fw1

Playing with inflatable birds.

I hope your right fw1,did you get my message?I dont feel very confident,not having won away all season,it depends on how hard fulham try

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yes mate I did get it but had to go back to Bangkok a day early unexpectedly. Watching your team near Soi Cowboy and couldn't believe how nervous they looked. Sorry to see you go down, hope you do well next season (except in the games where you play us).

Well I've been here nearly five years and have checked out every place there is on a number of occasions:

Lucifers used to be my favourite a few years ago but, as someone has mentioned, it has become sleazy over the last year or so. And worse, they tend to play music that's now a few years old with little variation.

DDM is poorly DJ-ed and is a guesthouse/come disco, a concept that I can't ever see taking off.

The only quality place I have found that plays imported house/trance is Eeze on RCA. It's a small club so you will get to know the people though go there very quickly, and if you genuinely do like the music mentioned above, then this is your best option. I will be there next Saturday so can chat to you about this in person if you like.

Some of the clubs further along RCA are okay, though more expensive and the quality of the music can be variable.

Never met the guy but I have to say Judge Jules/Jools is indeed a crap name. Why would anyone want to call themselves that, or for that matter put DJ in front of their name?

Only invites disrespect.

Chelsea and Arsenal (last year) proved that the rest of the Premier League  is not as tough as it appears. Germany, Italy, Spain - nowhere you can go through the season unbeaten with 10 points over the second, and 20 over the third team.

It's just another myth along with "Man U should be comfortably seeded to go straight into the final of the Champions League". I mean every game they play in knock outs is "worth the final", every time they say this. They beat Bayern six years ago by sheer luck and now what? Still the biggest club in Europe?

How can you compare one league to another? Arsenal was flawless last year, but it didn't get them anywhere in Europe. Chelsea lost to lowly Liverpool, for all their prowess. Is Liverpool the best team in Europe this year? They might win the Champions League, good for them, but  we know how they screwed up their domestic campaign.

Maybe we should look into the pressure put on players and teams day in and day out. Them some leagues will appear easier than others, but how can we measure that?

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Granted it is difficult. A couple of years ago the French league had 9 different winners in 10 years. Many people said that it was not only the most interesting but had more depth than any other league, but I don't remember French teams doing particularly well in Europe then.

Most foreign managers that come to our league do often say, though, that the Premiership is the most competitive league they have managed in.

You always get surprising results on the final day of the season. Norwich can score goals, so I'll be bold and say:

Fulham 1 Norwich 5

The rest is academic.

I'd also be intersted in a ticket or two. Let us know how you get on with this one.

The worst DJ I've seen is Lisa Lashes.

I was convinced she was on something as the set she played had no cohesion whatsoever. Like almost everyone else, I had to leave as it was truly terrible.

Yeah...this topic resurfaces every once an awhile...

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The curious thing is that whenever it does appear/re-appear, you always get people saying how experienced they are with Thai women. Yet if that were true, you would have thought they would have realized a long time ago that Thai women (like women everywhere) are just too varied&individual to generalize.

Were DJ S ever cool??

No, though many have thought they are and are seen as being cool by some.

The worst are those that -often pretentiously- draw attention away from the music&atmosphere towards themselves.

The best are those who are not pretentious/over-ambitious with the music, and simply do their job.

I remember a few pseudo-celebrity DJ's turning up at The Ministry of Sound, Bangkok a couple of years back, and emptying the place within 30 minutes. This was at 1am on a Saturday night at the club's peak hours.

Unfortunately, it's one of those things that has lots of pretenders and few that can do it well... .

Grolsh on sale in Bangkok? I am surprised and will check this out forthwith.

Thanks for this unexpected info

Fergie sets three defeat limit

Sir Alex Ferguson estimates Manchester United will not be able to lose more than three games next season if they are to reclaim their position as England's top dogs.

United suffered their fifth defeat of the Premiership campaign - and their first at home in 12 months - when Chelsea cruised to a 3-1 triumph at Old Trafford last night.

The victory extended the new champions' lead over United to an incredible 20 points, raising huge question marks over the ability of Ferguson's men to mount any kind of sustained title challenge next season.

Unlike the vast majority of Red Devils' fans, who headed for the exits early enough to leave their team to complete a customary post-season lap of honour to a two-thirds empty stadium, Ferguson is not suffering from any sense of inferiority to the Stamford Bridge outfit.

The Scot is convinced man for man United are Chelsea's equal. However, it has not gone unnoticed in the Old Trafford camp that after Arsenal's historic unbeaten campaign 12 months ago, Jose Mourinho's men will head into the final game at Newcastle having suffered just one defeat all season, against Manchester City in October.

Those combined efforts leave Ferguson to acknowledge that a repeat of the early trauma that saw United collect just six points from their opening five games cannot be tolerated.

'Over the years Manchester United have become well known slow starters,' he admitted.

'It has never particularly worried me because we have always seemed to have the capacity to come back strongly in the second half of a season, and, if necessary, catch our rivals.

'We always say it is a marathon not a sprint, but now I have to question that kind of thinking because Chelsea this season turned it into a sprint from start to finish.

'It is harder to win the league now. Maybe we are getting to a point where you cannot afford any more than three defeats in a season, which makes it a ###### of a league.

'There is no doubt Chelsea have raised the bar. It is up to us to accept the challenge and do something about it.'

Ferguson has been very careful not to downplay Chelsea's achievements this season and refuses to join the army of critics who have condemned the London outfit for the amount of Roman Abramovich's cash which has been spent securing a first championship for 50 years.

Given the vast transfer budgets Ferguson has enjoyed down the years, he is probably wise to steer such a route.

Nevertheless, he does wonder whether the good fortune he believes Chelsea enjoyed, similar to that United have benefited from in the past, can hold.

'You cannot dismiss Chelsea's points total and they deserve all the credit,' he said.

'But sometimes, you do have a season when everything goes right, just as we did in 1999.

'Chelsea have had 16 1-0 wins this season and they have not conceded a penalty kick. It is a fantastic record, but can it happen again? Next season, who knows, it might be us who get the breaks they have had this year.'

Looking back, Ferguson has already identified the opening day defeat at Stamford Bridge as the day when his side's championship challenge died.

Some may suggest it is a simplistic approach but there is little doubt United had no chance of pulling back the nine-point gap which opened up within those troublesome first five games.

One of the major reasons for the sluggish start was a cramped pre-season programme that saw some senior figures within the Red Devils squad rushed to the United States with barely no training behind them following complaints from organisers about the sub-standard squad Ferguson had taken on tour.

This summer, nothing is being left to chance. With the exception of Gabriel Heinze and Tim Howard, who will be required for international competitions, the United squad will report back for pre-season training on June 27.

It gives them three weeks preparation before a couple of domestic friendlies and a four-match Asian tour which come ahead of a crucial Champions League qualifier on August 10 and the start of the Premiership programme three days later.

'Some people might think, after putting so much effort into their game, Chelsea will pay for it next season. I doubt that,' said Ferguson.

'Anyway, I am not prepared to take the risk.

'I am determined we are going to be more physically ready to hit the ground running at the start of next season.

'We must be better prepared, not simply because we will be involved in an early qualifying.

Surely Fergie has got it wrong here, as this would not have got him the title this season or last season. What he needs to do is beat Arsenal and Chelsea home and away, and then lose 1, perhaps 2 other games all season, scoring around 80 goals in the process -simple right?

Too early to tell what is going to happen to United. It's the richest club in the world so I am sure it will be fine for some time to come. However, you DO need to beat Arsenal in the cup (which you probably won't as they are strong defensively again and will want revenge) and you do need to win something more substansive next year. Should you not, I think it's fair to say that your dominance of English football will have come to an end.

Greetings. After being unable to sleep twice going to and then from Mukdahan I've begun to wonder whether travelling at night is the better option. What do you think and why?

I've heard that the Thai government is cracking down on dreams and is about to make them illegal. Anyone caught dreaming, or daydreaming for that matter, especially about blowing up trains and things, will be arrested and imprisoned until they stop dreaming. Apparently the police will soon have powers to enter a person's home/apt. in the middle of the night, wake them up and ask them what they were just dreaming about.

Can anyone verify this?

Sustaining motivation is the biggest challenge you face if you are looking to remain fit for years on end. As someone said, finding an excuse not to do it is one of the easiest things in the world, especially if you've had a hard day at work. Sometimes, though you do need to take a step backwards before you can go forwards. So if your body is telling you to ease up, it's better to do that than to continue regardless. This is one of the quickest ways to lose your interest perminently.

Don't push yourself too hard mate but push yourself nonetheless. Remember that exercise has to put some strain on your body to make it worthwhile but that doesn't mean you can't still enjoy it.

I run 6 times a week for about 45 minutes. It's taken a year for my body to be able to take it. Now I can do it, shower and go straight out without feeling any immediate effects. I rarely feel tired, perhaps because I am 18Kg's lighter because it of it, which I believe, is about the same weight as a heavy backpack.

If you persevere, you'll get there in the end. All good things come to those who wait as they say.

Good luck.

Didn't Real Madrid finish fifth when they won the champions league one year? Kind of ironic that they call it the champions league

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Agreed.

It started out as a strict champions' league and was better then than now...but we all know what makes the world go round.

Nowadays it's too much like the World Cup. Doesn't really get going until you get into the knockout stages.

Beer Lao will never be found on sale in Thailand because Thailand is a not a free market and the Thai authorities know that if they did sell beer Lao, everyone would go out and buy it instead of Singha and Chang (assuming Beer Lao was competitively priced).

Admittedly, I thought the same of Tiger and was surprised when they introduced it onto the market. Mr. Shinawatra is apparently listening to ex-pat complaints at the moment, so perhaps we should suggest he lets a few more beers onto the market. Grolsh, Beer Lao and Anchor would be a good start.

I think it was a bit better five years ago as the police weren't quite as strict then. Most of the nightlife does cater for guys wanting to meet girls, so that they can retire to a hotel room/apt. with their new sidekick somewhere and go at it like rabbits. I like Pattaya's nightlife in comparison to BKK but find them both a bit one-dimensional, unfortunately though, seeking out alternative forms of entertainment after a few beers can be a pain up the arse at times.

Nothing can remain interesting/exciting forever, and when you've been here a while less is definately more. Again, this means seeking out other stuff... .

The beach/go-go bars: agreed, you can see more on the beach. I recently saw a tourist strip off naked in Naklua. Unfortunately, she was about 20Kg's overweight

This is fairly typical of local authorities and service providers world-wide.

What is not typical is the disaster that is the re-laying of new tiling on the footpaths of Pattaya Tai. The old ones were ripped up for the entire length of the road at the start of the year - high season for tourists. They contractor then laid some sand bedding and went to sleep until last month.

The sand bedding was compacted in small paths where all the pedestrians had walked in each others' footsteps, otherwise sloping every which way.

Now along comes the paving tile layer and does precisely that. Lays tiles. No levelling and compaction of the sand bed, no height adjustment.

And I am used to using a plate compacter for that, then laying the tiles, cutting round the manholes, laying a couple of centi's of sand over the top and using the plate compacter again to seat everything firmly in place.

And only ripping up / re-laying a couple of hundred square metres at a time - not a mile-long street on both sides.

Perfectly good paving has been wasted by being laid by complete know-nothing failed rice farmers (and that's the supervision). In less than six months these paviors will be sticking up at the corners, tripping and injuring anyone daft enough to try to walk on them. As bad, or worse than before.

All it needs is a competent, experienced engineer in the public works department, who has the authority (and courage) to make the contractors work properly. As it is the work is undertaken by a 'connected' contractor who doesn't give a flying monkey's if the work is done well, or even done at all.

Premier Tourist Resort??

Don't make me laugh.

Pathetic third world corruption in plain view.

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Yes, it seems as if they have managed to find a way to tarnish the reputation of pattaya yet further.

It's almost ingenious, and for those -like myself- who have had a serious accident there this year because of the work going on- a f***-ing pain up the arse.

Pattaya's "growth potential" is as clean as its beaches! You be the judge.

The potential is defintely there in Pattaya. But much of it depends on what they are going to do and how they continue to develop it. Over the last few years the approach has been more of the same. More of the same crumby beer bars everywhere. If they had more sense and catered for a wider variety of tourist I am sure it would do better for it. I think there's only so many bars a town can have before it reaches saturation point.

This is all really helpful. Thanks a lot.

Greetings all. After returning from the British Embassy for the second time, it was pointed out to me, when I asked how long I would have to wait for an interview that is, that there are two types. The first can be arranged for (presumably straightforward cases) within a few weeks. The other type of interview is for (again going on the way it was said) less straightforward cases and would not occur before August. I was told that not until the application has been viewed will I know what type of interview I will be getting. Can anyone help here? My partner has worked in Central Chitlom for years and has an easily checkable work history. She has not had a passport until recently and neither of us have children or previous marriages. I can't see any problems.

Also could someone clear up what they mean by sufficient funds? I have enough money to pay for the visa process and fly us both out to England but that would take up most of what I have in Thailand at the present. Again from speaking to the officer at the Embassy, they simply stated that I need to show I would not rely on public funds in the UK. I asked whether it would be enough to show proof of family accommodation and perhaps a letter from a family member stating that if the worst came to the worst and I was unable to support myself then, I would be supported by family and not state beneftis. They said yes but not convincingly. Can anyone advise? Would be very grateful if someone could share any info they have so that I can make the correct decision as I don't want to pay for a visa application, wait months, only to have it refused. Can anyone give examples of what is/has been considered as sufficient/insufficient funds/ or whether this is a serious conern for the Embassy.

Thanks

Would be very interested to hear what other people say as I am in a similar boat myself, though with the UK Embassy. Speaking to others via this chat site, my feeling is that it wouldn't be frowned upon if you weren't at the Interview, but as said this is just a feeling.

Thursday, May 5, 2005 Soccernet.com

Barcelona break history over shirt deal

MADRID, May 5 (Reuters) - Barcelona president Joan Laporta has flown to China to try and close the club's first ever shirt sponsorship deal with Chinese authorities, Spanish media reported on Thursday.

A delegation from the club is expected to meet Chinese officials in order to put the finishing touches to an agreement that would see the Primera Liga side promote the 2008 Beijing Olympics from next season.

So gents. Does it fill you with pride to see some (probably foreign) company on the shirt of your beloved team. Or, as Barcelona has always maintained -until now that is- do shirts look better without them?

Just out of interest what's the most/least impressive sponsor you've seen on a shirt? The one that used to make me laugh was when West Ham were sponsored by Dr.Martins. Could have sworn some of their players wore them while player on more than one occasion. We once had U.S.A (Universal Salvage Auctions) they salvaged stolen cars from scrap yards. Frank Skinner once remarked that this was particularly appropriate for Luton, who had been known to 'salvage' a point or two over the years.

If you could choose a sponsor for your team what would it be?