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Thanks
for keeping the backpack for me. I am sure I can put it to good use
when I are travelling working the wet plate photos. You sound
very busy there with all the emails etc. Try and not work too hard
I
hurt myself once this trip when I fell on the road on my tailbone
(still hurts a bit 2 weeks later). I will try not to hurt myself again.
Am driving the motorbike very slow and carefully. One more day tomorrow
(extended 2 days in Mae Sot) driving the bike. I had to stay longer to
buy more headlamps for the families.
My
donation money spent is now over $700 of the $850 I had to spend. If I
come back next year will have to use some of the artist fee money to
help the families, and others in the photos (Klong Toey Slum). Will get
$2500 in artist fees this year for the Winnipeg and Fredericton
exhibitions. The problem is have to use at least some of that to help
the costs of going to the openings. Want to save as much as I can help
folks here thou. There is never enough money.
I
have been thanked by multiple people here for coming back. Times are
really tough for the people because of the dump closing to them, jobs
are hard to find. I asked a 20 year old boy (speaks English) about going
back to Burma but he said people are afraid to do that, there is an
ongoing war between the military junta leadership in Burma and the Karen
State (State in Burma). The war dates back to WWII. For the people
here, life even without work or limited work is better in the dump than
going back to Burma. Getting some free food or headlamps is a big thing
for them. Much of the dump homes do not have power now, some have solar
but most do not. Having a headlamp to find the outhouse at night is
important.
There must be upwards of 40 children here, maybe 60 or more.
By tomorrow my last day, I will have handed out over 150 lollipops.
First there is the initial ATTACK OF THE CHILDREN on my arrival, then
over the next 2 or 3 hours friends bring friends for lollipops. Before I
leave many kids come for seconds. Calls of GERRY ring out, it seems
very Santa Claus like. Will miss that feeling, the faces, the calls, the
hugs, the grabs (children always latching onto me, playing with the
back of my neck, hair), the hand holds, the stares into the camera, the
playing and joking. Yesterday one child snapped a ANGRY BIRDS bracelet
on me, a bit of a gift, then she ran off laughing.
Gerry
