Finished the book! It took 3.5 months or an average of 2.5 pages a day. I could have been quicker but was keeping a list of unfamiliar or interesting vocabulary in #ThaiLanguage plus I went off on many tangents to look up information.

The book discusses recent events in #Myanmar (though was written before the coup in 2021). The English language title is The Hidden History of Burma: Race, Capitalism, and the Crisis of Democracy in the 21st Century.

Now time for something less heavy...

#Burma

From the #ThaiLanguage press (Matichon Online) who in turn picked up the story from someone's social media post.

This 8.5 kilogram cat supposedly fell from the sixth floor of a condominium and through the rear window of a parked car below.

The cat emerged completely unscathed. Netizens have named it "Meteor Cat".

อุกกาบาต meteor
แมว cat

#catsOfMastodon
#Thailand

Some vocabulary from the signs:

- พระเยซู Jesus
- กลับใจ turn away from, repent, literally "return the heart "
- บาป sin
- จะเสร็จ will finish (act of completion in the future )
- มาอีก to come again
- ไถ่ redeem
- เชื่อ believe
- ชีวิตนิรันดร์ eternal life

#ThaiLanguage

These evangelical signs are littered all over my area. And probably yours too if you are in #Thailand

Most people who do not actively read #ThaiLanguage signs will not know this, but just look around. They're very distinctive and they are everywhere!

- จงกลับใจจากบาป You must turn away from sin.

- พระเยซูจะเสร็จมาอีก Jesus will come again.

- พระเยซูเป็นผู้ไถ่บาป Jesus is the redeemer of sin.

- เชื่อพระเยซูรับชีวิตนิรันดร์ Believe in Jesus, receive eternal life.

(Vocab list in follow up)

Some #ThaiLanguage vocabulary from taken from a Thai Rath (media) online story this morning:

จ่ายเงินปิดปาก to pay hush money
- จ่าย pay
- เงิน money
- ปิด to close
- ปาก mouth

คณะลูกขุนใหญ่ grand jury
- คณะ council
- ลูกขุน jury
- ใหญ่ large

ตั้งข้อหาคดีอาญา criminally indict
- ตั้ง to lay down
- ข้อหา charges
- คดี legal case
- อาญา criminal (adj.)

อัยการ prosecutor

ทนายความ lawyer

#ภาษาไทย #ไทยรัฐ #คำศัพท์ #language

I picked up a used #Dell OptiPlex desktop PC a few months ago following hardware problems with my Chromebook. It came with Windows10 but not wanting to be dragged back into that world I installed #linux with #xfce desktop.

No problems at all getting #ThaiLanguage input working ไม่มีปัญหาอะไรเลยทำให้เครื่องแสดงอักษรไทย.

Linux has a weak presence here in #Thailand. That's too bad, especially since it's a great entry point for motivated young people to learn and even contribute to technology.