It’s good to be back.  And yet, it’s so strange.

My body thinks it’s almost midnight.  Obviously, the sun’s up.

All is quiet but the hums of the multiple fans in the house.  No city noises.  Although I am already missing the morning doves and the sound of the bottle man sing-songy, “Sell your bottles!”  (Kuad ma kai!)  Everyday, you’ll hear the bottle man, pedaling his cart down every nooks and crannies of our street, yelling for customers to come out and sell their empty bottles the same way his professions have done for longer than I have lived.  It’s amazing and refreshing to still hear that in the bustling metropolis Bangkok has become.

My brain also thinks I was still back in Thailand as I woke up startled a few times last night a) not knowing where I was and b) because I have Brandon in my bed.

Brandon in my bed.  Now THAT is a good change.  🙂

I came back to an immaculate home.  Someone has been nesting!  Brandon even filed my papers for me!  Now I just have to do my part in unpacking my stuff and sort out the rest of the place.

And my god, did I bring back the heat with me?!  Nah.  Apparently SoCal has been this hot since I left.  It’s weird being back in the oven instead of the sauna.

The flight back was very pleasant.  Apparently, even though my ticket purchase said “Economy”, I indeed bought Premium Economy tickets for both directions.  I ain’t complaining as everything was just perfect.  And as the best option for all of the last minute tickets I could find at the time at $1,700 while the rest was $2,000+?  Oh yeah, it’s worth every penny.

I also ran into my friend Maylanie at the airport.  Maylanie’s mom was in the ICU last time I was home 2 months ago, remember?  Well, she’s still in the hospital and they’re footing half of the bill.  You see, Maylanie’s mom has intestinal cancer and she has got sepsis after the surgery which at one point, while I was there that was, she had 10% chance of survival.  Now she’s recovering also from a pneumonia that came while she was fighting the sepsis,  and still has a drainage tube for her stomach.

Maylanie’s sister Meena, as it turned out, was on my flight!  We met up before boarding and ended up just a little bit away from each other.  The funnier thing is that she was spending the night with her friend before heading back to Arizona from Long Beach airport.  Pretty much, if Maylanie and I had known about each other’s plans, Meena might have ended up staying with us last night!

I also got word that another one of our friend’s mom is also battling cancer.  It’s the weirdest thing!  Suddenly, all the moms of my generations are battling cancer all about the same time.  Gotta be something in the water.

Not to sound totally pessimistic but my Mater Dei group has gotten the drill for a funeral visit down to the tee now.  Everyone seems to have a stock of black clothing handy.  They all know what to do and who’s in charge of sending the wreath alternative.  Too many funerals in the past 6 months, they said.  Too many, indeed.

Anyways.  I’m trying to stay awake.  I have to unpack still and also have to get out for some sun.  Last time, the sunshine therapy TOTALLY helped me back on my feet faster than anything else.

Off I go.  Thanks for sticking with me this entire time.  You guys rock!