I feel dizzy and weak... quick go get the ladder

Over the last few days I've encountered dizziness and weakness brought on due to the heat, and of course my own misbehavior: Five double dose coffees in the morning, two to four mixed drinks after lunch.

Apparently I wasn't the only one in town with heat exhaustion.
Met an elderly traveler who had almost fainted while in a major department store.

Recommend Treatment

• Avoid alcohol and coffee.  
• Drink electrolyte (sodium and potassium salts)
• rest in a shaded area
• air conditioning
• drink plenty of water (** CAUTION: some medical conditions and medications require limited water intake),  
• cool shower or pool
• coconut juice 
• banana (potassium)

"...one cup-full of coconut water contains more electrolytes than most sports drinks and more potassium than a banana" wikipedia

 

Now I realize why I prefer rum with coconut juice instead of COKE.

Additional reading
Heat stress in the Elderly CDC-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
About Coconut asianonlinerecipes

Keeping cool

Another Scorcher ahead

    

7:20 a.m. (in the shade)                                  9:20 a.m. (in the sun)

Recently: Pool water was getting a bit too warm, more like a hot tub.  So we added four blocks of ice 

 

 Totally disappeared in four minutes.

Caution, playing with ice may cause armpit frostbite

SakonNakhon formerly Nonghaneyai and Nonghaneluang  Lao Voices

Traditional Songkran

Even though I stopped teaching at S-BAC (SakonNakhon Business Administration College) last year,
I still get invited to many of their ceremonies and parties.
Of course I was again invited to their traditional Songkran celebrations.
The traditional way is pouring water over Buddha  statues, praying for good fortune in the coming year.
Then water is poured over the open hands of elders, again wishing them all the best.

Before, during and after traditional ceremonies there's plenty of  water horseplay.

Temperatures at the moment are extreme, reaching 43C (109F) in some areas.
Add humidity to these temperatures and it feels like 47C (116F).
"Such hot weather can adversely affect the elderly...." THE NATION

By the time I arrived home, soaking wet, I felt somewhat ill and was in no condition to watch the afternoon parade.  Pretty sure it was heat related.  Drinking electrolyte and staying indoors seemed to help

Did visit some local friends for their evening birthday party for a short while.
Still a bit under the weather I made my retreat home.

Within moments after I arrived home, my 'Thai friends' stopped by and delivered meals to me and asked if they could do anything else for me.

I just love these people (Thais).
There are times when I feel being taken advantage of, but when I'm under the weather or ill, they are there for me with plenty of food and help.

No Alcohol Songkran Campaign

A campaign  by a few organizations to reduce alcoholism especially among minors.
It is my understanding that they had their own "NO ALCOHOL" parade yesterday.  I tried to find that parade, but no-one seemed to know about it.

Use common sense.  If you drink, don't drive. Have a happy and safe holiday.

Songkran, the day before

They are testing their equipment

Food Tasting Fair grounds and Parade route are still open

Banners are up, water drums have been placed



It's really hot


Police check points are in place


Practice

Sakon 1 Ubon 0

It was a must win game
with SakonNakhon previously in sixth position and Ubon in eighth position. The Football Association of Thailand

Increased crowds attending SakonNakhon FC home games very obvious. Parking lot had reached capacity.

Also obvious was the increase of advertisers / sponsors.
A few close calls, but no score during the first half.  The real action started during the second half when things got quite intense until the final whistle.

SakonNakhon Golfing

This is in response to an inquiry regarding conditions of the golf courses in SakonNakhon
It's a project we'll work on after the holidays.
At the moment I am dripping wet after a drive through a few local villages, three days before the start of the holiday. Yes it's started.

Meanwhile here's an interesting comment from one golfer.
Plan on golfing the day after local competitions, generally held on weekends.

The courses are heavily watered before competitions and are in ideal shape days after.

I'll make a suggestion to local television stations for some video's about local golf today at the Ball Game.

2p.m. preparing the field

Thailand on the move

April 11, 2009 Rained on inbound traffic to Sakon Nakhon

Thailand Bus Schedules and Prices from Bangkok Online thaiticketmajor

From the looks of things there are more buses than normal scheduled from Bangkok to SakonNakhon this weekend.  All are sold out through Monday

Are Thai protests hurting tourism and the economy? reutersindia

April 12, 2009 Food Tasting Fair setup