The Weekend

Yesterday (Saturday) was a really fun "girls" day. :-) We went to a mexican restaurant for lunch and it was so delicious!! From there we headed to the fish spa. whew! What do I mean by fish spa? I will let the pictures speak for themselves here in a bit.  :-D  Then we went to the night bazaar. This was SUCH a cool place! It just kept going....and going....and going. It would have taken forever to see everything.  But there was a lot of neat stuff and I found some treasures. Then we headed for a Thai massage.  Now get this.....the massage included: Head, back, shoulders, calf & feet, arms & hands for about an hour.  How much was this? $6!!!! Yeah...you read that right.  A mere $6.  *contended sigh* that won't be the last time I see that place. :-)  The night ended just right with some awesome Rotee and Starbucks. mmmm

Today was a really great day too!  I was able to chat with all my fellow SPGs as they partied without me. haha just kidding. But it was really fun to do a video chat and to see everyone again.  Church was also really great!  I've pretty much become the main pianist and I don't mind. I think I'm finally starting to get the hang of the order of service and such. I still have to look at Pookie to tell me when we're done singing else I would be sitting up there forever! hahaha The English class also went really well.  Two students today.  I was a little concerned because Pookie wasn't going to be able to translate for me today, but I thought that it went really well! Yesterday was Bro. Man's birthday (he's the PiT here) so we celebrated after church with some cake. 

For those of you who were praying for the elections here in Thailand, it turns out that the candidate for the red shirts did indeed win the seat for Prime Minister.  With her in office we're not really sure what will happen.  Hopefully there won't be much unrest on the side of the yellow shirts.  And also praying that with them in power there won't be any violence or anything. We'll see.  Whoever is in power is in the Lord's hands.

Well, here are some pictures to tidy up this post. Enjoy!

WARNING:  If you don't like feet.....brace yourself. :-p


We couldn't stop giggling. It was sooo ticklish!

This little boy was so cute.  He was fascinated by the fish on our feet. hahaha

Eeeekkk!!!

Ahhhh......just got a foot massage.  I don't know what the dealio was with pampering our feet yesterday but it sure was nice.

The group today celebrating Bro. Man's birthday.  Bro Man is front and center with his wife, Yaa.

Korean BBQ

Now.....when Americans see the word BBQ they think of ribs and chicken smothered in that delicious sauce.  Unless you're from the Northwest....then you think of grilling out hamburgers. haha. But Korean BBQ is nothing like either of those.  The idea is this: There are a large buffet of raw meats and veggies.  You grab a few plates, pile them up, then take them back to your table.  On the table there are small grills where you cook your own food.  Generally there is one for two people to share.  It was a really neat experience and great to get to know everyone better. The funny thing is, as I sat down I saw that my eating utensils were a spoon and chopsticks. I started to go into panic mode when I realized I had about four teachers sitting around me. hahaha I didn't make the best student but I tried to have fun with it. I wouldn't call myself a pro by any stretch of the imagination, but I think I have a general idea now.

We all rode in a Songtaew to get there. 

The Songtaew.

Myself with the two Hmong girls. They're so sweet.

Bro. Jeng Lang and his adorable little boy!

 Kaw and his little boy, Joe-ell. he's SO cute!

At the Korean BBQ. Joe-ell's face cracks me up here.

Noah showing how it's done. :-)

Joe-ell.  so cute!

Blessings and Lessons

Being here in Chiang Mai I have learned so much.  Not only about what it's like to live in another culture so different from ours, but to depend on God MORE for all of my needs.  I had a tremendous blessing yesterday that I want to share. 

I think I mentioned before that school starts three days after I return home.  That means that I have to purchase my books while still here in Thailand.  Now, if you've taken any college classes you're aware of how expensive that can be.  Seems like my textbooks this quarter are more expensive too. It appeared at first glance that this money would have to come out of my Thailand fund and that would be cutting things pretty close. Granted, I know that there are those who would have helped me if I needed it, but I just prayed about it.  A few hours later I went to check my bank account and I saw a pending deposit for around the same amount that I need for my textbooks! I was expecting that money to come but had completely forgotten about it. Praise the Lord! I L.O.V.E. when he answers prayers like that.  So immediate and so direct.  It was a practical lesson for me in God's provision. 

Since being here I've often asked myself, why didn't I do this sooner? I feel like I've wasted so much time when I could have been doing SO much more!  I really want to encourage each of you to consider where you're at in your life right now.  The Lord has different plans for different people, the important matter is whether or not you are wasting precious time or if you are USING it!  Especially for us single people. I think this is the time of our lives that the Lord can really use us in ways that he cannot use married people.  So I ask you to please ponder this question: in five years time will I have regrets? Or will I feel like I filled every single moment that the Lord gave me with service for Him?  Recently I've asked myself these questions and it's really eye-opening. Especially as I look on the past several years of my life. I don't want to look back in five years and be wondering what I COULD have done. I would love to look back and say "Look at everything that the Lord allowed me to do because I was willing to be used."

Just sharing my heart today. Any comments?

Motorcycle Ridin'

The market that we go to daily is very close to our house.  So close that it's very easy to just jump on a motorcycle for a quick ride there and back. So easy and very tempting. :-) Before I came here I had never been on a motorcycle before so this has been quite enjoyable for me.  Here are some pics from just one of our many outings. :-)

One of the spirit houses going into our village.

Heading into the village.

Scary! LOL

A Fun Day!

Yup....it's rainy season here in Thailand. And while it hasn't rained much since I've been here today the season reared its head.  But.....I love it!  Pookie rolls her eyes as I get giddy with excitement at the heavy rain and the thunder. LOL!  This morning was nice and relaxing.  Slept in and did some things around the house before heading to the other side of Chiang Mai, the older part of the town.  We had a late lunch at a little German restaurant before heading to some bookstores and coffee at Starbucks.  Keep in mind, it's raining......and as brilliant as we are we forgot umbrellas. :-) After much hesitation we dashed through the rain and it was actually a lot of fun!  We made it to Starbucks and I had to laugh as I walked in because it was FULL or farangs (foreigners).  Not one Thai person except the people who work there....oh and Pookie, but she doesn't count. hehe :-)  We took a lot of silly pictures and people must have thought we were strange, but I don't care.

Then we headed to Duke's for dinner.  A wonderful, scrumptuos American restaurant.  I had BBQ ribs (I'm beginning to drool again) and Pookie had some sort of garlic chicken pizza.  We have carrot cake waiting that we brought home but I am still too full to eat it. I want to savor every bite of course.

It was SUCH a fun day!  Here are some of the fun pics from today.


Walking in the rain....

Pookie trying to look unhappy as I drag her around in the rain. hahaa

Trying to make it look like an old picture where we don't smile but I couldn't seem to do it. LOL

Thailand Update & Pictures

So I haven't really said a lot on here about how my time has been here so far in Chiang Mai.  I think I've adjusted pretty well.  My sleep schedule is about normal and I am very glad. I have to fight the urge to get up at 6am to chat with family is friends because I know the sleep is needed.  I have been eating Thai food pretty much the whole time I have been here and I don't think my stomach is very happy about that.  It's just now starting to hit me so tonight I cooked my own meal.  The Thai food tastes very good it's just so different from what I'm used to.  Tonight I made spaghetti with salad and rolls.  The spaghetti was out of a can (hey I'm just cookin for me and I didn't feel like making a huge pot. LOL) and I have to say it wasn't the greatest.  Still trying to figure out what brands are good without paying and arm and a leg for imported stuff.  But it was a needed change for my digestive system.  In the states I was not really fond of Thai food but I have learned to like it here.  Good thing, huh? :-)

I've enjoyed working in the office and I've spent my time there working on the Good and Evil project.  The Good and Evil book is like a comic book illustrating the gospel starting from Genesis.  It's been a great evangelistic tool over the years and it's now being translated into MANY different languages.  So far, I've worked a little bit in Russian, Tagalog, Catalan, and Kyrgyz. Not translating of course, just putting the translation into the format of the comic.  Very fun to do!

I've also started teaching an English class at the church.  This past Sunday was my first time and it wasn't that great.  1) I didn't really know what I was doing. 2) The program wasn't really working so I had to use something else.  3) I didn't have any time to prepare a lesson so I was pretty much winging it.  Through all of this I had a good time getting to know the students. This next time should be much better.

I've attended two services at Wiangping Baptist Church with Pookie, my roommate and office manager.  Even though I have no idea what they are saying, it's been a huge blessing to me! The people are so sweet and the fellowship is enjoyable.  Last night I was able to play the piano for the service and I thoroughly enjoyed that.  I'm glad music is universal.  You don't have to know another language for that.

Speaking of language and the lack of knowledge :-)  Pookie started teaching me Thai tonight.  Whew! Not very easy to pronounce some of those things. LOL but at the end there was more laughing than anything. hahaha good times.  I look forward to attempting to use some of these words and phrases in the days to come.  We'll see!!

Well now I will post some pictures.  Enjoy!

Gracie Lange with Mulan

Working on the Good and Evil project. (Pardon the shiny face. LOL)

Cute little gecko outside the house. It's hard to tell how tiny it was by this picture but it was so cute!

The Girls House

Wiangping Baptist Church

Beautiful Plumeria Flowers

Another beautiful (mystery?) flower.

My new favorite drink.  It's like a white tea with fruit. YUM!

Thailand Pictures 2

Heading to the market to grab some dinner...

 There is sooooo much to see at the market! Lots of fresh vegetables, fruits, and meat.

 Waiting for some delicious Rotee but the lady never showed up.

 So we went somewhere else. 

 Pookie was urging me to take pictures.....so I did! hehe

 They have very many 7-Elevens.  A little different from ours though.

 More of the market.  It goes on for quite a ways.

 Delicious Thai dinner of chicken and sticky rice with sweet chili sauce.  Cost: 38 baht= $1.25~

 Delicious Rotee!!  Mmm.....I want more. LOL