Beating back the gloom

Maiyuu visited Ayutthaya today, to make merit at five temples with country music singer Fon and members of her entourage.

He was invited by a friend who works as her hairdresser and make-up person. They performed a  ceremony popular with Thai-Chinese at this time of year, called ไหว้พระสะเดาะเคราะห์ (wai proh sadoh kroh), which is supposed to improve your luck and fortune.

They woke at dawn, did the rounds of the temples in Ayutthaya, and made it back to Bangkok by 3pm - a small miracle, given this city's traffic. They must done a virtual temple dash - or perhaps luck was with him.

This would be a curious turn of events, as the main reason Maiyuu gave for going was that his stars do not look good. Last night, I read his stars in Koo Sang Koo Som (คู่สร้างคู่สม) magazine, which is supposed to have some of the most accurate star readings around. If you place your faith in such things, then he might be right to be concerned.

Maiyuu's birthday falls just before Christmas, which makes him a Sagittarius. He was born in the Year of the Snake (ปีมะเส็ง). The latest issue of the magazine, which comes out every 10 days, gives the following advice:

-You will encounter problems with money (but manage to overcome them)
-Colleagues at work might get rebellious. Don't get hostile.
-You'll have problems with your lover
-You'll meet an old friend, and recover assets or money which you'd long lost.
-Beware of thieves.

I read Maiyuu's star reading aloud to Gap, my young law student friend. The outlook for money matters was gloomy (อับเฉา), it said.

'I gave up reading the stars a long time ago, because my whole year is gloomy,' Gap said.

Still, the magazine's reading for the next star sign, Capricorn, is even worse: it warns people born under that sign to avoid taking any kind of risks including gambling, and to avoid strong words with lovers, as their relationship has reached a brittle point.

Their house may burn down, their friends and colleagues won't want to know them, and people at home will argue or fall sick. It ends with a cheery warning to stay away from tall buildings and lifts.

Compared to that forecast, Maiyuu's prospects look rosy. Hopefully his luck will have improved still further, now that he's paid fleeting respects to the temple gods.