Insulted!

     I’m one who isn’t easily insulted, some sort of mai phen rai or no probs guy, but what happened today is something that is hard to forgive.

     I just got home from Lotus where I had to buy some diapers for Kailee [or she would be messing the house], and I had to type this one right away just for the record. I took the bus home [2-3 km distance] and I came in contact with Thai culture on politeness, which surpasses Filipino standards. It was a lady in her mid-teens who offered a seat to me. That would be just fine for some but to me it was a great insult.

     Did I really look senile? I know that at my age I still look like I can do 50 pushups or stand on the aisle of a speeding bus and not get tripped. I just couldn’t take the offer but I also didn’t want to rob her of her politeness. It’s good my bus stop came up fast enough, and I got off the moving bus carefully to avoid adding injury to the insult.

Four generations

Time stood still for a fraction of a second and captured this rare and wonderful moment of four generations in a grand and splendid pose.

We had to preserve this opportunity after flying home from Bangkok, and while a reunion was still pssible and all four still had each other:


Vicenta Medel-Nartatez - 73,
Jo Ann Nartatez-Moreno - 45,
Lauren Ann N. Moreno - 24 and
Juliane Kailee N. Moreno - 1.