5th Aug
Ok, remember that completely sane dream I had about the toe chomping lizards?  Well guess what me old fruities??? Its only frickin true!! AAARRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH. Yes I was happily sitting in my office yesterday when my eyes catch some movement on the floor. It’s a dark and lengthy lizard scuttling with intention towards my barefooted peepsies. Spooky state of affairs this. I really did check down and make sure all the little piglets were present and correct (which they are, don’t fret!). Mind you if it had eaten my toes then I might well have been swept into the arms of a stunning man by now…..
Quick, quick, kick those shoes off and cover my toes in crickets….

 Other than that things are going relatively smoothly here in the ‘Thong’ (this place is accumulating aliases like bees on honey). The days tick on by without too much stress or altercations. I am busy preparing for the new project which is due to start in September, running training sessions on clinical skills and preparing workshops for the teaching staff here about teaching methodologies. It’s kind of strange to think that I won’t be here for most of the new project, so most of the work I’ll be doing is preparation. It must be a sign that I’m not too disappointed by this – although perhaps when it gets nearer the time to coming home, I will not want to go.

 We have had mucho grande rain here over the past few days, so the winter jammies and blanket have been pulled out again to keep the chill out. The market has been quite flooded on some days and people are predicting big flood is the rains continue. The river is certainly extremely high – higher than I’ve ever seen it before.

 Wee Tink is doing her bit to ward of the cold by acting as my hot water bottle, snuggling up to me at night – bless ‘er soul. Doglet, after weeks of being confined to outside after going for the cat, has decided she prefers it outside and gets antsy if she’s inside for too long! I am also securing homes for the menagerie when I leave – as I try the responsible pet owner thing.
Doglet is going back from whence she came – Mekong Blue. The two kittens have already gone to Chan’s house, where he is trying to convert them to a rice diet.  Despite the fact I didn’t want them in the first place, of course they were starting to nestle into a little place in my heart, so when it came to handing them over and seeing disappear into the horizon in a wee box perched precariously on a moto, I have to admit I felt bad. Must be like saying goodbye to your kids when they leave home. There’s an empty place in the home, and I didn’t know what to do with myself.

 So it just leaves Stinker-roonie to sort out. I’d actually love to bring her home with me – because she is a proper house cat, I think she’d tolerate England well, and I’ve gotten really attached to her. But no doubt she’ll have to stay here; either back to Malin, or with a new volunteer. I could throw her a farewell party eh? Get in some tins of Whiska’s and having a rocking time??