A Funny Thing Happened..... No Rain.

[manofthecoldland]

A funny thing happened in my province this year. No rain after the last rice harvest.

I knew it was time to plant, but the fields were dry. No 'chugga-chug-chug' of the mechanical tillers or carabao out dragging the field leveler beams. No croaking frogs. Few insects.

I was concerned because 'El Nino' seemed to upset the natural cycle here where I've been living.  The rice fields within eyesight of my little bamboo home were devoid of the normal lime-green beauty this time of year. I asked local acquaintances about this and they told me..... "they will plant other things."

I didn't see it happening but it did. My wife looks out over the fields from her dirty kitchen sink every day while she does her cooking and cooking chores. Didn't seem like anything was going on for a few months, except that a bamboo shed had sprouted out in the middle of the rice field. It seemed dead most of the time. "Maybe a temporary squatter or who knows?", I thought.  Little did I know.

Today the Mrs. comes from the closest sari-sari with a watermelon.  "P10" she tells me with a laugh. "It came from the field." I look out at the little bamboo shack and see a dozen people there with a huge pile of melons. I had no idea that anyone had worked a small part of the field, but they did and now it was busy-busy harvest time. My advisors had been right despite the lack of obvious signs.

"The old woman at the sari-sari said that they will plant garlic and onions now." she tells me. I am impressed because people here nowadays don't seem to have many 'Plan B's'. I guess that the traditional wisdom is still at work helping the true sons of the soil to survive when the weather pattern goes against them. My faith is renewed. 

[mogo51]

Northern Thailand experiencing the same problem.  But we got a good shower of rain here in Pattaya a few hours ago, actually very heavy for awhile. Then went out, roads flooded!  Normal here. Drainage hopeless.