Run to the Games: Musings

Just a few thoughts:

We all have/have had jobs. There are times at those jobs that you love doing what you are doing and then there are other hopefully much more rarely that you hate your job. Hate is a strong word. Today I had those emotions both the high and the low. The low is really not that low. We had a test today where a few athletes ran some races which decided who would make the team. There were many athletes and government officials who showed up. One of the athletes that Tom and I had been training since January was there and he ran a great race and won. Every lap he would glance at me and I would give him some pacing advice mostly it was to stay calm and slow down. He was racing the 10k which is 24 laps on the track and some of his competitors ran their first lap so hard they didnt even finish the first mile of the race. Tia ran smart and very consistent until a great last lap and won by about 7 minutes his only real competition dropped out due to a foot injury. This was a high I got to coach and athletes were looking to me for advice. The low came shortly there after when I was asking Somlath for some information about the team and he told me nothing. Either he didnt understand my question or just didnt want to answer. He had a long discussion with the other coaches about the team and scheduling but I was left out. This of course is by my own doing because I am not fluent in Lao. The thing that makes it more tough is that without Tom here yet I have no one to converse with. I am too low on the government hierarchy to garner much of Somlath attention which is the way it should be because they control the team. There are just parts of running a team in the states that I would be more involved and know much more of going on. I am sure it wasnt his intention of ignore but that is just the truth of the matter because I am foreigner, young and I dont speak Lao. An older gentleman called me out on it today. He said in perfect english "why dont you speak Lao". My response was that its F@%#$%#%# HARD!!! Minus the expletive of course. This got me thinking that I had failed them in some reason and only helped them think that I was incompetent to do my job. This will make gaining the athletes confidence and respect that much more important. The ones who know me know what I can help them do but for the new ones the barriers will be much harder to break. When I said above that I hated parts of my jobs its more that I hate myself for not being able to interact and communicate the way that a coach should and I would like to.

In other news the rain goes on for spurts every day which sometimes causes the river in front of my house to raise about 4 feet yet a few hours later it might be completely gone. Chanta's brother got a pig which is tied up behind his house for a party later this week. The party is in honor of Somkits husband returning for a vacation from his work in Korea. Somkit as you may remember is the owner of my house. The house is now almost completely finished they added a shed in the back to house the motorbikes which is a great improvement on bringing them in the house. Tom will arrive on Sunday to great fan fare because everyone has asked me when he is arriving. Most people like the new haircut (Chanta says that now instead of looking like a thief with the long hair I look like a teenager, Thanks?)and everyone thinks I look fat. Maybe its some joke that I just dont get.

Here for some pictures. I get to meet the whole team this afternoon.