Where is everyone?
Mark moved to a bungalow at angel's guest resort on Jomtien beach at a fraction of the hotel cost and has the use of a motorcycle. Mark is taking a vacation from cancer treatment which is like his work. Mark has worked very hard at battling cancer enduring more and complaining less than most of us would for over two years, but now he is on a break from it with his plan to make it a fun but low budget vacation . He reports the hour or so ride to the beach at Pattaya from Bangkok at a bargain of 1200 baht or about 34 dollars. Mark says he got 35 baht to the dollar in the Bangkok ATM and ate at a 99 baht ($3) all you can eat bar-b-que buffet.


Stephanie and Ron Clark, award winning teacher and key note speaker at Educator's conference. Phil in the background


Mark's sister Stephanie was in Chicago with Mom for four days where a lot of fun was had. Stephanie attended and presented at an Educator's conference which had 1200 attendees from every state, Europe and Asia. Jackie, who used to teach with Stephanie in Japan but is now a school librarian in a small town in Indiana, drove several hours with her husband and two year old adopted daughter Qi from China to spend a few hours with Stephanie and Mom.










There was too much excitement when Mom had her wallet stollen on the magnificent mile. Stephanie and Phil, a teacher/administrator from Yokosuka where Steph teaches, and Mom had an exciting cab ride to the police station in Chicago to file a crime report.
Stephanie is now in Japan getting ready to head for Bangkok to get her triple "Rs", Rest, Relaxation and Routine check-ups at Bumrungrad Hospital over Spring break from teaching. Mom is in Austin holding down the fort and writing her monthly column for Austin Parent. The next month's column is on Helicopter Parents. Have you heard of this phenomenon?

Stories from the past- When Mark was three to four, mom taught him how to swim in a parent-preschoolers class. By five he was on a swim team. At 16 he had his scuba certification and had his life guard certificate. Before Mark left for Thailand he was telling about when he was in the Navy and stationed at Great Lakes Naval Base how happy he was when the Navy found out he had been a life guard and assigned him life guard duty because had he not gotten this cushy job he would have been out working in the cold and snow with his buddies.

Cowboy James told a story about when he was a teenager and decided to wash his pet goat in the bath tub so it would look nice in an anual parade in his hometown of Olton Texas. He said his mother was not very happy about this goat bathing in the bathtub and his father did not like it much either when the goat walked on top of the family car and tried to eat the tires.