Ode to the Thai diplomat who ate my frogs

Thank you, Facebook. You have uncovered a secret that’s haunted us for some 35 years. What ever happened to Suwit?He was a little boy from Thailand who rounded up all the frogs in the creek that flows behind our old farmstead, smashed their heads against a rock, then cooked and ate their legs.I didn’t know any of the frogs personally, but I so much enjoyed listening to them sing “rib it, rib it, rib it,” the frog melody that lulled me to sleep.We didn’t admonish the Thai boy, Suwit Soothijirapan, because he was our guest, sent to live with us by AFS as part of their international student program to familiarize foreign students with the real, not the Hollywood, version of America.As best as we could determine, Suwit came from a town about 100 miles north of Bangkok and lived in a house on stilts with farm animals underneath. He arrived with a small suitcase with one change of clothes for the year.At first he got along famously with our eldest son, Jonathan, until Suwit discovered that he was older than Jon. Apparently he believed that you don’t hobnob with anyone younger than you. Then Suwit became mysterious with my wife. When she asked him a question he would spread his arms out, look upward and say: “The answer is written in the wind!” Alas, there’s just so much of that you can take. (Today when I turn on the GPS in my car, the answer really is written in the wind!)Sadly, we got the idea that Suwit was not the least bit interested in learning about any of our American ways. And he didn’t make much attempt to give us a true understanding of what it meant to live in a little village way far away from one of the world’s most interesting cities.So when it came time for Suwit to return home there was no jolly going-away party, no urging him to send us his address and keep in touch. He just vanished out of our lives like a gust of wind.Thus you can understand the absolute shriek of incredulity when awhile back our daughter Ann called to tell us that she had a message on Facebook from Suwit. He said he had been following our family all these years, knew about our son, Adam, who died at age 36 from skin cancer, everything.I must be a late bloomer because I have only just started messing with Facebook but I found Suwit’s picture and message. He is a handsome man in his early 50s and has been serving as a diplomat for his country. His latest assignment was in the tiny, relatively new country of Timor.You’ve all heard of Timor, right? Maybe not. Our 22-year-old grandson not only never heard of Timor but barely knew about the mutiny on the Bounty, the most storied mutiny in the history of the British Navy.You remember how Fletcher Christian, leader of a mutiny on the British ship Bounty, set Captain Bligh and 35 crewmen, who remained loyal to him, adrift in a long boat and wished them well?Christian returned to Tahiti to pick up a dozen or so Tahitian women and then vanished off the face of the earth when he sailed the Bounty to Pitcairn Island. The island was a perfect hideaway because it had been misplaced on everyone’s maps of the South Pacific.Bligh meanwhile was trying to find an island refuge where he could put in to await rescue by the British Navy. There were several islands not too far from Tahiti but Bligh claimed he heard the natives were cannibals.So he sailed on and on and on. When he and his men ran out of food and water they fished and caught birds. After an incredible voyage of 3,000 miles in the small open boat, Bligh and his desperate crew landed at, ha, you guessed it, the island of Timor!And so now the story comes full circle. I sent Suwit a Facebook message asking him if there was a plaque on a rock or building in Timor telling of Bligh’s record-breaking voyage. Suwit answered me, but in Thai script, which I am not able to translate.I guess I won’t really ever know. Mayhap I should look to the sky on a windy day.Freelance writer Barnett Laschever, the curmudgeon of Goshen, has taken to watching top chefs creating fancy dishes on the Cooking Channel. He’s waiting for Bobby Flay or Wolfgang Puck to prepare before his very eyes a gourmet dish of frog’s legs.

Latest News

Swift House committee learns of potential buyer at first meeting

Swift House in Kent.

By Ruth Epstein

KENT — The fate of the Swift House is once again front and center after the newly formed Swift House Investigation Committee held its first meeting Tuesday, Feb. 24 — and learned that a local attorney is interested in buying the historic property.

At the meeting’s outset, committee member Marge Smith said local attorney Anthony Palumbo has expressed interest in purchasing the building. “He loves it and said he’d be honored to buy it and maybe lease part of it back to the town. He would be OK with a conservation easement.” She said he supports several previously proposed uses, including a welcome center and exhibition space.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sharon median home price rises to $710,000 as inventory tightens

119 Amenia Union Road — A four-bedroom, 2.5-bath home built in 1872 on 4.42 acres recently sold for $522,500.

Photo by Christine Bates

SHARON — The 12-month trailing median price for a single-family home in Sharon increased to $710,000 for the period ending Jan. 31, 2026 — its highest point since September 2024 as home values across much of Connecticut continued to edge higher.

The figure marks an increase from the $560,000 median recorded for the 12 months ending Jan. 31, 2025, and from $645,000 for the comparable period ending Jan. 31, 2024. While January and February are typically slow months, the 12-month rolling figure reflects a broader reset.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kent's towering snowman honors Robbie Kennedy

Jeff Kennedy visits the 20-foot-high snowman located in the Golden Falcon lot in Kent that was created in honor of his late brother Robbie Kennedy.

Photo by Ruth Epstein

KENT – Snowman Robbie stands prominently in the center of town, just as its namesake — longtime Kent resident Robbie Kennedy — did for so many years.

The 20-foot-high frozen sculpture pays tribute to Kennedy, who died Feb. 9, at the age of 71. A beloved member of the community, he was a familiar sight riding his bicycle along town roads waving to all he passed. Many people knew him from his days working at Davis IGA, the local supermarket. He was embraced by the Kent Fire Department, where he was named an active emergency member and whose members chipped in to buy him a new bike, and by the Kent School football team where coach Ben Martin made him his assistant. At Templeton Farms senior apartments, he was the helpful tenant, always eager to assist his neighbors.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Help Wanted

PART-TIME CARE-GIVER NEEDED: possibly LIVE-IN. Bright private STUDIO on 10 acres. Queen Bed, En-Suite Bathroom, Kitchenette & Garage. SHARON 407-620-7777.

The Salisbury Association’s Land Trust seeks part-time Land Steward: Responsibilities include monitoring easements and preserves, filing monitoring reports, documenting and reporting violations or encroachments, and recruiting and supervising volunteer monitors. The Steward will also execute preserve and trail stewardship according to Management Plans and manage contractor activity. Up to 10 hours per week, compensation commensurate with experience. Further details and requirements are available on request. To apply: Send cover letter, resume, and references to info@salisburyassociation.org. The Salisbury Association is an equal opportunity employer.

Keep ReadingShow less
To save birds, plant for caterpillars

Fireweed attracts the fabulous hummingbird sphinx moth.

Photo provided by Wild Seed Project

You must figure that, as rough as the cold weather has been for us, it’s worse for wildlife. Here, by the banks of the Housatonic, flocks of dark-eyed juncos, song sparrows, tufted titmice and black-capped chickadees have taken up residence in the boxwood — presumably because of its proximity to the breakfast bar. I no longer have a bird feeder after bears destroyed two versions and simply throw chili-flavored birdseed onto the snow twice a day. The tiny creatures from the boxwood are joined by blue jays, cardinals and a solitary flicker.

These birds will soon enough be nesting, and their babies will require a nonstop diet of caterpillars. This source of soft-bodied protein makes up more than 90 percent of native bird chicks’ diets, with each clutch consuming between 6,000 and 9,000 caterpillars before they fledge. That means we need a lot of caterpillars if we want our bird population to survive.

Keep ReadingShow less
Stephanie Haboush Plunkett and the home for American illustration

Stephanie Haboush Plunkett

L. Tomaino
"The field of illustration is very close to my heart"
— Stephanie Plunkett

For more than three decades, Stephanie Haboush Plunkett has worked to elevate illustration as a serious art form. As chief curator and Rockwell Center director at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, she has helped bring national and international attention to an art form long dismissed as merely commercial.

Her commitment to illustration is deeply personal. Plunkett grew up watching her father, Joseph Haboush, an illustrator and graphic designer, work late into the night in his home studio creating art and hand-lettered logos for package designs, toys and licensed-character products for the Walt Disney Co. and other clients.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.