helitool

You only become allergic to something after you have been exposed to it enough for your body to start producing antigens to fight it, this is what causes the reaction not the venom itself. I have been stung many times because of living in rural areas with no reaction at all. Then one day I was stung 3 times on the arm by some small hornets and in a couple of mins I started to itch all over and my skin turned red.

I told my son to drive me to the emergency room (about 15 min. away). I passed out several times on the way and could barely walk into the hospital when we arrived. They took my blood pressure and found it was 85/60. They set me down in a wheel chair and had me fill out some forms, next thing I knew I passed out and came to in an operating room.

I stood up from the wheel chair and told the doctor that I was ok now no problem. He didn't say a word, just pointed to the crotch of my pants where I had obviously lost total control of my bladder!

I became very cooperative at that point as I know that simple lose of consciousness does not cause loss of autonomic functions!

If the bees are the type which produce honey any bee keeper will be glad to come and take them off your hands (he will capture the queen and put her in a small box and the other bees will go where ever she goes).

I would suggest that anyone who comes into contact with stinging insects go to a doctor and get a bee be sting kit that has an injectable form of adeinilin that will treat the symptoms long enough for you to get to the hospital.

Acoustics towards the railway station has a showroom full of new pianos. He might be able to advise you as to where you could find an inexpensive one. I have had him rebuild some of my fiddles and can vouch for his craftsmanship and reasonable prices in that area. Why don't you get an electronic keyboard as they are easier to find and less of a problem. If you want Acoustics address I can email my brother-in-law in Chiang Mai and have him email it to you.

The thing that fasinates me is that Ireland and england are next door to each other but Gaelic and english are so different that they might as well be from seperate planets!

I and my brother-in-law will be building large CNC plasma cutting tables when I get to Thailand in a couple of months. I brought over a suitcase full of control modules and stepper motors end of last year and put one together using local talent and materials. If you need any help dealing with programing in G & M code or translation of DXF files into G&M let me know. I should be in CM after March this year.

The sole purpose of Thai TV is to make Italian TV look good. Then again who am I to critisize, I watch Deutsche Welle!

Quote: Can they sell there vote to somebody elso who votes on their behalf or is it based on trust (after pay off that they actually vote for the party/person that paid them?

I asked my wife about this last year and she said that usually the voter is given 10 baht and then they go in and vote for the person that they were told to vote for.

I then asked her why the bribed person could not simply take the money and vote for someone else.

She said that they usually don't do that since it would be dishonist!!

One system that was used in the west was for the briber to pay the voter for his blank ballot then hand him one that had already been marked to go in and deposit in the ballot box. The briber would then premark the blank ballot for the next person he bribed.

Apparently the Thais use the honor system of election fraud

25 years for my wife and I. She is more beautiful today than when I married her. No western woman would have put up with me for that long!

End of last year I was in Thailand for 3 months to construct a very complex computer controled plasma cutting table for my brother-in-law who is a machinist in Chiang Mai. I brought the electronic moduals over in my suitcase but everything else was supplied by local firms and the work was all done by Thais except for the electronics wiring and calibration which I had to do.

Not once did I encounter any form of incompitance on the part of any of our suppliers or any of the many metal fabricators who supplied us. Also the service was excellent. At one point we had a company in BKK manfacture 10 1 meter long precision gear racks for us. This took less than a week to recieve them and they were perfectly made.

I never have any problems when living in Thailand and have a very high oppinion of the intellegence of Thais. Whenever I read this forum I can't help but wonder "what Thailand do these people live in!" because it must be in a different one than mine.

I was in Chiang Mai end of last year and had a hernia operation at the Chiang Rai hospital. It cost me a total of $245 for a full operating room procedure and general anathesia with 5 technicans. They did a great job. That included 3 days in the VIP suite and a dental exam and cleaning.

I later went to see a GP in CM to have him check the incision as it healed and he didn't even charge me at all! Typical GP visit up north costs about 100 Baht.

Compare that to the $8,000 per year they wanted for health insurance here in the united States of Bush and you will understand why I am returning to Los permanently in a couple of months!

Twenty years ago when I was living in CM I would show the cops my NAUI scuba divers card when they stoped me. They always accepted it (diver was close enough to driver to convince them). Guess that wouldn't work now of days, eh!

I have investigated Blue Cross Insurance and it seems that after a certain age, I think 65, they won't insure me anymore for hospital coverage.  Assuming one lives to be 86, is there any medical insurance available in Chiang Mai?

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Why would you need medical insurance in Thailand? I had a hernia operation in Chaing Rai 5 months ago for $225 That included 2 nights in the VIP suite ($60 per night). This was a full on operating room procedure with general anethetic.

Thomas,

I fear that you made a spelling error in the following sentence.

" I doubt if any citizen of the USA has ever seen, or ever understood, the wonderful Mrs. Bouquet."

Her name is actually spelled "Bucket" she only pronounces it Bouquet! Some of us colonials do watch " Keeping up with apperances" here in the states.

You guys aren't casting asparagus on my caricature are you?

Gerry, Thanks for the reply! I emailed David. I will be retiring in CM end of this year, we will have to meet up after I get settled in.

I Have an unrestored 1939 Packard sedan that I would like to ship to Thailand. Does anyone know how much of a problem and expense it is to get an antique car through Thai custom?

Twenty years ago I taught english at AUA Chaing Mai for 6 years about 3-4 hrs each day. I only once caught two of my students using english to comunicate with each other outside the classroom in all that time! I returned to LOS end of last year for 3 months.

After 15 years the only changes in english study that I noticed were for the worse.

1. AUA has stopped teaching kids and only teaches adults.

My favorite classes were the kids!

Only native speakers of a language are truely qualified to teach that language. One reason that is overlooked is that they are comfortable enough speaking it that they can concentrate on technique instead of using all their concentration just to string a few words together.

2. English instruction in Thai public schools is even worse than it was then.

The entire 3 months I was in the same house as my 10 year old nephew who is a student at Montford. The lack of quality of the english instruction is apalling! They were trying to teach him vocabulary words that I a native speaker who is very well read and educated had never seen, but he coulden't say the simplest sentence to me in answer to questions such as "good morning, did you sleep well".

3. I did not notice any english programing on Thai tv.

As far as I am concerned the only proper use of television is to teach a target language. I watch only German and Italian tv programs as those are the languages I am currently learning. My wife learned a lot of her english here in the states from TV.

4. One reason that Thais use Thai instead of english is that Thai is far better for basic comunication purposes than english. I prefer it myself as the nuances available are more subtle and it is just more fun. If given the choice a Thai will comunicate in Thai no mater how good he is at english (and so will I)

5. Among foreigners throughout the world the lingua franca is english. Here in Thailand it is Thai. When I meet a Frenchman or Italian etc. who has lived here for years we use Thai to comunicate because neither of us speaks the others language as well as we do the Thai language we have been forced to learn by living here in Thailand.

I am sure that many of us retired english speakers would donate their time to the Thai educational system if the burecrats would make it easier to do.

In my case they are more nightmares than dreams. Such as going to the airport to get on my flight to Thailand and finding that I have been put on the "terrorist no fly list" and will have to walk to mexico to find an airline that will take me!

Propane is under very low pressure (about 150 psi) so there is little danger from the tank steel rupturing or the valve breaking off. The thing that scares me is when my brother in law orders 250 cubic foot oxygen cylinders for his shop and they arrive in the back of a pickup (say 30 of them) with no safety caps on them. If the valve breaks off of one of those 2,000 psi cylinders they travel about 1/8 mile before landing.

Here in the States the fire dept. has been known to set fire to large propane leakes in pipelines to let it burn slowely instead of mixing with the air and becoming explosive. Propane is only an explosive hazard if it acumulates inside of a closed area. If you smell gas when entering your house or a boat NEVER turn on an electric light switch as this will probably ignite the mixture.

Here in the U.S. or own statistics state that every 6th person you meet has minor mental problems and 1 out of 100 has mental problems that interfer with their day to day existance. The world health organisation has voted the U.S. as the nation with the most psychosis in the world 7 years running. But look at the bright side, we have most of the nuclear weapons! Sort of puts the big picture of mental illness in perspective doesn't it?

I lived in Chiang Mai for 6 years and never once was I asked for a bribe, BUT if ever a policeman or official went out of their way to help me I always made sure that I reciprocated in kind, but never with money! I would bring them back something from the U.S. or proof read their kids application letter to foreign schools, etc. Thais despise people who are "narrow hearted" but will go out of their way to help someone who shows an interest in them and their work.

So, instead of a bribe I give compassion and understanding wraped in a smile and a sense of humor. I have found that this is usually accepted as leagal tender in most parts of this earth.

(This approach may not work as well in Bangkok and Los Angeles, CA as it does up north)

The following are the number of intentional homicides per thousand by firearms. If you go to www.nationmaster.com you will find most any statistical crime comparisons you can imagine!

1. South Africa 0.71 per 1000 people

2. Colombia 0.50 per 1000 people

3. Thailand 0.30 per 1000 people

4. Zimbabwe 0.04 per 1000 people

5. Mexico 0.03 per 1000 people

6. Belarus 0.03 per 1000 people

7. Costa Rica 0.03 per 1000 people

8. United States 0.02 per 1000 people

When all types of homicide are included the USA moves up to #4 position.

Winters in Chiang Mai... Summers in Italian alps!

German is the easiest language for an english speaker to learn. You will probably find that when you become really fluent in a second language you will be able to swithch back and forth between your native language and it easily. The problem comes when you try to go from a second to a third language as in translating a conversation between a german and a Thai, you will mix them up.

If you find that you love learning languages and like to travel, instead of becoming a flight attendent become a simultanious translator. The pay and prestige are far better.

OK, Cars imported into Thailand have a very high customs duty attatched. But what about the ones that are manufactured here in Thailand? There are currently 30 companies including Mercedes that make their cars here in LOS! Shouldn't they be reasonably priced? Riddle me that one if you will?

You have been given some excellent advice and the only thing that I can add is that the most important thing in any relationship is comunication. My wife (who is from Chiang Mai) and I have been married for 25 years. We are very fluent in each others languages and we still have misunderstandings! If you plan on having a relationship with someone from another culture the first step is to learn the language and culture THEN you will have the tools to start searching for that special woman whose personality will match yours. Good luck!

On a slight tangent. I wonder if anyone attempted to give the child CPR? I believe the success rate for eletrocution is fairly good. I wonder if anyone in Thailand other than medical personel at hospitals have ever been given instruction in CPR or the Heimlich manuver?