Hazel Ceej

The Queen of Thailand celebrates her 81st birthday Monday, August 12th, which is also Thai Mother's Day.  The kingdom is in celebration mode.  HM Queen Sirikit Pre-birthday exhibit at Government House Flowers for her in front of a mall Many families go alfresco. Mine explores Chocolate Ville ~ 0 ~   Our World * Sally's Blues

The nephew turns 13 . Is that when kids officially become a teenager? I did think Cacoi may boycott this cake. But being the crazy aunt I could sometimes be, I went ahead and bought him what I call the Beatrix Potter Beauty; and at the same time wondered how I could make it up should he not like it. But bingo! He debuted a promising teenager smile and I exhaled happily.   At the food-laden table the birthday boy's friend said grace . His words were elegant and cute for one so young. I realized how mature this boy sounded than many adults I know including myself. We concluded the party at King's Park where we had lakeside pizza and body stretching in the park gym; explored a minor maze and walked flower-lined trails. It felt really good after long months of stilettos, drab AC hums and ear-ritating lift bells. Cacoi in blue shirt, his friend in white, and siblings Jovi and John Ralph Waldo Emerson: "Passion rebuilds the world for the youth. It makes thi

Thanks to calamari I found Dory And the lemon grass juice transported me back to  those late afternoons long ago when Ma would start preparing dinner and would send me to the backyard to get a sprig of lemon grass that she would add to her fat mackerel soup.   I like calamari ; been eating bowls and plates of the rings from time to time since falling in love with them hanging out late 90s in Planet Hollywood - a place which seems to have disappeared from view along Bangkok's Ploen Chit Road .   That's how a little hankering led me to Dory I was admiring the dainty windows and staring at the ceiling while waiting for my food. Aren't these chandeliers reminiscent of anchors?   But then of course it's seafood and Dory If I could not associate the words I might as well start imagining a trident before Ariel and Flounder come gliding by.   But what do you do when your order takes long to arrive and you're waiting in th

C acoy , a c lose friend/ c ousin's youngest son whose real name is C aesar had a birthday last week. He turned 13 but to me he is still my baby nephew thus I ought to be forgiven for buying him a c ake that does not look exactly like a teenager's c ake. Aside from an exuberance of c olor c andles, it's bursting with what resembles Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit  for c rying out loud. But unlike my son C J who c ried at seeing c herries instead of Ultraman on his c ake (couldn't blame the poor, then 5-year old though), C acoy was generally c ool around the whole thing. Anyway he was probably too busy entertaining his buddies to c are about what his c razy aunt has gotten him this year. C J's c ake issue by the way has been sorted. (I'm a working, divorced Mom; do not have time to c omb Bangkok for an Ultraman cake) I gave him Hong Kong Disneyland for his next birthday to make up for the girly cake . Boys! I have been wondering about something for some

It was a quick search for a blue liner to match the dress I wore that day. I rarely use this kind of thing on my face; they tend to get forgotten in the innermost corners of the drawer.  So I  rummaged deep. And out came something that slowed me away from the normally hyped speed of doing things at work. A thoughtful friend gave me this card when I was going through a very tough time. Memories came rushing back as the card kept me company by the rustling photocopier. Soon the serendipity put me in a trance. The world went by like always. My forehead transformed into a screen for a little panorama from 1999. Up and down the emotions went. There was stardust on 'joy and wonder yet to be explored....'  ~ 0 ~ Inspire Me * Gemma's Mellow Yellows * Sally's Blues

Thailand's Government Complex is huge enough to house several departments and ministries and to double as venue for major art and culture shows. That's exactly what I found during a recent run to the place. It was a riot of colors and style I was humming 'beautiful, beautiful!' all the way. There were paintings by local artists, Khon masks, silk-weaving and pottery demonstrations, village replicas, man-made waterfall among many other displays. Here's one of them -   Demure peacock all made up of flowers and leaves . The two flower balls on the lower right corner are encrusted with anise seeds and resemble dunkin donuts. While the ratio is normally one is to one at Government House, that is one immigration stuff takes one day to sort out, Lady Luck must have smiled on me I accomplished - Two errands in one day which saved me time, energy and money. With the re-entry permit secured I can now look forward to a holiday in Singapore I booked last mont

Here's how a bougainvilleas-in-bloom day looks like where I live and work.  ~ o ~ ~ o ~ ~ o ~ ~ o ~ ~ o ~ ~ o ~ ~ x ~ ABC Wednesday * Our World

~ Sepia Saturday ~ That line is not mine. I mean I can't take it off my head since reading [Alan's] Marilyn's "You can choose; or go with armour, helmets... pantomime, theatricals, warlike women or big sticks "  It's probably too much Nanny McPhee . I have become a fan of the unruly children-featuring film since becoming a mom to a handful. Anyway, sticks. Perhaps something like a sceptre will do? And I got this photo from a recent Golden Reign Exhibit,  with exactly just that. Known as Rama IX, Thailand's American-born King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the world's longest-serving current head of state and longest-reigning monarch in Thai history ( Wikipedia ) He is also the world's richest royal with a fortune estimated to be worth more than $30 billion ( Forbes ).  King Bhumibol (pronounced POH-mee-pahd) is shown on the photo with his wife, Queen Sirikit and son, crown prince Vajiralongkorn, holding his sceptre, which is adorned by Garuda, a mythical h

~ Sepia Saturday ~ Rain. I associate it with a weekend spent with friends frolicking with an army of tame fish in a national park. I remember it because that was when I learned that to deliberately stand in the rain just for the fun of it is sheer joy. The other reason was these delightful swish-swooshing catfish  They sense it when people approach. They come near as if they know dinner is served.  We fed them string beans. What a greedy bunch! Further up a slope as we continued to hike we found this moss-covered chedi made from laterite. It was built to commemorate King Rama and Queen Sunantha's visit to the park in 1876. Queen Sunantha drowned when the royal boat capsized in the Chao Phrya river.  A Wikipedia entry describes the drowning, "despite the presence of many onlookers they were forbidden on pain of death to touch the queen - not even to save her life."  Nearby is a sign that forbids anyone to come near if they are not properly dressed. I took this shot using

The few visitors in the throne hall of King Narai's palace were leaving when I got there. Pleased with the solitude, I lingered. The quiet seemed to usher in an opportunity to commune with the spirit of the ruins, however fleeting it was. Like usual thrones this one is elevated.  Over at his palace King Narai had foreign dignitaries, those of France's King Louise XIV whose practice of wearing high heels was hypothetically due to his short height.  There must have been some influence or connection there. This is the Dusit Sawan hall. The stairs are steep. Imagine King Narai going up the steps to sit on his throne. I fancied going up. It was uncomfortable, but then I'm no king and they must have adapted some fashion of climbing steep stairs in 1666. This is a close-up of the memorial plaque by the throne. It portrays King Narai granting an audience with French ambassadors - The ruins still exuded so much character. Ambling behind the throne was like play

Fave Five: week's highlights A little note for new bloggity friends: It's been an old blogging practice of mine to keep a record of what's positive and good about the week. For several months I have been unable to do it due to a few bits and pieces both on and off line. But I am doing it again. It's quite a good exercise in gratitude and optimism . There's nothing like celebrating! So on to exactly what I'm talking about, these are some highlights, five of them, of my week: Catching up with movies Thank goodness for days off.  I managed four of them in two afternoons. Fast and Furious 6 emphasizes teamwork, Hangover III friendship; The Great Gatsby shows lengths humans are willing to go to to gain acceptance, Jurassic Park introduces DNA to pop culture. Crichton's Timeline It took me awhile but I got the reading done . I appreciate and love novels that are intelligently researched.   Overseas phone conversation with the kiddo CJ: Are you finished workin

For the first time since participating in the ABC meme , I go random for W . So without much ado here I go - Wine Republic: a wine shop in Thonglor windows of Mount Ievers Court, Co. Clara from the book Irish Houses and Castles watery wayside at work my whimsical notebook or at least that's how I call it. That's the buttercup fairy by Mary Cicely Barker. I scribble haiku on the leaves winged beans : go well with minced beef ~ ABC Wednesday ~

It's fun watching them and what they're doing these ones are wondering if their handiwork can withstand wind and these ones are adding volume to their makeshift wall Sally's Blues * Mellow Yellows * Our World * Ruby 2

Never in my life have I worn so much jewelry as I have during my wedding. Strangest sensation. There I was squatting on a wooden floor, hands clasped in prayer wondering what was going on while  nine monks chanted Pali in my clueless face for three straight hours. It was a Buddhist ceremony. The almighty (ex)Mom-in-law orchestrated the entire event. I did nothing but marry her son.  While barefoot the rest of my body was bedecked with 24K gold jewelry. Well, except the silk skirt which was heavy with hundreds of rhinestones sewn around a foot high above the hem. I don't think I will ever go through such wedding garb again. But I'm keeping the rock (ring is studded with six dots of diamond) and this- This pendant is a replica of Phra Buddha Sothorn or Luang Phor Sothorn which is the religious symbol of Chachoengsao, the city where the then husband and his family come from. In Christian countries Phra Buddha Sothorn is like a patron saint of a town or province.  Here's a d