xylophone

Perish the thought!

Bruno123 has been a great help, so as he said, just look at the info on a couple of the posts he has posted. My needs seem to be the same as yours and I know what you meant with regards to "social media" and if you're anything like me, you are posting on this forum from your laptop/PC. However I have no need to take a picture of my cup of coffee, ice cream, the outside of Starbucks, a pizza or the like (you get my drift) and I think it's very sad there are people who do this, and also very sad to see a family sitting round the lunch/dinner table after having finished their meal, all of them fixated on their mobile phones. I do believe the art of good after-dinner conversation is rapidly dying, and for that matter, good conversation sans smart phone.

You are a great help Bruno, so I thought I'd ask you one last question (I hope).......in searching for the iPhone 5s I also came across the iPhone SE, which appears to have been launched later, and looks to be about the same size, which is great for me. The one I was looking at only has the 16 GB model, so I was wondering if that would be enough for the Thai app (Mor Chan?) and my normal telephone calls and SMS messages??

Thank you Bruno, you are a STAR!

Well you have echoed my sentiments exactly, although I wasn't clear from your post. What I objected to was my friend telling me what I should have when he had no idea what I needed, and hardly any idea of how to use his! Yes I did see 5s, although my voice recognition software didn't pick it up, so I did look online at the 5s, and although an old phone, it might well do the trick, should I decide to go down that track. So thank you for the tip, and I am lucky inasmuch as a friend of mine gets a new Apple iPhone every couple of years, and I may well be in line for one of his old ones, so that, along with your recommendation should meet my needs if I have to get one for the Thai apps etc, if I don't, then I will stick with my trusty Nokia flip phone.

I don't know what you're referring to when you say, "your friend is right, you appear to be making a mountain out of a mole hill"? This because I have said that I may get a second hand iPhone or similar small smart phone, and I would purely use it for the things I have stated, whereas my laptop at home would be my main use. I also suggested the Samsung J2 may be a contender, although another poster has said that it won't handle even the Thai app, so I don't really know what your post is aimed at?? Having said that, I will do a little research on the iPhone 5.

I have got to agree with you DFP regarding Filipino musicians, because they are some of, if not the best musicians, I've seen here in Patong. I was thinking the same thing when I was watching the band in Red Hot last night where around half of them are Filipinos, however the lead guitarist is Thai and is just brilliant. I ended up there with four friends, after a visit to Black Horse, where I caught up with a guy I know who arrived in the country just last Monday, and he said that his flight from Dubai had more than 260 passengers in it, he also said that a couple of friends of his had arrived in the country this week and flights were similarly crowded, so it seems to make a mockery of some numbers which have been bandied around? Having said that, last night was not as crowded as a few nights ago, according to my friend and also the pic I saw in a publication, however it was an improvement on the recent past, and that's a good sign. Also at Red Hot I met a guy from NZ, a bunch of guys from England, a couple of Americans and a couple of others whose accents I couldn't pick, but who came to congratulate me on some songs I performed. A couple of other English guys, accompanied by one Thai girlfriend, had come over from Pattaya because the nightlife there was "rubbish" and he was appreciative of the nightlife/vibrancy of Bangla. Sure enough at 11 PM most of the places started to close, and those which were little slow in doing so were visited by the BIB! The signs are good, but the news regarding Covid, opening times, closing times, alcohol and insurances is very mixed, which could slow tourist progress.

Watched the movie, "Dangerous", starring Scott Eastwood and thought it was pretty good, not outstanding but suitable for an evenings entertainment. You can definitely see Clint Eastwood's facial mannerisms in Scott, not surprising really. The movie also starred Mel Gibson in a kind of "semi-support" role and also Famke Janssen, whom I couldn't place until the credits. Worth a look IMO.

PS. I should add that I do all of my work on my laptop, along with a 24 inch monitor, and a large keyboard, and couldn't really see myself switching to a small 6 inch screen with small touch screen keys, so my phone, if I do get a smart phone, will only be for phone calls and SMS with the necessary vax stuff.

So no good for phone calls and the Vax form..........jeez it must be poor!! Will stay with my Nokia Flip phone then, till things change.

Thanks for the feedback Chris, however I don't want to run anything on it, although the OP may be different, but judging by his posts his needs aren't that much different to mine. As I said I don't want to run anything on it, I want to be able to make phone calls and receive them, as well as send an SMS or two.......oh and have the vaccination stuff on it. Also of course it is small. That's it........so do you think it will cope?

I recently posted on a similar thread with regards to buying a smart phone, which I have never needed, but MAY need with all of this Covid/re-entry paraphernalia going on, and I got a few good replies, including a PM from a poster who gave me some good information with regards to my needs. I had let this fade into the background until yesterday when a friend of mine who was waxing lyrical about his second-hand iPhone kept saying to me that I should get one, because I can watch YouTube on it – – I told him I never watch YouTube. He then suggested that I can plug earphones into it and listen to it, something I told him that I don't want to do. I told him that I have my computer at home and I answer my emails in the morning and sometimes later in the afternoon, and that's all I want, because I don't want them following me around. However he couldn't understand that because he is tapping away all of the time, and always complaining about being stressed out – – I wonder why. Getting back on track, I did look at a smartphone or two and I don't want a large beast to carry around, and the smallest I could see which MAY be of interest to me would be the Samsung J2 (which I believe is still available) and the Apple SE (the smaller one). It would be used only as a phone and I don't want any other apps on it apart from those applicable to Covid and immigration. Perhaps the OP would like to look at the Samsung J2 as an option.

Who said anything about "economising"? As I said I don't want to spend a fortune, and I know you can spend 30,000+ baht on a helmet, but I'm not prepared to do that and something which is functional and has been tested by one or another testing organisations would suit me fine. So less of the "jumping to conclusions" please, and I find your post insulting, and for what it's worth I wouldn't buy some of the rubbish I see on the shelves, or other folks wearing for that matter. I've seen how much damage can be done in a motorcycle crash, having helped a friend of mine when he crashed his 650 AJS into a lamppost, and unfortunately his girlfriend slid along the road on her face and the damage done to it was awful. That's why I will be getting a fullface helmet and travelling at around 30 kph I doubt whether I will suffer the same fate.

I have had an INDEX full face helmet for years and it is time for a new one. I don't want to spend a fortune, but just want something which is functional for me, as I would only travel about 5 km per day on my little Honda 110cc scooter, and would rarely go above 35 km/h, if that (I also have a car so they have a split use). The store I have just been to in Patong hasn't got much of a choice, so I may go into Phuket town tomorrow and have a look, so any suggestions on a reasonable helmet at a reasonable price?

I also believe the synchromesh was faulty in the early Minis (1959) and this was rectified when the 62/63 models came out. I say this because my gearbox failed completely, and whatever synchromesh was in it, just wasn't working, and as I recall, getting into third gear was the big problem – – crunch, grind etc. Luckily I had a friend who had his own little garage repair/workshop, so it was fixed for me for the grand price of £32! Apart from that and being an absolute rust bucket which had more filler in it than you could buy in Halford's, the later Minis I thought were good.

As Kwasaki has mentioned, I thought the Rover 3500, the one with the long sloping back and the previous one to it, were good cars and didn't seem to have problems with rust. The mini of course was a revolution with its transverse engine, but I often used to wonder whether British car manufacturers would put a car into the marketplace without thoroughly investigating it and its potential faults? I say this because the early minis had gearbox problems where the synchromesh would fail; the subframes were not undersealed, and would rot away in no time at all, and the brake adjusters quickly rusted into position, which made them unusable. The flimsy window mechanisms and the "felt" which acted as a sealer of sorts, soon fell apart, to name but a few poor design problems. At one time I drove a Morris Marina, and bits kept dropping off of it, especially the exhaust pipe, and a friend who owned an Austin Allegro was very surprised one day when driving to work with his new car, when the stub axle snapped, leaving him stranded. Apparently this was not unusual for this car? I bought an Austin 1500 Maxi and thought it was a lovely car with its hydrolastic suspension, although the gearlever had plenty of travel space, and IMO the Austin and Morris 1100 and 1300 cars were probably the pick of the bunch with their handling and suspension. I had my share of BL cars over the years and the last one I had before I emigrated, was the Vauxhall Cavalier 2 L and I thought that was a great car, sturdy, comfortable and fast. Back on topic, the MG badge/brand will be etched in the memories of many Brits, so I think the Chinese are onto a winner provided they can keep the quality up, and from what I've seen, they have.

Yes, management and the design folk/engineers have to take a lot of the blame for producing some absolute dogs of cars, and I drove a few, and it's no wonder the company went out of business. Having said that above, there was something strange about the MG badge/brand, because it was held in high esteem and above just about all of the other cars which BL made, and the MGB was a very popular car in its time, however it didn't appeal to me because of the limited leg room and the handling wasn't brilliant, and of course it was prone to rust. Despite all of that, any car with an MG badge on it was seen to be a cut above the company who actually manufactured it/them! PS. On the subject of engineering, I also owned a Triumph TR4A IRS at one time, and although it was a stunning looking car in my opinion, it really was a terrible car for road holding/handling, and I used to think that the IRS (Independent Rear Suspension) meant that the suspension was independent of the car itself, because that's the way it handled!

That is so sad MK, and I hear similar reports from friends of mine still in NZ. When I left 15 years ago it was still an okay country, however I needed to go somewhere where it was warmer all year round and where I would be away from the stress of corporate life, which I couldn't seem to get out of in NZ, because it was aggravating my reflux and Barrett's oesophagus. It worked and I'm now pretty well stress free and the condition has cleared, but I did harbour hopes of perhaps going back there at some time if I had to – – but now?? Despite the useless government here, and the pitiful state that I see some of the poor Thai folk in, I can't see myself moving elsewhere unless I really have to, and then it could well be Malta, Crete and I did even think of Rarotonga! Anyway thank you for the offer of a beer in Nangrong, and if I'm up that way, which is highly unlikely, I'll keep you in mind. All the very best to you and your family.

Yep.....can run the aircon unit on the "dehumidifier" setting and that may also help.

Taipan is open, but as of a few days ago neither Hollywood nor Illuzion were open..........

Yes, lovely Port so always in the frame for me!

Almost like a Jekyll and Hyde performance, compared to last week when United were a complete shambles, however this week they looked much more composed and incisive, however it has to be said that Spurs were dreadful. There's an old saying which goes along the lines of, "you can only play as well as the opposition will allow you" and I did think that could have been the case last week, however looking at some of the performances from the United players then, that wasn't the reason, because they were truly dreadful. Perhaps this will buy OGS sometime, and give the United chiefs time to look at a replacement, which they surely need to do. Will be interesting to see how they go against Atalanta.

Yes I did thanks VN and I thought it was good, if a little hard to follow, but the new one really didn't do it for me I'm afraid. BUT I will still give part 2 a go when it is out. Thanks.

I watched the new Hugh Jackman film last night, "Reminiscence", which also starred the mumbler, Rebecca Ferguson, and IMO it was a mishmash of a film which wasn't that easy to follow, and I was tempted to switch it off about half way through, but as I had nothing else to watch, I saw it out – – regretfully as its time I will never get back in my life. I do mourn the dearth of good films these days, and as I said previously I didn't think "Dune" really hit the mark, but thankfully folks on here have recommended a few goodies, and I really liked, "Old Henry" and particularly "Touching the Void", which although a few years old, was quite brilliant. Back on to Hugh Jackman, and I really did like, "The Greatest Showman" although I don't usually like "musical" types of movies and really don't watch them, but this was an exception. So my go to place for movie recommendations is this thread. Thank you to all the contributors!

So sorry to hear that Mike Kiwi, as I often have thoughts of returning to Godzone, but then sanity prevails and I remember my last visit back a few years ago and it was not the same place I left, but I consoled myself with the fact that everything changes so I could get used to it. Now I get reports from friends in NZ, as well as reading the NZ Herald, and the country is being ruined, more so by the current Labour government than anything else and I just can't believe that it is going so far left, and a cartoon I saw just a short while ago summed it up and it went something like this: – "Advice to children. Work hard and long and pay your taxes......so that the government can pay the beneficiaries more". There has always been class of people in NZ who just do not want to work and previous governments have always been too soft on them, but this one seems to have taken it to the extreme. I also noticed on my last visit how prices had skyrocketed, and especially those of houses, so people trying to get on the housing ladder with their first house, are pretty well stuffed. I've been here now for 15 years, so will probably see out my time here, because despite all of my grumbles, life isn't so bad here, and my plan B of returning to NZ, seems to have fallen by the wayside. Good luck with your move back here, and at least you tried, and that's all one can ask.