Thursday, July 12, 2007

It's not unusual. Not in the least.

Ladies and gentlemen, I not only will keep my promise to post once a week, but I will bring enlightenment.

First, watch this. I know, I know, youtube is a tool of the patriarchy, but watch it.

Second, think of how cool it would be to see him live.

That's tonight. I've once before journeyed to the far off (just up the street) superclassy (8 dollar water!) land of the Cambodiana Hotel to see the one, the only Asian Tom Jones. He plays each night except Tuesday, and I assure you his show is just terrifying enough to be wonderful.

Next Episode: Stories From The Provinces.

Friday, July 06, 2007

It's been a month...

And in the interests of everyone not thinking I've forgotten about them, here's a quick update from the front:

1. Cambodia is amazing.
2. Work is similarly amazing, though heartbreaking. Not much can be said about it until I leave the country, but I promise a tell-all (tell-most (tell-some)) report when I get back.
3. I just got back from a trip to Angkor Wat and the rest of the big abandoned temples of the north, and I've got pictures- like all the hip kids, I've decided to eschew blogger's clunky picture-hosting and posting for my very own flickr pool, andrew's never home. I know, I know, one more thing to check- but if it's there, I promise that things (usually cool things that I see around) will end up in it- and it's a whole lot faster, which was the real concern during the big silence here on Radio Free Chainletter.

The internet around here is difficult at best to access- there are internet cafes, but they cost monies (considerable monies, depending on which one you wander into) and they don't exist in number or convenience out in the provinces, which is where I've been spending and will be spending a lot of time.

Right now, I'm interviewing judges, prison guards, police investigators, prison chiefs and prisoners as ground-level primary research on pretrial detention and torture in Cambodia. Fun, uplifting stuff- but it means that me and my backpack are spending a lot of time rumbling around the boondocks of Cambodia in pickup trucks, taxis, big share buses and motorbikes. It's a good time, and there are a lot of things I'm writing down in little word documents to be disclosed later if it still seems like a good idea to disclose; but believe me when I say that free speech is more an ideal around here than a reality.

There will, whether I think it's a wise idea or not, be an update to this thing in one week or less. I promise.

pax