bazza40

4 minutes ago, ClutchClark said:

 

Well I glad that Nancy gave you this opportunity to brag about yourself.

 

I don't think they care much for that at expat clubs. Its about inclusiveness and not about why you are special.

I can't help the way you choose to look at things. Your response does indicate some bitterness of your own.

Or perhaps you took offence because you are one of the wet lettuces?

On 04/09/2016 at 8:57 AM, NancyL said:

You've got to remember that Chiang Mai has been promoted as one of the top places for international retirement for over ten years and thus has a very high number of retired expats.  Many of the articles in international press focused on the cheap cost of living here and others, particularly on the internet, talked about how easy it is for men, even those of a "certain age" to find beautiful female companionship.  

 

Many of these men have found themselves to be victims of the global economic crash of 2008-9 and/or divorce settlements where half their old age pension and life-time savings were given to their wives by judges.  How were they to start a new life  as an old man in a competitive environment in their home countries?  What employer would want them.  And no woman who was attractive enough to make them feel young again would give them the time of day.  Why not just come to Thailand and live a perpetual holiday on their reduced pension income?

 

Fast forward to now when they've been here a few years and are in their seventies.  While someone mentioned reduced testosterone as something that happens as one enters their seventies, it's more likely they're suffering the effects of poor diet in trying to save money eating cheap Thai food, with the calcium and vitamin B12 deficiencies that can develop.  They overindulge in alcohol, which affects judgment and further destroys the ability to absorb vitamins.  Not to mention makes them susceptible to falls on CM's bad footpaths.  And early stage dementia is starting, with frontal lobe changes that cause anger and temper tantrums.  Long-term alcohol use causes a form of dementia.  

 

It's important that newly arrived retirees develop a social network when they arrive and activities that focus on something besides drinking.  While it's nice to make friends with the local people, it's been my observation that the most successful elder expats are those who have a wide circle of friends within the expat community.  As one gets older, their ability to socialize in a foreign language diminishes and it's important to keep the touchstones of one's home country.  Too many expats live in self-imposed isolation here, right in the middle of the city.  It doesn't need to be that way.

Bravo Nancy, a not-so-subtle attempt to enlist more retirees into the expat club here.

I regard myself as successful. I have my own hobbies and I choose my friends carefully. I can live like a king on a part pension and the income from my assets. My Thai GF of 7 years is a joy to me.

Sorry, but  belonging to an  expat club with organised activity, being bored to tears by people with the personality of a wet lettuce, would be torture akin to chewing razor blades. No thanks.

I would have to say I get more frustrated with Australian bureaucracy than I do with Thai bureaucracy. The term "public service" in Australia is an oxymoron.

On 04/09/2016 at 9:30 AM, MissAndry said:

There can be many explanations, for both men and women,, some might include,

 

1. Trying to survive on small amounts of pension money.

2. Constant pain from ongoing/incurable medical conditions.

3. Side effects from medication/painkillers.

4. Frustration at the language barrier, particularly if you are hard of hearing.

5. Disappointment accumulated from their life.

6. No hope left for the future.

 

It's entirely understandable IMHO.

(I'm currently on painkillers and anti-inflammatory for my broken bone and teeth, and this weekend have been particularly obnoxious and unrestrained, apologies to anyone who I've argued with on this forum) 

 

I've thought your posts of late have been more good-humoured, so keep it going.

9 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

If you don't pay up front and don't have a credit card you can use your Passport as security but does depend on how you present yourself, i am arrogant by nature and have an aristocratic demeanour.

I shouldn't imagine the bar is set very high in Surin

2 hours ago, Don Mega said:

2 holes.

fun to use a carrot to massage the prostrate.

Always good to find a comic for my straight man.

The parade was always about giving the police media exposure. Quite right to stop it, because it prejudged the guilt of the suspects on show.

10 minutes ago, Don Mega said:

 

Nah. I like the idea of granny style pantyhose, I can rip holes in the appropriates place to gain  access to the fun bits.

How many holes will you be making? I'm always up for more sex education.

9 hours ago, JJGreen said:

I am expecting some posters will begin sending me naked pics of themselves soon, such is their personal fascination with me...very seriously so.
 

No no no. The only person who sees me naked is my GF, and she has to get there first.

Your posts may be a bit off the wall. Some of the responses are good for a laugh, which is as it should be.

Please PM me if Miss Andry sends you a naked pic.

Sounds like a good plan to convert a large fortune into a small one.

The number 1 rule of any financial activity is never ever invest in anything you don't understand.

I wouldn't be buying green bananas. I think an alcoholic stupor would do nicely. Sex can be overrated.

9 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

You're a delightful person.

Thank you - I feel better now.

Just now, Jingthing said:

I really was talking about more URBANIZED Thais.

Anyway, you're wrong if you think it's only western fast food that can be blamed. It's one factor of many.

Did you specify that in your original dissertation? No.

I must have skipped one of my meds - my tolerance for cretins is very low this evening.

You're posting about a dubious credit for 50 baht? Get a life.

3 hours ago, phantomfiddler said:

It,s not just the kids. It would seem to me that at least 80% of thai ladies , over the past 15 years, have degenerated into a bunch of fat ugly bags  In the very early 80,s they were all lovely, but thanks to McDonalds, Pizza Hut, and Kentucky Fried Chicken there are very few these days that catch one,s eye

Not in my neighborhood, perhaps you need to broaden your horizons. Although I do agree MPK are a pernicious influence.

Try Australia or the US if you really want to see degeneration.  You need to roll them in flour to find the wet spot.

4 hours ago, Jingthing said:

It's not only western fast food.

The general food environment here now promotes obesity.

Lots of sugar, cheap oils, fried foods (mostly Thai), processed foods, white rice, sugar drinks, etc.

Studies have shown the role of lack of exercise in development of obesity is a minor factor compared to the FOOD INTAKE -- types of food and portions. 

Most of the Thais in the village where I stay periodically cannot afford fast food. They also have brutal labour in the rice fields to keep them slim.

Obesity is a result of affluence. IMHO, the Thai Government would do all Thais a massive favour if they simply booted McDonald's, KFC and Pizza Hut out of Thailand.

What am I saying? I'm desecrating the sacred icons of Western civilisation (sic).

3 hours ago, Deepinthailand said:

I will start 

Number 1

Wallich was first, and I'm #9. Manners please.

There probably are; however, it's likely no-one will tell you. The Thais won't, because they don't want us to realise how much we are contributing to the economy via bank deposits to qualify for retirement visas. Various nationalities won't, because they don't want us becoming a lobby group or voting bloc.

18 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

You want DIY forum. 

 

What you want can be easily achieved with eave and ridge venting which will cool it a bit better but there will always be heat in the roof area above insulated ceilings. 

 

If you have a gable ended roof you vent more with mesh louver openings at both ends.

Thank you

10 hours ago, Hutch68 said:

She did well, can't buy the materials for that and pay for the workers that price is impossible.

This is a village way out in the sticks. One of the guys who built it is a neighbour, quite a skilled artisan. My GF was paying him 250 baht a day, and he worked from dawn to dusk. Not all Thais fit the lazy stereotype. Maybe it looks impossible, but that's what she says she paid.

She also had dump trucks come in with soil from the rice fields to make a large vegetable garden. Many of her neighbours get free vegetables now. From memory, it was about 40 trucks with 3 cubic metres of soil each. 180 baht per truck, total 7200 baht.

The quotes seem very high. My Thai GF fenced her property near Chiang Rai in cement blocks about 1.5 metre high, 150 metres total for 35,000 baht about 2 years ago. Possibly the falang price is being quoted.

The OP will not get anything reliable for 100K baht, all of them will be plus 200,000 km and have the guts flogged out of them. That's assuming they've had regular servicing, which does not always happen.

The smaller cars such as the Nissan Micra or Honda Brio are very sensitive to servicing intervals because the engines are small, 1.2 litres.

There are some good buys to be made with the Toyota Vios, 1.5 litre bulletproof engine. Look for cars owned by a falang, they are mostly more conscientious about servicing. If you are lucky, 200K - 300K baht for an example with less than 80,000 km is possible.

Bear in mind locally produced cars may not have all the safety features of the exported models. Stuff like airbags and stability control.

Don't go anywhere near Korean or Chinese brands. Koreans because all their stocks of large spare parts are not held here, but sourced from Korea as a cost-saving measure. Chinese because they are simply death traps.

The OP has not said whether his girlfriend has a Thai car driving licence. That probably does not matter, because the standard of Thai driving instruction is abysmal. As she has already crashed her scooter, that should be a red flag on her driving skills.

Looking for some advice on the house roof space.

I've had 6" insulation, R factor 3.7 installed in the ceiling space, which has decreased heat transfer from the hot air to the living space quite considerably. However, there is still a pool of hot air above the insulation, because the roof is not ventilated.

I was thinking of having soffit vents in the eaves, with a short chimney and Dutch cap near the peak of the roof. I don't like the idea of whirlybirds, as I'm not sure they would not leak in the rainy season.

Any thoughts? Also, would there be an English-speaking builder in the Chiang Rai area who could quote on this?

9 hours ago, JaseTheBass said:

 

Ford must have spent a fortune on the Aussie journos as they generally rate the Everest higher than the Landcruiser too.

Be that as it may, one doesn't see too many Fords in the outback areas. Landcruisers rule. Even Nissan Patrols are thin on the ground.

I had a farmer friend who was absolutely brutal with his farm vehicles. The dealers were in tears when he traded them in, because they were basically wrecks. Did things like towing 4 tonne saw benches, or jump-starting Steiger ploughs. Also raced them in cross-country rallies. When I say cross-country, I mean bush tracks only.

Most of the brands he tried only survived 18 months to 2 years. Despite his best efforts, the Landcruiser lasted for 7 years.

11 minutes ago, bazza40 said:

If you own a car, or use any form of public transport such as a taxi or bus, you are  in a conveyance produced with the aid of animals. That's because the steel panels were made with a cold-rolling process which requires lubrication. Most rolling oils contain animal

tallow. The wheel bearings which facilitate your travel will have greases containing lithium stearate as lubricants. Again, the stearic acid used to make the grease is derived from acid splitting of tallow. Think that moisturiser you or your GF uses is animal -free? Think again - the glycerine has animal origins. Shaving soap ditto.

I think these examples illustrate a lot is going to slip by- just sharing  info

 

Additional information. I do hope you and your GF can rely on natural lubrication, Skeptic7. I must point out lubricants on condoms and KY jelly all contain glycerine.