for the 4th of July...I hope all of you are having a great time and a great 4th! Drink one for me!
Here's to you,
Nebraska
Monday, June 30, 2008
Bob Marley
"Love would never leave us alone”
"Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?”
"One good thing about music, when it hits- you feel no pain”
"Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don't complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don't bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality . Wake Up and Live!”
couldn't just pick one quote!
"Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?”
"One good thing about music, when it hits- you feel no pain”
"Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don't complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don't bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality . Wake Up and Live!”
couldn't just pick one quote!
Koh Samed
4 days on a tropical island...breathtaking.
I went with 3 of Matt's classmates (all girls) which made for a very dramatic trip. When we first arrived they needed to "get ready" for the beach...so I put on a swimsuit...waited and waited...finally making it down to the beach I counted to 3 and ran into the water. It was very shallow for a very long time and in typical Michaud fashion I hit a hole and tweaked my ankle. So for the rest of Friday I walked with a limp. The water was a warm blue green that you could see right through to the white sand. The waves were breaking fairly late and it was too shallow to play so we all just stayed out into the water until dark. I was able to see the sunset sink below the green hills while bobbing in the ocean. Again, in true Michaud fashion, the nights get a little hazy and memories a little fuzzy. I do know that after watching the sunset I wanted to watch the sunrise so I didn't go to sleep until Saturday morning at about 6:00 then the girls woke up and wanted to go to breakfast at 7:00...I was okay with that. But I'm getting ahead of myself, Friday night we went to a couple of different bars and I met a few beautiful girls from New York that are teaching in Bangkok. I believe it was one of there birthday's but in any case we exchanged information and I plan on shadowing them sometime this week or next. At another one of the bars I saw one of the guys that work at our bungalow and we sat and talked for a long time, always the opportunist I tried to see if I could get a price cut for the bungalow if I came once a month. Saturday I spent the day walking up and down the beach as well as sleeping out on the beach as well. A few beers in the afternoon and I was feeling pretty good for that night. We met up with the New York girls again and one of them attempted to show me how to Salsa dance. It looked more like a seizure plagued crab trying to spin some stranger around...it did not go so well but was still a lot of fun. We hung out with them for the rest of the night and decided to go for a night swim which didn't end so well for two reasons one of the girls got her purse stolen and I got locked out of the room, don't worry I eventually got in and I won the girl a Winnie the Pooh bear to replace her purse. Sunday two of the girls left and the remaining one decided we should have an early night so we won't feel like shit the next day as we travel back. I didn't think that was such a bad idea so as she went and got a massage I sat on the beach with a bottle of rum and a coke. I was listening to Buffett and Marley and couldn't be happier. It was simply paradise, and sitting alone on the beach was the 3rd best time I had at Koh Samed. We headed out that night and decided to sit down and have a Hookah (basically a bong with flavored tobacco) the girl I was with decided to go to bed early and I made friends with a group of British people sitting next to us. The night got very interesting with them and their German friend but knowing I had to go and travel back the next day I decided to hit the sack before anything got to bad. I made it up to our room at about 3:00 and she woke me up at 8:00 to leave. Needless to say it was a very interesting trip. For some reason the New York girls, the British girls, and the girls I were with have come accustomed to calling me Nebraska. Apparently it's funny that that is where I'm fun and the name has started to stick...odd but not the worst thing I've been called. I will admit that I might have had a little more fun if I'd gone by myself but, hey there is always next weekend! :)
New news...I'm going to go on a visa run sometime this week, it is expensive and the stamp only lasts for 30 days so I'd have to do it monthly. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to do this. If I get a job with the New York girls I think I can get a visa but it is a year commitment and an 8-5 job leaving less time to do the other volunteer work. Speaking of which I have heard back from Habitat for Humanity that has projects in the Bangkok area I cold work in (or they had mentioned office work, but I'm definitely not interested in that). Also, I finally got a few contacts at PC(USA) which I have e-mailed and will hopefully hear back from them soon. I received an article from ActionAid Thailand that desperately needed revising. Helping out their lone media relations person is still an option but in this very indirect culture helping is a lot harder then I thought. I'm still waiting to hear back from Mercy Centre, if I haven't heard from them soon I think I will just stop by.
Besides all that things are going really well, I'm burnt to a crisp and anxiously awaiting to see about my Visa, shadowing, and making it back to the beach as soon as possible. I miss all of you guys and hope all is well. Again, I appreciate the e-mail's and posts, my Internet connection is shaky at best but I will always try and respond the best I can.
Here's to you,
Nebraska
I went with 3 of Matt's classmates (all girls) which made for a very dramatic trip. When we first arrived they needed to "get ready" for the beach...so I put on a swimsuit...waited and waited...finally making it down to the beach I counted to 3 and ran into the water. It was very shallow for a very long time and in typical Michaud fashion I hit a hole and tweaked my ankle. So for the rest of Friday I walked with a limp. The water was a warm blue green that you could see right through to the white sand. The waves were breaking fairly late and it was too shallow to play so we all just stayed out into the water until dark. I was able to see the sunset sink below the green hills while bobbing in the ocean. Again, in true Michaud fashion, the nights get a little hazy and memories a little fuzzy. I do know that after watching the sunset I wanted to watch the sunrise so I didn't go to sleep until Saturday morning at about 6:00 then the girls woke up and wanted to go to breakfast at 7:00...I was okay with that. But I'm getting ahead of myself, Friday night we went to a couple of different bars and I met a few beautiful girls from New York that are teaching in Bangkok. I believe it was one of there birthday's but in any case we exchanged information and I plan on shadowing them sometime this week or next. At another one of the bars I saw one of the guys that work at our bungalow and we sat and talked for a long time, always the opportunist I tried to see if I could get a price cut for the bungalow if I came once a month. Saturday I spent the day walking up and down the beach as well as sleeping out on the beach as well. A few beers in the afternoon and I was feeling pretty good for that night. We met up with the New York girls again and one of them attempted to show me how to Salsa dance. It looked more like a seizure plagued crab trying to spin some stranger around...it did not go so well but was still a lot of fun. We hung out with them for the rest of the night and decided to go for a night swim which didn't end so well for two reasons one of the girls got her purse stolen and I got locked out of the room, don't worry I eventually got in and I won the girl a Winnie the Pooh bear to replace her purse. Sunday two of the girls left and the remaining one decided we should have an early night so we won't feel like shit the next day as we travel back. I didn't think that was such a bad idea so as she went and got a massage I sat on the beach with a bottle of rum and a coke. I was listening to Buffett and Marley and couldn't be happier. It was simply paradise, and sitting alone on the beach was the 3rd best time I had at Koh Samed. We headed out that night and decided to sit down and have a Hookah (basically a bong with flavored tobacco) the girl I was with decided to go to bed early and I made friends with a group of British people sitting next to us. The night got very interesting with them and their German friend but knowing I had to go and travel back the next day I decided to hit the sack before anything got to bad. I made it up to our room at about 3:00 and she woke me up at 8:00 to leave. Needless to say it was a very interesting trip. For some reason the New York girls, the British girls, and the girls I were with have come accustomed to calling me Nebraska. Apparently it's funny that that is where I'm fun and the name has started to stick...odd but not the worst thing I've been called. I will admit that I might have had a little more fun if I'd gone by myself but, hey there is always next weekend! :)
New news...I'm going to go on a visa run sometime this week, it is expensive and the stamp only lasts for 30 days so I'd have to do it monthly. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to do this. If I get a job with the New York girls I think I can get a visa but it is a year commitment and an 8-5 job leaving less time to do the other volunteer work. Speaking of which I have heard back from Habitat for Humanity that has projects in the Bangkok area I cold work in (or they had mentioned office work, but I'm definitely not interested in that). Also, I finally got a few contacts at PC(USA) which I have e-mailed and will hopefully hear back from them soon. I received an article from ActionAid Thailand that desperately needed revising. Helping out their lone media relations person is still an option but in this very indirect culture helping is a lot harder then I thought. I'm still waiting to hear back from Mercy Centre, if I haven't heard from them soon I think I will just stop by.
Besides all that things are going really well, I'm burnt to a crisp and anxiously awaiting to see about my Visa, shadowing, and making it back to the beach as soon as possible. I miss all of you guys and hope all is well. Again, I appreciate the e-mail's and posts, my Internet connection is shaky at best but I will always try and respond the best I can.
Here's to you,
Nebraska
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
John Allen
Here, troubles are still Prevalent
But no longer Relevant
Fate does not Forget
Fate Redeems
...think about it! :)
But no longer Relevant
Fate does not Forget
Fate Redeems
...think about it! :)
1 Month Update
After a delay and a missed flight we were able to spend a day like movie stars in Hollywood with Jessica Schmidt. The flight over wasn't bad at all except for the fact Matt and I didn't sleep at all. There were enough movies and excitment to get you through the flight. We landed and miraculously recieved our luggage, I obtained a visa, and we then had a taxi driver take us to Mahidol University where we spent the equivalant of a fortune at the hotel on campus. The next day we spent looking for apartments which we found a beautiful, new, and safe place. We proceeded to look for jobs and volunteer organizations while Matt was busy getting ready for school. We started working for ActionAid Thailand with their Global Action School program and Hunger Free campaign. We also have gotten involved with Goodwill here in Thailand (no not like our Goodwill). It is a women's rights organization where Matt and I aren't neccessarily allowed to participate but we are helping with the curriculum. Now I know some of you are wondering what the hell I"m doing helping a women's rights organization but with the sex trade and the forced labor they have here I thought that they may be some people that need the most help. Not to mention that it might be a good line down the road when I'm trying to pick up women "You know I used to work for a women's rights organization". :) I had an interesting night where I was locked out of my hallway and had to climb a ladder from the 5th floor down to the third floor...sounds easy but when you're a Michaud the simplest task is a prime opportunity for you to hurt yourself..."It aint easy being a Michaud" --The entire Michaud Family. I am still in contact with a couple of orphanages and am working to be able to help them out. I suppose I'm happy that it is so hard to do, there are a ton of sicko's here and I'd rather it be hard to get in to help then easy. But that is something I still really really want to do as well as get to the beach. Besides a very awkward night at PatPong I haven't had a lot to write about because I haven't visited a lot of places I wanted to get to (THE BEACH) and haven't yet made it to an orphanage. Though I did make it to a 1st-12 grade school and we talked about Peace which was probably the most fun I've had here.
I spent about $60 and 5 hours at the Immigration office today to get a 7 day extension on my visa. To put that in perspecitve I was expecting to get a 60-105 day extension, which they apparently don't do anymore. It's been hard since it seems everyone's advice or experience is outdated and when I think I have the inside track on what to do I get hit with somethign else. Never fear though, Thailand can't get rid of me that easily. I'll figure something out, be it a visa run, work permit, or I'll sack up and marry a Thai girl.
I hope things are going well for all of you out there. Please keep the e-mails and posts coming. If anyone gets Skype let me know we can talk for free if you have a speaker. I also have an interesting opportunity for some of you women out there that you may be recieving via e-mail from me our a family member.
Keep the Heads Ringing!
Here's to you,
Michaud
P.S. I am sitting on my balcony in my skivvies drinking a beer watching the palm trees sway and listening to (who else) Buffett. Thought you all should know that.
I spent about $60 and 5 hours at the Immigration office today to get a 7 day extension on my visa. To put that in perspecitve I was expecting to get a 60-105 day extension, which they apparently don't do anymore. It's been hard since it seems everyone's advice or experience is outdated and when I think I have the inside track on what to do I get hit with somethign else. Never fear though, Thailand can't get rid of me that easily. I'll figure something out, be it a visa run, work permit, or I'll sack up and marry a Thai girl.
I hope things are going well for all of you out there. Please keep the e-mails and posts coming. If anyone gets Skype let me know we can talk for free if you have a speaker. I also have an interesting opportunity for some of you women out there that you may be recieving via e-mail from me our a family member.
Keep the Heads Ringing!
Here's to you,
Michaud
P.S. I am sitting on my balcony in my skivvies drinking a beer watching the palm trees sway and listening to (who else) Buffett. Thought you all should know that.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
The Change...Garth Brooks
I can't tell you guys how much I appreciate the e-mails, facebook and blog posts. It makes it a lot easier to keep the blog updated when I know people are actually reading it. I am just not able to post pictures on this blog, however I was able to do it on facebook and I'm sure the majority of you know somebody on facebook so check them out. Otherwise e-mail me and I'll see if I can't get them to you.
It was interesting to me, today, I had somebody ask why I came over here and gave everything up. I went through the typical speech I've told all of you so many times. I was on the internet today and happened across this song that I believe sums everything up pretty well. I think the majority of you out there know my intentions for coming out here was not to necessarily "find myself" I've always known I'm my Mother's son, My father's admirer, My friend's loyal friend, A leader, a follower, a big brother, a wise-cracking cousin, an ornery grandson, an average student, a unproductive co-worker, etc.
With that said...I believe the song sums it up the best
One hand reaches out, And pulls a lost soul from harm.
While a thousand more go unspoken for.
They say, "What good have you done, By saving just this one?"
It's like whispering a prayer, In the fury of a storm.
And I hear them sayin',
You'll never change things.
And no matter what you do,
It's still the same thing.
But it's not the world,
That I am changing.
I do this so this world will know,
That it will not change me.
This heart still believes,
That love and mercy still exist.
While all the hatreds rage and so many say,
That love is all but pointless,
In madness such as this.
It's like tryin' to stop a fire,
With the moisture from a kiss.
And I hear them sayin',
You'll never change things.
And no matter what you do,
It's still the same thing.
But it's not the world,
That I am changing.
I do this so this world will know,
That it will not change me.
As long as one heart still holds on,
Then hope is never really gone.
An' I hear them sayin',
You'll never change things.
And no matter what you do,
It's still the same thing.
But it's not the world,
That I am changing.
I do this so this world will know,
That it will not change me.
What I do is so,
This world will know,
That it will not change me.
What I do is so,
This world will know,
That it will not change me
Pretty good stuff huh, maybe something to keep in the back of your head!
Here's to you,
~Ryan
It was interesting to me, today, I had somebody ask why I came over here and gave everything up. I went through the typical speech I've told all of you so many times. I was on the internet today and happened across this song that I believe sums everything up pretty well. I think the majority of you out there know my intentions for coming out here was not to necessarily "find myself" I've always known I'm my Mother's son, My father's admirer, My friend's loyal friend, A leader, a follower, a big brother, a wise-cracking cousin, an ornery grandson, an average student, a unproductive co-worker, etc.
With that said...I believe the song sums it up the best
One hand reaches out, And pulls a lost soul from harm.
While a thousand more go unspoken for.
They say, "What good have you done, By saving just this one?"
It's like whispering a prayer, In the fury of a storm.
And I hear them sayin',
You'll never change things.
And no matter what you do,
It's still the same thing.
But it's not the world,
That I am changing.
I do this so this world will know,
That it will not change me.
This heart still believes,
That love and mercy still exist.
While all the hatreds rage and so many say,
That love is all but pointless,
In madness such as this.
It's like tryin' to stop a fire,
With the moisture from a kiss.
And I hear them sayin',
You'll never change things.
And no matter what you do,
It's still the same thing.
But it's not the world,
That I am changing.
I do this so this world will know,
That it will not change me.
As long as one heart still holds on,
Then hope is never really gone.
An' I hear them sayin',
You'll never change things.
And no matter what you do,
It's still the same thing.
But it's not the world,
That I am changing.
I do this so this world will know,
That it will not change me.
What I do is so,
This world will know,
That it will not change me.
What I do is so,
This world will know,
That it will not change me
Pretty good stuff huh, maybe something to keep in the back of your head!
Here's to you,
~Ryan
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
PatPong, G.A.S., and Misc
Well a lot has been going on recently hence me not posting in awhile. Brooke and I have been getting really involved with ActionAid Thailand. But I'll get to that later...
My mom randomly met a lady at Jazzercise who now lives in Thailand. So we met up with her husband who was absolutely a Godsend. He explained a lot about Bangkok, some do's and dont's, and a lot about politics. They also have an amazing place and some really good contacts. In fact we randomly met two of his friends at a store and they are going out with Brooke to talk about women right's organizations tomorrow. Brooke, had told Matt and I that we needed to go to Patpong at least once so we know what it is like. Daniel offered to take us since he knew the ropes and wanted to make sure we didn't get into trouble. And trust me you don't find trouble over there you have to actively avoid it. I was thinking it would be more like a strip-club on steroids...I was way wrong. It was INSANE and I'm completely thankful Daniel and Brooke were there, we'll leave it at that.
ActionAid desperately needs our help but the more I try the more I see that it may not be possible. This culture is so indirect that it is hard for them to accomplish anything or come to any type of conclusions. They call it a "save the face" culture. They don't want anyone to look bad or feel bad. Basically a hell of a lot different then the way business is done in the States. However, I did get involved with their program Global Action School's which is teaching teachers and kids about global issues. Yesterday I went to a 1st-12th grade school and we talked about peace, took pictures, and wrote about peace. The atmosphere was very unique...some writings had the f-word in them, there were incredibly graphic pictures of inhumane acts and one thing that made me incredibly awkward was there were a lot of "girly-boys" there as well. These kids are only in high-school but they have accepted there sexuality and so have there peers. One peace booth had two "girly-boys" dressed up in dresses giving massages behind a sheet for a fundraiser. Ying who is the head of GAS told me she wanted to showme something took me the booth and closed the sheet where I found myself in a high-school's auditorium, enclosed in a sheet with two guys dressed up as girls giving massages to their classmates. All of whom wanted to give me one...and the answer to your question is no, I didn't get one and was completely freaked out from the incident. I think it's great that people are so accepting here but I was less then ready for that culture shock.
But besides that incident watching all the kids running around eager to share with me what they learned about peace (in english) not to mention seeing what they thought of America and certain issues across the world was a very rewarding experience. It gave me a renewed mission.
I have upped my search efforts to find an orphanage around Bangkok that I can help at. I have found many in the Chang Mai area as well as down south which will be great to go visit for a week or so, but hopefully I can find something more permanant soon.
We also went and saw the JW Thompson house which is what I would imagine Jimmy Buffett's house would look like if he had lived and worked in Bangkok. Check out the story behing JW Thompson it is pretty interesting but by far the coolest part was his house!
Things are still going well for me, as I told some work buddies the trucks here have pretty intense paintings and are all Isuzu and Hino. It seems that traffic lines and rules are more of a suggestion then laws here and the non-existant sidewalks always make for an exciting walk to campus (for our 85 cent dinner).
I don't know who all is reading this but for those of you in Nebraksa hope you guys are staying fairly dry and safe. Hope everything is going well with all of you and please keep the e-mails and posts coming!!
Here's to you,
Michaud
My mom randomly met a lady at Jazzercise who now lives in Thailand. So we met up with her husband who was absolutely a Godsend. He explained a lot about Bangkok, some do's and dont's, and a lot about politics. They also have an amazing place and some really good contacts. In fact we randomly met two of his friends at a store and they are going out with Brooke to talk about women right's organizations tomorrow. Brooke, had told Matt and I that we needed to go to Patpong at least once so we know what it is like. Daniel offered to take us since he knew the ropes and wanted to make sure we didn't get into trouble. And trust me you don't find trouble over there you have to actively avoid it. I was thinking it would be more like a strip-club on steroids...I was way wrong. It was INSANE and I'm completely thankful Daniel and Brooke were there, we'll leave it at that.
ActionAid desperately needs our help but the more I try the more I see that it may not be possible. This culture is so indirect that it is hard for them to accomplish anything or come to any type of conclusions. They call it a "save the face" culture. They don't want anyone to look bad or feel bad. Basically a hell of a lot different then the way business is done in the States. However, I did get involved with their program Global Action School's which is teaching teachers and kids about global issues. Yesterday I went to a 1st-12th grade school and we talked about peace, took pictures, and wrote about peace. The atmosphere was very unique...some writings had the f-word in them, there were incredibly graphic pictures of inhumane acts and one thing that made me incredibly awkward was there were a lot of "girly-boys" there as well. These kids are only in high-school but they have accepted there sexuality and so have there peers. One peace booth had two "girly-boys" dressed up in dresses giving massages behind a sheet for a fundraiser. Ying who is the head of GAS told me she wanted to showme something took me the booth and closed the sheet where I found myself in a high-school's auditorium, enclosed in a sheet with two guys dressed up as girls giving massages to their classmates. All of whom wanted to give me one...and the answer to your question is no, I didn't get one and was completely freaked out from the incident. I think it's great that people are so accepting here but I was less then ready for that culture shock.
But besides that incident watching all the kids running around eager to share with me what they learned about peace (in english) not to mention seeing what they thought of America and certain issues across the world was a very rewarding experience. It gave me a renewed mission.
I have upped my search efforts to find an orphanage around Bangkok that I can help at. I have found many in the Chang Mai area as well as down south which will be great to go visit for a week or so, but hopefully I can find something more permanant soon.
We also went and saw the JW Thompson house which is what I would imagine Jimmy Buffett's house would look like if he had lived and worked in Bangkok. Check out the story behing JW Thompson it is pretty interesting but by far the coolest part was his house!
Things are still going well for me, as I told some work buddies the trucks here have pretty intense paintings and are all Isuzu and Hino. It seems that traffic lines and rules are more of a suggestion then laws here and the non-existant sidewalks always make for an exciting walk to campus (for our 85 cent dinner).
I don't know who all is reading this but for those of you in Nebraksa hope you guys are staying fairly dry and safe. Hope everything is going well with all of you and please keep the e-mails and posts coming!!
Here's to you,
Michaud
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Update
A lot has happened in the last few days but I've had really bad internet connection so I haven't been able to write...sorry about that.
First off another one of Matt's classmates arrived she is Dutch and a lot of fun. While we were eating at "our spot" a lady came up with a sack of some type of vegetable which I thought was really weird to do while we were sitting in a restaurant. Then I looked over and there was a friggin baby elephant!!!! So Matt and I both got to feed the baby elephant for what I think was about 50 cents each. I couldn't stop smiling the rest of the night. It was awesome!! We went to move the Dutch girl's things into her room and when we got there the "manager" was drunk off his ass and could barely walk...then before we knew it there were about 4 drunk thai guys in this little apartment and Matt and I decided that she would stay with the Irish girl until she got a better lock on her door. So that night was pretty interesting.
Yesterday we spend the day in Bangkok with one of Brooke's random contacts her name was Nila and her friend was Juan. They could quite possibly be the nicest people in the whole world. They not only took us around the Grand Palace, markets, and a few other temples but they also told us all about the Buddahism religion and how it pertains to the temples. It was great not to only appreciate the beauty of everything but learn about the tradition as well. We also took a ride on the long boat along the river and got a unique view of Bangkok and the Palace as well. Then instead of getting on a bus for the hour ride back to our place they were nice enough to drive us back, which took 15 minutes.
Brooke and I are going to go to ActionAID tomorrow and work a full day also just to see what they are all about, and little Matty starts school tomorrow. My mom has actually gotten me in contact with two people that live in Bangkok who seem like they could have a lot of opportunities for us as well. I am really excited to see what they may have to offer.
I know this may seem odd to a lot of you but we have yet to go crazy or do any real partying. We have seen a lot of the sights: china town, the biggest Pagoda in the world, the largest Buddah in the world, the Grand Palace, temples, and a breath taking oasis of lush green forestry that will no doubt serve as a terrific writing spot. We have yet to enjoy any clubs or bars in Bangkok or any of the beaches. The plan was to go to one of the most popular islands this weekend but Brooke and I will be working on Sunday for ActionAID so we may just go to a beach that is an hour away on Friday and come back Saturday. I'm sure I will have even better stories after the beach.
Everything is going great over here and we are still having a blast. I'm not feeling so good today so we are taking it easy and just getting ready for a big week. Hope all is well on your side of the world wherever that may be!
Here's to you,
Ryan
First off another one of Matt's classmates arrived she is Dutch and a lot of fun. While we were eating at "our spot" a lady came up with a sack of some type of vegetable which I thought was really weird to do while we were sitting in a restaurant. Then I looked over and there was a friggin baby elephant!!!! So Matt and I both got to feed the baby elephant for what I think was about 50 cents each. I couldn't stop smiling the rest of the night. It was awesome!! We went to move the Dutch girl's things into her room and when we got there the "manager" was drunk off his ass and could barely walk...then before we knew it there were about 4 drunk thai guys in this little apartment and Matt and I decided that she would stay with the Irish girl until she got a better lock on her door. So that night was pretty interesting.
Yesterday we spend the day in Bangkok with one of Brooke's random contacts her name was Nila and her friend was Juan. They could quite possibly be the nicest people in the whole world. They not only took us around the Grand Palace, markets, and a few other temples but they also told us all about the Buddahism religion and how it pertains to the temples. It was great not to only appreciate the beauty of everything but learn about the tradition as well. We also took a ride on the long boat along the river and got a unique view of Bangkok and the Palace as well. Then instead of getting on a bus for the hour ride back to our place they were nice enough to drive us back, which took 15 minutes.
Brooke and I are going to go to ActionAID tomorrow and work a full day also just to see what they are all about, and little Matty starts school tomorrow. My mom has actually gotten me in contact with two people that live in Bangkok who seem like they could have a lot of opportunities for us as well. I am really excited to see what they may have to offer.
I know this may seem odd to a lot of you but we have yet to go crazy or do any real partying. We have seen a lot of the sights: china town, the biggest Pagoda in the world, the largest Buddah in the world, the Grand Palace, temples, and a breath taking oasis of lush green forestry that will no doubt serve as a terrific writing spot. We have yet to enjoy any clubs or bars in Bangkok or any of the beaches. The plan was to go to one of the most popular islands this weekend but Brooke and I will be working on Sunday for ActionAID so we may just go to a beach that is an hour away on Friday and come back Saturday. I'm sure I will have even better stories after the beach.
Everything is going great over here and we are still having a blast. I'm not feeling so good today so we are taking it easy and just getting ready for a big week. Hope all is well on your side of the world wherever that may be!
Here's to you,
Ryan
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Longchenpa(14th century Tibet)
Since everything is but an apparition, having nothing to do with good or bad, acceptance or rejection, one may well burst out in laughter.
Culture
I am incredibly tired today because that damn rooster wouldn't shut up and woke me up extremely early so I apologize if this post doesn't make a whole lot of sense:
Well we went to the embassy yesterday and they basically told me to do some border hopping in order to renew my visa but I will keep you informed. We spent the rest of the day in Bangkok and had a blast. We visited some emaculate temples which I do have pictures for and will attempt to get those posted. We also went to Chinatown and that was pretty interesting...very dirty and very crowded but it really looked like a scene right out of a movie. Everyone is very friendly but we noticed that they all have the same line "I go to USA next week" then comes the helpful directions to a store that they get commission for if they bring customers. We took a taxi from the embassy to china town for about 50 baht (little less then 2 dollars). Then we basically took a 2 hour tour on a tuk-tuk to 3 different temples and ending at Kosahn road total price was 30 baht. But we had to go fake interest in two shops that he gets commission for...we thought it was an even trade.
Kosahn road is a HUGE toursit street and basically you have a bunch of bars, hostels, and street venders. We got off of the tuk-tuk and within 4 seconds we had someone asking us if we wanted to see the ping-pong show...use your imagination. Throughout the few hours we were there we probably got asked about the ping-pong show 10 times. Brooke decided to go get a massage so inevitably Matt and I sat at a bar and people watched. With everything from Europeans to Indians, dirtballs to children it was pretty interesting. Then Matt overheard the guy at the table next to us bartering for the price of one of our waitresses it was very disturbing.
The pollution is pretty horrific in Bangkok and I don't think I could ever live there. We all felt pretty light headed at the end of it, I think we will be investing in hankerchiefs or something by the end of the day today. Another thing we noticed is that everybody drinks out of straws around here. We sometime wonder if we are being rude taking giant swigs of our water but nobody pays much attention to the farangs from Nebraska.
Matt was the first one to fall...he couldn'g get off the pot two days ago due to an interesting meal the supervisor of his program gave him while he was at the hospital doing his check-up (for insurance). So that was kind of a lost day for him, the nice thing was that we got to have pizza because of it. The pizza was delicious and we decided that if anyone gets sick that's when we can have pizza, a little taste of home.
There are packs of wild dogs around everywhere and they also have a lot of dogs as pets so their dynamic is pretty interesting. I will do my best to convince them to have a "talk" with my rooster so I can finally get some sleep but we will see how that goes.
Besides that we are just adjusting to life as it pertains to the dream, I will keep you guys updated and try and get some pictures posted soon.
Here's to you,
Ryan Michaud
Well we went to the embassy yesterday and they basically told me to do some border hopping in order to renew my visa but I will keep you informed. We spent the rest of the day in Bangkok and had a blast. We visited some emaculate temples which I do have pictures for and will attempt to get those posted. We also went to Chinatown and that was pretty interesting...very dirty and very crowded but it really looked like a scene right out of a movie. Everyone is very friendly but we noticed that they all have the same line "I go to USA next week" then comes the helpful directions to a store that they get commission for if they bring customers. We took a taxi from the embassy to china town for about 50 baht (little less then 2 dollars). Then we basically took a 2 hour tour on a tuk-tuk to 3 different temples and ending at Kosahn road total price was 30 baht. But we had to go fake interest in two shops that he gets commission for...we thought it was an even trade.
Kosahn road is a HUGE toursit street and basically you have a bunch of bars, hostels, and street venders. We got off of the tuk-tuk and within 4 seconds we had someone asking us if we wanted to see the ping-pong show...use your imagination. Throughout the few hours we were there we probably got asked about the ping-pong show 10 times. Brooke decided to go get a massage so inevitably Matt and I sat at a bar and people watched. With everything from Europeans to Indians, dirtballs to children it was pretty interesting. Then Matt overheard the guy at the table next to us bartering for the price of one of our waitresses it was very disturbing.
The pollution is pretty horrific in Bangkok and I don't think I could ever live there. We all felt pretty light headed at the end of it, I think we will be investing in hankerchiefs or something by the end of the day today. Another thing we noticed is that everybody drinks out of straws around here. We sometime wonder if we are being rude taking giant swigs of our water but nobody pays much attention to the farangs from Nebraska.
Matt was the first one to fall...he couldn'g get off the pot two days ago due to an interesting meal the supervisor of his program gave him while he was at the hospital doing his check-up (for insurance). So that was kind of a lost day for him, the nice thing was that we got to have pizza because of it. The pizza was delicious and we decided that if anyone gets sick that's when we can have pizza, a little taste of home.
There are packs of wild dogs around everywhere and they also have a lot of dogs as pets so their dynamic is pretty interesting. I will do my best to convince them to have a "talk" with my rooster so I can finally get some sleep but we will see how that goes.
Besides that we are just adjusting to life as it pertains to the dream, I will keep you guys updated and try and get some pictures posted soon.
Here's to you,
Ryan Michaud
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
...Proudly Stand Up Next To You
I believe I have found something to stand for, now it's just a matter of stabalizing my footing.
A call to action
I find myself in a foreign land sitting next to a Pakistani, Burmese, Irish, and two other Americans drinking Singha (tastes like Busch Heavy). These people have made the deliberate choice to travel to Thailand and dedicate their lives to bettering the lives of others...Human Rights. They will be writing their thesises on anything from Honor Killings to Starvation, Military Intervention to Women Rights. However it seems that is where the perverbial buck stops. They talk about awarness, books, and the good they can do about spreading knowledge about their respective causes. Now, these people are incredibly smart and had to go through a lot in order to even be accepted into this school. We all know that I am just some ex-salesman from Nebraska who has never claimed to be bright let alone have the warewithall to hold a conversation with these guys. Awareness is key to any cause which is a given (remember marketing major). But being aware of something does not change it, knowledge may be power but it is not change, this world is full of knowledgable authors what its missing is passionate actors. A thesis, a book, a marketing campaign is all great but in the end somebody has to act on your words...why can't you act on them?
The word hipocrite has a bad connotation to it but I believe that we are all hipocrites we are just to selfish to see it. I think of how many times I held the torch for the Omaha Children's Hospital: meetings, pamphlets, presentations, etc. all in the name of awareness of our cause at Dance Marathon. I remember being incredibly upset at family and friends for not giving or not giving enough to a cause that I was so passionate about. But how many visits did I make to the hospital itself (1), how many children did I bring a simple little present for, what good is words and money without a call to action. Letters in a book that accumulate into sentences and a supposed cause are about as good as me trying to order food from a Thai restaurant: I will eventually get my order in but who knows what they will bring me or what the outcome will be.
I will keep you updated on my travels, we are headed into Bangkok tomorrow to visit the embassy and to see what I can do about a Visa.
Here's to you,
Ryan, Junior, Husband, Brother, Michaud, Billy the Kid
The word hipocrite has a bad connotation to it but I believe that we are all hipocrites we are just to selfish to see it. I think of how many times I held the torch for the Omaha Children's Hospital: meetings, pamphlets, presentations, etc. all in the name of awareness of our cause at Dance Marathon. I remember being incredibly upset at family and friends for not giving or not giving enough to a cause that I was so passionate about. But how many visits did I make to the hospital itself (1), how many children did I bring a simple little present for, what good is words and money without a call to action. Letters in a book that accumulate into sentences and a supposed cause are about as good as me trying to order food from a Thai restaurant: I will eventually get my order in but who knows what they will bring me or what the outcome will be.
I will keep you updated on my travels, we are headed into Bangkok tomorrow to visit the embassy and to see what I can do about a Visa.
Here's to you,
Ryan, Junior, Husband, Brother, Michaud, Billy the Kid
Sunday, June 1, 2008
First Thai Post
All right, all right, I know I haven't gotten to post anything yet and all of you have probably given up on me...however I now have internet access in my room and will be able to blog all the time. And with the fact that there is so much to say because I haven't been on you can bet that I will blog much more frequent. I'll try and give you a quick recap...
We were delayed on our trip to Cali so we missed our connecting flight to Bangkok we had a good friend Jessica Schmidt come pick us up and we stayed with her for the night and hung out until our flight came the next night. She has turned me on to PinkBerry if you are ever in Cali go get one it is delicious. As far as the 17 hour flight is concerned Matt and I didn't sleep a whole lot (Brooke didn't have that problem) but we had a mean game of Pong going and watched quite a few movies. I was surprised how easy the flight was, Thai airways is the way to go!! After landing we took about an hour taxi ride to Mahidol university and decided instead of lugging all of our bags around we would just stay at the hotel on campus for the night until we found something else. Cost for one night in hotel: let's just say it was as much as it would be for 1 month's rent. We really got screwed there. After miles upon miles of walking the next day we found a place with 2 beds that was pretty clean for 4,000 Baht. As much as neither one of us wanted to do it it was looking like Matt Brooke and I were about to become really really close. However, we ended up finding an absolutely beautiful place with good security, internet, bathroom, hot water (which you don't need), t.v., etc. Those two are on the 5th floor with a great view and I am on the 3rd floor which doesn't have as good as a view but I can see the tip of the Pagoda which is kind of cool. And we can walk to campus which is a HUGE PLUS!
As far as the culture is concerned it is absoluely incredible: they are really big on cleanliness so everything is really clean and it truely is the land of smiles everyone is incredibly nice. It has been great learning just the little intracacies of this great place. The little things are what you have to be careful about as far as the traffic coming at you from the other side of the road, escalators going the other way, and they say you need to be careful with taxis but we haven't had a need for them yet. One thing I have really enjoyed so far is getting to know Matt's classmates he has someone from Pakistan, Ireland, and Burma which we have all gotten to be good friends (the rest haven't arrived yet). Just learning about their cultures and their incredible experiences has been such a joy. Even all of them have been eager to help me find a job or volunteer organization so I can get a visa.
It is insanely hot and humid here and the breeze is anything but cool. I have found that it is either the fact that I was a pirate in my last life or because I am a Parrot Head in this life that the heat and humidity hasn't bothered me at all, you just have to accept the fact that you are going to sweat all day and have a bottle of water in your hand all the time.
I know this is pretty broad but I will get into some stories and more detail now that I will be able to get on frequently. And of course I will be posting deep insights, quotes, and the like that will most likely be fodder for making fun of me when I get back...but to hell with you guys :)
It is by no means a vacation here but the experience is greater then anything I can imagine and I am looking forward to sharing it with you. I promise to have more frequent posts please keep responding. Thank you all once again
Here's to you,
Ryan
We were delayed on our trip to Cali so we missed our connecting flight to Bangkok we had a good friend Jessica Schmidt come pick us up and we stayed with her for the night and hung out until our flight came the next night. She has turned me on to PinkBerry if you are ever in Cali go get one it is delicious. As far as the 17 hour flight is concerned Matt and I didn't sleep a whole lot (Brooke didn't have that problem) but we had a mean game of Pong going and watched quite a few movies. I was surprised how easy the flight was, Thai airways is the way to go!! After landing we took about an hour taxi ride to Mahidol university and decided instead of lugging all of our bags around we would just stay at the hotel on campus for the night until we found something else. Cost for one night in hotel: let's just say it was as much as it would be for 1 month's rent. We really got screwed there. After miles upon miles of walking the next day we found a place with 2 beds that was pretty clean for 4,000 Baht. As much as neither one of us wanted to do it it was looking like Matt Brooke and I were about to become really really close. However, we ended up finding an absolutely beautiful place with good security, internet, bathroom, hot water (which you don't need), t.v., etc. Those two are on the 5th floor with a great view and I am on the 3rd floor which doesn't have as good as a view but I can see the tip of the Pagoda which is kind of cool. And we can walk to campus which is a HUGE PLUS!
As far as the culture is concerned it is absoluely incredible: they are really big on cleanliness so everything is really clean and it truely is the land of smiles everyone is incredibly nice. It has been great learning just the little intracacies of this great place. The little things are what you have to be careful about as far as the traffic coming at you from the other side of the road, escalators going the other way, and they say you need to be careful with taxis but we haven't had a need for them yet. One thing I have really enjoyed so far is getting to know Matt's classmates he has someone from Pakistan, Ireland, and Burma which we have all gotten to be good friends (the rest haven't arrived yet). Just learning about their cultures and their incredible experiences has been such a joy. Even all of them have been eager to help me find a job or volunteer organization so I can get a visa.
It is insanely hot and humid here and the breeze is anything but cool. I have found that it is either the fact that I was a pirate in my last life or because I am a Parrot Head in this life that the heat and humidity hasn't bothered me at all, you just have to accept the fact that you are going to sweat all day and have a bottle of water in your hand all the time.
I know this is pretty broad but I will get into some stories and more detail now that I will be able to get on frequently. And of course I will be posting deep insights, quotes, and the like that will most likely be fodder for making fun of me when I get back...but to hell with you guys :)
It is by no means a vacation here but the experience is greater then anything I can imagine and I am looking forward to sharing it with you. I promise to have more frequent posts please keep responding. Thank you all once again
Here's to you,
Ryan
Friday, May 16, 2008
When the end is near
When they ask me:
Why would you go?
Who do you know?
How do you feel?
Why give it all up and start anew?
I answer, I'm not doing this for them or for you
I don't feel fear
I don't feel numb
I do this to see what I will become!
Why would you go?
Who do you know?
How do you feel?
Why give it all up and start anew?
I answer, I'm not doing this for them or for you
I don't feel fear
I don't feel numb
I do this to see what I will become!
No Mo Money...Last Day of Work
I received an e-mail from a friend at work today and he simply said "you only go around once...you might as well enjoy it" That's basically what it all comes down to. As I get ready to leave behind my source of income, my co-workers, my friends, my clients, and my vast knowledge of the trucking industry I am more certain then ever that this is a step I need to take in my life. It's hard not to reflect on the past year and a half without questioning the future, but as they say "you only go around once"
Nebraska has been fun, but it's time for a new adventure...
thank you to all of my co-workers you guys have been great and I hope we can stay in touch!
Nebraska has been fun, but it's time for a new adventure...
thank you to all of my co-workers you guys have been great and I hope we can stay in touch!
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Edwin H. Friedman:
The colossal misunderstanding of our time is the assumption that insight will work with people who are unmotivated to change. Communication does not depend on syntax, or eloquence, or rhetoric, or articulation but on the emotional context in which the message is being heard. People can only hear you when they are moving toward you, and they are not likely to when your words are pursuing them. Even the choices words lose their power when they are used to overpower. Attitudes are the real figures of speech.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Love...
Not a gift from God, but the reality of our drive in everything we do. There are all types of Love, Love for oneself, Love for others, Love for your God, Love for your boats, Love for your cars, Love for money, etc. We do everything for our pursuit to find love. However, I do believe that there are few moments where you can witness a Love that doesn't have repercussions: Others can let you down, you may lose yourself, and boats can sink. But, I have to believe that the Love I saw Saturday night is the Love that God intended all of us to have. True Love is adapting to the weather, being completely oblivious but dedicated to the end result, True Love is a porno kiss in a Federal building in front of your grandparents, it's a giant leap of faith into a foreign world. And it's everything God intended us to have.
Happy 3 Day Anniversary Matt and Brooke!!
Happy 3 Day Anniversary Matt and Brooke!!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Quotes
Everything I've ever done was out of fear of being mediocre
-Chet Atkins
Too many people are thinking of security instead of opportunity. They seem to be more afraid of life than death
-James F. Bymes
-Chet Atkins
Too many people are thinking of security instead of opportunity. They seem to be more afraid of life than death
-James F. Bymes
Cat's Out of the Bag
Well my friends, for better or worse, the cat's out of the bag and May 27th I'll be on my way to Nakhon Pathom, Thailand with Matt Mullen and Brooke Deffenbaugh (I'm never calling her Mrs. Mullen).
I appreciate all of you that have given me so much support with my decision to head to Thailand. When people find out that I'm headed over there two questions usually arise, I will now answer them:
1) I am not starting any type of prostitution ring
2) I am not going to come back with a Thai wife
Now that we have those questions answered feel free to e-mail and comment on this blog with any questions you may have for me. Looking forward to seeing you all May 17th!
I appreciate all of you that have given me so much support with my decision to head to Thailand. When people find out that I'm headed over there two questions usually arise, I will now answer them:
1) I am not starting any type of prostitution ring
2) I am not going to come back with a Thai wife
Now that we have those questions answered feel free to e-mail and comment on this blog with any questions you may have for me. Looking forward to seeing you all May 17th!
Friday, April 11, 2008
A Michaud Minute:
Key to picking up women:
Have an Uncle in the band and a crazy Danish chick as your wingman
Have an Uncle in the band and a crazy Danish chick as your wingman
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Quotes
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Going Away Party May 17th
Please join me at my parents house for some wings, beer and wine on May 17th around 7:00p.m. then we will hit up the bars. It will be a good chance to catch up with one another and it would mean a lot to me if you would come.
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