Sometimes you're the veal. (That's right, you were expecting me to say 'the nail', but 'veal' was more like it yesterday. I was tenderized at the Sunday Market, getting some body work done by a Thai guy who was trying to heal my aching back. Still giving me problems, a bit of numbness down the right arm, everything able to function, but there is some daily discomfort and it's not seeming to get better.
The guy's name is Nop (sounds like 'nope') and he is set up near a foot massage outpost on one of the main intersections of the walking street. Maybe about 30 years old, fit, good guy, knows what he's doing. He's got a chiropractic table set up and does body work on whoever shows up and is interested. He does this technique in which he takes a wooden mallet and hits a rosewood peg up and down your spine and your extremities. Tok tok tok tok tok tok, listening to the sound, getting information from the resistance, the sound etc. For the receiver of the treatment... it's like being tenderized, for reals.
He softened me up with a lot of tok tok tok, did some massage and chiropractic on my back, and since I was the last client of the evening, he spent about an hour working on me, as his assistants and M looked on. I quite enjoyed the treatment, though woke up about the same this morning as yesterday, which makes me think that there is something off in my spine that no tenderization can get to. Alas... I want to see Dr Peltzer when I get back to Oregon. He's a great chiropractor working out of Springfield and I'd like him to take a crack at it too. (pun intended)
Really the home stretch now, I'll be on a plane to Oregon in 16 days, so the time with M is now ultra precious. We had one of our best weeks ever this past week and it's gonna be very difficult to up and leave. Crazy even, but no crazier than a lot of the stories one hears from here. She's in good form, getting excited about finishing her bar waitress job and starting a new chapter. She really wants me to return to her ASAP and is willing to 'wait for me' if that's what I want. (Lots of Thai women promise this to their boyfriends, often stringing two or three different foreigners along at the same time to keep the money flowing in). But I believe M when she tells me that she would wait for me. Even against all odds. Even if people assured me that I was being stupid. Besides, I like a good story... and this is a good one, regardless of how it plays out.
The thing that interests me most is how she deals with the alcohol issue. If it turns out that she is just one of those people who needs to drink every day, OK, God Bless you, good luck. But she is making lots of statements about moving into a different place, healthwise, and we will see. When she goes and sees her sister, she won't be smoking and will maybe be allowed one beer a day (if that). We joke that it's like going to rehab, and hey, why not, it sounds like a natural way to at least catch a glimpse of a different lifestyle. She's got some neck and back pain that she wants to work on as well and then hopefully back into yoga as well.
Whatever happens, it's been quite a ride, and quite a gift that we have gotten to experience. Still a huge amount of love flows between us, and it's been deepened by some of the struggles we've undergone together. There's a lot to be said for hanging in there (not my greatest attribute usually), and I plan on enjoying these final weeks of being together.... even though there is a huge part of me that is frightened about having to separate in March.... It ain't gonna be easy... oy.
