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coming to an end, and with it went my career as a musician. I needed to find a new path.

Chapter 3
    My life had changed considerably by 1969. I had met Tew the previous year. She was 18 and I was 20. We lived near each other in Udorn. I shared a rented house on the Mhakkaeng Road while she lived next door, across from the pawn shop, with her cousins. I used to frequent a Kaogaeng stall on my way to work. This is a bit like fast food Thai-style—you choose two or three dishes and the owner spoons them on to a plate of rice.
    I saw her there one day, sitting by herself and reading Bangkok Magazine , a popular rag magazine at the time. She was wearing a light summer blouse, khaki pants and her hair was held in place by a brightly coloured bandana. I watched her read for a while and thought about my approach. An idea popped into my head and I sidled up to her and asked could I borrow her magazine. Not very original I suppose, but it was the best I could come up with. However, when she smiled warmly at me in reply I knew I ‘was in’. We developed a true friendship, with lots of conversation and exchanging of books and opinions. Our courtship consisted of dinners, movies and shopping. She was a typical northeast girl who was very attached to her family. And I liked that about her. She was, and still is, sincere and unpretentious. I always felt comfortable around her, plus she had a nice jaw-line—I don’t know why, but I really dislike women with big jaw bones.
    Tew was attractive without any of that sophistication and seductive beauty that can cause a lot of trouble for a man. I remember discreetly looking at her face and then studying my own in the mirror before reckoning that our children would probably be handsome enough. I didn’t have to worry about her flirting with my friends behind my back; she was a practical girl who had fortunately decided to settle for me. I also felt ready to settle down after my years of travelling around. Plus, and I know this will sound very unromantic and selfish, but I really wanted someone who would look after my father, who was now in his 70s. She returned to Bangkok with me and got on like a house on fire with him.
    We were a bit ahead of our time in that we lived together first. My father warned me not to mess her around, as she would find it difficult to meet someone else after living with me. She ran away from her cousins in Udorn to join me. We had kept our relationship secret from her family for as long as we could but of course that wasn’t going to last forever. We only formally registered for marriage after the birth of our second son. Looking back now I just wish I had more money starting out. We probably rushed things unnecessarily. I don’t remember us ever sitting down properly to discuss our future, and we had no savings between us, or a house, but I suppose it all worked out fine in the end.
    My music career ended after I was summoned to do my military service and ended up in the Air Force. Given the choice, I would have preferred to continue playing guitar, but there wasn’t really a choice. Two years was the legal requirement. I was glad that Tew was going to be at home minding my father. The aviation school, which was brand new, was in Nakhon Prathom, and again I did very well—I came first in the class. I lived on the base Monday to Friday and returned home to Bangkok every weekend. The dormitories were upstairs over the offices.
    The training was very tough and I can’t say that I enjoyed military life. It was all about toughening us up. On the first day we were told to leave our ego and status outside on the street because everyone was just a soldier as far as school was concerned. The worst part for me was having to get up at 4.30 every morning, dress quickly, and then line up for inspection prior to running a few miles before breakfast. The training could mess with my head. At lunch we might all rush in hungrily to be fed but find that we had to line up in the