pgrahmm

32 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

But maybe he knows Juan Valdez? Which coffee company was that? 

 

Was it Chock Full of Nuts - - the heavenly coffee? And why nuts? Wasn't it beans? 

Juan Valdez was Columbian coffee....

I'm not sure who the other lines are for....

Oddly enough I don't drink coffee but knew the Folgers & the Hills (Reuben 3).....

17 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

Was he the guy walking around with the burro? 

It was/is his (company) name....

I doubt he ever wore a serape....

Yawn ????.....

Sorry - having played both in various leagues, I never really found myself enamored by soccer....For watching or playing....

I do wished I'd would have had a shot at rugby or hockey, but they weren't around at the time.....

It's 15 hours later now...

How ya doin'?

As an aside.... Back in the 70's I had the privilege of pleasure driving a Rolls for short term use (Mr Folgers asked me to as it wasn't being driven enough)....

To this day that's been the most "glove" like feeling driving a car....It felt like driving a surprisingly responsive cloud....

It's not a modern car like being discussed, but this thread brought back the memory....

For a few years I was fortunate enough to live in an area way above my league but mixed socially with & got along with the elite of the elite..... Household names....

Undoubtedly, they are still there....

We never hear about the good things & influences that take place on a daily basis....

But car jacking, stabbing, drugged, fighting, drunk monks go right to the top of the leader board....

In a world of "woke" social media, finger pointers rule /// With or without substantiation.....

1 hour ago, Dante99 said:

 I got a similar notice and found it was not for everyone, it was only for people who have school related visas.  School Student visas and school related visas for parents and guardians.

 

They said it is a new requirement from the Immigration folks.

My guess is school visas are being taken out & used more like a tourist visa - basically getting abused; and they are trying to curb the practice.....

They will probably work to enforce that education, school visa holders are doing what the visa is designed to provide for.... 

Maybe there's trackable history causing a disconnect between immigration & school authorities.....

5 minutes ago, JimmyJ said:

Thank you.

 

I forgot to mention - a nursery that delivers 

The huge one you describe with trees must do so.

I bet there would be no trouble arranging for a delivery or two.....

Literally everything plant/garden is there..... From dividers to fish ponds & waterfalls.....

It seems drivers are cherry picking the jobs now that it's busy & Bolt has become the default to go to ride .... Apparently they are overwhelmed or have become picky also....

This is a big FB topic too.....

My wife is from Central Thailand.....

With just about every CT headline I read I'm glad I never seriously contemplated/had any thoughts about living there.....

I've no complaints about our family down there.... Probably due to the fact that I am not down there & our sphere of influence is confined to just us.....

10 hours ago, Lucky Bones said:

Possibly shift workers?????????

They looked like the barstool regular shift....The place was located in a decent sized shopping mall....There could have been an industrial area nearby....

19 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

Aren't a lot of those guys getting off the midnight shift, so it's like their afternoon?

That just reminded me....I used to work 6am/2pm - best hours in the world for me....

I'd be getting in about the time the garbage truck drivers were about midway through their shift....

They were always chugging a few beers as they worked......

The 2 times we were a day or two outside the acceptable payment time frame cited on the billing we had to go into the local PEA office to have it accepted....

Within the time window we used to pay at 7/11....Now my wife pays via an app....I don't know if we'd physically have to go to the office if we somehow mistakenly botched it.....

I used to play baseball for a bay area bar team out in San Leandro.....The Creekside Lounge....

Sometimes games would start early or need an early start to get to whichever venue....Meeting there if needed....

That bar served food & drinks starting at 6AM/0600 daily and there would be people there "drinking" their breakfast....

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Maybe it was the neighbours?

That's a real possibly....I used to live between 3 villages....

I had two big ponds that we kept good sized, home grown fish....We also had a husband & wife team....She took care of the house & he overlooked the 9 Rai & provided security....

We came back from a trip & I noticed that only the small fingerling fish remained.....

NOBODY KNEW ANYTHING......

Somebody had to get past locked gated or walk across 5 Rai to get to those ponds.....

Any inquiries fell on deaf ears....

Somebody had a hell of a fish fry & everybody knew but us.....

Not much of a real loss - but a very big lesson....

When my wife and I were out house hunting, I passed on a few beautiful homes that would/could have left us extremely vulnerable and in the same situation....

Open season....

5 hours ago, CaptainSplod said:

Heh! Yeah, early perhaps - but better to be early than to be too late. It maybe gives folks some time and a chance to "notice" any good arrangements and post them here.

 

----------------------------------------

 

Agree - an Xmas buffet is preferable - but not always available. Thanks - Duke's is a start, at least.

 

They used to have a buffet with timed table seatings & we enjoyed that....

Since they changed to this arrangement we no longer go.....

The Duke's will serve Christmas meals, however, it's being served family style...One & done

I prefer buffet style to select the items & portions I want to eat....

Every time we RV in the US the people look less & less happy....Many are not shy about sharing their misery....They voice their concerns about different aspects of life....To me they feel like they are trapped in an existence & a cycle they cannot break & feel that it's just getting worse....

Part of it broken dreams based in reality, sometimes life choices or circumstances.....

They voice the "someday" they are going to change their lot....

A lot of disenchantment....

I feel bad for them....

It's such a naturally beautiful country to visit....

I have one daughter that has a very successful company she's built with her husband....They will take maybe 4 days off every 2 years....In their 50's and still caught in the competitiveness of life....At least they see it and are acquiring rental properties to supplant their income, but how many can afford to do that?

I hope one doesn't drop first before they reach their goal.....

Based on the definition, it's extremely common..... I'm hard pressed to think of any couples I know that didn't.....Including myself....

Most ended up married - others bailed out, (both ways), during the test drive.....

50 minutes ago, seedy said:

From your posts - you said an MG was a fast car - I find it hard to believe that you have ever owned anything remotely 'Fast'

And I never mentioned 'in a straight line'

Had a '67 Camaro that ran Hi 9's - street legal

Had a Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4 that went 0-100 in less than 5 secs. when stock, and I modded it to perform better.

Four wheel drive handled mountain roads like a purebred.

Embarrassed Porsches and BMW's

The 3000GTs were  absolutely driving porn....A perfect mating of power, speed, handling, comfort, and performance....

A real driving pleasure....

Took roads like perfectly fitted leather gloves feel....A perfect slalom machine.....An often overlooked vehicle that had some serious capability....