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Printed from https://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1311011-Porthole/month/12-1-2022
Rated: 13+ · Book · Personal · #1311011
A terminal for all blogs coming in or going out. A view into my life.
Started July 1st 2019 for contests, etc. as other blogs are filling up and have other purposes.

Ferry boat between Solvorn and Ornes across the Lustrafjord i Sogn og Fjordane.




I'm starting a new blog because
BOOK
L'aura del Campo  (13+)
Online journal capturing the moment and the memory of moments. A meadow meditation.
#982524 by Kåre Enga in Montana
had over 1,200 entries and that was getting close to full. I don't want to trim it by deletion. I did that once, much to my dismay. Will be used more for poetry.

BOOK
Hoarfrosts from Hell  (GC)
Anything I'm not happy about or that I don't want in my main blog!
#997339 by Kåre Enga in Montana
is still hidden from the public and will remain so. It's more personal and full of angst. Was used for 30DBC for May 2020 and now used for Blogville.

BOOK
Enga mellom fjella  (13+)
Enga mellom fjella: where from across the meadow, poems sing from mountains and molehills.
#1317094 by Kåre Enga in Montana
was full... until the number of entries was increased. A mixed blog, mostly stories.

I'll be linking to
BOOK
On The Write Path  (13+)
ON THE WRITE PATH: travel journal for Around-the-World in 2015, 16, 18.
#2032403 by Kåre Enga in Montana
as I need to post there about my travels.

 
BOOK
O Pinions!  (XGC)
May my opinions gather wind under their wings and fly, perchance to soar.
#1501776 by Kåre Enga in Montana
is for my opinions. *Laugh*

BOOK
Nurture your Nature  (13+)
Look around. Let Nature nurture your Soul. I record images I sense and share them here.
#1439094 by Kåre Enga in Montana
was set up for nature observations and musings.

 
BOOK
Watt's Gnus  (18+)
On topics and today's gnus. Definitely opinionated. Set to 18+ for a reason.
#1439092 by Kåre Enga in Montana
come out of a need to share interesting stuff I come across. When I was young I did a small newsletter named as such. (or was it column in the newsletter? Been 30 years... I think.)

 
FOLDER
Flash Fiction  (GC)
Short 300 word, more or less, "stories" .
#2190336 by Kåre Enga in Montana
is where I put my flash fictions. Maybe someday I'll figure it out and have enough good ones to publish. Ratings vary and some are hidden from view.

I've started an appendix (I no longer have one personally) to keep track of my Space Cadet journals for Space Blog. It's a work constantly under construction. Mind the mess.
STATIC
Space Cadet - the never ending journal  (18+)
Journeys of an Alien Space crew.
#2226611 by Kåre Enga in Montana


I needed to start a folder for contests as there are so many deadlines and details to remember.
 
FOLDER
Conquest ... to keep track of contests  (18+)
A place to keep track of in progress works and up-coming deadlines as well as any awards.
#2233119 by Kåre Enga in Montana
(also very messy!) *Shock2*

 
FORUM
Blogville   (XGC)
Where bloggers meet and greet to read and share. No required prompt. Alias: blogville.
#2253938 by Kåre Enga in Montana
is for posting personal blog entries in hope that folks will comment and post their blog entries there as well. I will be commenting on all blog entries posted. It's my effort to rebuild a blogging community.

BOOK
Bibimbap 비빔밥   (13+)
Left-overs piled on hot rice and mixed.
#2296648 by Kåre Enga in Montana
an E blog focusing on food and culture. Easily digestible for the Queasy and Questioning.

December 26, 2022 at 1:05pm
December 26, 2022 at 1:05pm
#1042208
1.januar

Quiet, quiet day. Morning? I was up too late, slept in.

Cleaned coffee-maker because I have ground coffee I want to use up. I had to remove 3 or more years of oily dust. I'm making about 10 cups... that should hold me for the day.

Time to start packing. Could do a wash... or wait till Friday (everything MUST be dry by Saturday). I leave in a week.

31.desember

*Worry*? Seventh prompt. Writing is due by Jan. 1 at 11:59 p.m. In this final prompt, you MUST wrap up the plot. Do not leave me with unsolved mysteries, couples that don't get each other, or other loose ends.

Needs editing "Sound of two hands clasping Chapter 7; but, at least I'm wrapping it up. *Gifto* I'll make sure there are no 'loose ends'. I think Lim-Pond is resolved as is Sato-san's role (and the Programmer and One).

#6 is split into 3 parts... one for each named character, but the threads are all there 1-6 and tied up in #7.

Great chat with Lundy. He's a poet. We talked about gatekeeping and colonialism.

Pile of mail: letter from Sonali, postcard/cards from Krista, Kit, Grace, Jen, Nanette.

Met Spencer and Julia at Butterfly Herbs... what a hoot.

30.desember

To Harlow: "I love bittersweet stories. Too realistic for the romance crowd, not enough gore for the horror crowd, no slash and dash for the Alphas.

I love Babette's Feast, Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Rashomon...

There's a certain sense of looking at life as it is not as we wish it to be.

Mind you, I'm an idealist... but I my feet trod on Mother Earth."

To Dave: "Nicely done. Eastern Montana has a BIG sky. I live in the west snuggled between mountains.

I loved the openness of Kansas... one reason why I'm going back to Isan in Thailand. "A little bit of who I am" resonates with wide open agricultural areas."

29.desember

Worked on my story for Annette.

Met with Billie Jo and Angie. Billie Jo got here postcard.

Scored a container of tuna casserole.

28.desember

Still damp and dreary.

To Sarah: "You've been busy! And surrounded by people. Me? In Montana I've lived alone in silence for years. In Thailand I share a condo with a TV. Quite the change.

I should do an end-of-the-year perspective. My writing has been off a tad but I stay at WDC because it suits me (for writing). Same with spacefook (for photos)."

To Cubby on the Newsfeed: "I wish this were true. My dialect is NOT supported by spell check or grammar check. At times I feel folks act like English Lit teachers or robotic grammarians. While they are critiquing I'm CREATING! Gatekeepers never understood James Joyce nor Emily Dickinson back in the day and many are still bound by British Colonial norms. I have to fight to keep my voice. There is more to writing than high-school essays grammatically perfect and dead-on-arrival."

ESG: The acronym for environmental, social, governance principles. Do No Harm? The Christian Right already does this, but the GOP objects to others with a differing p.o.v?

27.desember

01:23 I have my Asiana seats reserved. China is allowing travel as of January 8th so it was necessary to finalize everything.

I'm still nervous about the late-arrival into BKK.

Gonna be a wet day with temps above 40. At least I'll be able to get out.

A disturbing idea: "Common good constitutionalism".

To Fathertymme: "It's nice to have friendly neighbors and family.

It's one reason I may move from Montana. I have little keeping me here.

Tuesday... thankfully... I got out and saw friends. As dreary and gloomy as it is that's better than staying home alone."

To Dianne: "I looked up Timpson. Yup. Not much there... a Whataburger and a Dollar Store. Looks like you can safely walk around town though. Not much traffic.

Once you get to know your neighbors you can put the word out that it'd be helpful if they kept an eye on Dennis if he gets to wandering. Small communities can be good about that... at least Sabetha Kansas was decades ago!

The place I'm sharing in Thailand is nicer than here in Montana. Elevator, on-site laundry, pool, fitness room, and a TV!

Could I live there permanently? I dunno.

Change is hard on everyone. I'm not as sharp as I used to be, my body not as forgiving. Mentally, I'm faced with learning a new language and culture. As hard as that may be it could prove helpful for my health.

No ice there to slip on. Here? I'm very careful. Falls can kill. There... traffic is crazy and it's dangerous to cross a street.

Paradise has a price. In truth, there is no paradise. One adjusts and makes do."

I admired Hiroki's collage. He replied:

Google Photos
-> Pick up photos
-> make a collage

To Robin: "We seldom know how our flame can give warmth and hope to another."

26.desember

Monday dawned with a frozen fog. White upon white.

To Bikerider: "I wish this were true. So important for me to ask myself why I do things; priorities and perspective shift with age.

I'm going back to Thailand for 3 months to assess where I'm at and where I'm going. Hopefully a change of scenery will help me make wise decisions."

I shopped today: chocolate milk, bread, butter, crackers, ice cream! $22.

I finished "Spirit of this Place Chapter#4 and started "Do Robots Ever Sleep? Chapter #5. The ideas are flowing. Thank you, Muse.

6555
December 19, 2022 at 8:11pm
December 19, 2022 at 8:11pm
#1041945
25.desember

The whole can of onion chili, now rice and beans. My appetite is baaaack.

Very hard to explain to Americans that many Asians (Taiwanese, Thais) think about others and not just about themselves. (Elycia's post about Japan)

To Neva: "I feel holed up. The solution is getting out! But... damp cold and ice after blustery winds and deathly temps... I'll stay in. My building is a ghost-town.

Thailand... it's nice there now. Looking forward to daily routines of learning the language and culture. And being able to open doors and windows."

24.desember

Still cold. Still white. Still crazy (me or the weather... *Rolleyes*).

The concern is real: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/california-tried-to-ban-gay-teachers-in-1978-e...

I will pay 4 months of rent before I leave Montana.

Lumpini Place: 686 ถ. โพศรี ตำบลหมากแข้ง อำเภอเมืองอุดรธานี อุดรธานี 41000

23.desember

Ham dinner. Sat with friends. Was given an extra din-din to take home. Scored a sugar cookie.

Light snow showers all day... keeping it white. Cold but calm. Still a chilly 4°F at 4 pm.

I did take a shower today, I'll have you know. *Clap* I don't always take one if it's cold and I'm not going anywhere. So dry inside that little 'smells'.

Dreaming of butterflies and metamorphosis. Reading Mrs Polifax... I'm not sure whether I'm in Hong Kong, Udon, Petchaburi, Narathiwat.

Ponnya called. *Hearto*

To Jim: "Ouch... 225# does not sound good. I got worried when I was 200#. Ideally I should be 165#. I'm around 175# having lost weight in Thailand due to heat and no appetite and becoming ill for a week when I returned. My appetite showed up again yesterday. I'll have to be careful until I go back on the 8th.

It's nice that you work in a cooperative environment. Not to wax political, but I think Congress would work better if they would leave the knives in the kitchen and learn to be nice to each other in the family room."

I told Charity: "You have high hopes (sing it). *Hearto*

I will share a not-so-secret. At 70 I often feel like a failure. I'm not, but I blocked myself in so many ways. Now I'm willing to take a risk in Thailand. It's about time."

To Stik: ""the unintended consequences of some of their messaging."

I'm still livid about 6 years of putting up with Trump's tantrums... but his messaging and marketing have been amazing. Intelligent thoughtful people don't seem to understand that glitz and glitter outsells substance.

Packaging matters... *Rolleyes*.

As for cancer. It really helps to have someone who has been there. Empathy matters. *Hearto*"

22.desember

Cold morning breakfast

I ate a can of stew.
I did not ask permission first.
I ate a can of stew.

tra-la—tra-li—cock-a-doodle-do
tra-la—tra-lo—cock-a-toodle-too

I will not give it back.
'Tis happy where it is, you see.
I will not give it back.

© Kåre Enga [179.108] (22.desember.2022)

Alternatively:

'Tis happy where it is.
I will not give it back to you.
'Tis happy where it is.

Would this do: tra-la—tra-lo—cook-a-turtle-too

-7°F at 2 pm. Yeah... that kind of kold.

21.desember

I told Nikola: "It's white with icicles. About 4 degrees and going down to -13 by tomorrow. I may not go out today. I plan to stay home tomorrow. Friday there's a dinner before the three day weekend which is forecast to bring rain.

No pets to pet. I wish..."

QotD: "Too much trauma, possibly starting with a head injury at age 3.

Keith unlocked the poet within me at age 47."

To Susan: "The grass is always greener around the cow plop as well. Under the cow plop? That's where most people find themselves."

-21c at 6 pm. Going down to -29c. Bitter cold with fierce Hell Gate Winds. Visited my neighbor Scott. Did not go out today.

Extremely disturbing: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/8-teenage-girls-who-met-through-social-medi...

20.desember

Snowy. Not so cold. Ate my meatloaf but not my friends. It'll get bitter cold starting tomorrow into Thursday. Have my long furry winter coat ready... just in case.

I have entered "14 Days, 7 Prompts, 1 Story Contest and must remember to finish and post my first chapter ""Sound of one hand clasping" Chapter#1, found in the folder "Sound of one hand clasping (Folder)

"He said you get old in the winter months. A very good prompt.

I don't get out much in winter. It will be bitter-cold here Thursday. I may buy bread tomorrow... or not. I have enough food.

I've had dry eyes. I put lotion on my eyelids but my optometrist gave me something special as well."

Ponnya wrote: "I count the falling flower petals waiting for the day you come back to me" and sent me a photo of the two roses I gave him before I left.

19.desember

Thinking of a nature poem/entry: Ivy binds, holly hurts, mistletoe hangs limp and poisonous. Better a whiff of jasmine, hot brewed coffee, fresh grilled fish. The icons of a wintry childhood melt in the tropics. I'd replace the loneliness with a meaningful hug, a hand clasping mine, guiding me to places I've never been.

roll back ashy skin
fork white flesh onto a leaf
place in my mouth

The January 6th Committee concluded its findings with a bang and 4 criminal referrals. Good enough for me. I watched it unfold in-real-time. It was obviously a criminal act then and since.

Monday = meal with friends. Snowy walk home.

December 12, 2022 at 8:09am
December 12, 2022 at 8:09am
#1041707
18.desember

04:20 and nightmares... I'm not doing well since I came back to Montana

10 years from now two young boys will meet on a frozen playground in Scotland/Siberia/Sapporo and they will introduce themselves as Lionel and Kylian. Today will be on their mind. Will they share dreams of playing for their national team or will their dreams lie elsewhere?

Can you write their story?

Today, December 18, 2022, Argentina and Messi defeated France and Mbappe for the World Cup.


Remember ask to about sepak takraw.

17.desember

Went to Butterfly Herbs. Had a cardamom-tangerine milkshake. Saw Lundy, Cathy Mae. Coughed all the way home (I suspect due to the cold air). Now snug in bed and fine. It's 18:48 and I'm bored.

16.desember

To Elycia: I guess the question is whether you live in a community where people look after each other or whether you're a self-centered individualist. Americans take pride in their perceived superiority as individualists. Case in point.

Cultures vary... so do expectations. These days many people use cafes as their personal work office. Same in hostels. Also... in some cultures folks REALLY don't like being talked to; it's considered rude. I will adjust in Thailand... but... my own attitude gets in the way. If a person is in public they needn't assume a prickly My-Privacy aggressive posture of entitlement. If a person needs privacy... get your own room/office/whatever and spare the rest of us. Among travelers, common in hostels, there's a sense of looking out for each other (as a temporary family). From my perspective the author is overly sensitive.

To Mary: I'm going back to Thailand to a future I cannot predict but one I need to practice saying yes to.

Lunch: fish.

15.desember

Made rice with pork (onion, garlic, peanut-butter, butter, basil).

*Snow3* Cold.

I think Ponnya is suffering from separation anxiety. *Care*

To Lilli: Conjugate 'sick'.

Everyone here is sick, has been sick or will be sick. It's tense.

Personally... got to grocery store, bought bread, other stuff. Cold walk probably didn't help my lingering cough. I'm okay, just okay.

14.desember

Phil had extra muffins yesterday. Today's breakfast: coffee and a muffin.

To Ponnya:

หิมะ หิมะ หิมะ

โลกเป็นสีขาว

เงียบ เงียบ เงียบ

โลกนี้ช่างเงียบสงบ

จุ๊จุ๊จุ๊

รักคุณ

I was very sick when I got back from Thailand. Couldn't get warm, couldn't stay warm. It's taking over one week to feel 'normal'... just don't ask about sleep or whether I'm getting anything done.

I am supposed to be downsizing here. Anyone want books? I am returning to Thailand shortly. I feel physically and emotionally better there.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/this-fast-growing-religion-has-ancient-roots-a...

13.desember

Thailand return is booked. I did manage to get to God's Waiting Room. Saw friends, ate. Home = nap.

12.desember

5 in the morning — my body aches; I can't sleep; I decide on coffee and toast. At 5 am it's 7 pm in Thailand. Ponnya has been lonely. I've been sick... and lonely too.

An article that makes a couple valid points but devalues the human right to choose a faith:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/newsindia/freedom-of-religion-is-not-right-to-con...

December 5, 2022 at 3:55pm
December 5, 2022 at 3:55pm
#1041430
11 ธันวาคม

Went to Bernice's Bakery for a cuppa. Got a pastry with it. Nice to sit in the window whilst it was flaking outside.

10 ธันวาคม

Got to post office. A bit worried about what might await me. Nothing. Bank statements. Checked local balance (enough to buy next ticket).

Fire&Ice (gentle on the fire) milkshake at Butterfly Herbs. Shared my good news.

Very cold day. Took bus across bridge to Senior Center where there was a crafts fair. Warmed up.

9 ธันวาคม

I went to God's Waiting Room. Sat with Willie and Bill. Chatted with Laxmi and Jamie.

Didn't enjoy the meal that much. Nothing tastes good.

I may need to write about this topic:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/like-it-or-not-here-s-5-good-things-abou...

8 ธันวาคม

I put on an orange shirt so I'd at least know what day it was.

Saw Angie... told here about Ponnya. Showed a picture to her, Billie Jo, Jay (he laughed *Smile*), Scott. Scott brought me orange juice, cough medicine, aspirin, bread.

My fever peaked at 102.2. Now 100.7 ... still not good; but I can walk short distances.

7 ธันวาคม

It may take some time for me to adjust. I just ate cheesy mashed potatoes and poured a cup of coffee. I simply couldn't stay awake earlier and now I can't sleep.

I messaged Ponnya: "1°C เวลา 10:10 ฉันหนาว. ฉันต้องการความอบอุ่นของคุณ"

It took me awhile to find my winter socks. I'm freezing.

And I have a fever: 99.6 as 97.6 is my normal.

Sicker than before. Temp now 101. Bad cough. Took aspirin and DayQuill (my neighbor had some). If I were in Udon Ponnya would take care of me.

1 a.m. Still very sick. Can barely walk. Sent message to Ponnya.

6 ธันวาคม

It's 05:35 in Missoula; 19:35 in Udon. Where is home?

I will retire this for now: Kåre Enga UdonThani 🇹🇭

Carolyn and Rod have lost their elderly cat. 17 years. I hope my new relationship lasts this long. I hope I'm cherished. In the past I've wondered whether I'd be missed. *Care*

Now 22:53 MST. I told Robert: "I just came back from Thailand. The happiest region, Isan, is agricultural and family oriented. I went to Isan because I thought it would remind me of Kansas. I wasn't prepared for happiness. Now I just have to let go of my lifelong baggage of lonely grumpiness. *Laugh* Yeah, I met someone.

"The Woebot" sounds appropriate."

I'm being congratulated. DanDan is Chinese and her husband of 15 years is quite a bit older. She lit up when I told her. I was congratulated at the Senior Center as well.

From Jackie: “An áit a bhfuil do chroí is ann a thabharfas do chosa thú - “Your feet will bring you to where your heart is”

5 ธันวาคม

Made it to Seattle. Waiting for my final flight.

Flight had a bit of drama. The guy in the seat directly behind me was very upset... apparently over being refused a drink... In any case they eventually moved him. The entire crew was involved.

6419



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Printed from https://www.writing.com/main/books/item_id/1311011-Porthole/month/12-1-2022