Inside the mind of the ADD.

I think I might actually miss the skytrain when I get home. I'm gonna have to start paying for gas. How much is gas at home? How much is that in Thai baht? How much baht do I have in my wallet? I should get a new wallet. My phone fits in this wallet. I need to put minutes on my phone. I won't have to pay for minutes on my phone when I get home...and I'll be able to text facebook and twitter. What is the purpose of twitter? Does it have a purpose? Do I have a purpose?
Why won't the computer turn on? This would be so much easier if I had brought my own computer. Why didn't I bring my computer? Oh, yeah...it's big and broken. At least I have a laptop. At least I have had the opportunity to go college. It is a blessing, even if I'm gonna have some major debt when I graduate.
Graduation. I need to send e-mails about major field test and graduation. I need to do the senior questionnaire. I need a computer. Skype is an awesome concept...even if I haven't gotten to use it. Why didn't I use Skype? Time difference. Even though I won't be home when I go home, I won't have to calculate the hour or worry about waking mom and dad when I need to talk. I miss my family. Homesickness is an ugly thing. I need to finish this lesson plan. I hope it's good enough. I hope the boys get something out of it. I hope I don't screw them up. I hope I finish the lesson plan.
These boys like Michael Jackson. Of all songs...Heal the world. Such sweet moments...this is why I came in early. No it's not...finish your lesson plan!
That's a really big buddha in that picture. Who/what is buddha? I should read a book. Why don't I remember/know this already? How can I feel so uneducated when I have spent nearly 20 years in some sort of an educational institution? Am I stupid? No, Ashley, you're ADD.
:o) :o) peace. love. happiness. bliss. blessed. life is good. kids are awesome. i'm gonna miss thailand. i'm gonna miss these precious boys. the boys were so wonderful during observation. the boys have been wonderful since i got here. i hope i can do a fun review monday morning with my "breakfast club" god, these kids are cute. glad i have my camera. gee, my thoughts are so much more pleasant when i'm in the classroom. can i just live in the classroom? a permanent suspension of reality...an escape...a chance to forget the ugly things in the world...what a wonderful world it is inside the classroom.
Any movie is better when you watch it with a classroom full of children- they display their enthusiasm externally and are not inhibited in their reactions to the world. If only it were easier for adults to be the same...without needing alcohol. Happy meals really can make you happy. Happiness clearly does not have a price tag: how can they be so excited over cheap plastic?
Am I really so old now that I can't remember the times I used to beg for chicken nuggets and a sprite for the sake of a cheap piece of plastic? When did I grow up? Why did I grow up? Why do any of us grow up. Can I still find child Ashley somewhere? ....Oh there she is. Thank you Land Before Time, you helped me find her. Is it okay for adults to act like kids sometimes? I smell an informal research project...

Reading through ADD thoughts is like dumpster diving. There's a lot of random garbage, but every so often you find a nice lamp or side table for your dorm.

Victory is oh, so sweet

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am pleased to announce that the photos to the right of this post are indeed my own. Picasa brought its A game and got the job done.

There will be many more where those came from.

And now, the victor may peacefully rest through the night. Something I haven't done much of this week, partly due to this conquest.

I hope you enjoy the smiles on the faces of these beautiful students as much as I do.

From the land of :),
Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow.

If you are currently in Cleveland, TN...

...I had better never catch you complaining about the rain. Got an 8 am class on the other side of the Lee campus and God is dumping buckets? I don't want to hear about it. Suck it up: you have boots and an umbrella (ella, ella)...you'll survive.


Want to whine about a few puddles? Walk in Bangkok. In the rain. For 45 minutes. With little or no foot protection. With a sick toe. And blistered toes. In a skirt. Through puddles- no, rivers...make that RIVERS up to your knees every time you cross the street. Then, and only then, may you resume your snibbling about Cleveland's rain.

Okay, it was definitely gross, and I wanted to cry, but what's the use of tears in a monsoon? None. As Sarah says, this experience will be in the highlights of our trip. We built up our character and the muscles in our calves. There was an abundance of water and a deficit of taxis, but we came, we saw, and we conquered. The smiles that we got were the premature appearance of God's rainbow.

(Utterly ridiculous at times) Rainy season in Thailand.......this one's for you!

The dirt and God knows what else will leave down the drain, but the story, photos, and video will live in infamy. So thanks for the memories.

I'm all for breaking down barriers...

...but the language variety are difficult to overcome.
The case in point:
I want to put my photos from Thailand on the slide show gadget on this here blog (exhibit A). I can do so with this here Picasa web software that I just discovered I have available via Gmail (exhibit B).
If this were a game of Clue, and uploading photos was our "Whodunit??" it would be Ashley on the blog with the Picasa....right????
wrong. Thai language (which in absolutely no way resembles English) has foiled my perfect crime. And I would have gotten away with it had it not been for those meddling letters I cannot read.
I refuse to give up. I took a utensil from the cafeteria in this communication prison...don't tell the guards. I will spork my way out of my cell tonight on another computer. I will avenge my Kodak moments: I will download, upload, post, share, lather, rinse and repeat until my heart's content.
So there, Microsoft Internet Explorer. You may know my current location, but you will never know me. I don't read Thai, silly iE. Beware, I'll be back.

so violent for someone who just wants to upload photos of cute kids in a foreign country. clearly, i need a weekend......and another round of espresso.

Thailand (117 photos), by Ashley Cuzzart

no no no, Snapfish! This is not what I had in mind when I clicked "Post photos to blog"...

Snapfish, you're benched. Picasa, you're in. Get to the pitching mound and warm up. Cue the David Bowie. Ch ch ch changes.....turn and face the strain.

Take a picture, it will last longer...

I've been taking pictures like a woman possessed lately! But these lovely snapshots of Bangkok are not my own. I just got my card reader in the mail, so maybe next time the slide show will have the beautiful smiles of my grades 1 and 2 boys.

Lessons Learned...

This episode of "Adventures in Student Teaching" will feature a list of things I've learned in Thailand.

1. Thailand's nickname, The Land of Smiles, is not a lie.
2. Hagar is every bit as important as Sari (Sarah).
3. "The King and I"/"Anna and the King" : banned for the portrayal of the king as foolish. Sorry, Yul.
4. Just when you think you cannot possibly squeeze another person on the the SkyTrain, 10 more people will come through those doors.
5. Mexican food exists in Thailand in the form of a sacred ground known as Sunrise Tacos.
6. Children are the same everywhere you go. They are blessings and beautiful reminders of how we ought to be.
7. Papaya salad is good, but very spicy.
8. Want to save face in Thailand? Use Kayleen's miracle mud mask!
9. If you want it, they will deliver it. McDelivery...just saying.
10. It's a small world after all. No, really.
11. When you travel to Thailand, never fear...7-11 is here...and over there...and everywhere!
12. During the hot season, it is hot. During the cool season, it is hot. During the rainy season, it rains. And it's hot.
13. Aretha Franklin would love Thailand: the most important word in their culture is respect. So awesome.
14. 100 Baht is like 33 US Dollars. Whoa, the shopping that has happened and is yet to come.
15. Siam Paragon, the largest mall in Southeast Asia, would probably take an entire day.
16. When a student asks "May I see your larva, please?" it is very hard not to laugh out loud.
17. I could totally live in Thailand.....someday.
18. No matter how cool you think you are, you will get homesick and miss the ones you love like crazy.
19. God is good. (okay, I already knew that one. but my time in Thailand just reiterated it. love me some Jesus in the Turn Around international church)
20. Life is good. Sure things are gonna suck from time to time, and the BTS officers will take your student pass away because you are too old and leave you with no ticket or money in a foreign country on a day you already feel crummy. Yeah, you'll be homesick and feel lonely. But if you dwell on the bad or hole yourself up in your fifth floor apartment, you're gonna miss all of the chances for the world to redeem itself ten-fold with all the goods it has to offer, like friendly people, learning experiences, the glories of Thai massage and ice cream, world renowned beaches, elephant treks, and friends that bail you out with a couple hundred baht.