timothy @timothy@qoto.org

Important milestone out here in Sisaket, Thailand. High school graduation yesterday for Sai's son at the Sisaket Polytechnic College วิทยาลัยสารพัดช่างศรีสะเกษ. He gets good grades and intends to study at the same institution another two years.

The educational system in Thailand gets a lot of negative criticism, much of it deserved. It's a complicated issue though, intertwined with culture, history, government, religion, inequality, hierarchy of societal classes, and so on.

Nevertheless I feel good to have been able to offer some modest support to facilitate his efforts to get this far at the school of his choice. Good luck to all graduates!

#Thailand #education

Went out to the small temple in the village to make merit a few days ago. Came back with freshly picked food from the family farm and garden. Quite a variety.

- papaya มะละกอ
- cucumber แตงกวา
- Chinese broccoli คะน้า
- chilies พริก
- fingerroot กระชายขาว
- dill weed ผักชีลาว
- tomato มะเขือเทศ
- baby pumpkin ฟักทองลูกเล็ก

Not sure what the leaves are on the right, but I believe they are eaten primarily for medicinal purposes.

#Thailand #Sisaket #ศรีสะเกษ #vegetables

Alright, it's time to toot!

There is much playful banter about the various meanings of the word #toot. Let's consider what that sound could mean in the #ThaiLanguage #ภาษาไทย

I found four words which could reasonably be represented by the sound 'toot' although the last one on this list is obsolete. My favorite is the second one ตุ๊ด which is a slang word supposedly inspired by the 1982 movie 'Tootsie'. It's not recommended for use in general polite conversation, though.

ตูด (pronunciation: /tuːt̚˨˩/ ) buttocks, rear, rump

ตุ๊ด (pronunciation: /tut̚˦˥/ ) ladyboy, effeminate gay man, transvestite

ทูต (pronunciation: /tʰuːt̚˥˩/ ) ambassador, diplomat, attaché

Obsolete:
ทุด (pronunciation: /tʰut̚˦˥/ ) an interjection indicating annoyance or disapproval
_________
Pronunciation notes:
The first two words differ from the others in the initial 't' sound: ตูด and ตุ๊ด have an unaspirated 't', the difference between /t/ and /tʰ/. The little 'h' signifies aspiration, a small puff of air.

The first and third words differ from the others in the length of the 'u' vowel, short /u/ vs. long /uː/.

The symbols at the end of the pronunciations represent the tone of a syllable; ตูด has a low tone, ตุ๊ด has a high tone, ทูต has a falling tone