Happy Monday morning, and an early Happy Thanksgiving

Since it's soon to be Monday morning in the States, and also Thanksgiving week, I want to share a short story for my friends who are about to be making their way to cubicle-land this morning. The point of this story isn't to rub in the fact that I've taken a break from work, but it's to remind everyone how much worse work life can be, as well as how much better you can choose to make it. Also, a few photos from Thailand, so it isn't just boring text.

The Royal Palace in Bangkok

A row of guardian spirits, all the way around the temple

Some of the mausoleums and temples in the Royal Palace grounds

Occasionally while I've been traveling around this year, when someone asks me what I do for a living or how my job lets me travel this long, I'll tell them that I quit my job to go see the world. This isn't really the case, but it's sometimes easier than explaining "leave without pay" and government benefits, especially when I'm talking with someone with limited English skills. The following is a conversation I had with my driver in India, which I found so interesting I had to write down afterwards.

     Jamil: "What do you do for work?"
     Me: "I quit my job to travel for a year."
     Jamil: "Really? What will you do for money when you go back?"
     Me: "I don't know really. Get a new job I guess."
     Jamil: (pause) "Ah, yes. In America, you can do this."

As someone who has frequently hopped careers, I take it a little for granted that yes, I can get a new job if I want one. So it was a nice reminder from Jamil that isn't the case for everyone, and that there are a lot of people in the world who don't have a lot of choice about what they do to put food on the table. So I wanted to pass along that reminder to my friends this week; maybe work isn't that great all the time, but it could be much worse.... and if it's really that bad, you really can make that change. And along those lines, I'm looking forward to meeting up with my recently-retired parents in Australia!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A very large reclining Buddha. Or as Jason called it, "the lazy Buddha"

A long-tail boat traffic jam, waiting for the canal locks to open for a new batch of tour boats

Aquatic street signs for the canals in Bangkok. Or, a possible vision of New Orleans' suburbs in 30 years.