Every Man Has His Faults

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

Being in Thailand, it is quite common to see Monks everywhere.

CHANTING OVER PRAYER STRING

They wear the saffron colored robes and sandals, and may or may not carry a small cloth bag over their shoulders with all of their worldly possessions. There are certain rules to follow when dealing with Monks... like women should never look them directly in the eye, God forbid that a woman should ever touch them for any reason, and generally, all folks must show them deferential treatment and respect for their holy position in life.  So with these things in mind, Billy and I are waiting in the Bangkok airport for our direct flight to Chiang Mai. Billy needs to utilize the facilities, and so excuses himself and goes to commune with nature.

While in that "special room" a Monk says hello to Billy, who seems to interpret that as a sign of good luck. Next, Billy thinks, he will be blessed and life will be good for an undetermined amount of time thereafter. However, instead of blessing him, the Monk heads out of the lavatory, turns left, and sits down at the Burger King! No kidding.

After he refreshes and fulfills himself there from the Western offerings of Burger King, he promptly gets up and goes to the SMOKING ROOM at the airport, where he disappears for several long minutes. Billy and I are just flabbergasted, and wait for our Mr. Monk to come out of the smoking lounge. He does so in time, and we notice that instead of the usual cloth bag that the other Monks carry, he has some sort of briefcase. We were wondering if he was a "head Monk" or something, and has earned these "special privileges"... whatever!

THAI MONKS CHOWING DOWN

Never judge a book by its cover, or something like that...