maha-nakhon

first team workout

2010-05-13T11:04:00.003-04:00

First official team meeting and workout was last night. Kind of a basic, relaxed workout just to give everyone an idea of what things are going to be like without really killing us.So once I arrived I settled the finances ($350 for 2 years worth of training and an equipment package). Then I went and got myself weighed and found out I'm up to 157lbs, which hopefully means I've added lean muscle

trying out

2010-04-27T12:44:00.005-04:00

So a couple weeks ago while I was surfing the web I came across an ad saying "MMA Training: 2 years for $350". It piqued my curiosity so I followed the link and learned about the program. It's legit. The head instructor is an established Sambo expert and MMA guy. I checked out a couple of his videos on youtube and he is not the kind of MMA guy that gives MMA a bad rap. So I emailed him and got a

forever

2010-01-09T12:39:00.001-05:00

He's asleep forever now.Thank you. I love you always.

last days

2010-01-08T21:22:00.005-05:00

Not long from now, it's going to be time to say good-bye to my best friend, my constant companion, my son, my brother, my hero, my boss. He's been with me for nearly 17 years. More than half my life.Along the way, he's always been with me. He's seen me go through some of my worst periods of depression, and some of my happiest moments. He has always loved to sit on my lap, sleep next to me, play

motivate

2009-09-13T23:28:00.004-04:00

Motivation comes in different forms. Some people need to be calm, centered, relaxed. They can't train with a cluttered mind. All thoughts of the outside world have to fade away so that they can focus only on their training.Some people need to get really angry, really worked up about something in order to get a good workout; like they need to get their frustrations out on something. All the

Fairtex

2009-08-23T12:42:00.001-04:00

I was very anxious about the training. It's something I had been looking forward to for a number of years. When I got into the gym, the anticipation was driving me nuts. I kept asking Clara over and over "so what do we do? When do we go up? Will they definitely get us? What if they skip us?" She answered all of my questions patiently, even after they twelfth time.The procedure basically goes like

choices

2009-08-12T04:10:00.003-04:00

I generally believe that the Universe is perfect in its own way. I mean this spiritually, not scientifically. I'm not here to talk about astrophysics. Everything happens for a reason. Maybe we don't understand why they happen, and maybe sometimes we're not supposed to.But sometimes the Universe throws an obvious curveball at you for a specific reason. Does that make any sense? I'm talking about

rangsit, round 3

2009-08-11T11:46:00.000-04:00

Saturday afternoon I went back to visit the gang at Rangsit Muay Thai. I had originally planned on going to visit a few days before but thought it would be better to visit on a Saturday so we could go out partying that night since everyone takes Sunday as a rest day. It was really great to see the old gang, especially Ajarn Mor, my trainer for Muay 3 (Advanced). More than anyone else there, he

just remembered

2009-07-30T02:12:00.002-04:00

Back in early July I ate crocodile. While watching a crocodile show. Very surreal kind of experience.I remember distinctly during the part where the human performer opens the crocodile's mouth and sticks his head inside for a few seconds, I was chewing on a piece of crocodile tail.How does it taste? Eh... well the piece I had was EXTREMELY chewy. And I couldn't tell if it had any taste of its own

gettin heavy

2009-07-28T07:31:00.000-04:00

I'm in the province of Sukhothai right now hanging out with my parents at their house. My grandmother, an aunt, and an uncle are visiting from Bangkok for about 10 days.Yesterday we went to the District office to start the process of getting me Thai citizenship. The first step is establishing residence here at my parent's house. This involves getting various documents together and submitting them

going to the well

2009-07-14T11:26:00.000-04:00

During one sparring session, I was in the zone. I lost close matches to the better fighters, and I won decisively against fighters of comparable skill.Sparring two of them, even though I was gassed I still had more energy than either of them and I was able to use it to my advantage. Their attacks were starting to slow down, they were starting to telegraph. Every time they threw a kick, I was able

mental

2009-07-12T22:46:00.005-04:00

I didn't realize until recently how big of a challenge this type of training can be mentally. Obviously, it's extremely physically demanding. Six days of training per week, two sessions per day, two hours per session. And for the advanced students, it's 2 hours back-to-back with only 1 hour break in-between.Physically, your body adapts to this routine and this training pretty quickly. I still gas

canadian bacon

2009-07-10T19:06:00.000-04:00

So during clinch class today, I was paired up with this bruiser from Canada. He was about my height, but probably had an additional 30lbs of muscle on his frame. He said he was a Judo teacher in Canada.This guy was the worst grappling partner I had ever worked with. He was all strength and no technique. He never seemed to bother trying to learn what was being taught, and instead was content to

break

2009-06-30T23:21:00.003-04:00

I passed my Muay Thai Level 2 test. Wasn't so difficult at all, even with the knee injury. Right now I'm on a brief hiatus so I can let my knee heal and so I can catch up with friends and family.Still haven't been in the mood to write. Sorry!I'll be headed back to Rangsit for the Advanced Muay Thai course on 7 July.

notes

2009-06-18T21:08:00.001-04:00

Just some notes. Haven't been in much of a writing mood lately.- Wake up at 6.45a, take a quick cold shower to wake myself up, a tall glass of juice, and I head downstairs for the 7a Muay Thai class.- After class: shower, protein shake, nap. Followed by a light lunch at Chaipoom's and maybe another quick nap.- By 3p it's time for another Muay Thai class. After class it's a shower, another protein

not a morning person

2009-06-09T23:37:00.003-04:00

I'm at the Muay Thai Institute in Rangsit, Thailand now. I've been through 2 classes so far. Both classes wore me out. About 3/4 of the way through, I started to look at the clock hoping the minutes would tick off faster (my cardio has deteriorated in the past few months). Fortunately I did make it through the final 30 minutes without dying.This morning I woke up at 6a to take the 7am class. I

overload

2009-05-15T00:38:00.004-04:00

Crazy day today.Crazy.I'm attending a 4-day filmography / video editing seminar this weekend. Today was day one. We started off with a 3-hour lecture, which actually was quite enjoyable. Having never been a good classroom-student, I thought I'd have a lot of trouble following the lecture, staying interested, etc. But I was with it the whole time. The material itself was fairly basic; it was a lot

hazey

2009-04-30T19:46:00.003-04:00

It's hard to keep track of the days. I'm constantly confused about what day it is, what's my schedule, etc. Time passes by really quickly sometimes, and sometimes it crawls at a snail's pace.I don't mind working these looooong days and evening shifts for techs, rehearsals, and performances. On rehearsal / performance nights, I get to go out and actually enjoy the afternoon sun, even though it

first day of spring...

2009-03-20T08:53:00.001-04:00

...and it's SNOWING!!!WTF !?!?

a list

2009-03-08T20:32:00.000-04:00

I've studied a lot of different martial arts, to varying extents...:1. Karate. Shorin-ryu: 9 months. I think I was 15 or 16. Shotokan: 1 semester. First semester of college.2. Kung Fu, Hung Kuen - started waaaaaaay back in '96. Along the way I took about 6 years off for various reasons (college, work, injury). At present, although I still train at that same Kung Fu school, I no longer train Kung

progress

2009-02-24T23:24:00.003-05:00

I had a really good workout tonight. My new training program makes gaining lean muscle mass a priority over endurance and skill training, so I've obviously been worried about my endurance and skill level stagnating. But tonight I had a really good workout and I feel like I've been making gains in skill and endurance along the way.My kicks are harder now than ever before. I'm stronger now than

a slightly new direction

2009-02-01T10:36:00.003-05:00

For the past few months I've been training with the goal of increasing my weight by about 4-5 kilos, in order to be competitive in the under-75 kilogram weight division. Unfortunately, I haven't really made much gains in weight/muscle-mass. Before I made the decision to put on the extra muscle, I weighed about 70.3 kg. Right now I weigh 71.21. Some gain, but not enough.I'm realizing that the

just me and my cat

2009-01-27T22:31:00.002-05:00

My house is even quiter these days. My brother is in Poland now. He left a couple days ago. So now it's just me and my cat in the house. I feel sorry for the furry little bastard... he gets lonely.

i'm a mac

2009-01-09T23:16:00.004-05:00

Yup. I made the switch. I got the new aluminum unibody MacBook Pro 15". It's SLICK.I've only owned a Mac for a few hours now, so I don't know what to say. I'm very happy with it so far, but I'm still not really used to it.I am fully accustomed to the brand new Multi-Touch trackpad, though. Actually, I was accustomed to it before I even bought the MacBook. After playing around on it for about 5

an outline

2009-01-07T02:37:00.007-05:00

24 Dec - picked up Golf and Tarst from JFK with Lala at 9am. As soon as I got them into the car, I put beers into their hands and said "we're not going anywhere until you guys drink those beers." It was my payback for the three of them bringing me directly from the airport to a pub last time I arrived in Thailand back in June. For dinner we made green curry of beef shortribs, Thai omelette,

updates....

2009-01-06T01:24:00.004-05:00

A full post about my adventures during this past Holiday Season will be coming within a few days, once I get some time to write.Pics from the Holiday Season are up, so you can sort of get a preview of what I'll be blogging about. Check out my Picasa web album.You can now see the video of my MMA fight in Thailand. Check the old post or just click on (guess where?) the link to my Picasa web album (

a scene from... another movie?

2008-12-30T23:38:00.003-05:00

Remember when I said that a girl is prettiest when she's playing the piano?Well that title is in dispute at the moment. Maybe a girl is prettiest when she's cooking dinner with me. (again)....

i didn't know they made places like these!

2008-11-29T16:18:00.009-05:00

I'm happy today. I feel like I miss Thailand a tiny bit less. A really teeny-tiny bit less, but less nonetheless.Yesterday my fake-sister and some of her friends came to NY to do some Black Friday shopping. I chose not to shop with them, but I met up with them for a very late dinner and drinks at about 11pm last night. They found a Thai restaurant in Woodside (big surprise there, right?) that has

eat til you drop

2008-11-28T01:03:00.003-05:00

Eat til you drop. That's usually my gameplan for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is my favourite American holiday because it's really the only holiday that's centered on feasting. Food in other holidays kind of underscores the event, but for Thanksgiving food is the event. And I'm ok with that.I skipped Thanksgiving celebrations last year cause I was in Thailand. This Thanksgiving my parents are in

bittersweet

2008-11-16T23:18:00.002-05:00

I had a great day today. I had a lot of fun. I was happy. No piano necessary.But it was bittersweet.

welcome to the world!

2008-11-08T23:43:00.003-05:00

Welcome to the world, Jasper Thomas Moran!My dear friends Tovah and Tim popped out a brand new baby boy last night! Well, Tovah popped him out. Tim lent emotional support. And she did it without pain medication! She's a strong, brave, crazy lady. Jasper was born weighing nearly 9 lbs!!I went to visit them today and to meet Jasper. But soon after I arrived, the attending doctor kicked all us

a scene from a movie

2008-09-25T10:09:00.004-04:00

One of my most favorite movies is 엽기적인 그녀 (My Sassy Girl). It's a South Korean romantic comedy from 2001. Unlike American romantic comedies, Asian romantic comedies can be quite good, and I think this is probably the best of the lot. If you happen to have a region-free DVD player, you should definitely watch it. Hollywood recently remade it and judging by Hollywood's track record of remakes of

time zone

2008-09-19T23:18:00.000-04:00

Ugh.Blogger needs to do something about the timestamps when switching time zones. Switching my time zone setting shouldn't change all of the timestamps on previous blog entries.

i close my eyes

2008-08-31T12:54:00.001-04:00

...and I can still see the Bangkok skyline.

something changes

2008-08-24T14:10:00.001-04:00

It always starts to happen a few days before I leave Thailand. When my time there is almost over, I start getting depressed. It gets tough to smile. I'm happy one second, and then thoughts of leaving pop into my head and I get miserable.I'm usually pretty miserable when I'm at the airport. I need to take my mind off things so I walk around and look at all the shops. Suvarnabhumi Airport is like a

and the winner is...

2008-08-16T12:14:00.005-04:00

ME!!!Due to TKO / referee stoppage at 1:28 of the first round.The video is HERE !

short notice

2008-08-14T15:09:00.011-04:00

In America, professional fighters usually know a few months in advance when they're going to fight, who they're going to fight, etc. Amateur fighters generelly know a couple months in advance, and sometimes they know who their opponent will be, sometimes they don't. Competitors in 'open' tournaments (like Karate or Kung Fu tournaments) fighting in point-sparring or continuous-sparring events

tv

2008-08-14T00:35:00.005-04:00

About a month ago, I decided to pay a visit to my tattoo artist. I really just wanted to say hi and maybe talk a little bit about possibly getting more work done. It just so happened that there was a small TV crew there shooting for their program about tattoos. So they sat me down, put a mic on, and interviewed me. I was pretty nervous about it because my Thai gets pretty bad when I get nervous.

better

2008-08-05T16:45:00.002-04:00

I'm getting better every day.But I'm still not "good." (This applies on soooooooo may levels).Sometimes it's tough being so far away from the friends I've known the longest. But the new friends I've made here have been making everything a lot easier for me.Every day I'm here, I can't help but believe that THIS is where I belong.

เหงาใจ

2008-07-30T01:21:00.002-04:00

ที่อกหักเสียใจหนักขนาดนี้ไม่ใช่แค่เพราะเลิกกับแฟนโศกเศร้าเพราะ best friend หายไปแต่ "ยังไงต้องรับให้ได้"วันต่อวันก็ดีขึ้น แต่ยังไม่ดี

อกหัก เครียด

2008-07-24T12:29:00.004-04:00

โคตรเบื่อผู้หญิงตอแหลทำไมเธอกลายเป็นคนยังนี้? นึกว่าเราเข้าใจกันดี เธอก็พึ่งอ้างว่าคิดถึง และ...?ฉันไม่เคยทำร้ายกับเธอ ไม่เคยทำให้เธอผิดหวัง ไม่เคยมีชู้ ไม่เคยเถียงทะเลาะกันแต่อย่าคิดว่าฉันเป็นคนโง่ฉันเสียเวลากับเธอนานเกินไปแล้วเวรกรรมมีจริง สักวันหนึ่งเธอก็จะเจอเอง จำไว้

weekend cast away

2008-07-07T02:54:00.015-04:00

Actually it was just a weekend getaway. I went with some friends (Lala, Op, Muai, Golf, Pump, Pam, Nook, North, Tim, Main, Ploy, Garand) to the town of Sattahip. As per usual MO with Lala, I wasn't told any details about where we would be staying, what we would be doing, etc. I was told only "Be ready to leave by 6pm friday night. Be prepared to do some heavy drinking Saturday night. I'm going

the first 14 days

2008-07-02T13:16:00.003-04:00

I've been back in Thailand for 14 days. I love it here so much. I really do feel like I'm home. I've been coming here so often lately that I get back into my regular routine very quickly. As soon as my jet lag is gone (about 5-6 days) I'm good to go. I don't think I'll ever get used to the temperature difference though. I've been told that you only get used to the heat once you've experienced the

back in thailand

2008-06-18T15:51:00.001-04:00

On my way home from the airport I looked around carefully at the streets, the buildings, the vendors. "Wow... everything is pretty much the same as last time," I remarked.The reply: "Yeah well you've only been away for 5 months."

busy week ahead

2008-06-10T17:51:00.004-04:00

I'm headed back to Thailand one week from today. In the meantime my schedule is pretty packed. Speaking of packed, I should probably start figuring out what I need to pack...Here's my schedule until I go:Tuesday: work, work outWednesday: work, shuai jiaoThursday: work, work outFriday: work, going-away party for one of my training brothers at the kung fu school.Saturday: driving out to New Jersey

i'm back!

2008-04-29T03:16:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the disappearance. I've been incredibly busy since mid-February; I haven't had any time to sit down at my laptop and blog.What have I been doing? Well besides working, surprisingly I've been being social!! I'm gonna start adding entries via time warp. I'm just gonna go ahead and plug some blog entries into the past few weeks as if I've been writing them all along! Any blog entry between

yakitori !!

2008-04-27T14:47:00.002-04:00

I love tsukune !!

another day of eating

2008-04-19T15:25:00.002-04:00

First stop: Chinatown.For a light lunch we had Hainan chicken rice at a Malaysian restaurant.Then for dessert we went to Chinatown Ice Cream Factory for some of the best ice cream in Manhattan. Today we chose banana ice cream and pandan ice cream. The pandan ice cream is my favourite flavour there.For dinner we went back to the Park Slope ChipShop...Carmen had the chicken and mushroom pie with

indoor rain

2008-04-18T12:12:00.002-04:00

My biggest task this semester has been to make a rain effect for our production of The Grapes of Wrath over at Stony. The process wasn't exactly fun, but it was a good experience. Not everyone can say that they've made it rain indoors.Downstage we used a bunch of grocery store vegetable misters to create a drizzle / mist effect.Upstage we used two PVC pipes to create a downpour effect. It looks

malaysian food

2008-04-15T14:44:00.001-04:00

Curry Leaves is a Malaysian restaurant in Queens. Carmen and I walked through the door pretty much on a whim. Our other choice was Joe's Shanghai, but we had both eaten there before and wanted to try something new.Hainan Chicken and Rice. This is one of my most favoritest dishes in the whole wide world. Its deceptive simplicity hides its true depth. Simple boiled chicken isn't as simple as

indonesian restaurant

2008-04-14T11:33:00.000-04:00

Argh. I can't remember the name of the Indonesian restaurant we ate at. And I can't remember the names of the dishes we ate. But at least I've got some pics!Braised beef, rice, and a jackfruit curry. Very tasty. It's interesting to see (uh... taste) the similarities and differences in the way Asian cuisines braise beef.Fried chicken, rice, and jackfruit curry. The chicken was on the dry side, but

fried chicken and beyond

2008-03-30T00:38:00.001-04:00

I guess last week's fried chicken adventure wasn't enough. Today's fried chicken extravaganza: Korean fried chicken!! Korean fried chicken has been something of a phenomenon here in NY for the past year or so, so much so that the New York Times published an article about it last year. A bunch of Korean fried chicken joints have been popping up and ... well, just read the article.Oh, and if you're

"midnight" chicken

2008-03-22T12:13:00.002-04:00

When I was in Thailand this past winter I spent some time up in Chiang Mai, in the north. One of the yummiest things I ate there was fried chicken. The shop we ate at was open only at night, starting at I think 10 or 11pm and staying open until they ran out of food for the night (usually 2 or 3am). I think the name of the shop was ไก่ทอดเที่ยงคืน which translates to Midnight Fried Chicken. They

hockey in the shop

2008-03-21T12:54:00.005-04:00

Ah hockey... the only nationally televised team sport that I really enjoy. I finally got to play hockey again after a loooooooooong time (probably about 2-3 years!), and it was as much fun as ever! Some of my friends build theatrical scenery in a real shop (instead of the lame excuse for a shop that I work in), and they've got a good amount of floor space. One night after they finished up their

dinner at ChipShop

2008-03-21T03:13:00.005-04:00

ChipShop is one of my favorite places to eat in Brooklyn. It's been one of my regular places ever since a friend of mine who used to live in Brooklyn found it a few years ago. I've got a bunch of friends living in the Carrol Gardens - Park Slope - Prospect Park section of Brooklyn. I like this area; it's like Manhattan Jr.Usually I just have fish & chips when I eat there. After all, they built

dinner at SriPraPhai

2008-03-18T02:16:00.003-04:00

Went to dinner at SriPraPhai in Woodside with Carmen, Chris and Lauren, Christian, Jenny and Scott. We were there celebrating Muay Thai Day in Thailand. SriPraPhai is my favorite Thai restaurant. I think it has the best, most authentic Thai food in the region. The owner (Ms SriPraPhai) was a classmate of my mom in nursing school back in Thailand. I've been going to this restaurant for years, ever

superbowl sunday

2008-02-04T07:30:00.000-05:00

Busy day for me. The good kind of busy. I got to see a lot of friends who I haven't seen in a very long time.In the morning I headed out to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden where the C-rex and her dance troupe the Red Silk Dancers were performing in celebration of Chinese New Year. I'm really happy I went because I had a great time watching the dances and I also learned a thing or two.For one thing, I

ready to collapse

2008-01-22T22:28:00.000-05:00

I don't know how much more of this I can take.My internal clock is all kinds of messed up. I'm not on NY time, I'm not on BKK time... I'm just severely messed up from the time difference and from the 17 1/2 hour flight. The first couple days back in NY weren't so bad... I was sleeping at weird times, but at least I was sleeping for a decent amount of time. The past few days I've been able to fall

the opposite of paradise

2008-01-20T08:14:00.000-05:00

When I left Thailand the average daily temperature was around the low 90s (Fahrenheit... about 32C). When I arrived in NY, the temperature was about 33F/1C. Today it's about 25F/-4C. Sub-zero. Great. The weather people said that windchill factor brings the temperature down to about 18F/-8C, aka painfully cold.I chose not to leave the house today. I probably could have called some friends and gone

leaving

2008-01-16T03:30:00.000-05:00

Sometimes just being in love isn't enough.

it's almost over

2008-01-09T03:01:00.000-05:00

I have one week left here in Thailand before I have to go back to NY....:(...I should just move here permanently.

rollercoaster

2008-01-02T12:17:00.000-05:00

I've been on such a freakin rollercoaster since I got back from Pai & Chiang Mai. I don't know if I'm gonna write an entry about the trip anytime soon; the story kind of needs to be told in pictures and as I've said time and time again, I rarely post pics when I'm connected via modem. What I'll probably do is post the pics to my Picasa web album and put captions for the pics to tell the story.

inked

2007-12-21T11:59:00.000-05:00

Pad Liew

2007-12-20T11:51:00.001-05:00

Woke up at 5.30a this morning after having not really slept much, even after last night's rigorous 4-hour training session. I had to arrive at my teacher's house at 8a to go to Pad Liew in the province of Chachoengsao with his wife and a couple of his nieces, but I actually had to leave the condo at 6.30a in order to beat the traffic. By leaving at 6.30a, I was facing a 45-minute trip instead of

4 hours

2007-12-19T11:57:00.000-05:00

Training lasted for 4 hours tonight.OUCH.There were two new students tonight, so we went over only basic-level skills and conditioning. Both of the new students were already experienced with Thai swordfighting (one of the new students was the other's teacher - 13 years of Thai swordsmanship for the teacher, and 7 months of Thai swordsmanship for the student). They were both in good physical

the beach

2007-12-16T11:51:00.000-05:00

I went to the small weekend-getaway town of Cha-am with a few friends the other day. I hadn't been to Cha-am since I was probably about 10 years old. It was long enough ago that I don't remember exactly what it was like back then (which isn't saying much considering my terrible memory). When I went there as a kid, I went with a gigantic group of extended family - probably no less than 15 cousins,

my grandmother's 90th birthday

2007-12-12T11:40:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to my dear Grandmother, who turned 90 today!!Because her birthday fell in the middle of the week when everyone was at work, we chose to celebrate her birthday instead on Sunday the 9th. A few aunts and uncles and several cousins came over, and there was an enormous amount of food. Pictures are on my cellphone and haven't been uploaded yet... sorry!At 90 years of age, my Grandmother

80th Birthday of His Majesty the King

2007-12-05T11:31:00.000-05:00

I hardly slept last night. I was too excited and eager. Got out of bed at about 6.30a, took a quick shower and met up with a couple of my cousins, Nimh and Pim, and grabbed a Tuk-Tuk towards Sanam Luang. We found a nice shady spot on the sidewalk and camped out. At 7.15a when we got there, the sidewalk was already lined up 3 rows deep of people waiting to catch a glimpse of the King. And this was

celebrations on the eve of the King's birthday

2007-12-04T11:55:00.000-05:00

I spent the evening walking along Ratchadamnoen Avenue in what was surely the biggest street fair I had ever been to. OK, I haven't really been to that many, but this was still HUGE. Tens of thousands of people crowded the sidewalks, the center meridian, and sometimes even a couple lanes of traffic. A human river of yellow; only this river was flowing up- and downstream at the same time.Thai

adventures in phitsanulok

2007-12-03T06:04:00.000-05:00

I spent the past few days in Phitsanulok at Naresuan Army Base. Naresuan Army Base stands on the historical spot where King Naresuan the Great gathered his first army. In the years to follow, King Naresuan overthrew Burmese rule and won independence for the Kingdom of Ayutthaya (a predecessor to the Kingdom of Thailand).My teacher, พันเอกพิเศษ อำนาจ พุกศรีสุข, was there to teach 600 soldiers in

language barrier

2007-11-27T11:28:00.000-05:00

I'm fairly fluent in Thai. I can speak it (albeit with a horrendous accent that seems to have gotten MUCH worse since the last time I was here a few months ago), and I can carry on a pretty normal conversation about day-to-day stuff with almost anyone. I can't get into a discussion about economics, politics, science, or stuff with big words. I never learned the big words because the extent of my

busy weekend

2007-11-26T04:40:00.000-05:00

Saturday was Char's wedding here in Thailand. I have some pics, but this dial-up connection I'm on is prohibitively slow, so pics will have to wait for another time.Anyway, the wedding was pretty nice but the one in Chicago was much more fun. I was hoping that her Thai wedding would be a huge, fun party like most Thai gatherings are, but I guess this was a little bit on the formal side. I was

i love bangkok

2007-11-20T13:13:00.001-05:00

I really do. Especially this time of year... it's not too hot. It's like a cool summer day back in NY.I spent the evening at a rooftop beer garden with some friends. I don't really drink anymore; it just doesn't sit well with me. I hate the feeling of waking up after a night of drinking. Fortunately tonight I didn't overdo it.I still haven't adjusted my internal clock. I've had trouble sleeping

trying to get settled in

2007-11-19T10:46:00.000-05:00

I've been here in Thailand for several days now and I still haven't gotten my bearings yet. I'm still not able to sleep regularly. When I do sleep, it's only for a very short stretch of time, no matter how tired I am. The last several nights I've come home completely exhausted, nearly falling asleep on the bus and on the BTS, and I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow... but then I wake

Sritrairat

2007-11-17T12:59:00.000-05:00

The martial arts community in general and the Thai martial arts community in particular is saddened by the recent passing of Kru Thonglor, patriarch of the Sritrairat Swordfighting Institute. The Sritrairat lineage of Krabi Krabong has been passing down its traditions since the Ayutthaya era. The Kingdom of Thailand can be said to owe its existence in no small part due to the teachings of

back home!!

2007-11-15T05:01:00.000-05:00

It's 5a here and I'm totally jet lagged so it feels like 5p. I'm sitting in my makeshift bedroom for the next two months: the living room of my cousin's condo in Sukhumvit, one of the more foreigner-heavy sections of Bangkok. This district of Bangkok is known for its trendy shopping malls, traffic congested streets, business offices, and tourist attractions (read: sex industry). I hate that

goodbye!

2007-11-12T03:40:00.000-05:00

Goodbye cold, frigid temperatures!I'm headed to some warmer, drier weather!!

countdown

2007-11-10T20:34:00.000-05:00

I can't seem to get a countdown clock to work here. I didn't try very hard though.Anyway, the countdown clock is supposed to count down until Monday 12 November 2007, 11.35a.I can't wait!!

routine

2007-10-23T01:05:00.000-04:00

A typical day for me:8.15a - wake up10a - arrive at work1p, 2p, or 3p - lunch break: 30 minutes6p - leave work6.45p - arrive at home, eat something quick & easy, nap for about 20 minutes if possible7. 35p - arrive at kung fu school. takeover teaching adult class, teach advanced class.9.30p - my workout: Muay Thai10p-11p - go home. shower, cook dinner, miscellaneous (mail, email, laundry, vacuum

i'm losing...

2007-10-09T23:13:00.001-04:00

...too much weight. I've lost about seven pounds in the past couple months. I'm down to about 148 and I'm not happy about it. I think I was in the best shape of my life about a year ago when I weighted 155 and had a decent amount of muscle mass. Of course everyone who knows me knows that I have always been on the slim side, no matter how much I eat (and I can eat A LOT). Several years ago my

a new view

2007-10-07T17:06:00.001-04:00

A new hard drive, a re-install, yet another hard drive, and a new OS. I took the plunge and installed Vista and so far I'm liking it. Everyone warned me that I would be frustrated by Vista's constant security warnings, but so far I'm not really bothered by them.I was instantly impressed when I first installed Vista and it pretty much recognized most of my ThinkPad's hardware. Installing the

unreadable

2007-09-29T18:58:00.000-04:00

"Unreadable boot volume."That's the only thing my laptop was telling me. In other words, the hard drive was dead. So I called Lenovo and they sent me a new hard drive overnight. I've been reinstalling Windows and restoring the ThinkPad programs to it all day today. My laptop is now currently up and running, but not quite 100% back to normal. In their rush to send me the new hard drive, Lenovo

ouch

2007-09-05T23:08:00.002-04:00

I pulled a muscle. Not sure which one... possibly latissimus or teres. Hurts like hell. So this is a huge setback in my training, and it's making driving painful whenever I shift gears.Also, I overworked my quadriceps the other night doing a drill for practicing single-leg shoot and ankle-pick. My legs are extremely sore and walking is painful.I'm a mess.

first day of school

2007-09-04T00:20:00.000-04:00

Even though I've been working at a University for the past few years, I've only recently been involved in the actual academic side of things. My previous job was totally non-academic. I worked more with faculty and staff than with students. But in my current job, my calendar is just like a student's calendar. And tomrrow is the first day of classes for the academic year.I switched over to this

disoriented

2007-08-29T15:15:00.000-04:00

I've been back in NY for a couple of weeks now and I'm still not used to it. The memories of Thailand are still with me pretty strongly. Food here tastes a little bit strange. I walk through a crowd of people and hear American voices and I'm a little disoriented. I hear myself speaking English and I feel weird. I'm not instantly sweat-soaked a few minutes after I walk outside. I don't sleep with

a homecoming (not mine...)

2007-08-15T14:13:00.000-04:00

I normally don't quote news articles, but this particular one caught my eye... Thai American returns to her family's roots at World University Games The Associated Press Wednesday, August 15, 2007 NAKHON NAYOK, Thailand: Three weeks before most of her U.S. teammates arrived for the World University Games, Jennifer Tangtiphaiboontana had a homecoming.

back in NY

2007-08-14T08:33:00.000-04:00

Got back to NY a little over 24 hours ago, but it really feels like it's only been a few minutes. That's because I spent most of the last 24 hours in a self-induced medicated coma. Well, not really... but basically I took a ton of medicine and was asleep for probably about 18 of the last 24 hours.Before I left Bangkok, I must have eaten something bad and caught food poisoning. I was in that

no risk, no reward

2007-08-11T00:08:00.000-04:00

wien tien

2007-07-29T12:42:00.000-04:00

My teacher brought me to participate in the Wien Tien Ceremony (เวียนเทียน). This was actually the first time I had participated in this ceremony. It was a very nice experience. I unfortunately don't get to attend many Buddhist ceremonies or festivals back in the states, but whenever I can go I really enjoy it.I love Buddhism and I love being Buddhist. I just wish I was better at it.

endorphine

2007-07-25T16:31:00.000-04:00

Live in concert.Oh yes....

family party

2007-07-20T18:36:00.000-04:00

Tonight was probably my best night in Thailand so far. Definitely the most fun I've had since I've been here.It's 5.40a and I got home about 20 minutes ago. I'm still energized but I'm starting to get tired now. This post will get edited soon. Hopefully sometime Saturday. Saturday. That's today, isn't it?Started off with meeting up with Su and Dream to go watch Kung Fu Tootsie (hilarious movie,

a fish for a crowd

2007-07-16T02:39:00.001-04:00

I'm all better now. Well, mostly better. The fever subsided after about a day or so. The pain in my lungs went away after about 2 days, but left an occasional cough (a painful one at that) as a souvenir.Yesterday was a fun day. I arrived at my teacher's house for the usual lesson, but neither he nor his wife were home. His younger brother and his wife were there to watch my teacher's three

fever

2007-07-12T10:31:00.000-04:00

Well I finally did it. I finally worked myself into exhaustion. On Satruday I got caught in the rain while walking towards the Thai Cultural Center to see a charity dance show featuring a performance by Khun Pichet Klunchun. I sat down inside the theater still wet from the rain, and the air conditioning was on at full tilt.So Sunday morning I woke up feeling pretty lousy. I figured I would take

what colour is an orange?

2007-07-08T00:43:00.000-04:00

Green. In their original habitat (Southeast Asia), they're green when ripe. In the US and Europe, the colder and drier air destroy the green chlorophyll pigment in the skin of the fruit, which allows the yellow carotenoid pigments to be seen.Inside is a very sweet fruit. The oranges in Thailand are universally sweet... in the US, you often run into sour oranges because they're picked off the tree

ancient muay thai

2007-07-04T12:22:00.001-04:00

Combat Principles of Ancient Muay Thai, from พันเอก อำนาจ พุกศรีสุขDefensive Strategies:1) Exterior Line Operation (Salab Fun Pla) 2) Interior Line Operation (Paksa Waeg Rang) 3) Direct Attack / Rising Counter (Tatien Gum Fug)4) Disappear / Duck & Counter (Yor Khao Pra Sumen)5) Shock & Awe / Distract and Attack (Dab Chawala)6) Spear Against Spear (Suan Tuan) Attacking Strategies:1) The Army

grilled chicken

2007-07-03T12:44:00.000-04:00

The best grilled chicken (gai yang ไก่ย่าง) I've had in Bangkok so far has been in a very out-of-the way shop near Suvarnabhumi Airport. The lunchtime crowd is always big; locals know that the chicken at Gai Yang Pa Kaew ไก่ย่างป้าแก้ว (Aunt Kaew's Grilled Chicken) is not to be missed. The skin is always incredibly crispy (I'm still trying to figure out how they do it. The most I've been able

thai iced tea

2007-06-30T06:18:00.001-04:00

I love Thai iced tea.Most beverages bought from a street vendor will be served in a plastic bag full of ice with a straw.I love ice cream too, so Thai iced tea-flavoured ice cream is double the happiness!!

exhausted

2007-06-28T00:13:00.000-04:00

Sorry I've been too exhausted to blog lately. Sunday the 24th was a pretty busy day - I moved to my cousin Praew's condo on Sukhumvit and I started lessons in Ancient Muay Thai. It's been grueling. Today I'm feeling better though.On Monday I meet up with Som and we went to visit P' Mon in Putthamonthon. P' Mon is currently undergoing chemotherapy after surgery for breast cancer. She's doing much

another day, another bruise

2007-06-21T22:56:00.000-04:00

I had another training session at the Muay Thai camp yesterday. It was more grueling than last time. I’ve increased the size of the bruise on my right shin and I’ve given it a little brother on my left shin. Yesterday’s training consisted of rounds of shadow-boxing, working the heavy bags, pad-work in the ring with the trainers, and neck-wrestling. Of course there was the pre-requisite warm-up

who am i?

2007-06-20T22:25:00.000-04:00

Well I didn’t get my ID card. It was a military issue; exactly what I was afraid of. Despite that I’m over the military draft age limit of 25, I’m apparently still eligible to be drafted until I’m 30. The ordeal was more than a little bit confusing. There was a military officer at the district office who actually said that he would clear me of the military service requirement, but he didn’t