The Ever Present Jing-Jok

I suppose one cannot be a blogger and live in Thailand without writing something about the little creatures we share our lives with. Simeon recognizes the Thai word; when he hears it, he looks up and points at the ceiling. So what is are jing-jok? They are small geckos with sticky feet, walking on ceilings and walls all around our house. For Thai people, the name is onomatopoeic, but I think they sound more like chee-chik-chee. They really are everywhere. For months, Hollis would excitedly point them out, but eventually they became common even for her. We even have some recognizable friends. There is the one who has a waddle to his walk who is usually on the living room ceiling during the bedtime routine. One snacks on the ants in the indoor kitchen. I have a particular friend who peeks through the wall slits in the outdoor kitchen to watch me wash dishes. His friend lost his tail somehow, and we have been watching it grow out since we've lived here; it takes a long time for a gecko to regrow his tail. More lizards live in the outdoor kitchen than any other place. They enjoy snacking bits of food left in the sink and on the ants which try to snack on that food. When we first move here, I was always startled when I went to turn on the sink and a gecko speed past my hand up the wall. I learned to brace myself for this, and I now I am rarely surprised.

Due to their habit of turning up in random places, I have been responsible for the death of three jing-jok. Not long after we moved in, I was cooking something on the stove when I watched a gecko drop from the ceiling onto the pot lid. He slithered off and managed to make it under the stove where I watched him pant terribly until he sighed his last breath. It was a pitiable sound. Fortunately, these lizards rarely fall from the ceilings or walls. This is the only time I can recall it happening in my sight. I have read that it only happens when they are copulating but have not cared to try to verify this.

The second little jing-jok just happened to be in the hinge of the back doorway when I shut it for the night. I couldn't figure out what was keeping the door from shutting all the way. It's common to have to clear toys, sandals, and sticks out of the way. I looked on the floor and didn't notice anything, so tried again. It was then that I happened to look toward the hinge and notice the smashed lizard. I was so traumatized, I asked Philip to remove it and shut the door for me. Now, I try to remember to look around the door posts before shutting a door. This has saved more than one other lizard from a similar fate.

The third and last lizard (to date) to suffer a terrible fate at my hands managed to have extremely bad luck. I was trying to get some small toys out from under a cupboard which had sliding glass doors. As I lifted up the cupboard to try to shift it, the glass panels came lose and shattered on the floor. A jing-jok just happened to be between the two panels and was squashed upon impact.

I imagine there will be more instances of jing-jok ending up in dangerous situations, but overall we manage to dwell in harmony. Generally, I find the little guys rather cute. Sometimes I am annoyed by their constant presence. They seem to enjoy hiding under my counter-top stove, and then scramble out frantically when I light it. They also leave droppings but are not as prolific in this department as mice, fortunately. By sweeping out the kitchen floor and scrubbing the counter every morning, I am able to keep my kitchen fairly clean. I have also learned to keep my clean pots and pans covered. It's easy to learn to live with these mosquito and ant eating critters.