This is the year of the rat and they have figured prominently in my life, regardless of what you believe about astrology - rats have never enjoyed such stature in my existence as they have this past year. During the 1st half of the year i lived with a mischief of rats in my drop-ceiling. Based in the pattering of little feet, and sometimes violent incursion of local felines on the hunt, i estimate anywhere from 6-24. Sitting in my neighbor’s yard in the early twilight, they could be seen traipsing along the wall as though on some rural highway commuting back from the fields. Just after i moved in they made clear my territorial intrusion for what they must have considered their private estate, by gnawing on the wall between my bedroom and the hallway. Cats were not an option, because my circumstances are too tentative. With research, i discovered rats can’t abide peppermint oil and so began the slow process of infusing strategic points within the house with this not unpleasant deterrent.
By the time i moved, we had fought each other to an uneasy peace and by leaving dishes of peppermint oil high toward the ceiling panels i was able to discourage their presence in quadrants of the house. What i learned though is when you have that many rodents in close quarters the dander and insect pests would rain down upon my living quarters and make upkeep that much more difficult - regardless of what the brochures say about living on a rice field, it is not the Arcadian delight one might imagine. And yet the ducks and chickens at my back patio are better company than i’ve enjoyed in the past 18 months. The biggest shock was discovering how many _rump supporters were in the mix, the 2nd most difficult realization was how much animosity other expats felt obliged to express toward my birth nation. Animosity might be the wrong word - delight in the downward spiral potus45 has incited with his divisive, malignancy.
When i first arrived, i would draw on a patio adjacent to a pool that was private enough to not be noticed. For a time it was amusing to hear the different types of pool frolic, from sober children delighting in the refreshing water to drunken swains trying to bluster their way into a pair of panties. It was at a gathering of the former when i had to listen to some young former military personnel malign my nation for no other reason than self-aggrandizement. I don’t remember being so close to such vituperation and i found it disconcerting, but also began to recognize its subtle presence in the parade of guests traveling through the homestay where i was living at the time. I’m not even suggesting the criticism is inaccurate, but i do take exception to the gloating nature of it - as though the world could not wait for ‘merica to fall on her face so that they might feel better about themselves.
I rarely find solidarity with foreigners in my travels, and i don’t really understand the reasons for my reservation; it has been especially so with the clique of Economic Mandarins serving as financial counselors in the world heritage site in which i have been something of a prisoner for the past 18 months. I am coming to realize their self-interest is in perpetuating capitalism, a form of exchange i have no respect for and find that those still attempting to excavate return out of a people who have suffered too much already, to be selfish at best, and malignant at worst. At a time when there is a dearth of leadership on the planet, and within an ancient agrarian paradigm to amplify upon, suggesting the non-sustainable tourist economy these carpet-baggers are cheerleading is as irresponsible as it is stupid. The city i live in has been nearly dead center in the path of 13 typhoons within 3 months, and the development of temporary villas for the highly anticipated arrival of pent-up tourist dollars has continued unabated.
It doesn’t seem to occur to anyone with whom i've spoken that the decline from late stage capitalism is only going to accelerate and that the havoc of additional climate induced catastrophes as well as future plagues from the unchecked application of man-made genetic material into a pharmacologically, and chemically unstable world that has decimated natural habitats and murdered nearly half the known species just strikes me as uncommonly arrogant, little different than the ego oriented personalities i’ve encountered in my last year and a half. The locals are as confused as any i’ve met - not sure whether to murder the interlopers in their sleep, assign them a ghetto full of villas and only allow them out to patronize a favorite local vendor, or attend fundraising events to herald the opening of against-all-odds, the latest, trendiest, coolest new restaurant in a town with the mother of all gluts for foreign-owned restaurants - what am i missing, besides that opening?
jts 28/12/2020
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