You call that fashion?

Dear Readers,

We would have had a great weekend except for the noise upstairs. Some people have moved in above us and they are a herd of moose. Starting from 4:30 when the kids arrive home, there's a NASCAR race upstairs until about 1 am. I can't go to bed until they do and so I have asked to be moved. This is drastic. We love our apartment and the view over the pool. Why don't they move them? They aren't complaining. This is a battle until the end-I will call every night starting at ten. Last night our pleas ended at 12:30.

I went to the fashion show sponsored by the American Association of Women down at Tanglin Mall. I've never seen so many Texans in all my life. Everyone there was a wife of an oil engineer here building platforms and running the businesses. Like most Americans, we were not Asian size. We were eating all the donuts too! It's what we do! We were all complaining how there were no clothes here our size and how shopping is a drag.

Then the designer for the store we were in call out with a girl's necklace around HIS neck. He wanted to tell us what to wear in Singapore-all black and white, balloon dresses, and the worst material I have ever saw. I couldn't believe the price for $10 worth of wrinkled crap. Did I buy something? Sure. I wanted to be part of the herd. I was eating the donuts. I bought a rust Tank top. It made me look busty! These women went for the clothes though. I couldn't believe the cash I saw coming out of their oil wallets. I was given a grab bag, some barbed wire earrings, and sent on my way like the trailer trash I am.

That night I rode over to the National Museum with Tammy and her husband to catch the Pompeii lecture on the people of Pompeii. I was interested in serious intellectual study but everyone was there for the talk on prostitutes. Yes, Pompeii was a red light district before it's demise in 79 AD. I remember it well. The British scholar was great and the slides very good. I told Temmy that I wished I remembered more of my Latin! Maybe I should take it up again. She said no one takes Latin for fun. What kind of a weirdo was I? Trailer trash? This weekend Steve and I went to the museum exhibit for the first time. I have to say I was amazed at all the relics they had and the collection of plaster bodies. The best thing was the 3D movie made by the Melbourne University. I had these large glasses on and volcanic ash was pouring over me and I was swatting at fire sparks in the air. I was really there! When we were half way through the tour when all of a sudden these people rush in Roman costumes, yelling and fleeing from the volcano. You see, we didn't take the interactive tour with the actors! We heard it anyway! I couldn't help but think about those people in Indonesia who refused to leave their houses when the volcano went last week. They were found in the same positions as the Romans in 79 AD. See, the Romans didn't have clue to what was happening. But the Indonesians? It was on the front page of the paper.

Christmas trees are going up everywhere downtown. I have to admit I've never the seen the newest thing here-an umbrella turned upside down that circulates false snow up and down over Santa. I was impressed with the lengths that people go to to sell Christmas. Connecting Christmas to umbrellas now is a stretch.

Tammy and I went to see a Chinese art gallery. The paintings there went from realistic to contemporary and abstract. It was fun to see the range of colors and techniques. Most important of all, I got a list of all the art galleries on the island. So I want to visit every one

I included the rest of the Malaysian pictures. Have a look. Bye.