It’s been an anxious year. Turning on the internet has meant numbing threats of thermonuclear war, heartbreaking mass murders, global political instability and no end to stories of the abuse and injustice experienced by women.
But the internet also delivered moments of delight. From animated politicos working up a sweat to bizarre soi stunts, there were moments of joy that could only have come from Thai netizens. So thank you, Thainet, and please keep it up for 2018.
Have you seen the Attitude Adjusters or Article 44s in action? After Gen. Prayuth dictated mandatory Wednesday workout sessions for government employees, he really got into his role as exerciser-in-chief, with the media providing blow-by-blow coverage of the action.
Bangkok got a small taste in May of the flood misery which devastated much of the nation this year. Where most city folk saw inconvenience and hazard, one resident saw an Olympic-sized opportunity.
Maybe it was the sheer scope of the flooding that made people just lose it a little. Down south in Narathiwat, an intrepid Facebooker found a way to turn the murk into mirth by filming a parody video of a disaster news report that went viral.
Remember the purple bird sticker spamming every comment thread? Still see it, head-banging with abandon?
In February, the Thai net became obsessed with a Facebook sticker drawn by an American artist of a purple pigeon, particularly one in which it thrashes its head. Was the bird in agony or ecstasy?
We still don’t know.
Under all the tubes and chutes and ladders, the foundations of the internet are built on cat – cute cats, specifically. For World Cat Day on Aug. 8, Thai netizens built upon that foundation with adorable pics of their own fur-friends.
Mid-July in Ratchaburi province, things get hot. Hot enough for it to be a totally normal thing for bald men to powder their egg-tops and wrestle for the glory of being named “Mr. Baldy of Damnoen Saduak.” The annual wrestling match lends a fun splash of provincial color.