390th Post :-)

I definitely slowed down in my postings over the past year. As most of you know, my personal life was in great upheaval and most of the time I did not want to, or could not share what was going on in my life. However, I will soon pass 400 postings in a two and a half years so that is not too bad.

I hope to be in Canada in October and really look forward to seeing the trees colour and smell fresh, unpolluted fall air. You folks really do not appreciate the air quality you have in Canada. Living in Malaysia is like toking on an exhaust pipe much of the time. It is so bad, that you have to rinse your eyes with sterile water to flush the crud from them if you do much walking outside.

Another thing I miss is being able to turn on the cold water tap and get cold water ... that, and being able to drink it, knowing it is free of sediment and heavy chemicals. Canada is blessed with much of the world's clean, fresh water and that bodes well for the future in a world that is running short of water in many countries.

I don't take many pictures these days as someone kept all the cameras when I seperated. That is why you have not seen many pics as of late. I have many fond memories of trips to Krabi, Phi Phi, and Bangkok and hopefully I will share those stories in this blog one day. They are interesting tales and those of you who read my camel diaries will enjoy them.

It is also interesting not having a place to call home. My house is sold now and when I arrive back in Canada I may have claim to being the oldest boomerang kid on the planet as I will be staying with my mom for a while. I left home at 19 ... strange :-)

I do have my SUV and motorcycle so I am mobile when I get back. Some of my teacher friends are returning back to Canada with no place to call home and no car. It is not that big a deal as that is how we live here in S.E. Asia. We rent and walk or cab everywhere and own very little. It's a very nomadic lifestyle and I am sure it is not for everyone. Many of these teachers, however, do not have the luxury of an Ontario Teacher's pension which is something I can always count on. Teacher's employed in Canada have something very, very special and is becoming exceedingly rare in modern society, a pension that is indexed.

TTYL,

Jim