Kinda fixated on that song for the past few days, ever since I was writing about the 'horserace' between my head and my er, other head, and I went on Youtube and heard the George Jones version. I had that instantaneous desire to cover the song, so I copied down the lyrics and have spent the past three days singing it over and over again... Last night was Thursday at the CU when Dominic and the oldtimers sit around the table and sing folk and bluegrass stuff, and for the first time, I sat in on bass. They dug it, it added that bottom end. They would go around the table and take turns picking the next tune. I passed the first few times around, wanting to concentrate on the bass, but then got the idea to intro this song into the mix, so I swapped the bass for Tim's guitar and off we went. I had to pull out my lyric sheet to make sure I could keep up, and it came off GREAT. Dominic says, 'what's the name of that song? It's my new favorite song'. I have to agree with him there. I just love that tune right now...
I've been thinking about how much I love where I've been staying in Chiang Mai. I'm on a little street (soi) just outside the old city, and right across the way from my Guest House is a big highschool, which means that there are lots of teenagers coming and going on foot and on scooters. All of the kids are in uniform, and every morning just before 8, I hear the school song pumped over the loudspeaker as the kids gether for the opening address. Then there are some words from an adult, followed by the National Anthem. It comes in loud and clear, and now I know the tune. On the corner, 5 or 6 vendors are set up in movable carts to take advantage of the number of kids. Students can stop by for chilled fruit in plastic bags, skewers of meat, little deep fried snacks with a little hot dog slice inside an oily shell (strangely delicious and not 'heart healthy') and other such fast food. Around the corner is a large day care/primary school where children from 3 to 7 spend their day. Since it would be impossible for parents to park and walk the kids in themselves, (no spaces), a group of teachers is stationed at the entrance and they open the car door, help the children out, greet them and walk them inside, almost like a valet service. It's kind of adorable to see the kids arrive to a wonderful welcome like this. Occassionaly I'll be walking by as all of the kids are on the playground singing their morning song, and the sound is piercing, that high pitched nasal kid sound, unselfconscious, loud and like I say, piercing.
This neighborhood feels like Thailand, as opposed to a Farang playground, which is how parts of the town feel, and I much prefer the vibe on my side of the moat. The 'old city' of Chiang Mai is basically a square that is 2 kilometers on each side. There is a moat that surrounds the old city and the busiest (and hardest to cross) streets adjoin the moat. Lots of traffic, scooters, tuk tuks, trucks, some bicycles and a few rickshaws. During rush hour it can take a while to find a little break that will allow you to dash across. I'm about one hundred yards from the moat, and a hundred yards on the other side is the CU Corner on soi number one. CU borders an area that is very farang friendly, with guest houses, restaurants, bike rental places, massage places, cafes and bars, all geared to the tourists. It's very very comfortable for the visitors, and I don't begrudge them (me?) the opportunity to feel comfortable, but there is something about it that rankles. It's almost too much, like going to 'Old Sturbridge Village' or something or some 'restored pioneer village' which offers that Disneyland type of experience, as opposed to real experience. I'm not deluded enough to think that I'm getting the real thing on the other side of the moat, but it is definitely different, much more Thais per capita on this side, speaking a few words of Thai helps, and I've got some of the basics down, numbers, ordering food and coffee, and the ability to say, no problem, very good, thank you, see you later, how much, check please etc. I like it on my side.
N's coffee place is down the end of the soi, facing the moat, and it's a great vibe in there. She is very nice, solid citizen, good source of information. Her clientele seems to be about 50/50 farang/thai so it makes for a nice mix of people. There is a guitar in there as well, owned by her friend 'Eck'? and I've shown him a couple of tricks, and now I'm starting to recognize the locals who hang out there, they honk at me if they're driving by and I'm out and about, so that's a nice feeling to start feeling part of the community. Ah yes the virtues of a regular routine. It's a good thing.
I'd write about M but I'm starting to think I'm just insane on that topic, things change from one day to the next and maybe it's a little embarrassing to be so sure one minute and then so sure the other way the next minute. Reminds me of a moment during my divorce from Jamila when my lawyer was arguing a point and he had that exasperated, lawyer thing going on...'This is ridiculous, there's no way it should be like this etc', except he was mistaken about something he was arguing. I whispered in his ear and corrected the information, and without missing a beat, he started arguing the other side of the issue, in the same exasperated, 'this is ridiculous' tone. I was like, 'Wow, so that's what lawyers do'. It was impressive, in a ridiculous way. And that's how I'm feeling about the M saga. One minute it's feeling so clear that it's a certain way. The next minute, it's the opposite of that. Like Cheryl Crow sings, 'Every day is A Winding Road'.... and like I sing, "The Race is On'
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