This old dog is trying to learn a few new tricks

I’m learning.

• I’m learning not to sweep when the ceiling fan is on.
• I’m learning that there is a correlation between hot coffee and the onset of sweating in the morning, and I’ve stopped bothering to heat the milk so the coffee won't cool too quickly.
• I’m learning that with some judicious use of Velcro, I can avoid flashing the neighbors when I’m wearing only a sarong.
• I’m learning that a new alphabet and a new language full of sounds we don’t use is interesting and difficult, just as I expected it would be.

• I’m learning where NOT to leave my coffee cup, and I'm learning to use RAID occasionally when the ants aren’t convinced by sweeping that they need to back off.
• I'm learning to ALWAYS put my laptop in its protective case so the moisture or the dust or the ants or whatever it is doesn't screw up my keyboard again.
• I’m learning that when I wake up and think that it must be windy out, it’s really just the ceiling fan in our bedroom.
• I’m learning that hiring someone else to do some things for you makes life easier all around – I have a little less laundry or housecleaning or bike riding to do, and someone else has an opportunity to earn money that will mean a lot more to them than it does to me. (Yes, this means we’ve arranged for a housekeeper once a week. The very idea kind of freaks me out.)
• I'm learning that my desire to post more photos is eclipsed by my inability to choose which ones are most worth sharing. (What would you like to see???) 
• I’m learning that 79 degrees can feel quite cool first thing in the morning compared to the temperatures that will come later.
• I’m learning that I still crave time home alone, and still don’t get as much as I would like.
• I’m learning that old work habits die hard; I find myself at work for many more hours than I am scheduled, as well as doing work at home.
• I’m learning to start triaging the clinic patients carefully at 4:00 pm and turn people some away so we can actually finish at 5:00.
• I’m learning to buy enough drinking water so we don’t run out completely.
• I’m learning that I don’t need to take Zyrtec any more because whatever I’m allergic to has been left far behind me in another hemisphere.
• I'm learning that having access to a copy machine at one's workplace is no guarantee that you will be able to make any actual copies, because on any given day, the machine is likely to be out of paper or out of "ink."
• I’m learning that whole days can go by without using my camera.
• I'm learning that having an active case of mumps is no reason not to show up at work if you're a Cambodian who needs his job.
• I’m learning to listen to my iPod with only one earpiece so I can still hear the traffic sounds while I’m riding my bike to work.
• I’m learning that sweat and road dust is better than any expensive hair product if you’re looking for some body and texture.
• I’m learning that Cambodian babies tolerate me at a distance of at least 5 feet, but cry if I come even one inch closer.

This one didn't cry,
but she's just too young to have received the memo instructing her to do so.

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• I'm learning that you really just never know when it’s going to rain.
• I'm learning that fruit bats are really graceful as they fan out across the sky in the evening.
• I'm learning that my desire and compulsion to write comes in waves, and though I often compose blog posts in my head, I don't actually get them written very often. 
• I'm learning that an email or a Facebook comment from home gets the day off to a very nice start.