Pa Cha-on takes a cruise, and the roof leak gets repaired, but not fixed.

April 4, 2017

On April 1 a year ago we arrived in India. We got to the immigration station in the airport and were asked what our address in India was. We said we didn’t know. The university that hired Ron had not given us that information. We didn’t know the name of the hotel or the address. We were asked to step out of the line so others could be processed. We were told we could not go any further without this information. What a horrible welcome to India. Then I asked Ron if Meghal had given Ron the telephone number of driver who was to meet us at the airport. We pulled out his computer and asked the immigration agent to call the driver ( we did not have an Indian SIM card for our phones yet) and get the needed information. Whew! It worked. Then the driver took us to the hotel and drove away. We discovered he had taken us to the wrong hotel. We had the night clerk call him back to the hotel. He then took us to the correct hotel a few blocks away. WEIRD!!!! It was 4:00 or 5:a.m. by then. We crashed. Ron told me we were meeting Meghal at 1:00. Around 11:00 I went to the front desk for something and someone in the lobby called my name. It was Scot and Meghal the folks we were to meet at 1:00 except they were expecting us at 11:00. I ran upstairs to wake Ron and tell him. In retrospect I wonder if this was a preview of what was ahead….

Well it is all behind us now. In about ten days we head to Bangkok to visit Leslie then on the 20^th we fly home by way of Hong Kong then Dallas where we will spend the night before flying to Portland the next morning. I fear that if we went straight through I would be a screaming banshee and be asked to get off the plane mid flight. Somehow a 37 hr trip is no longer an option for this old girl.

As our departure nears I am so very ready to be home. I miss Portland and our life there. It is an urban life and quite comfortable. For almost 13 months we have been making do. I am ready for a change. We are both a bit bored here as we aren’t traveling and have no house projects. Ron is desperately trying to line up a contractor to repair roof damage from a rainstorm we had over a week ago. There was a leak and part of the eave cover collapsed, leaving a large hole. Several pieces of wall board need to be replaced, a roof gutter needs to be redesigned and a new gutter needs to be installed along the roof line.

Ron has gotten one quote and that guy has refused to come and do the job because of a miscommunication. After he gave Ron the quote Ron said he had another person coming to give a quote at 10:00  The contractor didn’t speak English and we do not speak Thai so the contractor sent his crew here at 10:00 with a truck loaded with scaffolding and materials. We had to turn him away and he apparently is angry and refuses to do the work. Yesterday two different contractors came over and one didn’t follow through giving us his quote and another one recommended that we not use his services because he was a foam spray contractor and he didn’t think it was the right solution. Good thing because it cost $3,000.

April 5, 2017

We are waiting for another contractor to show up and he is late. We really want to complete this job before leaving so Ron can make sure it is done to his specs but we are running out of time. Another no show.

April 9, 2017

Pa Cha An takes a little cruise:  This afternoon I stepped out on the porch to hang a wet rag on the rack and saw Tui and Noi rolling Pa Cha An in her hospital bed down the drive away towards our house. I joined them for this great event. Pa Cha An loves to get outside and I think Tui is the only one who makes the effort to roll her hospital bed out of the house and into fresh air. Today she had on her shades so I think the sunlight must hurt her eyes. Not only was she cruising down the drive Tui had Pa Cha An’s evening meal balanced on the bed.  They stopped the bed near our house and Pa Cha An continued her meal. Tui is a pediatric nurse and was very delft at feeding Pa Cha AN and not spilling a single drop. Impressive!  We will miss this wonderful fun family. As hard as tui and Timm work they always have a smile and laughter. It is inspiring.

Yesterday the contractor, the fourth or fifth one, showed up while we were away for the day. We had gone to Hua Hin to say goodbye to Kay and Bill who are leaving for Eugene OR on Monday where they spend half the year.

The contractor was scheduled for today but he had forgotten that he had another commitment, his son’s football game, so he came on Saturday. Ron had wanted to be here to ensure that the job was done well. When the contractor came over on Thursday, Timm, Tumm and Noi were here. Timm and Tumm speak a little English and the contractor spoke none. So after Ron explained how he wanted the roof fixed and repaired, Timm called Pair, her daughter, in Bangkok to clarify. The phone was passed back and forth between Ron, Tumm and the contractor multiple times. After they understood what Ron wanted they said ‘no’. Ron was persistent but after about 30 minutes he gave up. It is just too hard when we don’t speak the language The roof is now repaired but no gutters yet.

This is our week to pack up. We will endeavor to do what we call ’eating down’ the pantry and refrigerator. We try to create meals from what is on hand so we are not wasting food. Some items the family here will use and some they won’t. The heat builds up so badly in the house and it is worse when it is closed up. Consequently we do not like to leave food here when we leave. I have taken to putting unopened food like olives in the refrigerator when we leave. Today by 9:20 it was 84 degrees inside with four fans running in the living and dining area. By 10:20 it was 86 and now at 11:00 it is approaching 90. We woke up at 6:30 to the sound of Noi raking outside not to mention the birds and roosters. I could tell it was going to be a hot and humid day today. I am not wrong. I am sitting in front of two fans and dripping sweat. At 5:50 in the afternoon the inside of the house was 91 degrees. OY! Soon I can complain about the cold, damp weather in Portland

In addition to dealing with food, I will go through all the closets and drawers to pull out anything we are taking home as we have spread out over the months we have been here. I am leaving some items like my garlic press, micro plane and special knife for cooks with arthritis in their hands. I will buy new ones when I get home. On Thursday we will do most of the packing and some of the final house cleaning. Friday there will be a big family celebration with about 22 of us to send Ron and me off so we will complete any tasks for departure before dinner. We will need to take off early Saturday for Hua Hin to return the rental car and meet our hired car/driver to take us to Bangkok at 10:30. So the more we can wrap up Friday night the better. At some point after our departure Linn comes and cleans the house and covers the furniture with sheets that we bought specifically for that purpose when we lived in Sri Lanka. There was a store in Colombo that sold sheets by the kilo. They were odd sizes, odd colors and there were no pillow cases. We got 16 of those sheets.