Hospital Woes

I’ve made more trips to the hospital this past month, than I have in three years of living in Thailand. As a stern reminder of what it’s like to live in poorer Bangkok communities, two of my students have been the victims of motorcycle accidents because of reckless driving. The first of the accidents happened [...]

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No Smiling Children [Photos]

I want to share some recent pictures from our English teaching project, but as a change of pace, here are photos where the kids aren’t the emphasis. So no smiling children this time, but I hope you see how rich in character the communities where we work are. Here are a few shots of the [...]

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A Reminder of World Refugee Day 2010

This upcoming June 20th is World Refugee Day and people are organizing celebrations all over the world. To make sure we’re able to extend the sponsoring of food supplies we began last month, I’m organizing a small event to raise money to support them through the summer.  Here are some facts about refugees and a [...]

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Picking Up the Pieces

Much of the tension has eased in Bangkok and I’m feeling much better. Thanks to everyone who has expressed  their concern. Things are getting back to normal, but for how long? As people begin to examine what led to the events that brought Bangkok to a halt, some have correctly identified the role of charitable [...]

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Smiles & Trials

I am probably not in the best mood to be blogging about anything sanuk. I have contracted some sort of wimpy cold. The kind of sickness that doesn’t completely debilitate you, but keeps your nose snotty enough to be generally unattractive to present company. Doesn’t help that today I ventured out into the smoky city [...]

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What is Sanuk? Answers from Volunteers and Supporters

Thanks for your responses on National Volunteer Week. Especially to Charlotte who wrote to say that in addition to her regular volunteering gig, she went to the Bangkok airport with supplies and toys for people who had been stranded by flight cancellations in Europe. There are more people out there like Charlotte who are doing [...]

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Refueling in Atlanta During National Volunteer Week

Happy National Volunteer Week to everyone reading from the US. I wish I could brag that I planned it this way, but I couldn’t have picked a more exciting time to visit home. I soaked everything in a few weeks ago when many of the country’s inspirational and nerdy do-gooders descended on Atlanta for the [...]

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