MRTELLYOUSTRAIGHT

I tend to enjoy a nice evening at some good restaurant where a glass of plonk or two is very welcome

I'm partial to a little tipple myself. Especially where one can taste and shares one thoughts of the characteristics of different wines by an analytical process away from the oiks and other riff raff.

God Bless America, from a Brit.

Abhisit, the prosperous future of Thailand.

When Tops in Pattaya first opened they had T-shirts with the slogan

"I want to put my Willy Wonka in your chocolate factory"

hahaha

The only thing here that really gets right on my ti*s is the Relentless (emphasized with a capital R) way many Thai's not all but many try to have one over on you, it becomes mentally draining and if not controlled can become very very negative, unless your the type of sap that doesn't care about being ripped off and looked at like a mug by some uneducated idiot from the sticks. Other then that all is hunky dory and not enough to warrant shipping out...yet.

How many pairs of smelly under-crackers you gotta wash to get your 1 million baht back dopey.

If one has been with a partner here for some time and she/he does not buy a birthday card and or a small gift no matter how inexpensive or small it is then that person does not give a toss about you and is selfish and only out for themselves. Ive had a card and present every Christmas and Birthday for the last 3 years.

Another give away a little off topic is when the partner goes to the shop and doesn't ask you if you would like anything that's the sort of person I don't live with.

I've never had any problems with IKEA furniture, maybe you should consider hiring a proffesional to help you put the stuff together, and it just so happens that i am a carpenter and would consider helping you, for a small fee...

Good chippies are as rare as rocking horse shi* around these parts.

I had 160.00 quids worth of new clothes sent sent over from a online store in Covent Garden. My bill from Fedex was 7,000 baht, I was gutted becasue I bought the clothes in a sale with 50% discount but when was hit with a 7000 baht tax bill my savings went straight into the skyrockets of the customs folk.

But i ain't a complaining because some you loose some you win, that's life. Next years sale will send to friend to bring over when they are on their hols, you live and learn.

A hobby is the best medicine for being on the brink of insane.

I can understand how you feel. A deep point can require certain concepts that if unfamiliar can leave the reader bewildered.

I think the core points are understanding the concept of a neoliberal regime. This concept is the notion that there is a specific way of doing that has developed in recent times that is associated with the free flow of finance.

This regime pushes the costs onto the individual persons. So, for example, each and every person must be made to be concerned with their health, the risks they take, their financial provisions. This way of pushing responsibilities down the chain allows more profit further up the chain.

The Anglo-Saxon settler states (the USA/Canada/ Australia/UK etc.) are the prime examples of this logic.

The ideal worker is docile-- they work long hours expecting little reward and without complaint-- they are productive-- they work a lot-- and they are fearing-- they must be constantly worred about what happens if they fall sick/retire/lose their jobs/get in a car crash, and so on.

The society is put in place that encourages these ways of thinking. Although the typical liberal view is to imagine the laws of democracies as to be basically negative-- you can do something unless we say otherwise-- in fact, the sheer quantity of legislation that infests life in these advanced economies, is intended to shoehorn every person (lets call them subjects) into this one life.

The Thai life cannot be described as a success from this regime's point of view. The subjects just don't make good factory workers. It follows they have no "competitive advantage" in this area (*this term is a technical term widely used in economics). So they are a 'failure' by this viewpoint. And many of the farangs living in Thailand are similar 'failures'.

But I point out the tendency of farang on this forum to almost desperately set themselves out as 'winners' despite the definition being defined by such a nasty regime.

Now this is complex. Look to the work of Ong (at UCLA, I think) for more on this notion of an anthropological analysis of Neoliberalism, and for the productive,docile subject read some Foucault.

And as for Ulysses G., shame on you. You own a bookstore-- from memory-- you should perhaps open some of the books on the bookshelves.

You sound like this guy I once met with an illuminated mushroom outside his caravan at Glastonbury, that was one of life's "moments".

When some black guy walks up to me and tries to sell me drugs or the use of his girlfriend for an hour, are you suggesting i should enter into a lengthy conversation regarding his country of origin, educational qualifications (or lack of), his aspirations and dreams, etc etc........... when in reality I can conduct the only conversation that i want to have with him in 2 short words?

How much?

So the question is, does anyone know where to buy trainers that look acceptable, are comfortable, will last a year and don't cost a fortune?

You can not buy decent trainers in Thailand they are <deleted>. When I go back to the UK i buy 3 or 4 pairs for 60-100 quid each pair in Footlocker or JD Sports take them out the box to save space in luggage and bring them over here that will last me a year.

What is on ones feet is the most important part of ones attire.

This has surely got to be staged, I would fight to the death then let that c&nt rob me of my clothes.

It is only called soccer by roughly 300.000.000 people. ...... . Give it a rest.

Here it is called "futbawn".

Oh dear. You can not ask your mates "who's off to the soccer game on Saturday" for fear of having the absolute piss taken and blackballed.

Who's going to football on Saturday is much more fitting.

Although 2 grand a 100,000 baht car is the equivalent of a 300 pound shitter in the UK. She wont like it and will resent you for it so don't bother.

the game is not soccer....its football

chai

I have never shouted at a local before because I have a very high tolerance level for many things. I'm surprised that the other party didn't retaliate. I read that in Thai culture, they have the concept of "not losing face". For example, if you want to know the way to a certain location and if you ask a local, he/she might point you to a direction even though they don't know the way to your destination. In situations where the local has been shouted at, I think this is a major "face loss". I thought they will argue back or beat you up.

It's a myth.

Truth of the matter is many have very short fuses that can change with a flick of a switch one minute smiling the next an uncontrollable psychopath. Not unlike many foreigners who sit in bars every night so its not just a Thai thing.

I would have thought that a farang trying to compete with the Thais running in the jet ski business is not going to get very far.

24 hours, stabbed, shot and jet skis and house burned to the ground.

After reading this depressing thread and highlighting the riff raff that appear to be here, moaning about food coupons and a few lousy baht price increases it just shows you that Pattaya is a "million miles away" from quality tourist status.

Can you elaborate?

He's pissed and talking this.

"wondering about the prospect of a business partnership, in a karaoke bar, with a police officer."

Are you taking the piss?

Thailand, probably the worst dressed expats in the world.

I'm retired and didn't come here to change the way I have eaten for 65 years. I like this country but it doesn't mean that I have to like their food.

dam_n right as well sir.

Do Thais fly half way around the world to eat western food? of course they don't. You eat what YOU like and what YOUR used to.