January 2005
A bi-annual update is in order. (Although I would prefer to
update this more frequently than that.) I place the blame on a
five-day a week teaching job from September to December and a toddler
who when she sees me using the computer, wants to 'play
too'. Quite a lot has happened since that last
posting in the summer. Developments began in July. I
began to make wine with the cherries from our tree and then from the
plums. To date I have produced 14 batches of nine different wines
(cherry, rice/sake, lychee, yellow plum, blackberry, apple, ice wine,
kiwi, and cranberry). It has turned out to be a satisfying
hobby and I think Dad would be happy that I have continued what was
also his hobby.
Next came the really big change. In late July we unexpectedly
bought a house, our dream house you might say. I had given
up on finding a house that fit what we wanted and within our price
range, until on one morning hike that took me to College Heights I saw
a house for sale that piqued my interest. Upon returning home, I
told Nampheung and called our real estate agent to let us have a look.
The next day we did and we both fell in love with the place and put in
an offer.
Several days later it was ours. A ten-year-old beauty on the hill
with a 180 degree view of Nanaimo and Georgia Straight, it suits
us perfectly. We decided to keep the old place on Meredith
Road as a rental. It was sad to leave after so many years -- the
house that I was born and raised in and that my own daughter was born
in. But, life moves on. It was a massive project to pack up so
many years of accumulation, but bit by bit we did it. We
moved on October 1st.
I took a new temporary full-time teaching job in September. For
three months I taught employment and business English to new immigrants
at the Multicultural Society downtown. It was hard work, but more
satisfying than teaching at Malaspina. The pay was nothing to
write home about, but there was no marking and prep was minimal.
The class ended in December and we hope to do it again in March
and several more times during 2005. I have requested that it only
be three days a week, however.
Travel has been limited as Arada, now being a toddler, doesn't sit
still for long periods of time very well. Two weeks ago, however,
Nampheung and she went on a grand trip to Thailand for six weeks
to visit Nampheung's family. Our staffing at Amazing Thai is in
place, so I can manage myself. It's back to the lonely life of a
bachelor for a time. (Absence makes the heart grow fonder.)
At Amazing Thai, we finished 2004 with a flourish! Sales
were great last year. We were also quite fortunate with our
staff. Our Japanese cook quit in the spring, but then we found a
Canadian cook to replace her. When he quit in September to go to
school in Victoria we hired another Japanese cook for lunchtime and a
Vietnamese woman who is studying ESL at the college to cook in the
evening. They are great employees.
Things all turned out well last year. At the bottom of my
belly, I have a feeling that 2005 won't be as lucky as 2004.
June 2004
On the cusp of summer, outdoor projects and activities beckon
and life goes on. Days are long but there seems never enough time
to complete all the task on my paper and/or mental "to do
list".
The gardens are in pretty good shape and at Nampheung's urging,
we
keep adding new rose bushes to the front. The fruit trees are
heavy
with fruit this year, which may lead me to dig out Dad's old supplies
and
try making a batch of plum wine. Just this past week I
completed
a new project as part of the ongoing house interior renovation -- a new
experience of laying ceramic tiles in the front
entranceway.
The upstairs is now nearly completely renovated. There is
just
the addition of an island in the kitchen left and several minor
projects.
There doesn't seem to be any teaching work on the horizon, so I
continue
to putter away at this and that, while helping Nampheung in the
restaurant.
We celebrated the third anniversary of Amazing Thai last
month.
Sales have been brisk so far this year and we have new menus for our
customers.
*** Don't know what we will do this summer
exactly.
We are thinking of taking a ten day vacation and perhaps going to
Mexico.
The thing is, an infant likes to stay put. Being on the go
doesn't
make for a nice holiday for baby or parents. ***
On a sunny Victoria day weekend in May I make the earliest ocean and
river swims in memory -- a nice plunge in the salt water off
Thetis
Island while exploring with Mark, Nat, Nampheung and Arada.
The next day, Mark, Guy and I went hiking and swimming at the
Nanaimo
River. Things have cooled off a bit since that
weekend,
so I haven't been in since. Give me three or four hot days
and I'll try the ocean again.
March 2004
It is a new spring, with baby older and more mobile and myself not
teaching.
We are now nearly completely out of the grip of winter -- although I
see
today that snow is falling on Mt. Benson -- and I have already begun
garden
work. The past five months have been uneventful, save
for a December trip to Asia, which took my family and I to Thailand and
South Korea. Baby Arada was a star and travelled exceedingly well
(except once when stuck on a busy in Bangkok traffic). It was the
first time back in three years and ten years since I first arrived
there.
I enjoyed a short three weeks while Nampheung and Arada spent a full
five
weeks. We both arrived back in Canada in the midst of heavy
snowfalls.
** This is the first semester that I have not had a
regular
teaching contract -- I taught full time for four weeks in January to a
group of Korean students and that was it. As a consequence,
I have had more time for catching up on restaurant and home projects
and
doing more baby care. ** This May,
Amazing Thai will celebrate its third anniversary.
The
only change has been a new dinner menu, which I introduced last week
after
many weeks of preparation. We still have no direct competition in
Nanaimo. ** Arada celebrated her
first
birthday in January and proceeded to begin walking a week
later.
She is into everything now and learning and developing rapidly..
** Nampheung is hoping to get her Canadian
citizenship
this spring or summer and Arada her Thai citizenship. I will
remain
only a Canadian. ** We are still in
the same old house -- every home we look at is less than adequate and
each
little renovation project I complete here makes this abode more
liveable.
I continue to long for a grand view of the ocean and coast
mountains,
but it may be unattainable within a reasonable price.
**
Before going to Thailand, I purchased over the Internet a DVD
burner
and have burned some of our digital video movies onto DVD for our
benefit
and for Nampheung's family to enjoy. It works
pretty
well, but at three years old (75 years old in human terms) our computer
is showing its age and limitations, including it performance on high
power
digital tasks. ** There is lots to do and life
remains a joy and a challenge,
which is far preferable to the endurance and struggle that typifies
the lives of too many people in the world.
October 2003
Spring and summer passed with astonishing rapidity. We are now in the midst of another autumn and my heart has been taken by a certain wistfulness with the passing of September, my favourite month and the awareness of time. The evenings are growing longer and cooler, the outdoor environment preparing for winter. Life becomes slower and more internal. Baby Arada has been the primary focus, of course, this year. She has marvelled us with her development -- life with a baby is never dull. Right now we are waiting for her to take her first steps. She is a most precocious child, which is both challenging and satisfying. I think I've got her pegged and then the next day she is wowing us with some new talent or inclination. All those influences from previous lives popping into her mind and heart day to day.
Spring was uneventful, and summer too short. Significant moments in the summer included a visit by a good Korean friend from Korea and a Canadian friend from Japan and the purchase of a new car -- a 1998 Sunfire convertible. A second car became useful when Nampheung got her driver's license at the end of August. We also took out a mortgage and purchased the remaining share of the old house on Meredith Road. In summer ,we also replaced carpeting in three rooms and I painted the hallway. The biggest project was renovating three rooms before the new carpets were installed -- this entailed the movement of many, mmany pounds of books! My old room in the basement has now been converted into a guest bedroom and the guest bedroom upstairs into a baby's room. The den saw the addition of a proper computer desk-unit and a replacement of Dad's remaining books and mementoes with my books and mementoes.
The restaurant has continued to operate smoothly, with regular sales
volume and staffing. A three month experiment in late
spring
with radio advertising flopped.
June and July were very slow months, but things picked up in
August.
The challenge now is to increase sales to keep up with the inevitable
growth
in fixed and labour costs.
In July, a new International Education building opened at Malapina University-College, and the ESL department shifted down the hill. I have continued to teach three days a week. It is a smooth and sufficiently challenging job. I choose how to make it interesting. I have not yet been regularized (like tenure), although I had hoped to become so last month. It will likely wait until the new year.
In August, we also finalized our big winter Thailand
trip.
Nampheung is going to go for 5 weeks and I will go for 3 weeks.
The
staff will have to manage Amazing Thai Restaurant in our
absence.
It will be an exciting adventure, my first with a baby in
tow.
It will be most exciting for Nampheung, who has been away for nearly 3
years, and for her family, for whom Arada is the first
grandchild.
The next two months will be notable for the growing anticipation.
March 2003
"Too busy with the crowded hour to fear to live or die." Emerson's quote well describes my life since autumn. The joyful birth of a baby girl in Janauary set the tone for the year. The comfortable colours and air of autumn blended into the grey dampness of winter. Uneventful months save for the healthy and curious progress of pregnancy, counting the months and weeks with growing anticipation. Continued teaching and restauranteuring -- both stable and without incident. We hired and trained a new chef (Aki -- a Japanese woman) in December while our main chef was on holiday in Thailand. Also in December we closed the restaurant for several days before and after Xmas to enjoy an earned vacation. Our friends Mark and Nat from Vancouver joined us over the holidays and we spent a couple of wonderful days at a resort on Quadra Island a few hours north of Nanaimo. Christmas itself was quiet and spent at home. We opened the restaurant for New Year's Eve this year and it turned out to be our busiest night ever.
On January 14th, Nampheung gave birth to a healthy, beautiful baby girl -- Arada Diane Barclay. And so our lives were transformed, but happily. Our plates have become fuller, but in two ways -- in terms of time and also personal fulfillment. Nampheung worked right up to three days before the baby "popped out" After that, she took ten days off, during which I worked double shifts between teaching and the restaurant. (Our second Thai cook quit just about the time the baby was born, which created a bit of anguish.) Since then, on the lunch hours when I teach, Nampheung brings baby to the restaurant and a good family friend watches baby there. Arada sleeps fairly well in the night, so we are not terribly sleep deprived. She has a calm disposition, so caring for her is not stressful. It is just that things like housework don't get done as quickly as they once did. Valentine's Day at Amazing Thai bettered New Year's and (crazy!crazy!) became our newest busiest night on record! Life continues to be good with weekends cherished for the free time and relaxation they allow.
September 2002
Another busy but pleasant summer has swiftly passed. Exciting news occured early on in the summer when the doctor informed us that a baby is to be expected in January. This has most certainly flavoured our life since and focussed our planning for 2003. Honey's first trimester was a normal one, with the usual nausea (except it was more a matter of "evening sickness") and fatigue. That eased with the enlargement of her belly and the onset of mild backaches that are normal with pregnancy. We are both eating well and exercising, so the baby and we will enjoy good health.
Amazing Thai Restaurant had a slower summer, with quiet lunch hours
July and August, but September has produced our highest monthly
sales
ever. We are celebrating "Survivor Thailand" by bringing a
television
into the dining room every Thursday night and having some actitivies
for
customers. We have a new helper,
Rachel, for Saturday nights and other busy times.
All is going well. I continued to teach ESL at
Malaspina
University-College through the summer, except for three weeks in
August.
I have resumed teaching this month and am happily into my second year
there.
In August, Nampheung and I closed the restaurant for several days and drove to the Rocky Mountains for a short tour. It was all new sightseeing for Honey, but familiar but nonetheless beautiful vistas for me. We camped several nights and stayed in a motel in Calgary once. Unfortunately, we weren't able to do more camping this summer. I was able to swim quite a few times, but again not as often as I wished. We have taken to swimming at the Aquatic Center in Nanaimo two or three nights a week after we close the restaurant.
No big developments around the house. Replaced the
garberator,
renovated the front patio, bought a new garden table and chairs
set.
Enjoyed our barbq.
Painting projects are waiting for initiation -- the baby's room and
master bedroom are first on the agenda. Oh yes,
at the beginning of September, I finally sold Dad's old Honda
Accord.
This was a considerable achievement, albeit a slighly sad event -- the
passing of one more tangible memory.
The Barclay's in
the Rockies
(Aug.2002)
Namphueng's First Golf Game (Summer
2002)
Les with good friend, Ron (Summer 2002)
(Click on the pics to enlarge)
The
Barclay's on Quadra Island
(Dec.2002)
The newest member of the family
(Jan.2003)
December 2003 in Vancouver
May 2002
Spring has arrived, bringing with it
green
warmth and rebirth. Nampheung and I are enjoying working in
the gardens around the house. Just this past weekend we invested
in a new barbeque to better enjoy the outdoors for the next five
months.
Last week we celebrated the first anniversary of our restaurant,
Amazing Thai.
It has been a very good year for the
restaurant,
far better I think that either of us could have predicted.
This has not simply been a matter of luck, but of good cooking,
good
service, good management and good marketing. Two
weeks
ago I began my third semester teaching at Malaspina
University-College.
Again I am teaching a middle level ESL reading, writing and grammar
class
three days a week. Last month I bought a digital camera, which
makes
taking pictures for this website considerably easier. My first
project
was photographing all the dishes at the restaurant and putting them on
the restaurant website: (http://www.geocities.com/amazingthai/)
Everything
is going smoothly these days, which is a nice way to enter spring.
December 2001
The year is quickly drawing to a close and it has been a year
of
unexpected events from my father's death to starting a restaurant and
teaching
at Malaspina University-College. I end the year
reasonably
happy and successful albeit up to my eyeballs in work as has been the
theme
these past few months. The first semester of teaching went well
and
I will be teaching the same course again in the next semester. I
am looking forward to not having to do so much preparation this second
time around. The restaurant continues to bring in new
customers
and old customers. We are going to close for a week between
Christmas and New Year's and drive our new truck (Oh yes, in
October
we bought a new vehicle more practical for the restaurant -- a used
1998
Ford Explorer 4 WD SUV) down to San Francisco. There are
many
things I wish to return my attention to in 2002, particularly Buddhism
and this website. Having settled into our new life in 2001,
2002 will be largely a matter of refining things.
September 2001
The summer is done and the cool nights are upon
us. Gardens are showing signs of fatigue and the days are
growing
short. Such is the nature of things and things are going well
here
for the Barclays. The Thai restaurant is continuing to
prosper.
We have a new employee in the kitchen, a Thai woman recently
moved
to Nanaimo. The big change in September is that I have
started
teaching ESL again -- I have a job teaching at Malaspina
University-College
three days a week.
It's a substantial addition to my workload as
I am teaching an advanced class of 'reading, writing and grammar', but
I love it. I have cut down on my work at the
restaurant and two days a week Nampheung has
to handle the dining room at lunch by herself. A
nasty
cold earlier this month was diagnosed as infectious mononucleosis,
which
means I shouldn't work as hard as I have been doing.
July 2001
The summer is quickly passing and I am enjoying it along with the
restaurant.
"Amazing Thai Restaurant" is in its third month now and things
are
operating more smoothly. The major kinks have all been worked out
and now extra effort can go towards increasing sales and dealing with
minor
problems. We are closed on Sundays and Mondays which gives
us time for ourselves. Early in the month we spent a day in
Vancouver with friends and in mid-month we went camping in Strathcona
Park
at the north end of Vancouver Island. I've been swimming in
the ocean, river and lakes several times and gone on a few
hikes.
My aunt from California is visiting for the summer, which is nice as I
hadn't seen for a few years. This month I will start to
teach
Nampheung how to drive in Canada.
June 2001
It looks as though I am to remain in Nanaimo
for the near future as last month my wife and I opened a small Thai
restaurant
here. Surprisingly, we are the only Thai restaurant in town,
which
helps business as Thai food is very popular and Nampheung is a great
cook.
So far the restaurant, appropriately named "AmazingThai", has been
quite
successful. I have put my teaching career on the backburner
for now as my primary focus is the restaurant -- I am maitre'd and head
waiter as well as accountant and salesman. I may teach this
autumn if the opportunity presents itself. I am living in
the
family house in which I was born, which is comfortable and
convenient,
but sad at times. Earlier this month I sold my
cherished
automobile and am driving my father's old Honda Accord.
With
summer's arrival, I expect to do more hiking and the garden beckons to
be weeded. This week I will try to go for a swim in
the
river or ocean. These are busy but pleasant times.
March 2001
Much has happened in the past four months and
I have been remiss in not keeping this website updated.
From
November to February I continued to teach in Korea. The
hours
were long, but the teaching was pleasant. At New Year's my
wife Nampheung visited me in Seoul for a week. She had a
wonderful
time, despite the chilly temperature. She saw snow and ice
skated for the first time in her life. I was planning to
teach
until May when in early February I received a message that my father
was
seriously ill and that I should return home to Canada as soon as
possible.
Thus, on February 20th my wife flew in to Korea from Thailand and we
both
flew to Canada. Two weeks later, sadly my father passed
away.
My wife and I are staying in the family home and plan to spend the
spring
and summer in Nanaimo. We are not sure whether we will stay in
Nanaimo
or move to Vancouver come autumn. Much will depend on where work
is available. It is a bittersweet return to Canada.
One
further change is that I bought a new Sony Vaio desktop computer and so
am reconnected to the Net and able to resume work on this website.
November 2000
I am back in South Korea after a two year absence, based in Seoul and
teaching ESL to mostly university students and adults for the next six
months. Sadly, my wife Nampheung remains in Bangkok, although she will
visit me briefly at New Year's. I have returned to my former school,
ELS
Shinchon in the center of Seoul, and am living alone in a small
apartment
a 15 minute walk from work. It is a very different situation from that
in Thailand and I miss my old school there and my students and
co-workers.
The teaching here is pleasant and the classes are small. I teach from 7
to 10 A.M. and from 6 to 10 P.M. Monday to Friday. On weekends I enjoy
hiking and meet with an international Buddhist group every Sunday
evening.
The weather is dry but very cold. When in balmy Thailand, I hankered
for
cool weather; here in chilly Korea, I yearn for warm tropical sunshine.
October 2000
This is my final month teaching at my school. It was seven years ago
this month that I first came to Thailand and taught here. I have been
at
Suan Sunandha Secondary School for three-and-a-half years now. I am sad
to be leaving as it is by now a very familiar and friendly place. The
first
week is final exam week and the second week is for teachers to prepare
grades and retest students. The school will close on October 13th for a
two-week mid-year break. On the 13th, my wife and I will fly to
Singapore
and spend 10 days traveling north back to Bangkok, through Malaysia and
Southern Thailand. I will all be new for Nampheung. On October 28th, I
will fly to Seoul, South Korea, and start a new six-month teaching
contract
there. Nampheung will remain in Bangkok but probably visit me briefly
for
New Years'.
September 2000
Three months have passed quite quickly with lots of changes. My
notebook
computer died, leaving me dependent on less than perfect computers at
school.
(All my webpage files were lost in some confusion) In addition, the
Internet
system at my school seems to have regressed this school year. The Thai
economy isn't doing so well these days and the Thai baht has fallen in
value. This has caused me to change plans and return to the more
lucrative
South Korea at the end of October and teach for six months at a
language
school where I taught previously. Unfortunately, due to work and visa
problems,
my wife cannot join me, so she will remain in Thailand for that time.
In
May I will return to Thailand and we will travel for a month before
flying
to Canada in June.
June 2000
The new school year at Suan Sunandha Secondary Demonstration School,
where I work, began on June 12th. I am teaching English to grades 7 to
11 this semester. The grade 7 students (first year at secondary school)
are new to me but the others are all familiar. This month has "Wai Kru"
(Teachers Day) in Thailand and the students will bow to their teachers
and pay their respects, giving flowers to some of them in a formal
ceremony.
The school addition (new library, cafeteria and classrooms) will be
open
at the end of this month. I am doing lots of private teaching in the
evenings
and started a Saturday job teaching business English. My wife and I
spent
one weekend in the old Thai capital of Ayuthya and plan to visit the
beach
resort of Hua Hin in mid-month.
May 2000
I am back in Bangkok and back to work. This month I am teaching summer
classes at the secondary school. It's a relatively relaxed situation,
more
so than usual, with students able to wear their regular togs instead of
school uniforms. Classes are small too,which is nice; only about 30
students
in a class instead of the usual 40 to 50. Thailand is entering into
rainy
season, which should cool things down, but requires that one carries an
umbrella at all times as a tropical downpour is not something you want
to be caught in without overhead protection. The regular school year
will
begin early in June so this month will also preparation for this. My
wife,
Pheung's, school starts it's new year this month.
April 2000
My wife (Nam Pheung) and I are enjoying a much needed vacation this
month away from work and the torrid heat of Bangkok -- one week in
Korea
and three weeks in Canada. The weather has been pleasant, albeit
considerably
cooler than Thailand with daytime highs of around 12 degrees compared
with
35 degrees in Bangkok. This is Pheung's first trip outside of Thailand
and she has been most impressed by Canada, especially Vancouver Island.
My hometown is Nanaimo and we have spent most of our time there with my
father, making sidetrips to Victoria and Vancouver. The spring flowers
have been beautiful. We were fortunate to visit the famous Buchart
Gardens
on a bright sunny day. The best part of the trip, of course, has been
spending
time with family and friends. (Of course, the pleasure of driving my
old
car comes a close second.)