Paul Garrigan's Blog, page 18

This is the Sound of Thailand

Thai pop music is okay, and occasionally I’ll be in the mood for Luk Thung (Thai country) or Phleng phuea chiwit (Thai folk). I do like all of that stuff, but I’ve never felt the same way about any Thai band, as I do about western groups like the Pixies, Nirvana, or Radiohead – or at least I didn’t until recently.

Yellow Fang ©Dave Crimaldi

A few weeks ago, I started to listen to more underground bands like Yellow Fang, Desktop Error, Monomania, and Greasy Café, and it has completely changed my perception of Thai music. This stuff is much more than just okay, it’s full of passion, energy and innovation, and I adore it. These bands are creating the type of tunes that makes me want to close my eyes and pretend I’m in the band.

I can barely strum a guitar, but I’ve been obsessed with music all my life. I might not be able to tell you what I was doing on this date a couple of years ago, but I can tell you what music I would have been listening to. All the events in my life are associated with certain songs, and I can use music in much the same way as other people use photograph albums.

I’ve listened to a lot of Thai music over the years, but it has been mostly the popular stuff. These tunes are certainly catchy enough, but like pop music elsewhere in the world, they can be feel a bit vapid and soulless. I imagine churning out these hits is more about market research and using winning formulas rather than passion and talent – this would explain why it mostly all sounds the same.

This is the Sound of Thailand

My journey into the Thai underground scene began a few weeks ago when rock philosopher Dave Crimaldi shared a song called รุ้งสีเทา by Monomonia on Facebook. It was one of those rare tunes where I heard just a few bars, and I instantly fall in love with it. Monomonia sound a little bit like early Radiohead but with a fresh Thai twist. I found out from Dave that this group is still relatively unknown, and he gave me a list of some other superb bands I’d never heard of.

Dave’s list of bands has sent me on a journey into the Thai underground music scene, and it has reignited a passion I’d feared was lost. I’ve been feeling less emotionally connected to music since I turned forty, but I blamed this on just getting older. I still have it playing in the background almost all day long, but it sometimes feel as if the magic has gone. The discovery of these bands is like finding a chest of gold in my garden (okay, I’d probably be more thrilled with a chest of gold), and it has allowed me to once again experience the joy of losing myself to a song.

I asked Dave Crimaldi to give me a short-list of the band I should listen to, and he came up with ‘Mr. Garrigan’s Homework – 20 Indie BKK Music Videos’. This turned out to be an excellent introduction into the scene.

The band that has most impressed me so far is Yellow Fang. This female trio reminds me of bands like the Breeders and B52s. I found their album ‘The Greatest’ on Deezer, and every song on there is a classic. I’ve never liked a Thai band enough before to listen to a whole album (with the exception of Loso), but I can’t get enough of this collection of tunes by Yellow Fang – it has already earned a place in my list of favorite albums of all time .

Desktop Error are another band that have earned a permanent place in my record collection. Their album ‘Keep Looking at the Window’ is also available on Deezer, and it is track after track of instantly lovable songs and dreamy guitars. Their most recent song is called ‘เปลือยเปล่า’, and it has all the ingredients of a classic indie hit.

The song ที่ที่มี by The Canning Spring Summer is another one I can’t stop playing. I haven’t been able to find out much about this band, and I can’t find any more of their songs, but if this is what they are capable of, I want to sign up as a fan. There is a part near the end of the song where he sings “มีความสุข”, and it is followed by the most perfect guitar fadeout ever.

One of the other important finds on my journey into the Thai Indie scene has been Cat Radio. Not only does this radio station play all the latest Thai Indie sounds, but they also have a TOP 30 that is mercifully free of the latest batch of sickly-sweet songs from Thai soap operas (ละคร).

Interview with a Rock Philosopher

I’ve done interviews on here in the past, but I’m a complete newbie when it comes to the Thai underground music scene. Dave Crimaldi, on the other hand, has been obsessed with these bands for a long time (I fear he has infected me with his madness), so I decided to ask him a few questions, and he generously agreed to answer them.

Why should anyone outside of Thailand care about these bands?

Bands in Thailand? If people like new music then they enjoy exploring music scenes in other cities. With the internet and ease of travel, knowing what is happening in a city means that you can drop into a city for the night, find the action and feel right at home. The people outside of Thailand that dedicate their lives to music and also enjoy traveling will care about the music here.

Is there a difference between Thai Indie and the Thai underground scene?

Not sure how to answer that because definitions of words are ambiguous and can be used synonymously. LOL. I use them but at the same time I don’t even know what it means. ‘Underground’ means you perform, produce and distribute music to a non mainstream audience in do-it-yourself DIY punk rock ways. It might mean the label is run as a non profit entity rather than for profit like a major record label. There are major distinctions between the philosophy of a non profit and a for profit business. DIY that we got from punk rock was a middle finger at the established order. No one wanted to make money so much as get their aggression out. Mainstream business always looks at the fringes to see what they can exploit and market to people – so you end up with art becoming a product to be consumed. In Thailand music is used as a means to sell other products. Without a royalty system in place it means lesser known bands on indie labels can’t get paid. But what is “indie”? It should mean that the music is produced independently of a major record label where artistic decisions are made by business people rather than artists. It is quite dangerous when that happens. But “indie” could also connote the sound of the music – I guess look on could go on wikipedia and look at definitions – LOL – I do stuff like this frequently. But “indie” has been incorporated by the mainstream and so has probably already lost it’s original meaning – that’s OK because language evolves. When I was a kid we had this thing called “alternative music” and “alternative kids” – apparently that means you listened to Radiohead – if you were an American kid it probably mean you had quite a bit of British music in your catalog: The Smiths, Joy Division, The Cure, New Order, etc. – you probably also dabbled in writing, wearing black turtlenecks even in the summer and reading existential philosophy. These days I guess they would be hipsters LOL.

Do bands like ‘Modern Dog’ belong to the Thai underground scene?

I know bits and pieces of things about them but it would be better to talk to someone who knows the band better than me and was here at the time of their rise. My sense is that they are not underground however were important for their influence on the generation after them. Their label Bakery got bought by Sony – that’s not underground.

Can a ‘garage band’ in Thailand make it to the big time?

What is the definition of big time? Getting signed to a major label? These days with the internet and the cheap tools on it bands can produce their own music, do videos and distribute everything online. But because everyone is doing it, we live in media saturated world where everyone has ADHD, checking facebook status messages, gaming, news, it makes it more difficult in some ways to be actually heard. You can hire companies or buy sponsored ads on facebook to get FB likes as if they actually mean anything but what we have learned is that likes without meaningful engagement with content means nothing. So I have seen supposedly pretty big stars attracting no people to a show, but if you look at their social media it looks like they are huge – a big corporation or even a little garage band can inflate numbers.

But can a garage band make it? My answer is YES. But is it hard work? YES. Essentially, you are training for the Olympics. If you are lucky enough to be ‘discovered’ and signed by a for profit record label, you are out on the road promoting the album. This could mean you are playing 7 nights a week – in Europe or North America it could mean just one city after another. So a record deal isn’t just free money – you essentially got a loan from the label to make an album and they want their return on investment. Having a successful career as a musician where all or much of your income comes from royalties, live performances and you get endorsement deals for free gear is obviously coveted. But to be honest I think success in the business has less to do with talent (look at Courtney Love) and more to do with passion and determination. You have to be willing to sacrifice everything for a career in music including stability, relationships, privacy. The older people get the more unlikely it’s gonna happen because of the time requirements and physical endurance. But yes, a garage band in Thailand can make it big and it wouldn’t surprise me to see certain bands or musicians make it here. In this world, we create our own opportunities – no one gives you anything – you have to earn it. Some of these bands can be big, only a few of them will, and an even smaller number will last.

If you were organizing your own Thai underground festival, what bands would you invite?

All my friends bands, friends of friends bands, bands in ASEAN, a few from Europe or North America, anywhere – probably 30 – 50 bands! These festivals already exist like Stone Free, Noise Market, Fatty Fest. I’ve done production work on small mini festivals when I worked in Korea and theatre groups in high school and even then it’s a lot of work. A festival where there are 40 bands, several stage areas, outdoors is a logistical challenge. But they are tremendous fun. It’s a labor of love.

How did you get involved with the Thai underground scene?

I have lived here for a long time but it was relatively recent that I dived into music. I have always loved music and play drums. I’d been to a few shows here over the years but never really knew what was happening. When Facebook arrived I think the awareness of what events were happening suddenly increased 1000%. A few years ago, my life was going nowhere, and I was somewhat depressed and bored. I had played in some jam bands but never really enjoyed playing live performances or having to depend on others so much. So I was reading all these self-help/ happiness books – I can show you a photo of all my books – and somehow I began changing my own thoughts…. that filtered out into the real world somehow…. In early 2012, I was hanging out in a bar near Soi Cowboy with my friend Matthew – we were both in a spiritual rut, it was hot and humid and there was nothing better to do than drink beer. Anyway, I was really into life coaching at the time (and still am!) and started asking him questions a life coach might ask not knowing if any of this stuff worked. Mostly I asked him, Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Do you need a lot of money? How much do you need? Oh you want to have a bar and diner? Describe it in every way! Don’t worry about money. Just dream.

Anyway, Matthew ended up opening a bar that is quite valuable to the city’s underground music and as a result of that I ended up writing about bands and seeing more shows that I would just because it was my friends bar. Everything kinda grew from there and I go to see shows at other venues as well.

Dave’s blog is a fantastic resource, and I strongly recommend you check it out if you are interested in any type of live music in Bangkok or Thailand generally.

Introverts Can Learn Thai Too

I struggle when it comes to being social. I get verbal diarrhea when I’m around people I know, but I just find it difficult to talk to strangers. I feel incredibly awkward in these situations, so I try to avoid them as much as possible. My introversion has gotten much worse in middle-age, and it probably now the main obstacle between me and fluency in the Thai language.

It is day 48 of my six-month challenge to become fluent in Thai. I’ve made significant progress. My sounds are far more Thai-like, and the words are just coming out of my mouth easier. I’m loving Thai Glossika, and it is incredibly fortunate for me that this new course has been released right now near the beginning of my quest. The polyglot Stuart Jay Raj has been like my personal trainer, and he has shown me how to develop the muscles needed for a Thai sound system in my throat.

Everything is coming together nicely for me in my quest for fluency, but my introversion means I’m not getting enough practice with real-life conversations. I do speak in Thai with my wife when my son isn’t around (I only speak to him in English, and he has grown up bilingual), but other than a few short exchanges with neighbors, 7-eleven cashiers, and petrol-pump attendants, I haven’t been conversing much at all.

Now is the Time to Be Getting Out There and Speaking Thai

I mentioned in an earlier post how just getting out there and speaking Thai might not be enough. During my first few years living here, I did make a real effort to be social and communicate in Thai. It helped that I was drunk most of the time and lived in a part of the country where nobody spoke English. I would sit with my neighbors for hours chatting away, and I mistook my ability to be understood as evidence of fluency.

I reached an intermediate level of Thai by getting out there and just speaking, but after a while, I stopped making progress. My Thai friends got better at understanding my mispronounced words, so it was almost like they were learning a new language and not me – although I didn’t realize this at the time. It meant that when I tried to impress strangers with my fluent Thai, they just couldn’t understand a word I was saying.

After my son was born, we moved to a different part of Thailand, and it was only then that it started to dawn on me that my Thai sucked big time. Every uncomprehending look put a dent in my confidence, and it eventually got to the stage where I didn’t want to talk anymore. The lowest point came when a teacher colleague told me my Thai was almost incomprehensible – he was right, but it hurt, and I hope he never used the same bluntness with any of his students (he was meant to be a language teacher!).

I struggled to communicate in Thai because for years I was trying to do this using the same vocal muscles I used for speaking English. I also failed to realize that I already used tones when I spoke (we all do), and these first-language tones were interfering when I spoke Thai (I gave an example of this in an older post, Undoing the Damage from Speaking Thai Badly for Thirteen Years . All of this stuff is basic Thai 101, but I’d been so focused on building a vocabulary that I didn’t put enough effort into the basics. I also didn’t have access to a great teacher like Stuart Jay Raj.

I am now at the point where just getting out there and speaking Thai is what I need to be doing. I can provide endless excuses for why this is not going to be possible, but I could do that for practically anything that involves getting out of my comfort zone. My life situation is much different from what it was a few years ago, I need to spend about 10 hours of the day looking at a computer, but there is going to be stuff I can do to have more real-life conversations.

Escaping the Prison of Introversion

A couple of evenings ago, I fell into conversation with one of my neighbors. The amazing thing was I didn’t even realize I was speaking Thai. It all happened so naturally, and my inner-critic didn’t have the opportunity to worry about how I sounded. This is progress, and it is something I want to build on.

I am expecting to devote the first half of this six month Thai fluency challenge to mastering the basics. If I’m not having real-life conversations every day (this needs to be more than simple exchanges) by the end of this first three months period, my challenge is going to be in real trouble. Breaking through my introversion is a must if I hope to progress.

Living in Thailand does mean lots of opportunities to speak the language, but I also know that it is possible to live here comfortably without ever uttering a word of Thai. The locals aren’t going to be knocking my door down to help me practice, so I’m going to need to make more of an effort. Here are some of the steps I’m considering to increase my opportunities for speaking Thai:

• I want to return to regular Muay Thai training, and this would give me the opportunity to chat with trainers. I haven’t been able to find a gym locally here in Rayong, but I’ll keep looking.

• I used to go running with some neighbors when I lived in Minburi, and this was a great way to practice my Thai. I prefer to go to the beach here, but I’ve noticed a couple people running in our village in the mornings, so I might start running at the same time.

• I have to make the effort to start conversations with my neighbors. I’ve been a bit aloof since we moved here last year, but maybe if I take the initiative, there will be more opportunities for chat.

• I might start paying one of the local teachers to come and chat with me for an hour – I could probably afford to do this a couple of times per week

I’m certain that making the effort to be more sociable would not only help me improve my Thai, but it would also improve my life generally. Introversion is just an excuse for staying in my comfort zone– it’s a limitation that I’ve placed upon myself. I might never become Mr. Charisma, but I can certainly make more of an effort than I have been.

I’m Loving Glossika Thai

I’ve been using Glossika Thai for a week now, and I’m really enjoying this course. The last two modules became available to download yesterday, and I’m impressed with the scope of this content. I was doing 50 sentences per day, but it just felt too much like I was rushing things. I’ve reduced it down to 25 sentences, and this means I’ll finish the 3,000 sentences in 120 days.

My current Glossika routine is:

• Review 2 Glossika spaced reputation (GSR) audio files – I shadow the Thai speaker (speak at the same time)

• Listen to the sentences I recorded from the previous day to see what can be improved

• Listen to the last four Glossika mass sentences (GSM) C (Thai only) files to review 200 sentences

• Record myself saying 200 sentences

• Revise 50 of the oldest Thai sentences out of the 200 using the GSM B files – the goal is the say the sentence before the Thai speaker

• Write out 25 new sentences in Thai and listen to the GSM A files twice

• Listen to GSM files while writing them down – I do this without stopping the recording, so I only write down the words that stand out. This writing practice is more about listening than writing – it is just a method for staying focused.

• I record the new 25 sentences

• I listen to 2 new GSR audio files

I don’t do all of this in one go – it is spread out over the day. I also listening to additional Glossika material when driving or out walking, but this is just extra.

One of my worries with this type of course is that the sentences won’t be stored in long-term memory. I already know most of the vocabulary, but I want to be able to remember these phrases so they are always on the tip of my tongue. In order to ease my fear, I’m going to be doing additional reviews two weeks after I’ve completed a file – this will be using the GSM Thai-only files. I read somewhere that if you can remember something after two weeks, it is going to be stored in your memory forever.

As well as using Glossika, I’m continuing with the language drills in the ดรุณศึกษา book. This week I’ve also been doing lots of fun stuff like listening to Thai Indie music , and watching horror movies (ปีศาจ, ร่าง, and ศพเด็ก), and a bit of lakorn (Thai soaps).

I had originally intended to immerse myself in Thai media for just six months, but the surprising thing is there is nothing I actually miss from western media. I don’t think I ever want to go back to watching English language TV and movies, reading English books, and listening to English music – it now seems a strange thing to do while living in Thailand.

Other posts in this series on learning Thai

Week 0- My Quest to Speak Fluent Thai in Six Months

Week 1 -Creating the Right Mental Conditions for Learning Thai

Week 2- Maybe Just Getting Out There and Speaking Thai is Not Enough

Week 3 – 5 Improvements in My Approach to Learning Thai

Week 4 – Generating Enough Passion to Learn Thai

Week 5 – Undoing the Damage from Speaking Thai Badly for Thirteen Years

Week 6 – Early Impressions of Glossika Thai Fluency Course

Early Impressions of Glossika Thai Fluency Course

If spending money was the main criteria, I would be up there among the best non-native speakers of Thai. I’ve spent a small fortune on books and courses over the years, and most of this cash could have been put to better use. My latest purchase is the Glossika Thai Fluency course, but my early impressions of this course is that it is money well spent.

Glossika Thai Fluency Out of the Box

I put my order in for the Glossika Thai Fluency course a couple of weeks ago. It didn’t get released until yesterday, so I’ve been like a little boy waiting for his birthday to arrive. I read on the Glossika Facebook page that there were some technical issues, so I was preparing myself for a delay, but they released the first level on time – the other two levels are due to follow soon. There is enough in the first level to keep me busy for a few weeks, so I don’t mind waiting for the other levels.

Yesterday morning, I made the mistake of checking my email on my iPhone during a 4am visit to the toilet – I try to avoid doing this because it wakes me up so much that I can’t get back to sleep. When I saw the email containing Glossika links, all thoughts of bed were forgotten. I ended up spending most of yesterday playing around with the material.

The first level of Glossika Thai is made up of 1,000 sentences. I’d been told to listen to all of these in one go on first day, so this is what I did – it took 81 minutes to do this using the short C files. The quality of the audio is crystal clear. I noticed a couple of minor errors (missing words), but nothing major, and nothing that is going to get in the way of my progress.

I did feel a tiny bit disappointed to discover I recognized all of the vocabulary in this level, but it is probably a good thing. It isn’t lack of Thai vocabulary that is holding me back from fluency, but the fact that I haven’t been able to transfer these words into conversational usage. As I said in my last post, there is no real value in me knowing thousands of Thai words if I pronounce most of them wrong.

How I’m going to Be Using the Glossika Thai Course

There are a number of paths language students can take using the Thai Glossika material depending on the amount of free time they have to spare. I’m aiming for fluency within six months, so I’m going to be working my way through 50 sentences per day. In the past, I’ve had a bad habit of doing things my own way, and this hasn’t been effective, so I’m trying to follow instructions as closely as possible.

In order to make good progress using Glossika, I’ll be using the following approach:

• Writing down 50 new sentences each day

• Learning these sentences with the book closed using file A

• Recording 200 sentences per day

• Translating oldest 50 sentences

• Revising last four sessions

• Listening to four Glossika Spaced Repetition files per day

In the instructions, it is recommended that I write down 50 sentences with the book closed and just listening to the audio. This isn’t really practical for me, as it would take me too long. I spend about 50 minutes just writing these sentences down with the book open.

I’ve heard that some people reckon this written work isn’t going to be the best use of my time, but I’m already devoting three hours a day to spoken Thai. By writing stuff down, it allows me to get a better feel for the words.

The Glossika Thai 3-in-1 package is still on special offer, and I’m looking forward to getting my hands on the other 2 levels.

Glossika Thai is Just One of the Resources I Am Using

I’m combining Glossika with the work I’m doing with Stu Jay Raj. I continue to study Thai over six hours per day, and I currently divide this up as follows:

• Thai Pronunciation Drills using ดรุณศึกษา (Darun Suksa) series (under the guidance of Stuart Jay Raj) – 90 minutes

• Glossika Thai – 90 minutes

• Stu Jay Raj material – 60 minutes

• Learn Thai Podcast – 30 minutes

• BYKI flash cards (I’m thinking of eliminating this temporarily) – 30 minutes

• Fun Thai Stuff (music, YouTube videos, Thai websites) – 90 minutes (more like 180 minutes because I watch Thai movies in bed)

There are times when I get frustrated with the pronunciation drills, especially near the end of the ninety minutes when I start to make more mistakes, but it is definitely leading to improvements in my ability to pronounce Thai. I’ve noticed that I sort of fall into a rhythm where I’m pronouncing the words correctly and afterwards it’s like – wow, did I just do that? Stuart Jay Raj recorded some of the work we have been doing with Thai drills, and I think he plans to release a video of this soon.

Other posts in this series on learning Thai

Week 0- My Quest to Speak Fluent Thai in Six Months

Week 1 -Creating the Right Mental Conditions for Learning Thai

Week 2- Maybe Just Getting Out There and Speaking Thai is Not Enough

Week 3 – 5 Improvements in My Approach to Learning Thai

Week 4 – Generating Enough Passion to Learn Thai



Week 5 – Undoing the Damage from Speaking Thai Badly for Thirteen Years

Undoing the Damage from Speaking Thai Badly for Thirteen Years

I have made more progress in the last month than I did in the previous decade of trying to get to grips with Thai. Although, a lot of my current effort is directed towards undoing the damage from those years of speaking the language badly.

How to Speak Crap Thai

The first Thai words I ever spoke were ขอบคุณครับ (khaawp kun khrap) which is the equivalent of saying ‘thank you’ in English. I use these words at least ten times a day, and it is something I now say automatically – the only problem is I’ve been mostly saying it wrong for the past 13 years.

I do know how to say ขอบคุณครับ the correct way, but for some reason, I pronounce it differently when I’m in a situation where I actually need to say ‘thank you’. Stuart Jay Raj calls it first language interference. I speak these words in Thai in the exact same way that I say them in English, and this means the ครับ (khrap) turns into a falling tone when it should be a high tone. I never even noticed I did this until a couple of weeks ago – I’d assume ขอบคุณครับ was one of the few phrases I did say correctly.

I say ขอบคุณครับ automatically, and so this is going to make it harder for me to fix this bad habit. I’ve given my wife and son the task of monitoring my use of the word ครับ (you could call it crap monitoring). The other day we went to a petrol station, and I was determined to say these simple words correctly. I rehearsed the tones in my head while I was waiting to pay, but I still ended up saying it the old way. The scary thing was that at first I felt convinced I’d said it right. I felt so annoyed with myself afterwards, but I’ve been saying it the right way since then.

The Importance of Getting the Thai Basics Right

If I had approached Thai the right way initially, I would have been speaking fluent years ago. Instead I stubbornly insisted on doing things my own way. I wrongly believed that I’d pick up the basics naturally by listening to people speak and by focusing my efforts on building a large vocabulary. I was wrong. What is the point in knowing a few thousand words in Thai if you pronounce most of them wrong?

Learning the basics does require effort and commitment, but as far as I can see, this work is essential. Otherwise it’s like that joke about the pilot who makes the following passenger announcement – “the bad news is we are completely lost, but the good news is we seem to be making pretty good time”. I hope new learners of the Thai language (or any language) come across my blog and see me old approach as the perfect example of how not to go about things.

Thai Drills Are So Powerful

I spend about two hours a day now just doing Thai drills. Stuart Jay Raj suggested I do this exactly same way as Thai kids do when they first go to school – the way my son has been doing it up to recently. I’m using the first book from the ดรุณศึกษา (Darun Suksa) series, and this is designed for kids who are still in anubaan (kindergarten). I first say the consonant and vowel separately, and if there is a tone marker, I saw the word with and without this. It takes me a couple of hours to go through all the consonant classes, but it becomes like a type of meditation.

In my last session with Stuart, he told me a few simple stories that have made it easy for me to memorize all the Thai tone rules. For years, I’ve been using these messy charts that I created myself, it is ridiculous how complicated I’ve been making things, but I can now look at a word almost any word and know the tone without having to use any tool. The work I’m doing with the Thai drills means I’m starting to do this automatically.

I suspect it is going to take another month or so to get the basics right, but I don’t mind this work because I can already see dramatic improvements. I’m building up the muscles needed to produce these words correctly, and I’m creating a Thai sound system rather than trying to speak the language using an English sound system. Those thousands of words I’ve already learned are going to fall into place, so I can actually start using them in conversation.

I’m going to start using the new Glossika Thai fluency course. It’s due for release next week, and I’ve already paid for the special pre-release deal. I’ll talk about my experiences with this program in future posts. I sort of feel excited about it. Catherine over at ‘A Woman Learning Thai’ is doing the Italian Glossika course, and she seems to love it.

Why Don’t You Join in My Six Month Challenge to Become Fluent in Thai or Even Italian?

There are already at least two other people who have committed to a similar period of intense language acquisition. Catherine from ‘A Woman Learning Thai’ has a slightly different goal because she wants to be able to speak Italian for her planned trip (although she is also going to use the language acquisition skills she picks up for improving her Thai). Dan reads Catherine’s blog and he left a comment over there saying he has been following my series of posts on Thai, and he too wants to commit to an intense period of learning Thai.

Why don’t you join us too?

The rules are simple – you just need to donate all of your free time to learning Thai (or whatever language you want to learn). This means no more English TV, no English music, no English books, and no internet for entertainment unless it is in Thai (okay you can read English if it is about learning Thai). You do this for six months, and you use at least the first couple of months to make sure you have the basics right. I’m managing to free up about six hours a day for focused study, but you may be able to do even more.

If you do decide to accept this challenge, you will find there is an amazing community ready to help you master the Thai language including:

A Woman Learning Thai..and some men too

Farang Can Learn Thai Facebook Page

Learn Thai with Porn Facebook Page

I also recommend Cracking Thai Fundamentals so you can start off with a strong foundation. Stuart also has his Thai bites videos which offer further insights into the language. You might also want to check out his excellent YouTube discussion on tones

Other posts in this series on learning Thai

Week 0- My Quest to Speak Fluent Thai in Six Months

Week 1 -Creating the Right Mental Conditions for Learning Thai

Week 2- Maybe Just Getting Out There and Speaking Thai is Not Enough

Week 3 – 5 Improvements in My Approach to Learning Thai

Week 4 – Generating Enough Passion to Learn Thai

Lots More Energy with Weekly Juice Fasts

It is now over a month since the end of my 30 day juice fast, and I am delighted with the results. I’ve lost a further 2.6 kg (5.7 pounds), and according the BMI, my weight is now in the normal range at 24.9. Best of all, I’m continuing to enjoy high energy levels, and it has made it possible for me to take on a new commitments such as my challenge to speak fluent Thai within six months. I’m so impressed with the results of my juice fasts that I intend to do them for 2/3 days every week for the foreseeable future.

What Happened after My 30 Day Juice Fast

By the end of my 30 day juice fast last month, my weight had fallen from 87kg (192 pounds) to 76.8kg (169 pounds). I was expecting some of this weight to return after the fast, and I did gain 1.4kg (almost 4 pounds) in the two weeks after the fast. I started exercising for 80 minutes a day – this involved skipping (jump rope) and walking on the beach or a step workout at home (I have a small sturdy stool I use for this) – and this caused my weight to stabilize.

I’ve been sticking to an 18:6 diet where I only eat between midday and 18:00. I’m not sure how effective this has been for controlling my weight, but it is much easier than 5:2 fasting where I didn’t eat at all for two days a week. I’ll continue with 18:6 fasting for the time being, but I might give it up once my weight has stabilized at around 73kg.

My current weight is 74.2kg (163 pounds), which is great, but I would like to lose another couple of kg and keep it there. I read somewhere that if I can keep the weight off for a year, it resets the body so it becomes much easier to sustain. I’m not sure if there is much truth in this, but it is as good a goal as any. I’m only interested in losing weight if I can keep it off long-term – I’m fed up with yo-yo dieting.

Weekly Juice Fasts

I just completed a three-day juice fast, and I plan to continue with these roughly every seven days. I will probably cut this down to two-day fasts once my weight is under 73kg. I love the increased energy I experience from juicing, and it just makes me feel healthier and lighter. I’ve started to look forward to these fasts, and it doesn’t feel like any type of sacrifice – it is sort of like stepping into a warm hot bath after you’ve been crawling around in the mud for a few days (not that I’ve ever experienced this exactly).

Success Happens When I Get Out of My Own Way

In this video and podcast, I discuss how much better my life is when I just let go and just trust my intuition. Press play to watch the video, and you’ll find the podcast of this edition below:

Press play to listen to the podcast

Try Not to Pee on Other People’s Chips

It is easy to see how the beliefs of other people are shaped by their culture, upbringing, education, and genes (apparently). It is harder to appreciate how the exact same applies to my own way of looking at the world. If I get annoyed because other people believe X, it is because I’ve been indoctrinated to see things this way.

Let’s face it, the shit in our head is mostly stuff we didn’t choose to put there. Nobody asked me if I wanted to be born in Ireland, at least I don’t remember having such a conversation, yet so many of my beliefs and opinions are due to my nationality. If you had my life, you would think the exact same way as me, and the reverse is also true.

I can be as judgmental a dick as anyone else, but this judging always leaves a bad taste in my mouth. If people believe things that are annoyingly different from me, I can blame it on their culture, lack of education (or the wrong type of education), or a bad upbringing. These poor saps believe what they do because they have been brainwashed. But hold on a minute here – the reasons I believe what I believe is because I’ve been brainwashed too.

I don’t have that many memories before the age of seven, but I do remember how everyone I met interested me. I’d no opinions about people’s nationality, race, religion, sexual orientation, or any of that sort of bollocks – all of that shit came later. It was wonderful living in a world where people were just people, and when I didn’t look at lie through such heavy filters created by my later conditioning.

The internet has made it so easy for any one of us to climb up onto a soapbox to tell other people how they are getting it wrong. The comment section for online newspapers, or comments on web forums, are mostly about people trying to defend their own beliefs while attacking anyone who thinks different. Nobody stops to consider just how farcical the whole situation is – it’s like one person who is standing on a pile of shit who starts ridiculing someone else for standing on a pile of shit.

I think all of us are trying our best. The only real difference between my beliefs and someone else’s beliefs is our individual indoctrination. Sure, there are times when I might need to take a stand, but most of these arguments are just infantile. I’m sure most keyboard warriors think they are making the world a better place, by ridiculing the beliefs of other people, but it is really about their own insecurities and hang-ups – my shit smells better than your shit sort of thing.

Generating Enough Passion to Learn Thai

Week 4 of My Six Month Challenge to Become Fluent in Thai

For the last few years, I’ve often had to deal with pangs of guilt over my lack of progress in the Thai language. These episodes of shame have become more frequent since my son Timmy stated school because he now says things in Thai that I can’t understand – I swore this would never happen.

I’ve all these great reasons for why I ‘should’ be making more of an effort to learn Thai, but the reality is that ‘should’ is a lousy reason to do anything. It just makes me feel bad about myself, and it reduces my motivation to learn even further. Let’s be honest here, the word ‘should’ is just a shitty stick that too many of us use to beat ourselves up with.

My First Love Affair with Thai

During my first couple of years in Thailand, I had plenty of passion for learning Thai. I’d study for at least a couple of hours most days, and I’d make use of every opportunity to practice talking with native speakers. Back then, I worked for a teaching agency, so I’d be sent out to schools all around Bangkok. I spent many hours traveling around by Skytrain, songthaew, or bus, and I would use that time to listen to Thai language cassette tapes (this was back in 2001 before mp3s). It all felt so exciting and new, and studying didn’t require any effort because I was so desperate to learn.

I found it much easier to speak Thai during those first years. This was partly due to my enthusiasm for alcohol consumption, but I also had a passion for the language that couldn’t be stopped. My level of Thai was still at the beginner level, so I was only using words that the local people were used to hearing farang get wrong, and they were able to make allowances. These were the glory days of my Thai language adventure, and it seemed like every day at least one person would reward me with an encouraging ‘phut Thai geng’ (this roughly translates as ‘you speak Thai like a god’).

My first love affair with Thai began to fade once it became obvious that lots of the people who were rewarding me with a ‘phut Thai geng’ could barely understand a word I was saying. I realized the polite smile wasn’t one of comprehension but more like a plea for me to please stop talking – it was the look of panic in their eyes that gave them away. I became disheartened and my passion went downhill from there on in.

Intermediate Thai and Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance is a fancy word that describes the discomfort we experience if there are two conflicting beliefs/ideas in our brain at the same time. I developed cognitive dissonance around my lack of progress in Thai – it felt important that I should speak it, but I also became convinced this wasn’t going to be possible. The only way I could resolve this dissonance was to create a reasonable rationalization. I decided that I’d no skill for languages, and that I was tone deaf. This meant that I could still remain a ‘good guy’ in my own mind despite the fact that I’d stop trying to learn Thai.

My excuse for giving up on this language might have easily lasted for the rest of my life. I could rationalize my way out of the ‘you should be learning Thai’ moments by remembering my lousy reputation for languages and my immunity to tones. There are lots of other non-Thai speaking expats out there who I’m sure would be happy to offer me reassurance comments like –

“Yeah, I had to give up on Thai as well because I’m completely tone deaf. It’s an impossible language. Anyway, the Thais don’t want us to understand them, and you can get all the UK and US TV stations over here now using the internet. Why would I even want to learn Thai? Everyone wants to speak English!”

Making the Most of the Initial Passion to Learn Thai

When people first arrive in Thailand, they are usually going to have plenty of passion to learn the language. This enthusiasm is a precious commodity, but it only has a limited shelf-life. Those lucky few individuals who have a special talent for languages may find that this initial burst of energy is enough to get them well on the way to fluency, but it seems for most of us, it is only enough to get us to the intermediate stage. If we don’t have a way to re-energize our motivation at this point, we are likely to become stuck.

Entrepreneurs in the US have a saying I really like – “you can’t get there from here”. It is a reminder that the things we did to get to our current stage in life might not be enough to get us to a higher stage. We need to change tactics and find new sources of motivation if we hope to progress. If we want to be able to speak Thai like a Thai, we need to power this goal by attaching it to deeper passions than just the novelty of being in a new country.

The Return of My Passion for Thai

I’ve been able to reignite my passion for Thai, by associating it with my deepest yearnings. I enjoy making YouTube videos, and from next year, I’m going to start making some episodes in the Thai language. It is a huge challenge, but my passion for this is so high that I know I’m going to make it happen. It doesn’t matter that up until a few weeks ago, I felt convinced I’d no talent for languages and that I was tone deaf.

All of us are going to have passions that we can probably tap into if we want to re-energize our efforts to learn the language. If you love football, maybe you could start a website about your favorite team where it is all written in Thai – imagine how nice it would be to connect to local fans. If you enjoy cooking, why not make videos where you teach Thai people to make western recipes?

If you just can’t seem to be able to feel passionate about learning Thai that’s okay too. You don’t have to know the language and punishing yourself with ‘should’ thoughts is just a form of self-abuse.

My Progress towards Thai Fluency

I’m continuing to use any free time I have for learning Thai. Surprisingly, I don’t miss English TV, English music, or English books. I manage to study for about six hours a day, but there are times when it doesn’t feel like I’m getting much done. I have moments when I feel like a Thai-speaking god again, but I also have plenty of moments where it feels like I’m going backwards. I think this is just part of the process – although, I did feel disappointed to completely mess up a simple ‘thank you’ in Thai while shopping the other day (I suppose this is to be expected as I said it wrong at least 10 times per day for the last 13 years).

I had a fun lesson with Stu Jay Raj this week. He says I’m definitely improving, but he is pushing me to sound much more Thai-like by speeding things up. He has also got me doing drills to improve my ability to pronounce non-voiced consonants. The way he explains things is fantastic, and he used a funny story yesterday to imbed the tone rules for middle consonants into my head – apparently these stories are going to be used in module six of the Cracking Thai Fundamentals Course.

I’ve also been spending a lot of time on the Pantip Web Forum. I think the nice thing about reading posts on comments there is that people tend to write in a similar way to how they speak. I’m a bit of a fanatic when it comes to health and personal-development stuff, and the Pantip is treasure trove of this type of content. I cut and paste each post into a Word document, so I’m better able to dissect the vocabulary. I’m also using these posts to find phrases that I want to practice.

I can’t believe I’m almost a month into this challenge. I am making progress, but there is so much nore to be done.

Week 0- My Quest to Speak Fluent Thai in Six Months

Week 1 -Creating the Right Mental Conditions for Learning Thai

Week 2- Maybe Just Getting Out There and Speaking Thai is Not Enough

Week 3 – 5 Improvements in My Approach to Learning Thai

5 Improvements in My Approach to Learning Thai

I am now at the end of week three of my six month challenge to become fluent in Thai. The most surprising thing so far is how much of my time is spent going back over the fundamentals. I’ve even had to revisit the Thai alphabet because I’ve been reproducing some of these sounds in the wrong parts of my mouth.

Despite my need to focus so much on the basics at the moment, I don’t feel like I’m back at square one. This work is causing a ripple effect because it is allowing my brain to make connections with the stuff I’ve learned in the past. Things are just starting to fall into place, and there have been a few times recently when I’ve enjoyed the wonderful feeling of ‘I’m getting this’.

I hit a language plateau in the Thai language about 10 years ago. My failure to fully master the basics meant I couldn’t make any further progress beyond the intermediate level. I picked up lots of additional vocabulary after, but if I’m honest, this only improved my ability to read – it did nothing to help me communicate better.

A decade is a long time to be stuck, so I’m so grateful to still have a passion to learn Thai. I have no difficulty understanding why some of expats just give up. It is so easy to interpret lack of progress as evidence of an inability to learn the language.

I’m confident that I’ve found the key for breaking through the barrier between intermediate and fluent Thai. It is a long road ahead for me but this isn’t so bad because at least I know I’m now going in the right direction. There are six improvements in my approach to learning Thai that are responsible for this breakthrough:

1. I No Longer Feel Ashamed about My Weaknesses in Thai

Anyone with more than a basic level of Thai is going to recognize there are obvious problems with the way I speak the language. In the past, I felt embarrassed about this, and it meant I tried to hide my deficiencies. I became so focused on protecting my ego that I avoided any situation where I might actually learn something.

I’m grateful that Stuart Jay Raj used me as an example in one of his recent videos. It feels good to openly admit that this is the level I’m at now, and I need some help to progress. There is nothing embarrassing about wanting to improve, but it does require being open about what needs to be improved. In future, I’m going to be as honest as I can be about my weaknesses in Thai – not only to other people but also to myself.

2. I Have a Goal I Feel Passionate About

I make addiction recovery videos and I put these on YouTube. My efforts are a bit amateurish, but I enjoy it as a hobby. It is my goal that within one year, I’ll be putting out videos in the Thai language as well as the ones in English. This is my dream, and I’m passionate about making it happen. There might not be even one Thai person interested in what I have to say, but I know it will give me so much pleasure to do this.

My motives for learning Thai in the past have always been a bit vague. Without something solid to aim for, my approach was haphazard and completely undisciplined. It is hardly surprising I didn’t get anywhere because I didn’t have an actual goal. I now have a clear destination for my studies, and this is going to help me focus and stay committed.

3. I Have Enough Humility to Learn

I see myself as a student of the Thai language, and this means my job is to learn. I don’t need to worry about protecting my ego or trying to impress other people, and it’s definitely not my job to teach – although, I’m willing to share anything I learn along the way. I believe humility may be more important when it comes to learning a language than any natural talent.

4. I’ve Raised My Expectations

I didn’t learn to drive a car until I was 37 years of age – I seriously used to look people who could drive as having an almost magical ability. I’ve felt the same type of awe around westerners who can speak fluent Thai. I didn’t think it would ever be possible for me to be like them, so I set my goals much lower.

Working with Stuart Jay Raj has helped me see there is nothing magical about speaking Thai. It’s just a case of getting the muscles around the mouth to perform the right actions. It does take practice, hard work, and persistence, but I’ve raised my expectations – I now aim to speak Thai like a Thai.

5. I’m Enjoying the Process of Improving My Thai

I do not view this period of intensive learning as something I need to get out of the way so I can get what I want. I look forward to studying each day because it’s just so exciting and rewarding in itself. I love it when I remember to use a new word in conversation, and I experience a childish glee when this same word can help me make sense of a paragraph of writing that would have previously baffled me – it’s better than any video game. My son loves correcting my bad Thai, and it is something fun we can do together. I’m getting as much more from this experience of learning Thai than I will from achieving the goal (the goal is only there to give shape to the process).

Here are the two earlier posts in this series:

Week 1- My Quest to Speak Fluent Thai in Six Months

Week 2 -Creating the Right Mental Conditions for Learning Thai

Week 3- Maybe Just Getting Out There and Speaking Thai is Not Enough

Shame is the Glue that Keeps Us Stuck in Addiction

In this video and podcast, I discuss how shame was more responsible for my drinking than the physical addiction. Press play to watch the video, and you’ll find the podcast below:

Press play to listen to the podcast version of this episode: