Wednesday 13 October 2010

The art of Non Conformity

Well I have been very remiss in keeping up with this blog.
I think part of it is that I am not sure how many people actually read it. So if you do please encourage me by commenting at the bottom of this post.
Even if not many read this, it is a great record of our unconventional life for my girls to look back upon. It's amazing what you forget!
I have been reading a great blog over the last couple of days: http://chrisguillebeau.com/3x5/about-the-project/
It's called The art of Non Conformity. A great read, but I must warn you, you are liable to loose a few hours of your life getting sucked into his excellent writing. I thank my friend Jamie from Florida for introducing me to it.


Well what have we been up to....
Mum came to visit, which was awesome in so many ways. It was great to show her around. We went on some amazing trips. One of which was Phi Phi Island. Now that was a trip of a lifetime. Between snorkeling with the fishes  and swimming in a bottomless lagoon where the water was the colour of dreams to walking where Leonardo Di Caprio has trod it was unforgettable. We even saw a Leo lookalike which totally made Candace's day!
We also did the James Bond Island trip again which was a beautiful experience. Even after being totally ripped off by a so called Marine National Park 'warden' it was a day to remember.


Apart from the excitement of all of that, life has just been very ordinary really.
We have all been pioneering over the last few months and also working our butts off. Some of us on new ventures and others on the 'same old, same old' stuff.
Life got a tad stressful after mum had left, with us all feeling a bit 'Thai'd' out. Not being able to afford to go away for a couple of weeks, which is what would have fixed it, was tough. All of a sudden everything here seemed harder than it had been. We were desperate for some Western influences. I think we all miss our family too. Not being able to be a part of Brychans first little year of life has been harder than we all thought it would be. It seems like a very long seven months till we go home.
Mum very kindly reminded us what great work we are doing here and how we are needed (thank you Mum!) and Victoria who experienced the same gave me an understanding ear. When I thought of the alternative..an ordinary life back in the UK, I cheered myself up and remembered to be grateful for all we have here.
It will just make next year spending time with our family in France (and Liverpool) that much more amazingly special.
This weekend we are off to Bangkok for the long awaited convention. Lara is getting baptised (and we have a part too) so it will be super exciting. It will be nice to leave the island for a few days. I even got some ironing done this afternoon so everything is ready for our flights tomorrow afternoon. We only live 15-20 mins away from the airport now which is very handy.
I'll leave you with a couple more photos. The first is mum's last day at one of our fave beaches, Layan. The other is on the JB island trip in the longtail boat. Yeah I know life isn't that bad right now! At times though I would give it all up for one little Brychan cuddle...........

Oh and how about this to see how time flies!
Our trip 2007 is the first one. The other is a recent 2010 one.