Mom! Mom! There's a crocodile in our living room!

This is a fake crocodile from this guy's website, but it's a good illustration of what happened to me when I was seven years old and I woke up one morning to discover a fully grown crocodile in our living room!

It was a morning like any other morning during rainy season. Koon Tong woke me up (Anna Anna Wake Up Anna!) and I went downstairs, half asleep, to have breakfast. Except I found the ground floor of our house was full of water!

During the night a dam in northern Chanthaburi had burst and half the province was flooded. Our house had never been flooded before and I could not figure out why there was a foot of water everywhere. I was standing in the water looking around when I looked down and I saw next to my feet a tail. A big tail. A big tail attached to a big crocodile.

I retreated back up the stairs and yelled, "Mom! Mom! There's a crocodile in our living room!" My mom came down and we stood there on the stairs watching the crocodile in our living room. He eventually left but then we heard on the radio that the Chamsom Crocodile Farm and Zoo had been hit by the floodwaters and that there were hundreds of crocodiles loose in Chanthaburi.

For three days we lived like prisoners in the upper part of our house, eating dried beef (#16) while we waited for the flood waters to recede. While we waited, we listened to the radio for news that the crocodile infestation was under control.

It was almost Christmas so I will save the rest of this story for December, but seeing that picture on Flickr reminded me of the time Little Anna met a crocodile.

Thank you Heavy Table!

I LOVE HEAVY TABLE AND SUSAN PAGANI!!!

Be sure to read Susan's profile of me. Wow! I've never felt so famous!

I was very nervous about this because I've never been profiled before. We've had many, many great restaurant reviews, but that was always more about the food. Heavy Table's "In Their Own Words" articles are more about the person and less about the food.

Thank you thank you thank you Susan for your kind words and the respect you showed to my family and Thai culture.

And thank you to my wait staff and kitchen staff for working so hard to keep up with all the customers who will be coming in tonight and this weekend to check us out.

Congee

Sorry about the lack of posting but I've been under the weather lately. When I don't feel well, I have the kitchen make me congee, Asia's answer to chicken noodle soup.

Although it has been served in our buffet, congee is not on True Thai's menu. If, however, you are not feeling well, we can make you some to take home with you. Like chicken noodle soup, congee is best eaten at home in your pajamas in an easy chair in front of the TV.

Thai congee is rice soup with with egg and minced beef, pork or seafood, topped with garlic, ginger and onions. I was taught that the name congee itself is the Chinese word for rice soup, but Wikipedia thinks it is Tamil. In Thailand we call it Kao Tom or Jok (โจ๊ก). But, as with chicken noodle soup here, Kao Tom is best when it's made by your mom.

My mom's Kao Tom saw me through the measles, chicken pox, Bangkok flu, and countless colds and fevers. With the exception of Bangkok flu, I'm sure you can say the same for your mom's chicken noodle soup.

Unlike chicken noodle soup, many Asians eat congee for breakfast. It is on the menu in most Chinese restaurants but if you ask, you can get it at almost any Asian restaurant.

Like a mother's love, congee's good for what ails you.