Friday, April 24, 2020

A daily free sauna visit


I just got off the roof yesterday afternoon. I had to weld a steel structure to make a sandwich roof, but my work shoes stuck to the roof of the container and I almost burned my butt when I wanted to sit down for a while to make a weld.

And also, very special ... no shade because the sun is right above you.

The temperatures during the day are high, very high and it is actually not really very healthy to work outside around noon.

During the day, temperatures are around, and often above, forty degrees Celsius. At night it is barely under thirty.

No, fortunately no government heat plan or other rules. Great. We are used to it here. And an advice to drink on regular base between one and a half to two liters of water per day can also be ignored. Your body will indicate it itself. I think I am on average about six to seven liters if not more. It flows nicely so to speak. And several showers a day really feel great.

In 1980 I once had the experience in Saudi Arabia where I was a construction contractor in the desert. I worked with a small group of yes, 35 Thai workers and a few Koreans. Many of those memories come back during my activities here.

Still we go on with our activities but slow, slow. A cloud for the sun is very welcome during the day. And in the meantime, regularly rest in the shade under our beach tent and enjoy what we have been made again.

And all the disturbances about that virus means that the air here, but actually almost everywhere in the world, is blissfully clean.

Nothing to complain about. It is currently a kind of free in the sauna every day.



Gangey Gruma (Frans Captijn)

email: captijninsight@gmail.com 

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Captijn InsightCatalyst in developing tranquility & in-sight to get in a sustainable way real connection, purpose, pleasure and flow in life, love, family, business, career and work again.

Friday, April 17, 2020

We are all sick enough now. Time for an Antivirus. The over-response of remedies are worse than the disease.

Around the year 2000, I regularly went to the Bistrita province in Romania together with fire brigade colleagues from Herzogenrath, Germany. We did an exchange program with each other for years. Growing by sharing. Many friendships arose and ... still exist.

A fixed point in our visits to Bistrita was that we were always welcomed with what the Romanians called their 'Antivirus'. Here a picture of a similar drink. However, the Romanian snaps came in some sort of Coke bottle, had almost 80% alcohol and yes ... indeed didn't please any virus I guess. Good and happy memories.

I had to think about it when I started writing this blog. Aren’t we all sick enough now of all the implemented measures related to a virus? If you are not physically ill from this severe flu, then you will become ill because of all the measures and rules that make you more than sick in another way. The 'side effects' of these policies are not nothing.

Unimaginable damage is done. Lost work, bankruptcy, no face-to-face contacts, loneliness, tourist sector and hospitality industry flat, economy (except for a few) down, panic and above all ... fear. And we are only talking about a virus and the 'difficult times' we have ended up in (or are they being done to us I sometimes think).
As if we have ended up in a kind of cheap horror movie (and this movie isn’t yet finished).

Are the, well-intentioned, measures to get a new virus under control all together not a bit overdone and above all overtaken?

I heard that in the Netherlands even the army is using drones to check whether you are walking in the forest with more than two people. Bizarre and rather terrifying. It should not get any crazier and what is going to be invented for the future. Is there really no one who can put a stop (or have the guts to stop) to this excessive policies?

And yes, we need to work on a European (perhaps worldwide) plan as exit strategy for the lock-downs. Sad to see how EU member states are involved. It must have been a lifestyle stream presentation. Difficult to speak for a theater without audience by the way.

Social media, sentiment (the emphasis is on people dying) and political following and movement are doing 'well'.

And of course, there are always companies and organizations that earn money on it. For example, people who work at 3M can certainly count on a high end-of-year bonus after the overproduction of mouth masks (that do not protect a lot). And the online delivery services are certainly doing good business as well.

Gasoline prices are suddenly low, rents from an Airbnb sometimes drop to 50% and there are plenty of other examples to mention.

And working from home, which was a lot of hassle about when I was director, will soon be the most normal thing in the world.

Yesterday someone wrote to me that he has decided to ignore the news about this madness. That will be difficult although I have managed quite well so far.

[Addition April 19: It is good to see that thousands of Americans (not least affected country) are now protesting. They recognize that the remedy is worse than the disease and want to get back to work despite the limited risks that exist.

The flu season is coming to an end and we can be sure that the figures for this flu virus will also go down quickly. It will certainly be announced that 'all the regulations and measures' worked out well. The damage they have caused (but fair to say is also a lot of new initiatives and developments it brought) is quickly placed on the background.]

It is time for a Romanian Antivirus (unfortunately not available here at the moment), but that will probably be fine soon. To create for a while a feeling of being more free again and to understand that with all our technology and intelligence we cannot reign life. 

We are all human beings living on a planet. And although ruining nature, nature will always be the winner. 


Gangey Gruma (Frans Captijn)

email: captijninsight@gmail.com 

Foto blog: 



Captijn InsightCatalyst in developing tranquility & in-sight to get in a sustainable way real connection, purpose, pleasure and flow in life, love, family, business, career and work again.

Friday, April 10, 2020

Living in rural Thailand instead of city life

Indeed it is something different. From the end of February I live in Surin. A place in the north-east of Thailand about 80 km from the border with Cambodia.

We have a fantastic high energetic plot of land on which we are carrying out our building process. A small, private, spiritual center with pyramids. Although the land of approx. 9000 m2 is still part of the city of Surin, you can hardly call it city where we live. It's all countryside. We are about 400 meters from the 'center' of the village.

Many acquaintances wondered if this would be the right place for me. What the hell are you going to do there? It is too hot there. You are far from everything. Almost no 'Farang' (foreigners) live there and Chiang Mai (where I still live) offers you everything ... There was even an acquaintance who predicted that it might be my death to work on our process here. And who knows. Everything is possible and an accident (incidentally everywhere) is always possible. My brother just a couple of days ago, staying home not to get flu, fell over a chair inside his house and broke his hip. But all this fears reasons not do fulfill your dreams? 

So far we have been more than happy. I once wrote that we see our building process as meditation. No, or as little as possible, stress and enjoy everything we create. Sitting still, people who know me know, is not for me and my years of meditation and now yoga and tantra also give a completely different interpretation to the value of living my life (our lives). Live by the day and live with the rhythm of nature.

I do not miss the 'Farang' to date and yes, it is very hot (April is also the hottest month). The most important thing is that we experience fun and above all freedom every day.

Every morning, enjoying breakfast together outside, walking meditation in a forest of rubber trees together with Kadhow, enjoy beautiful birds (yes, again different than in Chiang Mai), cows and water buffaloes, the occasional scooter that passes. Glad our old tree we received as a gift, seems to feel well and continues growing. And only a little bothered by what is happening around us all, especially now, in the world.

Own water supply, if necessary our own electricity. More and more self-supporting with a girlfriend who especially loves gardening and literally knows how to crop and grow almost every plant or seed. She learned from her parents and at university. We are not on an island but see a small paradise under our feet arise.

Turned into a hermit Frans? No, and I never will. It is another change and so far it pleases well.

Something different indeed. Grateful to at least so far be able and got the strength to let it unfold.


Gangey Gruma (Frans Captijn)

email: captijninsight@gmail.com 

Foto blog: 



Captijn InsightCatalyst in developing tranquility & in-sight to get in a sustainable way real connection, purpose, pleasure and flow in life, love, family, business, career and work again.

Friday, April 3, 2020

The expercience of great energy

Although we do not follow the news and social media, we still know that the world is quite in crisis. We are cooperative where we have to. At the place where we are creating we do and behave freely as we have always been used to.

Last week the eldest brother of my girlfriend gave us an over 200 years old tree as a present. We found a specialized company to carry out the relocation operation. That took a while to get the right feeling and we visited quite a few companies last Sunday and Monday. It was all a matter of feeling and connection to get trust in the for us right company to do the 'moving' operation.

In Prasat (about 30 km from our construction site) we found a company and I got goosebumps when we entered the premises there. More than 300 trees that were super cared for were waiting for new owners. Five ladies who offered them continuous attention and care. It was like visiting an animal shelter where you are going to find your new dog or cat.

My chills came from the energy that reigns there. Something I also experience when I walk with my dog in the rubber tree forest not two hundred meters away from our location. It resonates.

Great to experience the energy of nature and ... to be able and allowed to refuel that more than 200 years old energy in our new place with our new tree as well.


Gangey Gruma (Frans Captijn)
email: captijninsight@gmail.com 

Foto blog: 



Captijn InsightCatalyst in developing tranquility & in-sight to get in a sustainable way real connection, purpose, pleasure and flow in life, love, family, business, career and work again.